- "“[The Type-25 DEP] is the bread and butter of Covenant small arms—almost as common as the MA5 is with the UNSC. After the Covenant Carrier jumped there were some areas of Mombasa where plasma pistols covered the ground like leaves—that maneuver killed a bunch of dudes on both sides."
- — Anonymous serviceman
The Type-25 Directed Energy Pistol[1], otherwise known as the Plasma Pistol, is a Covenant ground firearm.
Summary
The Plasma Pistol, like the Plasma Rifle, is a directed energy weapon that fires bolts of superheated ionized gas (i.e. plasma) instead of traditional Human ballistic ammunition. This Covenant weapon is capable of quickly firing low-powered shots, or of charging a single high-powered blast which can rapidly deplete energy shielding. This high-powered shot makes the Plasma Pistol a formidable strategic weapon if used in concert with other infantry weapons.[2] The Plasma Pistol is a standard-issue weapon for lower-ranking Covenant such as Grunts and Jackals, but is occasionally used by higher-ranking Covenant such as Elites or Brutes.
Advantages
The Plasma Pistol is one of the most versatile and effective weapons in the entire Halo series. Its ability to instantly and completely deplete shields regardless of strength make it an invaluable weapon in multiplayer as well as in Campaign against certain enemies, especially Elites and Jackals. It is also highly effective against Sentinels, taking only a single overcharged shot to destroy a standard Sentinel, or two to destroy a Sentinel Major. In addition to its standard offensive capabilities, there are also various elements peculiar to each game that enhance its effectiveness. In Halo: Combat Evolved, it has the ability to briefly stun opponents via its standard firing mode. Also, the overcharged shots cause heavy damage to unshielded opponents in multiplayer as well as unshielded Covenant (except Hunters). In Halo 2, the greatly enhanced tracking abilities of the overcharged shots made it extremely effective, as it is nearly impossible to dodge. In Halo 3, while the overcharged shots have reduced tracking from Halo 2, they can now temporarily disable any vehicle, rendering them immobile for a few seconds. (Note: This effect is also an ability of the Power Drain.) Also, an overcharged plasma bolt in Halo 3 will destroy a Brute's Power Armor, making tham fall apart(this is extremely helpful in Legendary, when a Brute's shield is just as powerful as yours.
The Plasma Pistol is most effective when used in conjuction with other weapons, particularly those capable of headshots, i.e. the Battle Rifle, Carbine, or any M6 series handgun. Once the player has disabled their enemy's shields with the Plasma Pistol's overcharged shot, a single headshot from any of those weapons will result in a kill. In Halo 2, the colloquial term "noob combo" has been applied to the Plasma Pistol/Battle Rifle combination due to the extreme tracking abilities of the Plasma Pistol's charged shot as well as the relative ease of achieving headshots with the Battle Rifle. The noob combo is controversial amongst players. Some regard it as cheap while others laud it for its effectiveness. In Halo 2 and Halo 3, the Plasma Pistol is dual-wieldable, allowing the player to use its shield-breaking abilities in concert with another weapon, such as an SMG or pistol. In any Halo game, it is possible to use the Plasma Pistol in conjunction with melee for Close Quarters Combat (CQC, a.k.a. Close Quarters Battle, or CQB). The way you do this is charge up an overcharge shot, and then release it at close range just before using a melee attack. In Halo 1 and 2 (in autoupdate 1.1) it should only take one or two melee attacks to kill, and you can melee right after firing. In Halo 3 it is much more effective, as a melee attack after the shields are gone will guarantee a kill. Waiting in halls or buildings which force your enemy into CQB is an effective strategy.
Disadvantages
The Plasma Pistol overheats when fired rapidly for extended periods or when an overcharged shot is fired, which renders the weapon useless for several seconds. Also, the weapon, while accurate, has somewhat of a limited range due to the relatively low velocity of its shots (as compared to most other weapons) and its lack of a scope. It is also a very weak weapon when shot normally, taking multiple shots to wear out a targets shield and doing almost no damage to an unshielded enemy. The weapon's battery cannot be recharged, and thus it must be discarded when the battery is fully depleted. In Halo 2, the overcharged shot is only capable of depleting energy shields and will not kill any enemy, except Sentinels. In Halo 3, holding down the trigger to maintain an overcharged shot will deplete the battery gradually. Another disadvantage to this devastating pistol, is its now-reduced ability to follow the opponent. In Halo 3 the tracking is greatly reduced.
