Sangheili Major

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Template:Covenant Rank Infobox

"Station and Salvation both command a heavy price."

— Sangheili Major's mantra.^[1]

The Sangheili Major rank, also referred to as Major Domos^[2] or Sangheili Officers,^[1] is a Covenant Sangheili rank. They are directly superior to Sangheili Minors.

Rank

Main article: Rank

Major Domo are veteran warriors whose rank is medium-low in the Covenant Sangheili rank structure, but are higher ranked than a Minor Sangheili. Only a Major Domo can obtain the temporary rank of Ossoona, mainly due to the fact that a more seasoned warrior prefers combat, not stealth, and a Minor is too inexperienced to become the Ossoona. They usually command groups of Minors as well as other Covenant races in ground combat situations. In addition to commanding ground forces, Majors may also occupy the role of a "second-master" on a starship,^[3] effectively acting as the Shipmaster's second-in-command.^[4]

They are physically similar to a SPARTAN-II super soldier in terms of raw muscular strength. They are far more intuitive and quick-thinking than their subordinates. A single Major Domo is capable enough to survive against an entire squad of Marines. To Humans, they would be and are considered Lieutenants in the Covenant. The rank of a Major Domo can be compared to that of a Brute Ultra. On lower difficulties of both Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2, Major Domos are rarely seen without a Minor present. However, on the higher difficulty levels (Heroic and Legendary), these Sangheili are more numerous than Minors, in order to increase the difficulty of the game.

Combat

Enemy Major Domos (encountered throughout Halo: Combat Evolved and in Halo 2 only when playing as the Master Chief) are only found wielding Plasma Rifles, Needlers, and sometimes Carbines. Major Domos can sometimes be found duel-wielding Plasma Rifles instead of just wielding one. Oddly, they carry Plasma Grenades, but never seem to use them. When the player encounters them as Thel 'Vadamee they, like all Sangheili allies, can be made to use any weapon. They can even be made to use the Energy Sword and will sometimes spawn with them on the levels Regret and Delta Halo. This is strange because only the highest ranking Elites are allowed to wield Energy Swords.

Major Domos have more powerful Energy shields than their blue-clad Minor subordinates, as fitting with their rank. Their shields are 50% stronger than those of standard Minor, and in Halo 2 their shield strength is identical to that of the Honor Guard Sangheili, Zealots, and Heretic Sangheili Majors. On lower difficulties they can take a maximum of three hits on the body, or a single head-shot from the Sniper Rifle or Beam Rifle, and, in higher difficulties, they can take up to four body shots and two headshots. On Heroic difficulty their shields can withstand about 30 rounds of MA5B Assault Rifle or M7/Caseless Submachine Gun fire, or 7 to 9 Plasma Rifle bolts, with a handful of additional shots required to deplete their health and kill them.

In Halo 3 when Majors are dropped into battle to aid the player they always wield Plasma Rifles, although the player can always exchange weapons with theirs.

Tactics

Major Domos fire in sustained bursts and evasively strafe while shooting. They rarely make tactical mistakes, such as charging directly into a fight, or forgetting to take cover. On higher difficulty settings, it is very dangerous to face a Major Domo, as the quick bursts fired by Major Domos can deplete shields in a matter of seconds. It's even more dangerous to face a Major Domo duel-wielding Plasma Rifles on higher difficulty settings, as they can easily kill you in a matter of seconds as well.

Much like Minors on higher difficulty, they will attempt to lure the player into the open. They do this far more often when they have support from significant threats such as Mgalekgolo, groups of Yanme'e, or Kig-yar snipers, but almost never attempt it while alone.

The same tactics used to kill Minors can be used against Major Domos as well. However, their stronger energy shields make them more resilient to damage. For example, in Halo: Combat Evolved on Normal difficulty, it takes eight headshots from the M6D pistol to kill a Major, compared to six for a Minor. Furthermore, the Sniper Rifle takes two headshots on Heroic and Legendary difficulty. However, the "Noob Combo" is just effective as it is against as any other Sangheili, as the Plasma Pistol's charged shot instantly disables any shields regardless of strength.

On the Halo 3 level "The Covenant", a worthwhile tactic is to give Elite Majors heavier weapons, such as Fuel Rod Cannons, as they will be able to use the weapons more effectively than Minors during the attack on the towers.

Appearance

Major Domos are clad in red (specifically crimson or scarlet) armor, comparable to the red armor of Unggoy Majors. Major Domos in Halo 3 are shown wearing one of 2 variable armor colors. Some Majors are seen wearing metallic crimson and others are seen with metallic maroon colored armor, but both have white symbols on the front of their chest armor. In Halo 2, Majors have bright orange-red armor. Like Minors, the symbols in Halo: Combat Evolved had Forerunner letters, while in Halo 3 they glow a greenish color.

In Halo: Reach, the Sangheili Majors' (Now called Officers) combat harness is slightly different from the standard combat harness. The shoulders are slightly larger and more pointed at the separated tips. The helmet is more decorative, elongated and has an extra straight piece running the length of the helmet. Their armor's color is a pattern of gold, orange and red.

Trivia

Major Domos are one of only 5 Sangheili ranks shown alive in Halo 3 gameplay, the others being Elite Minors, the Arbiter Thel 'Vadam, the Fleet Master Rtas 'Vadum, and SpecOps Elites.
On the level "The Covenant" if the Thunderstorm skull is activated almost all the elites at the third tower will be Major Domos instead of one or two Majors lead 4-7 Minor Domo Elites
In Halo 2 level Cairo Station at the last chapter, "Return To Sender" on Heroic difficulty, you can see a Major Domo dual wielding a Plasma Rifle and a Needler, after you kill all the Sangheili except the Major Domo that is dual wielding, throw a Plasma Grenade at him. Sometimes if you do this, he will drop his Needler and go into the stance of holding an Energy Sword. You can also see his hand looks like he is wielding an Energy Sword. This is odd because the Major Domo acts like he is wielding a sword, but you can't see it, and he is still wielding the Plasma Rifle.
In rare cases on hard difficulties, the Elite Major will draw an Energy Sword as a last resort.
As seen in a Halo: Combat Evolved original 2000 teaser trailer, the Major Domos were originally supposed to have a wrist shield similar to that of a Kig-yar's but with a peculiar diamond pattern.
Majors appear in Halo 3: ODST, although they had all been killed by Brutes.
Majors' Combat Harness, referred to as the Sangheili Officer Harness, is available as a Sangheili armor permutation in multiplayer as a reward for buying the Halo: Reach Limited or Legendary editions.^[5]

Gallery

A Major in Halo 3.
A Major Domo in New Mombasa.
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An Elite Major on Installation 00.
This image shows the color differentiation of the Major Domo Elites armor.
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A group of Sangheili lead by a Major Domo on the level The Covenant.
Two Army troopers firing upon an Officer as it is being assassinated by SPARTAN-B312.
ReachConcept EliteOfficer.png

Concept art of a Sangheili Major in Halo: Reach.
The Sangheili Officer armor permutation available with the purchase of the Limited and Legendary editions of Halo: Reach.
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A Sangheili Major in combat.