HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL Mark I ADS

The HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL Mark I Prototype Armor Defense System was an experimental bipedal exoskeleton developed by the Office of Naval Intelligence in Weapons Research Facility T12A on Algolis. It was intended for use by the UNSC Marine Corps.

Overview

Derived from two parallel projects, HRUNTING and YGGDRASIL, the armor was a development of an earlier version of the MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor, which was designed for use by the SPARTAN-IIs. However, despite its effectiveness, the idea was mainly scrapped, as the user was very vulnerable and it was too complicated for use on the limited number of SPARTAN-IIs. The only known prototype of this exoskeleton suit was destroyed, along with all of its data, due to the enactment of the Cole Protocol during the Battle of Algolis.

Features

The HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL was powered by a nuclear fusion reactor. Unlike the more advanced MJOLNIR system, the user did not need to possess physiological augmentation to wear the armor. Though the HUD was rather similar to that of the MJOLNIR, the HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL's integrated weapon system and improved target assessment negated the need for a neural interface link. The suit used simple laser and radio technology for communications. Unlike the MJOLNIR, the suit did not recycle fluids. Overall, the HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL was much more expensive to manufacture than the MJOLNIR, which meant that it saw very limited production.

Armament

The main strength of the suit lied in its myriad of weapon systems, each integrated directly into the infrastructure of the exoskeleton. The right arm ended in the 850-round, six-barreled T261 Lucifer Arm-Mounted Gatling Gun. A targeting sensor suite resided in a large barrel mounted on top of the Gatling gun. The right shoulder was topped with a tri-barreled LAU-1810/SGM-151 missile launcher that fired heat-seeking missiles. An M149 Magellan Recoilless Rifle was mounted on the left shoulder, which had to be manually aimed by the operator. The suit carried fifty explosive 105mm rounds for the M149, each with a five-meter blast radius.

The suit's left arm ended in a mechanical hand used to both operate weapons and manipulate external objects with ease. Two additional missile tubes were attached to the forearm and were packed the same type of missiles used on the shoulder-mounted cluster. Three Type 18 Magnetic/Bayonet-style Claymores explosives were attached to each thigh, each with enough power to completely engulf a Wraith tank in the blast.

The HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL also featured a 300-megaton, lead-tampered nuclear fission self-destruct device which used the components of the suit's fusion reactor. Activating the self-destruct sequence would begin a staggered, codeword-activated countdown. Because such a system violates several military conventions regarding "kamikaze-style" actions, the device's purpose is still officially considered a "security" contingency.

Equipment

The suit's Heads Up Display.

The suit made use of a number of high-tech innovations to operate efficiently in combat. One of these improvements was an integrated jetpack used for powered flight. This jetpack uses a total of four stabilizers and four afterburner thrusters located on the front and back of the suit. Directional control seems to have been provided by shifts in balance by the operator. When not in use, the pack's thrusters folded into slots in the suit to protect from external damage. Another useful addition was the incorporation of the core technology behind the Office of Naval Intelligence's reverse-engineered Bubble Shields. The dynamic nature of the shield makes it automatically engage when the suit comes under fire.

Trivia

• The shoulder-plate verniers on the HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL are identical to the shoulder-plate devices on the MSN-03 Jaga Doga from the famous Japanese mecha anime, Mobile Suit Gundam "Char's counterattack", sans the Funnels on the latter. The color is even a perfect match to the colors on Gyunei Guss's customized version. It also bears a resemblance to the the limited-production Duel Dagger, a mobile suit variation from Gundam SEED.
• Hrunting is a magical sword given to Beowulf in the Anglo-Saxon poem of the same name. It was said to have never failed in battle until it faltered in Beowolf's encounter with Grendel. Yggdrasil is the Norse name of the "world tree" central to the cosmology of the Norse mythology.

List of appearances

• Halo Legends (First appearance)
  • Prototype
• Midnight in the Heart of Midlothian motion comic