| Klavrig Workshop Support Crawler | |
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| Production information | |
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Manufacturer: |
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| Technical specifications | |
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Length: |
21.8 meters (71.5 ft)[1] |
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Width: |
22.2 meters (72.9 ft)[1] |
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Height: |
12.6 meters (41.4 ft)[1] |
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Mass: |
58.4 metric tons (57.5 LT; 64.4 ST)[1] |
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Armament: |
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Crew: |
Dipholekgolo colony[1] |
| Usage | |
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Role(s): |
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Affiliation: |
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- "These small mechanical units are considered “little brothers” of the Locust and what they lack in toughness they more than make up for in sheer numbers and symbiotic impact."
- — Brian Jarrard on Skitterers.[4]
The Klavrig Workshop Support Crawler, colloquially known as the Skitterer, is a fast scout walker used by the Banished.[1]
OverviewEdit
Design detailsEdit
Skitterers are quadrupeds outfitted with small rocket boosters and a set of twin-linked beam cannons. While their legged nature means their primary method of locomotion is walking, the rocket boosters do allow them the ability to hover - which they use to act as overwatch support for friendly units, and act as a weapon turret or defensive shield. Skitterers are cheap and easy to construct, which makes them an attractive option for deployment in large numbers[3][2] - something the Banished (especially Colony) take advantage of.[1]
Development historyEdit
The Skitterer was originally a creation of the Covenant's San'Shyuum technicians, as a response to the empire's restrictions on artificial intelligence research. With autonomous systems so limited in nature, Covenant engineers instead looked to lekgolo hives as substitutes in select applications, resulting in select Dipholekgolo hives to be pruned and curated for use in driving the machines. The Skitterers created by the Covenant proved the idea's merits and echoed the approach of adopting Rhulolekgolo hives for use in Scarab walkers, though the risk of aberrant and erratic gestalts in such small colonies proved to great a risk for the Covenant - ultimately leading to the idea never seeing mass usage.[3][2][1]
The rise of the Swarmlord brothers "Colony" to leadership within the Banished has seen a larger proliferation of Skitterers, thanks to the Swarmlord's ability to more effectively control and direct Lekgolo hives. As such, Colony was able to adapt and perfect the work started by the Covenant to create the Skitterer.[3][2][1] The development of the Skitterer vehicle itself was done by the Klavrig Workshop, with large-scale production done by the Armory of Gethrog.[1]
Operational historyEdit
Skitterers were deployed by "Colony" against the crew of the UNSC Spirit of Fire in 2559 during the Second Ark Conflict.[5] They were also deployed by Banished forces during their occupation of Installation 07.[6]
GameplayEdit
Halo Wars 2Edit
- Info: Mech Scout, Light beam attack, Can attach to other units as a turret
- Tier: 1
- Cost:
2, 
150, 
20
Skitterer upgrade: Focused Beam
- Info: Weapon Upgrade, Increases Beam output, Increases damage and range
- Tier: 2
- Cost: 0, 400
In Halo Wars 2 Skitterers are exclusive units for "Colony" and can be made at Banished outposts once the leader power has unlocked them. Like other scout units the Skitterer can be used to gather resources. The number of Skitterers able to attach to a unit depends on the unit's size. For example a Scarab is able to have three Skitterers, a Mgalekgolo pair two Skitterers, and a Huragok one Skitterer. Once attached to the unit the Skitterer will only be destroyed if the host unit is destroyed. Although it's very rare to happen where the Skitterers can be destroyed first before the host unit, reverting them to pre-attach. In addition to providing more health to the host unit the Skitterers will continue to attack enemies. Without a host unit Skitterers perform okay against infantry, vehicles, and structures, but poorly against aircraft. Once the Focused Beam upgrade has been purchased the Skitterer will perform well against infantry. In Blitz a Skitterer Mob, consisting of five Skitterers, costs 
90 energy.
Skitterer AttachmentEdit
CoreEdit
- Grunt Squad: 1 Skitterer
- Chopper: 1 Skitterer
InfantryEdit
- Goliath: 2 Skitterers
- Suicide Grunts: 1 Skitterer
- Elite Rangers: 1 Skitterer
- Hunters: 2 Skitterers
AirEdit
- Engineer: 1 Skitterer
- Banshee: 1 Skitterer
- Shroud: 1 Skitterer
- Blisterback: 2 Skitterers
VehiclesEdit
- Marauder: 1 Skitterer
- Locust: 1 Skitterer
- Reaver: 1 Skitterer
- Wraith: 2 Skitterers
War CouncilEdit
- Hunter Captain: 2 Skitterers
- Scarab: 3 Skitterers
Phoenix logEdit
 Fast scout walker and escort. Skitterer units are mechanized scouts piloted by Lekgolo. They are cheap, expendable vehicles, and their twin-linked beam cannons are surprisingly lethal for a vehicle of this size. Their most notable feature is that they can use a defend ability to set up a protective overwatch on other friendly units and act as a weapon turret and defense shield, increasing the health of the attached unit as well as providing additional firepower. Most units can have at least one Skitterer attached, including infantry and aircraft. The defensive link cannot be undone during a mission. The harsh restrictions on AI research in the Covenant limited the development of autonomous weapon systems, though clever San’Shyuum technicians did find that carefully selected and pruned Lekgolo colonies could substitute for artificial minds in some applications. Though never widely used, combat machines such as the Skitterer proved this approach had merit, though the risk of aberrant gestalts in small colonies meant it never saw widespread use. Colony has adapted and perfected this technique, which allows for the integration of Lekgolo with the Banished Locust and mass production of Skitterers without the behavioral issues that plagued earlier work. |
TriviaEdit
- Isabel could have Skitterers (or any vehicle or aircraft) if she Combat Salvaged a hijacked unit that contained any Skitterer in it.
- The Skitterer is the only unit that will still try to kill any Spartans hijacking any unit they attached themselves with.
- In Blitz the Suicide Grunts is the only unit the Skitterer won't attach themselves to.
- In Terminus Firefight, it is possible to receive units Colony can't build normally, such as Ghosts, from Reinforcement waves. Skitterers can attach to them regardless in the same numbers the normal equivalent supports.
GalleryEdit
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Browse more images in this article's gallery page. |
Concept art of the Skitterer for Halo Wars 2.
Skitterers in front of a Banished Banished outpost in Halo Wars 2
A trio of Skitterers on Installation 00.
A swarm of Skitterers fighting a M808S Scorpion.
A swarm of Skitterers take down a Klavbrig Workshop Shroud.
Skitterers guarding a Mgalekgolo Captain and two Goliaths.
Skitterers guarding a Barukaza Workshop Scarab.
Skitterers attached to a Scarab.
Skitterers attached to various units under the control of "Colony".
The Skitterer under Mech Overcharge effect in Blitz.
List of appearancesEdit
- Halo Wars 2 (First appearance)
- Halo: The Rubicon Protocol
SourcesEdit
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition), page 457
- ^ a b c d e f Halo Waypoint, Canon Fodder - Leggo my Lekgolo (Retrieved on Apr 17, 2021) [archive]
- ^ a b c d Halo Wars 2, Phoenix Logs: Skitterer
- ^ Halo Waypoint, Welcome Colony (Retrieved on Jul 13, 2021) [archive]
- ^ Halo Wars 2, Skitterer in-game unit
- ^ Halo: The Rubicon Protocol, chapter 12
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