Halo 3 skulls: Difference between revisions

{{Status|Gameplay}}

[[File:Halo3-skull-fog-floodgate.jpg|thumb|300px|An example of a skull in ''Halo 3''.]]

'''Skulls''' are a series of gameplay modifiers available for use in ''[[Halo 3]]'' and ''[[Halo 3: ODST]]''. Both games feature the same roster of skulls and effects, though in ''Halo 3'' these items are hidden throughout the game's [[campaign]] as hidden easter eggs - and must be found before they can be used. In ''ODST'' and the ''[[Halo: The Master Chief Collection]]'' iterations of both games, all skulls are unlocked from the start.

 

Once activated, a skull makes gameplay either more humorous, or more challenging.

* The '''RT''' attacks from the [[Type-1 energy sword|Energy Sword]] and [[Gravity hammer (fiction)|Gravity Hammer]]

* Punching (not boarding/hijacking) an enemy vehicle, [[Rizsheda-pattern Shade|Shade Turret]], or any enemy-manned turret

# Keep battling through to the point where you must fight a group of [[Jiralhanae|Brutes]], two of which are using [[Barukaza Workshop Chopper|Choppers]].

# Kill all the enemies, destroy the shield, then continue through until you reach a long, winding bridge. At this point, a [[Covenant Empire|Covenant]] [[Ket-pattern battlecruiser|CCS-class Battlecruiser]] should fly overhead.

'''Icon''': A skull marked with an image of a [[Anskum-pattern plasma grenade|Plasma Grenade]].

'''Effect''': All AI-controlled units, friend or foe, throw grenades more often, where applicable. It even affects scripted grenades. For example, on the level Crow's Nest, on the part where the [[M12 Force Application Vehicle|Warthog]] is hit by a [[Anskum-pattern plasma grenade|Plasma Grenade]], it will now be hit by two, three, or even four. The Catch skull has no effect on [[The Flood|Flood]]. It should be noted that characters will throw an unlimited amount of grenades at their enemies. The skull actually does seem to increase the number of [[Unggoy#Suicide Grunts|Kamikaze Grunts]]. It has been observed that the Marines will sometimes throw grenades with reckless abandon, similar to their behavior in ''Halo: Combat Evolved''.

# Battle through to Lakebed A -- the point where you fight an [[Ogab'd-pattern anti-aircraft Wraith|Anti-Air Wraith]], a handful of [[Type-32 Rapid Assault Vehicle|Ghosts]], and a standard [[Zurdo-pattern Wraith|Wraith]].

[[File:H3 Famine.jpg|thumb|200px|The Famine skull on The Ark.]]

'''Directions''': Near the end of the level, after you and the Arbiter fight through the Covenant to stop Truth from firing the Halo rings, the Flood will turn against you. Fight your way back to the elevator, but '''DO NOT''' drop through the vent at the end. Instead, turn around, facing the 7 holographic rings. From here, the closest ring is 1, the farthest away is 7. '''''FOLLOW THIS SEQUENCE BY JUMPING THROUGH THE RINGS IN THIS ORDER''''': 4 6 5 4 5 3 4 (If you listen closely, the humming noise of each holographic ring corresponds to one of 7 notes on a musical scale, and the sequence of notes produced by the rings in the sequence follows the tune of the last [[seven]] notes of the Gregorian Chant from the famous [[Halo Theme]]). Afterward, head all the way back to the control console and the skull should be on the floor just in front of the light-bridge.

'''Effects''': Nothing. [[Halo 3 skulls#Glitches|There is a glitch]] that enables a player carrying either this skull or the [[Halo 3 skulls#Tilt|Tilt]] skull through to the end of the level to start the next level with a [[M6 Grindell/Galilean Nonlinear Rifle|Spartan Laser]] and their current secondary weapon.

[[File:H3 Orbital Skull.png|thumb|200px|The Orbital skull's location.]]

[[File:H3 Assembly Skull.png|thumb|200px|The Assembly skull's location.]]

'''Level''': [[Assembly]]

[[File:H3 Sandbox Skull.png|thumb|200px|The Sandbox skull's location.]]

[[File:H3 Heretic Skull.png|thumb|200px|The Heretic skull's location.]]

[[File:H3 Longshore Skull.png|thumb|200px|The Longshore skull's location.]]

[[File:H3 Citadel Skull.png|thumb|200px|The Citadel skull's location.]]

Hackers searched the Halo 3 files and found evidence of an "Assassin Skull" in the <code>mainmenu.map</code> file. The same file also had hints of every skulls' locations, and the Assassin skull's hint was "Interred where heroes fall". Interestingly enough, the Sierra 117 Blind skull's hint was "Interred deep within her tomb". That description doesn't match with Sierra 117, but the Assassin skull's description does (the Chief fell from the [[Forerunner Dreadnought|Dreadnought]] at that level). The "unknown skull" on Cortana matches the Blind skull's description, considering that Cortana was trapped in ''[[High Charity]]''.

Apparently the unknown skull in Cortana was going to be the Blind skull, and Sierra 117 would have the Assassin skull, but the latter was replaced by the former. However Bungie technically did not remove the "old" Blind skull from the game, nor updated the mainmenu.map file; the Assassin skull and its info were not removed, and the hint for the Blind skull was not corrected. It has commonly been claimed that if a player retrieves the unknown skull before they retrieve the Blind skull, that they will unlock the Blind skull in the Campaign options screen, but this has been disproven.{{Ref/Site|Id=BlindSkull2|URL=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEOFxQrKArI|Site=YouTube|Page=Halo 3 - Is The Secret Skull On Cortana Really A 2nd Blind Skull?|D=03|M=10|Y=2017}}

The Acrophobia skull is an exclusive skull, featured only in [[Halo: The Master Chief Collection]]. The skull was released for the Xbox and PC version in commemoration of Halo 3‘s release on PC on 14 July 2020.

'''Effects''': Hold jump to activate the skull, and hold crouch during the flight to stop mid-air.

The [[Spartan Laser]] the player receives on the mission [[Halo (Halo 3 Level)|Halo]] upon completing [[Cortana (Level)|Cortana]] with a skull equipped is likely an unintended quirk caused by the way the game reallocates player weapons after completing certain missions. Between these missions, the game will go through a series of checks comparing the player's weapons to the weapons in the next mission to determine whether they are present. Ordinarily, if they are, the player will retain them. If the game cannot find an appropriate match for the weapon, or the player has a projectile weapon with an empty magazine and no ammunition remaining, it will instead give the player the default loadout for the mission.  

*the [[Halo 3 skulls#Tough Luck|Tough Luck]] skull from [[Tsavo Highway (level)|Tsavo Highway]] into [[The Storm (level)|The Storm]]; or

*the [[Halo 3 skulls#Tilt|Tilt]] or [[Halo 3 skulls#Unknown (Second Blind/Assassin)|Unknown]] skull from Cortana into Halo,