Deutoros-pattern Scarab

"We've all run the simulations. They're tough, but they ain't invincible!"

— Sergeant Johnson commenting on the Scarab's apparent toughness.

The Type-47 Ultra Heavy Assault Platform, more commonly known as the Scarab, is a Covenant mining vehicle adapted for use in combat.

Introduction

Scarabs are mobile fortresses deployed from High atmosphere or low to medium orbit on to the field, and the Covenant use them to the best of its abilities. The Scarab is meant to assault heavily defended structures and barriers and to give quick unstoppable support for Covenant troops on the ground. It can also deliver Covenant ground troops to their destination through heavily defended areas; this could mean death for the defending troops, such as the UNSC Marines. Unlike most Covenant ground vehicles, the Scarab does not make use of a Boosted Gravity Propulsion Drive for movement. Instead, it uses four large, powerful legs to traverse terrain most vehicles cannot, including climbing over buildings, trenches, mountains and other obstacles.

The Scarab can hold squads of Grunts and Jackals, as well as a few Brutes or Elites to prevent it from it being boarded, if anything managed to get close enough. They have been used in many battles against enemies, such the Battle of Reach, both battles of Earth and the Battle of the Ark. If a Scarab did get boarded, and there were no surviving Covenant troops on board, the Scarab could be eliminated by destroying its vulnerable reactor.

The Scarab is also the largest known ground vehicle in the Halo Trilogy as well as the most powerful, being equipped with a powerful plasma beam cannon at the front on a "head"-like pivot, and dorsally-mounted anti-air cannons. Despite its size, weaponry, and extremely thick armor, the craft remains vulnerable to boarding actions, and if the central core is eliminated, the Scarab will detonate.

Scarabs are quite notable for their intimidating, spider-like appearance, large size, and massive firepower. Their legs are surprisingly swift and accurate for their size, and were even able to find holds in narrow places, such as a canyon on Installation 05 or the streets of Mombasa. These legs can also be used as weapons, as a monstrous pointed leg is able to crush anything that happens to get in its way, such as a truck. A Scarab's legs can be weakened or even destroyed with enough firepower.

Weaknesses

In Halo 3, one way to destroy it is to damage the joints on the legs, enough so that the Scarab must shut down temporarily, then boarding it and destroying the center. However, there is another method. If the rear is hit with enough firepower, the rear armor will come off, thus exposing the core to small and heavy arms fire. In the level "The Covenant" in Halo 3, this tactic is commonly used via the Hornet gunships. In the level "The Storm" there is a crane with an elevator near the Scarab. If you get on the elevator you can jump off and land on the Scarab if it is near the elevator. Then just casually walk to the power core and watch it blow. If you don't want to leave your Scorpion or Hornet, there is a weak spot on the back of the Scarab. Blow this up and the reactor is in clear sight.

Variations

Halo Graphic Novel

File:Hgnpng.png

The Scarab featured in the Halo Graphic Novel.

In the Halo Graphic Novel, the Scarab had a very different appearance from the two game variants with a roughly cross shaped body. The across sections bore dual cannons, and neither end had a visible plasma cannon.

Its legs were a distinctly different shape (straight, with an 'L'-shaped joint to the body). It should be noted, however, that the story in which it appears, Second Sunrise Over New Mombasa, uses a very large amount of artistic license. The story is canonical (it was authorized by Bungie), but the visuals of the story clearly are not.

Halo 2

File:ScarabPng.png

The Halo 2-era Scarab

The Scarab was first seen in Halo 2 level Outskirts, and appeared as a large, four legged, silver armored behemoth with an estimated height of ninety feet. It featured a deck on top that was guarded by numerous Elites, Jackals and Grunts along with a walkway going over the entrance to its control room (you cannot see any enemies on the Scarab in Outskirts, only in Metropolis when you have to board the Scarab. There were two spine mounted plasma cannons to provide anti-air defense).

