When the player runs through the house in which the radar dot appears and if one quickly looks up when exiting the building, it can swiftly be seen jumping out of sight. Later on a couple can be seen accompanied by a couple of Grunts. Skirmishers are the second (first being a cloaked Spec Ops Sangheili) Covenant species encountered in Halo: Reach, but only as a red dot on your radar.They are the second Skirmisher rank to wear arm shields. They appear to be the leading rank of Skirmishers, being neither infantry or specialists. Members of this rank have gold armor and helmets. The Champion is the highest rank of the Skirmishers a specialized group of shock troops comprising of more heavily-built skirmishers, deployed on the ground for their viciousness and fierce tactics. Members of this rank have bright green armor and a helmet, and will occassionally use holograms to deceive the enemy. Members of this rank have bright orange armor, a helmet, and arm shields. Members of this rank have red feathers and red-gray armor. The lowest rank of a Skirmisher members of this rank have black feathers and gray armor. A Skirmisher is also no match for a Spartan's strength in hand-to-hand combat, and in game they have no melee ability, making them just as vulnerable to being beaten down as their lesser Jackal cousins. They can only rely on their agility to avoid being splattered. They are not issued with grenades and cannot board, making them relatively helpless against vehicles. The Champion and Murmillo ranks of Skirmishers use elbow-mounted Defense Gauntlets for additional protection, and the Commando will use hologram equipment to misdirect their foes. Their armor is surprisingly resiliant and can withstand some small-arms fire as well as splash damage from explosives, making head shots the most effective means of killing them. They can leap up into buildings to escape enemy fire or to assault their occupants, and rush to capture strategic locations on the battlefield. They also make great use of their jumping abilities, which are comparable to those of the Flood. Their most distinguishing feature is their speed they can outrun any other Covenant species, and even Spartans. Like their Jackal cousins, they tend to be very accurate shots. Skirmishers are dangerous both in long range and short range combat. The main distinction is that they most often play a harassing role in combat, supporting heavier units with fast attacks in multiple directions. Skirmishers play an intermediate role between the cannon fodder Grunts and the powerful Elites and Brutes, equivalent to Jackals. It is also known that Skirmishers have reached speeds of up to 150 miles per hour when running. They saw extensive action during the Fall of Reach, and as a result of the catastrophically high casualties, the Skirmisher ranks were utterly exhausted and the Skirmishers themselves were nearly wiped out. They also seem to have a hybrid mouth that seems to be like a beak at the end. Their eyes are also yellow with slitted pupils, as opposed to bulbous and pale. They also run much faster than Jackals and can jump incredible heights.
HALO 1 JACKALS SKIN
Their head shape appears to be more avian than their cousins their skin tone is noticeably darker and not yellowish. High-ranking Skirmishers do wear point defense gauntlets or wrist shields, medium sized ovular shields strapped on to their wrists, to help them deflect bullet and light plasma fire. Physically, they seem to be similar to regular Jackals, though in combat they do not wield large rounded energy shields like the Jackals. The Covenant uses Skirmishers as close-range combatants, attacking in packs and using flanking tactics (as opposed to Jackals, who are often used asÄefensive and long range combatants and assassins). In engagements prior to 2530, mixed units were more common however, this changed toward the end of the Human-Covenant war. Skirmishers serve as Covenant shock troops, while the more lightly built Jackals see deployment as dedicated ranger or sniper units. A Skirmisher's voice is more raspy and guttural - this is because they have an expanding voice chamber on their throat. In addition they sport manes of feathers rather than quills. Skirmishers are of the same species as the more common, lightly built Jackals, but they are much faster, stronger and more agile than ordinary Kig-Yar.