Halo 2 Campaign Weapon Tier List
This page contains my weapon tier list for the Halo 2 Campaign. I've built this list around the Campaign in Halo 2 but the information on this page is still useful for Multiplayer as well. The information in this guide is useful for the Halo 2 remastered PvP Multiplayer too which is part of the MCC.
I put this list together to help new players determine which guns are the best to use in any given situation and explain why they're the best. To see the lists I have made for the other Halo games check out my Halo: The Master Chief Collection Weapon Tier Lists for more information. Alternatively, follow any of the links below too.
Halo MCC Weapon Tier Lists
- Halo CE Tier List
- Halo 2 Tier List
- Halo 3 Tier List
- Halo 3 ODST Campaign Tier List
- Halo 3 ODST Firefight Tier List
- Halo 4 Tier List
- Halo Reach Campaign Tier List
- Halo Reach Firefight Tier List
God Tier
Battle Rifle: The reason I decided that the Battle Rifle is the only God Tier weapon in Halo 2 is because this is the only weapon that comes with various button combos that you can use. All of these button combos were removed in later Halo games but they remain in Halo 2 to this day. For more information about this check out this Button Glitch Tutorial on Youtube for Halo 2. It explains in detail each of the glitches and how you can do them yourself. The Battle Rifle is already an amazing weapon in this game but with these button combos it's even more insane.
S Tier
Covenant Carbine: Covenant Carbine is a long range single shot weapon which can take out an enemy in a single shot if they don't have a shield and it's a head shot. I would describe this weapon as the Covenant version of a DMR rifle from Halo Reach, that's the best way to describe how powerful this weapon is.
Beam Rifle: Beam Rifles are the Covenant version of a sniper rifle and they are just as powerful as the UNSC sniper. The only downside this weapon has is if you fire too many shots in a row it'll end up overheating. A good solution to this is wait .5 - 1 sec between each shot and only do 3 shots at most in a cluster. Once you get the hang of how this works it'll be easy to use the Beam Rifle.
Energy Sword: The Energy Sword is a staple Halo weapon and the reason it's pretty much always God Tier is because it one shots 99% of targets. You'll get to play around with this weapon a lot on the levels where you control The Arbiter. Unless the target has Invincibility active or is using an Overshield - an Energy Sword will kill it in one attack. I recommend this weapon against the Flood too as it'll one shot every single Flood and destroy their bodies so they can't get back up.
UNSC Shotgun: Finally, a Halo game that this gun doesn't completely suck in. In Halo 2 the Shotgun is one of the most effective weapons to use against the Flood. This weapon has a large magazine and one shots pretty much all Flood if you're close enough to them which is the best use for this gun. Bait Flood in so they get close them shoot them with this and it'll one shot mostly all of them. Enjoy it while it lasts because this gun gets worse and worse in the future Halos.
UNSC Sniper Rifle: As always the Sniper Rifle makes the God Tier list due to how powerful it is and how frequently available ammo is for it. When you are playing through Campaign you'll be given this weapon at certain times typically with full ammo or with ammo readily available nearby. A headshot even against a shielded target will be a one shot; the only exception to this is if the target has an Overshield. Hitting the target anywhere else on their body will take 2 hits, the first hit drops the shield and the second hit kills the target.
The Battle Rifle in Halo 2 is the undisputed best weapon.
A Tier
Plasma Pistol: Plasma Pistols are an extremely important weapon in the Halo Campaigns the higher up you go in difficulty. When playing on Legendary using a Plasma Pistol to take out an enemy's shield is the "meta" way to play. Once their shield is down all it takes is a single headshot to take them out with the right weapon. I'd argue that the lower you go in difficulty the less effective this weapon becomes. If you're playing on Normal there's no point to use this to drop their shield since it drops quick enough without it.
Brute Plasma Rifle: New in Halo 2, Brutes carry around a different type of Plasma Rifle called a Brute Plasma Rifle. This weapon is red in color and it fires significantly faster than a normal Plasma Rifle and thus can deal more damage. Due to the faster shooting speed this weapon will also overheat faster which is the only drawback to using it. Honestly though, this weapon is superior in every way to the normal Plasma Rifle.
UNSC Rocket Launcher: Rocket Launchers are very powerful in Halo and given to you at specific times through the Campaign. Normally when you're given a Rocket Launcher there will be extra ammo nearby too so keep this in mind for restocking. All in all, it's a very powerful weapon and even more powerful if you know the ammo spawns on each map.
B Tier
UNSC Assault Rifle: The UNSC Assault Rifle is the standard issue Assault Rifle that is featured in every Halo game. If you looked up the definition of spray and pray in the dictionary you'd most likely find this weapon as an example. All in all it's an ok weapon - you should use it until you find something better or if you're low on ammo with your other weapons. One of the biggest perks of using this weapon is that you can find ammo for it virtually everywhere since it's widely used by the UNSC Marines.
Needler: Needlers are actually a pretty decent weapon with readily available ammo since so many Covenant enemies carry it. This weapon has two unique features that make it impressive - the first of which is the bullets you fire with this weapon will track enemies to a slight extent. It's hard to explain but you'll see it in action with the weapon. Next up, if you hit the enemy with enough needles from this weapon they will explode. If the enemy is standing around other enemies they'll be caught in the explosion and you can score multiple kills this way.
Sentinel Beam: The Sentinel Beam is another new weapon for Halo 2 and this one is situationally great. I recommend you use the Sentinel Beam when fighting Flood or Sentinel enemies but not against Covenant targets with shields. For whatever reason this weapon deals less damage against Covenant targets.
C Tier
SMG: One of the new weapons added in Halo 2 is the SMG. Like most human weapons this gun will deal less damage against shields and normal damage against flesh. I can really only recommend this weapon if you are dual wielding it with something else, like another SMG or a Plasma Pistol.
UNSC Magnum: After how amazing the Magnum was in Halo 1 it got many heavy handed nerfs in Halo 2. This weapon can still one shot a target easily if you hit them in the head without any shields but it's a lot less effective at stripping shields now. Essentially it got changed from an always use it in every situation weapon to something that is situationally useful.
Some of the weaker weapons like SMGs are powerful when dual wielded.
Garbage Tier
Plasma Rifle: Since Halo 2 was the first game that gave us the Brute Plasma Rifle, the regular Plasma Rifle becomes pretty much worthless. The Brute one fires a lot faster and over heats faster but once you learn how to control it, you'll put out way more damage with it than a regular Plasma Rifle. I only find myself using this weapon when I want to dual wield and I am waiting to fill my other slot with something better.
Brute Shot: The Brute Shot is the Covenant version of a grenade launcher and it's meh at best. I may get some hate for putting Brute Shots in the Garbage Tier but honestly, even in the parts of the game where you get a ton of ammo for this weapon - you also get a ton of ammo for other guns too. Why would you ever use a Brute Shot over a dual wield Brute Plasma Rifle? Or any other dual wield combination? During the levels where there are lots of Brute Shots in the Covenant weapon crates there's also lots of Covenant Carbines, Plasma Rifles, Plasma Pistols and everything else you could ask for. I just find really no reason to use this weapon.