Project CHRYSANTHEMUM: Difference between revisions

The muscular augmentations administered gave a Spartan-III the strength of "three normal soldiers".<ref name="goo99"/> During [[Operation: TORPEDO]], Spartan-IIIs ran at a speed of nearly 30 KPH (around 18 MPH).<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 17''</ref> Spartan-IIIs were also described to have been moving with "speed and reflexes that no Covenant could follow". "They dodged, snapped necks and limbs, and with captured energy swords, they cut through the enemy until the field ran with rivers of gore and blue blood".<ref name="goo21"/> The Spartans of [[Team Foxtrot]] engaged six [[Kig-Yar]] in close quarters and left the aliens' bodies "snapped like rag dolls".<ref name="goo21"/> [[Tom-B292]], 12 years old at the time and equipped with SPI armor, engaged a [[Sangheili]] armed with a [[plasma pistol]] and an [[energy sword]] in hand-to-hand combat. The Spartan's enhanced reflexes allowed him to dodge a plasma pistol bolt and sword swing at point blank range. He then proceeded to throw the Elite to the ground and finish it off with his assault rifle. During the battle, Elites and Kig-Yar moved out of cover because they realized that it was suicidal to face Spartans in close quarters.<ref name="goo21">'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''pages 21-23''</ref> Approximately 300 Spartan-IIIs faced thousands upon thousands of Covenant, including Covenant air support, and were described to have been winning the battle until 7 [[Covenant cruiser]]s emerged as reinforcements.<ref name="goo21"/> During the battle on Pegasi Delta, most of Beta Company were roughly twelve years old. The physical abilities of any Spartan-IIIs who lived long enough to mature would supposedly have improved significantly as [[Franklin Mendez|CPO Mendez]] stated that Spartans only grew stronger and faster as their bodies grew accustomed to their augmentations.<ref>'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''page 73''</ref><ref group="note">While Mendez's statement was in reference to the Spartan-IIs, it can be assumed to hold true to their successors due to the similar nature of the augmentations.</ref>

During the [[Battle of Onyx]], one of the Spartan-IIIs briefly fought the Mjolnir-armored [[Kelly-087]]. The Spartan-III in question was able to momentarily hold their own against Kelly, being strong enough to twist Kelly's wrist and escape from her arm lock as well, despite wearing only SPI armor. While Kelly was able to quickly defeat the Spartan-III afterward with a palm strike, she took note that she would have easily torn her opponent's arm off if he or she were unaugmented. However, it should be noted that the Spartan III was on the move moments later.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 165 - 166''</ref> Additionally, [[Mark-G313]] was able to support and haul the weight of [[Fred-104]], who was equipped with [[Mark VI]] MJOLNIR armor and barely conscious.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 308''</ref> Upon failing to convince Tom-B292 to leave his side, Kurt Ambrose struck Tom in the jaw with force enough to lift him half a meter off the ground. This only rendered Tom unconscious and caused no permanent damage.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 369''</ref>

While most Spartan-IIIs were issued with [[Semi-Powered Infiltration armor]] as opposed to [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor|Mjolnir]] for budgetary reasons, a small number of Spartan-III candidates—called "cat 2s" by [[Kurt Ambrose]]—were set apart from the general population of the program by Ambrose and [[Franklin Mendez]] on the basis of their exceptional skill and performance either in general or in specific fields.<ref>[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/characters/kat-b320 '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Kat-B320'']</ref><ref>[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/characters/carter-a259 '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Cater-A259'']</ref><ref>[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/characters/emile-a239 '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Emile-A239'']</ref> These Spartans were removed from the program's mainline companies, given Mjolnir armor and assigned to separate special forces units.<ref name="comm">[http://www.bungie.net/projects/reach/article.aspx?ucc=personnel&cid=24040 '''Bungie.net''': ''Communique from Kurt to Mendez'']</ref> Kurt regarded the "cat 2" Spartan-IIIs as being on par with the Spartan-IIs, though he would also later assess [[Gamma Company]] on the whole as being comprised of the "finest Spartans ever".<ref name="goo98"/> Additionally, [[Catherine Halsey|Dr. Catherine Halsey]] noted how [[SPARTAN-B312]]'s "hyper-lethal" rating was shared by only one other Spartan, and remarked that [[Jun-A266]]'s skills as a sniper were "unmatched".<ref name="aswr">'''[[Halo: Reach ViDoc: A Spartan Will Rise]]'''</ref> Similarly, [[Mark-G313]] was noted as being the best sharpshooter of his detail, which at the time consisted of [[Team Saber]] and [[Fred-104]],<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 108''</ref> who was the second-best sniper among the Spartan-IIs.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike - The Definitive Edition''', ''page 194''</ref> Additionally, during [[Operation: JOVIAN WHISTLE]], Mark stealthily eliminated numerous [[Jiralhanae]] warriors, leading Fred-104 to deem his skills exceptional even by Spartan standards.<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''pages 152-154'' (Google Play edition)</ref>  

The mutagen 009762-OO, administered only to the Spartans of Gamma Company, makes the Spartans almost completely immune to shock under extreme stress, allowing them to endure injuries and physical pain beyond a Spartan-II; for example, [[Dante-G188]] was able to function for some time after a number of Needler rounds had blown his chest open, initially not even realizing his grave injuries.<ref name="goo dante">'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 309''</ref> As a side effect, the drug suppresses higher brain functions over time; without the regularly administered counteragents, cyclodexione-4 and miso-olanzapine (the cocktails containing which are colloquially known among the Gamma Company Spartans as "Smoothers"),<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 123'' (Google Play edition)</ref> the Spartan will lose their strategic judgment and become more prone to impulsive, instinct-driven behavior.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 340''</ref> This may also occur in combat under extreme pain and stress; after both of her legs were broken, [[Olivia-G291]] engaged and destroyed an [[Aggressor Sentinel]] by smashing it repeatedly with a "rock as large as her torso" in an uncontrolled berserk rage.<ref name="hll114">'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 114''</ref><ref group="note"> Assuming the rock was made from limestone, which was mentioned to be present in the cave on page 114 of ''Halo: Last Light'', the rock potentially could have weighed anywhere from 1,400lbs to 11,200lbs (approx. 630 to 5000 kilograms) depending on the relative size of Olivia's torso and the gravity on [[Gao]]. [http://www.delawarequarries.com/landscape/boulders/boulderwt.html Link to boulder weight scale.]</ref> [[Fred-104]] noted that she could easily have indiscriminately attacked both allies and enemies in this state, and in order to immediately return her to normal, Fred was forced to strike her in the head with the butt of his rifle. The blow had enough force to knock off her helmet and was just enough to snap her out of this state.<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''pages 102-104'' (Google Play edition)</ref> It should be noted that life-threatening—or, indeed, even fatal—injuries do not invariably result in uncontrollable aggression, as demonstrated by the example of Dante-G188, who calmly limped into safety before saluting [[Kurt Ambrose|Lieutenant Commander Ambrose]] and informing the commander that he had been "nicked".<ref name="goo dante"/> Rather, Olivia's case is suggested to have been the result of her using her immense pain to compound her strength and rage to the point she could no longer control herself.<ref name="hll114"/>