Barracks Units

Marine

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Marines are the main UNSC infantry unit and are good against most everything. They have an active Grenade ability that can eventually be upgraded to an active Rocket ability.

Base Unit

Upgrade #1: New Blood

Adds another Marine to the squad, increasing it from four to five and increasing the squad’s combat effectiveness.

Upgrade #2: RPG Ability

Weapon Type: M19 SSM Rocket Launcher

Upgrades active Grenade ability to activate Rocket ability. Rockets can attack from a longer range than Grenades.

Upgrade #3: Medic

Weapon Type: M6C Magnum Sidearm (Medic only)

Adds a Combat Medic to the squad. The Medic heals the squad after combat.

Upgrade #4: ODST Super Unit (Cutter Only)

Weapon Type: M90 Shotgun and M19 SSM Rocket Launcher

Upgrades Marines to Orbital Drop Shock Trooper (ODST) super units. ODSTs are better than Marines in every way. They can also be hot-dropped anywhere on the battlefield from Spirit of Fire.

Marines Overview

The backbone of UNSC ground forces, the UNSC Marine Corps can trace its roots back to the United States Marine Corp, formed in the 18th century. The people behind the triggers haven’t changed a great deal in all these years, far less so than the theaters of operation. Marines first started setting foot on other planets during the Interplanetary War (2160–2170), taking the fight to Mars and officially becoming the UNSC Marine Corps after their victory in that conflict. Marines come equipped with a variety of weapons but generally utilize the MA5 series of rifles. A squad of Marines can lay down some impressive firepower and can even damage armored vehicles with a volley of Grenades or Rockets if they’re available. Versatile, relatively cheap to equip, and fast to get on the ground, Marines are a potentially strong force to put into action. En masse, they haul around enough firepower to put the hurt on just about anything an enemy can field.

Tactics

The Marine is the UNSC’s main “go-to” infantry unit and is best suited to a variety of offensive and defensive postures.

They can hide in cover; simply locate some and order them to hold it using . They can also use Sniper Towers. In both cases, their combat effectiveness increases at the expense of movement.

Marines are trained in the Barracks but can also appear from the back of a Deployed Elephant. Upgrades are available to Marines only inside the Barracks.

Marines are excellent when used in Rush strategies; have them charge an installation and utilize their Grenade ability to destroy enemy buildings. They are also exceptional at piling on a foe by surrounding or swarming them to quickly and methodically dispose of them one at a time.

These troops fare reasonably well against enemy air units but are weak against most vehicles—that is, unless you’re extremely effective at using the Marines’ Grenade or Rocket abilities (e.g., to strike a target simultaneously to weaken it to the point of destruction).

Captain Cutter can field special Marines known as ODSTs. These are more powerful, upgraded via the Barracks, and can be hot-dropped anywhere on the battlefield via the Spirit of Fire menu (, then ).

If your battlefield includes any Hooks (such as Forerunner supplies or Reactors), use Marines for grabbing and holding these locations: Employ mainly a Marine force along with a few Flamethrowers from the back of Elephants you’ve Rushed in. They are useful throughout a battle for this very purpose.

Early in battle, Marines are recommended for tackling Sniper Towers, Turrets, Warthogs, and Ghosts, especially when they employ Grenades or RPG rounds. However, they are extremely vulnerable to Flamethrower units.

Marines are extremely slow, and it is very difficult to try Rushing tactics except on small maps. However, they can take a lot of punishment from most units and can fight off airborne foes with some degree of fortitude. They are an all-around solid unit.

Generally, Marines are used less and less as the battle progresses, as faster and more mobile units take to the field. A massive army of Marines is also very difficult to manage, because a full population of them takes up the entire screen.

Flamethrower

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Pyromaniacs to the core, UNSC Flamethrowers burn up any organic thing they can find. They excel at killing all infantry units.

Base Unit

Upgrade #1: Flash Bang Ability

Weapon Type: M301 40 mm Grenade Launcher

Equips Flamethrowers with active Flash Bang ability that stuns any enemy infantry for a short time.

Upgrade #2: Napalm Adherent

Slow-burning, sticky napalm burns enemies for several seconds after the initial attack.

Upgrade #3: Oxide Tank

An advanced, higher-burn-point fuel increases damage to all organic units.

Flamethrower Overview

These specialized Marines are outfitted with a Napalm-spewing NA4 Flamethrower. First seeing action during World War I, flamethrowers have changed remarkably little since those early days in the trenches. These specialized Marines carry a potent mixture with them in a tank that spews the liquid through a gun onto the target. A variety of mixtures have been created to work in various atmospheric and gravitational conditions, but they are all employed for a similar purpose: to fry just about anything. Squads of Flame Marines aren’t particularly common in the UNSC arsenal. Usually they are only called in to exterminate the most firmly entrenched enemies, which means they also take plenty of casualties themselves. They know it’s a dirty job, but someone has to do it.

Tactics

A slow-moving, short-ranged, anti-infantry unit means Flamethrowers should be employed only on specific occasions (such as the ones listed below).

Flamethrowers are trained in the Barracks but can also appear from the back of a Deployed Elephant. Upgrades are only available to Flamethrowers inside the Barracks.

