M831 Troop Transport

Troop Transport Warthog The M831 Troop Transport, abbreviated as M831 TT and commonly known as the Troop Transport, is a United Nations Space Command ground transport vehicle based off the chassis of the M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle.

Design details
The M831 Troop Transport (nicknamed by players as the 'bus') is essentially the troop transport variant of the M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle. It contains neither a M41 LAAG, a 102mm SC-HE Rocket Turret, nor a M68 Gauss Cannon. The M831 TT provides supplementary room for 3 personnel in the rear section along with one driver and a passenger in the front seat.

The Troop Transport relies on its passengers for defense and offense. Because of this, it is normally considered far less powerful than its counterparts. The usage of a troop compartment instead of a turret is both an advantage and a disadvantage: more allies will die should the vehicle be destroyed, but multiple targets can be counterattacked at the same time (albeit with less overall force). Also, its roll cage appears to be made of several metal beams, unlike normal roll cages.

Production notes
The M831 Troop Transport vehicle was originally slated to be in Halo 2 along with two other Warthog variants, the Snow Warthog and the Jungle Warthog. Time constraints prevented Bungie from adding it to the game; the only new variant that made it into Halo 2 was the M12G1 LAAV "Gauss" Warthog. In Halo 2, the Troop Transport Warthog's personnel compartment seems to use a roll cage with roll bars similar to that of modern vehicles.

The M831 TT was sighted in the Halo 3 E3 2007 Trailer. In the final game, it can be spotted in multiple levels, including Tsavo Highway and The Storm.

The M831 TT returns in Halo: Reach, first viewable in the cutscene Noble Actual, then later in the level, ONI: Sword Base, making a scripted drive before being destroyed. If playing on Co-op, then an overturned Troop Transport appears and is drivable. It is still impossible to ride the rear rollcage.

Tactics

 * This vehicle has practically no offensive capability other than the ability to run over enemies, and whatever firepower its passengers have at their disposal. However, in Tsavo Highway, it is possible to arm every Marine riding your 'Hog with a Fuel Rod Gun. The fact that each Marine has infinite ammo and a 360-degree arc of fire makes a Troop Transport Hog very effective when engaging Wraiths.
 * On the campaign level The Storm, the Troop Transport Warthog found in the first lakebed area can be carried through to the next Traxus factory, where there is a rack of rocket launchers that you can give to the Marines. This is helpful against the Anti-Air Wraiths and the Scarab.

Trivia

 * It is commonly confused with the Warthog Armored Personnel Carrier, an improvised United Rebel Front vehicle with an armored cab attached between the front and rear ends of the standard Warthog, giving many extra seats.
 * On the Halo 3 multiplayer level The Pit, a Troop Transport Warthog rests outside the level boundaries. A player can spawn a Grav Lift in Forge and use it to push the 'Hog into the level; however, only the Connection Host can drive it.
 * If one looks carefully at the back section of the M831 TT Warthog, you can see that there are actually five seats in the back., two on each side one facing backwards (not including the front passenger seat). The reason that only three soldiers can ride in the back is probably for gameplay reasons as having five(or six) rocket armed marines would be to powerful and also because if the vehicle got hit while fully loaded "seven" people would be killed.
 * You can actually get the Marines out of the backseats even though you yourself cannot sit back there. Simply walk to a Marine and aim at them; when the reticule turns green, press RB, and they will jump out.
 * There are several reasons why this vehicle was not added to Multiplayer:
 * As mentioned above, only the front seats are usable by players. The three additional seats in the back are only usable by NPCs. a possible explanation for that could be that spartans are 'too big' for the back seats
 * The ability to have five players in the vehicle at once would allow too many members of a team to be transported quickly across a map. Also, it would provide easy multiple-kills for enemy players, turning the vehicle into "a Killtacular on wheels".
 * Despite being the same size as normal Marines, players cannot enter the rear seats in Halo 3: ODST. This may have been overlooked by Bungie or simply done for gameplay reasons.
 * There are many variants of the Warthog in Halo 2 that were cut. The Troop Transport Warthog is among them.
 * The Troop Transport Warthog appears in Halo: Reach but it is never in a position to be driven except when a player activates the "race" easter egg on ONI Sword Base.
 * The Troop Transport Warthog's roll cage appears to be more triangular in Halo: Reach than it was in Halo 3.
 * A Troop Transport Warthog with all the Marines on board equipped with heavy weapons such as the Spartan Laser, or Rocket Launchers is potentially as deadly as any Scorpion.