So, you think you’ve got what it takes to be a Spartan? After spending hundreds of hours owning newbs (or “pwning n00bs,” if you’re really hardcore) on Xbox Live, and beating all of the single player campaigns on Legendary mode with only pistols and melee attacks, you’re finally ready for a real challenge, eh? Or, maybe you’re not quite that hardcore, but you’re absorbed by the sweeping sci-fi narrative, rich backstory, and white knuckle action, and now you’re ready to step your game up to the next level.

Ever since the hugely influential Halo video game franchise hit the scene in 2001, legions of gamers and fans of the series have dreamed about how awesome it would feel to strap into the battle armor worn by the Spartan super-soldiers the story follows. Such as the Spartans’ heroic leader, Master Chief Petty Officer John-117; better known as “Master Chief” to his allies, “John” to his closest friends, and “The Demon” to his worst enemies.

It ordinarily takes years of training and a fortune’s worth of hi-tech hardware to be able to don those iconic battle suits. That’s why we here at HalloweenCostumes.com have been hard at work preparing this Halo briefing, replaying all of the games and researching backstories with great dedication, so that you can get right to the fun part! Whether you’re looking to dress up casually, or you want the full Legendary experience, we’ll give you the tactical edge you need for your own epic costumed adventure.

Master Chief is the definitive answer to the long-pondered question, “What would a tank look like if it could run and jump around, and speak in a really menacing voice?” He achieves this distinction through intense training, genetic enhancements, and his “Mjolnir” class battle armor. This hi-tech suit, which takes its name from the mythical hammer carried by Thor, the Norse god of thunder, provides extraordinary protection from weapon damage, explosions, and falls. It also augments the wearer’s already-remarkable strength, senses, and reflexes, turning the Spartan into a state of the art, one-man strike force superhero. Just how tough are the Chief and the other Spartans when they are all geared up? Tough enough that they don’t bother wearing parachutes when skydiving into a combat zone; it would just slow them down, or take up valuable space that could be use for extra guns or a jet pack.

Since Mjolnir armor suits have enough communications, surveillance, and medical equipment built into them to equip a whole squad of troops, Spartans aren’t known for carrying much that doesn’t go boom (or encourage other things go boom). It’s just another way they live up to their “spartan” namesake. Even if you don’t have a complete suit of armor, you can add Master Chief’s intimidating style and mission-critical capabilities to any outfit to help complete your objective with some accessories.

Master Chief has always been the reliable, resilient super-soldier he is in the video games. His iconic armor, though, has gone through a few overhauls during his extensive career, to help make his job a little bit easier.

Before Halo was released as a first-person shooter, the idea was being developed as a third-person combat/adventure game. While the concept model for that game’s familiar-looking Heavy Trooper character seems pretty dated when compared to modern graphics, its color scheme, angular armor panels, and the brim and gold faceplate on the helmet are all instantly recognizable as prominent features of a Spartan’s distinct battle suit.

During the Chief’s first video game mission in Halo: Combat Evolved, he wore his basic Mjolnir Mk. V suit through all of the action. While many other Spartans have later been shown to wear specialized and customized armor, the Chief tends to prefer standard issue gear. The exception to this is the experimental regenerating energy shield he carries, which was developed from captured Covenant tech, and gets him through some pretty tight jams in one piece.

When John-117 returned to Earth in Halo 2, he upgraded to new Mjolnir Mk. VI armor. In addition to giving an in-game explanation for why the suit looked so much more detailed than it did in the first game, the Mk. VI featured more of a form-fitting, interlocking armor plate style, and appeared less bulky while still looking just as formidable as before. Master Chief quickly demonstrated the impressive protection the armor provided by jumping out of an airlock during a space battle to plant a giant bomb on a Covenant warship. His friend Sgt. Avery Johnson even noted that he flew pretty good, “for a brick.”

Halo 2 also marked the first time the character had a fully rendered body during regular gameplay. This meant the player saw “their” legs when they looked down in first-person segments, instead of just being a floating head and set of gun-toting forearms. This feature has been carried on into subsequent installments, and continues to occasionally surprise players when they look down to this day.

It’s not clear how long Master Chief had been continuously wearing his Mk. VI armor when the events of Halo 3 began, but he had obviously gotten it through the break-in period, and was now taking full advantage of the suit’s potential. The Chief’s appearance also became even more detailed, thanks to the graphics capabilities of the new Xbox 360 system. The game concluded with our hero “finishing the fight” and then going to sleep in a cryogenic stasis chamber, ending the first Halo trilogy the way he began it.

Halo 4 picks up right where 3 left off, except four years later, with John-117 waking up and immediately stumbling onto trouble. A lot changed during his frosty slumber, including the Halo game series being taken over by a new developer. The new designers wanted to give the player a sense of the character’s imposing size, while still being fast and agile, like a fighter jet, leading to the armor once again being tweaked and streamlined. How Chief’s armor got upgraded in the game while he was frozen, though, is up for debate.

John’s appearance remains mostly unchanged in the most recent game in the series, Halo 5: Guardians, with the exception of further increased detail and graphical improvements due to the game’s release on the Xbox One. However, the wear and tear on his armor is becoming more pronounced the longer he spends in it, as his objectives continue to push his limits and lead him further into dangerous and unknown territory.

We’ll have to wait until Halo 6 is released to see how he and his iconic armor are hanging in there. But if his formidable service record, reputation for being lucky against insurmountable odds, and devoted global fan base are any indication, Master Chief won’t be hanging up his big green helmet anytime soon.