The Brutes, or Jiralhanae by their own name, are the newest race of the Covenant and have high aspirations. They became the Honor Guards of the Prophets after the High Prophet of Regret was slain by the Master Chief, resulting in the sacking of the Elites from this traditional role and their takeover, and protect them fiercely.
They have thick, gray skin, and are covered with matted, brown or white fur-like hair. They have very sharp teeth and sometimes use them as a weapon. They are immensely strong (to the point of overpowering SPARTANs in MJOLNIR armor in hand to hand combat, at least in raw strength if not skill) and fight hand-to-hand if they ever lose their weapon. They seem to prefer to use a weapon called the Brute Shot that fires high-velocity grenades and has a long blade on the underside of it which they use for melee attacks in close range. They have their own version of the Plasma Rifle as well. The Brute Plasma Rifle is red, rather than blue, fires red blobs of plasma, and twice the normal rate of fire. The Brutes are strong and can survive without energy shields. Brutes appear to be immune to the Flood as no brute combat form has ever been identified.
Examples of Brute names are Tartarus, and Bracktanus.
The Brutes have a primitive cultural structure, and are split into tribes called "packs", all led by a single "Chieftain". The way a Brute moves up in rank or stature is unknown, but it is probably similar to that of the Elites.
Brutes have a high dislike for the Elites. They believe that they can protect the Prophets better than the Elites. This dislike led the beginnings of the Covenant civil war that started in October of 2552.
Ranks
Known Brute ranks include:
- Brute minors are basic Brutes, they do not wear armor of any kind, they wield the Brute Plasma Rifle, Carbines and ocassionally the Brute Shot. They also may be seen weilding a shotgun.
- Brute majors are more skilled than their minor counterparts, and wear basic armor. They are more prone to use bruteshots, but use other weapons as well.
- Brute Captains are signified by the flag mounted on their shoulder, and wield Brute Shots more often than other weapons.
- Honor Guard Brutes have recently taken the place of the Elites as the protectors of the High Prophets, and wear highly ornamented armor. They wield honor gaurd "spears", and brute plasma rifles.
- Chieftan Brutes are hightest in the Brute higharchy. There is only one known, Tartarus, who was killed by the Arbiter at the end of Halo 2. He used a gravity hammer called the Fist of Rukt.
Combatting Brutes
It has been noted that Brutes always move in groups, and if all but one are killed, the last Brute will drop its weapon and charge for the attacker, attempting to draw near and crush the target in unarmed combat. It has been noted that on Normal, only about 4 or 5 hits from a berserking Brute are necessary to drain shields completely. The Brute's attack speed is nothing to laugh at either.
Brutes have incredible endurance. On Legendary mode, even the weakest of them being able to take massive ammounts of damage.
The Needler is one of the most effective weapons against the Brutes. Fill a Brute with needles until it explodes and that should take out the Brute quickly.
The least effective way to take on a Brute is melee attacking him.(except from the back, which is OK)Using a plasma pistol (even charger up) is also incredibly inaffective..
Another effective weapon for dealing with brutes is the Carbine. Simply aim for the head of the Brute and fire. 1 or 2 shots should suffice. Even if the Brute is beserking just keep your aim on its head and continue to fire while walking backwards to avoid melee combat.
Higher-ranking Brutes wear helmets, preventing a one-hit headshot kill. The helmet must be shot off first before the Brute can be headshot.
Although the Needler might work on Brutes if you melee the Brutes with a Brute shot four or five times the Brute will die. Even with ammo in the weapon if you shoot at the Brutes with it, it will work just as well.
Trivia
The word "Jiralhanae" is a Korean swear word meaning something in the league of a "stupid aggressive lunatic". It can also mean "that's bullshit."