Finally, we come to the last of the new Halo Mega Bloks vehicle sets unveiled at the 2013 Toy Fair (but don’t worry, there are plenty of Combat Units and Ammo Packs left to discuss still): the new UNSC Gauss Warthog! Halo 4 fans have been demanding a new Gausshog for a while, and now MEGA Brands is giving them exactly what they asked for–just maybe not in the color people wanted…

This will be both the second Desert Warthog released in the Halo Mega Bloks line as well as the line’s second Warthog with Gauss Cannon (Gausshog). The original Gauss Warthog was released in 2009-2010 in the Halo Mega Bloks UNSC Gausshog vs Covenant Locust 96823 set. That old-style Warthog is pretty much a relic at this point, so it’s an understatement to say that the most powerful version of the UNSC’s most ubiquitous vehicle deserved a new release.

The new Desert Gausshog makes use of the spectacular Mega Bloks Halo 4 Warthog build that I gushed about endlessly in my Halo 4 Mega Bloks Warthog Resistance review last year. The 2012 version of the UNSC Warthog was and still is amazing, and is absolutely the right choice for MEGA Brands to utilize for an ultimate Gauss Cannon Warthog.

Obviously the big difference between this Warthog and last year’s version (besides the color) is that this Halo Mega Bloks Desert Warthog features a Gauss Cannon instead of a Machine Gun Turret. As the Gauss Cannon pieces themselves are molded in the same sandy tan color of the Desert Warthog, collectors will have to wait a while longer to make a standard green Gausshog.

Along with the green Spartan figures this set is coming with, I believe it’ll also include the first release of the Promethean Knight Lancer figure.This will be the first release of a Halo 4 Knight Lancer toy by any company, as McFarlane Toys has only produced the standard Knight.

I’d be lying through my teeth if I said I wasn’t irritated that we’re getting the superior Halo 4 Mega Bloks Warthog build used her for a Desert Warthog, while MEGA Brands left Snowbound fans out to dry with the mediocre old-style Arctic Warthog they released late last year. I sincerely hope that we get a new-style Halo 4 Arctic Warthog Mega Bloks sets within the next year.

The new Halo 4 Mega Bloks Gauss Warthog Desert Version set will be released as part of the Summer 2013 Halo Mega Bloks series. Look for the set to appear in stores by July/August 2013. I’ll update with the pricing and pre-order details as they come available.