Editing M58 Archer missile

{{Era|UNSC|HCW}} 
{{Weapon
| image=[[File:FoR - Archer missile.jpg|250px]]
| name=M58 Archer
| manufacturer=
| model=
| type=Missile
| cost=
| size=
| damage per hit=Very high
| fire=Tube fired
| ammotype=High explosive 
| operation=Ship-to-ship missile
| rate of fire=
| accuracy=High
| range=
| era=[[Human-Covenant War]]
| counterpart=Covenant [[plasma turret]]
| counterwep=Covenant pulse laser turret
| affiliation=*[[UNSC Navy]]
*[[Insurrectionist]]s
}}

The '''M58 Archer'''<ref>[http://halo.xbox.com/Content/assets/en-us/ONI/577839090903298928/DDR-A340024-1115-08-27-52.pdf '''Halo Waypoint''' - ''Data Drop 5'']</ref> is a ship-to-ship missile carried by [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]] [[UNSC Navy|Navy]] [[warship]]s for engaging enemy ships in space combat. UNSC ships usually carry large numbers of them, their sheer numbers making up for their lack of effectiveness against [[Covenant]] [[Energy shielding|shield technology]], though unprotected ships can be destroyed by Archer missile strikes to the hull and superstructure.

==Design==
Archer missiles are usually stored in pods of thirty, although [[UNSC destroyer|destroyers]] and cruisers employ oversized missile pods to carry a larger payload. Both [[UNSC frigate|frigates]] and destroyers carry twenty-six pods, though as mentioned, destroyers carry a larger number per pod. The [[Halcyon-class cruiser|''Halcyon''-class cruiser]] {{UNSCShip|Pillar of Autumn}} may have possessed as many as 300 missile pods.

==History==
Prior to the [[Human-Covenant War]], the UNSC found the missiles to be effective against [[Insurrectionist]] combatant ships.<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest'''</ref> Against the Covenant, however, they realized that the defensive measures employed by the enemy ships such as energy shields and [[pulse laser turret|point defense lasers]] suddenly rendered Archer missiles near-obsolete - lasers were able to pick off up to half of the missiles launched, and those that hit were rarely enough to penetrate the shields.<ref>'''Halo: The Fall of Reach'''</ref><ref>'''Halo Wars: Genesis'''</ref> At least one Covenant ship class, the {{Class|DAV|light corvette}}, possesses [[Electronic countermeasures|jamming measures]] that interfere with the guidance systems. Tactics were developed to counter this, using the more devastating but slower-firing [[Magnetic Accelerator Cannon]]s to break through the shields, rendering the hulls vulnerable, but on the whole Archers proved to be ineffective weapons against the Covenant. Smaller ships, such as [[Covenant boarding craft|boarding craft]] or fighters, are much easier targets,<ref>'''Halo: The Fall of Reach'''</ref> and Archers may be used in support of ground forces, launched from orbit to strike a ground-based target.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page ???''</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:FoR - Archer missiles.jpg|Archer missiles fired at the [[Battle of Chi Ceti]].
File:13101574-Medium.jpg|Archer missile pods.
</gallery>

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo 2]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo 3]]'' {{C|Pods only}}
*''[[Halo: Reach]]'' {{C|Pods only}}
*''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: The Flood]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: First Strike]]''
*''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''
*''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]'' {{Mo}}
*[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]
**''[[The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole]]''
*''[[Halo: Fall of Reach]]''
**''[[Halo: Fall of Reach - Covenant|Covenant]]''
**''[[Halo: Fall of Reach - Invasion|Invasion]]''

==Sources==
<references/>

{{Template:UNSC Heavy Weapons}}
[[Category:Missiles]]
[[Category:Starship Weapons]]
[[Category:UNSC naval weapons]]