Understanding how the weapons in Halo Infinite work is a major piece of being able to compete in multiplayer.  

This guide will help you understand how each gun works and how you can make the best use of it.  Knowledge is power.  We suggestthat you test out each gun yourself in the Academy section of the main menu.   What works for one player may not fit another player's style. 

BR75

Direct from Halo 2 this marksman rifle fires 3 round bursts that are relatively accurate ad mid to long range.  It's an effective rifle in team fights if you teammates are taking down shields for you.  

Disruptor

 

The Disruptor is an electricity gun. It benefits from hitting targets that are bunched together. It's a slow firing gun, but great against groups.  It is also fully automatic.  This isn't a particularly effetive weapon.  

MA40 AR

This will be your default weapons.  It is a straight up assault wepon that works well in close and medium range encounters.  It does spray so controlled trigger bursts will keep it on target.  It is useless at long range, but great for taking down shields and cleaning up in mid to close range.   

Pulse Carbine

 

This is effective at long range.  It's shots track the target and do an exceptional job of taking down shields.   Pair this with a finishing weapon and you have a fantastic combo.  

VK78 Commando

 

The Commando is a new weapon that stands somewhere between the MA40 and the BR75. It's fully automatic, but has less ammo than the MA40.  It is a good mid-range weapon.  It's an adequate addition for team fights, but because of its low ammo it isn't very effective when you are up close and personal.   

Shock Rifle

While Halo Infinite sees a lot of Covenant it also has electricity weapons.  The Shock Rifle is one of these.  It is akin to a sniper rifle that shoots electricity.  The upside is that the electricity will chain to nearby opponents.   It also temporarily disables vehicles.  Very useful when you opponent is bearing down on you.  It does need to recharge between shots, which adds a complexity not found in most other weapons.  

MK50 Sidekick

This is your pistol.  There are many like it, but this one is yours.  The Sidekick can fire very quickly and do a fair amount of damage, and when you are close to an opponent.  It isn't effective at breaking shields though, so it's a clean up weapon at best.  It is semi-automatic. 

Mangler

The Mangler is a pistol-like shotgun, making it a good pairing with a longer-range gun in your second weapon slot. The Mangler is very effective up close, but the spread of the pellets is excessive, making even mid-range fights dicey.   Walk into a control point and let loose.  

Plasma Pistol

The Plasma Pistol is unchanged from previous expressions of the weapon.  Overall, this is a weak weapon that may have a use for taking out shield.  In a coordinated team you may be the shield remover for your cleanup teammates. 

CQS48 Bulldog

With the Bulldog, you have a traditional shotgun.   The Bulldog is powerful, but it will take two to three shots with the gun to bring down an opponent at various closer ranges. It is automatic, so getting shots off with it's large ammunition inventory is a plus. 

Heatwave

The Heatwave is a oddball shotgun. The  weapon has two firing modes: by default, it whips pellets in a straight, horizontal line, allowing you to hit multiple targets at once. Hit your aim button and you'll get a tighter, vertical spread, which does a lot more damage but requires a lot more accuracy on your part. The Heatwave's pellets also overpenetrate targets and ricochets making it useful against groups. 

Sentinel Beam

The Sentinel Beam beams out  a constant stream of superheated damage that penetrates enemies hitting those behind.  The Sentinel Beam can be very effective in taking out multiple enemies in small, enclosed areas. 

Needler

The Needler. This weapon fires needles that stick in their target for minimal damage, then explode. If you get enough needles in a target, they are dead, and the needles will track targets (so long as your targeting reticule turns red).  The Needler isn't especially great as the tracking is pretty weak, and you'll need to stick at least half the needles in a magazine to get a kill.

Stalker Rifle

The Covenant's  sniper rifle from past games is weak and an option you should avoid. You'll need three hits to drop a target and even more if you land any body shots.

S7 Sniper

Like the MA40 AR, the S7 Sniper is basically the same as in previous Halo titles. The gun has two levels of zoom and is very powerful and accurate. A single headshot will drop a Spartan, while two body shots will do the same. The magazine however, only holds four rounds. 

Skewer

The Skewer is a one shot kill weapon   As expected with great power comes the need for great accuracy.  Its projectile will also drop as it flies, so you'll want to spend some time getting a sense of how it arcs when you shoot it.

Cindershot

The Cindershot is your grenade launcher. The projectiles bounce and explode. If you switch to aiming mode, the projectiles will seek a little instead of bouncing, but they are still woefully inaccurate.  The explosion is large so use this against groups.  

Ravager

Think of the Ravager as a plasma grenade launcher.  It fires a powerful three-shot burst of plasma that arcs and falls. Charge up the Ravager and you can fire a larger blast that spreads burning Plasma on whatever it hits, including the ground. Great for control points. 

Hydra

The Hydra is a mini-rocket launcher that fires low damage projectiles.   Switching to aim mode makes the projectiles track enemies. The Hydra is great against vehicles and groups, provided you can accurately land your explosions near people. 

M41 SPNKR

Halo's two-barreled rocket launcher is simply wonderful.  The launcher is the most effective explosive launcher in the game, and a single rocket will wreck a vehicle and instantly kill anyone near the blast. The magazine however, only holds two rounds.