Fuel rod cannon

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Were you looking for the closely related shoulder-mounted Fuel Rod Gun or for the Hunter's variant?

Template:Weapon The Class-2 Projectile Cannon, colloquially referred to as the Fuel Rod Cannon, is a Covenant vehicle-mounted energy projectile weapon. The fuel rod cannon is a larger and more powerful version of the Type-33 LAAW, with anti-vehicle and anti-air applications. It is the used in a variety of vehicles, including Banshees, Anti-Air Wraiths and a variant of the Shade Turret.

Background

The Class-2 Projectile Cannon is often equipped to vehicles for increased firepower. Banshees are equipped with a single Fuel Rod Cannon for attacking hardened ground-targets, while Anti-Air Wraiths are fitted with pods of three.

This weapon functions similarly to the man-portable Type-33 LAAW, but the bolts fired by the cannon are larger and more damaging. In addition, the bolts are sometimes equipped with targeting technology, as those fired by the Banshee can home in on moving vehicles. The Banshee's version of the weapon can only fire one shot before having to reload, but makes up for this with its virtually unlimited ammunition. The Mgalekgolo's fuel rod assault cannon uses similar technology.

Usage

The Class-2 Projectile Cannon is a rather powerful weapon, and vehicles equipped with them are not to be taken lightly. The Banshee in Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 3 often use the weapon to soften a target before finishing it with its Class-2 Energy Guns. These are especially lethal to light vehicles, such as a Ghost or Mongoose. The enemy Banshee will generally use its Fuel Rod Cannon, sending you cart-wheeling into the air. This strategy can be easily demonstrated when several Banshees are in the area, as they can fire rather quickly. The projectile can generally be avoided, as they often fire from a distance. This is harder in Halo 3, as they have a slight homing ability in Halo 3. The Fuel Rod Cannons found on Anti-Air Wraiths seem to have a higher degree of tracking, but these are still generally easy to avoid.

The Anti-Air Wraith's Fuel Rod Cannons are extremely powerful and can bring down Hornets with relative ease.

The Fuel Rod Cannon is included in Halo Wars, functioning as the Anti-Vehicle upgrade for the Covenant Turret.

Trivia

In Halo 3, on Heroic or Legendary, if an Anti-Air Wraith gets a direct hit on the player, it will kill him instantly. However, it is rather rare for an Anti-Air Wraith to attack ground targets.
In Halo 2 and Halo 3: ODST, T-33 LAAWs or Fuel Rod Guns are referred to as Fuel Rod Cannons.
The term "fuel rod" is technically incorrect when referring to the weapon's ammunition, and originates from the projectiles' resemblance to how nuclear fuel rods are commonly depicted in popular culture.^[1]

Gallery

An explosion from a Banshee's Fuel Rod Cannon in Halo: Landfall.

Sources

^ Bungie.net: Type-33 Light Anti-Armor Weapon: “It’s so weird. I don’t know who first called it a fuel rod gun, but it’s kind’a funny. I suppose the projectile is reminiscent of how you might expect to see a nuclear fuel rod depicted in a gee eh cartoon—all glowing green and throwing off sparks.”

Related pages

Template:Covenant Weapons

[1] Bungie.net: Type-33 Light Anti-Armor Weapon: “It’s so weird. I don’t know who first called it a fuel rod gun, but it’s kind’a funny. I suppose the projectile is reminiscent of how you might expect to see a nuclear fuel rod depicted in a gee eh cartoon—all glowing green and throwing off sparks.”

[1]