Overwatch Elite

An Overwatch Elite is a specialized, and possibly higher-ranking Overwatch Soldier. Sporting a distinctive white uniform with a single red ocular lens, the Elites are the deadliest of the Combine Overwatch infantry. Whilst all Overwatch units have been transfigured by Combine technology, it is theorised that Elites have been altered even further than standard soldiers. They use similar combat tactics to regular Combine Soldiers, but with a few key differences.

Overview
Elites are equipped with improved body armor, made apparent by the larger neck guard and the increased protection it offers. Their helmet also differs drastically from those of regular soldiers, and possibly improves the senses, as indicated by the two miniature domes located where the ears of a human would be. The emblem that is worn on the pants and sleeves of their armor is the only Combine imagery that indicates hostility or threat, showing a cracked human skull within the "C".

The Elite soldiers are tougher, achieve better accuracy with their weapons, and inflict more overall damage than regular soldiers do. They wield Overwatch Standard-Issue Pulse Rifles, and are the only units who seem to have access to the weapon's secondary-fire energy orb. They use this advantage without hesitation and with deadly accuracy. The orbs they fire, however, can be caught by a Gravity Gun, and used as the holder sees fit.

Elites typically fight in squads of their own kind, but will occasionally lead squads of regular soldiers. Elites are fewer in number than regular soldiers, and are thus reserved for more critical combat missions, where their deadly skills and efficiency are required. They also serve as Wallace Breen's personal guards.

Elites are first seen in Half-Life 2's ninth chapter, Nova Prospekt, on a video monitor. They are encountered firsthand in the following chapter, Entanglement, assaulting the teleport chamber only seconds before Gordon and Alyx teleport out.

Tactics
Elites are more skilled in combat than Combine Soldiers. They are always equipped with a pulse rifle, and will use more tactics than the Overwatch. Elites also seem to have better aim and heavier armor than the standard Soldiers. Elites will also use the AR2's charged secondary fire. They can decimate a whole squad of rebels by a well placed shot of the secondary fire. On the plus side, they cannot use grenades.

When you first encounter a Combine Elite, around the middle of Anticitizen One, you should use the shotgun or SMG1. Later, in the Citadel, the Gravity Gun eats them like candy. If you encounter an Elite with a long range weapon, try to snipe them from a distance. If not, you can try to blow 'em up with your AR2, but keep in mind they may have an AR2 themselves!

Trivia

 * Elites are mainly found at the Citadel or a important Combine bases such as the Nexus.



Behind the scenes
Early conceptual work on the Combine Elite had emphasized their alien features: early Elite concepts had them as more ambulatory versions of the Combine Advisor, a Strider synth grafted down into the proportions of a human (which in turn may have been repurposed into the Hunter synth), and an asymmetrically proportioned cyborg synth, typically with a human face visible. The more conventional looking Elite, partly based off the concept for the unused female Combine Assassin, was chosen over the early concepts to avoid overshadowing the remarkable nature of the Citadel and to keep the Combine as a more elusive enemy.