History VideoGame / HaloReach

* EndIsNighEnding: {{Subverted|Trope}}, the game ends with the planet in the final stages of being reduced to glass, and then it cuts to the DistantFuture showing the planet being rebuilt.

** One key detail from the game itself that the journal expands upon: [[spoiler:the Cortana that Six took to the ''Pillar of Autumn'' was in fact a fragment of the original Cortana, a sub-divided incarnation who had been spending months translating Forerunner text while the main Cortana was with Master Chief. They were merged back together shortly after the game ends. In addition, it's implied that Cortana had specifically translated information on the location of the first Halo ring and she took the ''Autumn'' there on purpose.]][[note]]While the original ''The Fall of Reach'' had already revealed that Cortana took the ''Autumn'' to Halo's location deliberately, the book had her using data obtained from a Sigma Octanus IV artifact instead; presumably, Cortana found Halo's location by combining the data from both Reach and SO IV.[[/note]]

[[caption-width-right:350:''[[{{Tagline}} Remember where it all began. Remember Reach.]]''[[note]]From left to right: [[GentleGiant Jorge]], [[AFatherToHisMen Carter]], [[BloodKnight Emile]], [[TheSmartGirl Kat]] and [[ColdSniper Jun]]. Not shown: [[PlayerCharacter Noble]] [[TheSixthRanger Six]].[[/note]]

[[caption-width-right:350:''[[{{Tagline}} Remember where it all began. Remember Reach.]]'' [[note]] From left to right: [[GentleGiant Jorge]], [[AFatherToHisMen Carter]], [[BloodKnight Emile]], [[TheSmartGirl Kat]] and [[ColdSniper Jun]]. Not shown: [[PlayerCharacter Noble]] [[TheSixthRanger Six]]. ]]

** One key detail from the game itself that the journal expands upon: [[spoiler:the Cortana that Six took to the ''Pillar of Autumn'' was in fact a fragment of the original Cortana, a sub-divided incarnation who had been spending months translating Forerunner text while the main Cortana was with Master Chief. They were merged back together shortly after the game ends. In addition, it's implied that Cortana had specifically translated information on the location of the first Halo ring and she took the ''Autumn'' there on purpose[[note]]While the original ''The Fall of Reach'' had already revealed that Cortana took the ''Autumn'' to Halo's location deliberately, the book had her using data obtained from a Sigma Octanus IV artifact instead; presumably, Cortana found Halo's location by combining the data from both Reach and SO IV.[[/note]]]]

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: [[spoiler:The deaths of Noble Team. Carter and Jorge both have a HeroicSacrifice, but it doesn't stop or deter the Covenant. Emile kills a Zealot and is then quickly impaled from behind. Noble Six remains on the planet before being finally overwhelmed and killed by endless Covenant forces. Kat's death is the most brutal version of this. She may be a genius Spartan, but if her shields are down and she's not paying attention to her surroundings, she can be killed by a sniper round to the head like everyone else.]]

* KillEmAll: Most of Reach; see DoomedByCanon.

* WeaponOfChoice:
** Carter: [[BoomHeadshot Designated Marksman Rifle]]
** Kat: [[HandCannon Magnum]]
** Jun: SniperRifle
** Emile: [[ShortRangeShotgun Shotgun]], [[KukrisAreKool Kukri]] (Though he does get to use a GrenadeLauncher at one point)
** Jorge: [[MoreDakka Heavy Machine Gun]]
** Noble Six: Varies between the Assault Rifle and Designated Marksman Rifle, and for one level, the Pistol.

** [[spoiler: The credits sequence is of [[VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved Captain Keyes talking to Cortana]] as the ''Pillar Of Autumn'' flies towards an alien ring.]]

** A spiritual version with Armor Abilities, which were actually first seen ''years'' ago in ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'' (the ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}'' era), of all places, where each Freelancer operative had a unique special ability permanently integrated into their armor. Tex had invisibility, York had regeneration, and Wyoming had the GameBreaker power of space-time manipulation. These Armor Abilities and the [=AIs=] used to run them were what distinguished Project Freelancer from its rival, the SPARTAN programs. However, neither Bungie nor Creator/RoosterTeeth have claimed ''Red vs Blue'' as the inspiration for the feature.

** A badass NPC ally with a skull design on his headgear, which he is never seen without. [[VideoGame/ModernWarfare Remind you]] [[VideoGame/Halo3ODST of]] [[Machinima/RedVsBlue anyone?]]

** Emile bears more than a passing resemblance to ''[[Machinima/RedVsBlue The Meta]]''. It's not just his EVA helmet, but also the color of his armor and his use of brown CQB shoulder pauldrons. He's also not ''quite'' as [[AxeCrazy sane]] as the other members of Noble Team, and prefers close-range/physical combat over anything. It's gotten to the point where fans have decided that Emile's helmet would be what the Meta would wear if he were rendered in the ''Reach'' engine.

** Names of recruitable soldiers include not only members of the game's development staff, but, in at least one instance, creators of ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'' ([[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjh_JQwzWwI "PVT G. Sorola"]] at about 1:00).

** ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'' fans thought that [[spoiler:the damaged helmet in the opening was one to Tex's helmet from ''Revelation'']]. However, when Rooster Teeth first saw Reach's opening cutscene, the company actually changed the series' title card because they thought [[spoiler:Noble Six's damaged helmet]] would become a plot point in ''Reach'' (just like [[spoiler:Tex's helmet]] did in ''Revelation'') and wanted to avoid being ''too'' similar to Bungie's magnum opus.

** When fatally wounded, Elites will sometimes clearly yell [[Machinima/RedVsBlue "Blargh!" or "HONK!"]] Which, weirdly enough, isn't as narmy as you'd think.

* CosmeticAward: Takes the customizable armor of ''VideoGame/{{Halo 3}}'' UpToEleven, with dozens of parts for many different parts of the armor available for Credits earned by doing pretty much anything. Upon launch, the degree of customization was revealed to be even bigger than previously thought, to the point to where you can edit your character's voice in Firefight.

*** To celebrate Halo's 20th anniversary, Reach received an Exchange-exclusive Utility customisation option, the Fronk's Formed Fish-branded Hydration Container.

* UpdatedRerelease: Like the rest of ''The Master Chief Collection'', ''Reach'' gets a few additions to its multiplayer beyond the usual {{Remaster}} stuff. This includes the addition of Escalation Slayer (the ''Halo'' equivalent of Gun Game), an expanded Forge mode with new items and a bigger item budget, and the addition of several armor items which were DummiedOut of the original game along with a wider range of certain armor combinations possible (in-particular, allowing the robotic arm to be used alongside more chest armor types).
** Season 8 adds many new fantasy-themed helmets shared with ''VideoGame/Halo3'', and also replaces gender selection with the ability to select your body type and voice separate from each other.

Until 2019, it was the only Xbox 360-era game in the main ''Halo'' series not to be included in the ''Halo: The Master Chief Collection'' compilation for Xbox One. In December of that year, ''Reach'' was added to the collection and was the first part of the MCC be ported to the PC.

* ADayInTheLimelight: When you play the co-op campaign, player 2 is absent from cutscenes and technically [[CanonForeigner doesn't exist]] in ''Halo'' canon. But [[spoiler:if at the [[LastStand Lone Wolf]] level, player 2 survives longer than player 1, they get the [[DyingMomentOfAwesome final death scene]] instead... Of course if you're playing over Live, this is where the game [[GoodBadBugs glitches out]], picking a white helmet at random and showing it on everyone else's screens in the final cutscene.]] They also get an [[http://kotaku.com/5587509/theres-a-seventh-member-of-halo-reachs-noble-team action figure]].

** There is a cap on the number of Credits you can earn per day, and the "cR" earned by a specific action go down the more it is done, based mostly on the rank of the Commendation(s) it relates to. The first time the Credit cap was hit (repeatedly by numerous people in the same way), one of the Bungie forum mods implied the guys hitting it were cheaters. Turns out they were playing Gruntpocalypse. Cue rumors of Bungie saying repeatedly playing the same gametype is cheating up until one of the Bungie staff members said that repeatedly playing your favorite gametype '''or checkpoint''' was perfectly legal.

* ApocalypticLog: The whole game, to a certain extent. The bonus materials in the Legendary Edition presents it exactly as such.
* ArtEvolution: Compared to the original ''Halo'' trilogy, this game features a noticeably muted color palette to better resemble war footage, with environments either [[UsedFuture weathered with time]] or [[SceneryGorn in the process of being destroyed]] compared to the more carefully maintained environments. The Mjolnir armor and its' variants shown in previous games was designed to be very slim, form fitting and self-contained. This game shows them with a number of [[MovieSuperheroesWearBlack tactical additions]] including raised shoulder pauldrons, ammo belts, supply pouches and tech add-ons. The InUniverse explanation is they are heavily modified from the standard, with Halsey even saying with contempt "What have you done to my armor?"

** Played for laughs once the game became part of ''The Master Chief Collection''. Spotting the Chief in his ''very'' brief cameo (see EasterEgg) unlocks the Achievement "Collection Eligiblity Confirmed", with description "See he ''is'' in the game..."

* ArtisticLicenseSpace: In addition to imported species thanks to human terraforming, Reach is depicted as having some pretty noticeable native creatures, such as the ostrich-like moa and the massive killer primate-things, the Gutas. Problem is, Epsilon Eridani, Reach's parent star, is only about 800 million years old at most. Reach probably shouldn't have ''any'' native life yet (or at least nothing more advanced than primitive single-celled things). Possibly HandWaved by the presence of Forerunner structures, implying they introduced non-native species at some point.

** People who paid for the pimped out Legendary Edition of ''Reach'' got a bonus "Flaming Head" armor effect for bragging rights... and discovered how a flaming helmet is synonymous with a bulls-eye.

