Editing Te

{{Status|Canon}}
{{Planet infobox
|name=Te
|image=[[File:Enc22 Te.png|300px]]
|system=[[Svir system]]<ref name="bestiarum">'''[[Halo 3]]''', ''[[Bestiarum]]''</ref>
|body=[[Svir]]{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}
|position=Fifth planet{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}
|moon(s)=25; including [[Rantu]], [[Uhtua]], and [[Rentus]]<ref name="catalog">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/forums/db05ce78845f4120b062c50816008e5d/topics/catalog-interaction/4c3e1c6f-6519-4ee0-83a4-4bac13bf07a3/posts?page=37#post732 '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Catalog Interaction - Page 37'']</ref>
|diameter={{Convert|87158|km|mi|sp=us}}{{Ref/Book|Id=EN|Enc22|Page=203}}
|gravity=4 G{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}
|daylength=
|yearlength=
|atmosphere=1.2 ([[Wikipedia:Nitrogen|N<sub>2</sub>]], [[Helium|He]], [[Methane|CH<sub>4</sub>]]){{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}
|temperature=-20°C to 95°C (-4°F to 203°F){{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}
|demonym=
|species=[[Lekgolo]]{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}
|population=1.98 trillion{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}
|colonized=
|government=*Socialism{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}
*[[Covenant]] {{C|formerly}}
}}
'''Te''' is a gas giant and the fifth planet orbiting the star [[Svir system|Svir]]. It is the homeworld of the [[Lekgolo]] species.{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}<ref>'''[[Halo: Broken Circle]]''', ''page 186''</ref>

==History==
===Early history===
The [[Forerunner]]s once had a presence on Te and constructed platforms in orbit around the planet; at this time the [[Lekgolo]] had not yet evolved into [[sentience|sapience]]. The orbital platforms formed a ring around Te and these installations would later be known as the "Rings of Te".{{Ref/Reuse|enc}} At some point, the Forerunners took the [[Thanolekgolo]] forms off of Te and used them in a failed plan to defeat the [[Flood]].<ref name="Have S'moa">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/canon-fodder-have-s-moa '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Canon Fodder: 2-20-15'']</ref>

After the firing of the [[Halo Array]], the Lekgolo were able to develop [[Technological Achievement Tiers|Tier 3 technology]] on their own, although the Lekgolo's development of space travel was severely hampered by Te's high gravity. Despite this impediment, the Lekgolo managed to venture to Te's orbit and colonized several Forerunner installations there a number of millennia before their contact with the [[Covenant]].{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}} Many of these Lekgolo fed on the Forerunner alloys and had eventually demolished the constructs almost completely.<ref name="ch270">'''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]''', ''pages 270-271''</ref>

===The Covenant===
In [[789 BCE]], a [[Luminary]] led the Covenant to Te, the gas giant being relatively close to the [[Sangheili]]'s native [[Urs system]].{{Ref/Reuse|ch270}} In [[784 BCE]]{{Ref/Reuse|catalog}} Te became the first world home to a [[sentient|sapient]] species discovered by the Covenant since the empire's formation.<ref name="waypointarticle">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/species/lekgolo-mgalekgolo-hunter '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Lekgolo/Mgalekgolo'']</ref> The Covenant arrived in the [[Svir system]] with the intent to harvest the trove of Forerunner relics orbiting Te, but were appalled to find that the Lekgolo had nearly completely devoured the rings. For the Lekgolo's unauthorized contact with Forerunner relics, the [[Hierarchs]] of the Covenant ordered the extermination of the species. This led to the [[Taming of the Lekgolo]], a war where the Sangheili confronted the Lekgolo on the rings and colonies of Te. The Sangheili experienced difficulty battling the Lekgolo, as the latter species fortified themselves in the very structures the Covenant was trying to preserve.{{Ref/Reuse|ch270}} The Lekgolo's [[Mgalekgolo]] form was first encountered by the Covenant on Te's [[moon]] of [[Rentus]], and the form proved to be effective at combating the Sangheili.{{Ref/Reuse|catalog}}

Eventually, [[Unidentified Arbiter (Taming of the Lekgolo)|an Arbiter]], whom had studied the Lekgolo and Mgalekgolo on the moon of [[Rantu]], suggested that the Lekgolo could be "tamed" and put to better uses as part of the Covenant hierarchy.<ref name="terminal8">'''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]]''', ''[[Terminal (Halo 2: Anniversary)|Terminal 8]]''</ref> Reluctantly, the [[San'Shyuum]] agreed and forgave the Lekgolo's "sins".{{Ref/Reuse|ch270}} In the end, Te was incorporated into the Covenant Empire and the Lekgolo became the first client race to join the Covenant, with the Lekgolo's own interest in this arrangement being largely based on their access to the Covenant's advanced space-faring technology.{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}} By [[2552]], the Lekgolo continued to live on Te and were sent metals to feed on by the [[Hierarchs]] of the Covenant.{{Ref/Reuse|enc}}

