| M49 Vulcan | |
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| Production overview | |
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| Specifications | |
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Ammunition type: |
12.7×99mm M255 HVE[1][2] or |
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Electrical, rotary, belt-fed[1] | |
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The M49 Vulcan, formerly the M343A2 Minigun,[2] is a heavy machine gun in use by the United Nations Space Command after the Human-Covenant War. It is a successor to the M41 and M46 machine guns, with which it shares the erroneous "chaingun" moniker.[1][3] Despite seeing a high initial production run in early 2558 the debilitation of a number of key manufacturing sites led Misriah Armory to ramp production back up on the M46.[4]
Overview
Design details
The M49 succeeds its predecessors in the Vulcan line of weapons, albeit heavily redesigned compared to the M46 and M49 models.[2] Unlike the early tri-barrelled models, the M49 is an electrically driven, five-barreled Gatling-style machine gun that is compatible with all standard UNSC heavy weapon mounts. The M49 is often installed on a pneumatic full-rotation turret as the primary armament of the M12B Warthog, and is also available in a semi-portable tripod configuration for site defense.[1] The latter configuration has a much shorter barrel assembly.
The M49's lethality is comparable to that of its predecessors. Barrel wear is considerably diminished in comparison, though the weapon will overheat after periods of sustained fire.[1] This is aided by the inclusion of an augmented cowling to protect the barrels from external wear and tear.[2] Although the M49 is designed to use the latest polymer-cased and energetic propellant 12.7×99mm M255 HVE rounds, UNSC units have been ordered to deplete existing stocks of older 12.7×99mm M340 HVE ammunition before transitioning to newer cartridges.[1][2][4] As opposed to its predecessors, the M49 ejects its spent casings from the left side.
Variants
- ONI Chaingun Turret: A variant used by the Office of Naval Intelligence. Fires explosive rounds with increased damage and does not overheat.[5] Kills Spartans in 5 rounds in War Games. It is ranked an Ultra Rare REQ in Warzone simulations, and is available at Level 5 energy while giving 150 REQ points if sold.
- Needle turret: A variant that fires blamite. Kills Spartans in 6 rounds in War Games.
Development history
The weapon was developed and produced by Misriah Armory as the latest in the long line of "Vulcan" rotary cannons - intended to succeed the long-serving M46 and M49 models.[1] During field-testing, the weapon was given the temporary designation of the M343A2, before being renamed to the M49 once it entered mainline service.[2] Misriah underwent a large initial production run of M49s in the early months of 2558, though the onset of the Created uprising meant that a number of key production sites were debilitated - consequently leading Misriah to fall back on its more established M46 model for mass-scale deployment in the new crisis.[4]
Gameplay
Halo 5: Guardians
The M49 replaces the M41 and M46 Vulcan turrets previously seen in prior Halo titles as the armament on the Warthog, and as a detachable turret replacing the M247H machine gun. Carrying the turret decreases the player's speed and maneuverability as in previous titles. However, it should be noted that this actually renders the player invisible on the motion tracker unless the weapon is fired, making the M343A2 useful for catching the enemy off-guard while on defense. The M343A2 kills Spartans in 12 rounds in War Games. It is ranked a Common REQ in Warzone simulations, and is available at 
energy while giving 
50 if sold.
Production note
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Browse more images in this article's gallery page. |
The weapon's designation is an obvious reference to 343 Industries.
Gallery
Development images
Concept art of the M343A2.
Renders of the M343A2 for Halo 5: Guardians.
More renders.
Renders of the underside of the gun.
An M343A2 detached from its mount.
Screenshots
Olympia Vale manning the turret on a Corp Warthog during the Battle of Meridian.
Edward Buck firing a portable version of the turret on Meridian.
The ONI variant of the weapon.
Heads-up display of the M343A2 on the back of an M12B Warthog on Recurve.
Third-person view of a stationary M343A2 on Guillotine.
Third-person view of a detached M343A2 on Guillotine.
Third-person view of a detached M343A2 by Edward Buck in the Halo 5: Guardians campaign.
A Hellcat-clad Spartan-IV using a detached M343A2 on Eden.
A Void Dancer-clad Spartan-IV using an M343A2.
A Spartan-IV using a detached M343A2.
A Needle M343A2 firing blamite.
List of appearances
- Halo 5: Guardians (First appearance)
Notes
- ^ The in-game description states the weapon is an autocannon, though this conflicts with its Halo Waypoint universe page which claims it is a machine gun chambered in 12.7×99mm, a round not large enough to classify it as an autocannon.
Sources
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Halo Waypoint, Chaingun (Retrieved on Jan 23, 2016) [archive]
- ^ a b c d e f Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition), page 136
- ^ Halo 5: Guardians, REQ card: Chaingun Turret description "Rotary autocannon."
- ^ a b c Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition), page 180
- ^ Halo 5: Guardians, REQ card: ONI Chaingun Turret description "When guile and stealth fail, the direct approach is often the best. Fires high explosive dual purpose [HEDP] rounds."