* AxCrazy: Emile, mildly; he's the only one of Noble Team to carry a melee weapon (and [[KukrisAreKool a pretty big one]] at that), and he's the only one [[spoiler:who screams threats at the enemy when he dies]]. Background materials reveal that Noble even has a seventh member on standby, who acts as substitute for Emile when deployed on counterinsurgency operations because Emile is overly aggressive towards insurgents.
* BackStab: While basic Assassinations remain[[note]]though technically they're now called Beatdowns, which previously referred to ''all'' melee kills; general melees now get you a Pummel award[[/note]], if you hold the melee button behind an enemy, [[RuleOfCool a short animation actually shows you stabbing (or otherwise killing) the target]]. These animations are quite detailed, with the specific animation chosen accounting for whether you are a Spartan or an Elite, what enemy type you are attacking, what part of the body you were aiming for, your elevation in-relation to the target, and whether you were in mid-air when you initiated the attack. You're not invincible while doing so, and other players can kill you to cancel it,[[note]]("Showstopper!"), or, alternately, kill your helpless victim mid-animation ("Yoink!")[[/note]] which makes successfully performing a fully executed Assassination a bit of a humiliation move.

* BeehiveBarrier: The Drop Shield Armor Ability, based on a similar item from ''VideoGame/Halo3'', except now it recharges your shields and health, but isn't 100% impervious to damage while active.

* BittersweetEnding: The game is DoomedByCanon since it takes place during the Battle of Reach. Also because [[spoiler:no one on Noble Team, except Jun, survives the game]]. The ''only'' thing that keeps this from being an outright DownerEnding is the fact [[spoiler:you got Cortana offworld, and Reach itself becomes a pristine, green world again... 34 years after the events of ''Halo 3'']].
* BlackSpeech: The Covenant species no longer play the AliensSpeakingEnglish trope straight anymore (not even the Grunts) and this trope is in effect in its place. A canny player might pick out a few recognizable words that are used in other contexts. Particularly, the proper names of various Covenant species and their respective homeworlds can be heard in the enemy combat dialogue. For an example, [[http://downloads.bungie.net/audio/speech.wav this]] is a RousingSpeech given by an Elite commander during the "Deliver Hope" commercial.

** They tell you that the large Tyrant-class AA-guns are completely invulnerable on the outside. This is an outright lie, as a great many speedrunner and vet alike know that it '''IS''' in fact vulnerable and can be destroyed from the outside, the rear-end of the gun's turret is especially vulnerable to concentrated heavy weapons fire.

** The Covenant Plasma Pistol, due to its commonness, high damage, and a slight retool, gains its greatest affinity with this trope since the first game. Most classes of Elite in multiplayer will spawn with one.

** The Sprint armor ability is arguably the default armor ability, as it is the one players always spawn with in campaign mode, and is present in virtually every multiplayer mode, including those which disable other armor abilities. It simply gives a player some additional running speed for a short duration, and recharges in a similar short amount of time. While it might lack the flash and uniqueness of other armor abilities, the option to quickly close to point-blank range, move swiftly between cover, or beat a hasty retreat makes it arguably one of the most versatile and useful abilities. In fact, Sprint was the most commonly used armour ability; when people turn down jet packs so that they can run faster, you know this trope is what's happening. This is the reason why subsequent ''Halo'' games have Sprint as a default ability that doesn't need to be specifically equipped, because Creator/ThreeFourThreeIndustries knew the same thing would happen otherwise.

** The Elite Field Marshal, the only one in the campaign mode, is the closest thing the game has to an actual antagonist. He appears a total of three times (primarily during cutscenes), and when you finally face him, he's a particularity tough enemy to kill (his stats are about the same as an Elite General, though he has slightly more health and carries both a fuel rod gun and an energy sword). He's also backed up by Zealots.

* BrokenBridge: A literal example is in the mission "Tip of the Spear". Once completing the local objective, a [[{{Dropship}} Pelican]] flies by and drops a temporary spanning platform across said bridge, allowing the player to continue with the mission. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] in that said local objective was to take down a Covenant anti-air cannon that was preventing your air support (like the Pelican that fixes the bridge) from getting close.

** [[PlayerCharacter Noble Six's]] helmet is shown as a InMediasRes opening cutscene, half buried in the dirt, [[{{Foreshadowing}} lying alone and abandoned on a charred battlefield]].

** Likewise, the idea that Cortana is an AI clone of Dr. Halsey, never contradicted in-game but first established in ''The Fall of Reach'', is finally confirmed by having Creator/JenTaylor do voice-acting for both of them (as well as by Halsey's journal).

** In fact, 90 percent of what the returning characters' Firefight voices say is callbacks.

** In the mission "New Alexandria", you can run into a terrified Trooper, who thinks the aliens are [[WasOnceAMan former humans]]. This is eerily similar to the Marines [[DrivenToMadness traumatized to insanity]] by [[OurZombiesAreDifferent the Flood.]]

* ChainmailBikini: Averted, as the female MJOLNIR armor is as covering as the male's. That said, while the female breastplate is the same as the male's, the female MJOLNIR armor ''does'' emphasize the hips and butt (especially for Kat) compared to the male model. Understandable, as the MJOLNIR armor is really bulky and there's little else Bungie could have done to differentiate the female Spartan model from the male's, with the only other real difference being that the female model is noticeably thinner than the male one.

*** Your armor now has separate shield and health meters, and the shield recharges more slowly than in ''Halo 2'' or ''Halo 3''.

