Assassination

For the medal see Assassin Medal

An  is a feature in Halo: Reach and the upcoming title Halo 4 that allows player to enter a third-person view while elaborately taking an enemy player down with either a UNSC Combat Knife, an Elite's Energy Dagger (the Covenant equivalent of the Combat Knife), an Energy Sword, or their character's bare hands.

Note that assassinations are different from beat downs and pummels. Pummels are kills from a normal frontal melee attack; a beat down occurs when one player melees another by simply tapping the melee button (RB - Default Controls) while behind them, resulting in the breaking of the target's spine and thus, an instant kill. Beat Downs also reward the player a medal.

An assassination occurs when Player A presses and holds the melee button when directly behind or on either side of, but closer to behind, Player B, resulting in an elaborate kill and will earn the player a special medal. This results in the humiliation of the assassinated player. These can be performed in either Campaign or multiplayer matchmaking. Assassinations done in matchmaking also count towards the Rear Admiral commendation.

Types of Assassinations
For both Elite and Spartan III players, there are three different basic assassination types and one uniqe type that are played show a specific animation that varies depending on which part of the back is meleed and the players' positions. There are also different animations that run if assassinating an enemy of the other species, all depending on the situation during which they are performed. Other than basic assassinations, when one is holding an Energy Sword, they can perform unique assassinations, not able to be done with any other weapon.



Spartan against Spartan (Multiplayer only)
When playing as a Spartan in Halo: Reach matchmaking, you can perform several different assassinations using your Combat Knife, located somewhere on your character's chest, depending on which chest piece you're using.

Basic Assassination 1: Both players are on the ground
This assassination involves Player A standing on the same surface as Player B. The specific animation that is used varies depending on which part of the back is meleed.
 * Player B turns around to Player A. Player A raises their knife in hands and brings the blade down, stabbing Player B's skull straight down. Player B falls to their knees with the knife in them. As Player A releases the knife from Player B's head, Player B falls backward dead.
 * Player A shoves Player B ahead and stabs their knife into Player B's middle back. Player A rips the knife from Player B's body to the right, causing Player B's dead body to fall to the right.
 * Player B turns around to somewhat face Player A. Player A readies their knife and stabs it in the gut of Player B, situating the knife to hit Player B's heart under their ribcage. Player A pulls the knife out of Player B's stomach. Player B falls left, dead.
 * Player A tosses the knife up behind their back, catches it, and stabs Player B In the middle/lower back. Player A grabs the back of Player B's neck, pulls the knife out, and throws Player B's lifeless body to the ground.
 * Player A reaches their left arm over and to the right of Player B's head. Player A grabs Player B and puts them in a reverse headlock, while having their knife in right hand. With Player B's stomach area unarmored, Player A stabs the knife into the gut of Player B. Player A keeps it there for a brief moment while holding Player B's chest piece. Player A rips the knife from Player B's stomach as Player B falls dead to the right.

Basic Assassination 2: Assassin is airborne, but victim is not
This assassination involves Player A jumping or falling right behind (Close enough proximity to melee) Player B.
 * Player A lands on Player B's back and slams them to the ground with their left foot. Player A takes his feet to each side of the ground Player B is on. Player A bends over, reaches for Player B's neck and snaps it to the right, killing Player B. Player A gets up off Player B's left side.

Basic Assassination 3: Both players are airborne/Victim is airborne, but assassin is not
This assassinations involves Player A and B to be airborne with Player A right behind Player B; alternatively, Player A could be surfaced while Player B is in the air.
 * Player A, airborne, slams their fists down on Player B's head, causing Player B's back to break, and falls to the ground.

Unique Assassination: Both players are on the ground, Player A wields an Energy Sword
For this assassination to properly take place, both players must be surfaced and Player A must have an Energy Sword as their current weapon.
 * Player A somewhat punches Player B's back. Player B turns around and Player A slashes Player B's chest with their Energy Sword. Player B falls to the left onto the ground, and Player A brings their sword down to and through Player B's gut. Player A pulls the sword from Player B's body, and Player B remains dead on the ground.

