HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon: Difference between revisions

{{Era|HCW|Post}}

The '''Mark 2556 Medium Fusion Destructive Device'''{{Ref/Reuse|H4VG}} is an excavation-grade variant of the weapon, presumably used for excavation purposes in locations where a nuclear blast is required. A single warhead of this variant is stated to be able to turn [[Ivanoff Station]] "into piñata".<ref name="halo4">'''Halo 4''', campaign level ''[[Composer (level)|Composer]]''</ref> Despite being excavation-grade, it could be attached to an [[F-41 Broadsword]] fighter in the form of a missile for ship-killing purposes. A single warhead was capable of destroying both [[the Composer]] and the powerful [[Forerunner]] vessel ''[[Mantle's Approach]]'' when detonated inside of the ship.<ref>'''Halo 4''', campaign level, ''[[Midnight]]''</ref>

In [[2553#July|July 2553]], to destroy a [[Covert Support Base 4276|Forerunner installation]] located in the [[Montero Cave System]] on [[Gao]], Blue Team dropped a Havok BB 2550 nuke into an [[Well of Echoes|opening]] in the caverns which detonated and destroyed the installation. The blast also destroyed a dozen [[Wyvern]]s that were above the Well of Echoes pursuing their [[Owl]] {{UNSCShip|Silent Claw}}. The nuclear blast turned the Well of Echoes into a kilometer-deep shaft of fused limestone with a pool of molten stone glowing for a time at the bottom of the crater. Rather than realizing that the HAVOK was intended to destroy the Forerunner base, President [[Arlo Casille]] believed it to be the Spartans way of making good their escape by destroying their pursuers. Rather than admitting the truth about the nuclear blast, Casille chose to cover it up by claiming that the blast was caused by a downed [[Prowler]]'s reactor going critical, knowing that if the citizens of Gao knew that the UNSC had detonated a [[nuclear weapon]] on their planet, they would push for a war with the UNSC that Casille didn't want.{{Ref/Reuse|ll376}}

During the [[Requiem Campaign]], [[Jul 'Mdama's Covenant]] stole at least [[seven]] HAVOK-class warheads from the UNSC. [[Fireteam Crimson]] [[Raid on Cyclone|discovered]] several nuclear missiles with their warheads missing in a Covenant supply depot in "[[Cyclone]]."<ref>''Spartan Ops'', [[Scattered/Search and Destroy|S106 Search and Destroy]]</ref> During [[Invasion of the UNSC Infinity|an invasion]] of the {{UNSCShip|Infinity}}, the Covenant planted one HAVOK in the ship's Server Room, and six more throughout the Engine Room. The HAVOKs were equipped with [[active camouflage]] to hide them from the ship's sensors which was discovered after [[Fireteam Crimson]] discovered a Sangheili deploying the warhead in the Server Room. After the warhead was disarmed and the ''Infinity's'' AI [[Roland]] realized that they were being protected with active camouflage, he was able to lock onto the energy signatures from the camouflage and direct Crimson to each warhead. Crimson managed to disarm all seven warheads with instruction from Roland and secured both the Server and Engine Rooms, keeping the disarmed warheads from being reclaimed by the Covenant until the attack could be repelled.<ref>''Spartan Ops'', [[Invasion (Spartan Ops)/Engine of Destruction|S107 Engine of Destruction]]</ref><ref>''Spartan Ops'', [[Invasion (Spartan Ops)/The Guns of Infinity|S107 The Guns of ''Infinity'']]</ref>

*The effects of the HAVOK nuclear weapon vary significantly between works of ''Halo'' media. In the weapon's first appearance in ''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', the HAVOK tactical nuke is said to have a yield of 30 megatons, and descriptions of detonations in ''The Fall of Reach'' produce damage on a local scale. When the weapon is shown going off on [[Sigma Octanus IV]] in ''[[Halo: Fall of Reach - Covenant]]'', it produces a continental-scale fireball that extends out into space and appears to break off pieces of the planet's crust, effects magnitudes more powerful than described in the novels. Conversely, in [[Halo: Escalation Issue 12|Issue 12]] of ''[[Halo: Escalation]]'', two HAVOKs dropped into a volcano-based pirate hideout cause significant damage to the base, yet do not critically endanger the Spartans inside. In ''[[Halo: Nightfall]]'', [[Jameson Locke]] implies that the HAVOK has a blast radius of 100 kilometers. The screen on the device later specifies that the weapon causes complete destruction within seven kilometers, and light damage for 44 kilometers, which is consistent with a 30 megaton explosion per MIT's Nuclear Blast Wave Effects Calculator.<Ref>[https://nuclearweaponsedproj.mit.edu/nuclear-weapon-effects-simulations-and-models/nuclear-weapons-blast-effects-calculator MIT]. For a 30,000 kiloton explosion at ground level, there will be an overpressure of 10 PSI up to 6.6 km ("heavily built concrete buildings are severely damaged or demolished; fatalities universal") and 1 PSI up to 43.6 km ("window glass shatters; light injuries from fragments occur").</ref> However, the weapon's display list its yield at 125 terajoules, which equates to 30 ''kilo''tons. Later still, when the nuke's detonation is shown, the fireball completely overwhelms [[Alpha Shard]]'s width of 318 kilometers. While some the more egregious incongruities are likely the result of mistakes or artistic license, it is possible that like modern nuclear weapons, HAVOK weapons have [[Wikipedia:Variable yield|variable yields]]. Additionally, variants of the HAVOK may have differing yields by default. The yield of the HAVOK used to destroy ''[[Mantle's Approach]]'' in ''[[Halo 4]]'' is not given, but [[Cortana]] states that a single device can turn [[Ivanoff Station]] "into piñata." It was only stated to be an excavation-grade device, suggesting that the weapon likely had a lower yield than what is used by the military. Detonated inside ''Mantle's Approach'' near the Composer, the HAVOK was powerful enough to destroy both the Forerunner vessel and the Composer itself.

**''[[Halo 5: Guardians Limited Edition|Limited Edition]]'' {{Mo}}