** Brutes behave like they did in ''Halo 2'' (no shields, but increased health and vulnerable to headshots if you knock off their helmet). Fortunately, they're still not as insanely durable as they were in ''Halo 2'', and their berserker mode from that game hasn't returned either.

** Dual-wielding was removed for the player, but some Elites will still do it. Not as bad as it sounds; they only dual-wield the Plasma Rifle, two of which is the equivalent of a Plasma Repeater.
** Got those Elite Zealots, Field Marshals, or Generals in your sniper scope? While they're facing the wrong way? Well, they screen-watch. You read that correctly. The higher ranking Elites on Heroic or Legendary refuse to be sniped, even if they're not "aware" that you are present. Aim at one, and they'll begin to inexplicably strafe and dive for cover, while not attempting to shoot, and while no other enemies react.

** Of course, none of these compare to the worst and most blatant aspect - the enemies on Heroic and Legendary ''fire their weapons faster than normal''. On Heroic it's noticeable, but on Legendary it's borderline RefugeInAudacity. Watch in horror as the Covenant turret that spots you starts firing about 20-30 shots at you in the span of 2 seconds, and you get hit with every single one of them when you already die in 3 shots to begin with.

* CosmeticallyAdvancedPrequel: Inherent in that the game came out years after the original and video game graphics jumped significantly in that time. The armor of Noble Team looks more functional than Master Chief's in ''Combat Evolved''. On the strict canon side, much of it is explained as the ''Pillar of Autumn'' being a single ship with limited supplies and stock crew complement[[note]]The ship was actually meant to implement a top secret mission utilizing the entire Spartan-II corps, with the ''Autumn'' itself retrofitted from an older model cruiser into an AceCustom, but the Battle of Reach changed everything and they were left with a mishmash of crew and equipment[[/note]], while Reach had some of the most advanced military research facilities in the entire UNSC.
* CosmeticAward: Takes the customizable armor of ''VideoGame/{{Halo 3}}'' UpToEleven, with dozens of parts for many different parts of the armor available for Credits earned by doing pretty much anything. Upon launch the degree of customization was revealed to be even bigger then previously thought, to the point to where you can edit your character's voice in Firefight.
* CosmeticallyDifferentSides: Played straight in Spartan vs. Spartan multiplayer, but averted in the Spartan vs. Elite gametypes for the first time in the series; Elites are generally larger than their Spartan counterparts, shields regenerate slightly faster, and their health will return to full given time, while the Spartans can take more damage. Additionally, in most official modes, Elites have exclusive access to the Dodge armor ability, while Spartans have exclusive access to Sprint. However, outside of official modes, both Spartans and Elites can use them interchangably.
* CreatorCameo: The names assigned to the various UNSC soldiers are mostly those of real life Bungie (and Creator/RoosterTeeth) employees. The ''Master Chief Collection'' re-release added the names of a few 343i people.

** Reach changes the control scheme considerably from ''Halo 3'' to accommodate Armor Abilities and the removal of dual-wielding. Many accidentally used their Armor Abilities instead of switching grenades, or switched their grenades instead of meleeing.

* DeathSeeker: From one interpretation, Emile. It's officially stated that Emile cares about almost nothing but killing Covenant, and his whole life has been nothing ''but'' that, save for watching his family be killed and homeworld be glassed.

** Since your Spartan is customizable for campaign as well as multiplayer, the helmet shown at the beginning and end of the game is the helmet your Spartan wears. Out of all these helmets, by far the craziest looking is the [[http://www.halopedia.org/File:GUNGNIR_helmet.jpg GUNGNIR helmet]], which eschews a visor for a teeny little camera nestled in a massive armor plate. Start a campaign wearing it and you'll realize that the hole in Six's helmet (no matter the make) is where it is because ''that's where the camera is on this one helmet''.

* DiscOneFinalDungeon: The level "Long Night of Solace". After a Covenant super carrier appears above Reach, Noble Team plans a daring and dangerous mission to board and destroy it using an improvised bomb made from a slipspace drive. One of your team members ends up having [[spoiler: to pull a HeroicSacrifice to detonate the bomb]], and for a split second it seems like the Covenant have been dealt a major blow, until seconds later when an enormous Covenant fleet arrives in the system, making it AllForNothing.

* ElitesAreMoreGlamorous: Noble Team isn't the [[RedshirtArmy average Spartan-III group]]; it's comprised of a specially selected few equipped with MJOLNIR armour and counts a Spartan-II amongst them. Noble Six him/herself has an impressive pedigree in the backstory; Halsey even states in one of the trailers that they're the only Spartan besides the Master Chief himself to achieve a classification of "Hyper-Lethal". And Noble has the two of the highest-ranking Spartans in the entire corps with Commander Carter and Lt. Commander Kat.
* EpicLaunchSequence: Near the end of the game, you're given a special package and told to deliver it to a drydocked ship before the Covenant destroy either of them ''and'' humanity's chances of winning the war, and nothing else. Said ship is immediately revealed to be none other than the ''[[VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved Pillar of Autumn]]'' as soon as you lay eyes on it, even though it's at least a mile away when you first see it. Naturally, many players wanted to see the ship take off once they'd finished the mission. [[https://youtu.be/QShcXPD7w2Q?t=8 Guess what?]]