Its shell was invulnerable to damage from 90mm shells, missiles, .50cal rounds, and ANVIL HE missiles (the armor could be similar to the ship plating the Covenant use on their warships, and Hunter's shields). It proved vulnerable to boarding actions and destruction from inside. Bungie has joked that this Scarab looks more like a basket than an actual assault platform. As well, this Scarab did not have the plasma turret on top like the Halo 3 version. It is likely that this Scarab was more of a transport for weaker soldiers because of all Elites, Jackals, and Grunts that were giving covering fire for the pilots inside; also, it may be that this may be just a distinct Scarab only for high Prophets, for example, the Prophet of Regret.

In the final level, The Great Journey, the Arbiter attempts to hijack a Scarab with the intent to break into Delta Halo's control room. Sergeant Johnson gets to the Scarab first, however. Since both he and the Arbiter were intending to keep the Halo from activating, they agree to work together. After fighting through a number Banshees and Wraith, Johnson blasts open the door to control room (which, to it's credit, takes multiple shots to destroy), and then leaves the Scarab, since it had served it's puropse. Like in Outskirts, the Scarab can't be destroyed.

Halo 3

The Scarab received major changes between Halo 2 and Halo 3, with the Scarab actually being able to be destroyed, as opposed to just killing all of the enemies inside, as seen in a Halo 2 cutscene. The Halo 2 Scarab was also piloted by a Covenant soldier, whereas the Halo 3 Scarab is controlled by a colony of Lekgolo worms in the reactor. Appearance wise, its body was changed to have a different shape, being more bulbous at the end, similar to the Wraiths of Halo: Combat Evolved. In Halo 3, it seemed to have a greater width than in Halo 2, but wasn’t as tall as previously. The Scarab in Halo 3 is also a different color than Halo 2's variant, being purple instead of blue.

A Halo 3-era Scarab

In terms of weaponry, it wielded a smaller plasma beam that seems weaker (On Legendary the player is able to withstand sustained fire for a short amount of time [approx 0.8s]), as opposed to the instant death of the Halo 2 Scarab gun). The two anti-air turrets were removed for Halo 3, having been replaced by a single, large turret at the rear (which would shoot at you if you were in a Hornet or Banshee, and you were able to shoot off the covering of it with Hornet air-to-surface missiles.)

The flaps on the plasma beam were removed, and replaced by two destructible stationary plates. As pointed out before, the Scarab now appears to have no crew controlling it, just guards, to keep boarders off, and it is controlled by Lekgolo worms.Also while shooting exposed Lekgolo worms the worms can actually bleed, although the blood will not show on the ground. This has been proven in the December issue of GameInformer, in an article on the Mythic map pack. The level "Assembly" was shown to be a Scarab factory, and it was stated that tubes could be clearly seen on the level, injecting the worms into the Scarab shells.

The main gun also changed, with it appearing like a hose in Halo 3, instead of just the straight beam appearance of Halo 2. The Scarab appeared to have high impact legs due to all the jumps it makes, and it appears to be more maneuverable than in Halo 2. In Halo 3, it no longer dripped coolant/extra plasma from its belly/muzzle (gun) area and, finally, it had a darker color than in Halo 2.

Exposed Lekgolo in the Scarab's core.

A likely conjecture is that this version of the Scarab was intended to be a weapon. Its color changed to a shade of purple, like other Covenant war-ready vehicles and it was better-defended, having superior weapons. It has been speculated that Scarabs of Halo 2 were not weapons, but rather mining tools that were deployed as emergency combat relief by Regret upon finding humans on Earth. They could have been the mining Scarabs from Fall Of Reach. This is supported by the fact that Regret was looking for the device that opened the Portal to the Ark, and he needed digging machines to excavate it. Another likely explanation for the different Scarabs encountered throughout Halo is that the Scarabs depicted in Halo 2, the Graphic Novels and Halo wars were older models of Scarab tank, while the one encountered in Halo 3 was a newer model designed to replace the older versions.