Description and Appearance
The Plasma Pistol is capable of quickly firing low-powered shots, or of firing a single high-powered blast which tracks its target to some degree. This blast is capable of immediately dissipating Spartans', Elites', and Jackals' shields. The amount of battery power it consumes when fired depends on the firing mode used and varies from game to game. In Halo: Combat Evolved, its standard fire depletes 1% of its battery for every five shots, while one overcharge shot will deplete 11% of its battery. In Halo 2, it averages 5 standard shots for every 2% of its battery, while charged shots deplete 15% of the battery. In Halo 3, the battery continually depletes if the trigger is held down for an overcharged shot, and uses 10% upon firing. The core power output is, like the plasma rifle, 100-150 Kv @ 2-3 dA, but, when overcharged, the power output is 1.5 Mv @ 2-3 dA.
The offensive capabilities of the weapon have varied somewhat from game to game. For example, in Halo: Combat Evolved, the standard shots were, like the Plasma Rifle, capable of briefly stunning an enemy. This ability is absent in Halo 2 and Halo 3. Also, the standard shots are much weaker in Halo 2 and Halo 3 than in Halo 1. The tracking abilities of the overcharged shots have varied as well. While they have a somewhat slight homing ability in Halo 1 and Halo 3, they are almost impossible to dodge at close range in Halo 2.
It is not known exactly how the firing mechanism of the Plasma Pistol functions, but it has been suggested that an electrical current from the battery is passed between the 'prongs' ionising the surrounding gas into a plasma and this is then propelled forwards by an electro magnet. This is what causes the weapon to overheat - if the weapon used stored plasma it would super cool, not heat. However, this is speculation and it is still not known exactly how the weapon functions.
UNSC Remarks
“The trigger is soft—no feedback—there’s no break that tells you when the overcharge is gonna kick in. First time I did it was by accident and it damn near sprained my wrist.”
“It’s a damned ray gun—how come we don’t have ray guns?”
“It’s great in built-up areas and clearing buildings. Anything over a couple dozen meters though? Not so much.”
“How the foxtrot does it track anything? Whatever—I guess that’s why I carry an em eh five (MA5 series) instead of a TACPAD.”
“It’s just the right size and it feels good in your hands, but give me an em seven (M7 SMG) or an em eh five (MA5 series) any day of the week.”
Influences
The Plasma Pistol was inspired by the human "Zeus-class fusion pistol" from the Marathon series. Like the fusion pistol, the Plasma Pistol is a reasonably damaging single-shot weapon with an overcharge mode. However, the fusion pistol's overcharge was far more damaging and could kill nearly any enemy in the game, with one caveat: if the gun was left overcharged for too long, it would explode, killing its wielder.
Character Compatibility
Trivia
- In the popular machinima series Red vs. Blue, Medical Officer "Doc" Dufresne uses the plasma pistol as a medical device of some kind. It seems to have the abilities of multiple medical tools rolled into one. As Doc says to Church in one instance "Yeah, it glows green for just about anything. It's sometimes hard to tell the difference. Like this green indicates high levels of anger stemming from suppressed feelings of inadequacy...and this green means impotency. Oops...actually that light CAUSES impotency. My bad, Church!"
- During overheating tap the B button to cancel so you can get back to fighting or with an effect, throw a grenade to stop the heat.
- In Halo 2, if you hit the power cell on a Ghost with an overcharge shot it will explode, destroying the vehicle and killing the driver, though it is hard to do in actual combat.
- In Halo: Combat Evolved you can press the trigger rapidly enough to fire the weapon faster than the Plasma Rifle.
- In Halo: Combat Evolved the plasma pistol bolts will drop over extremely long ranges.