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{{Era|FOR|H1|TF|H3}}
{{Status|Canon}}
{{Weapon
[[File:H2A - Grunt on Shade.jpg|thumb|300px|An [[Unggoy Minor]] manning a {{Pattern|Eeo'Pimu|Shade}} on [[Installation 05]].]]
| image=[[Image:H3 Shade.jpg|300px]]
'''Shades''', more formally designated by the [[Covenant]] as '''Gun Pods''' and by the [[United Nations Space Command]] as '''Anti-Infantry Stationary Guns''', are a series of standardised defensive turret emplacements used by the Covenant and its [[Covenant remnants|remnants]]. They consist of manned stationary gun turrets that are easily air-deployable via [[dropship]] and are extremely varied in design - with dozens of [[design pattern]] variations to account for ever-changing battlefield needs and the ergonomic requirements of the Covenant's client species.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22|Enc22|Page=302-303}} Shade variants vary in shape and role, but are similar enough in function and purpose to be grouped into the same category.{{Ref/Site|Id=universe|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/weapons/shade|Site=Halo Waypoint|Page=Shade Turret|D=30|M=09|Y=2016}}{{Ref/Book|EVG|Page=171}}
| name=Shade
| manufacturer= Covenant
| model=Type-26 Anti-infantry Stationary Gun
| type=Turret
| cost=
| size=Halo 1:
*Length: 4.4 meters (14.4 feet)
*Width: 3.1 meters (10.2 feet)
*Height: 3.2 meters (10.5 feet)
| damage per hit= High
| magazine=Infinite
| maxammo=N/A
| fire=
| ammotype= Superheated plasma
| operation=
| rate of fire=
| accuracy= Depends on user
| range= Far
| era= Halo, Halo 3
| counterpart= M41 LAAG
| counterwep= Spartan Laser, Grenades, M19 Launcher, Fuel Rod Cannon
| affiliation= Covenant
}}


The '''Type-26 Anti-infantry Stationary Gun''' (abbreviated '''Type-26 ASG'''), otherwise known as the '''"Shade"''' is the [[Covenant]]'s standard stationary gun turret and anti-infantry weapons platform.
Shade turrets were once exclusively designed and manufactured by the [[Assembly Forges]] of [[High Charity]]. After the holy city [[Fall of High Charity|fell]] to the [[Flood]] and was later [[Raid on High Charity|destroyed]] by [[John-117]], [[Achoem Weapons]]—based in [[Tolvuus]], [[Sanghelios]]—maintains the long-standing tradition of manufacturing the Shade turret.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}}


== Overview ==
==Design details==
===Design details and operation===
[[File:HCE-T29ShadeASG-Screen.jpg|thumb|250px|A pair of {{Pattern|Mamua'uda|Shade}}s operated by [[Unggoy]] on [[Installation 04]].]]
The Shades serve as the Covenant's primary stationary gun turrets and are commonly operated by [[Unggoy]]. Virtually all models of the Shade offer a wide field of fire by virtue of their mobile turret chassis nestled on a 360-degree traversal anti-gravity mount. The Covenant use this to their advantage and place Shades at strategic points where they can do the most damage, often around their outposts or [[Military base|bases]]; more permanent facilities are usually also equipped with heavier {{Pattern|Kewu Umppi'pa'|citadel turret}}s. Though most of the Shade models fill an anti-infantry role, anti-vehicle and anti-air variants of the Shade turrets also exist.


