Spectre

This article documents its subject as it pertains to the gameplay of the Halo games, rather than the lore.

Spectre
Gameplay role
Faction:	Covenant
Weapon type:	Ground
Locomotion method:	Hover
Counterparts:	Human (UNSC): Warthog Covenant: Revenant Prowler
Weapon stats
Armaments:	Plasma cannon
Max occupants:	4; 1 Driver, 1 gunner, two passengers (Halo 2)

The Spectre is a medium Covenant ground vehicle, first made playable in Halo 2.

Universe and lore

The Spectre are a set of Covenant vehicle patterns. The Wuzum-pattern Spectre in specific was seen as early as the Battle of Sargasso in 2546, during the War of Annihilation. The Wuchek-pattern Spectre however was a much rarer sight on the battlefield due to it's design.

The following is a list of all vehicles known by the "Spectre" moniker in Halo lore that have appeared in the games:

• 

  Wuchek-pattern Spectre
  Halo: Combat Evolved (cut), Halo: Combat Evolved Editing Kit

• 

  Wuzum-pattern Spectre
  Halo 2

Overview

Counterparts

Several vehicles act as counterparts to Spectre in gameplay. On the Covenant side, the Revenant and Prowler both act as a medium sized, passenger capable weapons platform. The Prowler even makes use of a plasma cannon itself. From the UNSC is the Chaingun Warthog, which acts in the same manner albeit with a kinetic based weapon.

• 

  Revenant
  Halo: Reach
  

• 

  Prowler
  Halo 3

• 

  Chaingun Warthog
  Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo: Reach, Halo 4, Halo 2: Anniversary, Halo 5: Guardians, Halo Online and Halo Infinite
  Halo Wars and Halo Wars 2

Gameplay

First-person shooters

Main article: First-person shooter

The Spectre differs slightly depending on the game. In Halo 2, it features a rear-mounted, rapid-firing plasma cannon which provides 360 degrees of fire; can hold three others after the driver, and can boost.

Campaign

The Spectre is a usable vehicle in Quarantine Zone, Uprising, and The Great Journey in Halo 2's campaign.

Multiplayer

A Spectre on Coagulation.

The Spectre can spawn on the maps Burial Mounds and Coagulation.

Advantages

• Stable firing platform thanks to its flat and heavy design and evenly-placed propulsion drive.
• Its plasma turret is very accurate with high rate of fire, delivering a reasonable amount of damage to its target; it is ideal for taking down Banshees, and can be used with success against infantry.
• It is capable of carrying a gunner and two passengers in addition to the driver.

Disadvantages

• High vulnerability of passengers to small arms fire and splash damage from nearby explosions.
• The gunner must also lead their targets when firing at medium to long range, as there is a noticeable travel time for the plasma projectiles.
• The turret performs poorly against armored vehicles such as the Scorpion, as the plasma cannon's bolts will be reflected by the tank's armor.

Tactics and strategies

• Its rapid-firing linear plasma cannon makes it very useful against Banshees because it is more accurate and fast instead of the normal, slow plasma bolts. On Legendary, a Spectre can be very irritating to a Banshee as it is not easy to hit.
• The Spectre, whilst disadvantaged in speed compared with other vehicles, has its advantages in combat. The Warthog can hold three people, where as the Spectre can hold four. This is a minor advantage, but can be useful as it provides extra fire support, giving the Spectre defense on all sides-especially if the occupants are armed with weapons like Rocket Launchers or Fuel Rod Guns (giving the Spectre a better chance against vehicles).
• The Spectre is the likely choice for getting to the top of multiplayer maps such as Coagulation and Burial Mounds, thanks to its indefinite boosting ability.
• Similar to the Ghost, the Spectre is an ideal vehicle for splattering enemies
• One excellent tactical strategy is to use the Spectres and other vehicles as a combination like the Warthog and Ghost, for more firepower and protection which is quite effective against groups and a small number of enemy infantry and vehicles.
• Spectres hold one extra player as opposed to the Warthog, a usual favorite for teams. While the Spectre is less commonly used, the extra seat provides advantages for objective based games, such as Capture the Flag.
• The Spectre is also suitable for rapid movement across a map. While players may obtain and stay in a Warthog, the Spectre can be used to carry a small team across distances to be closer to combat.

Production notes

Main article: Cut Halo: Combat Evolved vehicles § Shadow

The original Spectre present in the E3 2000 Trailer, at the time called the "Shadow".

The Spectre was one of many vehicles originally developed and intended for inclusion in Halo: Combat Evolved. The vehicle was showcased in the Halo E3 2000 trailer as employed by the Sangheili, though displayed some notable changes from the version ultimately included in Halo 2. The vehicle was notably a red rather than a purple-crimson, and had a hovering turret similar to that of the Mamua'uda-pattern Shade as opposed to the plasma cannon found in subsequent versions. At this time in development, the Spectre was known as the "Shadow" - not to be confused with the vehicle of the same name which was also cut from Combat Evolved.

The Shadow concept was later revived in Halo 2 as the Wuzum-pattern Spectre; renamed due to the Shadow name having been given to the Ruwaa-pattern Shadow. The original Halo: Combat Evolved design for the Spectre was restored to working condition for inclusion in the Halo Editing Kit as per the efforts of the Digsite project. This original Spectre was fully-canonised in a special issue of Canon Fodder in 2022 as the Wuchek-pattern Spectre.

Gallery

• 

  Early concept art of the Spectre for Halo: Combat Evolved.

• 

  Finalized concept art of the cut Spectre from Halo: Combat Evolved.

• 

  Concept art of the Spectre's controls for Halo: Combat Evolved.

• 

  The Spectre seen at a different point in the Halo E3 2000 trailer.

• 

  HUD of the Spectre's turret in Halo 2.

• 

  HUD of the Spectre in Halo 2: Anniversary.

• 

  HUD of the Spectre's turret in Halo 2: Anniversary.

List of appearances

• Halo 2 (First appearance)
• Halo Editing Kit