Editing Minister of Etiology

{{Status|Canon}}
{{Center|''Were you looking for the [[Ministry of Etiology]]?''}}
{{Character infobox
|variant=Cov
|name=Minister of Etiology
|image=[[File:Fleet Battles - Minister of Etiology.jpg|300px]]
|homeworld=
|birth=
|death=[[2552#September|September 21, 2552]]{{Ref/Comic|Id=hgn|HGN|Story=The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor}}
|causeofdeath=
|parents=
|siblings=
|spouses=
|children=
|species=[[San'Shyuum]]
|gender=Male
|height=
|mass=
|hair=Gray
|eyes=Blue
|affiliation=*[[Covenant]] {{C|formerly}}{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
**[[Ministry of Etiology]]{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
*[[Flood]]
|rank-title=Title(s)|rank=*[[Minister (title)|Minister]] of [[Ministry of Etiology|Etiology]]{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
*[[Minor Prophet]]{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc11|Enc11|Page=284}}
*Legate
|sn=
|notable=
}}
{{Quote|I see you never studied, Commander. They are the Flood, one of the many tests and obstacles we must pass to activate the holy rings and begin the Great Journey.|The Minister of Etiology, to [[Rtas 'Vadum]]ee and [[Bero 'Kusovai]]{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}}}

The '''Minister of Etiology''', also known as the '''Legate''', was a [[San'Shyuum]] politician and [[Minor Prophet]], serving as the [[Covenant]] [[Minister (title)|Minister]] of [[Ministry of Etiology|Etiology]] during the [[Human-Covenant War]]. He was stationed aboard the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]]'s {{Pattern|Mjern|agricultural support ship}} ''[[Infinite Succor]]'' during the [[Battle of Installation 04|Battle]] of [[Installation 04]].{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}{{Ref/Site|Id=CFBeyond|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/canon-fodder-infinity-beyond|Site=Halo Waypoint|Page=Canon Fodder - Infinity & Beyond|D=23|M=12|Y=2019}} He was one of two San'Shyuum personnel in the fleet, the other being the [[Prophet of Stewardship|Minor Prophet of Stewardship]].

==Biography==
===Early life===
The Minister of Etiology spent much of his life studying the [[Flood]]. Eventually he was assigned to the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]] as the master of the support ship ''[[Infinite Succor]]''.{{Ref/Twitter|Halo|1197877643346989057|Halo|Quote=Assigned to Thel ‘Vadamee’s Fleet of Particular Justice as master of the support ship Infinite Succor, the Minister of Etiology would eventually meet his end fighting the very threat he had spent much of his life studying – the Flood.|D=22|M=11|Y=2019}} While assigned to ''Infinite Succor'', the Minister had a safe room installed on the ship for his own protection, fearing a [[naval boarding]] action would easily overwhelm the ship's small on-board security force due to its total lack of any Sangheili - something he considered lacking. The crew of the ship were left unaware of this fact.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}

===Battle of Installation 04===
{{Quote|We...have command codes. Will soon leave, spread.|Etiology as the [[Proto-Gravemind]]}}
During the [[Battle of Installation 04]], ''Infinite Succor'' was in orbit over [[Installation 04]] along with the rest of the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]], when it became subject to the ongoing [[Outbreak at the Containment Facility|outbreak]] of the [[Flood]] on the ring. Late in the campaign, the {{Pattern|Dextro Xur|Spirit}} dropship ''[[Brilliant Gift]]'' was able to leave the [[Halo array|ringworld's]] surface and crash in ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s [[hangar bay]], depositing its cargo of Flood forms onto the ship - which promptly began to infect its crew. The Minister of Etiology retreated to his safe room as soon as the boarding alarm was sounded, and disabled the ship's primary controls to ensure the Flood would not be able to take control of the ship and escape the [[Soell system]], also disabling the ship's [[self-destruct]] system. The minister planned to wait for reinforcements to arrive - something which proved true later when a [[Covenant Special Operations]] strike force led by [[Commander (Covenant)|Commander]] [[Rtas 'Vadum]]ee was tasked by the fleet's [[Supreme Commander]], [[Thel 'Vadam]]ee, to board ''Infinite Succor'', rescue the minister, and destroy the ship.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}