Basic Assassination 1: Both players are on the ground
These types of assassinations require a Spartan to be the assassin and an Elite to be the victim. In this case, the Spartan will be Player A and the Elite will be Player B. While assassinating an Elite, the Spartan has two choices of unique assassinations.
 * Player A climbs up the back of Player B, putting his right foot on the back of the right shin of Player B and left foot on the left thigh of Player B. Holding on to Player B's left shoulder and neck, Player A raises their knife in right hand and brings it down to the right side of Player B's shoulder, in between the shoulder blade and neck. Player B drops to their knees as Player A releases the knife and steps off of Player B. Player B falls forward, dead, to the ground.
 * Player B takes a left step forward and Player A climbs atop Player B (the same way told above). With Player A's left hand, they hold the back of Player B's head. And, with Player A's right hand, they hold the right jaws of Player B (chin if Player B wears Ranger armor). Player A twists Player B's head to the right, snapping Player B's neck. Player A hops off Player B as Player B falls forward.
 * Player A, holding their position to the right side of Player B, tackles Player B and crawls on top of them with knife in right hand while grabbing Player B's helmet/head gear. Player A raises their knife and stabs it through the eye of Player B (visor if Player B wears Ranger armor). Player A gets up, ripping the knife from Player B's face.
 * Player A Takes out his/her knife and uses it to sweep Player B's right knee to the right. The stunned Player B turns to face Player A as they get Player A's knife jabbed in their jaw (visor if Player B wears Ranger armor). Player A slams Player B's head backward to the ground with their knife still in Player B's jaw, breakin Player B's back. When Player B hits the ground, Player A pulls the knife from Player B's face.
 * Player A forces Player B to their knees, and Player A somewhat climbs atop Player B, stabbing their knife into the top of the head of Player B, piercing its brain. With the knife, Player A pulls Player B's head back and releases their knife. Player B falls backward to the right, dead.
 * As Player B is in the air, Player A flies up behind with knife in hand. Player 1 takes their knife and stabs Player B between the head and shoulder. Player B falls to the ground.

Basic Assassination 2: Assassin is airborne, but victim is not

 * Player A knees Player B's back and Player B falls to their stomach on the ground. As Player B staggers to get up, Player A jumps square on the back of Player B's head, slamming Player B's face to the ground and breaking Player B's skull. Player A squats atop Player B's head for a second, and then performs a 180 jump forward off Player B's head, facing Player B's dead body.
 * Alternatively, Player A may not perform a 180, but, instead, they may simply jump, forward, off Player B's head.

Basic Assassination 3: Both players are airborne/Victim is airborne, but assassin is not

 * While mid-air, Player B gets Player A's knife stabbed through the back of their neck while Player A holds onto Player B. Player B falls forward, dead, and Player A almost stops mid-air and lands straight down to the ground.

Unique Assassination 1: Both players are on the ground

 * Player A, Energy Sword in right hand, jumps on top of Player B's hunchback and stabs their sword to and through the back of Player B. While Player B falls, Player A hops off of Player B's back and lands on the ground.

Unique Assassination 2: Both players are airborne/Victim is airborne, but assassin is not, Player A wields an Energy Sword

 * Player A's left hand grabs hold of Player B's left shoulder and swiftly stabs an Energy Sword to and through the back of Player B. Player B falls forward, dead, and Player A almost stops mid-air and lands straight down to the ground.

Elite against Elite
While playing as an Elite, players, instead of using a Combat Knife, like a Spartan, use an Energy Dagger attached to the wrists of the Elite.