The Shade is a [[Covenant]] stationary gun turret and anti-infantry weapons platform, manned in third person like a vehicle. It consists of a sturdy base and a floating, mobile, turret-like seat with control systems for its gun. In [[Halo 2]], the Shade was replaced with a new [[Shielded Plasma Cannon]], which has [[energy shield]]s around it, similar to a [[Jackal]]'s. A similar gun to the Shade can be found as a defensive weapon on [[Spirit]] and [[Phantom]] dropships. It returned in [[Halo 3]], this time the base is now firmer, and the shade has a much heavier reinforced front to protect the gunner.
Anti-infantry Shade guns fire bolts of slow moving, high-powered plasma encased in magnetic fields. The accuracy of a Shade's weapon is fairly low, as the bolts of plasma fired can hit anywhere within the aiming reticle. The anti-infantry Shade is effective against most infantry. However, due to their high intelligence, [[Sangheili]] will often find cover and escape the Shade's range of fire. On this same note, the bolts fired lack the required punch to damage [[Mgalekgolo]], whose armor and combat shield can withstand most Covenant and UNSC small firearms, causing the plasma bolts to have little to no effect on them. It has shown good defense against light vehicles such as the [[Ghost]], and in desperate situations, can serve as anti-aircraft defense, requiring only a few direct hits to destroy a [[Banshee]].


The first known encounter with Shades was in [[2535]] during the [[Battle of Jericho VII]].
==Variants==
===Covenant Shade===
Categorising the vast array of Shade [[design pattern]] variants has proven a challenge for [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] analysts, due to the Covenant's disregard for standardised doctrine. For thousands of years at the empire's height, fleets were simply provisioned with "Shades", with chassis and armaments styles that would be unrecognisable to a modern observer. ONI [[Type classification system|type-classifications]] group Shades by the year in which they were first encountered - by contrast, the Covenant's methodology for Shade deployments was ultimately decided by the aesthetic whims of the [[San'Shyuum]] official in charge of supplying a given military unit.{{Ref/Reuse|universe}}


== Operation ==
*'''[[Type-25 Shade]]''' - a rarely-seen variant of Shade, and considered by the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] to be a slightly newer variation of the ''Murien''-pattern [[heavy plasma cannon]] installed on the {{Pattern|Dextro Xur|Spirit}} dropship.{{Ref/Site|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/vehicles/spirit|Site=Halo Waypoint|Page=Spirit|D=01|M=11|Y=2020}}
*'''{{Pattern|Bmur'resh|Shade}}''' - a variant based on the ''Eeo'Pimu''-pattern, designed by the [[Sangheili]] in the [[Post-Covenant War conflicts|post-war era]] without the restrictions upon firepower imposed by the [[San'Shyuum]].{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22}}
*'''{{Pattern|Eeo'Pimu|Shade}}''' - a lightweight and portable Shade variant developed for [[Covenant Special Operations]] units and [[Covenant fleet|fleets]] serving directly under [[Hierarchs]].{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22}}
*'''{{Pattern|Mamua'uda|Shade}}''' - one of the oldest Shade variants in use, and one especially prized by Covenant commanders due to its antiquity.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22}}
*'''{{Pattern|Preksheda|Shade}}''' - the most common Shade used during the [[Human-Covenant War]]. The ''Preksheda'' is a modular and extremely versatile Shade variant, with alternate weapons fittings including anti-armour [[fuel rod cannon]]s and anti-air rapid-fire plasma cannons.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22}}
*'''{{Pattern|Rizsheda|Shade}}''' - an alternate variation on the ''Preksheda'', with more focus on gunner protection - though not as commonly used.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22}}
*'''{{Pattern|Sho'riru|Shade}}''' - a post-war variant most predominantly used by [[Jul 'Mdama's Covenant]], prized for its extraordinary rate of fire and considered to be without equal.{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22}}
<gallery class="center">
File:H5G - Shade render.png|''Bmur'resh''-pattern Shade
File:H2 - T27 Shade ASG.png|''Eeo'pimu''-pattern Shade
File:HCEA-T29ShadeASG.png|''Mamua'uda''-pattern Shade
File:T26 ASG.png|''Preksheda''-pattern Shade
File:H3 ShadeTurret Crop.png|''Rizsheda''-pattern Shade
File:H4 ShadeTurret Crop.png|''Sho'riru''-pattern Shade
</gallery>


