Antimatter charge
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
The Antimatter Charge is a Covenant weapon utilizing antimatter as an explosive. Sizes and uses varied, with some being a counterpart to the UNSC's tactical nuclear weapons.
Description
Little is known of the smaller variant used by Covenant troops to breach UNSC vessels, though the larger variant has been seen close-up. The charge's appearance is that of a long bulbous shape with many spikes protruding from it. It has a central control hub located at the top of the bomb. It utilizes the annihilation of matter and antimatter to create an explosive. Nearly one hundred percent of the energy in the matter is released in a massive explosion, in contrast to the mere seven percent released by a UNSC nuclear fusion warhead.
Operational History
The bombs were used by the Covenant during an operation that was being conducted by the SPARTAN IIs. One of the Spartans, Solomon-069, was lured onto a Covenant Battlecruiser and subsequently killed when an anti-matter charge aboard was detonated.[1]
In another event, Cortana believed Covenant boarding parties used such a weapon to disable the UNSC Pillar of Autumn's MAC during the opening of the Battle of Installation 04.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag
Trivia
- Jason Jones of Bungie referred to the bomb as the "Giant Covenant Space Pickle".[2]
- The bomb was not originally going to be included in Halo 2. Instead there would be a level called Covenant Ship, were the Master Chief would board the Covenant Assault Carrier and destroy it from within, but due to deadlines, the level was cut and Bungie decided to add the bomb.[2]
- It is not likely that the entire bomb was filled with antimatter as the explosion would be inconceivably large. It is more likely that the bomb is so bulky because the antimatter must be kept in a vacuum and kept from touching the walls via force field. Even with the Covenant's superior force field technology, it is understandable that they would add as many fail safes as possible due to antimatter's extremely volatile nature when it contacts real matter.
Gallery
John-117 removing a bomb from Cairo Station.
John-117 delivering a bomb to a Covenant Assault Carrier.
- H2 covbomb destroyathens.jpg
Athens Station is destroyed by a bomb during the opening stages of the Battle of Earth.
Sources
- ^ Halo Legends, The Package
- ^ a b Halo 3 Legendary Edition - Essentials, Disc Two - Halo 2 Cinematics Commentary
