Editing UNSC Forward Unto Dawn

{{Title|UNSC ''Forward Unto Dawn''}}
{{Era|HCW|Post}}
{{Center|'''Forward Unto Dawn''' redirects here. For the web series, see [[Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn]]; for the poem, see [[Forward Unto Dawn (poem)]].}}
{{Individual ship infobox
|name            = UNSC ''Forward Unto Dawn''
|image           = [[File:H3-UNSCForwardUntoDawnFrigate.png|350px]]
|class           = {{Class|Charon|light frigate}}
|length          = {{Convert|490|m|ftin|sp=us}}<ref name="guide"/><ref name="Bulletin 10.10.12"/>
|width           = {{Convert|155.2|m|ftin|sp=us}}
|height          = {{Convert|139.2|m|ftin|sp=us}}
|engine          = [[Deuterium fusion reactor|Naoto Technologies: V4/L-DFR]]<ref name="Bulletin 10.10.12"/><ref name="changes">[[UNSC Forward Unto Dawn#Halo 4 redesign|See production notes.]]</ref>
|slipspace drive = [[Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine|Series IV CODEN/SFTE]]<ref name="Bulletin 10.10.12"/>
|hull            = 60 centimeters [[Titanium-A armor|titanium-A battleplate]]{{Citation needed}}
|armament        =
*[[Magnetic Accelerator Cannon|Mark II, Light Coil – 83B6R3/MAC]] (1)<ref name="Bulletin 10.10.12"/>
*[[M58 Archer missile]] pods (50)<ref name="Bulletin 10.10.12"/>
**30 missiles/pod
*[[M870 Rampart point defense gun|M870 Rampart 50mm point defense gun]]s (4x triple-linked)<ref name="Bulletin 10.10.12">[http://blogs.halowaypoint.com/Headlines/post/2012/10/10/The-Halo-Bulletin-101012-.aspx '''Halo Waypoint''': ''The Halo Bulletin: 10.10.12'']</ref><ref name="changes"/>
*Unidentified secondary point defense guns (6x quad-linked)<ref>[[:File:H4fudback.jpg|''Forward Unto Dawn'''s starboard hull.]]</ref>
*Unidentified tertiary point defense guns<ref>'''Halo 4''', campaign level ''[[Dawn (level)|Dawn]]'' - Forward Unto Dawn status hologram</ref>
*[[M4093 Hyperion nuclear delivery system]] (3 silos)<ref name="Bulletin 10.10.12"/>
|capacity        = 782 maximum crew and complement<ref>'''Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn''', ''Part 1''</ref>
*[[M808 Main Battle Tank]]s (4+)
*[[M12 Force Application Vehicle]]s (~12+)
*[[AV-14 Hornet]]s
*[[D77-TC Pelican]]s (7+) 
*[[Single Occupant Exoatmospheric Insertion Vehicle]]s (12+)
*Escape pods (12)         
|consumables     = Food, ammunition, fuel
|role            = Support for heavier ships, transport, command vessel <small>(after destruction of Home Fleet)</small>
|first sighting  = 
|destroyed       = 2552 - split in half, forward half crashed in Indian Ocean; [[2557]] - aft half crashed on [[Requiem]]
|battles         =;[[Human-Covenant War]]
*[[Battle of Earth]]
**[[Battle of Voi]]
*[[Battle of Installation 00]]
*[[Raid on Installation 04B]] 
;[[Human-Promethean war]]
*[[First Battle of Requiem]]
|affiliation     = [[UNSC Navy]]
|fleet           = [[Seventh Fleet]]<ref name="guide">'''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', ''page 74''</ref>
|named crew      =
|captains        = 
*[[Commander (UNSC)|Commander]] [[Miranda Keyes]]
*[[Fleet Admiral]] [[Terrence Hood]]
}}

'''UNSC ''Forward Unto Dawn''''' ([[Hull classification symbol|FFG-201]]) was a {{Class|Charon|light frigate}} in the [[UNSC Navy]].<ref name="guide"/> Affectionately known by her crew as "The ''Dawn''",<ref>'''[[Halo 3: Official Strategy Guide]]''', ''page 109''</ref><ref>'''Halo 3''', campaign level ''[[The Ark]]''</ref> the ship's name is taken from [[Forward Unto Dawn (poem)|a poem]] about humanity's interstellar expansion. With a maximum complement of 782,<ref>'''Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn''', ''Part 1''</ref> the ''Dawn'' participated in the final battles of the [[Human-Covenant War]].

