M313 Elephant: Difference between revisions

The '''M313 Heavy Recovery Vehicle''',<ref name="H3Art"/><ref name="ENC"/><ref name="visual"/> commonly known as the '''Elephant''', is a heavy [[UNSC Marine Corps]] Mobile Assault, Support, and Recovery Platform.<ref>'''[[Halo 3]]''': In-game operation display underneath the driver's section</ref> Sometimes referred as the '''Behemoth-class Troop Transport''',<ref name="ENC"/> the vehicle is one of the largest ground vehicles employed by the UNSC for ground-based operations.

The vehicle is a three-level vehicle with the bottom level, the respawn locale that opens out into the rear cargo tray, the second level, a walkway around the cargo ramp and leads onto the driver's cabin then a small, elevated third level where the primary armament is assembled. Like the [[M312 HRV|M312 Elephant]], the M313 Elephant is designed to safely transport troops, equipment and light vehicles to and from the frontlines. However unlike its previous model, the M313 Elephant features only one [[M41 Light Anti-Aircraft Gun]] as its armament, though this can be improved with two additional [[AIE-486H Heavy Machine Gun]]s. It also features a crane, numerous firing ports and elevated positions for defending it. Its chassis is also as wide as they are high, providing stability. The Elephant houses a [[Mongoose]] in its lower bay, and can be made to hold up to an additional of three Mongooses in the front with two in the back with two [[Warthogs]]. The vehicle's rear bay lacks the protective armor that is available on the M312 Elephant, thus increasing the vulnerability of its carriage.

The Elephant appears exclusively in Halo 3's multiplayer map [[Sandtrap]], located at each end of the map. It is completely invincible, and open-topped, unlike [[M312 HRV|its counterpart]] in ''[[Halo Wars]]''. The open roof is probably due to the fact that it is a service and repair station, not a troop carrier.

Inside the Elephant is a large screen which contains information on a Mongoose and the Sandtrap's atmosphere, although it is incredibly hard to read. While the vehicle itself cannot be destroyed, its slow speed and lack of armor for gunners render them quite vulnerable. Killing the driver must be attempted from behind, ideally in a vehicle like a [[Banshee]]. In objective based games, the elephant also serves as a mobile bomb plant/spawn site and flag stand.

*If you go to the bottom level of the Elephant, there is a screen which details about the vehicle's specification such as '''Mobile Assault Support and Recovery Platform Statistics and Environmental Analysts'''. It is interesting to note that it says there are two mobile turrets (that you can rip off) while there is actually only one. Perhaps one was removed for balance issues as there is a vacant spot opposite of the other.

*The Elephant is the only drivable vehicle where players can place turrets on it without them moving when they drive off. If players placed a crate or two in the cargo bay of the Elephant and place a turret on top of them and then delete the crates, then players can drive the Elephant with the turret keeping place over the Elephant.

*On the left hand side of the Red Team's Elephant there is a spray-paint graffiti with text that reads "BEHEMOTH" and a red cartoon picture of a woolly mammoth. On the Blue Team's Elephant it says "LEVIATHAN" and has a picture of a blue, whale-like sea creature sporting a mean grimace and wearing a comically tiny golden crown. The Behemoth and Leviathan are two scriptural creatures that are enormous in stature and girth.

*There are many methods of achieving the flight of an Elephant on the mutiplayer map [[Sandtrap]] in ''Halo 3''. The first, is the well known technique of filling the hull with explosives, set to instant respawn, and setting them off. This is a trial and error method, and achieves minimal Elephant flight, in which the player lacks control of the flight and trajectory of the vehicle. For more, see [[Flying Elephant]].