Needle-based weaponry

John-117 dual wielding Type-33 needlers, the most common needle weaponry in the Covenant.

Needle weaponry, or needle-based weaponry, refers to projectile weapons that launch explosive Subanese crystalline shards to do damage to a target. While the Forerunners have developed at least one class of needle weapon, the Covenant most likely reverse-engineered the technology, leading to its widespread use in the Covenant and its remnants, particularly among their specialized infantry and vehicles.

Operation

Needle weapons are characterized by their ammunition: the pink crystal substance mined from Suban, one of from the Sangheilios' two moons. Upon impaling a target, the shards become chemically reactive, and detonate after a few seconds. If multiple shards make contact, then a chain reaction occurs—their chemical properties supercombine and the shards detonate simultaneously, causing an immediate and violent explosion. While the shards are devastating against living tissue, they are are relatively ineffective against energy shielding.

Covenant needle weapons break the crystals into needle-like shards, then launch the shards from the weapon. The needler, the most popular class of needle weaponry, contains an additional magnetic auger within the weapon that catalyzes the shards, which then become capable of tracking targeted heat signatures. In contrast, the Gadulo-pattern needle rifle was not designed to charge its needles with the ability to home in on a living target, so it likely lacks a magnetic auger. Instead, when fired, the crystalline shards snap off into individual charged projectiles which are launched linearly at the intended target.

List of needle weapons

Handheld weapons

• Blood of Suban variant of the Mosa-pattern carbine
• Needler
  • Posu'gelka-pattern needler
  • Nahle'hax-pattern needler
  • Type-33 needler
  • Type-56D needler
• Gadulo-pattern needle rifle

Mounted weapons

• Heavy needle cannon
• Modified M49 Vulcan
• Needle cannon
• Shard cannon
• Shardstorm launcher