Editing Battle of Voi

{{Era|HCW}}
{{Cleanup}}
{{Battle Infobox
|prev = [[Raid on Kilimanjaro]]
|conc = [[Battle of Earth]]
|next = [[Battle of Installation 00]]
|image=[[File:Voi crater concept.jpg|350px]]
|conflict=[[Human-Covenant War]]
|date=November 17-18, [[2552]]
|place=[[Kenya]], [[Earth]], [[Sol system]]
|result=
'''Pyrrhic UNSC-Fleet of Retribution tactical victory'''
*[[Voi]] and surrounding area [[glassed]]
*[[Flood]] threat contained
'''Strategic Covenant victory'''
*Portal to the Ark successfully opened
*Covenant strategic withdrawal to the Ark
|side1 = *[[United Nations Space Command]]
*[[Fleet of Retribution]]
|side2 = *[[Covenant]]
|side3 = *[[Flood]]
|commanders1=*[[Fleet Admiral]] [[Terrence Hood|Lord Terrence Hood]]
*[[Commander (UNSC)|Commander]] [[Miranda Keyes]]
*[[Shipmaster]] [[Rtas 'Vadum]]
|commanders2=*[[Prophet of Truth]]
|commanders3=*[[Gravemind]]
|commanders4=
|forces1=*[[UNSC Marine Corps]]
**[[S4/BLCE/1/7]]
**[[S4/BRT/1/7]]
***[[Alpha Company, S4/BRT/1/7|Alpha Company]]
***[[Charlie Company, S4/BRT/1/7|Charlie Company]]
**[[John-117|SPARTAN-117]]
**[[Sergeant Major]] [[Avery Junior Johnson|Avery J. Johnson]]
**[[M831 Troop Transport|M831 Troop Transport Warthogs]] (4+)
**[[M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle|M12 Warthog LRVs]] (7+)
**[[M274 Ultra-Light All-Terrain Vehicle|M274 Mongoose ULATVs]] (6+)
*[[Civilian|Armed civilians]]
*[[ONI Recon 111]]
*[[UNSC Home Fleet]]
**[[Battle Group Victory]]
***{{UNSCShip|Forward Unto Dawn}}
**[[GA-TL1 Longsword]]s
*[[D77-TC Pelican|Pelicans]]
*[[AV-14 Hornet|Hornets]]
*[[Fleet of Retribution]]
**Arbiter [[Thel 'Vadam]]
**[[Fleet of Retribution]]
***9 [[CCS-class battlecruiser]]s
****''[[Pious Inquisitor]]''
***1 [[CAS-class assault carrier]]s
****''[[Shadow of Intent]]''
**[[Type-52 Troop Carrier|Phantoms]]
|forces2=*Covenant infantry
**[[Jiralhanae]]
**[[Unggoy]]
**[[Kig-yar]]
**[[Yanme'e]]
**[[Lekgolo]]
*Vehicle support
**[[Type-32 Ghost]]s
**[[Type-25 Chopper]]s
**[[Type-52 Phantom]]s
**[[Type-26 Banshee]]s
**[[Type-47B Scarab]] (1)
**[[Type-52 Anti-Aircraft Wraith]]s
**[[Type-25 Wraith]]s
*Covenant Navy
**{{Class|CCS|battlecruiser}}s (28)
**{{Class|CAS|assault carrier}}s (2)
*[[Type-27 Anti-Aircraft Cannon]] (1)
|forces3=*''[[Indulgence of Conviction]]''
*[[Pod infector|Infection forms]]
*[[Flood combat form|Combat forms]]
*[[Flood carrier form|Carrier forms]]
*[[Flood pure form|Pure forms]]
|forces4=
|casual1 = Unknown, presumably heavy
|casual2 = Unknown, presumably heavy
|casual3 = All Flood forms
|casual4=
}}
{{Quote|Marines, the Prophet of Truth doesn't know it yet, but he's about to get kicked right off his throne. You will take our city back. And drive our enemy into the grave they've been so happily digging. One final effort is all that remains.|[[Fleet Admiral]] [[Terrence Hood]]}}

