M808 Scorpion
The M808 Main Battle Tank,[1][2][3] commonly known as the Scorpion, is the United Nations Space Command's premier armored mobile weapons platform. The tank was originally manufactured by Chalybs Defense Solutions,[1] until Acheron Security took claim following the Human-Covenant War[4] and the destruction of numerous CDS facilities on Meridian.[5]
The Scorpion has remained in service for centuries due to its combination of affordability, simplicity, and versatility and its rugged, adaptable design, features that cannot be matched by any "superior" main battle tank design. Additionally, the Scorpion's functional uses are numerous and widely varied—although the UNSC predominantly uses the tank for direct engagements, local defense, and anti-armor operations. A result of the tank's effectiveness and practicality, the M808 Scorpion has become the UNSC's template for all modern main battle tank designs.[6]
The M808 has proven itself to be the workhorse of UNSC armored attack vehicles. The tank's 90mm cannon can deliver a devastating blow to all targets—infantry or armor. The M808's thick ceramic-titanium armor can withstand a direct hit from a Covenant fuel rod cannon and survive with enough armor to keep fighting. The Scorpion's two-man crew severely limits human casualties; along with its main offensive capabilities, one other man can man the tank's turret as a gunner, and four infantrymen can sit on the tread pods of the tank, providing supporting fire while using the tank as a transport.[2]
OverviewEdit
Design detailsEdit
The M808 Scorpion is the UNSC's lead armored vehicle, having served for over three centuries. Its four-track nacelles design, with each track mounted on an independent computer-controlled suspension system, allows the M808 Scorpion to traverse, climb over, or maneuver around large debris or other battlefield obstacles, and prevents the vehicle from being easily disabled.[3] The Scorpion is not the most powerful or quickest UNSC main battle tank, but it is often considered to be the best marriage between those two qualities.[7]
ArmamentsEdit
The M808 Scorpion is equipped with a two-tier weapon system. The tank's primary armament is the M512 smooth-bore high-velocity cannon, a gun capable of firing 90mm tungsten shells and canister rounds with a three-to-four-second interval between each firing session.[1]
The machine gun is either co-axial or pintle-mounted.[2] The variants of the M808 Scorpion have varying armaments, in both cannon and machine gun type.[6]
VariantsEdit
The M808 Scorpion has more than a half-dozen variants over its many years of service, each with minor adjustments depending on its role. The physiological aspect and versatility of the main battle tank remains unchanged with each variant.[2]
- M808B Scorpion – An older variant with a coaxial M231 machine gun.[6]
- M808B2 Sun Devil – A modified variant of the M808B featuring twin-linked 40mm autocannons rather than a single cannon [8]
- M808B3 Tarantula – A heavy fire support variant armed with twin Scimitar 40x178mm hypervelocity rocket pods.
- M808C Scorpion – The "mainline" iteration of the M808 during the Human-Covenant War, features an M512 90mm smoothbore cannon for anti-tank and anti-fortification use, and a pintle-mounted M247T 7.62mm medium machine gun.[6]
- M808S Scorpion – A variant used by the UNSC Spirit of Fire during the Second Ark Conflict.[9]
Operational historyEdit
The M808 Scorpion was first manufactured in 2218[6], rumbling across the sands of Mars and over the rubble of urban battlezones on Earth.[10] Modern examples of the Scorpion tanks only bear a passing resemblance to the earliest models.[10] During the Insurrection, rebels would utilize stolen Scorpions against the UNSC.[11]
Non-canon and dubious canon appearancesEdit
Silver TimelineEdit
- Main article: Silver Timeline
M808 Scorpions are used by the UNSC against the Covenant.[12]
GalleryEdit
An M808 scorpion on Installation 03.
An M808 Scorpion on Installation 09.
List of appearancesEdit
- Halo: The Fall of Reach (First appearance)
- Halo: Combat Evolved
- Halo: The Flood
- Halo: First Strike
- i love bees
- Halo 2
- Halo Graphic Novel
- Halo: Ghosts of Onyx
- Halo: Contact Harvest (Mentioned only)
- Believe
- Diorama (Diorama only)
- Halo 3
- Halo: The Cole Protocol
- Halo Wars
- Halo 3: ODST
- Halo Legends
- Halo: Reach
- Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary
- Halo 4
- Halo: Spartan Assault
- Halo 2: Anniversary
- Halo: New Blood (Mentioned only)
- Halo: Spartan Strike
- Halo 5: Guardians (Mentioned only)
- Halo: Ground Command
- Halo Mythos
- Halo Wars 2
- Halo: Fireteam Raven
- Halo: Official Spartan Field Manual
- Halo Infinite
- Halo: The Television Series Season One
- Halo: Hippocratica (Mentioned only)
- Halo: The Television Series Season Two
- Halo: Fireside
SourcesEdit
- ^ a b c Halo: The Essential Visual Guide, page 164
- ^ a b c d Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition), page 238; page 248 (2011)
- ^ a b Bungie.net: M808 MBT profile
- ^ Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide, page 110
- ^ Halo Waypoint: Halo 4 Interactive Guide (defunct)
- ^ a b c d e Halo Waypoint: Scorpion (Content updated, backup link on Archive.org)
- ^ The text appears to describe the M808
- ^ Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition), page 238 (2009 edtition), 248 (2011 edition)
- ^ Halo Wars 2 Phoenix Log: Scorpion
- ^ a b Halo Legendary Crate, Data Drop #15
- ^ Halo Waypoint, Universe - Vehicles (Retrieved on Jan 4, 2020) [archive]
- ^ YouTube - Paramount+, Halo The Series (2022) Official Trailer (Retrieved on Jan 30, 2022)
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