Halo Infinite Season 3: Echoes Within Breakdown

Echoes Within is finally here! Let's break down everything new in Season 3 of Halo Infinite.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Exclusive Reward

Halo Infinite players with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate can claim the Corrupted Hex Assault Rifle right now. 

Season 3 Battle Pass

As expected, Echoes Within comes with a new Battle Pass. It has 100 tiers, 187 individual rewards, and never expires. 

Players can purchase the Premium Battle Pass for 1000 Credits or the Premium Battle Pass Bundle for 2800 Credits. The Premium Battle Pass gives you Bonus Match XP per match, Fourth Challenge Slot (So long as you have your Battle Pass equipped), and the Red Steel Splinter armor coatings for all available Armor Cores. 

The Premium Battle Pass Bundle offers everything above and 100 XP Grants that you can use to unlock 25 Battle Pass tiers. For players who opt not to purchase either Premium Battle Pass offer, there's a free Battle Pass track with 86 rewards to earn. 

Updated Weekly Rewards

Exciting new Weekly Ultimate Rewards are up for grabs starting with the Purple Reign weapon coating for the M392 Bandit. Complete all your Challenges before the weekly reset on Tuesday to claim these new rewards. 

Shop Changes, Deals, & Bundles

The dev team has made significant changes to Halo Infinite's shop. There will now be a consistent layout and significantly more offers available throughout the season. Dailies will refresh every day, and there will be a half-week slot that refreshes every Tuesday and Friday. But the most interesting update to the shop is the super bundles. 

First Super Bundle: Aquahex Bundle

Super bundles are package deals that offer a lot of cosmetics for a significant discount. You're paying much less by purchasing a super bundle than if you bought all these items individually. 

The important thing to remember about super bundles is that they are limited-time offers. They will only be available during Weeks 1 and 3, after which they will break up into separate bundles. 

The first super bundle of Season 3 is the Aquahex Bundle, which you can purchase for 2200 Credits. This bundle includes cosmetics for the Mark VII, MIRAGE IIC, and a handful of Aquahex weapon coatings. 

The items applicable to your Mark VII Armor Core include:

• Security GEN3 helmet
• Oppressor Mark II helmet attachment
• UA/AHALA shoulders
• UA/MACROSPLINE chest gear
• Project CASKLOOM wrist gear
• Pattern Shift armor coating
• Cyan Sky visor

The items applicable to your MIRAGE IIC Armor Core include:

• Erinyes helmet
• Erinyes Hymn helmet attachment
• TAC/LACEWEB SCM-P shoulders
• TAC/LACEWEB TRM CORE chest attachment
• TAC/SCM-P wrist attachment
• TAC/SCM-P knee pads
• Void Ultra armor coating

Finally, here are the five weapon coatings from the Aquahex Bundle:

• MA40 Assault Rifle
• MK50 Sidekick
• BR75 Battle Rifle
• VK78 Commando
• CQS48 Bulldog.

Free Helmet Attachments

Logging into Halo Infinite during Season 3 will net you two free helmet attachments: the MK62 CBRN/ISES and the UA/TYPE O5. 

The MK62 CBRN/ISES is useable on the MARK VII Armor Core, and the UA/TYPE O5 is useable on the Mark V [B], CQC, HAZOP, Air Assault, JFO, ODST, and Recon helmets on the MARK V [B] Armor Core. 

Free Nameplates & Emblems

Happy #InternationalWomensDay! 💛

On this day, we recognize the contributions of the amazing women in our community, at 343 Industries, and across the world who use their talent, dedication, and passion to bring the Halo universe to life. pic.twitter.com/ysbEAnoPfO

— Halo (@Halo) March 8, 2023

In honor of Women's History Month and International Womens Day, players can get a free unique nameplate and emblem by logging into Halo Infinite or MCC this month. 

Players can also get a Casimir Pulaski nameplate by logging into MCC anytime from March 8-10.

