Yanme'e

The Yanme ' e (Latin Turpis rex ), also referred to by Humans as Drones, are a race of aerial warriors which make up part of the unified conglomerate races of the Covenant. They are informally referred to by infantry as "buggers". Although they have been part of the Covenant for some time, they have just recently been put to use as combatants in the war against the humans. In the Halo 2: Collectors Edition instruction manual it is said they are suited to flight and combat in a gravitational-pull like Earth.

In Halo 3, the Arbiter tries to convince a single Drone that the Prophet of Truth is misleading his species and will cause the "destruction of all their hives", showing that Drones live in hives.

Drones are insectoid and are covered in natural chitinous armor, although it doesn't provide that much protection. If you look carefully at a dead Drone, you can see small round technological/metal objects on its armor, assumed by some to be small shield generators employed to make up for the Drones' obvious weakness. It seems like other Covenant species, Drones share a ranking system in colored armor, but it is unclear who is leader. They do not interact with other species except to trade and serve in a military capacity, and their exact position in the Covenant Hierarchy is relatively unknown, although it is reasonable to believe they are of higher rank than Grunts and of lower rank than Elites.

After the Covenant Civil War began, the Drones took the side of the Brutes.

The Drones, much like the Grunts, are a conquered race that was forced into service by the Covenant. They strictly follow the Covenant religion and obey any command without question, yet do not partake in social norms due to communication difficulty with other species. They view the Prophets as "Queens", a remnant of their former hive lifestyle.

Drone Anatomy and Physiology
Drones are an insectoid species first encountered as a combatant by human forces during the Battle of Harvest. They are covered in a natural chitinous exoskeleton that provides some protection from ballistic and plasma based weaponry.

Their exoskeleton is covered with multiple bumps, grooves, indentations and markings. Many of the markings appear to be of use as camouflage. On close inspection these markings bear resemblance to a head. This is reminiscent of many Terran insect species that bear markings that confuse predators into attacking less vital parts of their anatomy. This is indicative of the evolutionary path the Drones have taken, that they still bear the markings of their ancestry. They have the six limbs of an insect (although the last two appear vestigial), compound eyes and two furry antennae that jut forth from a small head. Drones also have peculiar light green blood.

Drones are fast airborne marksmen, and they athletically make a hard target to hit. Drones make aerial assaults and attack in groups. However they are used in conjunction with other Covenant forces. Drones are capable of powered flight, and have hovering capabilities. Using two large wings stowed beneath a protective carapace the Drone is able to take flight. However they can only do so for short periods of time before clinging to walls or landing for a period of rest. Drones are used to much more limited flight, as their homeworld's gravitational pull is twice as strong as Earth's.

Drones are both fast and agile and pose a serious threat to enemies unused to dealing with aerial infantry. Although they possess sharp claws on their hands and spikes across the majority of their body, Drones shy away from close combat, preferring hit and run airborne attacks.

Due to their hard chitinous outer shells, Drones would be difficult to infect by Flood Infection Forms. Also, perhaps because they lack large amounts of calcium they would not be infected at all.

Combat
Drones prefer to stay at a distance and use long range tactics. However, they are skilled close-range combatants as well if the need arises. They always appear in swarms, and usually in large, open areas, where, combined with their agility, they are hard to target effectively. Drones also have the distinction of being able to board vehicles. They do not seem capable of driving them, but will claw mercilessly at the driver until he is killed. Their capability for limited flight allows them to easily weaken an enemy and retreat as necessary when in danger.

They wield lightweight weapons such as the Needler and Plasma Pistol, though they never charge up a shot of their Plasma Pistol to break a shield. They also enter battle in a pack (the number differs depending on the difficulty). Furthermore, they are not susceptible to headshots, though sniper weapons will always kill them with a single shot regardless of where it hits them. This is most likely due to a natural physical weakness, as the sniper rifle's shot would likely travel straight through the exoskeleton and cause the Drone to go in shock. Drones never dual wield or have heavy weapons because they can only become airborne while lifting a small amount of weight. When fighting, they have to take frequent rests while in the air, probably due to the gravitational pull from Earth and High Charity. However it is unknown if they can last longer while in space. They are said to have replaced the Elite Rangers after the Covenant Civil War began, probably due to their inherent maneuverability and skill in zero-G combat.

On Easy and Normal difficulty, the Drones are easy to kill and present no real threat. However, on Legendary, they can be an extremely deadly enemy to face. Their ability to fly means that if you have cover, they can still fly over and around you, and due to the reason they fight in packs, they can outnumber and kill you very quickly.

In Halo 3, Drones have the ability to lift Marines from the ground, similar to the Brutes.

Halo 2


Drones were first featured as combatants during the Halo 2 era, and were featured often in overwhelming swarms in open spaces (unlike in Halo 3, where they are often employed in more confined spaces). They had less distinguished, shinier, chitinous armor, and luminescient eyes, and a less insectoid and more alien appearance. They appear frequently in the game.

Halo 3
Drones appear relatively few times in Halo 3, but when they do, they are nearly always in swarms of fifteen or more. The best strategy for dealing with a Drone swarm is to hide behind a corner with a turret and take the Drones down one at a time. If a Drone boards a vehicle, it will claw at the driver until they are killed, a certain amount of time has passed, or they themselves are killed.

Trivia

 * Turpis means "dishonorable, disgraceful". Rex means king.
 * In Halo 2, Drones are more green-coloured, but in Halo 3, Drones are more grey-coloured.
 * In Halo 3, it is possible to shoot a Drone in the wing and cause it to land. They crawl away from the player at a speed slightly faster than that of a Grunt.