Differences aside, it still had many similarities to the old Scarab. There were three levels (or decks), and the lowest was accessible when the Scarab had been temporarily disabled. This level featured a Grunt-mounted Plasma Turret, and usually one to four Brutes, depending on the difficulty level. There was a ramp that led to the second level, where there were a varying number of enemies, depending on the level and difficulty. Usually, you could expect to find a few Brutes and Grunts. On this level, there were two more Plasma Turrets, aimed to either side of the Scarab. If you turned 180° immediately upon ascending the ramp to this level, you could go up the purple slope to the third tier. This was just an open, unprotected platform below the large turret. Past the turrets on the second level (round the corner) is the power core that must be destroyed to have taken down the Scarab.

Bungie had also stated in the September issue of EGM, that the Scarab used an unscripted game Artificial Intelligence (not to be confused with story artificial intelligence units like Cortana) to create a more dynamic battle with it, as it would roam across the battlefield of its own accord and attack targets in its path. This way it would no longer require a relatively easy boarding action every time but a tactical approach.

Halo Wars

File:HWScarab.jpg

A Halo 3-like Scarab. Also, note the Brutes in the background.

In Halo Wars, the Scarab seemed to be a combination of the Halo 2 and Halo 3 Scarab designs, featuring an encased, Covenant purple chassis with a single spine mounted plasma cannon. The flaps on its Assault Cannon, while bearing a similarity to those of the Halo 3 Scarab and also resembling a beak of a bird, operated like the flaps of the Halo 2 Scarab gun. They first concealed the weapon then before it folded out into 8 separate pieces and seemed to shoot a sustained stream of plasma fire. The cannon was described in the demonstration as "An anti-everything gun".

In the most recent iterations of Halo Wars, however, the Scarab seems to resemble more closely the Halo 3 variant, rather than the Halo 2 model, however, this could just be an upgrade or a future technological advancement. It also seems to be much smaller than previous Scarabs. A recent article in Xbox Magazine comments that an attacking Scarab "ripped (a UNSC base) a new one." It has been confirmed to be very slow and expensive to build (3000 resources in Skirmish), with no upgrade available due to their cost to be made on such a big war machine.

Since Scarabs count as 20 population and cost 3000 resources, only two can be spawned at a time. Scarabs are very good against buildings, excellent against vehicles, and great against infantry. Given their extremely tough armor and powerful weaponry, destroying a Scarab is a difficult prospect. Overwhelming it with large numbers works, especially using anti-vehicle units such as the Scorpion or Wraith, but a significant number of your units will be destroyed in the attempts, unless professor Anders' Cryo Bomb is used to immobilise it first. More powerful upgrades for the UNSC MAC can destroy it extremely quickly, as can several Vulture gunships using their missile barrages. For the Covenant, leader units' special abilities can deal significant damage to the Scarab, such as the Prophet of Regret's Cleansing Beam.

Destructible Parts

Halo 2

The Halo 2 Scarab was almost indestructible and immune to damage in-game. Its movement was entirely scripted, and did little else than appear as giant piece of BSP geometry. It was only destroyed in a cutscene. It should also be noted that the Scarab in the level The Great Journey seemed to be damaged under the main gun; as it fired, green plasma leaked out onto the ground.

The forward Plasma Turret could be destroyed with just a few melee attacks, as could the rear Plasma Turret. The flaps on the main gun could be destroyed only by using a Scorpion Tank. Also, the underside grate could be destroyed.

Halo 3

The Core of a Halo 3 Scarab.

There are far more destructible parts on the Halo 3 Scarab than the Halo 2 Scarab. All four of the Scarab's knees were destructible to the point that the Scarab temporarily buckled under the weight of the platform, though given time they appear to repair themselves. The armor on these legs could also be blown off. The flaps covering the Scarab's main gun could be destroyed. This did not, however, disable the weapon. The crest on and around the turret could be completely blown off, slowing the rate of fire and the size of the plasma bolts. This had been reported to temporarily disable the turret. Two side door panels near the bottom rear could be torn off to allow a singular entry.