Pin Program

The Halo Gear Rewards are back in Season 3 in the form of exclusive Halo Infinite pins. You have a limited time to redeem the reward codes for these pins in the Halo Gear Shop. There are four pins in total:

• Shroud Screen Pin: Earn this pin by completing the Mindfall Event Pass. Must redeem reward code by April 18. 
• Bandit Pin: Earn this pin by completing the Site Unseen Event Pass. Must redeem reward code by June 17. 
• Firewall Logo Pin: Earn this pin by completing the Season 3 Fractures: Firewall Event Pass. Must redeem reward code by July 4. 
• Season 3 Insignia LE Pin & Matching In-Game Emblem: Earn this pin by completing Season 3: Echoes Within Battle Pass. Must redeem reward code by July 4. 

New Weapon & New Equipment

Season 3 introduces one new weapon and new equipment item: the M392 Bandit and the Shroud Screen.

The M392 Bandit is a semi-automatic assault rifle good for close to mid-range combat. It is very similar to the M392 DMR from Halo Reach.

The Shroud Screen is a utility item that players can equip to launch a spherical shroud that masks their presence on enemy motion sensors. It's also impossible to see outside or for enemies to see inside. But be aware; just because enemies can't see you doesn't mean they can't still hit you. 

Several New Armor Coatings

There's a handful of new armor coatings for players to enjoy, starting with the free SteelSeries armor coatings. These will be available to all players and come in three variations: Red Steel, Blue Steel, and Green Steel. You can apply these armor coatings to all available Armor Cores. 

Cadet Olive and Cadet Red

Cadet Olive and Cadet Red armor coatings are free and available to all players for all Armor Cores. There have also been updates to the purchasable Scarlet armor coatings, Scarlet Empress, Scarlet Skies, and Scarlet Wake. 

The MARK VII's Red Shift armor coating is also live in Season 3 with a new name, Shred Shift. 

Watchdog Neo

For Halo Infinite players that grinded their way to Spartan Rank 152 in Halo 5: Guardians, here's an additional reward for your efforts: the Watchdog Neo armor coating. 

Everyone who reached Spartan Rank 152 in Halo 5 will now have Watchdog Neo available for all Armor Cores, M392 Bandit, and S7 Sniper. The original Watchdog armor coating from Season 1 will not be going away. 

Forge Exclusive Armor Coating

Halo Infinite's Forge continues to thrive and is full of players creating all sorts of unique experiences. Now there are some additional bragging rights up for grabs for the community's best creators. 

If you manage to get your map added to the Community Collection playlist, you will earn yourself the Master Builder armor coating and visor for all available Armor Cores. 

Two Free Armor Cores

Season 3 introduces two new Armor Cores, MIRAGE IIC, and Chimera. 

MIRAGE IIC is available now and is free for all players. MIRAGE IIC is a classic set of armor that hails back to Eric Nylund's novel Ghosts of Onyx. Chimera will be available starting March 21 with The Fracture: FIREWALL Event.

Two New Narrative Events

The Mindfall narrative event has begun! 🔥

It brings a free 10-tier Event Pass containing a variety of customization to outfit your new MIRAGE IIC Armor Core, along with new cinematics. Ends March 21.https://t.co/eNfPHmOgKx#HaloEchoesWithin pic.twitter.com/Y2PKd2czLc

— Halo (@Halo) March 8, 2023

Season 3 introduces two new narrative events into Halo Infinite, starting with Mindfall. 

From March 7-21, players can complete the Mindfall Event, picking up where the story in Season 2 left off. There's a free 10-tier Event Pass with an assortment of goodies to collect, primarily cosmetics for the new MIRAGE IIC Armor Core. 

The second narrative event of Season 3, Site Unseen, will kick off on May 2 and last through May 16. Like Mindall, Site Unseen will include a free 10-tier Event Pass. 

New Maps, Features & Items In The Forge

The Forge has been greatly expanded in Season 3. Players can now edit any and every dev-made map in the Forge. Toggleable Friendly/Enemy Outlines and Friendly Player Collision are now Custom Game Mode options. 

The dev team has added a handful of new objects, including an Invisible gravity Lift and the Invisible Kinetic Launcher. Players can also now create Total Control and Land Grab experiences in the Forge. 