Upon initial contact, the minister refused to re-enable ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s self-destruct, worrying that Rtas and his troops were a ruse; that they had been infected by the Flood and were trying to trick him into opening his safe room. Consequently, he demanded that the team head to the ship's medical bay and submit scans to him that proved they were clean of Flood infection - before directing them to head to the hydroponics bay and into the safe room. During his time watching the strike team, he observed the Flood's behaviour change as it infected the [[Sangheili]] officers leading the force, and the Flood's [[Flood outbreak|evolution into a new stage]] - growing more organised and altering the atmosphere on-board to facilitate the creation of a [[Proto-Gravemind]]. He observed that the Flood appeared to inherit the knowledge of their victims and worried that they were planning to use the ship's [[borer]] to escape into [[Slipstream space|slipspace]] and begin spreading the infection across [[Milky Way|the galaxy]].{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
[[File:Legate.png|thumb|250px|left|The Minister absorbed by the Flood.]]
While conversing with 'Vadumee, the minister repeatedly emphasised his own importance, and that the strike team's priority was to escort him to safety. He also noted that ''Infinite Succor'' lacked any [[vacuum suit]]s suitable for Sangheili, on account of its lack of Sangheili crew, meaning that it would be impossible to simply depressurise the ship and kill the Flood that way. As such, 'Vadumee instructed that [[Sub-commander]] [[Bero 'Kusovai]] take a strike team to their boarding ship ''[[Glorious Advance]]'' while he took the other troops to ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s engineering deck to enact the self-destruct. If 'Vadumee did not return, 'Kusovai was to signal the fleet to fire upon and destroy ''Infinite Succor''. The minister objected to 'Vadumee's plan, noting that splitting the force would be insufficient to provide him adequete protection while he was escorted to ''Glorious Advance''. 'Vadumee in turn noted that the time and effort it would take to escort the minister to safety would be a huge risk, especially with the Flood tirelessly working to hack ''Infinite Succor'' and leave the system - by contrast, it would be a simple matter to kill the frail San'Shyuum and posit that he had simply been killed in the initial attack. 'Vadumee promptly struck the minister before picking him up and throwing him across the room - killing him and taking his access codes.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}

After 'Vadumee and his entourage left the safe room to finish their mission, the Flood infected the now-dead minister - absorbing him into the Proto-Gravemind and gaining all of his knowledge - including the command codes needed to operate ''Infinite Succor''. As 'Vadumee worked to enact ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s destruction, the Flood used the minister's face to taunt him, noting that the [[Forerunner]]s had [[Forerunner-Flood war|failed]] to stop the Flood, and that the Covenant had no chance. Despite this, 'Vadumee successfully completed his mission, causing ''Infinite Succor'' to fly into Soell and be destroyed.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}

==In-game information==
===''Halo: Fleet Battles''===
The Minister of Etiology is available as a Heroic Character in ''[[Halo: Fleet Battles]]''. As a Heroic Character he must be assigned to a specific formation base within the fleet at the start of the battle.{{Ref/Reuse|CFBeyond}}

{| class="wikitable" style="width:70%;text-align:center"
|+ <sup>MINOR PROPHET</sup><br>MINISTER OF ETILOGY - 80 points
|-
| ZEALOTS: 0-2 per full 1000 Points / 1VP KIA || Each Zealot costs +10 Points
|-
! colspan=2 | Special Orders
|-
| colspan=2 |
;Prepare My Transport
:Cost: 2 Order Defense die
: The Minister of Etiology is never without an escape plan. Should the element containing the Minister be destroyed, roll a Halo dice - on the roll of any result other than a fail, the Minister may be placed on a nearby friendly vessel within 12". Should Minister roll a fail when trying to escape, or have no friendly formation base within 12" however, the Minister is removed from the game and the enemy fleet gains and additional +4 victory points.
|-
| colspan=2 |
;Protect The Minister!
:Cost: 2 Order Attack die
: The Minister may force an enemy firing solution targeting his own formation base to re-target a different member of his battle group - even if a loadout would require the formation to be the nominated (missile barrage, for example). This order may be issued after the formation containing the Minister is declared the target of a firing solution.
|-
! colspan=2 | Unique Ability
|-
| colspan=2 | 
:Whilst utterly self-possessed and concerned only with politics, the Minster claims a high rank within the Covenant hierarchy and can bend even Fleet Commanders to his will. After any initial order dice have been rolled during the order dice phase, the Minister may change a single friendly Covenant order dice to be any result.
|}

==Production notes==
The Minister of Etiology was first introduced in ''[[The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor]]'', a story in the ''[[Halo Graphic Novel]]'' with an extremely heavily stylised visual style. As part of this style, the minister is illustrated as having four fingers on each hand rather than the three as shown in all other media. A minor oversight is also shown later in the story when the Legate is grabbed in a chokehold by Rtas 'Vadumee, then slammed to the floor. In the next panel, he is seen unharmed, his headpiece unbroken, and his being is robustly frail as any other Prophet. This is just a simple printing glitch, meant to be in a prior page.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}

The minister was later featured in ''[[Halo: Fleet Battles]]'' as a Heroic Character, and given a new and definitive illustration more in keeping with ''Halo''{{'}}s canon visual direction (shown at the top of this page).{{Ref/Reuse|CFBeyond}}

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:Legate.jpg|The Minister in the ''Graphic Novel''
File:Fleet Battles - Covenant busts.jpg|''Halo: Fleet Battles'' busts of the Minister and other Covenant leaders
</gallery>

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo: The Flood]]''
**''[[Halo: The Flood#2010 bonus content|Adjunct]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo Graphic Novel]]''
**''[[The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Fleet Battles]]''

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

{{DEFAULTSORT:Etiology}}
[[Category:San'Shyuum characters]]
[[Category:Covenant politicians]]