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The act of "ceasing fire", "standing down", or "gun down" was introduced in Halo: Combat Evolved, and has since appeared in Halo 2 and Halo 3. The feature allows gamers to holster or lower their in-game weapons; it is commonly used when making machinima.

Halo: Combat Evolved
The cease-fire move can be performed in Halo: Combat Evolved by simply looking down. Although the player is looking at the ground, others will see them as looking forward. Generally, using an M6D Pistol or a Plasma Pistol resulted in a nicer effect; using a Needler or an Assault Rifle tended to bend the left arm inwards.

Halo 2
Noticing that Red vs Blue, which frequently used the cease-fire effect, helped the Halo franchise, Bungie made it easier to perform the technique in Halo 2 by assigning it its own button -- down on the D-Pad.

The cease-fire effect is shown by looking down at the player's legs, they will not be as bent as normal. Other players will see it as your weapon being lowered. Shooting, throwing grenades, meleeing, reloading, entering vehicles, dying, or pressing the D-Pad again will end the effect. On Xbox Live, the trick can also be performed by exhausting all grenades and holding L (Left Trigger).

In Halo 2, not all weapons can be put into ready position, such as dual-wield weapons, rockets, and Energy Swords. The trick seems to work on two-handed rifle type weapons, as when the Brute Shot is lowered, but on closer inspection, the player's arm is bent slightly and the Brute Shot itself is slightly tilted.

Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST

 * Note: This does not work on Xbox Live due to the possibility of exploits, according to Bungie.

The Halo 3 cease-fire was first performed in public by Red vs Blue cast members. In Halo 3, the feature is activated with a button combination. The player can cease fire by pressing and holding the following in any order:


 * LB
 * RB
 * A
 * 1) Left Thumbstick (Crouch)
 * 2) D-pad "down"

After holding the combination together for three seconds, a player will find that their weapon has disappeared off of their screen; the weapon is lowered and visible to other players. Some weapons, however, are barely or not at all affected by this trick; such weapons include the Energy Sword, Gravity Hammer, Brute Shot, Sentinel Beam, Plasma Cannon, Machine Gun Turret, and Flamethrower. The trick looks odd when performed with the Rocket Launcher, Fuel Rod Gun, Spartan Laser, and dual-wielded weapons.

The animation of the Rocket Launcher, Fuel Rod Gun, and the Spartan Laser will look similar to that of the pistol in Halo: Combat Evolved (unless you are an elite, then there's no change). If a player is dual-wielding, looking around will desynchronize their hands.

Shooting, throwing grenades, meleeing, reloading, picking up support weapons, going into Edit Mode on Forge, entering vehicles, or dying will end the effect.

Trivia

 * When it was first introduced, the concept of ceasing fire was generally unused. When Red vs Blue was created, the technique was widely accepted for gamers who started making machinima.


 * In Halo 3, by executing this trick in Forge while Edit Mode, you can create a permanent, lasting effect. This way, the effect will last until you die. Also, if you man a turret or enter a vehicle and then get out, your weapon will appear, but it will be misplaced (this effect is most notable with the Brute Shot).


 * Execute this trick in conjunction with an Energy Sword for a fun effect. See Silhouette Sword.


 * In Halo 3 local Split-Screen, this trick may be a possible method to combat screenwatching.


 * A tip to Halo 3 machinima makers: When you want to view someone lowering their weapon, the most commonly known, and probably the easiest way to do this, is to simply reverse the footage of them raising it. However, the button combination can be performed in any order. If you're talented enough, you can "crouch" while running, which negates its effect, and hold down (A) after you have jumped. If you hold these down while puppeteering your character, and complete the combo, your character will lower his/her weapon while neither crouching nor jumping, giving it a smoother look. It is tricky to master though, and some find the reverse-footage method more convenient. This trick is not very effective for Elites in general, and is only really visible when the player does not move. Running will cause the weapon to appear (to other players) to lift back up again, although to the player it will appear as if the weapon is still lowered.


 * During a cease fire, when a player enters a vehicle and exits, the player will see in his HUD that the weapon is frozen at the highest point of being drawn and the player does not appear to breathe as during holding a weapon off of cease fire. However, it will disappear if the player swaps or switches weapons, fires his weapon, or throws a grenade.