The '''Battle of Voi''',<ref>'''[[Halo: First Strike]]''', ''[[Petra]]'' (2010)</ref> also called the '''Siege at Voi'''<ref>'''[[Halo Mythos]]''', ''page 117''</ref> and the '''Third Battle of New Mombasa''',<ref>'''[[Halo Legendary Crate]]''', ''[[Halo Legendary Crate/Data Drops|Data Drop #2]]''</ref> was an [[Battle|engagement]] between the [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]]-[[Fleet of Retribution|Sangheili]] alliance and the [[Covenant]] in the [[Tsavo]] region in and around the town of [[Voi]], [[Kenya]] on [[Earth]] in [[2552#November|November 2552]]. It was the last engagement in the Battle of Kenya<ref name="HSA">'''[[Halo: Spartan Assault]]''', ''[[Flood Missions]]'' introductory cutscene</ref> at the close of the Covenant's [[Battle of Earth|invasion of Earth]].<ref name="tsavo">'''Halo 3''', campaign level, ''[[Tsavo Highway (level)|Tsavo Highway]]''</ref><ref name="storm">'''Halo 3''', campaign level, ''[[The Storm]]''</ref><ref name="flood">'''Halo 3''', campaign level, ''[[Floodgate]]''</ref>

==Introduction==
Since the arrival of the [[Jiralhanae]]-led Covenant [[Truth's fleet|occupation fleet]] on October 20, 2552 and the following days, the Covenant had occupied the entire region between [[Mombasa]] and [[Voi]]. Their goal was to uncover a [[Forerunner]] artifact, [[Portal at Voi|the Portal]] which led to [[Installation 00|the Ark]]. The Covenant fleet consisted of twenty-eight {{Class|CCS|battlecruiser}}s and two {{Class|CAS|assault carrier}}s.

This was dark time for the UNSC; earlier in battle, Covenant infantry and vehicular detachments had overwhelmed ground-based UNSC defending forces, forcing them to retreat from the area, taking heavy casualties in the process. The situation in orbit was similar; the Covenant loyalist ships greatly reduced the UNSC Home Fleet, already weakened by the initial attack. Despite several UNSC counter-attacks before the final battle, the Covenant had been gaining more and more ground in Eastern Africa, and thoroughly occupied Voi.

The last UNSC stronghold in the region was a recently re-purposed 20th-century base, [[Crow's Nest]], located 14km away from Voi. This was where the remaining UNSC forces in the area were coordinated. After [[Commander]] [[Miranda Keyes]], Sergeant Major [[Avery Junior Johnson|Avery Johnson]] and [[Arbiter]] [[Thel 'Vadam]] arrived at Earth from [[Installation 05]], Commander Keyes assumed command of the base.

==Preceding skirmishes==
Prior to the UNSC assault on Voi, there were several skirmishes between the UNSC and Covenant forces some distance away from the city, as the UNSC regrouped and formulated their plan to assault the Covenant's excavation site. They eventually managed to make a hole in the Covenant perimeter defenses at the [[Tsavo Highway]], the primary route to Voi.

===Crow's Nest===
[[File:90872136-Full.jpg|thumb|left|A Pelican in the hangar of [[Crow's Nest]].]]

Shortly after John-117 was recovered, following the events of the [[Raid on Kilimanjaro]], the Arbiter and Sergeant Major Avery Johnson arrived at the base and began to discuss plans for attacking the Prophet of Truth's army at the Forerunner structure. The Prophet sent a transmission announcing his plans to destroy them and launched a massive assault on the Marine base. The UNSC forces, spread thin, fought against the Covenant forces in order to hold them back long enough to evacuate the wounded.

