SRS99C-S2 AM sniper rifle

File:S2 AM Sniper Rifle.jpg

S2AM Sniper Rifle

SRS99C-S2 AM Sniper Rifle

 Rate of Fire  : Average (2 rounds per second)
 Operation     : Gas System
 Fire Mode     : Semi-Automatic
 Ammunition    : 14.5mm x 114 (Armor-Piercing, Fin-Stabilized, 
                 Discarding Sabot)
 Damage per hit: Very high
 Range         : Medium to very long
 Accuracy      : Very high
 Magazine Size : 4 rounds
 Maximum Ammo  : 28/24*/68** rounds (including fully loaded 
                 magazine)
 
 *It was reduced to 24 rounds in Halo 2
 **In the (Halo 1) level "Truth and Reconciliation", the weapon starts 
 off with 68 rounds. Once you expend the bonus rounds you can 
 only carry the standard 28.

Advantages

The sniper rifle is designed to be used at medium to long ranges, and is equipped with a scope for precisely this purpose. With its 2x and 8x zooms (5x and 10x in Halo 2) and the ability to penetrate Covenant shields, the sniper rifle is useful against most distant enemies. By far, it's most useful purpose in campaign mode is taking out the higher ranking enemies in a group to destabalize their squad's discipline and moral (which makes combating a larger force much easier). A headshot against any Covenant infantry except a Zealot (Gold) Elite, Hunter, or Brute results in an instant kill; Hunters fall from one shot to their unarmored torso or neck, and many Brutes must be shot twice in the head to get past the protective helmets they often wear. When playing in the highest difficulty, Legendary, this is only true for Minor (blue) Elites; the Majors (red) will take two shots to the head, and the Zealots will take three. Also when the night vision function is turned on, by pressing the flashlight button (this is exclusive to Halo 1), one can see an invisible (cloaked) Elite very easily. When playing online, some players use the sniper rifle to great effect when camping. For example, skilled users may crouch inside a confined hallway and fire without the use of the scope from close range, resulting in many instant kills.

Disadvantages

Like any weapon, there is a need to lead targets if they are at extreme distances. It is hard to use at short range because its aim is so precise and it's ammo volume is so small; with only four shots, there is no room at all for error. It also has a steeper learning curve than most weapons, taking significant practice to master. Ammunition for this weapon is scarce and, because of that, it is not good practice to waste the ammo on "lesser foes" such as Grunts and Drones. It is highly ineffective against all forms of Flood and against Sentinels. The only way that the sniper rifle can be effective against the flood is if you fire at thier arms, which will fall off leaving them harmless. The bullets leave a strong visible trail that can reveal the shooter's position to others. The rifle also performs poorly against virtually all vehicles (unless a "weak spot", such as the ghost's fuel cell, is shot).

Influence

The sniper rifle appears to be heavily inspired by (if not directly copied from) the Barrett .50 caliber rifles (most notably the Barret M82 )and the South African NTW-20 . Many of the features present in the Halo version are included in both weapons, such as the recoil-dampening piston, the general look of the receiver, the magazine placement, muzzle brake, and many other attributes.

File:Spartan with Sniper Rifle and Shotgun.jpg

Spartan with Sniper Rifle in Halo 3.

Appearences

The sniper rifle was featured in both Halo 1 and Halo 2. The original Halo's sniper rifle had a digital radar-like view which was green. In Halo 2, the view was replaced with a visual image of the sniper's scope in real time. This weapon will return in Halo 3. How it behaves and other features have yet to be uncovered.

Sniping

Main article: Sniping

Effective Against

• All Covenant
  • Elites: One-hit headshot, Gold Elites two-hit headshot, white elites 3-hit headshot. (Note: varies dramatically according to difficulty.)
  • Grunts: One-hit kill if headshot or bodyshots on yellow grunts on "Easy".
  • Drones: One-hit kill in all cases.
  • Jackals One hit kill for headshots and shots through the pistol opening in the shield
  • Hunters: Aim for weak points on abdomen or neck (note: neck shots sometimes do not register)
  • Brutes: 2 shots- one to knock away a helmet and one for a kill shot.
• Humans / Spartans (Multiplayer: Head shot is always effective unless overshield is present on a Spartan or a Elite).

• NOT effective against ANY Flood forms in Halo 1. A shot to the 'heart'(where there are tentacles pretuding out of the chest) of any flood warrior will kill them.