M39 rocket turret

The M39 rocket turret is a 102mm shaped-charge, high-explosive (SC-HE) rocket turret employed by the United Nations Space Command armed forces, used primarily on the M12A1 Rocket Warthog.

Design details
The M39 rocket turret is painted black, with some sort of motion tracking systems facing the gunner. The turret is apparently magazine-fed, due to the presence of a magazine mounted on the left side of the launcher, as well as a pair of identical magazines stored on the turret's base.

When fired, the turret launches three M19 102mm surface-to-surface missiles, the same as those employed by the M41 SPNKR rocket launcher. Each reload cycle of the 102mm SC-HE rocket turret consumes four seconds, which is vital in combat situations. Presumably, it has an automatic reload system as the gunner does not have to do anything during the reload cycle. Partial reloads, when only one or two rockets have been fired, are also available, but will still use up the entire reload cycle - there is no time difference between reloading an empty launcher or a launcher with one rocket left. The carriage of the M39 rocket turret resembles the M41 Vulcan to some extent, most notably due to the shield and arm braces.

Usage
The M39 rocket turret is primarily used on the M12A Rocket Warthogs, light anti-armour vehicles that would later be mostly replaced by Gauss cannons like the M68, and multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS) like the M79 and M80. While the M39 still populates UNSC armouries in large numbers, it has been mostly supplanted by M79 and M80 MLRS units.

Halo: Combat Evolved
The M39 was originally featured only in the PC edition of Halo: Combat Evolved, and not included in the original Xbox release of the game. However, the vehicle was included in the Combat Evolved multiplayer as part of the game's inclusion in Halo: The Master Chief Collection, meaning it can be freely used on any map which supports it.

While the M39 rocket turret does heavy damage, frequently killing infantry and vehicle crewmembers in a single shot, learning to hit moving targets when the Warthog itself is in motion requires practice as well as precise timing and aim. Players must take into account the flight time of the rocket, the motion of both the target and the shooter, as well as server lag in order to fire accurately. Constantly, the shots will go wide when fired in too close succession or fly too low when the Warthog is in midair, thus making this weapon less accurate than the LAAG. Mastery of the M39 Rocket Turret takes much longer than proficiency with the LAAG; Warthogs equipped with the LAAG can evade incoming rockets, then take advantage of the launcher's slow reload time to eliminate the helpless enemy. However, the rocket turret is quite an effective weapon if used correctly, and a skilled gunner and driver can become very dangerous in short-range vehicular combat. The gunner can also fire at masses of troops and, as well as vehicles, such as the Scorpion or the Banshee. As the rockets travel across the map, gunners can simply create a barrage of missiles from long range, suppressing opponents and forcing them to take cover. As with the LAAG, however, manning the turret leaves gunners extremely susceptible to sniper fire when the vehicle is still.

Production notes
The concept for a rocket launcher-equipped Warthog originates in the early builds of Halo's development, and was present during the game's third-person shooter era. At this time, the design for the rocket turret was vastly different - bearing more resemblance to the M68 Gauss cannon later introduced in Halo 2 - which presumably reused the cut Rocket Warthog turret's design. Like many other vehicles, the Rocket Warthog was later recovered and made useable in Halo: The Master Chief Collection by the Digsite team.

The M39 and by extension - the M12A1 Warthog as a whole - is only available for use in the PC port of Halo: Combat Evolved. The weapon is also included with all other Halo PC content in Halo: The Master Chief Collection. The weapon was planned for release in Halo: Ground Command as part of a Warthog upgrade pack also featuring the M862 Arctic Warthog's quad-treads, but this pack would never see release.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Combat Evolved for PC
 * Halo: Ground Command