Roland S-B210's board-to-board with TheArb1ter117
Perfectly understandable, if you have discord then we can talk there since I have a copy of the Audible version of the book to hand and have painstakingly looked through more or less each frame of the 2011 motion comic adaptation of Headhunters to use as source material for my first forge project on Halo Infinte.
I'll respond to each of your messages in one.
Message 1: I didn't revert your edit about Roland being the only one with the camo. You're correct that Jonah didn't have it.
Message 2: In the quote you provided, it's stated that changes have been made to the Headhunter program's structure since the war, and that it's Spartan Operations which currently uses the "BINARY" and "LONEWOLF" terms. Since Spartan Operations didn't exist at the time and the program's structure was different, it would be an assumption to state that Roland and Jonah's team were given the "BINARY" label.
Message 3: Your initial edit said that the camo unit functioned for up to 5 minutes. I changed it to match what you quoted in his message. Also, the story says "Shielding. Bios. Targeting. Tracking. All of it would run at less than optimum efficiency while the av-cam system rebooted." His shielding "operating at less than optimum efficiency" while the camo unit reboots is a vague statement and cannot be assumed to simply mean his shielding is drained during this time. It could feasibly mean his shielding strength fluctuates in intensity, it literally flickers on and off, its strength is inconsistent across the surface of his armor, it draws more power from his armor than usual, or a bunch of other possibilities.
Also, remember to cite your edits when you make them. Thank you.
As for the camo:
"As it stood Roland's power armor was equipped with one of ONI's experimental active camouflage units along with a dedicated power supply. When it was activated he would achieve a state close to invisibility for a period of 3 1/2 to 4 minutes. Once used however the cell powering the unit would need anywhere from 10-15 minutes to recharge and put an additional strain on his suits other power functions like shielding, BIOs, targeting, tracking all of it would run at less than optimum efficiency while the AvCam system rebooted. Less than 4 minutes of maximized stealth in exchange for limited resources for a short but long enough duration directly following. As such Roland had to be judicious with it's use."
As you can see the "AvCam unit" does in fact drain the shield of the user partially as well as other systems while needing to recharge
A brief history on Headhunting: as stated on the page "Headhunters-Halopedia"
"The Headhunter program remains active following the Human-Covenant War, although changes to its structure have been made. Spartan Operations and ONI maintain a selective list of Spartan-III and Spartan-IV supersoldiers who may be deployed on highly classified missions, whether in two-person teams ("BINARY") or as single operatives ("LONEWOLF")"
The reason why Jonah didn't have access to an experimental active camouflage module “AvCam“
“This is exactly why I get to test the cool new toys and you don’t.” ~Roland *roland jabbed*
“So?!” *Jonah shot back*
“This cam unit is a precious commodity” *roland began to explain before Jonah pressed the issue*
“And?”
“And” *roland continued diplomatically*
“You’d activate it for no better reason than to give a grunt a wedgy.”
“Fair point”
“I on the other hand can control such base urges, saving our more limited and more valuable assets for their appropriate use.” *Roland explained with a mocking air of superiority in his voice*
“Geez.. does that mean you’re not going to let me borrow the car this weekend dad?”
“You joke but you know it’s true.”