As mentioned previously, players whose map gets a spot on the Community Collection playlist will earn the exclusive Master Builder armor coating and visor, so let those creative juices flow!

Three New Maps

Season 3 introduces three new maps: Chasm, Cliffhanger, and Oasis. Chasm and Cliffhanger are Arena maps, and Oasis is a BTB map. Two new playlists are live this season for players to enjoy. From March 7-14, you can hop into the New Arena Playlist. From March 14-21, you can experience the New BTB Unlimited playlist. 

New Game Modes: Escalation Slayer & Bandit-only Tactical Slayer

Season 3 has a new game mode in the form of Escalation Slayer. In Escalation Slayer, players progress through a series of weapons and loadouts as the match (Ahem) escalates, and they rack up kills. Every kill you score will upgrade your loadout, and you can knock enemy players down loadout levels by scoring Melee kills on their backs. The end goal of Escalation Slayer is to get a kill with the Oddball.

Currently, there are two variants of Escalation Slayer: Team Escalation and FFA Escalation. A BTB version of Escalation Slayer is coming sometime later in Season 3, along with a Super variant that will include special weapon variants and upgraded equipment.

The Bandit-only variant of Tactical Slayer is available on the Tactical Slayer Matchmaking playlist and restricts shields and motion sensors. All other rules are identical to standard Slayer. 

Fracture: Firewall

Fracture: Firewall will be a season-long event that will allow players to earn free rewards by completing Event Challenges in Escalation Slayer. Players can earn up to 20 rewards, with cosmetic upgrades for the Chimera Armor Core being the primary highlights. 

You can only obtain these rewards by completing the specified Event Challenges while the event is active. Fracture: Firewall will begin on March 21 and last through March 28. There will be four week-long event periods throughout Season 3, so keep an eye out. 

New Monthly Playlists

NEW ARENA UNLIMITED

• 4v4 
• Maps: Chasm and Cliffhanger 
• Modes: Escalation Slayer, CTF, King of the Hill, Slayer, Strongholds, One Flag CTF

NEW BTB UNLIMITED

• 12v12
• Map: Oasis 
• Modes: BTB Escalation Slayer (new mode!), CTF, Slayer, Fiesta, Fiesta Total Control, Total Control

CSR-Based Matchmaking

Matchmaking will now be based on CSR instead of MMR, with the exception of placement matches. The Fireteam CSR Limit range remains unchanged in Season 3, but there are some things to keep in mind. Gold 6 and lower (899 CSR), there are zero restrictions. From 900 CSR to 1500 CSR, there is a 900-point limit. Every 2 CSR gained will tighten the CSR limit by 1. At 1500 CSR and beyond, the limit shrinks to 600 points. 

Placement Match Requirement Decreased

As mentioned earlier, placement matches will not switch to the new CSR-based matchmaking system. The dev team has also reduced the required number of placement matches from 10 to 5. 

Sandbox Updates & Balances Changes

VK78 Commando Rifle

The VK78 Commando Rifle now requires 9 consecutive shots to down a shield instead of 8. The damage per shot has also been reduced from 20 to 17.5.

Plasma Pistol

The Plasma Pistol's charging time has been increased from 1 second to 1.6 seconds. There have also been adjustments made to its minimum and maximum tracking angle and targeting radius. 

The Plasma Pistol's max tracking angle has been reduced from 70 degrees to 50 degrees. Its mininum tracking angle has been adjusted from 35 degrees to 25 degrees. The tracking target radius has been adjusted from 0.5 World Units to 0.3 World Units.

Starting Ammo in Ranked Matches Reduced

Staring Ammo in Ranked Matches for the CQS48 Bulldog, Shock Rifle, Heatwave, and Stalker Rifle have all been reduced to the following:

Ray Tracing

Ray Tracing is now live in Halo Infinite for PC users. Head for Spec Control in your Video settings to enable Ray Traced Sun Shadows.

I know that was a lot of ground to cover, and you probably want to jump in and play already. I won't keep you any longer. Enjoy Season 3!