The Chief, alongside with [[squad]]s led by Gunnery Sergeants [[Reynolds]] and [[Stacker]], led a strike against the bulk of the invaders while Johnson and the Arbiter guarded the ops center. The Chief soon had to return to the ops center, as the Jiralhanae were attacking it. He swiftly defeated the invasion and learned that Keyes had ordered the [[unidentified UNSC bomb|massive bomb]] planted, which would explode and set off other charges in the base, obliterating it and all Covenant within. The Chief then had to go with the Arbiter to rescue Marines trapped by the Jiralhanae in the barracks before the Jiralhanae killed all the prisoners.

The Chief and the Arbiter rescued as many Marines as they could and had [[Hocus]] evacuate them (and the rest of the UNSC forces still there) via [[Kilo 023|Pelican]]. The Chief then fell back to the ops center to defeat a Jiralhanae force that had taken it over and deactivated the bomb. The Chief reactivated the bomb and retreated, barely escaping as the bomb went off and killed the remaining Covenant.<ref>'''Halo 3''', campaign level, ''[[Crow's Nest (level)|Crow's Nest]]''</ref>

===Tsavo Highway===
[[File:H3 E3 Tsavo Highway Road.jpg|thumb|left|The battle on the Tsavo Highway.]]

UNSC forces led by John-117 and Gunnery Sergeant Reynolds, a small amount of Marines who survived the battle of Crow's Nest unscathed, escaped the ruins of the complex in Warthogs to avoid Jiralhanae who would inevitably search the remains of the base for survivors. While escaping, they helped a group of Marines near the base's entrance who were pinned down by Covenant scouts. The survivors were unable to send transmissions, but they were able to receive them. They were ordered by Miranda Keyes to go to Voi and assist Marine forces there, who were battling the Prophet of Truth's troops.

John-117 and the Marines traveled along the Tsavo Highway, battling Covenant troops in the shadow of the skeletal remains of the [[Mombasa Tether]]. Nearby, Gunnery Sergeant Stacker led a convoy bringing supplies to the exhausted troops at Voi, but they were ambushed and strafed by Banshees. John-117 and the Marines with him were able to reach the convoy and rescue the survivors. They were finally able to communicate with Miranda Keyes, who was told by [[ONI Recon 111]] that the Prophet of Truth was excavating what they surmised to be the Ark. With the help of resupply Pelicans sent by Sergeant Major Avery Junior Johnson, John-117's convoy was able to punch through to Voi.<ref name="tsavo"/>

==Assault on Voi==
[[File:Voi 1.jpg|thumb|left|The [[M12 Force Application Vehicle|Warthog]] convoy arrives.]]

After his battle to fight his way up the Tsavo Highway, John-117 not only secured the gate to Voi but also a landing zone for Commander Miranda Keyes to deploy her Marines. Mounting up with a group of Warthogs, he rode to the gates outside of the Traxus facility where previous Marine counter attacks had failed. Ten marines dismounted from the [[M831 Troop Transport|Transport Warthogs]] along with the Chief and then a few remained to operate their [[M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle|Warthog LRV]] to give them heavy support.

After initially infiltrating the facility the first gate was opened, interrupting a [[file]] of Kig-Yar and Unggoy during one of Truth's speeches via a [[portable holo-pedestal]]. They were taken by surprise and quickly eliminated. After fighting through another file of Unggoy, the Chief opened the [[door]] to a long tunnel heading down the facility. A large group of Unggoy, Kig-Yar and a single [[Jiralhanae Captain]] guarded the other end of the corridor, along with their reserve [[Type-32 Ghost|Ghost RAVs]]. After the combined arms of the Chief, the Warthog and the Marines defeated the defenders, they finally broke through to their first objective.<ref name="storm"/>

===The first objective===
In the dried out dockyard outside, the first [[Type-52 Anti-Aircraft Artillery|Type-52 Anti Aircraft Artillery]] lay, lending its weight to an aerial dogfight between [[AV-14 Hornet|Hornet Gunships]] and [[Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft|Banshees]]. It was guarded by a trio of Ghosts and numerous [[Type-52 Troop Carrier|Phantoms]] came in to cover the ground forces. The UNSC forces punched upwards, securing a UNSC held dock office after initially being pushed back from it and used the [[LAU-65D/SGM-151]] SAM turret at the base to beat back Covenant armed forces. After destroying their objective they pushed onwards, destroying the [[Type-26 Assault Gun Carriage|Wraith]] that defended the doorway back into the Traxus facility.

