Type-26 Banshee

Looking for the Heretic Banshee?

The Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft, otherwise known as the Banshee by Humans, is the Covenant's standard ground assault aircraft.

Overview

A Banshee concept art from the new game Halo Wars.

The Banshee is a fast, personal aerial assault craft used by the Covenant. The Banshee resembles a medium size jet with a hood, that opens upward from the rear. It is equipped with two "wings" which terminates propulsion jets and anti-gravity pods leaving behind a signature exhaust trail while flying. The Banshee is capable of reaching a speed of over 100 km/h^[1], is extremely manoeuvrable, and able to perform highly aerobatic maneuvers. The Banshee is also capable of space flight.^[2]. The vehicle garners it's name from the wailing noise it creates when in the air. In Halo:Combat Evolved it is capable of hovering. It has two weapon pods mounted to either side of the fuselage. Each of these pods contains a light plasma cannon and a Fuel Rod Cannon ^[3]. The Banshee is deployed en masse to provide air cover for Covenant forces on the ground. Though small arms fire may disrupt or disable the pilot (the SMG is very effective against it in Halo 2), only heavy weapons are capable of inflicting enough damage to destroy the vehicle. In Halo 2 multiplayer, the secondary weapon, the Fuel Rod Cannon, has been replaced by a speed boost. However, it is accessible in Halo 3 multiplayer.

The Banshee is never seen being piloted by one of the "inferior" Covenant races. It is solely reserved for use by the Elites and Brutes.

Banshees are seen in the three part series Halo: Arms Race. They seem to fly much faster in Halo 3, often performing strafing runs, and its weapons seem to do more damage. The plasma projectiles seem to also travel much faster, however this may be because "our" experience with the Banshee is through the Master Chief, who has reflexes several times human normal (and the game speed accurately reflects his reaction time).

Versions

Halo: Combat Evolved

Two Banshees on the level Assault on the Control Room.

In Halo: Combat Evolved the Banshee could almost hover in mid air. The player would use the control to move backwards, causing the Banshee to back up, hover up-side down, but at a slow rate of speed making the Banshee appear to hover, leading advanced airmen to do complex stunts. The banshee from Halo: Combat Evolved cannot strafe left to right with the left thumbstick. Also, a Banshee in Campaign had a health bar similar to the player's. After its health is depleted the Banshee would explode, killing the driver. The Banshee also has increased armor in Halo: Combat Evolved. For example, several Shotgun blasts can impact the Banshee before it is destroyed. It is usable in the PC/MAC version's multiplayer, but on the Xbox version it is only usable in the single player levels Assault on the Control Room, Two Betrayals and briefly at the end of Keyes.

Banshees are also available on the multiplayer maps Blood Gulch, Infinity, Sidewinder, Death Island, and Gephyrophobia. The Banshee is exactly the same as in single player mode, but the vehicle does not take damage. In order for a Banshee to be neutralized, the driver must be killed. Any weapon can kill the driver, although some weapons and tactics work better then others. Weapons of choice for killing Banshees are often the Fuel Rod Gun, the Rocket Launcher, and Assault rifle. Players who don't have one of these weapons will often try sticking the Banshee, but mostly fail due to the Banshee's high maneuvering speeds. The heavy weapons are self explanatory, while the Assault Rifle is used by more skilled players. They fire short bursts at medium range and fire full automatic if the Banshee is close enough. An inexperienced pilot will often flee if they lose their shields. If the pilot does this, then the player should switch to a Pistol and finish them off.

Both Fragmentation Grenades and Plasma Grenades can be used effectively to combat a Banshee. Some players stand on cliffs to lure the Banshee in, then attempt to stick it. More experienced players will wait for the Banshee to be low to the ground, throw a grenade ahead of it, and the Banshee will fly into the detonation.

