The beloved game Halo is widely regarded as one of the best FPS experiences ever made. With how replayable the single and multiplayer offerings are, it's easy to see why. Skulls are a large reason why the Halo 3 campaign is so replayable. These skulls grant noticeable effects to combat that make the game either harder or simply stranger.
There are three types of skulls in Halo 3: Gold, Silver, and Mythic. Gold Skulls grant negative modifiers for higher score multipliers, Silver grants more experimental changes with no benefits, and Mythics are skulls hidden in certain Forge maps. Here are all of Halo 3's skulls, where they're located, and what they do. This list will not include Mythic Skulls or the cut Assassin Skull on Cortana that does nothing.
13 Black Eye
Black Eye is a Gold Skull that disables Energy Shield recharge. You need to melee targets for your shields to regenerate. It grants a 1.5x score multiplier while active.
During the Crow's Nest mission at mission start, look for a green railing and jump on it. From there, hop onto the nearby metal beams and pipes until you're at the top of the room. The skull is resting on a black pipe.
12 Blind
Blind is a Silver Skull that disables every aspect of your HUD, including your weapon cursor and health display. You can find this skull in the Siera 117 level.
After you finish your first skirmish against the Covenant, look at the giant body of water and look for a nearby rock. Hop on it and jump to the newly-revealed rock to find your new skull.
11 Catch
Catch is not for the faint of heart. While active, this Gold Skull will cause enemies to throw grenades much more often and drop grenades on death. This skull grants a 1.5x score multiplier.
Start The Storm level and look for a silo building after the first Anti-Air Wraith encounter. You'll need to jump on top of the silo to grab the skull, which can be done through some craft crouch-jumping or grenade-jumping.
10 Cowbell
If you ever wanted Halo 3's physics engine to be just as lethal as Destiny's, then Cowbell was made for you. Cowbell is a Silver Skull that makes explosives and melee attacks launch enemies and objects further.
The Ark holds this skull. After you defeat the first Scarab, look for a Gravity Lift up a large slope from the nearby building and take it. Look for a hallway that has openings above the corner of the room. Hop on top of one of the highest openings to obtain Cowbell.
9 Famine
Masochists will get a kick out of this next skull. Famine is a Gold Skull that significantly reduces the ammo enemies drop when killed, granting a 2x score multiplier while active.
During The Ark level, you will face a forked road while in the Scorpian tank. Head directly center until you see a rock wall to your right. From there, head up the platform and look for the nearby support ledge. Hop towards the last one using grenades or the Deployable Cover Equipment and you should now have Famine unlocked.
8 Fog
Fog works similarly to Destiny's Blackout modifier, disabling your motion sensor while active. Since Fog is a Gold Skull, it grants a 1.5x score multiplier if used.
Thankfully, you won't need any fancy jumping skills for this skull. Load up Floodgate and head to the city of Voi. Keep your eyes up and to your right. You should see a Flood enemy leap from the rooftop after a Marine audio bark. Kill it or pop its right arm off before it reaches the other rooftop to claim your new skull.
7 Grunt Birthday Party
Grunt Birthday Party is an iconic skull in the Halo franchise, causing Grunts to explode in a shower of confetti and child laughter when slain by a headshot. It is a Silver Skull that can be found during the Crow's Nest level.
Before you jump down a large shaft and Cortana speaks to you, walk down the end of that corridor instead. Drop into the fan and walk backward to land on a slightly protruding platform. Head down the corridor to obtain your confetti-making skull.
6 Iron
Iron is the most brutal Gold Skull in Halo 3, forcing a checkpoint to reload if any teammate dies. If your whole team dies at once, the level restarts. It also provides the largest score multiplier in the game at 3x while active.
Sierra 117 hides this skull. Play as normal until you reach the section where Sergeant Johnson's team must be rescued. Jump down and cross the nearby bridge and keep right of the bridge. A few pipes should now be visible. Jump on them and follow them until you find a balcony. Like the pipes, hop onto the balcony and follow it to the end to collect the Iron Gold Skull.
5 IWHBYD
IWHBYD, short for "I would have been your daddy," is a Silver Skull that inverts the chances your hear rare and common dialogue.
Towards the end of The Covenant level during the Flood betrayal, head to the end of the room but don't hop down the room just yet. Look behind you and take note of the first closest ring and the seventh furthest ring. You must jump through the rings in this sequence: 4, 6, 5, 4, 5, 3, 4. It will play a snippet of the Halo theme if done correctly. Head to the Prophet's control panel and the skull should be laying on the ground.
4 Mythic
Providing a 2x score multiplier, the Mythic Gold Skull causes all NPCs to have double the health and shields. Players can find this skull in the Halo mission.
After you start the mission, head forward while hugging the left wall until you find a tunnel. Go through it and you should find a cave to the right. The end of the cave houses the Mythic skull.
3 Thunderstorm
Thunderstorm is one of the simplest skulls in Halo 3, increasing the rank of all enemies you face. In exchange for this difficulty bump, you gain a 1.5x score multiplier.
While you are playing The Covenant, there is a section where you gain control of a Hornet. Fly the Hornet to the second inoperable tower and look for a flat platform. Land on it and head to the end of the platform to find the Thunderstorm skull.
2 Tilt
Tilt amplifies the weaknesses and strengths of enemies twice as much while active, granting a 2x score multiplier for how impactful this modifier is. Shields and Brute armor will take half damage from projectiles and double from energy weapons.
This skull is found in the Cortana level. When you reach the large circular room where Cortana mentions "it wasn't the coins fault," head to the left of the room and jump up a few pillars. Keep climbing until you reach a flat platform at the very top of the room.
1 Tough Luck
Enemy AI is enhanced while Tough Luck is active, making them more likely to dodge projectiles and causes Brutes to go berserk more often. As a Gold Skull, Tough Luck grants a 1.5x score multiplier.
On Tsavo Highway, make your way to the combat encounter with two Choppers. Finish the encounter and head onto the bridge. Look for some yellow ladders to your left and climb the first one. Hop over some metal bars and hop down to a black support. Walk along it and you should find the skull across a gap in a cliff.