Halcyon-class light cruiser

"A dozen Covenant superior battleships against a single Halcyon-class Cruiser. Given those odds, I'm content with three... make that four kills."

- Cortana during the Battle of Installation 04

The Halcyon-class cruiser (pronounced 'hal-see-on') (known as Human Attack Ship class C-II by the Covenant) was a United Nations Space Command cruiser starship classification designed by Dr. Robert McLees in 2510, with a Hull Classification Symbol of C. Their service lives were short due to a unique hull design that was costly both to construct and to maintain, lack of speed and poor armament, and concerns about their tactical viability. They were subsequently replaced by the. Despite the inherent disadvantages of the design, if upgraded appropriately and handled well, they could be among the most effective, and likely the most expensive, ships in the UNSC Navy.

Background
At 1.17 kilometers in length and one-third the tonnage of the succeeding Marathon-class Cruiser, the Halcyons were the smallest of vessels to be designated and structured as cruisers. Compared to later ships, the original Halcyons were sorely underpowered and under gunned: their Mark II fusion engines provided but a tenth of the output of modern reactors and their armament consisted of a mere six Archer Missile pods and a single MAC gun. According to Cortana they were somewhat of a joke within the fleet. However, with the right upgrades, a Halcyon-class cruiser can be a formidable foe. During the Fall of Reach, the upgraded Pillar of Autumn was able to put up a tremendous fight, taking on everything from Covenant Frigates to a Covenant Carrier and even the Covenant Supercruiser and winning all the fights. The supercruiser was a ship no one had tried to take on and even the Super MACs couldn't hit due to the extreme distance, but the Pillar of Autumn was able to destroy it by using all of her armaments while withstanding heavy damage.

The most noteworthy design feature was a series of internal cross bracings and honeycombs that made the ships surprisingly resistant to battle damage; ships of the class were able to remain operational despite sustaining breaches to all compartments and losing 90% of their armor. The durability of the design was demonstrated by the when she survived a crash-landing on Alpha Halo after taking a tremendous beating at Reach and over the ring. However, while the crusier was intact, it was damaged beyond repair and could never fly again, although some systems were still online such as the fusion core, the engines, and the self-destruct. Another example of the ship's durability was during the Fall of Reach when the ship took on the Covenant Supercruiser and took two hits from the ship's main weapon (one of which severly damaged the reactors) and kept going, eventually destroying the supercrusier when just one shot from that ship was able to take out newer and more powerful warships such as a UNSC Carrier.

When the Human-Covenant War erupted in 2525 a number of Halcyon cruisers were reactivated from storage and refitted.

Layout
Halcyon-class cruisers are composed of five hexagonal and octagonal sections mounted onto each other. The bridge is slung underneath one of the forward sections and eight docking bays are distributed throughout the ship. There are also slots for eighteen lifepods on the ships' hull. Because of the low number, these were likely used only as a last resort if Pelicans or other modes of transportation were not available. Lastly, the MAC cannon is visible as a bump on the bow. The speculation that the gun is somewhere else on the ship is proved false in the cut scene at the beginning of the mission, The Maw, where the camera circles the ship, showing the obvious barrel in the 'bump'.

Corridors on the Halcyon-class were segmented by several retractable containment bulkheads. In the event of an emergency, these bulkheads could be closed and affected sections sealed from the remainder of the ship. A potential application of this was during a hostile boarding action, whereas the atmosphere in the sealed sections could be vented via commands from the bridge, asphyxiating enemy troops.

Armories were located throughout the ship, holding a selection of small arms and their requisite ammunition. Eight docking bays allowed a number of Pelican dropships, Longsword Interceptors, Warthogs and Scorpion Tanks to be carried.

A number of service corridors ran the length of the ship. Workers go in and out of the corridors, as seen in Halo: Combat Evolved. Although normally restricted to personnel, they could be accessed by lifts in main engineering or connecting passageways from the docking bays. If necessary, these expansive corridors could permit passage to Warthogs and some sections were large enough to accept Pelicans. The corridors served a secondary purpose of lessening the ship's considerable mass, thereby increasing acceleration.

Armament
Known elements of the Halcyon-classes' original armament consisted of the following; With the outbreak of the Human-Covenant War, Halcyon-class ships were put through extensive refits. At least one ship, the Pillar of Autumn, had the following armament:
 * One MAC Cannon 
 * Six Archer Missile Pods which were far below standards at the time. Each pod would have contained several individual missiles.
 * Four Shiva Nuclear Warheads
 * Numerous 50mm point defense guns
 * One upgraded MAC Cannon capable of firing 3 rounds in quick succession
 * 300 Archer Missile Pods which were arranged in thirty columns and ten rows. Each pod contained 26 individual devices, equaling 7800 missiles.
 * Four Shiva Nuclear Warheads. One of these missiles was disguised as a Longsword fighter, which could be remote controlled.
 * Forty 50mm MLA Auto-cannons with overlapping fields of fire for point defense against single ships.

Powerplant
Sublight thrust is provided by nuclear fusion reactions which are channeled to six adjacent exhausts at the ship's exterior stern. There are six exhausts visible, two large and four small. These engines are likely powered by deuterium-deuterium reactions. The main engine core consists of several underpowered Mark II reactors which provided 10% of modern engine output. The class was also equipped with a standard and typical Slipspace drive for translight speeds. On the refit ships, the reactor system was one of the aspects which was heavily retrofitted.

Ships of the line

 * - After refitting, it was selected for the mission to capture a Prophet due to its new resilience and firepower. Destroyed by John-117 in Battle of Installation 04 in order to destroy Halo by causing a reaction in the engines.
 * Numerous cruisers were part of Admiral Preston Cole's fleet.
 * It is possible the first ship of the line was named the UNSC Halcyon, as ship classes are usually named after the first ship of that type.
 * It is possible the first ship of the line was named the UNSC Halcyon, as ship classes are usually named after the first ship of that type.

Trivia

 * Halcyon is derived from the Greek word Alcyone, which means golden or marked by peace and prosperity.
 * Halcyon also a tropical kingfisher of the genus Halcyon, such as the Sacred Kingfisher Halcyon sancta of Australia.
 * Scrapped hulls and frames of several Halcyon-class Cruisers can be seen on the Halo: Reach multiplayer map, Boneyard.
 * Halcyon cruisers may or may not be rated for atmospheric deployment: in Halo: Reach, the Autumn was shown to be docked on the planet's surface, but it required the assistance of several small tugboat-like rockets in order to achieve liftoff.
 * The turrets seen on the Autumn in Halo: Reach appear to have the same caliber, rate of fire, and size as the turrets on the frigate Savannah. However, if these turrets are indeed the same as the ones on the frigate Savannah, then by comparing the size of the turrets to the rest of the Autumn it would seem as though the Autumn in Halo: Reach is much smaller than it is supposed to be. This is likely just a design oversight.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Combat Evolved
 * Halo 2
 * Halo 3
 * Halo Wars
 * Halo: Reach
 * Halo: The Fall of Reach
 * Halo: The Flood
 * Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe
 * The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole
 * Halo Wars: Genesis
 * Halo Legends
 * Origins
 * Odd One Out