Banshees are highly effective against players in large multiplayer maps such as Blood Gulch and Infinity. Their Fuel Rod Cannons can flip Warthogs and their Plasma Cannons can decimate infantry. Another tactic is to run over other players, which is an instant kill if the driver succeeds in hitting the target. This tactic can also be risky if the driver is not very experienced, when hitting the ground the Banshee has a good chance of slowing down and when this happens it could be stuck by a Plasma Grenade.

The Banshee can also be maneuvered in such a way so it may fly upside down. This is possible both in multiplayer, and campaign in Halo: Combat Evolved. The tactic is considered a glitch. The driver simply flies in a circle, preferably counter-clockwise. Then, when the Banshee is flying in a tight circle and the two wing tips are directly above each other, the driver looks straight up. This should invert the Banshee. At this point in time the driver should look down, then up again at intervals of around half a second. By continuously looking up and down while driving the inverted Banshee, the driver can fly upside-down. However, if the driver comes in contact with a wall or another object, he/she will be instantly ejected from the upside-down Banshee. This is only one of many ways to invert the Banshee. This tactic also has very little use in combat since its hard to aim while flying upside-down. Therefore, this tactic is used mainly as a distraction, players may not always shoot at someone flying an upside-down Banshee if they have never seen someone fly a Banshee upside-down before. The Fuel Rod Cannon is also highly effective on players.

Halo 2

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Banshee on Coagulation.

In Halo 2, the Banshee's engines can be pushed to provide a very good boost in speed, but at the cost of maneuverability and weapon power; however, a skilled pilot can time brief periods between boosts to vastly improve their maneuverability. The Banshee can no longer hover, that function has been replaced with an air brake and holding the thumbstick down will cause it to slowly go down. Also in Halo 2, the ability to hijack, or "skyjack," an occupied enemy Banshee has been added. If the Banshee is traveling at a fairly slow pace and is flying low, then the player can jump onto the Banshee and force out the driver, allowing the player to take control by pressing the X button on the Xbox controller. An enemy is also able to jump on and steal the player's Banshee as well, both in multiplayer and campaign. This can be fatal on the Heroic and Legendary difficulties. Another change from the previous game is (while in campaign) the enemy's inability to fire the Fuel Rod Cannon, although the player may use it when pressing B while in Halo:Combat Evolved you had to pull the left trigger. The ability of using the Fuel Rod Cannon has been removed from the multiplayer.

A rather large defensive change, for Halo 2 was made for the Banshee. It now has the ability to perform stunts. Although it may seem like this ability is purely used to appear flashy, these stunts are very effective for avoiding enemy fire, especially against rockets. They can be used on both campaign and multiplayer, and on campaign can be used by enemies too. The stunts that can be performed are the ability to roll left, or right and do a back flip in mid air. On the Heroic and Legendary difficulty settings, these stunts, can mean the difference between life and death.

In addition, while within a Banshee, both you and your Banshee will lose health. Previously, in a Banshee, your only concern was about the vehicle and its destructibility. Now, you are coerced to worry about your own health. The Ghost had both concerns in Halo: Combat Evolved, being the only vehicle to do so.

Halo 3

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The updated Banshee in Halo 3 with brand new flashy armor plating.

The Banshee in Halo 3 is the same in design as its previous appearances in the last two instalments. It has kept its boosting and aerial maneuvers, although you cannot do it as often. While boosting it is much faster than in previous games, the Fuel Rod Cannon is now available as a secondary weapon in Multiplayer. Just like in the Halo 2 campaign, it can be fired with the "B" button (using the default button layout). The radius and size of the Fuel Rod blast has been decreased for balance with the other vehicles and weapons of the game.

The Banshee, as with the Warthog and Wraith, have received a substantial visual upgrade. Its canopy now has a green iridescent sheen, almost insectoid in appearance, which makes it look like a true alien alloy and adds to the realism. Also, the glowing wing tips now look like small turbines, and the tail fins now open up to reveal 2 more boosters. Other than that, it remains similar in design and usage to its Halo CE counterpart, though it cannot face any lower than 45 degrees, to prevent it from overpowering ground players and for more airplane-like strafing runs. The brake can still be used to stall out the craft for quick descents. However, the Banshee is much more maneuverable than the AV-14 Hornet, allowing for a skilled Banshee pilot to easily destroy a Hornet.

