Halo How to: Halo Tips and Tricks

How does Halo 3 Ranking Work ?

First of all, everyone keeps on saying Rank,
because people are confusing what it means! Their is EXP and Skill
rating. You get 1 exp every time you win any team game, or are in the
top half of a free for all. This is in both Ranked AND Unranked
matches. So you can sit on social all day and gain exp. Skill rating is
from ranked games only. You have to win consistently to keep your skill
going up, or lose to get it going down.

Ranks are the actual military rank you will receive. For all
non-officer ranks, they are solely a value of exp. As your exp goes up,
you will gain rank. But to become an officer, you need a skill rating
of 10 AS WELL AS EXP, and all the other officer ranks require greater
skill ratings (20, 30, 40, and 50). So Officers need both high levels
of skill and exp.

You cannot lose EXP except by quitting a match. You WILL lose skill rating everytime you lose. So…that’s it.

It actually looks complicated when I type it out, but its pretty easy to understand once you play a bit.