Basic Assassination 1: Both players are on the ground
This assassination involves Player A standing on the same surface as Player B. The specific animation that is used varies depending on which part of the back is meleed.
 * Player A activates his energy gauntlet and stabs the back of Player B's head, then thrashes him around before throwing him on the ground.
 * Player A quickly swings his arm over Player B's body, bending the other backwards, then stabs B in the chest. Player A then throws Player B to the ground
 * Player A pushes Player B and quickly stabs B in the back, then pulls out the blade and throws the body to the side. Reach 12010130 Medium.jpg
 * Player A pushes Player B to his knees. When Player B tries to look behind him/her, Player A grabs the side of Player B's helmet and pulls his/her head back, exposing Player B's unarmored neck. Player A then plunges the Energy Dagger into Player B's throat. Player A then removes the Energy Dagger and throws Player B's corpse behind him.
 * (Energy Sword) Player A twists Player B around and slashes the sword across B's body.

Basic Assassination 2: Assassin is airborne but victim is not
This assassination involves Player A jumping (or possibly falling) right behind (Close enough proximity to melee) Player B.
 * (Beta Only) Player A kicks Player B down and as he tries to get up, Player A activates his energy gauntlet and stabs B in his mouth and throws the body behind him.
 * Player A quickly stabs both blades through Player B's body and throat and throws the corpse off behind him/her.

Basic Assassination 3: Both players are airborne
This assassination involves Player A and B to be airborne with Player A right behind Player B.
 * Player A quickly stabs his energy gauntlet into Player B's spine, killing him.
 * (Energy Sword) Player A quickly stabs his sword into Player B's spine, killing him.

Basic Assassination 1: Both players are on the ground

 * The Elite knocks the Spartan to the ground, stabs him/her in the back, and then pushes the Spartan off its blade with its foot
 * The Elite pushes the Spartan and stabs the Spartan in the back and follows up with another stab, and to finish the Spartan off, the Elite slashes its blade through the Spartan's neck.
 * The Elite slashes the Spartan with one Energy Dagger and spins to kick the Spartan back. This is occasionally called the '300 Assassination' or 'Sparta Kick,' after the scene from the movie 300 in which Leonidas kicks a Persian messenger into a pit while saying "This is Sparta!"
 * The Elite pushes the Spartan to his/her knees, then activates its gauntlet and stabs it into the Spartan's head and pulls the blade out.
 * The Elite pushes the Spartan to its knees, then activates both of its blades, then stabs both into the Spartan's neck one after the other before pulling them both out.
 * (Energy Sword) The Elite grabs ahold of the Spartan's arm and then stabs him with the sword, bringing him up over his head and then slamming the Spartan into the ground,

Basic Assassination 2: Assassin is airborne but victim is not

 * The Elite knocks the Spartan to the ground, steps on his/her back, and stabs him/her through the head with its Energy Dagger

Basic Assassination 3: Both players are airborne

 * The Elite knees the Spartan and then stabs him with the Energy Dagger, then throws the Spartan over his head.
 * (Energy Sword) The Elite knees the Spartan and then stabs him with the Energy Sword, then throws the Spartan over his head.

Assassinations in Campaign/Firefight
There are a few assassinations you can perform on Covenant troops in the Campaign and/or Firefight:

Unggoy

 * The player grabs the Grunt and breaks its neck.
 * The player grabs the Grunt and stabs its head, piercing its brain.

Jiralhanae

 * The player pushes the Brute down, and then stabs it in the back.
 * The player stabs the Brute between its shoulder blades and throws it to the side in a quick motion.
 * Note that all Brute assassinations are only possible if the Brute is unaware that the player is behind him.

Kig-Yar/Skirmisher

 * The player drags the Jackal/Skirmisher by its feathers to the ground, and while the Jackal/Skirmisher is helpless, the player stabs it in the throat.
 * The player pulls the Jackal's/Skirmisher's head back, stabs it in the chest, and slams it down on the ground.

Halo 4 Assassinations
Many assassinations are changed to be more "breathtaking" and vivid. Now there are assassination animations using the oddball and the flag.

Basic Assassination 1: Both players are on the ground

 * Player A pushes Player B to the ground and stabs the knife into the face and takes the knife out.
 * Player A grabs Player B's neck and makes Player B's body lean to the left side. Player A then twists the neck.