The barrier protecting the Core could be ripped away from the back of the Scarab by shooting the red glowing circle at the top of the barrier. Doing so would result in the Core being completely exposed, making it easier to destroy. All three Plasma Cannons can be destroyed, as can the Core. If the Core is destroyed, all parts of the Scarab will be destroyed at once, except for the crest of the Scarab Gun.

Weaponry

Primary

• (1) Front-Mounted Cannon
• Ammo: Super-Heated Plasma, presumably unguided. They have unlimited ammo.
• Rate of Fire: 4 second stream; 30 to 40 per second
• Movement of cannon: Through careful examination, one can see that the inside gun part seems to move forward from a cradle as the flaps open up.
• Notes: The projectile emitted from the Scarab's main gun emits a neon-green/bluish glow, indicating extremely high temperature. As the gun fires, white, hot liquid pours from the barrel onto the ground. The gun's force is enough to destroy any vehicle smaller than the Scarab in a matter of seconds. Also, on easy or normal difficulty, if you are in a small vehicle (Mongoose, Warthog, Ghost, Chopper) the sheer force of the plasma stream hitting the ground will flip your vehicle if you are close enough. If this happens close to the Scarab it may step on (and destroy) your vehicle.
• Approx. Range: The effective range on a Scarab's main cannon is not exceptionally good, about 0.4 miles as seen during the Citadel and Cartographer battles, where its attack can easily be evaded if at a distance.

Secondary

• Mounted Anti-Aircraft Turrets (Two in Halo 2, One in Halo 3)
• Ammo: Super-Heated Plasma, (similar to Shielded Plasma Cannon) They have unlimited ammo.
• Rate of Fire: 400-600 rounds/minute
• Notes: Presumed computer controlled, but a close look indicates that it may be manually controlled. It does wildly spin around when the core is destroyed as if the automatic controls crashed. Could be shot off with little firepower. NOTE: In Halo 3 the Anti Aircraft cannon couldn’t be shot off and was invincible. The Anti Aircraft gun(s) were unsurprisingly extremely effective against aircraft.
• Approx. Range: These weapons have a much greater range than the primary cannon on the Scarab. They are extremely effective against airborne vehicles, but can also be used against ground-based vehicles, such as Warthogs or Scorpions. They are effective up to approximately 1.5 miles, which is a rough but evidence-based conclusion drawn from ships and vehicles with similar weaponry.

Strategies

See page Scarab Fighting Strategies for a list of tactics to use against both Halo 2 and Halo 3 Scarabs.

Character Compatibility

• Elites (Halo 2 only)
• Sergeant Avery Johnson (Halo 2 only)
• Brutes (Halo 3 only)
• Lekgolo (confirmed pilots and part of the core system of Scarabs in Halo 3)
• Grunts - passengers, use as platform for plasma cannon
• Jackals - passengers

Glitches

• In the Halo 2 Level The Great Journey, you can get in the Scarab and see Johnson holding a Plasma Pistol.
• In Halo 3, if you jump onto one of the legs of a Scarab, and the leg rises up, it will cause you to fly through the air for a considerable distance and finally die after a while on the air.
• On the level Metropolis, when you see the Warthog being vaporized by the Scarab, you can grenade jump out of the map and see the Scarab walking away, but it disappears afterward.
• On the Halo 2 level Metropolis, when the Scarab stops at the end of the level, you can shoot off the two turrets at the front and rear of the Scarab. When the cutscene with it being destroyed starts, the two turrets will still be there, but will seem to be a darker color shade.
• In Halo 3, on the level The Ark, if you manage to get a Ghost past the Forerunner installation into the area where you fight the Scarab. Just as you come in the area, you can grenade-launch the back of the ghost to fling you onto the Scarab before it walks over the un-accessible terrain. If you hang onto one of the Plasma Turrets for awhile until the scarab stops moving, you can access the core-room, blow it up and run back to the normal part of the map. If you manage this, once you get down to the part where the Scarab is supposed to fight you, it will be cut in half, with its rear body completely gone. At this point, after the Scarab lands on the beach, it will not move or attack you.
• In the level The Storm, there is a glitch where if the Scarab is destroyed in the right position,the back legs will float in the air and start spinning rapidly. This glitch is known to cause lag and prevent you from making films or taking pictures in theater mode.
• On the level, The Ark, it is possible to "control" the Scarab. What you do before you take it out, you kill all friends and enemies on and off the Scarab. Then you stand at one of the corners on the outside deck and it will move in that direction but that is all it will do.The reason for this is that the Scarab is supposed to follow its enemies and kill them.But since you are the only one left it will follow the direction you point.