Another change in Halo 3, is a lack of any scripted usable Banshees in Halo 3 's campaign. The only way to pilot a banshee in Halo 3s campaign is to hijack one, which is extremely difficult as the Brute pilots are intelligent enough to not let you get close enough to board their vehicle. Some players in co-op attempt to "wing walk" on a Hornet in The Covenant, then jump off in midair to grab a Banshee that way. This usually fails (often hilariously) due to the Banshee's greater speed and the AI's intelligence level. But however, if one plays on lower difficulties where Brutes have lesser health and shields, during the chapter "Journey's End" of the level The Covenant, if you constantly fire the Hornet's chain guns at the back of the Banshee, sometimes the Brute pilot dies, but the Banshee vehicle is still usable (if it lands on a reachable spot in the snow) by the player. Using the Banshee to fight the Scarabs in that level is rather effective since doing Banshee stunts can save the player from other Banshees in the air and the Scarab's Plasma Turret and Main Gun, while firing the plasma cannons and Fuel Rod Cannon of the Banshee. Another easy way to get the Banshee is to lure it close to you then fire a charged Plasma Pistol shot at it. This should disable the Banshee temporarily allowing you to board. There are some Banshees that still can't be boarded even with this trick.

Halo Wars

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Banshees in Halo Wars.

Banshees were seen in the Halo Wars demo and appear to be capable of boosting and performing barrel rolls and stunts. However, they appear to be missing the green sheen that they have in Halo 3. Banshees are effective against ground troops, and the only effective way of taking them out seems to be through the use of a UNSC Wolverine vehicle. In the announcement trailer, they seem to have strobe lights, and sound different. They are capable of hovering in current builds of the game.

Piloting Tactics

Splattering an opponent with a Banshee is often tempting, but this is normally a very risky maneuver, because hitting the ground can slow down the Banshee and have it boarded. However, if you are relatively parallel and low to the ground, this is a great opportunity to rack up kills and medals. If you are stalled by an overcharged Plasma Pistol shot or Power Drain, get out immediately upon landing, as you are basically defenseless without maneuvering. You can also boost while trying to splatter someone. It usually works best on maps with small hills so that if the Banshee misses, it'll continue flying by going off the hill.
If the Banshee is boarded there are a few ways to stop it being used against you:
- The first is to do a back flip in the Banshee, if timed right, you should be launched above and come back right down on it to take it back and get the Maybe Next Time Buddy Achievement.
- One more tactic is if the Banshee is severely damaged while being boarded, boost it into a wall, if you time it just right, you will be kicked out, the Banshee will explode with the opponent in it, and you may just get the kill for it.
Another good way to use it is to get close to the ground to fight the enemy team then fly back up quickly so you won't be skyjacked.
If you see a group of enemies near each other you should fire your Fuel Rod Cannon at them, then just shoot your plasma cannons at them.
Arguably the best control scheme for the Banshee is the Bumper Jumper configuration. This allows you actually aim your Banshee's Fuel Rod Gun, unlike the default control scheme, where it can be tough due the fact that button the fires it, B, requires you to lift your thumb away from the aiming stick. In Bumper Jumper, you can aim and fire without moving any fingers. It also makes performing tricks easier, since the trick button has been moved to the bumper as well, allowing you maintain complete control over your craft while dodging.
In Halo 2, you can loose a Rocket lock if you are in a Banshee by pointing the nose as high as you can, getting out then back in quickly by pressing the X button rapidly.
In Halo 3 multiplayer, if you have missle pods shooting towards you, it is possible to dodge them by repeatedly hitting the X button with left or right.