The Shade gun fires three (two in Halo 3) slow moving, high powered bolts of plasma encased in magnetic fields. The accuracy of a Shades weapon is fairly low, as the bolts of plasma fired can hit anywhere within the aiming reticule. Since it is designed with infantry combat in mind it is highly effective against [[Grunts]] and Jackals, and has exhibited limited effectiveness against [[Elites]] (especially at dropping their shields). But due to their intelligence Elites can often find cover and escape the Shade's field of fire. Its shots lack the required punch to damage [[Hunters]], whose [[armor]] and combat shield are immune to it. Lekgolo can easily knock the Shade over with the gunner still inside (Halo: Combat Evolved only.Halo 3's shade cannot be knocked over). It is also fairly ineffective against the Flood, like most other plasma based weaponry.  
===Banished Shade===
A number of Shade offshoots have been designed for use by the [[Banished]].
*'''[[Bolroci Workshop Shade]]''' - a shade highly based on the {{Pattern|Preksheda|Shade|}} design, though with [[energy shielding]] installed for gunner protection.
*'''[[Banished Shade|Shade (Halo Wars 2)]]''' - an unidentified model used by Banished forces [[Second Ark Conflict|occupying]] the [[Installation 00|Ark]].
<gallery class="center">
File:HINF ShadeTurret Crop.png|[[Bolroci Workshop Shade]]
File:HW2 Artwork ShadeDrop.jpg|[[Banished Shade|Unidentified model]]
</gallery>


The Shade offers a wide field of fire and a 360 degree traversable mount. It is highly effective at combating light infantry, has shown a good ability against light vehicles such as the [[Ghost]] and in desperate situations can serve as anti-aircraft defense (a few direct hits is all it needs to destroy a [[Banshee]]).
==In-game==
The Shade was first seen in the E3 demo atop a {{Pattern|Wuzum|Spectre}} and made its first gameplay appearance in ''Halo: Combat Evolved''<nowiki />'s level, [[The Truth and Reconciliation]].  The campaign version of the gun is almost twice as fast as the multiplayer version.


== Halo: Combat Evolved ==
In ''Halo 3'', the Shade's aiming reticule was similar to a [[Needler]]'s, except with a circle of lines at the center. The Shade was in multiplayer only in ''[[Halo 3 Epsilon]]'', as it was removed from the final version, even in [[Forge]]. Shades were later made available, free of modding, on some Forge maps.
[[Image:Shade.jpg|250px|thumb|right|Shade in Halo: Combat Evolved]]
=== Shade in Combat ===


It is possible to snipe a Shade gunner off its turret, but one must aim above the center (which the red reticule usually denotes) and at the user itself, since the Shade protects the user. In [[Halo: Combat Evolved]] it is possible to [[melee]] attack a foe off of a Shade. The gunner is highly exposed atop the Shade, with cover only available via the gun mechanism itself. This leaves the operator open to flanking maneuvers and attacks from multiple angles. This poses a serious disadvantage to the gunner. The turret is not permanently fixed to the ground, supposedly for movement/deployment purposes. As such, explosives are an ideal way of uprooting the Shade and ensuring it is subsequently out of action. If the Shade is turned over, then it is possible to flip it back upright.
Neither the [[Power Drain]] nor an overcharged [[Plasma Pistol]] shot can disable the Shade's firing mechanisms, though either of these will temporarily disable its ability to rotate, this applies to all EMP weapons.


== Halo 3 ==
The Shade makes an appearance in ''[[Halo Wars]]'' and is identical to the Type-29 Shade from ''Halo: Combat Evolved''. Anti-air and anti-vehicle variants of the Type-26 Shade are also introduced in ''Halo: Reach''.
In Halo 3, the shade was dubbed the "Ball Turret". It is often operated by the [[Grunt]] Race, specifically the Green-armored [[Gunner Grunt]]. Much like the Shade in [[Halo: Combat Evolved]],  it uses a Gravity Field to lift the battery off the ground and giving it free 360 degree field of view and a better deadzone.  The Shade is seen in the Halo 3 campaign missions [[The Ark]], [[Tsavo Highway]], and [[The Covenant]]. The Shade was in multiplayer only in [[Halo 3 Epsilon]]. As it was removed from the final version, even in [[Forge]]
<ref>http://www.360wtf.com/2007/08/20/360wtf-exclusive-over-20-leaked-halo-3-epsilon-images/</ref>[[Image:Shade_turrets01.png|left|thumb|179px|Shade in use by Elite soldier.]]