Trivia

• The Scarab is one of the only Covenant vehicles that is not named after supernatural beings (like a Ghost, Banshee, or Wraith), with the exception of Brute-made vehicles, although a Scarab was a mythological Egyptian giant beetle that pushed the Sun across the sky. This may be because it is in fact not a war machine but a piece of re-purposed mining equipment. The Locust, a smaller but otherwise similar machine, also shares its name with an insect instead.
• The Scarab Gun is a weapon that players can pick up in Halo 2; it looks like a plasma rifle and can be found on the levels Outskirts and Metropolis. It fires the same plasma stream as the Scarab's main gun, never overheats, and can fire continuous rapid fire. The Scarab Gun earns you an achievement on Halo 2 Vista.
• At close range, the explosion of a Scarab has enough power to kill a Spartan (or anyone else who is close enough). It can be observed that every level on which there is a Scarab also has many vehicles nearby to make a good escape.
• There are 7 Scarabs seen in the Halo series so far,which is another 7 reference.
• In Halo 3, when you shoot the Scarab's core after you take out all of the shielding, you can see what appears to be Hunter blood coming out of it. There is also an audible 'squishy' sound when you stand next to the 'worms' in the conduits. Another hint is that Lekgolo worms control Halo 3 Scarabs is that, on the level The Covenant, after the two Scarabs land they stand up and seemingly shake themselves. It would serve no purpose for them to do this if controlled by a pilot, but might make sense if they are controlled by the worms and were shaking off the impact. However, because the Halo 2 Scarab had to be controlled to move and the Halo 3 one didn't, the Halo 2 ones are normal machines and the Lekgolo worms might only control the Halo 3 Scarabs. Some players believe that the Scarab is actually Lekgolo technology, and the Halo 2 version was just a mining machine. Others suggest that the Halo 2 Scarab was in fact a weapon, but after Johnson took over a Scarab on Delta Halo, the Covenant may have updated their tech so it couldn't be hijacked, which would explain why the Scarab core contains Hunter worms, why there is no control room on the Halo 3 Scarab, and why the Scarab changed from its original Halo 2 version. Although this is possibly not true, seeing as the Covenant never changed their security on their ships, even after being "Hijacked" several times by Spartans and Marines. However, this may be a different case as this hijacking halted The Great Journey.
• A Scarab is an Egyptian beetle that was worshiped as a manifestation of Khepri, an Egyptian god who drove the sun across the sky.
• It is speculated that Scarabs are the Sharquoi mentioned in Conversations from the Universe.
• It is also notable that when a Scarab's leg is disabled, it emits a loud beep, much like that of a reversing truck (except at a lower pitch). This effect is perhaps a nod to the same death sequence (and sound) of the Juggernaut flying tanks in a previous Bungie game Marathon.
• The Scarab, once the core has been compromised, takes seven seconds to explode (going with the usual 7 "nods" Bungie puts into the games).
• The Halo 3 Scarab was recreated in Halo Actionclix and as of the game's release is the largest figure ever made by Wizkids, the game's creator. A battle-damaged version was released at the 2007 San Diego Comic Con for $250, which included the Scarab, two outdoor maps, an indoor map (representing the scarab's interior), four character cards, and rules for both the Scarab and the game itself. A normal one was also released at select retailers in November 2007.