==Description==
===Characteristics===
Te is a high-gravity, massive, blue gas giant with an atmosphere primarily composed of [[Wikipedia:Nitrogen|nitrogen]], [[helium]], and [[methane]]. The gas giant is the fifth planet in orbit in the [[Svir system]].{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}} It is orbited by twenty-five [[natural satellite]]s, only three of which, [[Uhtua]], [[Rantu]], and [[Rentus]],{{Ref/Reuse|catalog}} are known to be named. It has a temperature range of -20°C to 95°C (-4°F to 203°F) and is a quite large, planet with a thick, gaseous atmosphere. This planet is known to have very high concentrations of rare metals in orbit, many of which serve as food for the Lekgolo worms.{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}} All of the intact Forerunner artifacts were removed from Te by the Covenant. Few non-natives of Te journey to the planet, due to its crushing high gravity and atmosphere.{{Ref/Reuse|enc}}

===Rings of Te===
[[File:H2A Terminals - Rantu.jpg|thumb|250px|The Rings of Te, with Rantu nearby.]]
{{Quote|The blasphemous creatures had devoured a Forerunner orbital, shattering its remains into a trillion pieces. What was left became the Rings of Te.|[[Unidentified San'Shyuum scribe|A San'Shyuum scribe]] referring to the rings{{Ref/Reuse|terminal8}}}}
The Rings of Te are the artificial [[Wikipedia:Planetary ring|planetary rings]] that orbit the gas giant. At some point, the rings were constructed by the [[Forerunner]]s around the planet as an installation of unknown function. Several of Te's natural satellites, including Rantu, were in close orbit with these rings.{{Ref/Reuse|terminal8}} The Lekgolo, to some extent, evolved on these planetary rings.<ref>[https://twitter.com/TheMasterBuild1/status/567839539244474368 '''Twitter''': ''Jeff Easterling'']</ref> The Lekgolo's extremophilic nature allowed the species to comfortably live in the Rings of Te for vast periods of time. Some colonies of Lekgolo feasted upon the rings' metal and slowly destroyed most of the installation after many years of living in the rings.{{Ref/Reuse|waypointarticle}}

A [[Luminary]] discovered by the [[Covenant]] led them to the Rings of Te. The Covenant was horrified when they discovered the damage done to the rings, and declared war on the Lekgolo when they realized that the species was responsible. However, the Covenant realized that they could not win a war against the Lekgolo fortified within the Forerunner structures they wished to preserve.{{Ref/Reuse|ch270}}{{Ref/Reuse|waypointarticle}} After the Lekgolo's induction into the Covenant, the Covenant utilized the Lekgolo's expertise and resources to mine rare metals and minerals from the rings.{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}}

==Trivia==
*Te probably has the greatest population of any Covenant world, if each individual Lekgolo worm is considered a separate being.
*In the Chinese philosophy of Daoism, "Te" is used to represent the concept of virtue or potentiality. In Confucianism it represents the virtue of internal goodness and proper behavior toward others.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/585059/te '''Encyclopaedia Britannica''': ''De (Chinese philosophy)'']</ref>
*Though the [[Bestiarum]] explicitly describes Te as a terrestrial world with a solid surface, the planet is described as a gas giant in ''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]'' and the ''[[Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition)]]''. Strangely, the ''Halo Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Halo Universe'' elsewhere contradicts itself by stating that Te is often mistaken for a gas giant but is actually a terrestrial planet.<ref name="enc">'''[[Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition)]]''', ''page 311'' (2011 edition)</ref> However, recent sources, including ''[[Halo: Broken Circle]]'', the ''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]] [[Terminal (Halo 2: Anniversary)|Terminals]]'',{{Ref/Reuse|terminal8}} [[Halo Waypoint]]'s article on the Lekgolo,{{Ref/Reuse|waypointarticle}} and [[343 Industries]]' [[Jeff Easterling]]<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1MmH1l4XzA&feature=youtu.be '''YouTube''': ''The Halo Bulletin: Episode 12'']</ref> consistently refer to Te as a gas giant.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Te.png|Te from the Bestiarum.
File:H2A Terminals - Te.jpg|Te and Rantu, one of its moons.
File:H2A Terminals - Ship landing on Rantu.jpg|Te, seen from the surface of Rantu.
</gallery>

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo 3]]''
**''[[Bestiarum]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Broken Circle]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]]''
**''[[Terminal (Halo 2: Anniversary)|Terminals]]''
*''[[Halo Mythos]]'' {{Mo}}

==Sources==
{{Ref/Sources}}

[[Category:Planets]]
[[Category:Homeworlds]]
[[Category:Covenant worlds]]