===Design===
*In [[Forge/Halo: Reach|Halo: Reach's Forge]], the shade turret is the only Covenant vehicle that can be colored based on the team, only changing the base of the turret
In contrast to the [[Shielded Plasma Cannon]] from [[Halo 2]], the Halo 3 shade seems much better defended, with physical armor encompassing the turret's user. While the cannon hovers on a small gravity lift like the Shade from Halo:Combat Evolved, the base looks entrenched, and so the device may not be mobile. However, much like the Shade in [[Halo: Combat Evolved]] it is also probably highly vulnerable to grenade or explosive strikes due to its stationary nature.  
===Campaign tactics===
*Heavy weapons, vehicles or grenades are perfect to destroy Shades.
*In ''Halo Combat Evolved'', if you get close to a Shade and try to push it, the operator can turn the turret and splatter you with the gun.
**You can also force them to dismount by using explosives to cause the turret to flip.
*In ''Halo 3: ODST'', Automags and snipers ''can'' be used to kill the gunner if no heavy weapons can be found.
*Ramming it with any vehicle at speed is an instant kill except in ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' and ''Halo Wars''.
**Warthogs and Choppers can ram the turret without injuring the drivers, while Ghosts have a risk of damaging the drivers when ramming.
*In ''Halo 3'' if you shoot a Shade from a distance and in the middle between the two pieces that jut out, the operator might jump out, making them an easier target.
*In ''Halo 3'', if the player stand right in front of the turret, in between the guns, the operator will not turn the turret to make the player slide in front of it, making you a harder target.
*In ''Halo: Reach'', enemies on Legendary can fire the Shade turret at an extreme rate.
*In ''Halo: Reach'', if the player get close to the turret, the operator will jump out of it.
*In ''Halo: Spartan Assault'' and ''Halo: Spartan Strike'' when a Shade reaches 66% damage, the enemy will dismount from it.
**Note that you cannot score a double kill when you destroy the Shade Turret along with a mounted gunner.


The foreign leak and EGM's pictures of the turret are slightly different, and in the EGM photo the Grunt manning the turret seems to barely reach the firing controls, suggesting that it may be designed specifically for the larger species like the Brutes.  
==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:HCE Shade.png|A ''Mamua'uda''-pattern Shade in ''Halo: Combat Evolved''.
File:H2-T27ShadeASG.png|An ''Eeo'pimu''-pattern Shade in ''Halo 2''.
File:HTMCC-H3-Generalshadewalker.jpg|A [[Cut Halo 3 vehicles|cut]] mobile Shade for ''Halo 3''.
File:Type26 ASG.png|The ''Rizsheda''-patttern Shade in ''Halo 3''.
File:HW shadeturret.jpg|''Mamua'uda''-pattern Shade in ''Halo Wars''
File:T26 ASG.png|The standard variant of the ''Preksheda''-pattern Shade in ''Halo: Reach''.
File:AA Shade.png|The AA variant of the ''Preksheda''-pattern Shade in ''Halo: Reach''.
File:Fuel rod Shade.png|The fuel rod variant of the ''Preksheda''-pattern Shade in ''Halo: Reach''.
File:HCEA-T29ShadeASG.png|A ''Mamua'uda''-pattern Shade in ''Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary''.
File:H4-T55ShadeASG.png|A ''Sho'riru''-pattern Shade in ''Halo 4''.
File:Halo 5 Anti-air shade.png| A fuel rod variant of the ''Bmur'resh''-pattern Shade in ''Halo 5: Guardians''.
File:HINF ShadeTurret.jpg|A Bolroci Workshop Shade in ''Halo Infinite''.
</gallery>