===Regroup===
Inside, the UNSC forces still held parts of the facility but were being pushed back by an assault being headed by a [[Jiralhanae Chieftain]]. In there, a Marine fire team operating an [[AIE-486H Heavy Machine Gun]] held the Covenant at bay, at least for a time. A Marine squad headed by John-117 pushed in and killed the Chieftain and [[Jiralhanae Bodyguard|his bodyguards]] attempting to oust the Marine defenders. After opening the next bulkhead for the Warthog they were ambushed by a swarm of [[Yanme'e]] that descended from a Phantom overhead. After forcing them into a retreat the Master Chief and the Warthog linked up with a Marine anti-tank unit armed with [[M41 Surface-to-Surface Rocket Medium Anti-Vehicle/Assault Weapon|M41 rocket launchers]] that had requisitioned four [[M274 Ultra-Light All-Terrain Vehicle|M274 Mongoose ULATVs]] to use as improvised fast-attack light anti-armor vehicles. A Marine offered Spartan-117 the controls of his Mongoose and he led them out into the next dock.

===The second objective===
In the next dry dock a pair of [[Type-52 Anti-Aircraft Artillery|AA Wraiths]] battered UNSC air forces, and had a significant amount of defensive measures compared to the last area. A number of [[Type-32 Rapid Assault Vehicle|Ghosts]] and [[Type-25 Rapid Assault Vehicle|Chopper RAVs]] defended against UNSC counterattack. The Marine mounted anti-tank unit, the supporting Warthog LRV and a number of troops defending the actual dock with conventional arms and a series of SAM turrets. Covenant forces were beaten back and their AA batteries destroyed but they refused to admit defeat, bringing in Ghost reinforcements on [[Type-52 Troop Carrier|Phantoms]]. They were all defeated in turn, leaving the UNSC forces a respite and a chance to bring in more mounted anti-tank units before the Covenant gave one last push to retake the dock. A [[Type-47B Scarab]] was deployed engaged the mounted forces in the dock. The Marines had a choice whether to disable its legs to cripple it and bring it low then board and destroy its power core or to buy time for the Master Chief so he could use one of the dock cranes to board it. In time, it was defeated and destroyed, giving the UNSC forces breathing space to make their push for the final objective.

===Push to the AA gun===
[[File:Covenant Anti-Air gun.jpg|thumb|200px|The final objective.]]

The [[John-117|Master Chief]] soon traveled up to the dock and was joined by another squad of reinforcements led by [[Thel 'Vadam]] and moved through to another section of the Traxus facility. This section served as the Marines' local command center, their medical station and ammo dump. It was heavily fortified with numerous defensive points armed with machine guns, but at the other end of the base, where it entered the warehouse, their defensive position was falling. Jiralhanae forces had pushed back through the warehouse, flanking their defensive position. UNSC forces, now joined by [[Civilian|Voi dock and factory workers]] and led by the Arbiter and the Chief soon pushed back, retaking the warehouse and defeating large groups of Jiralhanae and a [[Mgalekgolo]] pair before a showdown with a Chieftain outside. After more tight street to street fighting, they pushed the Covenant forces back to the rocky precipice where the AA gun lay. With no way for the Jiralhanae to retreat and with Lord Hood's attack imminent, it was make or break time. UNSC forces pushed up the hill, fighting off another [[Jiralhanae War Chieftain|War Chieftain]], numerous Unggoy and Kig-yar, the Chieftain's pack and several hastily planted [[Type-52 Directed Energy Support Weapon|plasma cannons]]. After defeating the forces guarding it they destroyed its rapidly overheating core and cooling system to cripple it and waited as [[Terrence Hood|Lord Hood]]'s attack commenced.

