MA5B Individual Combat Weapon System

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“Hey, soldier, is that an assault rifle in your hands or are you just happy to see me?”

The MA5B Individual Combat Weapon System (MA5B ICWS or MA5B Assault Rifle) is a standard-issue service rifle of the UNSC Marines.

Design details

MA5B schematic

The MA5B Assault Rifle is an air-cooled, gas-operated, magazine-fed weapon designed for automatic fire. The MA5 series rifle is the workhorse of the UNSC Marine Corps and has been in service for more than fifty years. The MA5B has an attached electronics suite that provides information on rounds remaining in magazine, compass heading, as well as several other "housekeeping" functions. The rifle performs well in a variety of environments especially given the perceived delicacy of the attached electronics suite. The MA5 rifle can be outfitted with a number of modifications including sound suppressors, a grenade launcher or a standard issue flashlight and more “exotic” ammunition types like shredder rounds; however, these modifications are only available by Mission Conditional Requisition (MCR). The MA5B is easily one of the most versatile weapons in the UNSC’s arsenal. Due to this versatility, the MA5B is complimented by many of the UNSC's other weapons as either the primary means to a kill or in a secondary role as the fallback weapon.

The MA5B rifle is a bullpup design and made of titanium alloy and polymer - the rifle is a gas-operated weapon with a rotating-bolt and therefore must be cocked before the first shot can be fired. The charging handle used to chamber the round is situated on the left side of the rifle and moves during operation. Once the first round is fired, the gases from that round and those to follow impinge upon a gas piston, which pushes back the bolt carrier, rotating the bolt inside and continuing to chamber rounds until the magazine is empty. Once the magazine is empty, the charging handle must both be pulled back and locked or, must be fully cycled after a fresh magazine is inserted to load the next round. The magazine itself is located at the butt of the rifle and the release button is located above the housing with an arrow pointing down toward the housing. The electronics suite is integrated along the top rail guard of the weapon. The MA5B is designed for the toughest of situations, able to be subjected to elements that would otherwise jam and render a weapon inoperable. It has concealed iron sights, although not seen in gameplay and is used by Marines and other personnel with improper equipment to uploading a targeting reticule to the user's HUD or Neural Interface.^[2]

Ammunition

The MA5B Assault Rifle uses M118 7.62x51mm Armor Piercing, Full Metal Jacket rounds. These rounds are designed to pierce body armor, so the rounds are reasonably large, and are surrounded by a molded jacket of either steel or titanium, which enhances its armor-piercing capabilities. The round might also have a carbide or similar hardened tip, and might also be coated in copper or another metal over the steel, titanium, etc. shell.

However, despite these advanced rounds, the damage done by a single round is very limited, made even worse by the rifle's low accuracy at long ranges. Although performing poorly against Covenant shields, the AP-FMJ round can easily penetrate lightly armored Unggoy and Jackals and kill unshielded Sangheili very quickly. The AP-FMJ round is especially effective against all manners of Flood as they are not well armored. This is somewhat strange, since the AP-FMJ round is traditionally less effective against flesh and unarmored targets due to its tendency to overpenetrate tissue.

Accuracy

The most pressing negative aspect of the MA5B is its inconsistent accuracy. Firing the weapon in short bursts will allow much higher accuracy, as opposed to holding down the trigger. Most of the bullets will stay within the reticule. One round fired may produce a perfect bull's-eye, but the next may fly out of the targeting reticule and slam into the dirt a dozen meters from the same target. This has lead to the belief that the rifle is very incapable of hitting targets greater than close-range; this is untrue. If attacking targets at surprisingly long-ranges, one can effectively wound or kill that target by firing in single shots or bursts. Unfortunately, this lack of consistent accuracy has tarnished the image of the rifle, and the problem has kept the MA5B out of the hands of those who prefer less spontaneous weapons.

Advantages

The MA5B in both offensive and suppressive situations remains the Marine Corps most reliable weapon. When fired in short bursts, or even single shots, there is a significant increase in accuracy, and the rifle's armor penetrating ability makes it key for handling even the toughest of infantry, having the ability to kill a Sangheili in approximately 45 rounds in close quarters. The rifle is effective at killing light armored infantry at close-to-medium range, and the high rate of fire combined with the high ammunition capacity allows its user to spray the whole area with suppressing fire. The MA5B also gives the user an ammo count on its digital readout, as well a compass pointing toward the arbitrary magnetic "north" position. In the hands of someone who can control their trigger finger, the MA5B becomes a deadly weapon in CQB situations.

Disadvantages

The MA5B is not without disadvantages, the main problem being its horrible accuracy when fired at a range of more than forty meters. At that range, enemy infantry may be hit by a few bullets, or not be hit by any bullets at all. The MA5B Assault Rifle performs poorly against energy shields unless firing on full automatic at close range without giving a shielded infantry time to recover. It also suffers from issues with jamming, due in part to its large magazine size. In comparison to modern Assault Rifles it can be more related to an oversized sub-machine gun, as it is underpowered and lacks the ability to select a fire mode.

Tactics

The MA5B Assault Rifle is one of the weapons which players will love and loathe in equal measures. The rifle's rate of fire makes it a devastatingly powerful weapon in close range combats, and its melee attack usually ensures victory over close quarter battles. The only disadvantage is it's reloading time, which takes about 1.5 seconds, allowing your opponent enough time to put you down with a hail of plasma bolts. In a skilled player's hand, however, the Assault Rifle can easily put down 2-4 opponents per magazine.