===Comparison===
==List of appearances==
[[Image:Halo 3 Shade.jpg|200px]]
{{Col-begin}}
The Halo 3 shade, in comparison to the shade in Halo: Combat Evolved, is similar and different in a few ways:
{{Col-2}}
*''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]''
*''[[Halo: The Flood]]''
*''[[Halo: First Strike]]''
*''[[Halo 2]]''
*''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''
*''[[Halo 3]]''
*''[[Halo Wars]]''
*''[[Halo 3: ODST]]''
*''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''
**''[[Palace Hotel]]''
*''[[Halo: Reach]]''
{{Col-2}}
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]''
*''[[Halo 4]]''
**''[[Spartan Ops]]''
*''[[Halo: Spartan Assault]]''
*''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]]''
*''[[Halo: Spartan Strike]]''
*''[[Halo 5: Guardians]]''
*''[[Halo Wars 2]]''
*''[[Halo: Legacy of Onyx]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo Infinite]]''
{{col-end}}
==Sources==
{{Ref/Sources}}


Both are used against [[Vehicles|vehicles]] and personnel.
{{Covenant heavy weapons}}
Both are turrets designed by the Covenant. Both turrets float on an anti-gravity "cushion" projected by their bases.
[[Category:Covenant weapons]]
The shade in Halo 3 is also known as the ball turret.
[[Category:Artillery]]
 
[[Category:Plasma weapons]]
The Halo 3 shade seems as if it does not need to be protected from the back and sides, unlike the Shade from Halo:Combat Evolved, but the Halo 3 shade protects the gunner from direct headshots with a large panel on the front of the gunner seat. You can however, attempt to score a headshot from the side of the Shade, but usually only if it is a [[Grunt]]. Really, your best bet is an explosive of some kind, as that will destroy the turret, rendering it useless.
 
== Character Compatibility ==
 
*[[Elites]]
*[[Brutes]]
*[[Spartans]]
*[[Grunts]]
*[[Marines]] (Have animation, but not used in-game).
 
== Related Links ==
*[[Plasma Cannon]]
*[[Shielded Plasma Cannon]]
 
{{WepList}}
 
 
[[Category:Weapons]]
 
[[Category:The Covenant]]
 
[[Category:Covenant Weapons]]

Latest revision as of 07:52, July 15, 2024

Shades, more formally designated by the Covenant as Gun Pods and by the United Nations Space Command as Anti-Infantry Stationary Guns, are a series of standardised defensive turret emplacements used by the Covenant and its remnants. They consist of manned stationary gun turrets that are easily air-deployable via dropship and are extremely varied in design - with dozens of design pattern variations to account for ever-changing battlefield needs and the ergonomic requirements of the Covenant's client species.[1] Shade variants vary in shape and role, but are similar enough in function and purpose to be grouped into the same category.[2][3]

Shade turrets were once exclusively designed and manufactured by the Assembly Forges of High Charity. After the holy city fell to the Flood and was later destroyed by John-117, Achoem Weapons—based in Tolvuus, Sanghelios—maintains the long-standing tradition of manufacturing the Shade turret.[2]

Design details[edit]

Design details and operation[edit]

The Shades serve as the Covenant's primary stationary gun turrets and are commonly operated by Unggoy. Virtually all models of the Shade offer a wide field of fire by virtue of their mobile turret chassis nestled on a 360-degree traversal anti-gravity mount. The Covenant use this to their advantage and place Shades at strategic points where they can do the most damage, often around their outposts or bases; more permanent facilities are usually also equipped with heavier Kewu Umppi'pa'-pattern citadel turrets. Though most of the Shade models fill an anti-infantry role, anti-vehicle and anti-air variants of the Shade turrets also exist.

