Battle of Harvest: Difference between revisions

Battle of Harvest (edit)

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 ==Prelude==
 {{Quote|Vice Admiral Preston Cole is mobilizing the largest fleet action in human history to retake the Epsilon Indi system and confront this new threat. Their transmission made one thing perfectly clear: they're looking for a fight.|Vice Admiral [[Michael Stanforth]]<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', ''page 120'' (2010)</ref>}}
-[[File:TFoR AS - Harvest glassed.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Battlegroup 4 discovers the glassed Harvest]]
+[[File:TFoR AS - Harvest glassed.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Battle Group 4 discovers the glassed Harvest]]
-In early [[2525]], the [[Unified Earth Government]] [[Outer Colony]] of [[Harvest]] was discovered and [[First Battle of Harvest|attacked]] by the [[Covenant]]. The planet was partially [[Glassing|glassed]] by [[Covenant cruiser]] ''[[Rapid Conversion]]'',<ref>'''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]''', ''page 382''</ref><ref name="for117">'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''pages 117-126'' (2010)</ref> though many of Harvest's residents managed to escape their own destruction by fleeing the [[Epsilon Indi system]] aboard [[DCS light freighter|freighters]].<ref name="goo72">'''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''', ''page 72''</ref> In response to the loss of contact with Harvest, {{CMAShip|Argo}}—a scout ship—was sent to the planet to investigate. When transmissions from the scout ship suddenly ended, the Harvest situation was deemed highly important and a [[Colonial Military Administration]] [[battle group]]—[[Battlegroup 4]]—was dispatched to Harvest. Upon arriving at the system, Battlegroup 4 was immediately attacked by a [[Covenant super-destroyer]]. Only {{CMAShip|Heracles}} was able to escape destruction and limp back to [[Reach]] in the [[Epsilon Eridani system]] several weeks later with word of the hostile alien threat.<ref name="for117"/>
+In early [[2525]], the [[Unified Earth Government]] [[Outer Colony]] of [[Harvest]] was discovered and [[First Battle of Harvest|attacked]] by the [[Covenant]]. The planet was partially [[Glassing|glassed]] by [[Covenant cruiser]] ''[[Rapid Conversion]]'',<ref>'''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]''', ''page 382''</ref><ref name="for117">'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''pages 117-126'' (2010)</ref> though many of Harvest's residents managed to escape their own destruction by fleeing the [[Epsilon Indi system]] aboard [[DCS light freighter|freighters]].<ref name="goo72">'''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''', ''page 72''</ref> In response to the loss of contact with Harvest, {{CMAShip|Argo}}—a scout ship—was sent to the planet to investigate. When transmissions from the scout ship suddenly ended, the Harvest situation was deemed highly important and a [[Colonial Military Administration]] [[battle group]]—[[Battle Group 4]]—was dispatched to Harvest. Upon arriving at the system, Battle Group 4 was immediately attacked by a [[Covenant super-destroyer]]. Only {{CMAShip|Heracles}} was able to escape destruction and limp back to [[Reach]] in the [[Epsilon Eridani system]] several weeks later with word of the hostile alien threat.<ref name="for117"/>
 On [[2525#November|November 1, 2525]], the UEG's [[United Nations Space Command]] was ordered to full alert.<ref name="for117"/> In response to the alien threat, the UNSC's [[Central Command]] moved to create a battle group of forty [[warship]]s to retake Harvest. Retired Vice Admiral [[Preston Cole]] was selected by Central Command to lead this force; a "fallen hero" that lived a scandalous retirement, Cole served as an easy scapegoat if CENTCOM's counterattack on the Covenant failed. Additionally, Cole was considered to be a brilliant commander during the [[Insurrection]] that was willing to sacrifice himself and anyone under his command to complete his task.<ref name="he458">'''Halo: Evolutions''', "The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole", ''pages 458-460''</ref> On [[2525#November|November 2, 2525]], Lieutenant Commander [[Jack Hopper]] and Lieutenant [[Demos]] visited Cole and convinced him to lead the battle group. Reinstated as a vice admiral of the [[UNSC Navy]], Cole was given command of [[Battle Group X-Ray]] in [[2525|December of 2525]],<ref>[[Xbox.com/Halo/Timeline|'''Xbox.com''', ''Halo Storyline'']]</ref><ref>'''Halo: Evolutions''', "The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole", ''page 461''</ref> conceived as the largest assembled fleet at that point in human history.<ref name="for117"/><ref name="enc299">'''[[Halo Encyclopedia]]''', ''page 299'' (2011)</ref><ref>'''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', ''page 88''</ref> By [[2525#November|November 12, 2525]], Cole begun preparing himself for the battle. He reviewed data and reports from previous encounters with the Covenant at Harvest and [[Chi Ceti IV]], and realized that Covenant [[energy shielding]] would prove to be troublesome in battle. Cole was given the {{Class|Valiant|super-heavy cruiser}} {{UNSCShip|Everest}} as his [[flagship]]. After ensuring that his crew was battle-tested and competent, he requested numerous modifications to ''Everest''.<ref name="he462"/> [[Artificial intelligence]] [[Sekmet]] was chosen as Cole's shipboard AI on ''Everest''.<ref name="he465">'''Halo: Evolutions''', "The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole", ''page 465''</ref>