Editing HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon

{{Era|HCW|Post}}
{{Center|This article is about a nuclear weapon. For the software, see [[Havok (software)|Havok]].}}
{{Weapon
| image=[[File:H4-HAVOK-TacNuke-ScanRender.png|300px]]<br>The Mark 2556 excavation-grade HAVOK warhead.
| name=HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon
| manufacturer=[[Misriah Armory]] <ref name="H4VG">'''[[Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', ''page 83''</ref>
| model=
| type= [[Wikipedia:Nuclear weapon design#Clean bombs|"Clean" thermonuclear weapon]]<ref name="tfor200">'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''page 200'' (2001 edition)</ref>
| cost=
|length={{Convert|13.8|in|cm}}<ref name="H4VG"/>
|width={{Convert|7.1|in|cm}}<ref name="H4VG"/>
|height={{Convert|7.5|in|cm}}<ref name="H4VG"/>
| rate-title=Yield
| rate=30 megaton yield<ref name="reach">'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''',  ''page 3'' ''page 16 2010 edition''</ref>
| ammotype-title=[[Wikipedia:Fissile|Fissile material]]
| ammotype=Mvalth-DTPF 80-S
| operation-title=Filler volume
| operation={{Convert|31.4|lb|kg}}
| accuracy=
| range=
| service=[[Human-Covenant War]] <br> [[Post-Covenant War conflicts]]
| affiliation=[[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]]
}}
The '''HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon''' is a [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]] [[nuclear weapon]] produced by the [[Misriah Armory]]. It is classified as part of the [[Medium Fusion Destructive Device]] category.<ref name="H4VG"/>

==Variants==
Several variants of the HAVOK nuclear device have been developed for use in different tactical situations, from ordnance deployed by ground forces to missile-based delivery systems.

===HAVOK nuclear mine===
The '''HAVOK tactical nuclear mine'''<ref>'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''page 177'' (2001 edition)</ref> is one of the most powerful ground-based nuclear ordnance in the UNSC arsenal, and has a thermonuclear yield of 30 [[Wikipedia:megaton|megatons]]. It is described as looking like a small black half sphere, and does not contain any external indicators; the device only contains a thin slot on the unit's face to allow the detonation key to be inserted. The bottom of the unit contains bonding strips that allows the HAVOK to be attached to any type of surface. The mine can only be detonated by a remote signal, and if the device is placed underneath thick concrete and steel, or other objects that may cause interference, a ground-return receiver must be set up to allow the signal to reach the device.<ref name="tfor200"/>

The HAVOK mine is used in situations where the UNSC must eliminate enemy forces in an area already claimed by them, or to prevent an area from falling into their hands. However, there are situations where the UNSC will use a HAVOK to eliminate Covenant ships deploying infantry and equipment. Nuclear weapons like the HAVOK are employed often but not always, and are only used when all civilian and military populations have been either evacuated, or compromised in a target area.

===Variant V===
The '''Variant V HAVOK''' is designed to maximize the thermonuclear yield in the vacuum of space.<ref>See talk page under subject [[Talk:HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon#On HAVOK Nuclear Warhead|"On HAVOK Nuclear Warhead"]]</ref> The Variant V HAVOK is a warhead that is attached to a missile and can be launched from either the ground or from a ship.<ref name="variant">'''[[Halo Wars: Genesis]]''', ''page 17''</ref> 

===Mark 2556 MFDD===
The '''Mark 2556 Medium Fusion Destructive Device'''<ref>'''[[Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', page 83</ref> is an excavation-grade variant of the weapon that is presumably less powerful, but can still be used in a missile and to destroy ships and other targets.<ref name="halo4">'''Halo 4''', campaign levels ''[[Composer (level)|Composer]]'' & ''[[Midnight]]''</ref>

==Tactical uses==
HAVOK Variant V nuclear missiles were carried on the {{UNSCShip|Spirit of Fire}} in [[2531]].<ref name="variant"/>

On February 12, [[2535]] during the [[Battle of Jericho VII]], UNSC NavSpecWep deployed three teams of [[SPARTAN-II program|SPARTAN-IIs]] on [[Jericho VII]] to combat Covenant forces invading the colony. At one point during the engagement Red Team was successfully able to plant a HAVOK nuke near a Covenant rally point where a [[Covenant cruiser|cruiser]] was to deploy ground forces while Blue Team was to clear out the rear guard of the Covenant forces so they could slip in. The plan was for the nuke to be detonated when the cruiser lowered its shields and landed to drop troops in order to take it out. Red Team succeeded in this mission.