Basic Assassination 2: Both players are airborne

 * Player A, airborne, slams their fists down on Player B's head, causing Player B's back to break, and falls to the ground.

Basic Assassination 3: Both players are on the ground, Player A has an energy sword

 * Player A stabs the sword through Player B. Player A lifts Player B into the air and takes a step using the left foot. Player A then quickly pulls the sword out of Player B's body.

Basic Assassination 4: Both players are on the ground, Player A has the flag

 * Player A swings the pole part of the flag to knock Player B to the ground on the right side facing Player A. Player A then takes two steps forward and brings the flag down on Player B's face which vaporizes Player B.

Basic Assassination 5: Both players are on the ground, Player A has the oddball

 * Player A makes Player B turn around and uses the oddball and makes an uppercut, vaporizing Player B in midair.

Spartan against Promethean Knight
The Spartan is represented as Player A and Player B is the Promethean Knight
 * Player A makes Player B turn around. Player A stabs the knife in Player B's left part of the neck and makes Player B scream. Player B's body falls to the ground dead face first and vaporizes.
 * Player A turns Player B around and rips the blade off of Player B and stabs him with it, vaporizing Player B.

Spartan against Jackal
The Spartan is represented as Player A and Player B is the Jackal
 * Player A grabs Player B and kicks him. Player B is later stabbed in the neck.

Beat Downs vs. Assassinations
With normal beat downs, one will quickly melee the opponent's back, resulting in an instant kill, but will stay in first person view. This earns them a medal but no credit or commendation increase. With an assassination, the player goes into third person view and performs a special finishing move. During an assassination, the player runs a risk of getting their kill stolen by a teammate, which results in the teammate getting a Yoink medal. The player is also able to be damaged and even killed during the animation, which will cause the victim to be saved and the would-be assassin's killer to get the Showstopper medal. This makes assassinations relatively unpopular for fast paced gametypes such as Oddball or Team SWAT. Also, performing assassinations will negate fall damage, unlike beat downs. This allows players to survive fatal falls if an enemy happens to be directly below. This is featured in the achievement, If They Came to Hear Me Beg.

Tactics

 * In the campaign, there are a few times that are given to you for assassinations including the first Elite and (if you are quick enough) the Grunts and Jackal in Nightfall, or the Elite Rangers operating the consoles in the communications room of the Ardent Prayer.
 * You should probably try not to attempt an assassination if you are in the middle of heavy combat as you are left vulnerable for a short time.
 * One easy way to make an assassination on Elites is to first lower their shields with a melee. Because the Elites in Halo: Reach will often raise their arms and roar in anger if you lower their shields this gives you a few precious seconds to run behind the Elite and assassinate it.
 * The "Bum Bait" tactic, which involves one player standing still near a corner while another waits with an instant kill weapon (shotgun, energy sword, etc.) behind aforementioned corner and kills the first person to attempt an assassination on the presumably AFK player. The shooter will always get a Showstopper medal.
 * It is worth noting that players can be assassinated from their right shoulder but not their left.

Trivia

 * Occasionally, Elites will laugh at you after certain types of assassinations.
 * The Grunt assassination animations are most likely an homage to Cal-141 as she kills two Grunts in the same way in The Babysitter.
 * In order to initiate different assassinations while both players are on the ground, melee from the right, left or directly behind the victim.
 * One of the Elite assassinations is a reference to how the Prophet of Truth was killed.
 * Assassinations reappear in the Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary multiplayer.
 * When you perform an assassination that involves drawing your knife, if you examine your knife sheath, you will find the knife is still there and that you drew a knife out of thin air (better obeserved during theatre mode). This is possibly a glitch Bungie overlooked.
 * There are glitches where the player's knife is replaced by their current weapon prior to the assassination (see below).
 * If you perform an assassination on a moving surface, the animation will be cut short.