Type-33 needler

"First order of business when dealing with a hostile armed with a needler is finding cover; second order of business is killing the mike foxtrot with the needler."

- Anonymous serviceman

The Type-33 Guided Munitions Launcher, better known as the Needler, is a Covenant infantry weapon that fires a homing projectile capable of doing lethal damage.

Background
The Needler is a highly unusual Covenant weapon in that it fires pink, translucent, crystalline projectiles. It is most often wielded by Unggoy (Grunts), and Yanme'e (Drones), but Sangheili (Elites) and Kig-Yar (Jackals) have also been seen utilizing this firearm.

It's razor sharp crystalline projectiles are fired from this elaborately designed Covenant weapon; it is widely believed that they use heat or organic signatures to home in on targets. Although easily deflected by energy shields, the needles cause a chemical reaction in close proximity resulting in an explosive effect. After a number or needles have entered a hostile, they will shatter causing massive internal damage.

Appearances
The Needler first appeared in the original Halo: Combat Evolved. It made a return in Halo 2, and was made slightly more powerful with the advent of dual wielding. However, after Halo 2's 1.1 multiplayer patch, the weapon was toned down. The weapon is set to return in Halo 3. This time it will not be dual wieldable, but Bungie has stated that the weapon will be significantly rebalanced to allow it to stand on it's own.

Advantages
This weapon fires enemy-tracking needles that embed themselves in the flesh of a target before exploding to cause damage. The rate of fire increases with continuous fire. If 7 or more needles accumulate in the target, the needles' combined strength will create a large explosion, killing the target and causing splash damage to other nearby enemies. Needles can penetrate the energy shields of Elites, Sentinels, and Spartans, but bounce off Jackal Personal Arm Shields. They are especially useful against the unshielded Brutes in Halo 2's Campaign mode.

When dual wielding, the effectiveness and rate of fire of the needlers can be increased by firing them "out of phase". This is accomplished when the user begins firing one of his needlers a fraction of a second before the other, and continues to fire them in full-auto so that the shots from each weapon are fired in a "one-two punch" pattern. You can tell when the pattern is just right because the guns will sound as if they are firing much more rapidly. This allows for a more constant and consistent stream of fire. Since each needle is in it's own slot in the firing sequence, the failure of one needle to impact the target no longer means that two will fail.

In Halo 3, the Needler is more powerful than ever before. With a faster rate of fire, greater accuracy, quicker projectiles, better homing capabilities and higher damage, the Needler has been improved the virtually every area. The exception is dual-wielding; as the Needler now behaves more like a rifle than an SMG, it can no longer be dual-wielded. However, it's no longer necessary to do so. Frankie has been quoted as saying that the Needler is now nearly a power weapon on its own.

Disadvantages
The needles are slow, and are not effective against vehicles. The needles also take time to hit/explode on the target, leaving the target time to move in and inflict some of the explosive splash damage on the shooter. It is nearly impossible to hit invisible Elites with the Needler, as they do not home to camouflaged targets. The leaning curve of the "lead" needed to hit strafing targets is also high. And when faced with experienced opponents in multiplayer (who often randomize their strafing patterns) the weapon is almost always overshadowed by better, more reliable options. Against larger and more heavily armored opponents, such as Hunters, the Needler is generally ineffective.

Effective Against
The Needler is effective against Elites, Grunts, Brutes, Sentinels, Drones and small groups of tightly packed Flood.

Changes in Halo 3 beta
For the Halo 3 Needler the amount of needles in a clip have been reduced, and the rate of fire has become up to five times quicker. Also, the range of the needler has been increased to about the range of the MA5C Assault Rifle. The needler no longer has the ability to be dual-wielded, in order to keep this weapon balanced. Oddly, the Needler is about as small as it was in Halo: Combat Evolved. The developers of Halo 3 have stated in the Vidoc "Halo 3 ViDoc: Is Quisnam Protero Damno!" that they wanted the needler to be something that people would want to use, hinting that the needler will be more powerful as well. Also, the developers mentioned that the Needler was to be more like a rifle, stating why it is now non-dual wieldable.

In gameplay, the needler is, as hinted, much more powerful, firing faster and the needles travel faster. It seems to be the Covenant's counterpart to the MA5C. The rounds are less luminescent, and travel faster, so the enemy will have a hard time seeing the needles. Its tracking system has also been upgraded, as it can now handle semi-sharp turns much easier than in Halo 2. It needs less needles in a target to make a large explosion than in Halo 2. In addition, it will now pursue an enemy behind cover, and will seek an enemy even if the crosshair is not red, a dramatic difference than in the first two installments of the series. Overall, it is a highly sought after weapon, but many people would argue its unbalanced. It shoots incredibly fast and 7 or 8 needles will take someone down. However others have argued that the needler is balanced due to the fact that you, just like in Halo 1 could dodge the needles by continuously moving left or right until the needles are out of range.

The argument to this is that, as with all power weapons, it gives the user an almost guaranteed advantage. Most Needler wielders are already experienced opponents who don't fear the weapon's newfound power, and thus use it to great lengths. However, the Needler lacks the ability to harm vehicles aside from the Ghost and Mongoose.

UNSC Remarks
Remarks:

“I don’t know how it works, but it seems [the needles] can only follow you if they can see you.”

“First order of business when dealing with a hostile armed with a needler is finding cover; second order of business is killing the mike foxtrot with the needler.”

“Anything stuck with enough needles will blow sky high—and if a foxtrot is unlucky enough to be carrying grenades, those’re gonna cook off too.”

“I caught three in the leg as I was diving behind a broken wall—they lodged right in there where the greave meets the boot. When they went off it damn near broke my ankle and flung like little splinters of glass or crystal or whatever all up my left side—the corpsman was pulling that ____ out’a me for the better part of two hours.”

“Luckily—listen to me “luckily”—the needles only detonate when they’re imbedded in living tissue. Now that’s lucky because it’s not gonna blow a hole in the wall you’re hiding behind or tear the tires off of the vehicle you’re trying to escape in.”

“It’s about as close to a fire-and-forget small arm that were likely to ever see—and it ain’t ours. This is why we’re losing.”

Extra Ammo Needler
On the level Sacred Icon in the first Enforcer fight behind the Gondola there are 3 overloaded Needlers with 135 ammo each.

Character Compatibility

 * Elites
 * Spartans
 * Brutes (have animation but not used)
 * Jackals
 * Drones
 * Grunts
 * Marines
 * Flood Combat Form (Human)
 * Flood Combat Form (Elite)
 * Needler Sentinel

Related Links

 * Covenant Weapons
 * Fear the Pink Mist