** According to a [[WordOfGod developer commentary video]], the euphemistic line about baking a cake was part of the original script, before they decided to change the line. Apparently this subtitle just never got corrected when that happened. Perhaps THAT'S why Jun can be heard saying [[MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext "What, you don't like my cooking?"]] in "Nightfall". It's not even the first time a ''Halo'' game has had a cut line remain in the subtitles.
* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: Noble Six is never referred to by name, only by "Six," "Lieutenant", and the more generic "Spartan." The only thing given in supplementary materials is the Spartan code B312 (the codes effectively function as last names for Spartans, with Master Chief's being 117).

* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler:Te last we see of Jorge is him smiling at Noble Six before throwing the latter off the supercarrier so they're a safe distance away when it's destroyed, telling them to "make it count"]].

* FramingDevice: One of the documents that comes with the Limited/Legendary Edition states that the game itself is an in-universe interactive record.

* GameplayAndStorySegregation: Several things, notably Emile, who in promotional background material is portrayed as a particularly bold Spartan (bordering on berserker level aggression) who specializes in close combat assaults. In gameplay, his AI is much more timid, almost never purposely closing to the effective range of his shotgun and even falling back without firing a shot whenever he does move into that range.

** Stands also as a commentary on the differences between Spartan-[=IIs=] and [=IIIs=]. While Jorge is clearly regarded as the most dangerous and toughest soldier in Noble, he is also the most clearly emotionally stable, and shows the most humanity. The Spartan-[=IIIs=] are all a little off, especially Emile, for whom it's stated that he doesn't actually care as much for Reach's survival as he does for killing Covenant.

* GodzillaThreshold: The event that required the GilliganCut example, which was [[spoiler: the appearance of a Covenant Supercarrier. Disposing of it required a ship's Slipspace Drive, which is stated by Carter to be the "single most expensive piece of equipment made by man"]]. Of course, much worse happened immediately after....
* GoodNewsBadNews: Played with at the end of "Long Night of Solace". [[spoiler:Your Pelican is completely broken and now the only way you can get off the corvette en-route to the titular supercarrier is to literally jump out? That's the ''good'' news. The ''bad'' news? The bomb's timer is fried and someone is going to have to stay behind to activate it manually.]]
* GoodScarsEvilScars: All Noble Team members who remove their helmet are shown to have at least one significant scar, evidence that they have had a long career of combat.
* GoombaStomp: Performing an aerial Assassination on an Elite will sometimes result in this. It doesn't look like much until you remember that a fully-armored Spartan weighs about ''1,000 pounds''. This is essentially dropping a shipping container on someone's head.

* TheGreatestStoryNeverTold: Implied by Halsey at the end. While not as anonymous as the Rookie's role in ''VideoGame/Halo3ODST'', Halsey laments that Six never got to see the battle won, and that her/his role is overshadowed in the grand scheme of history. Their story will remain a relative footnote in the Fall of Reach, and thus Halsey vows to never forget their efforts. That said, the Limited/Legendary edition materials indicate that Noble as a whole did eventually achieve posthumous renown, to the point where they eventually got an entire public memorial dedicated to them in one of Reach's rebuilt cities (with the Legendary Edition Noble Team sculpture stated to be a miniature replica of said memorial). Additionally, several MJOLNIR variations in ''VideoGame/Halo5Guardians'' are stated to have been created and named in honor of Noble Team.

* GrenadeLauncher: A new human weapon introduced in this game. It is a single shot weapon with two firing modes: tapping the trigger will fire a grenade on a fuse of roughly two seconds; holding the trigger allows you to control when the grenade detonates. Doing the latter also emits an electromagnetic pulse that deactivates shields or vehicles.

* GuideDangIt: There's a ton of easter eggs hidden in the game, but most are nearly impossible to find without looking them up. The [[spoiler:drivable Pelican and Phantom on "New Alexandria"]] are especially tough. Of course, none are necessary to finish the game.

** [[spoiler: Subverted with Emile. Initially he's manning the MAC gun, and is going so stay behind to cover Six's escape. If not for the backstab from the Zealot, he'd be the one going out in a Blaze of Glory instead of...]]

** [[spoiler:Inverted and then subverted in the opening cutscene of "The Pillar of Autumn" - the closing cutscene for "The Package" had Carter, Six and Emile taking off in a Pelican, while Dot tells them about the veritable army of Covenant forces standing between them and the Pillar of Autumn that the three will need to get through to deliver the Cortana fragment. The next cutscene then opens with the Pelican under fire from Covenant forces while Dot tells Carter to seek immediate medical attention, to which he does not respond while the cutscene then focuses on Six working his way up to the cockpit of the Pelican while Emile engages the tailing Covenant forces. Dot asks Carter to respond twice more, to which he still doesn't, and then his helmet is shown falling from his side in the cockpit - the typical initial reaction would be that Carter was KilledOffscreen. He is then revealed to be alive, however, as the inversion, but with the caveat that he's most likely mortally wounded and doesn't plan on making it to the Autumn, and he subsequently orders Six and Emile to get off the Pelican and deliver the fragment on foot. He's able to put his final minutes to good use, however, when he uses the damaged Pelican to destroy a Scarab that's standing between the last two members of Noble Team and the Autumn, at [[HeroicSacrifice the cost of his own life]].]]

