Jiralhanae/Gameplay

Gameplay
Unlike Elites, who are masterfully skilled tacticians, the Brute combat mentality relies on overwhelming force, sheer strength, power in numbers, and incredibly strong firepower, hence the name "Brute" (and it must be noticed that this tactic will work in-game if the player doesn't run away fast enough). Their fire tends to be less accurate than Elite firing, which may be why they are not often armed with precision weapons. However, Brutes are also capable of more advanced tactics such as flanking maneuvers and taking cover and also seem to be superior at melee combat than Elites (minus the Elite having a sword). Most Brute packs encountered in Halo 3 will often consist of 4-6 individuals; the number of each type of individual varies with the difficulty being played. Often, these packs will consist of one Brute Captain, 1-2 Brute Majors and 2-3 Brute Minors. It can be twice that many if there is a Chieftain in command nearby.

In Halo 2, the Brute's definite weak spot is the the front of the skull or head; this is why they wear armour only on their heads. Using a long ranged weapon such as a Battle Rifle or Covenant Carbine would prove useful on harder difficulties; however, this does not fully apply for Halo 3.

When patrolling, Brutes exhibit a sense of calm and confidence, and some have been found testing captured Human weaponry whilst in this relaxed state. Once engaged in combat the Brutes hunch into a more ape-like stance and begin firing upon their target(s). Often the target is subjected to a barrage of fire and explosives in excess of what Elites and Grunts can muster simply because of the new Brute weaponry.

Brutes rely primarily on their own technology. They are initially found wielding Brute Plasma Rifles to deadly effect. These faster firing variants on the standard Plasma Rifle suit the Brute mentality well. Higher ranking members of the pack (often Captains) are found using the Brute Shot allowing a Brute pack to lay down a withering hail of explosive fire on an enemy position. In the later months of the Covenant Civil War, they become much better equipped, with many weapons of their own make such as Spikers and Spike Grenades.

Originally only wielded by Tartarus in Halo 2, the Gravity Hammer is a favored weapon of Brute Chieftains in Halo 3. Swinging it with considerable power, Brutes use the weapon to crush their foes and knock enemies down.

Like the Elites, the Brutes can pilot most vehicles including Ghosts, Spectres, Banshees and Wraiths. Brutes also have the ability to Board vehicles. If given the opportunity, they will attempt to jump onto your vehicle and melee you off it. In Halo 3 Brutes use two new vehicles, the Chopper and the Prowler.

With the onset of the Covenant Civil War, Brute weaponry is more commonplace. The Type-2 Antipersonnel Fragmentation Grenade, more commonly known as the Spike Grenade, is a creation of the Brutes themselves. It is suspected that with their newly found dominance amongst the Covenant Loyalists, the Brute Plasma Rifle has been replaced with the Type-25 Carbine or Spiker. The blades that adorn this weapon are a testament to their barbaric nature and their affinity for close-quarters combat.

Brutes are also fond of explosives and will often use all types of Grenades in combat, although they aren't very accurate, particularly Spike and Incendiary grenades. However, on Normal and above, these can become lethal tools as they become more accurate (especially the case for Spike Grenades.) Keep in mind that the Spike Grenade acts like the Plasma Grenade, as one stick results in an instant kill. They have also been known to use Fuel Rod Cannons, Rocket Launchers, and even Frag Grenades. For some reason, Brutes seem particularly fascinated with Human Shotguns, perhaps attributable to the advent of the Mauler into the Covenant ranks. Their skill with the Covenant Carbine, makes them dangerous at mid to long ranges. On higher difficulties in the level and in the level, Brutes will use Battle Rifles (although the latter is in a Banshee), but this is quite rare, since they regard most Human weapons as worthless (despite how effective some of these are against them, an example would be the Battle Rifle).

If a grenade is thrown at a Brute (With the exception of Chieftans), it will not Evade the grenade, but it will dive out of the way. This is less effective because the Brute requires a second to get back up on it's feet and during this time another grenade may be thrown.

The last surviving Brute of a pack will go berserk, charging at its enemies in a blind rage. This may be due to the strong bonds with the members of their pack. A Brute, after calming down from its rage, will sulk and mourn the loss of its comrades, even caress the bodies of the fallen. However, upon seeing its enemy, the Brute will abandon its sulking mood and once again become enraged. This mourning is a rare occurrence, almost never seen in combat, and only when there is a brief lull in the fighting.

Brutes are extremely resilient, and can take enormous amounts of damage. Before Halo 3, they lacked any form of equivalent to the Elite Personal Energy Shield. As of Halo 3, regular adoption of Power Armor has been cycled into Brute ranks. However, the Power Armor is weak against Plasma-based weaponry and can fall apart. If the armor is successfully destroyed, the Brute will charge and try to fight hand to hand.

Brute Rampage
A Brute Rampage (or commonly known as "Berserking") is when a Brute becomes enraged and aggressively charges its enemy in a reckless attack (in Halo 2, an enraged Brute will drop their weapon and charge immediately). The Brutes in Halo 3 keep hold of their weapon, though they still charge instead of firing it. When a Brute berserks, they may charge in a straight line towards you. Usually they will pause for a brief moment immediately before the charge, this gives you a chance to anticipate their actions. Additionally, the pause can sometimes appear to override the effects of the Tough Luck skull; in at least one instance, berserking Brutes did not jump away with this skull even when facing annihilation by a fuel rod gun. It is possible to exploit this tendency by allowing the Brutes to charge in a straight line off the edge of a cliff, while using yourself as bait. Chieftains do not drop their weapon; instead they charge with their Gravity Hammer. Captains have been seen going berserk, while wildly firing their weapon with full/semi-full power armor.

Their "rampage" stages come in two types, in Halo 2 the Brutes would run at you on all fours and then melee you to death while remaining on all fours, to escape being rammed into by a brute, all you need to do is jump to the higher ground/platform that would involve the brute to jump to you to get to you. The reason for this is that when a brute berserks, they are disabled of all jumping abilities. There are very few times where you can leave a brute pack member alive after killing the other members, without that brute going on a rampage. In Halo 3, they will put their arms outwards and run at the player and do a smashing type animation or jump at the player and do the same. When the player is in a Wraith or Scorpion, the Brute will either melee the hatch or attach itself to the tank's rear and repeatedly smash its head into the exhaust port.

However, this can be used to the player's advantage sometimes. Usually the Brute goes on rampage after it is wounded, and stops using its weapon, leaving it open to fire. Also, on Halo 2, the player may be able to get the Brute stuck in a corner, open for the kill. Jump Pack Brutes will sometimes use their jump packs while in a rampage to get closer.

Causes

 * Member of Brute's pack is killed.
 * Random fits of rage becoming increasingly common on higher difficulties and for higher ranks.
 * When their Power Armor is stripped. (Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST only)
 * When it is the last Brute alive in the area.
 * When their Chieftain is killed. (Halo 3 only)
 * When stuck by a grenade.
 * When a Radar Jammer or Trip Mine is activated near it. (Halo 3 only)
 * When it is moderately wounded.
 * If shot by a sniper in the foot (rarely, and may be a "trigger" glitch).