===Activation of the Portal===
[[File:Halo3-1213288452-668.jpg|thumb|right|The portal opening.]]

A task force of three [[UNSC frigate|frigates]], including the {{UNSCShip|Forward Unto Dawn}}, and [[GA-TL1 Longsword|Longsword]] fighters assaulted the [[Forerunner Dreadnought]] sitting in the center of the artifact. Multiple [[Magnetic Accelerator Cannon|MAC]] rounds and fighter-launched ordnance proved ineffective. The Dreadnought suffered no apparent damage and it proceeded to activate the artifact. [[Covenant]] forces quickly departed through the newly-created [[slipspace portal]]. Another unexpected event soon manifested in the arrival and crash landing of the ''[[Indulgence of Conviction]]'' in Voi. Although it was initially thought to bear Jiralhanae reinforcements, it soon became apparent that it brought [[The Flood|Flood]] instead.

===The Floodgate opens===
[[File:Voi 7.jpg|thumb|right|The infected battlecruiser slips in.]]

The victorious [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]] forces were now encountering unknown hostiles all over the town and they splintered, as their weary forces were no match for the parasite. The Flood had found their way to Earth and rapidly begun to spread. [[Miranda Keyes|Commander Keyes]] gave a single order, fight to the core of the ship and overload its [[Pinch fusion reactor|reactors]], which would destroy the ship, the city, and any Flood in the area along with it. Master Chief and the Arbiter headed back into the town to outside the warehouse facility to see the true face of their enemy. A pair of retreating marine fire teams were ambushed by [[Flood combat form|combat forms]] and [[Pod infector|infection forms]], leaving their infection as inevitable. John-117, the Arbiter and the survivors had to inevitably turn their guns on their former comrades.

After pressing through the warehouse, they linked up with more survivors and pressed on. The route to the command center had been closed off so now they had to find another way around. Using [[fusion core]]s as improvised explosives and an [[M7057/Defoliant Projector]] as an ''ad hoc'' anti-Flood weapon, they circumnavigated the bulkhead and entered the unusually empty command center. Encountering a [[Suicidal Marine|single, delirious survivor]], the UNSC forces continued to push to the downed ship to meet their [[Sangheili|new allies]].

===The Fleet of Retribution===
The Sangheili [[Fleet of Retribution]] had followed the [[The Flood|Flood]]-infected ship from their blockade at [[Installation 05|Delta Halo]] to its arrival at Earth. They began to drop Sangheili forces to push towards the ship, seeking a prize that lay within it. It wasn't until they came back into the Traxus facility that the Sangheili told the UNSC that they believed the [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] [[Cortana]] was within the downed ship. The Sangheili and the Master Chief eventually reached the crash site. With the remaining forces giving cover to the Chief, he entered the Flood controlled ship and retrieved Cortana. After the remaining troops were evacuated safely, the Sangheili [[glassing|glassed]] the infested land, sterilizing the area and effectively ending the Battle of Voi.

==Aftermath==
[[File:Final meeting 7.png|thumb|UNSC and Sangheili leaders convene aboard ''Shadow of Intent''.]]
[[File:HSA Flood infesting Earth.jpg|thumb|A simulation of Earth being infested by the Flood.]]
Following the battle, UNSC and Sangheili military leaders held a meeting aboard the Sangheili flagship ''[[Shadow of Intent]]''. There, what was initially thought to be Cortana turned out to be a message from her. The message warned the UNSC and Sangheili that the Gravemind itself was coming to infest Earth aboard the former Covenant holy city ''[[High Charity]]''. The recording also informed them that beyond the Portal was a means of stopping the Flood without firing the Halo Array. The Sangheili opted to go through the Portal after Truth, but Lord Hood wanted to stay to defend Earth, despite the Sangheili's insistence that Earth could not survive a full-scale Flood invasion. The Master Chief, however, convinced Hood to allow the UNSC's remaining forces to accompany the Sangheili through the Portal to both stop Truth and find Cortana's solution to the Flood. Hood remained behind to coordinate Earth's remaining defenses.