Campaign

An efficient strategy is to approach while firing in short, controlled bursts, then when in close range, break out into full auto, followed by a melee or two. This is a tried and true tactic for taking down shielded Sangheili and reducing wasted shots.
Combined with grenades, the MA5B decimates enemy ranks. Charge forward and toss some fragmentation grenades to clear out the weaker enemies and soften up the stronger ones, then before the dust clears, hose down anything that's still moving.
If you can't find a Shotgun on a Flood-infested level, don't panic. Use the MA5B as a primary weapon while backing it with a Plasma Pistol as secondary. When the Flood get too close, just hold down the trigger and watch them wilt under the large volume of bullets. However, do not just stand there shooting, back-pedal into a previously secured area as the Flood can be overwhelming in waves, or get your back up against a wall so they can only approach you from the front.
Use melee on Flood Infection Forms to conserve ammo - though if your shields are full, don't even worry about them. Unless there is an entire swarm of them, they will simply burst on your shields, doing no substantial damage.
On Normal, less experienced players find that a good tactic is to use a Plasma Rifle to deplete an Sangheili's shielding, and then switch to the Assault Rifle to finish them off. The player can do the same thing with an Assault Rifle, followed up by a headshot from the M6D, if the player chooses not to carry two full auto weapons at once. This is handy as even on Heroic, the Assault Rifle can drop a Sangheili at close range by emptying a magazine followed by a melee attack to drop the shields and stun the Sangheili, leaving him open for an easy headshot.
When you fight a large number of Unggoy of any kind, hold down the firing trigger to send a full-auto landslide of bullets, and if the group consists of more than half a dozen, side-to-side sweeping motions will result in every target receiving fire. Since they are unshielded and will flinch when hit by anything, the bullets will kill them quickly. This is one of the most convenient ways to kill a medium-sized group of Unggoy.
Do not underestimate the Assault Rifle's strength against Zealots. It can be useful against them if you dodge their swipes at the right time. It's best to empty out the entire magazine at a Zealot before he charges at you. Try to dodge his attacks while you're reloading, then put a couple of rounds into him and he will be down in no time.

Multiplayer

The MA5B's accuracy degrades after exactly 1.5 seconds of sustained fire. In order to use this weapon to its fullest, you must learn the most efficient bursts to use at different ranges.
When used effectively with grenades, the AR can hold its own. Backpedal and use any grenade you have handy, and let the weapon take care of your enemy after his shields are down. This should work unless the enemy has a more powerful weapon.
If your enemy is using a Banshee in Halo PC multiplayer, this weapon is a good choice. Just point it in the direction of the Banshee and fire full auto at close range with controlled shots at mid-range.
It is quite effective against Warthogs. Move in perpendicular path to the Hog and fire full automatic to quickly bring the driver down, coupling this with a correctly timed grenade or two.
In Halo: Combat Evolved, pick up a Plasma Rifle or Plasma Pistol to deplete the shields of an enemy and then use the MA5B to shred their health in seconds. This strategy is known as the Noob Combo.
It's effective at disrupting your enemy's vision since the sustained fire will cause many flashes on an enemy's screen enabling for a more effective retreat. This helps when facing vehicles since it can give the driver a hard time keeping control.

Trivia

The MA5B was heavily inspired by the MA-75B Assault Rifle from the Marathon series.
Robert McLees at Bungie has gone on record comparing the basic design of the MA5B to that of the Fabrique-Nationale, FN F2000. According to The Art of Halo, McLees didn't know of the F2000 until after the game was even finished; "I don't know when the images of the FN F2000 appeared, but I didn't see them until three or four months after the game shipped, and I thought 'Oh great. Now everyone's going to think I swiped the design from Fabrique National.' It was surreal to see how close the Halo assault rifle was to its real-life counterpart... and it was all totally by accident."
There is a second melee animation for the Assault Rifle, in which the user holds the weapon vertically and clubs anyone in front of them with the back end of the weapon. This animation is used in a few Halo Custom Edition maps, but was taken out of the official game.
In Halo: Combat Evolved, the compass on the MA5B points "north" to Threshold, seen in the sky. Since compasses operate on a magnetic principle, it is likely because Threshold provides the greatest nearby magnetic signal, and is arbitrarily designated 'north'. In Halo: The Flood, it seems that Ensign Lovell designated west randomly, at least prior to landing on Halo.
In the Halo Graphic Novel, many Special Operations Unggoy and Sangheili are seen wielding Assault Rifles, although the Covenant generally abhor the use of human weapons. The only other known instance of Covenant troops using human weapons was during the Battle of Installation 05, when several Jiralhanae were seen using Shotguns, although a Sangheili is known to have used an M6D pistol to execute the bridge crew of the UNSC Pillar of Autumn, albeit with much distaste.
The Assault Rifle is capable of killing up to 4 other players in multiplayer if every shot hit its mark. However, this is almost impossible to accomplish due to the weapon's inaccuracy.
A comment made by Black Box in Halo: Glasslands seems to indicate that the MA5B is not as high-quality as the MA5C. It should be noted that the MA5B was replaced due a faulty spring and inaccuracy.
In Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, the MA5B resembles the MA5C from Halo 3.