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Elite Ranger

October 26, 2012 | By Errex More

One of the most difficult enemy types encountered in the Halo games is the Elite Ranger. These Elites are equipped with rocket packs that enable them to fly around and they are usually armed with very powerful weapons. Obviously, McFarlane Toys had to include them in their fifth series of figures for the Halo: Reach line.

The Reach Ranger uses the same basic body frame as any other Elite in this line, except for the neck, head and hands, which are entirely new sculpts. The added armor pieces are also newly sculpted, as the Rangers are decked for Extra Vehicular Activity, so their suits are bulkier and offer better protection.

The Ranger wears a protective helmet with a translucent faceplate that allows a glimpse of the alien inside. The gauntlets were sculpted with armored panels on the fingers not present in other Elites maintaining the same articulation range.

And speaking of articulation, the Elite Ranger has:

• Barbell jointed head.

• Barbell jointed neck.

• Pegged hinge shoulders.

• Pegged hinge elbows.

• Pegged hinge wrists.

• Hinged fingers.

• Barbell mounted torso.

• Barbell jointed hips.

• Pegged hinge knees.

• Barbell jointed footpads.

As usual, the leg joint configuration doesn’t lend to extreme poses, given the limited range of movement at the hips and the fixed ankles, but it is possible for the Ranger to achieve reasonably dynamic fighting stances.

The paintjob is very good, consisting mostly of light sea-foam gray and off-white panels neatly outlined with darker gray lines and a dark gray under-suit. There are a few stray paint marks here and there, but those can easily pass as battle damage. The overall appearance is very clean and still reminiscent of the Elite Ultra color scheme.

The Elite Ranger comes with a removable rocket pack, a metallic purple plasma grenade and the all-new Focus Rifle. This weapon looks great, decorated in the same purple color as the grenade, with gunmetal gray accents, but the really high point for this accessory is that, with a little fidgeting, it can be held perfectly by the Elite’s hands.

This is a trait that, sadly, not many Covenant specialty weapons share in the McFarlane line, so it was positively refreshing to finally get such an accessory with the Elite Ranger.

In the end, I am very happy with how this action figure turned out. The Elite Ranger is one of those rare items I did not mind paying full retail price for.