Countering Tactics

In Halo:CE, using the Pistol will be satisfyingly easy to take down the pilot for a sharp shooter, whereas in close range combat, it is recommended to use an Assault Rifle or a Shotgun, firing while backing away. Relatively strong players may consider sticking a Plasma Grenade to counter the attack. For vehicles, it is generally recommended to use the turret on Warthogs to cut down the pilot in rapid successions. If the Banshee is REALLY close, it is recommended that you use a shotgun; however, the shotgun is still useful for damaging Banshees from close-to-mid range. Most Banshee pilots online tend to flee when confronted by a Shot gunner. Ducking can also be an effective way at dodging a Banshee pilot's attempt at ramming you. Otherwise, you can simply jump out of the way and throw a grenade while the Banshee is grounded. (It takes a few moments to get back in the air once you hit the ground in a Banshee.)

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A Banshee in full flight

The Banshee is lightly armored and thus vulnerable to explosives and anti-vehicle weaponry. The best weapon to destroy a Banshee is the Missile Pod or Spartan Laser, depending on your skill with either weapon, although the Missile Pod is much easier to use with its homing and lock on ability. The missiles home in on the Banshee and are difficult to evade but it is possible to do so. Other weapons such as the Rocket Launcher and Spartan Laser can instantly destroy a Banshee although they are harder to successfully hit the target at long ranges. Other alternatives include the Warthog's M41 LAAG(although if the warthog is stationary it is easy for the banshee pilot to flip you with a Fuel Rod shot), Machine Gun Turrets, and the Brute Shot. Scorpion Tanks and/or Wraiths are also quite effective against Banshees as it is hard for the pilot to maneuver away from the shot from one of the two. At close range a Banshee can be destroyed with Plasma or Spike Grenades. It can also be hijacked at low speeds. This can be effective if there is a Gravity Lift, giving you the elevation needed to hijack a careful Banshee pilot.

Some good items to consider using in Halo 3 while engaged with a Banshee are overcharged shots from a Plasma Pistol or tossing a Power Drain as they both temporarily deactivate the Banshee's engines. Using a Bubble Shield against a Banshee should only be used against its weapons, you can still be splattered through the Bubble Shield. A decent fall-back tactic is to use dual SMGs - their fast rate of fire and the wide canopy of the Banshee ensure that the vehicle will be hit with the full power of two weapons at a close to mid-range. Of course, practically any anti-vehicular weapons would be favourable, but it could do enough damage to scare the Banshee away, or leave it in a bad enough position to be destroyed by a teammate.

One of the things you can do to evade a Banshee is to run to the nearest place of cover. Rocks, trees, caves and bases are all good places for cover from the Banshee's Plasma Cannons. If you are stuck in a wide open there is not much you can do unless you have an anti-vehicular weapon. However a Banshee can't hover in place, so it can only attack for a few seconds before having to reposition itself leaving you a chance to escape.

Trivia

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A close-up of a Banshee's control system.

