Armor Effects are animations that are applied to your Spartan in the Halo Master Chief Collection. Some of them are always active, some of them will only be active after dying.
At the time of release, there are 6 Armor Effects that can be unlocked. These are Birthday Party, Heart Attack, Pestilence, Inclement Weather, Legendary and Eternal.
This guide is suitable for the Halo Master Chief Collection, which includes Halo Reach, Halo Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST and Halo 4. For more Halo MCC Guides, make sure to check out our dedicated area here!
Unlocking Armor Effects
The easiest way to unlock new Armor Effects is through the Halo Battle-pass, also known as ‘Season Rewards’. Season Rewards are free unlocks, which you will receive after spending Season Points.

Every time you level up in the Halo Master Chief Collection, you will receive 1 Season Point. After obtaining 25 Season Points (reaching level 25), you can unlock your first Armor Effect called ‘Birthday Party’.
How to Equip Armor Effects
Once you’ve unlocked Armor Effects, you will need to equip them. To do this, start by going to the main menu of Halo MCC (home screen). Then select ‘Options & Career’ from the menu on the left hand side. Then choose the ‘Customization’ option.

You’ll see a screen similar to the image above. Under ‘Choose Armor’, scroll down and look for ‘Armor Effect’. Inside, you’ll see a lit of Effects that you have and haven’t unlocked, just choose one to equip it.