* ImpliedDeathThreat: When Carter orders Jun to escort Halsey to CASTLE Base, he implies that Jun should kill her rather than allow her capture by the Convenant.

* InsufferableGenius: Halsey is presented like this initially (and she is known to be like this in the ExpandedUniverse). But her journal sheds light on her verbal altercation with Carter in the game. She was under the impression that the Spartans she personally trained (the Spartan-[=IIs=], which include Jorge and Master Chief) were the only Spartans in the UNSC. It wasn't until after Noble Team's first mission that she discovered the ''existence'' of Spartan-[=IIIs=], which means she was actively deceived by her peers for years. By her second interaction with Noble Team they appeared to have earned her respect.

** There's a bit of tension shown between the UNSC Army and ONI; at one point, Dr. Halsey threatens to imprison Kat for accessing Sorvad's files, and Carter replies that she'd be joining her, as WINTER CONTINGENCY is in full effect and civilian interference with Spartan deployment is also highly illegal. Eventually though, ONI reassumes command of Noble Team so they can escort [[spoiler:the Cortana fragment to the ''Pillar of Autumn'']].

** At one point in the level "Long Night of Solace", when you're making your way to the launch facility, the AA guns are shooting at the dozens of Seraphs buzzing overhead. The AA guns' purpose is to protect the building from airborne damages. Well, the guns hit a Seraph, and it goes spinning down out of control in flames... crashing into the facility at high speed. Oops.

*** [[spoiler:Jorge, the heavy weapons expert, dies in a giant explosion. In addition, he is the one who loved Reach the most[[note]]He was actually born there[[/note]], and yet he dies off planet.]]

* LastStand: [[spoiler:This is how Noble Six goes out. According to WordOfGod, their resistance against the Covenant lasted for ''hours'', and even drew the attention of Wraiths and Phantoms, before Six finally died. Considering the fact that the level has the bodies of various Spartans and Marines scattered around it, we may be seeing the very tail end of that entire groups last stand]].
* LawOfChromaticSuperiority: This game changed how the colours of Covenant armour were represented, which in conjunction with the new armour shapes among different species and the muted colour palette overall making them look considerably different overal. The most drastic change was seen in the Elite Zealots, previously gold-armoured, becoming maroon, possibly due to the Zealots in the campaign largely being small units intended as artefact collectors. The new Generals took on the gold colour, a change that would remain in ''Videogame/Halo4'' with the Warriors and Zealots in that game.

* LevelGrinding: Playing Gruntpocolypse on the Score Attack gametype (single-player Firefight) was noticed as the most efficient method of credit farming. Assuming you can finish the round in the alloted time, it is almost a guaranteed 2,000 cR for about 10 minutes worth of playing.

* LevelInReverse: "The Package" borders between this and RemixedLevel for "ONI: Sword Base". The geometry is altered, yes, but you also start in different locations in each level.

** The highest-ranked Skirmishers have as much health as Brutes, and move around faster then Drones. Thankfully, it still only takes one headshot to kill them.

* LuckBasedMission: On higher difficulties, [[spoiler:the final bit firing the MAC gun]] has a good chance of being impossible to complete on your first attempt. And if the Mythic Skull is on, the [[spoiler:CCS-class battlecruiser you have to shoot down will gain double health as well, needing '''TWO''' MAC shots to take down]]. Even Tyrant, the legendary Mythic speedrunner, admitted this portion on Mythic difficulty is virtually entirely based on luck.

* MultiMookMelee: Firefight can be this, if you so choose. [[spoiler: The campaign ends like this.]]

** Emile bears more than a passing resemblance to ''[[Machinima/RedVsBlue The Meta]]''. It's not just his EVA helmet, but also the color of his armor and his use of brown CQB shoulder pauldrons. He's also not ''quite'' as [[AxeCrazy sane]] as the other members of Noble Team, and prefers close-range/physical combat over anything. It's gotten to the point where fans have decided that Emile's helmet would be what the Meta would wear, if he were rendered in the ''Reach'' engine.

*** There's also ones for Burnie and Matt.
** Watch the Grunt Assassinations. They are identical to the ones used by Cal and Dutch in ''Anime/HaloLegends'' during ''The Babysitter''. Also, take three guesses what happens in the level "The Package". [[spoiler: You rescue Halsey from the Covenant, just like ''Anime/HaloLegends'' short of the same name.]]

** Elite Ultras are a lot less durable than they were in ''Halo 2'', only having about 150 shields and 125 health (compared to 100 of each for Elite Minors) rather than the 300 shields and 300 health they had in ''Halo 2''. However, they're also a lot faster and more agile than they were in ''Halo 2'' as well, and tend to appear in greater numbers and carry explosive weaponry. Overall they're much more like EliteMooks than the BossInMookClothing they were in ''Halo 2''.