• In a Halo 3 Video Documentary (ViDoc) about the new Scarab, the art directors stated that the Scarab in Halo 2 had a horrible design; Shi Kai Wang quoted "It looked like a basket with a handle and could go shopping with it."
• If you find that you may not be able to get away from a Scarab in time before it explodes, you can throw a Bubble Shield down. The shield will fully protect you from the explosion, regardless of how close you are to the Scarab, even if you are inside of it. It should be noted that doing so on the Scarab will not work, and that any large pieces from the Scarab can still pass through the shield and potentially kill you.
• In Halo 3, on the level, "The Covenant", two Scarabs are deployed by the Covenant Loyalist's fleet overhead, to defend the Citadel. However, on the previous level, "The Ark", Rtas 'Vadum claimed that "Truth's fleet lies in ruins". It could be possible that these were launched by a remaining ship as a last (failed) push to win the battle.
• A Scarab's explosion is extremely visible, as Rtas 'Vadum remarks how he saw the explosion of a Scarab from orbit, although it is probable that he may have been exaggerating.
• When Sgt Johnson takes control of his Scarab in Halo 2, he finds a way to deploy an energy shield that protected the controllers from a boarding party. Apparently the Covenant at New Mombasa either didn't have it, didn't consider the possibility of being boarded, or it could be to allow the crew to walk outside and defend the Scarab and kill the "Demon" pursuing them.
• Taking out one of the Scarab's joints forces it to buckle and use all of its power into standing up again, which deactivates its main gun.
• In Halo 3, Hornet missiles do no damage to a Scarab on higher difficulties.
• The Scarab bears some resemblance to the tripods from the H.G. Wells novel The War of the Worlds as both are used as assault vehicles by alien species, and are unusually agile for their sizes. The numerous spider-like legs are also similar. Both use very powerful "death beams".
• The crew of the Spirit Of Fire were the first UNSC personnel to encounter a Scarab in 2531.
• The Scarab does not appear in Halo: Combat Evolved.
• The Beaming with Pride achievement suggests that human forces capture a Scarab in the 13th mission in Halo Wars.
• In Halo 3, battling a Scarab can be rather like battling a Hunter. Its weak spot is towards the back, and can be destroyed, like the Hunter's armor. Both wield incredibly powerful beam cannons and both are the largest of their respective catalogs (Hunters being the largest Covenant ground force and Scarabs being the largest Covenant land vehicle). This was perhaps intentional by Bungie Studios, seeing as how they are both seemingly powered by Lekgolo worms.
• There is a face in the 2nd turret [in theater mode].
• You get the achievement,Beaming with Pride, when you destroy 25 enemy units with a Scarab in mission 13 of Halo Wars [1].

Gallery

• Scarabbiggyprob.jpg

  A Scarab near Voi.

• Scarab explodes.jpg

  A Scarab explodes on the level The Covenant.

• 1211491926 1660189468 81be5fa728 o.jpg

  A destroyed Scarab.

• 

  The Scarab firing its main cannon.

• 

  A close up of a Scarab's Core.

• 1218135664 Baydoor.jpg

  The Scarab's bay door

• 1218570208 Scarab2.jpg

  A Scarab on the level The Covenant.

• 1225419103 Scarab.jpg

  A front-view of a Scarab.

• 20702463-Full.jpg

  A Scarab creates a huge explosion upon defeat.

• Scarab beam.jpg

  The cannon of the Scarab misses the Master Chief by a few feet.

See Also

• Locust - A smaller version of the Scarab which will appear in Halo Wars.
• Scarab Gun - A weapon resembling a Plasma Rifle with the power of a Scarab's main gun in Halo 2.