The upgraded Flash Bang ability is an excellent one to expend Supply Points on, as it stuns enemy infantry. The adherent nature of the flame liquid also damages foes continuously over time, with devastating consequences—they continuously take damage, mostly until they are killed. This is a great strategy for tagging infantry units fleeing from an attack.

Make sure you train Flamethrowers if your foe is training a large amount of infantry: They are usually favored over Marines early in a battle, because they can easily wipe out foes in neutral bases and are more proficient at defeating Covenant leaders. The best way to deal with a Rushing Covenant leader is to preempt him with some already-trained Flamethrowers locked and hiding in your base!

Unfortunately, Flamethrowers are effective only against enemy infantry. They are no match for most other units available to a foe.

Flamethrowers are reasonably adept at destroying buildings and move a little quicker than Marines. For this reason, try a Flamethrower Rush on small maps: This is especially devastating if the Flamethrowers appear from an Elephant or if your foe isn’t building defenses or a collection of Warthogs.

The longer a battle wages, the less effective Flamethrowers become (unless your foe is training only infantry), as they are quickly nullified by more hard-hitting, mobile, or longer-ranged units that can easily deal with them.

Spartan

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Prototype UNSC super soldiers, the Spartans possess extreme combat skills. Spartans have the ability to Jack enemy vehicles and Commandeer friendly ones, boosting those vehicles’ combat power.

Base Unit

Upgrade #1: Chain Gun

Weapon Type: AIE-486H Heavy Machine Gun

Equips Spartans with two-handed auto-guns for dramatically increased damage.

Upgrade #2: Neural Implant

Improved reflexes allow Spartans to Jack enemy vehicles much more effectively.

Upgrade #3: Spartan Laser

Weapon Type: M6 Spartan Laser

The ultimate UNSC handheld weapon gives Spartans a distinct combat advantage.

Spartan Overview

The Master Chief, John-117, didn’t always fight alone. He was part of the SPARTAN-II program that started with 150 child candidates, 33 of whom made it through the intensive training and physical augmentation procedures. On November 1, 2525, the program was accelerated with the discovery of the Covenant threat, and the Spartans adopted their MJOLNIR armor. The war was under way, and the UNSC had over 30 of these supersoldiers at their disposal. Summoning a Spartan to the battlefield is not a guarantee of victory, nor is it something to be taken lightly. It requires a significant investment of time and energy to field Spartans, so they’re not a commonplace sight. When they do appear on the scene, though, your opponent better take their threat on the battlefield seriously or suffer the consequences.

Tactics

Spartans are extremely hardy and are the only UNSC unit with regenerating shields. You can have a maximum of three on the battlefield at any one time.

Spartans are trained in the Barracks but can also appear from the back of a Deployed Elephant. Upgrades are available to Spartans only inside the Barracks.

In the initial stages of battle, Spartans are the UNSC’s answer to enemy vehicles and aircraft.

Their main purpose (a job they absolutely excel at) is to Jack into enemy units. There’s nothing more demoralizing to a foe than seeing three of their main battle tanks switch sides in the heat of battle! Remember to control these enemy units once you Jack them; if you destroy the enemy unit, attempt to maneuver the Spartan to another vehicle or flee to safety.

Spartans can also be upgraded to wield new weapons and become more efficient at Jacking enemy units—this is excellent, as the chances of death are greatly reduced if your Spartan quickly enters an enemy vehicle or aircraft.

Units that a Spartan Jacks have their combat ability increased while piloted by the Spartan. This includes your own vehicles; therefore, it is advantageous to have Spartans lead a charge, sitting inside your own vehicle or aircraft! Utilize this tactic whenever possible, and always attempt it if your foe isn’t creating many vehicles but you are. This has the added bonus of making your vehicles “un-Jackable” to enemy Spartans. However, you can’t exit a vehicle once you Jack into it, so survey the tactical advantages first!

Remember to check on your enemy: If they are constructing vehicles or aircraft of any sort, then maximize your Spartan troops to three immediately, and head them toward your foe.

Spartans are so adept at Jacking enemy units that the prospect of making vehicles and aircraft (especially slow-moving ones that are easily Jacked) is frightening, as they can be turned against you. Displaying a Spartan on the battlefield early can make your foe change their tactics.

If a foe is Teching up quickly to create tanks or other high-Reactor-level vehicles, simply wait and steal them without expending points Teching to Reactor Level 2 (or higher) yourself.

If you’re primarily using Spartans to drive vehicles, it may not be necessary to expend the 1,000 Supply Points fitting them with the third upgrade (Spartan Laser), although this is exceptionally useful if the Spartan is on foot, including after their vehicle explodes.

Spartans cannot withstand sustained fire and are very vulnerable while Jacking at low upgrade levels; therefore, pump more Supply Points into upgrading them. Even at low upgrade levels, the resource and Tech swing that occurs (you gaining vehicles your opponent has spent so much time creating) can dramatically alter the course of a battle.

Additional Spartan units are available at certain points during the campaign, but for skirmish and multiplayer confrontations, only three can be trained at a time.