Editing Mantle's Approach

|manufacturer= Master Builder's Fabricae<ref name="warfleet">''[[Halo: Warfleet]]'', p. 86-87</ref>{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22P381|Enc22|Page=381}}

|role=Domination{{Ref/Reuse|warfleet}}{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22P381}}

|height={{Convert|371.4|km|mi|sp=us}}{{Ref/Reuse|VIS}}{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22P381}}

|mass=4.7 quadrillion metric tons{{Ref/Reuse|warfleet}}{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22P381}}

'''''Mantle's Approach''''' was an [[Orders of battle|unordered]] command vessel built specifically to serve as the personal [[flagship]] of the [[Ur-Didact|Didact]].{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22P381}}<ref>'''[[Halo Waypoint]]''', ''Section 3 Archive''</ref> The only vessel of its kind, the ''Mantle's Approach'' played a pivotal roles in the final years of the [[Forerunner-Flood war]] executing the Didact's will by launching an army of [[Promethean#Mechanical Prometheans|machine-warriors]] that were effectively impervious to the [[Flood]], and later composing [[human]]s to create more of these warriors. The ship would remain on [[Requiem]] throughout the Didact's imprisonment, only to be awakened along with the [[Forerunner]]. The ''Mantle's Approach'' would ultimately be destroyed by [[John-117]] and [[Cortana]] with a well-placed [[HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon|nuclear warhead]]. What remained of the ship's core escaped via an emergency [[slipspace]] jump to the [[shield world]] of [[Genesis]].{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22P381}}

This massive vessel was once captained by the Didact at the height of [[Forerunner]] power. Built during the [[human-Forerunner wars]], it served as the Ur-Didact's personal command ship. The [[design seed]] of the vessel was not approved by the [[Ecumene Council]], but by [[Master Builder]] [[Faber]] himself.{{Ref/Site|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/forums/db05ce78845f4120b062c50816008e5d/topics/mantle-s-approach-size/db6315c7-a250-494b-8729-fe68dffeed1f/posts?page=2|Site=Halo Waypoint Forums|Page=Mantle's Approach Size|D=29|M=11|Y=2019|LocalArchive=Catalog/Archive/2014#Mantle's Approach Size}} While not the largest of Forerunner ships, ''Mantle's Approach'' was the fastest and most heavily armed warship in the [[Forerunner fleet]].{{Ref/Reuse|VIS}} The ship held a number of [[Twelfth-order escort|escort craft]] for transport within the vessel,<ref name="escort">'''[[Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', ''page 123''</ref> and at its height it possessed enormous support fleets of both manned and automated combat craft, including [[war sphinx]]es,{{Ref/Reuse|escort}} [[sentinel]]s and internally-stored fighters.{{Ref/Reuse|VIS}} During the Didact's assault on [[Omega Halo]], it had an escort of thousands of sentinels.<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''pages 261-262''</ref> Like many Forerunner warships,<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''pages 213''</ref> ''Mantle's Approach'' possessed a cloaking ability.{{Ref/Reuse|cloak}}

After his awakening in [[2557|July 2557]], the Didact quickly escaped in his Cryptum and, once the necessary preparations were complete, he recoupled the Cryptum with ''Mantle's Approach'' and took off immediately. He jumped to [[Ivanoff Station]] alongside a [[Jul 'Mdama's Covenant faction|Covenant]] fleet, intent on reclaiming the Composer. The Didact test-fired the Composer on the station, then proceeded to [[Earth]] to settle his personal war with humanity once and for all.<ref>'''Halo 4''', campaign level ''[[Composer (level)|Composer]]''</ref>  Although Earth had been warned of the attack, the planet's [[orbital defense platform]]s and the [[Home Fleet]] were unable to stop the colossal Forerunner ship.

Unbeknownst to the Ur-Didact, however, [[SPARTAN-II program|Spartan]] [[John-117]] had survived the Composer's deadly pulse thanks to immunization provided by the Librarian. Pursuing ''Mantle's Approach'' aboard a [[HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon|nuclear-armed]] [[F-41 Broadsword]], the Spartan took out the ship's point defense turrets, allowing the {{UNSCShip|Infinity}} to punch a hole through the ship's hull with her fore weapons. The Master Chief then fought his way through the ship, eventually finding the Didact controlling the Composer under an impenetrable force field. The AI [[Cortana]] overloaded the shields by flooding the ship's mainframe with her rampant duplicates, allowing the Chief to confront the Didact. Although John was no match for the Didact's powerful abilities, Cortana was able to immobilize the Promethean with [[hard light]] shackles, allowing the Chief to plant a [[Z-040 pulse grenade|pulse grenade]] in the Didact's armour. The resulting explosion knocked the Didact off balance and sent him falling into a slipspace portal underneath the Composer.<ref name="midnight">'''Halo 4''', campaign level ''[[Midnight]]''</ref>

With the Composer already firing upon [[New Phoenix]], [[Unified Republic of North America|URNA]], the Spartan manually detonated the HAVOK warhead as a desperate last resort. The Composer was destroyed by the HAVOK nuke, along with the majority of the ''Mantle's Approach''. The dying Cortana teleported the Master Chief out of the ship at the very last moment and created a hard light barrier around him, saving John's life. The remains of ''Mantle's Approach'' formed a debris field over Earth.{{Ref/Reuse|midnight}} Pieces of the ship's remains exited over [[Installation 03]] in the [[Khaphrae system]]. Some of the debris entered the atmosphere of the Halo installation—an event observed by SPARTAN-II [[Black Team]].<ref>'''Halo: Escalation''', ''[[Halo: Escalation Issue 9|Issue #9]]''</ref>

File:H4-Terminal-MantlesApproach.jpg|The ''Mantle's Approach'' in ''Halo 4''{{'}}s terminals.

File:H4-MantlesApproachShip-Slipspace.jpg|John-117 pursuing the ''Mantle's Approach'' onboard his [[F-41 Broadsword]].

File:H4-Infinity-Mantle.jpg|The UNSC ''Infinity'' facing the ''Mantle's Approach''.

File:H4-Concept-MantlesApproach.jpg|More concept art of the ''Mantle's Approach'' ship with the Didact's Cryptum.