* OutOfGenreExperience: To a certain extent, the entire game (along with ''VideoGame/Halo3ODST'') is a genre swerve. The "traditional" ''Halo'' experience has you playing as a OneManArmy {{Cyborg}} SuperSoldier surrounded by RedShirt allies; you kick ass while they cheer you on. In ''Reach'', you're finally in the company of equals, because your allies are Spartans (in ''ODST'', it's because ''you'' are a RedShirt too, though an [[EliteMook elite one]]).

** Poked fun at in Forge; the "next gen" effect lights everything through a distinctly brown filter.

** He leads the attack on the communications outpost at the start of the game, and is encountered during a cutscene near the end of the first mission.

** Deliberately invoked by UNSC propaganda: Spartans are never reported dead. They are only listed as missing in action. Because, [[NeverFoundTheBody you'll never know for sure...]]

* RunningGag: Almost once every level, Noble Six gets knocked down (via enemy, explosion, atmospheric freefall...) in a cutscene (sometimes with a first person perspective) and has to grab the nearest weapon available.

* SciFiWritersHaveNoSenseOfScale: During the glassing of New Alexandria, Kat exclaims that it produces a radiation flare of “40 million roentgens!” Even if that was reduced to a per-hour calculation, that would still be ridiculous. The Chernobyl nuclear disaster produced only twenty-thousand roentgens/hour at its peak, and that was the worst nuclear disaster ever, with fallout spreading over the vast majority of Europe. A radiation flare of that magnitude would have killed everyone on Reach more or less instantly.
* SelfFulfillingProphecy: Halsey's journal mentions Elias Carver, a sociologist who predicted insurrection in the Outer Colonies, thus prompting the UNSC to further military presence there. Whether this actually caused the insurrection is left ambigious, but Carver believed it to the extent that he was DrivenToSuicide.

** Hell the only reason the entire freaking game doesn't qualify is the fact [[spoiler:you got Cortana offworld, and Reach itself becomes a pristine, green world again... 34 years after the events of ''Halo 3''.]]

** 90 percent of the Achievements are {{Shout Out}}s to dialogue from the previous games. The other 10%...

** One of the UNSC taunts to the Covenant: "[[Film/{{Predator}} You are one, UGLY mother...]]"

** The frequent use of grainy security footage during cutscenes seems like an homage to Creator/NeillBlomkamp, the director whose ''Halo'' shorts and original feature-length films (''Film/{{District 9}}'' actually evolved out of the [[DevelopmentHell failed attempt at a]] full-length ''Halo'' movie) both frequently uses this style.
** Most of the Daily and Weekly Challenges are shout outs. For instance, the one for killing a certain amount of people with an automatic weapon is [[Film/DieHard I Have A Machine Gun]]. Another, for killing a certain amount of opponents, is [[Franchise/StarWars Aggressive Negotiations]].

** The guta are just like [[VideoGame/{{Fallout}} deathclaws]].

** Possibly overlapping with FridgeBrilliance; in [[spoiler: one mission, the player is thrown out of a Covenant ship by Jorge into space. They seemingly shake off the re-entry with only a mild sprain or two. One would think "Hey, the Master Chief dropped from in atmosphere with a Foreunner plate protecting him, hit soft porous dirt, only survived by blind luck, and was still messed up for a while! What gives?" Well, if one pays close attention to the cutscenes, you can spot an armored pack on Noble Six's back, just before they're flung from the ship, labeled 'Re-Entry Unit'.]]
** Halsey's Journal manages to reference and tie together so much of the extended universe, from the inconsistencies between this game and ''The Fall of Reach'', the Spartan-III program from ''Literature/HaloGhostsOfOnyx'', the Orion program, etc. It was written by Eric Nylund, who wrote ''The Fall of Reach'' and its two sequels, so he was basically desperately trying to find a way to keep his trilogy in-continuity.

* SuperWristGadget: Carter has a datapad on the vembrace of his armor. Players can unlock similar options for their characters, which reveal the datapads are detachable; the vembraces in question include docking ports for them so they can be stored in an easily accessible manner.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: [[spoiler:The deaths of Noble Team. Carter and Jorge both have a HeroicSacrifice, but it doesn't stop or deter the Covenant. Emile kills a Zealot, and is then quickly impaled from behind. Noble Six remains on the planet, and is finally overwhelmed and killed by the endless forces. Kat's death is the most brutal version of this. She may be a genius Spartan, but if her shields are down and she's not paying attention to her surroundings, she can be killed by a sniper round to the head like everyone else.]]

** The A.I. and combat skills of the entire Covenant roster has been noticeably improved. Most notably, Elites are now much more agile and intelligent and play a lot like multiplayer opponents — some even use Armor Abilities like Hologram and Armor Lock. Higher ranking Grunts can now fire overcharge shots.
** Hunters no longer have any easily exploitable weakness ''at all''. You can't kill them with a single shot, even from a sniper rifle, like you could in ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' or ''Halo 2''. They no longer die from a couple grenade sticks like they did in ''Halo 3''. Also, they can now use the shields on their arms to deliberately block attacks.
** Unlike most NPC allies in the series, all of Noble Team are [[StoryAndGameplaySegregation invicible during gameplay]], since there is no real need to escort highly trained soldiers.
** The Pistol has been restored to be comparable to its ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' glory. It does the same amount of damage as the DMR, and can fire almost as quickly as its shield-eating ''Halo 2'' counterpart. Fortunately these factors are balanced by a smaller clip and more reticle bloom relative to the DMR.

