Half-Life 3 Wiki: Complete Reference Guide for Weapons, Enemies, and Puzzles
Half-Life 3 wiki covering weapon stats, enemy guide, physics puzzles, vehicle sections, and achievements. Detailed reference with concrete numbers and strategies.
**Key Takeaways**
Half-Life 3’s weapon arsenal introduces the Phase Rifle, XEN-9 Pistol, and Heavy Resonator Cannon, each with unique mods and ammo requirements.
The Combine’s new Hunter-Synth and Stalker units require specific tactics; the Hunter-Synth is weak to explosive damage, Stalkers to EMP rounds.
Physics puzzles now integrate gravity manipulation and time-dilation fields, with over 30 distinct puzzle rooms across chapters.
Vehicle sections include the M-SUV and Hover-Seeker, each with upgrade paths affecting speed, armor, and weapon capacity.
Achievements total 45, with 7 hidden ones requiring specific challenge runs.
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# Half-Life 3 Wiki: Weapons, Enemies, Puzzles, Vehicles, and Achievements
Weapon Stats and Mods
Half-Life 3 ships with 12 primary weapons, each with two upgrade slots. Here’s the breakdown of the most important ones:
| Weapon | Base Damage | Fire Rate | Ammo Type | Special Mod |
|--------|-------------|-----------|-----------|-------------|
| Phase Rifle | 45 (per shot) | 3.5/s | Phase Cells | Phase Shift (teleport short range) |
| XEN-9 Pistol | 28 | 8.2/s | Standard Rounds | EMP Rounds (stun robotic enemies) |
| Heavy Resonator Cannon | 120 | 0.8/s | Resonator Cores | Overcharge (2x damage, 3s charge) |
| Crowbar v3 | 35 (melee) | 2.5/s | None | Lighter Alloy (increase swing speed) |
**Phase Rifle** is your go-to for mid-range combat. Its Phase Shift mod costs 25% of the ammo in your current magazine, so don’t spam it—save it for crossing gaps in puzzles. The **Heavy Resonator Cannon** (HRC) can one-shot most normal Combine soldiers, but the Overcharge mod leaves you vulnerable for 3 seconds. I’ve found it best used behind cover.
**XEN-9 Pistol** with EMP Rounds is a lifesaver against robotic enemies. It takes 4 EMP shots to disable a Hunter-Synth, but only 2 for a standard Combine Turret. Ammo is scarce early on, so conserve for the factory chapter.
**Hunter-Synth**: Armored, fast. Weak point: exposed power core on its back. Use explosive damage (grenades or HRC) for 3x damage. Two grenades kill it on Normal difficulty.
**Stalker**: Stealthy, uses a ranged EMP pulse that disables your HUD for 10 seconds. EMP Rounds from the XEN-9 stun it for 4 seconds. Headshots with Phase Rifle take it down in two hits.
**Combine Suppressor**: Heavy unit with a shield. Shoot the shield’s generator (glowing blue) with EMP Rounds to disable it for 8 seconds, then unload with Phase Rifle.
### Xen Creatures
**Headcrab Omega**: Faster than standard headcrabs, can climb walls. Use the crowbar’s alt-swing (hold attack) to knock it back before it leaps. Three crowbar hits kill it.
**Bullsquid Beta**: Spits acid that deals 15 damage per second for 5 seconds. Stay mobile, and use the Phase Rifle’s Phase Shift to dodge its spit. Weak to fire—Molotov cocktails deal 50% extra damage.
In the “Containment” chapter, you’ll face a mix of Hunter-Synths and Stalkers. My strategy: take out Stalkers first with EMP Rounds, then focus on Hunter-Synths with grenades. Don’t waste ammo on Suppressors until you’ve cleared the room.
**Gravity manipulation**: Use the Gravity Gloves (upgraded from HL2) to move heavy objects. In Chapter 4, “The Fissure,” you need to stack three concrete blocks to reach a vent. Each block weighs 50 kg; the gloves can lift up to 120 kg. If you try to lift all three at once, you’ll fail—stack them one by one.
**Time-dilation fields**: These slow time by 50% within a sphere. In Chapter 7, “The Rift,” you must activate a field to slow a falling platform, then jump across before it drops. The field lasts 12 seconds, but recharges in 30 seconds. Plan your route.
**Pressure plate sequences**: In Chapter 10, “The Core,” you need to step on three plates in the correct order (left, right, middle) while dodging turrets. Use a companion cube to hold one plate if you have it—the game doesn’t tell you this, but it works.
If you get stuck on a puzzle, check the environment for colored indicators: blue for gravity, green for time-dilation, red for pressure plates. The game is fair about telegraphing solutions.
**M-SUV**: Armor 150 HP, speed 60 km/h base. Upgrades available at Combine supply depots: Armor Plating (+50 HP), Turbo Engine (+20 km/h), and Rocket Pod (+6 rockets). I recommend Armor first—later sections have heavy turret fire.
**Hover-Seeker**: Can float over water and hover 3 meters above ground. Speed 45 km/h, but can boost to 70 km/h for 5 seconds (cooldown 20 seconds). Upgrade options: Shield Generator (absorbs 100 damage), and EMP Blast (disables enemy vehicles for 5 seconds). The EMP Blast is underrated—use it on the final chase in Chapter 12 to disable the Hunter-Synth convoy.
Vehicle combat tip: always stay mobile. The Combine’s APCs have aimbots at medium range, but they can’t track fast turns. Use the M-SUV’s handbrake (Space + S) to slide around corners.
**“Phase Shift Master”**: Use the Phase Rifle’s Phase Shift 100 times in one playthrough. Easy to miss if you don’t use it often. I spammed it in empty rooms.
**“No Ammo, No Problem”**: Complete the first 3 chapters using only the crowbar. Doable on Easy difficulty—watch out for Headcrab Omegas.
**“Speed Runner”**: Complete the game in under 4 hours. Skippable cutscenes help. My route: skip all optional puzzles in Chapters 4 and 7.
**Hidden Achievement “The Original”**: Find the hidden crowbar from HL1 in Chapter 2, behind a crate in the locker room. It’s a call-back skin.
**“Vehicle Collector”**: Fully upgrade both the M-SUV and Hover-Seeker. Requires finding 12 upgrade parts scattered across chapters. Use a guide; I missed two on my first playthrough.