Covenant Vehicle

The Ghost is a single-pilot recon and assault vehicle, and is the Covenant equivalent of the UNSC Mongoose, although it has much more offensive and defensive power. It boasts a streamlined design and make-up concept to optimize speed and agility, and two wing-like structures on either side for maneuverability. It hovers about 1.5 feet off the ground using Covenant anti-gravity technology, and features a boost and two plasma cannons. It can accelerate very rapidly, and reach speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour, and 90 kilometers per hour when using the boost. However, when using the boost function, a Ghost's plasma cannons cannot be fired, due to the fact that the vehicle will draw power from the weapons to overcharge the engine. The Ghost is used by the Covenant for a number of different purposes, such as patrolling large areas in short amount of time, and to combat infantry when needed. The Ghost can be deployed almost anywhere and can follow Covenant ground troops with ease. The fact that they can be deployed quickly and in greater numbers than the Wraith makes them advantageous in combat. Ghosts were mainly piloted by Elites, though when they separated Heavy Grunts began to pilot Ghosts. Brutes, preferring their own technology, pilot the Chopper and Prowler, but they also pilot Ghosts given the chance. It seems, however, that the Elites have the best piloting ability in terms of Ghost driving, probably because they invented or implemented the Ghost as a vehicle.

The Spectre is a multi-troop, armored transport. It is a medium sized vehicle, but maintains the high maneuverability most Covenant vehicles are renowned for. While it's slower than the Ghost, but faster than the Wraith, it can easily move while in confined spaces such as a tight box canyon (see The Great Journey). . It is not prone to flipping, unlike its counterpart, and this makes it good for assaults.

The Brute Chopper is a heavily-armored, dual-wheeled assault vehicle, kept aloft by a gravity array on its rear seating and a massive double wheel in the front (which supports the vehicle's balance by its axis of gravity). The Chopper is best described as an "Anti-Anything" vehicle. Its powerful 35mm auto-cannons can take down most light ground vehicles with ease and the large blades on the front can instantly destroy any vehicle (except tanks) by ramming into it. The Brute Chopper was rarely used when the Jiralhanae weren't actively deployed on most battlefields, but with their resurgence onto the battle lines it appears that they have brought their vehicles with them. The Brute Chopper is far more effective and has more armor than the Ghost and is always driven by Brutes.

The Brute Prowler driven only by Brutes. The Prowler seems to hover on a gravity-assisted "sled", as the bottom is a pair of metal runners, with an anti-gravity projector running between them. A plasma turret is at the front of the vehicle, while the driver sits in the rear of the vehicle and two passenger seats make up the sides. It's aesthetically similar in its clear-cut, brutal nature to the Brute Chopper. It uses the same anatomy of the anti-gravitational propulsion like the Chopper but it uses two dual engines rotating in opposite directions from each other.

The Shadow is a dedicated troop transport vehicle, similar to an Armored Personnel Carrier. As such, it is not an offensive vehicle, and is often slow and cumbersome. However, it possesses a powerful defensive plasma turret, which is used solely for defense, rather than offense. It is placed at its top; the vehicle itself can be easily outmaneuvered by smaller vehicles such as the Warthog or Ghost. Its heavy armor is its best defense against attack and is the reason for its slow speed, as the weight weighs it down.

The Wraith's primary weapon, a short-barreled Plasma Mortar (which is the heaviest Covenant ground weapon), is fixed horizontally, but can be skewed vertically. To aim the mortar, the entire vehicle must turn to face its target. The mortar can be retracted into the hull while not in use, a design advantage considering the vehicle's awkward firing requirements. The mortar fires large bolts of superheated, magnetically guided plasma in a ballistic trajectory, raining down on enemy troops with tremendous force. A direct hit can penetrate nearly any type of armor, and even an indirect hit is often deadly. The arc in the shot makes it move slowly, but more precise and actually making it capable of catching enemies off guard. The target must be at least eight meters away for the Wraith to use the weapon outside of the "dead zone", an area in which it would cause damage to itself as well as the intended target.

The Type-52 Anti Aircraft Artillery is a variant of the Covenant "Wraith" tank, but it differs in its primary armament; while the standard Type-25 model is equipped with a Plasma Mortar, which is used mainly against slow-moving ground targets, the Type-52 model is equipped with "rapid fire" dual Fuel Rod Cannons as its main armament, and has high effectiveness against nearby air targets and also ground targets. The Type-52 shares the Type-25's secondary plasma turret, a non-detachable stationary turret emplacement fixed at the midsection of the vehicle that is optionally manned for defense against "medium to close" range ground targets. It has also posed a threat to Pelicans. It should be noted that the plasma bolts fired by the AA-Wraith can explode mid-air, creating a cloud of plasma or some other glowing, gaseous substance. This resembles the clouds of shrapnel from flak guns' bursting rounds.

The Type-52 is also distinguished from the Type-25 by its red crimson color scheme instead of the standard Wraith's blue-purple armor color. Upon the driver's exiting the AA Wraith, its triple flak cannons fold inward and contract into the body of the tank, presumably to keep them protected from enemy gunfire or saboteurs and possibly to allow more compact storage. It might even be necessary in order to travel at high speeds or be air-lifted by a Phantom dropship.
The Honor Guard Wraith is mostly the same in combat. Some think it is distinctly more powerful and faster.

The Locust is a smaller version of the Scarab walker, with only one rotating turret which hosts a single large cannon. It does not however share the Scarabs spiked "feet", Its four legs may allow it to kneel down or climb over obstacles, like its larger cousin. Its central turret looks similar to a Banshee cockpit. It fires a straight purple-pink beam, useful against ground and air targets, however, it is used primarily to destroy buildings. In large numbers they can destroy buildings and bases in a matter of seconds. The vehicle itself is roughly similar to the Scorpion in size.

