CQB-class Mjolnir

The MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/C variant, more commonly known as Close Quarters Battle Armor, (acronym CQB), is a type of United Nations Space Command ground infantry body armor and a variant of the MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark V and MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark VI.

Development and History
Successor to the earlier CQC variant first produced in 2548, the MJOLNIR/C Variant was developed and tested at UNSC facilities in Essen, Germany, and Songnam, Korea, respectively, integrating feedback gathered from the Jericho VII Theater. The intent of the MJOLNIR Mark VI Powered Assault Armor/C variant was to improve survivability in close combat, specifically by looking at alternate methods of K dispersal and improving joint mobility.

Helmet Characteristics
Unlock: Starter.

The helmet is very different from the standard Mark VI. It features a roughly "T" shaped visor with two large cheek guards. The top of the helmet is reinforced by a black alloy that forces a protective brace on top. It bears somewhat of a resemblance to the ancient Greek or Roman helmets and the helmets worn by ancient Spartans; the shape of the visor, especially; and the cross brace loosely resembles the crest on a helmet.

Shoulder Pauldron Characteristics
Unlock: Starter.

The shoulder pauldrons are worn significantly lower than those of the standard Mark VI armor. They consist of a rectangular, slightly curved metal plate that is attached approximately where the deltoids, biceps brachii, and brachialis muscles converge. In actual combat, this would greatly improve the ease at which a SPARTAN-II moves the arms for close quarters combat, but increase the shoulder and upper arm's exposure to damage.

Chest Characteristics
Unlock: Starter.

Like in most other MJOLNIR variants, the chest plate seems to be a plate of alloy attached to the already existing Mark VI armor underneath. It consists of an additional set of four plates fused together in the body, and a tubular object at the bottom part of the chest plate which could either be a handle or some sort of canister due to its shape. There is an unusable Combat Knife on the plate as well in a built-in sheath. In early development, the outer part of the chest piece was part of the secondary color group. Why this was changed is unknown.

Trivia

 * According to a survey taken by Bungie, the CQB chest is one of the most used Spartan chest plates on Xbox Live.
 * The CQB helmet is available as a permutation in Halo: Reach, along with its predecessor, the CQC variant.
 * In the Halo Legends episode Homecoming, Daisy-023 is seen wearing what appears to be this variant of MJOLNIR armor during the Harvest Campaign. However, as the predecessor to the CQB did not enter service until 2548, the variant seen in Homecoming is either artistic license or a visually similar but otherwise separate variant. The variant in Homecoming also bears a striking resemblence to Samus Aran in the Metroid francise
 * The CQB armor variant will return in Halo: Reach.