Anti-infantry Shade guns fire bolts of slow moving, high-powered plasma encased in magnetic fields. The accuracy of a Shade's weapon is fairly low, as the bolts of plasma fired can hit anywhere within the aiming reticle. The anti-infantry Shade is effective against most infantry. However, due to their high intelligence, Sangheili will often find cover and escape the Shade's range of fire. On this same note, the bolts fired lack the required punch to damage Mgalekgolo, whose armor and combat shield can withstand most Covenant and UNSC small firearms, causing the plasma bolts to have little to no effect on them. It has shown good defense against light vehicles such as the Ghost, and in desperate situations, can serve as anti-aircraft defense, requiring only a few direct hits to destroy a Banshee.

Variants[edit]

Covenant Shade[edit]

Categorising the vast array of Shade design pattern variants has proven a challenge for Office of Naval Intelligence analysts, due to the Covenant's disregard for standardised doctrine. For thousands of years at the empire's height, fleets were simply provisioned with "Shades", with chassis and armaments styles that would be unrecognisable to a modern observer. ONI type-classifications group Shades by the year in which they were first encountered - by contrast, the Covenant's methodology for Shade deployments was ultimately decided by the aesthetic whims of the San'Shyuum official in charge of supplying a given military unit.[2]

Banished Shade[edit]

A number of Shade offshoots have been designed for use by the Banished.

In-game[edit]

The Shade was first seen in the E3 demo atop a Wuzum-pattern Spectre and made its first gameplay appearance in Halo: Combat Evolved's level, The Truth and Reconciliation. The campaign version of the gun is almost twice as fast as the multiplayer version.

In Halo 3, the Shade's aiming reticule was similar to a Needler's, except with a circle of lines at the center. The Shade was in multiplayer only in Halo 3 Epsilon, as it was removed from the final version, even in Forge. Shades were later made available, free of modding, on some Forge maps.

Neither the Power Drain nor an overcharged Plasma Pistol shot can disable the Shade's firing mechanisms, though either of these will temporarily disable its ability to rotate, this applies to all EMP weapons.

The Shade makes an appearance in Halo Wars and is identical to the Type-29 Shade from Halo: Combat Evolved. Anti-air and anti-vehicle variants of the Type-26 Shade are also introduced in Halo: Reach.

  • In Halo: Reach's Forge, the shade turret is the only Covenant vehicle that can be colored based on the team, only changing the base of the turret

Campaign tactics[edit]

  • Heavy weapons, vehicles or grenades are perfect to destroy Shades.
  • In Halo Combat Evolved, if you get close to a Shade and try to push it, the operator can turn the turret and splatter you with the gun.
    • You can also force them to dismount by using explosives to cause the turret to flip.
  • In Halo 3: ODST, Automags and snipers can be used to kill the gunner if no heavy weapons can be found.
  • Ramming it with any vehicle at speed is an instant kill except in Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo Wars.
    • Warthogs and Choppers can ram the turret without injuring the drivers, while Ghosts have a risk of damaging the drivers when ramming.
  • In Halo 3 if you shoot a Shade from a distance and in the middle between the two pieces that jut out, the operator might jump out, making them an easier target.
  • In Halo 3, if the player stand right in front of the turret, in between the guns, the operator will not turn the turret to make the player slide in front of it, making you a harder target.
  • In Halo: Reach, enemies on Legendary can fire the Shade turret at an extreme rate.
  • In Halo: Reach, if the player get close to the turret, the operator will jump out of it.
  • In Halo: Spartan Assault and Halo: Spartan Strike when a Shade reaches 66% damage, the enemy will dismount from it.
    • Note that you cannot score a double kill when you destroy the Shade Turret along with a mounted gunner.

Gallery[edit]

List of appearances[edit]

Sources[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition), page 302-303
  2. ^ a b c Halo Waypoint, Shade Turret (Retrieved on Sep 30, 2016) [archive]
  3. ^ Halo: The Essential Visual Guide, page 171
  4. ^ Halo Waypoint, Spirit (Retrieved on Nov 1, 2020) [archive]