In Celtic Mythology a Banshee is a woman spirit who wails for the death of a particular person, before they die. The high pitched sound made by the Banshee in Halo is a reference to this, especially while performing tight maneuvers (making it easy to hear them before you see them.)
A Banshee can execute tricks. Hold A then press either left for a left roll, right for a right roll, or down for a loop roll. These tricks are good for dodging enemy fire, especially the hornet's missiles and the missile pod, which are normally hard to avoid with other vehicles.
It is unknown what the Covenant name for a Banshee is, as the name was given to them by the UNSC, but Covenant characters still refer to them as Banshees.
A lightly recurring theme throughout the series is players almost dying in vehicle crashes, mainly in the Banshee. In The Maw, the Master Chief enters the Pillar of Autumn by deliberately crashing his Banshee to annoy Cortana. Midway through Halo 2's The Oracle, the Arbiter crashes his Banshee into a platform, only to climb up unscathed, just as the Chief did. Although this theme continued in Halo 3, with the Chief and Arbiter crashing, and surviving, in the opening cut scene of Halo, this was however, done in a Pelican not a banshee. If you crash a Banshee in Halo 3 (for example, into a tree on Valhalla), you will not die. This is because vehicles do not take crash damage.
In Halo: Combat Evolved, because vehicles are instant kills when they touch other nearby living objects, many people don't even bother using the Plasma Cannons or the Fuel Rod Cannon on the Banshee.
Supposedly, Banshees use anti-gravity pods on the ends of their wings to fly. However, in Halo 2 a Banshee can lose both of these pods and still fly normally. It is unknown if Bungie intended for the Banshees to have an emergency propulsion system, or if this was simply overlooked in the making of the game.
If you ram the Banshee into enough terrain, it will be destroyed, but if your shields are full, you should be able to survive its destruction with only depleted shields. This can easily be tested on Sandtrap by ramming into its multiple pillars.
Although the Banshee in the games is made for one pilot which means they can only hold one person, in the novel Halo: First Strike, a Banshee carried Master Chief and a second Spartan II named Linda. Also, Zuka 'Zamamee and Yayap ride in a Banshee together in Halo: The Flood, whilst escaping the battle for Alpha Base.
On page 129 of The Art of Halo Banshees are seen firing Fuel Rod Cannons on the Halo 2 map Waterworks, although it is not possible for them to do so in that game, but this was in Halo 2 Beta.
The Banshee, like the Ghost, when it takes a lot of damage it starts to vibrate, shake, and whine then explodes which can cause damage to players and sometimes even kill them. However, in Halo 3, this effect on a critically damaged Banshee occurs much less often than in previous games.
The Banshee is the only pilotable aircraft in Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 campaign. Surprisingly, it is not a required vehicle to pilot in campaign mode on Halo 3 (in Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 it was only possible to get through some stages in certain levels by piloting a Banshee, ex. Two Betrayals and The Arbiter), but it is possible and achievable to use it on The Covenant if you get a chance to board it. However, it is not easy as it rarely attacks infantry and turns too early to be boarded. If you kill the pilot without explosives, however, you can pilot it.
In Halo 2 if you go high enough and jump out you will die. An alternative occurrence is to boost while flying straight down and performing a loop roll and to get out simultaneously. This, however, is disabled in Halo 3.
If you boost upwards and perform an aerial maneuver like a loop roll and get out at the same time, your character will die while spinning downwards.
In Halo 3 using aerobatic tricks usually isn't enough to escape the laser of a Spartan Laser. Exiting the craft allows for a much higher chance of survival.
In Halo 3 if you do a loop roll and get out while the Banshee is looking straight up, the Banshee will shake and go a far distance in a random direction.
In Halo 3, the Fuel Rod Gun has a limited amount of homing upon enemy targets (whilst under AI use). This is most usually seen on The Covenant during the aerial dogfight section.
In Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2, you can go straight down (90 degree angle) while flying the Banshee. While in Halo 3, you can only go down at an angle, which has upset some gamers because it is easier for people to dodge Banshee 'splatters' (those who kill by running over players with vehicles) because the pilot has to angle it right.
In Halo: Combat Evolved, Banshee plasma bolts can't break glass.
The Heretics from Halo 2 have a Heretic Banshee. It is like a normal Banshee but with a gold and purple colour scheme.
In the level The Maw (Halo: Combat Evolved) it is possible to get a Banshee.
It is possible for the flag carrier to stand on top of a boosting Banshee and not fall off, if they keep walking forward slowly.
