Halo 4: Covenant Weapons Guide

• Beam Rifle

Most effective: Long-range
The Beam Rifle makes a welcome return to Halo 4, with no major changes. It'll kill at the same rate as the Sniper Rifle, but if you fire off two shots too quickly, the gun will overheat and render you useless. Instant kill with headshot, two body shots anywhere else for a kill.

• Concussion Rifle

Most effective: Mid- to short-range
The Concussion Rifle can pop up from time to time in ordinance drops, and makes for a brilliant crowd control weapon. A high rate of fire and decent damage radius makes it ideal for taking on Ghosts, Warthogs or enemy teammates stupid enough to stand next to each other. Not as powerful as the rocket launcher, but its larger clip means that you don't have to be as accurate with every shot.

• Covenant Carbine

Most effective: Mid-range
The Covenant Carbine offers an interesting alternative to the DMR and BR; it takes more shots to kill your target (roughly seven), but has a faster rater of fire and larger clip (18 shots) than either of the UNSC rifles. This means when working alongside a SAW wielding teammate, you may be able to find the all important killing headshot a little quicker with the DMR or BR.

• Energy Sword

Most effective: Short-range
The Energy Sword returns, even more super-sparkly than ever. As with previous Halo games, if you miss with your lunge, be sure to follow up swiftly with a melee attack, as the melee is available in less time than a second lunge.

• Needler

Most effective: Mid- to short-range
Prepare yourself for this -- Halo 4 sees the Needler become a map-dominating power weapon. We were surprised too. The moment you lock onto a target, drain out a clip and chances are you enemy will explode in a purple cloud before they can take you down.

• Plasma Pistol

Most effective: Mid- to short-range
Still at the bottom of the Halo weapon food chain, the Plasma Pistol should only ever be used for taking down an opponent's shield before following up with a headshot. The charged up shot appears to track enemies a little more generously than in previous games, but this will never be a weapon of choice.

• Storm Rifle

Most effective: Mid- to short-range
The replacement for the Plasma Rifle (we miss it too), the Storm Rifle works on a single clip and must be discarded once used. It's a very effective distraction weapon, with similar power to the UNSC Assault Rifle -- although slightly less useful given that it can overheat and you can't pick up new ammo for it.

• Binary Rifle
  

Most effective: Long-range
The Promethean sniper rifle packs a heck of a wallop, and doesn't suffer from the same overheating issues as the Beam Rifle. Some players might prefer the larger clip of the UNSC Sniper Rifle (the Binary Rifle only holds two shots), but the Binary Rifle will take a Spartan down in one shot. Deeply satisfying noscope action.

• Boltshot

Most effective: Mid- to short-range
The Boltshot is a slightly chunkier variant on the Plasma Pistol; a rung below the Magnum as a sidearm, but a charged shot is brilliant at taking off an enemy shield.

• Incineration Canon

Most effective: Mid-range
As the name suggests, the Incineration Cannon is more than a little aggressive. The projectile it fires produces further cluster damage once it's hit its target, meaning that the Incineration Cannon is devastating against vehicles or crowds of opponents. Be sure that you're not anywhere near your target though, as you can easily be damaged by the cluster blast of your own shot.

• Lightrifle

Most effective: Mid-range
The Lightrifle is one of the most interesting guns of Halo 4 thanks to its unique round-changing capacity; when scoped, the Lightrifle fires a single shot like the DMR -- but can stop an opponent in four, rather than five shots. Unscoped, the Lightrifle fires a burst round, like the BR, but takes six shots to stop an opponent. Given its potentially quicker kill-rate, don't be surprised to see more advanced players switching from the DMR to the Lightrifle after a few months of game time.

• Scattershot

Most effective: Short-range
The Promethean shotgun is a formidable weapon in the right hands, with shots that are able to bounce off surfaces and track players to a small extent -- making it an arguably more useful weapon than the UNSC Shotgun (though the UNSC Shotgun is able to hold six shots to the Scattershot's five).

• Suppressor

Most effective: Mid- to short-range
The Suppressor is the Promethean variant of the Assault Rifle, carrying slightly more rounds at 50, but with slightly less stopping power than the UNSC variety