Though the Battle of Voi concluded with the end of the Covenant presence in Africa, remaining loyalists had fortified themselves across the southwestern [[URNA]]. The Prophet of Truth and his fleet's departure through the Portal sent the Covenant [[battlenet]] into disarray, allowing UNSC forces to enact [[URNA Southwest Campaign|a major counteroffensive]] in Arizona, which set the stage for eliminating the Covenant presence on Earth once and for all during [[Operation: MARSH FLASH]] in early December.<ref name="loot2">'''[[Halo Legendary Crate]]''', ''[[Halo Legendary Crate/Data Drops|Data Drop #2]]''</ref> 

The Flood threat to Earth was neutralized, but only after the area surrounding the Portal had been glassed. Hood's expected Flood invasion never came; the following day, the Gravemind had ''High Charity'' perform a Slipspace jump from the vicinity of Mars to the Ark instead.<ref name="Bulletin924">[https://blogs.halowaypoint.com/en-us/blogs/headlines/posts/the-halo-bulletin-9-24-14 '''Halo Waypoint''' - The Halo Bulletin: 9.24.14'']</ref> At some point following the battle, the UNSC performed biohazard containment protocols in what remained of Voi--now dubbed the "Voi Exclusion Zone"--as part of [[Operation: JOINT MONITOR]] to ensure no Flood presence was left; none was detected.<ref name="H5GLtd">'''[[Halo 5: Guardians Limited Edition]]'''</ref><ref name="HNB">'''[[Halo: New Blood]]'''</ref>

After the Human-Covenant War, the UNSC concealed Voi's glassing as a surprise attack by the Covenant, although some humans outside the UNSC, such as [[Staffan Sentzke]], knew the truth about Voi's glassing. The arrival of the Flood on Earth also made the UNSC realize the full extent of the threat posed by the parasite; the UNSC concluded that if the Covenant had not glassed Voi, Earth would have fallen in hours. After the creation of the [[SPARTAN-IV Program]], the UNSC began to develop training simulations for the Spartans, and create technology against the Flood, in the hypothetical case of the parasite returning to threaten the galaxy.<ref name="HSA"/>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Voi 3.jpg|The first objective in sight.
File:Anti-Air Fire.jpg|The first objective.
File:Voi 2.jpg|John-117 and his backup fight through the Traxus facility.
File:Voi 6.jpg|One of the AA Wraiths is destroyed by Marine forces.
File:Voi 5.jpg|Sierra-117 regroups with Marine forces.
File:Marines outside Traxus.jpg|A group of Marines outside the Factory Complex.
File:Halo3 123807746 Full.jpg|Marines at the docks.
File:Halo3 123807748 Full.jpg|The ruins of New Mombasa are visible from across the crater.
File:1216050538 Scarab.jpg|A Scarab deployed into the lakebed. 
File:H3 E3 Shootdown.jpg|A Longsword is hit by the AA gun
File:Mac.jpg|The {{UNSCship|Forward Unto Dawn}} fires on the Dreadnought.
File:UNSCHitsDreadnought-large.jpg|The Dreadnought right before the opening of the portal.
File:Floodgate concept.jpg|Concept art of ODSTs facing the Flood in Voi.
</gallery>

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo: First Strike]]''
**''[[Petra]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo 3]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo Legends]]''
**''[[Origins]]''
*''[[Halo: Spartan Assault]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Mortal Dictata]]'' {{Im}}
*''[[Halo Mythos]]''

==Sources==
<references/>
{{Human-Covenant War}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Voi}}
[[Category:UNSC Victories|Voi]]