Canon

Armor accessories/GRD

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This article is about the attachment. For the helmet itself, see AKIS.

"Project SCLERA's exclusive P237-THEIATEK optical suite."
— Official description[1]

GRD is an optical attachment that is compatible with the AKIS helmet, and can be used in conjunction with the a CBRN module.[1]

In-game information

GRD will be an unlockable attachment for the AKIS helmet in Season 5: Anvil of Halo: The Master Chief Collection.[2]

Attachment(s) Description Unlock requirements (Halo: Reach) Unlock requirements (Halo: MCC)
HR AKIS GRD Helmet Icon.png
GRD 		Project SCLERA's exclusive P237-THEIATEK optical suite. N/A (Cut) Unknown
HR AKIS GRDCBRN Helmet Icon.png
GRD/CBRN 		Project SCLERA's exclusive P237-THEIATEK optical suite; for operations in hazardous zones. N/A (Cut) Unknown

Production notes

The GRD attachment first appeared in promotional material for Halo: Reach's Defiant Map Pack in 2011, where it was worn by a player using the AKIS helmet, in three screenshots of the map Condemned. As well as AKIS with the GRD and CBRN attachments, this player also wore the unreleased EXO/TSCS chest piece.[3][4] In the absence of an official name, the Halo community took to calling the helmet itself "GRD",[5] a nickname which 343 Industries would eventually official adopt for the attachment.[1]

A lack of official communication about or acknowledgement of the helmet and attachments from Bungie or 343 Industries led to a great deal of speculation about how they might be released, with some even suggesting that it could already be unlocked through some esoteric method.[5] Eventually, these rumours were proven false when, on February 11th, 2012, 343 Industries employee David Ellis confirmed that 343 had intended to release them alongside the Anniversary Map Pack, but that it had been cut due to time and resource constraints.[6] Ultimately, neither the AKIS helmet and its attachments, nor the EXO/TSCS chest piece were ever released for Reach on the Xbox 360.

The Spartan dolls Easter egg in the Anniversary Map Pack features dolls of Spartans wearing the same armor configuration as the player in the Defiant Map Pack screenshots, including the AKIS helmet with GRD attachment. This was a deliberate acknowledgement of the armor on 343 Industries' part.[6] This doll object was later made available as a placeable object in Halo 5: Guardians' Forge mode, in which it is known as the "5th Spartan" doll.[7]

In 2019, it was announced that Halo: Reach would be added to Halo: The Master Chief Collection, and that The Master Chief Collection would be ported to PC, with Reach being the first of the games in the collection to release on the platform.[8] This brought with it renewed interest in the unreleased armor, with many requesting that it be included in the game's re-release.[9][10][11] 343 Industries would officially address these requests in a development update in July of that year, saying that they "[were] currently investigating it but [could not] commit to it being in the game at [that] time" and also noting that they were interested in expanding the pool of customization items in each game, potentially even including new armors.[12]

Later the same year, a modder by the name of Gamecheat13 discovered customisation renders for two cut armour sets in the game files of the second Halo Insider flight (dubbed the "FireFlight") of Halo: The Master Chief Collection's PC port of Halo: Reach,[13] and also unearthed the internal codenames for both sets: spartan_dlc_condemned and spartan_dlc_preserve.[14] The spartan_dlc_preserve set featured the AKIS helmet (and three attachment combinations) paired with an unidentified chest piece, while the spartan_dlc_condemned set included the EXO/TSCS chest piece with the Mariner helmet, also with three attachments.

Eventually, in September 2020, it was confirmed in an MCC Development Update that these two armour sets would be making their way into Halo: The Master Chief Collection as part of Season 4: Reclaimer. This update also revealed the final name for the helmet (AKIS) and its attachments: GRD and CBRN.[1] Unfortunately, issues were encountered during development that prevented AKIS and Mariner from meeting 343's quality bar in time for inclusion into Season 4.[15] Consequently, the two helmets were pushed back to Season 5: Anvil.[2]

Gallery

Defiant Map Pack promotional images

  • A Spartan wearing the AKIS helmet with the CBRN and GRD attachments, wielding an SRS99-AM sniper rifle, flanked by two other Spartans.

