Type-25 Directed Energy Rifle/Jiralhanae variant

The Brute Plasma Rifle is a Covenant weapon that is used almost exclusively by Brutes (Jiralhanae) and occasionally Elites and Marines. It is a weapon featured only in Halo 2 and it is the counter part of the normal Plasma that is mostly used by Elites and occasional Grunts.

Background
Due to it's faster rate of fire, the Brute Plasma Rifle overheats faster than original Plasma Rifle. It is also a slightly more powerful than it's relative. The Brute Plasma Rifle makes its only appearance in Halo 2. It uses the same plasma technology found in most Covenant devices. This means that the weapon draws energy from a power source to generate its projectiles rather than firing individual rounds like human weapons or the Covenant Carbine. As its name suggests, it is a modified version of the usual Plasma Rifle, firing red bolts instead of the standard blue bolts.

Functionally, it is very similar to the normal Plasma Rifle. It has the same approximate battery capacity, yet does slightly more damage per bolt. The primary difference is that the Brute version fires much faster, and as a result, it overheats faster than it's more sustained Elite counterpart.

The only visual differences between the two is that the Brute Plasma Rifle is red and fires red plasma bolts and its back part is more silver, as opposed to the Elite Plasma Rifle, which is blue and fires blue plasma bolts and its back part looks more of a darker grey. The top half of the Brute Plasma Rifle is also longer than its Elite counterpart.

Tactics
An effective tactic in Halo 2 is to dual-wield a pair of Brute Plasma Rifles when faced with multiple foes. Pull one trigger before the other, then pull the second trigger a split second after the first one. This will prompt both rifles to create a storm of plasma bolts that can cut through enemy formations quickly. Another way is to shoot one until it overheats, and then the other, this is useful when you want to kill Covenant survivors or want to maintain continuous fire on an enemy, this way it combats the Brute Plasma Rifle's fast overheating issue.

A good tactic is to use an Elite Plasma Rifle and a Brute Plasma Rifle together. Fire them at the same time, at a group of enemies. The Brute Plasma Rifles will overheat first but the Elite one will continue to fire. By the time the Elite Plasma Rifle has overheated, the Brute Plasma Rifle will be ready to fire again. Be warned this combo take up a lot of power but is good against lots of Flood.

Strangely (due to the controversy about the Brutes in Campaign mode) in Halo 2, the Brute Plasma Rifle only appears in two multiplayer Maps, Turf, with default weapons settings and Headlong with default settings.

Another good tactic is the noob combo. Instead of using the Plasma Pistol and a human weapon, dual wield a Brute Plasma Rifle and a human SMG. However, since in the campaign levels where it is found with the SMG is rare, the standard Plasma Rifle will work well too. This is one of the most powerful combos and can defeat even an Energy Sword wielder. The only disadvantage is that only works at mid-range, and you need some very good aim because if you fail you will be left with an overheated Plasma Rifle and an empty SMG. In order to combat the lack of SMG's in levels with the Brute Plasma Rifle try dual wielding a Needler with it as well as these weapons are normally in huge supply on such levels also with this way a good aim isn't a necessity as the needles home in on enemies and damage them this means it is more useful for those that can't aim as well so they can remove enemies shields then kill them with the least amount of ammo needed.

Trivia

 * This weapon is not seen in Halo 3. Brutes will now mainly utilize and use Spikers, Brute Shots, Maulers, Covenant Carbines, and Fuel Rod Cannons in the field of fire. They may occasionally use standardized Elite-oriented Plasma Rifles, (on the Tsavo Highway level they use Beam Rifles) though rarely.
 * It is the only weapon not shown on the Halo 2 guide booklet along with the Sentinel Beam since both weapons appear so scarcely, or until the later missions.
 * Bungie may have inserted the Brute Plasma Rifle into the game due to lack of time to create a new Brute weapon. It could be argued that the Brute Plasma Rifle is the predecessor to the Spiker of Halo 3, as both are similar in function and speed.
 * The Plasma Rifle and Needler in Halo 3 has the exact same rate of fire as the Brute Plasma Rifle. They all start off a little slow, then rapidly gain speed over time until either overheats or when the ammo runs out.
 * They are most effective against Brutes if Dual-wielded.
 * It has been speculated that the Brute Plasma Rifle was removed in Halo 3 because it was too similar to the Plasma Rifle used by the Elites.
 * Dual-wielding with an SMG can be extremely effective.
 * If you listen closely, the Brute Plasma Rifle has a slightly higher tone than the regular Plasma Rifle, this is probably due to the higher rate of fire.
 * Its battery will run down quicker than a regular Plasma Rifle due to the higher rate of fire.
 * The Brute Plasma Rifle only appears in Halo 2 and Halo 2 only. It does not appear in any of the Halo books.

Character Compatibility

 * Elites
 * Spartans
 * Marines
 * Cortana (has animation but is not used)
 * Brutes
 * Grunts
 * Flood Combat Form

Equivalents

 * Plasma Rifle
 * Type-25 Carbine
 * M7/Caseless Sub Machine Gun