** In ''ODST'', the Spiker was completely useless because you couldn't dual wield it. Now, it has bite. A LOT of bite.

* ThereAreNoTherapists: Averted; several members of Noble Team have undergone treatment for PTSD, though Kat refuses it. [[EstablishingCharacterMoment Jorge even recommends]] a full psychatric workup for a civilian survivor of a brutal Covenant attack.
* TragicKeepsake: [[spoiler: Jorge's dogtags.]]

** The Gueta in "Nightfall". You fight two midway through the level, and they're never seen again.

* UselessAccessory: Armor customization lets you add extra armor, [[BadassBandolier bandoliers]], pouches, and other unusual things that are purely asthetic and don't affect gameplay in the slightest.

** Killing a civilian results in your character's instantaneous demise. Fortunately, civilians have a crazy amount of health and are completely immune to explosives to prevent this from happening by accident during the "Exodus" mission. Unless you accidentally land a headshot. Enemies can still kill them with pitiful ease however, like Brute Captains and Chieftains armed with Gravity Hammers who can and will flatten them by the dozen if they are allowed to get too close.
** However, this is completely averted with regards to your fellow troopers. In all the previous ''Halo'' games, you took significant extra damage when shot by a marine, which was implemented to make sure you lost if you decided to be a jerk and turn against them. This is no longer the case in ''Reach'', allowing you to slaughter entire platoons of human forces if you choose to.

* WatchingTroyBurn: Toward the end of the conflict, it becomes clear to even the protagonist that humanity is not simply losing the battle of Reach, but have already lost. Several sectors of the planet are already being glassed at that point, the weather is becoming more extreme due to the added energy, and the sea level is rising with the melting ice caps.

** Sara Sorvad, the young woman you rescue at the end of the first mission, has a unique character model and gets just enough screen time that you suspect she could have a role later on in the plot. She's never seen again, and is dismissed as "irrelevant" by Halsey in her only other mention. Word of God is that she was originally intended to have become Noble Team's science adviser.
** Colonel Urban Holland, Noble Team's C.O., just drops off the face of the planet after ordering Noble Team to revisit and demolish Sword Base at the end of "New Alexandria". No one ever says anything even hinting towards his fate.
* WhileRomeBurns: Club Errera in "New Alexandria", after you hit a hidden switch, has a Brute DJ playing "Never Surrender" from the ''{{VideoGame/Halo 2}}'' OST, all while the city is under siege, with the Grunts dancing to it as well. As an additional EasterEgg, there's a switch on the roof that changes the song to "Siege of Madrigal".

[[caption-width-right:350:''[[{{Tagline}} Remember where it all began. Remember Reach.]]'']]

** [[GolfClubbing The ]], available by customizing a load out in Firefight. It's essentially the gravity hammer in the shape of a monster .

** A Living Dead gametype option is called [[Fanfic/HalfLifeFullLifeConsequences Zombie Ghosts]]. It involves invisible zombies who are on fire and attack with s, so... fitting.

* AmmoUsingMeleeWeapon: The Energy Sword and Gravity Hammer, which have limited charges but cannot be reloaded, as well as the multiplayer only golf club.

** [[GolfClubbing The golf club]], available by customizing a load out in Firefight. It's essentially the gravity hammer in the shape of a monster golf club.

** A Living Dead gametype option is called [[Fanfic/HalfLifeFullLifeConsequences Zombie Ghosts]]. It involves invisible zombies who are on fire and attack with golf clubs, so... fitting.

* AxCrazy: Emile, mildly; he's the only one of Noble Team to carry [[KnifeNut a melee weapon]] (and [[KukrisAreKool a pretty big one]] at that), and he's the only one [[spoiler:who screams threats at the enemy when he dies]]. Background materials reveal that Noble even has a seventh member on standby, who acts as substitute for Emile when deployed on counterinsurgency operations because Emile is overly aggressive towards insurgents.

## KnifeNut: [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice Stabbed in the back]]

** Dr. Catherine Halsey features significantly in the ''Halo'' ExpandedUniverse as the creator and director of the [=SPARTAN-II=] program and is one of the leading human experts on the Forerunners. ''Reach'' is the first time she's ever appeared in any of the games.
** Likewise, the idea that Cortana is an AI clone of Dr. Halsey, never contradicted in-game but first established in ''The Fall of Reach'', is finally confirmed by having the same person do voice-acting for both of them (as well as by Halsey's journal).

** Averted somehow, now in season 8 of the Master Chief Collection, you can change the body type and voice type.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[{{Tagline}} Remember where it all began. Remember Reach.]]]]

[[caption-width-right:350:[[BadassBoast Spartans never die.]]]]

->''"From the beginning, you know the end..."''

* MeaningfulName: [[spoiler:Kat is very ''curious''. Guess what happens to her?]]

* MeaningfulName: As stated above, Noble Six is NOBLE Team's SixthRanger.

** While the player can no longer do this like in previous ''Halo'' games, some Elites can. Cheaters.