    A Spartan wearing the AKIS helmet with the CBRN and GRD attachments, wielding an SRS99-AM sniper rifle, flanked by two other Spartans.

  • A close-up of the Spartan from the previous image.

    A close-up of the Spartan from the previous image.

  • Several combatants battling on Condemned, one of whom wears the helmet and attachment.

    Several combatants battling on Condemned, one of whom wears the helmet and attachment.

  • A close-up of the AKIS-clad Spartan in the previous image.

    A close-up of the AKIS-clad Spartan in the previous image.

  • Another battle on Condemned, with the leftmost Spartan wearing the helmet and attachment.

    Another battle on Condemned, with the leftmost Spartan wearing the helmet and attachment.

  • A close-up of the Spartan in the previous image.

    A close-up of the Spartan in the previous image.

Dolls

  • One of the dolls featuring the helmet in the Anniversary Map Pack.

    One of the dolls featuring the helmet in the Anniversary Map Pack.

  • The "5th Spartan" doll from Halo 5: Guardians' Forge mode.

    The "5th Spartan" doll from Halo 5: Guardians' Forge mode.

Halo: The Master Chief Collection datamined models

  • The customization render first discovered by Gamecheat13.[13]

    The customization render first discovered by Gamecheat13.[13]

  • The AKIS helmet and its attachments, with an unknown chest piece, extracted from the files of The Master Chief Collection.

    The AKIS helmet and its attachments, with an unknown chest piece, extracted from the files of The Master Chief Collection.

Halo: The Master Chief Collection menu images

  • The AKIS helmet with GRD attachment, viewed in MCC's armor customisation screen.

    The AKIS helmet with GRD attachment, viewed in MCC's armor customisation screen.

  • The AKIS helmet with the GRD and CBRN attachments.

    The AKIS helmet with the GRD and CBRN attachments.

List of apperances

Sources

  1. ^ a b c d Halo Waypoint, News, MCC Development Update - September 2020 (Retrieved on Jun 1, 2020) [archive]
  2. ^ a b Halo Waypoint, News, MCC Development Update - November 2020 (Retrieved on Jun 1, 2020) [archive]
  3. ^ TechGeek - Halo Reach: New Armor with Defiant Map Pack?
  4. ^ IGN - Halo: Reach Images
  5. ^ a b Halo Waypoint - Forums - The *only* thread about that helmet! (This thread features the first known use of the name "GRD")
  6. ^ a b NeoGAF - Halo |OT| HaloGAF Evolved
  7. ^ Halo 5: Guardians - Forge mode
  8. ^ Halo Waypoint - News, MCC PC & Halo: Reach
  9. ^ Reddit - r/Gaming, MCC PC, Halo: Reach, and Halo Insider AMA
  10. ^ Halo Waypoint - Forums, GRD helmet in Halo: Reach?
  11. ^ Twitter - Dab1001
  12. ^ Halo Waypoint - News, MCC Development Update - June 2019
  13. ^ a b Twitter - Gamecheat13 - "Found 2 new armor sets in the new customization render for the current MCC Reach Flight. Looks like 343i might be adding GRD and another unknown armor set to Reach for MCC."
  14. ^ Twitter - Gamecheat13 - "Names are spartan_dlc_preserve and spartan_dlc_condemned. Both named after maps from the Defiant map pack."
  15. ^ Halo Waypoint, News, MCC Development Update - October 2020 (Retrieved on Jun 1, 2020) [archive]

v • d • e
 
List of armor permutations by game title

v • d • e
 
List of armor permutations in Halo: Reach
Spartan armor
Air Assault • Commando • CQB • CQC • EOD • EVA • Grenadier • GUNGNIR • HAZOP • JFO • Mark V • Mark V[B] • Mark VI • Military Police • ODST • Operator • Pilot • Recon • Scout • Security • AKIS (MCC only) • Mariner (MCC only)
Spartan supplemental armor
Assault • Collar • FJ/PARA • Hard-point (HP) • Jump Jet restraints • Sniper • Tactical • Up-armored (UA) • GRD (MCC only) • EXO/TSCS (MCC only)
Elite armor sets
Fractures Spartan armor
Cut armor
For a complete list, check out our armor category.
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