Sword flying: Difference between revisions

{{Status|Gameplay}}

'''Sword flying''' is a [[glitch]] present in ''[[Halo 2]]'' and ''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]]''. It allows players to extend the range of the [[Type-1 Energy Sword|energy sword's]] lunge by using the [[reticle]] of their secondary weapon. The term is sometimes also used more broadly to refer to any movement using the energy sword's lunge.  

When a player switches weapons the range of the weapon being switched out is still applied to that of the weapon being drawn for two frames.<ref>https://youtu.be/4J0_yaAygtc?t=67</ref> Thus if the reticle was red prior to switching weapons, then for one frame the now current weapon will remain red regardless of whether this would otherwise be true. In the case of the energy sword this means that two frames the game think that it is in range to lunge regardless of whether it actually is. Normally however one cannot immediately fire their weapon or correspondingly active the sword's lunge. Similar to [[Melee Canceling|melee cancelling]] however the action/reload button can cancel the remaining animation of the weapon being drawn allowing the player to lunge immediately if the reticle is still red.

Sword flying at it's core is still a sword lunge, which itself is considered by the game as a melee attack. As such one can [[Melee Canceling#Sword Cancelling|sword cancel]] the swing to avoid hitting the AI or player one is lunging towards by either pressing action/reload or changing weapons. At larger ranges one can also perform various actions including throwing grenades and even firing their secondary weapon before even reaching the target. Likewise one can jump during the lunge. This will generally allow the player to pass over their target as well as change the angle at which they fly to a more vertical one. Though difficult one can even perform this extra jump during the input for the glitch itself. The input for this would be 'Y', 'X', 'A', 'RT' on the original Xbox and "default" control scheme on ''Halo 2: Anniversary''. While one can both cancel and jump during the sword fly it is generally not necessary as jumping will usually take the player over the target anyway.

As a combat technique sword flying allows one to reach an enemy from far away and strike them with the sword's full strength. It can also be used as a strong finisher in conjunction with other weapons. On this note it is worth noting that while the shotgun lacks any usefulness with this technique for movement, sword flying immediately after a shotgun shot can be used to deal larger amount of damage at close range. In campaign this can be used during the fight against Tartarus though it is fairly risky to do if one does not do it when he swings his hand angrily.

The glitch was present in the original [[Xbox]] release of ''[[Halo 2]]'' in both campaign and multiplayer. [[Halo 2 Auto-Updates#Auto-Update 3|Auto-Update 3]] however mostly removed the glitch. Despite this one can still perform the glitch post patch; instead of pressing Y, one can press Y, X, and B at the same time; often the easiest way to do it is to spam Y, B, X, and RT until it works. It is much more difficult and will only lunge at other with certain angles. Installing [[Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack|multiplayer map pack]] also installs the first three auto-updates. Clearing the console's cache will remove the auto-updates and thus restore the glitch in full.

As ''Halo 2: Anniversary'' has twice frame and tick rate of the original Xbox version, the trick is slightly more difficult due to the window to perform it being twice as small. However it is also noted to be faster and allowing for farther flies past enemies.

{{Main|Flyboy}}

==Trivia==

==Sources==