SpecOps Standard Sangheili

The Special Operations Elite is a Covenant Sangheili (Elite) rank.

Ranking
Ones of such ranking are extremely skilled fighters. These commandos are sent in by the Covenant to accomplish some of the most dangerous and difficult of missions. These soldiers are believed to rank higher than the Major Domo Elites, yet lower then Ultra Elites, although this is not definitively confirmed. For in Halo 3 a Major Elite is apparently leading the SpecOps Elites into battle against the Flood In Halo: Combat Evolved, they are clad in black, they wear black or navy-blue armor in Halo 2.

Special Operations Elites are related to Stealth Elites, as they both possess Active Camouflage technology. However, the two are different and should not be disambiguated: Stealth Elites have gray armor, are unshielded, and are permanently cloaked. Special Operations Elites have blue or black armor, are shielded, and can only cloak for short bursts of time.

Special Operations Elites are all personnel of the Covenant Special Operations branch of the Covenant Special Warfare Group. A squad of SpecOps Elites escorted the Arbiter into the Heretic Gas Mine.

Ranks
There are three different rankings for Special Operations Elites.

Special Operations Commander
The title of Special Operations Commander is believed to be the highest rank attainable by an Elite in the Covenant Special Operations division. When not in battle, they wear pearlescent white armor similar to Ultra Elites (although it is not augmented with Active Camouflage) but wear silver-ish black armor in combat, and are extremely skilled in combat. They also are placed in command of all the personnel and materiel of a special operation: the only known Special Operations Commander, Rtas 'Vadum (formerly known as Rtas 'Vadumee before the Great Schism) lead dozens of Special Operations Elites and Special Operations Grunts in the Battle of the Gas Mine and also the Battle of the Quarantine Zone.

They are also given the honor of speaking directly to the High Prophets and relaying their messages to the High Council.

Special Operations Officer
Special Operations Officers command "teams" of Special Operations forces, and also are sufficiently high-ranked to have appointed "assistants". They possess a fairly large amount of political authority, able to acquisition personnel to their own units, and can speak to the Minor Prophets. They are also tasked with executing special operations, as seen in the Battle of Alpha Base, although not entire military operations. They are clad in black armor, like standard Special Operations Elites, and possess Active Camouflage technology.

The only definitive known Elites of the rank is Zuka 'Zamamee and 'Umamee, although Kusovai is suspected to be one as well.

Special Operations Elite
Special Operations Elites are the "standard" rank-and-file Elites in the Covenant Special Operations branch. They wear black or blackish-blue armor, and can activate Active Camouflage for a short duration of time, making them practically invisible for some time. This is useful in infiltration operations.

Special Operations Elites played prominent roles in the Battle of the Gas Mine and the subsequent Battle of Installation 05, aiding the Arbiter in killing the Heretic Leader on Threshold, and then later aiding the Arbiter in retaking the Brute Encampment on Delta Halo, and then killing Tartarus in the Control Room, albeit with heavy casualties.

Armor


Special Operations Commanders are clad in the pearlescent white armor (not in combat) and silver-ish black (in combat) of Ultra Elites, while Special Operations Officers are clad in black or blue armor. In Halo 2, the Master Chief encounters a SpecOps team clad in purple armour.

Some also bear a Forerunner symbol on their back.

In Halo 3, Special Operations Elites wear a purple Assault Harness and they can be seen in the level Floodgate.

Shields
In Halo: CE, a SpecOps Elite's shields are slightly stronger than those of a Major Elite. For example, it takes 10 headshots with the M6D pistol to kill a fully-shielded SpecOps Elite, while it only takes 8 to kill a Major.

In Halo 2, their shields are the same strength as a Major Elite's. Like a Major, they are among the more dangerous Elites.

Armament
Special Operations Elites, fitting with their perilous mission assignments, are given a wide variety of Covenant weaponry, including the Particle Beam Rifle and the Energy Sword. They are also armed with Plasma Rifles, Needlers, Carbines, and Plasma Grenade explosives. They have been seen with two Plasma pistols.

Tactics
Like the high-ranking Zealots and Ultras, the Special Operations Elites are very intelligent in combat and have a knack for being extremely proficient with the Energy Sword. As clever warriors, Special Operations Elites consistently strafe, are constantly on the move, and never stand still to avoid being exposed or vulnerable to explosions. They also have superior accuracy, fire in longer bursts, and, as mentioned earlier, have slightly stronger shielding than regular Elites, making them slightly harder to kill, fitting with their high rank.