By sticking the driver of a Banshee and boarding it immediately, you can ride the burning wreckage of the Banshee.
In Halo 3 on Forge, if you enter a Banshee in player mode and exit by pressing up to go in Forge mode, the Banshee's top cover will stay down as if it was being piloted.
On the cover of the Halo: Combat Evolved game, the two banshee's appear to be pilot less as the top canopy enclosing the driver is up. Also, the two Banshees that shot down Foehammer also had open canopies. These were probably either an early render or a glitch in the rendering.
The Banshees on the cover of Halo: Combat Evolved fire a beam weapon instead of bolts of plasma.
On Halo 3, if you hit a severely damaged Banshee hard against something, a "fail-safe" feature will initiate, ejecting the pilot from the wreckage, saving their energy shields.
In Halo 3 boarding a Banshee is easy if someone tries to splatter you and they hit a wall.
When you attempt a Banshee trick with the A button, the two flaps on either side of the back of the cockpit will bend to the left for a split-second. This only happens at the end of the trick.
Players often nicknamed the vehicle "The Shee" and a person who excessively uses it a "Shee n00b" or "Banshee/Shee whore". Due to its indestructibility in Halo: CE multiplayer, those who use Banshees frequently are generally despised.
If in the hands of a very experienced player, the Banshee is very difficult to destroy due to its manoeuvrability.
In Halo 3 if you manage to board a Banshee on the level The Covenant, it will automatically explode when you dismount, much like the AA Wraith. Only Banshees whose Brute pilots have been killed but the vehicle itself is not destroyed (Mostly occurs on lower difficulties) however, when dismounting the Banshee they do not automatically explode.
In Halo 3, on the level Cortana, when you go to the Pelican and turn around you will see a Banshee if you are playing Solo mode. This Banshee belongs to the Arbiter. For some reason, an invisible barrier protects it and players doing grenade jumps have failed to reach it because of this.
In Multiplayer, if someone locks on to you with a rocket launcher and you are in a Banshee, you can lose the lock by turning straight up, pressing "X" then quickly pressing it again to get back in.
In Halo 3 the armour plating on the front of the Banshee has a slight green tinge. However in the other games this is not the case.
In Halo 2 you can kill Tartarus using a Banshee, but it can be very difficult to get it inside the activation chamber, though possible.
The Banshee is one of only two Covenant vehicles usable in Halo:CE(the second being the Ghost).
In Halo 3, the Banshees' wing tips are now small turbines, and the tail fins open up to reveal 2 more boosters.
In Halo 3 flying slowly in a Banshee with players on top of it will allow easy transport across the map making CTF on Sandtrap or similar levels easy, but watch out for missiles, lasers and other vehicular attacks from the ground.
It is possible that while riding a banshee you can go under an enemy and get out of your Banshee and you will go to the enemies banshee to jack it. Note: this cannot be done in Halo: Combat Evolved.
In the level The Covenant, if you hijack one of the Banshees on the way to the third tower, the Brute pilot may have a Battle Rifle. There have been at least two or three of them found wielding Battle Rifles.
If you take down a Banshee without explosives, it will still be pilot able but the lid will be closed. If the player gets in, the character will not open the lid and will simple slip into the cockpit, most likely a glitch.
In Halo: Combat Evolved, on the level Halo, it's possible to shoot the pilot out of the Banshees and leave them intact, but you will not be able to enter them.
A good method of hijacking a Banshee in Halo 3 would be to back-pedal as it shoots you as this delays its turn and allows you to get close enough to board it or at least to shoot it until the pilot dies.
Some weapons that are useful against killing pilots but leaving the vehicle operational are automatic weapons (i.e Spikers, Assault Rifles, etc.) or the Brute Shot.
During the final level of Halo 2, The Great Journey (Level), if you board an enemy Banshee at the beach in front of the control Room around the time Johnson's Scarab breaks the door, the Brute will fall out, and if you are close enough to the ground, he will survive. The Brute won't attack you unless you hijack another Banshee and knock the other Brute out, then kill it. The other Brute will then go berserk.
In Halo 2 it is possible to get a Heretic Banshee on The Great Journey.

Images

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The Banshee on Sandtrap.
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A damaged Banshee in Valhalla.
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Banshee in Valhalla.
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Exploding Banshee on Valhalla.
A Banshee on The Covenant.
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Underside of a Banshee, seen dodging an incoming rocket.
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A Banshee's twin plasma cannons.

Type-26 Banshee

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