In May, [[2545]], the [[53rd Armored Division]] of the [[UNSC Army]] detonated two HAVOKs to demolish three Covenant staging grounds during the [[Battle of Actium]]. The blasts wiped out much of the Covenant ground forces, but at the cost of no less than 12,000 Army personnel. The battle ultimately ended in a Covenant victory, as [[Actium]] was glassed. 

On July 18, [[2552]], during the [[Battle of Sigma Octanus IV]], [[Blue Team]] detonated a HAVOK nuclear mine in the city of [[Côte d'Azur]], during the battle taking place on the planet, destroying the city and all the Covenant in it.<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', ''page 212''</ref>

In October-November 2552, HAVOK nuclear weapons were used during the [[Battle of Earth]]. One notable use was when Blue Team was deployed to [[Mount Erebus]] in the Antarctic to destroy a Covenant excavation force using a HAVOK.<ref>'''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''', ''page 203''</ref>

Seven excavation-grade HAVOK warheads were stored on [[Ivanoff Station]]. During the [[Raid on Ivanoff Station]] by the [[Didact]], the [[John-117|Master Chief]] had all of the warheads prepared in order to destroy the [[Composer]] and prevent the Didact from getting it. After the Didact digitized everyone in the station, the Master Chief took one of these nukes in the form of a missile attached to an [[F-41 Broadsword]] fighter and chased the Didact. During the Didact's subsequent [[New Phoenix Incident|attack on Earth]], the Master Chief boarded the Didact's ship, ''[[Mantle's Approach]]'' with the nuke and detonated it, destroying the ship and the Composer.<ref name="halo4"/>

In the aftermath of the ship's destruction, a [[Sangheili]] terrorist attempted to destroy the city of [[Rio de Janeiro]] with a smuggled HAVOK warhead; he was ultimately stopped by UNSC special forces operatives.<ref>'''Spartan Ops''', ''[[Departure|S1E01 Departure]]''</ref>

During the [[Second Battle of Requiem]], [[Jul 'Mdama]]'s Covenant stole at least seven HAVOK-class warheads from the UNSC. During a raid on 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. However, [[Fireteam Crimson]] was able to locate and disarm all the HAVOKs before they could be detonated.<ref>'''Spartan Ops''', Episodes ''Scattered'' & ''Invasion''</ref>

During the [[Mission to Alpha Shard]], [[Randall Aiken]] manually set off a HAVOK nuke destroying the [[Alpha Shard]]. The nuke's fuel cell was used to power the [[Condor]] in order to let [[Jameson Locke]] and [[Talitha Macer]] have a chance to get off of the Shard.<ref>'''Halo:Nightfall''', Chapter 5 ''Devil Takes the Hindmost''</ref>

==Trivia==
{{Linkbox|gallery=yes}}
*In the ''[[Spartan Ops]]'' chapter [[Invasion (Spartan Ops)/Engine of Destruction|Engine of Destruction]], if the player looks closely at the displays for the nukes, it will read "''HAVOK Missle Controls Disarmed''". The spelling error is presumably an oversight.
*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. However, 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 no doubt the result of mistakes or artistic license, it is possible that variants of the HAVOK have differing yields.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:H4-Concept-HAVOK.jpg|Concept art of the HAVOK missile and warhead for ''[[Halo 4]]''.
File:H4-HavokTacNukeWarhead.png|An excavation-grade HAVOK warhead.
File:H4-HavokTacNukeMissile.png|Extracted view of a missile carrying a HAVOK warhead.
File:H4-HavokTacNukeMissile1-Screen.jpg|In-game view of a HAVOK nuclear missile.
File:H4-HavokTacNukeWarhead-Screen.jpg|In-game view of a HAVOK tactical nuclear warhead, mounted on the back of [[John-117]]'s armor.
File:H4-MasterChief-HavokTacNuke1.jpg|The Master Chief inspecting the missile's HAVOK warhead.
File:H4-MasterChief-HavokTacNuke2.jpg|The Master Chief removing the HAVOK warhead.
File:H4-MasterChief-HavokTacNuke3.jpg|The HAVOK warhead is removed from the missile.
File:HE12 Havoks.jpg|HAVOK missiles impact a pirate base on [[Ven III]].
</gallery>

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''
*''[[Halo Wars: Genesis]]''
*''[[Halo 4]]''
**''[[Spartan Ops]]''
*''[[Halo: Escalation]]''
*''[[Halo: Nightfall]]''

== Sources ==
<references/>

{{UNSC ordnance}}

[[Category:Nuclear Weapons]]
[[Category:Human Weapons]]