They are also not imperiously impulsive; they do not "berserk" when seriously injured, unlike many other Elites. Most notably, they operate in squads and are extremely skilled and accurate grenade throwers. Even Spartans have difficulty killing them.

The black armored Elites are slightly more tactical-minded and are more difficult to kill. It is also noted that because of their stealthy nature, they work very well in a small group ranging from 2-4. A team of three Spec Ops Elites can accomplish a perilous and difficult mission with ease because of their collective tactics as a squad. They also use their active camouflage quite effectively, killing many enemies from behind or surprising them from close range.

The Carbine and Fuel Rod Cannon are effective against them. As always, go for headshots.

Halo: Combat Evolved & Halo: The Flood
In Halo, they are the Covenant's Elite shock troops, similar to the role played by the UNSC's Orbital Drop Shock Troopers, or Helljumpers. These Elite sport black or white armor and three-prong helmets. They are the only elites that throw plasma grenades(by side-arming them), and they are very accurate.


 * The Pillar of Autumn - Several led the Covenant boarding action, of which one was Zuka 'Zamamee.
 * Alpha Base - Zuka 'Zamamee led forty Special Operations Elites in the first Covenant wave against the United Nations Space Command base "Alpha Base". Eventually, all but 'Zamamee were killed by the Helljumper defenders.
 * Keyes - They were assigned to eliminate all Flood perpetrators on the CCS-class Battlecruiser Truth and Reconciliation and repair it for immediate departure. They were present neutralizing the flood when SPARTAN-117 boarded the starship to find what was left of Captain Jacob Keyes. Their first official appearance is just before you meet the Brain form, in the shuttle bay.
 * The Maw - They were also present on the just before Installation 04 was destroyed.

Halo 2

 * Cairo Station (Level)After the second Earth Defense platform is destroyed you combat two special ops Elites one invisible.
 * The Arbiter & The Oracle - A squad of Special Operations Elites under the Special Operations Commander Rtas 'Vadumee accompanied the Arbiter to the Threshold Gas Mine to eliminate the Heretics, but were besieged by Flood. Some of them survived.
 * Sacred Icon - Special Operations Elites once again under the command of Rtas 'Vadumee held a Covenant reinforcement point by way of Plasma Cannon, Energy Sword, and Plasma Rifle for the Arbiter to join them in the strike to retrieve the Sacred Icon from the Library. They held out long enough for a Phantom with further Special Operations Elites and several vehicles, including a Spectre and two Ghosts.
 * Quarantine Zone - Special Operations Elites assisted the Arbiter in forging a path to the Library. About at the two-thirds mark, Rtas 'Vadumee sent a Phantom with another Spectre and more Special Operations Elites to assist. When the Covenant force reached the gondolas, further Special Operations Elites defended the gondola from Flood attacks. When the gondola halted, Special Operations Elites awaited on the gondola to protect their sole exfiltration craft as the Arbiter retrieved the Sacred Icon. It is likely that the Brutes slaughtered the remaining commandos that were defending the Gondola - one of the first acts of the Covenant Civil War.
 * Gravemind - Several Special Operations Elites were present throughout the Covenant orbital city wielding fearsome Energy Swords at the first Hanging Garden and the second Valley of Tears . Two Spec-Ops Elites are also seen at the end of the level, they rush through the same doors that the Honor Guard Councilor does, they brandish Covenant Carbines or Plasma Rifles, and are using Active Camo.
 * Uprising - A Special Operations Elite wielding a sword aided the Arbiter for preparing a landing zone for Orbital Insertion Pods with three Elite allies against the Brutes in the fore of the level.
 * The Great Journey - Numerous Special Operations Elites fought against Tartarus and his Brute allies, brandishing either a Carbine or dual Needlers. Many were slain in battle by the fearsome, titanic Fist of Rukt.

Another Day at the Beach
A Special Operations Elite in dark blue armor similar to an Elite Minor's was wielding an Energy Sword is spotted in Another Day at the Beach.

Halo 3
On the level Floodgate, a Spec Ops team is dropped off in drop pods to help the Arbiter and Master Chief exterminate all the Flood, and to later try to rescue Cortana. They are featured with Assault Harness, and the same distinctive dark purple-blue color as they had in Halo 2. A possible reason for the different equipment could conceivably be that, due to the risk of inhaling Flood spores, Rtas 'Vadum wished them to use an atmospherically sealed harness.