Armor Lock Guide

Yo. I see a lot of people failing to properly utilize armor lock in their games of Halo Reach on MCC. This guide will ensure that you understand its proper use. Let's jump into it.

The first thing to understand is how to match your playstyle to armor lock in general. If you are the kind of player that likes to lock down high traffic areas of the map and box the enemies out of map control, then this is the perfect armor ability for you. Rather than being flushed out by grenades or a coordinated push, you can lock up, reject, stall, rinse and repeat.

Instead use sprint if you like horizontal play, jet pack if you like vertical play, active camo if you like mind games, and hologram if you like...trolling.

Now then, let's dive into the specifics.

Grenade rejections: This is the primary selling point for armor lock. If played correctly, you are almost immune to being naded. Whenever you hear the distinct "CLINK" noise of a frag bouncing near you, lock up immediately and reject it. Important to note, take 1 second to look around and ensure there isn't a second grenade ready to blow before unlocking; even with the TU update nerf you still have the time to double check for this. Plasma grenades same thing- if you get stuck, lock up before you blow up.

Other situations this is use are against grenade launchers and rockets- if you hear the distinct "THWOMP" of a grenade launcher and have any reason to think if might be for you, lock up. if he is jumping and about to launch a rocket, lock up.

Sword defections: This is a more advanced technique as it does require nearly frame perfect input and a good prediction, but you can block a sword lunge then blow out their shields with an EMP and get the melee kill before they recover and slash again. Time your lock for the moment they initiate their lunge and unlock the moment they strike you, then melee.

Grenade use: Ensure that you are utilizing you grenades correctly and syncing them with armor lock-ups. Resist the typical urge to throw them on low probability hits and instead save them for when you are locking up. Here's what typically happens; the enemy sees you locked up and stops, waiting to shoot you when you unlock. This is your time to angle your camera to line up a perfect frag toss right at his feet the instant you pop out. Even better if you have plasma grenades. The idea here is you line up the stick right as you come out.

In fact, plasma grenades are your best friend. Learn where they spawn on every given map and watch the clock for every time they respawn. I promise you this will get you several extra kills every game as an armor locker. Sticking in general becomes a much more viable strategy. As soon as you throw one that connects, you can lock up and prevent the enemy from killing you before it explodes, either by denying a death hug or simply being shot thus turning a trade into a +1 kill.

Stalling: stalling for time is every time it becomes clear you are about to die. Lock up and waste as much of their time as possible. Every second that they spend staring at you and waiting for the unlock is a second they aren't working an objective, aren't pushing a power weapon, and aren't shooting at a teammate. Speaking of teammates it is perfectly conceivable that one might save you in this situation, such as sniping the guy as he is waiting. No reason not to try for it.

Pre-locking: pre-locking refers to the art of locking up just prior to an engagement, to where he rounds the corner to fight and you are already locked up. Here's the thing- you aren't actually at a disadvantage in this situation. You can line up a grenade, unlock and get to shooting and this is totally fine. What you are doing is giving him a chance to make a mistake. If he gets within melee range this is a mistake because you can unlock and blast the EMP then melee for the kill, if he throws a bad grenade you can unlock and get the jump while he is still in that animation, even if he throws a good grenade you can just stay locked and reject it. As we talked about he might get shot by a teammate during this time as well, giving you a clear advantage.

So what does all of this mean? Well it means as an armor locker you can mold a playstyle around all of this. You can take certain risks you normally might not, such as chasing. If you chase the normal risk is you get nade shotted right as you push into the choke. This isn't a problem with armor lock. You simply lock up, unlock, and mop up the kill. It makes for a good "immovable object/map control bully" style of play.

One final thing I would recommend is to place an aim-marker physically on your screen in the center position. Normally you don't need to do this with Halo as it has your reticule built in, but for armor lock specifically it allows you to line up shots or grenades perfectly for the split second you unlock.

Anyways thanks for reading. Give it a try in your MCC Reach games.