Scarabs are mobile fortresses deployed from high atmosphere or low to medium orbit onto the field, and the Covenant use them to the best of their abilities. The Scarab is meant to assault heavily defended structures and barriers and to give quick unstoppable support for Covenant troops on the ground. It can also deliver Covenant ground troops to their destination through heavily defended areas; this could mean death for the defending troops, such as the UNSC Marines.

The Scarab is also the largest known ground vehicle in the Coveanant as well as the most powerful, being equipped with a powerful plasma beam cannon at the front on a "head"-like pivot, and dorsally-mounted anti-air cannons. Despite its size, weaponry, and extremely thick armor, the craft remains vulnerable to boarding actions, and if the central core is eliminated, the Scarab will detonate.[2]
Scarabs are quite notable for their intimidating, spider-like appearance, large size, and massive firepower. Their legs are surprisingly swift and accurate for their size, and were even able to find holds in narrow places, such as a canyon
or the streets of Mombasa and Voi. These legs can also be used as weapons, as a monstrous pointed leg is able to crush or kick anything that happens to get in its way, such as a truck, large debris, or even vehicles such as a Scorpion main battle tank. A Scarab's legs can be weakened or even destroyed with enough firepower.

Spirits are angular, tuning fork/U shaped spacecraft with two parallel personnel bays along the exterior of each "prong". They are known to be used to transport Elites, Jackals, Grunts, and Brutes. Hunters have been reported being seen coming out of the bays. Spirits have been known to ferry Covenant vehicles within the blue colored energy field between their prongs, usually Ghosts and Wraiths, or other small objects such as supply canisters. Around the time of the First Battle of Earth, it would seem that the Spirits were completely replaced with the more heavily built Phantoms, though, since great numbers were probably produced, were still used in the Battle of Onyx. A modified Spirit was used by Spartan 117 to get him and his team aboard the Unyielding Hierophant in Operation: First Strike. During the Battle of Harvest, a destroyed Spirit was used by the Huragok, Lighter Than Some, as raw material to create a vehicle that would later be adopted by the Brutes as the "Brute Chopper".


The Banshee is a fast, personal aerial assault craft used by the Covenant. It is equipped with two wings which terminate in a propulsion jet and an anti-gravity pod leaving behind a signature vaporous exhaust trail while flying. The Banshee is capable of reaching a speed of over 100 km/h[5], with a low flight ceiling estimated to be around 100-300 meters,[6].and is extremely maneuverable. It is also able to perform highly aerobatic maneuvers, such as lateral rolls and vertical flips. While fast and agile, this aircraft is further enhanced by two weapon pods slung underneath the fuselage: Each pod contains a light Plasma Cannon that fires in the 100-250 KW Range and a Fuel Rod Cannon. [7] Due to its low flight ceiling, the Banshee is vulnerable to anti-aircraft fire and well aimed infantry. Though small arms fire may disrupt or disable the pilot, only heavy weapons, such as the Rocket Launcher and the Missile Pod are capable of inflicting enough damage to destroy the vehicle. The Banshee is never seen being piloted by one of the "inferior" Covenant races, such as Jackals and Grunts: It is solely operated by either Brutes or Elites in combat situations.

It consists of a U or V shaped hull, with a cockpit/weapon attached to the rear, similar to the Spirit dropship. In crude terms, it looks like a Covenant Plasma Rifle on its side with a Needler attached to the rear. Though lacking artificial gravity generators [1], it can develop a stasis field between the "booms"[2]. It can host up to two pilots, whose cockpits are placed on its wings. Its size appears to be much larger than a Banshee's. The 'eye' shape on the front appears to have an upside-down Marathon symbol upon it.
edit Combat

An excellent anti-air unit, the Vampire boasts high AA firepower, yet is not as able to defeat ground units. It is not as fast as the Banshee but it is considerably more resistant to damage. Due to its Heavy Needler turret and wing-mounted plasma cannons, it is able to engage multiple targets at a time. When upgraded it becomes an even worse threat, being able to regenerate itself once the Stasis Drain is researched, and making drained units explode with the Stasis Bomb. It is extremely effective against Hornets/Hawks and Vultures. However it can be easily taken out with Wolverines or by Marine's Rocket Launchers. It is also capable of being hijacked by Spartans.

As the Covenant's main space-based attack fighter, the Seraph has been known to be utilized as an air superiority fighter, but are clumsy and sluggish within an atmosphere, indicating that such a capability is only a secondary role and that the Banshee fills the gap left by the Seraph's sluggish maneuvering and less than aerodynamic design while in an atmosphere.[1] Faster and possessing vastly more powerful ordnance than the Banshee, the Seraph poses a significant aerial threat.

The Seraph utilizes a teardrop and porcine design, fitting with the overall design elegance the Covenant are known for. Seraph fighters are mostly stored in the hangar bays of Covenant ships or stations when they are not in battle or escorting a ship.

The Seraph is armed with a variety of weapons. Seraphs are seen firing a heavy plasma cannon, and are also armed with a pulse laser and plasma charges for strafing and bomb runs. A Seraph's bombing runs are very deadly, as evidenced in the Spartan-IIIs' attempted destruction of a Covenant factory as read in Halo: Ghosts of Onyx. The energy weapons the Seraph is equipped with, delivers a hard punch to anything it attacks, such as Pelican dropships, and Albatross heavy dropships, and when dueling with the UNSC air-superiority fighters.[2]
The Seraph fighter is both powerful and fast, even able to fly in the hurricane force winds of the gas giant Threshold.[3] The Seraph fighters are more than a match for any UNSC fighter pilots, and if they come in great numbers, they can easily overwhelm intercepting fighters.[4]