== Operational history ==
=== Battle of Voi ===
{{Main|Battle of Voi}}
In November [[2552]], ''Forward Unto Dawn'' was part of the UNSC's [[Seventh Fleet]]. The ''Dawn'' was recalled to reinforce the [[UNSC Home Fleet]] during the [[Battle of Earth]].<ref name="guide"/> The UNSC suffered heavy casualties during the Covenant's assault. By the time [[SPARTAN-II Program|Spartan]] [[John-117]] arrived from [[Installation 05]] aboard the [[Prophet of Truth]]'s [[Forerunner Dreadnought]], ''Forward Unto Dawn'' was one of the few ships remaining under [[Fleet Admiral]] [[Terrence Hood]]'s command. Due to the lack of larger, more powerful vessels, Hood used the ''Dawn'' as his flagship during the Battle of Voi. He agreed to commit ''Forward Unto Dawn'' and two other frigates, (including [[UNSC Aegis Fate|''Aegis Fate'']]), against the grounded Dreadnought, which had begun interfacing with the [[Forerunner]] [[The Portal|structure]] the [[Covenant]] had unearthed between the cities of [[Mombasa]] and [[Voi]]. After the Spartan destroyed the Covenant's local anti-air defenses, the frigates and several [[GA-TL1 Longsword]]s assaulted the Dreadnought.

Despite firing nearly a dozen MAC slugs at Truth's ship, the Dreadnought remained unharmed. Immediately afterward, a slipspace portal was activated and [[Truth's fleet]] passed through it. Unbeknownst to the UNSC, who assumed that the excavated complex was itself the Ark, the real Ark, [[Installation 00]], lay beyond the portal.<ref>'''Halo 3''', campaign level ''[[The Storm (level)|The Storm]]''</ref>

The [[Flood]] arrived in Voi shortly after the opening of the slipspace portal; the parasite was pursued by a [[Covenant separatists|Covenant separatist]] [[Fleet of Retribution]], led by the [[assault carrier]] ''[[Shadow of Intent]]''. The Flood threat forced the UNSC into an alliance with the [[Sangheili]]-led separatists, commanded by [[Shipmaster]] [[Rtas 'Vadum]]. Both the humans and the Sangheili hoped to find a solution to the Flood beyond the portal. At least two UNSC vessels, ''Forward Unto Dawn'' and ''Aegis Fate'', were deployed alongside the Fleet of Retribution; elements of the [[11th Marine Force Reconnaissance/ODST]] were tasked with gathering intelligence on whatever lay beyond the portal. Hood gave [[Miranda Keyes|Commander Miranda Keyes]] command of ''Forward Unto Dawn'' while he remained behind to coordinate Earth's remaining defenses; the ship was docked inside ''Shadow of Intent'''s massive hangar bay and the task force set off through the portal.<ref>'''Halo 3''', campaign level ''[[Floodgate]]''</ref>

=== Operation: BLIND FAITH ===
{{Main|Battle of Installation 00}}
{{Quote|I'm giving the [[Jiralhanae|Brutes]] all I've got, but this is a heavy-weight fight! The Dawn's only got the tonnage to last a few rounds.|Commander Miranda Keyes during the battle over the Ark.}}
Once at the Ark, the opposing Covenant fleets engaged one another. The UNSC frigates were ill-equipped to fight against such large opponents, but were able to engage the enemy cruisers for a short time. ''Forward Unto Dawn'' deployed troops to the surface, with John-117's team disabling an [[Type-27 Anti-Aircraft Cannon|Mantis AA gun]]. Once a landing zone was cleared, ''Forward Unto Dawn'' set down near the [[Cartographer]] and directly offloaded several [[M808 Main Battle Tank]]s and [[M12 Force Application Vehicle]]s.

As the human-Sangheili alliance pushed toward the installation's control center, [[Sergeant Major]] [[Avery Johnson]] was captured so that Truth could force him to activate the [[Halo Array]]. Around this time, the Flood arrived at the Ark via the now-infested [[High Charity]] and began attacking both sides. Commander Keyes attempted a daring rescue, though she was killed personally by the Prophet of Truth. Shortly thereafter, John-117, [[Arbiter]] [[Thel 'Vadam]], and [[monitor]] [[343 Guilty Spark]] discovered that the Ark was manufacturing a [[Installation 04B|replacement]] for [[Installation 04]];<ref>'''Halo 3''', campaign level ''[[The Covenant]]''</ref> it was then determined that igniting the ring could destroy both the Flood and the Covenant with a single, decisive blow. With the rest of ''Forward Unto Dawn'''s crew and complement dead or aboard the remaining separatist vessels, Johnson brought the ship a few kilometers from the incomplete ring's [[Control Room]] and closed the distance in a Warthog.<ref name="Halo">'''Halo 3''', campaign level ''[[Halo (Halo 3 level)|Halo]]''</ref>

=== Escape from Installation 00 ===
{{Quote|Well, some of us made it.|Cortana, after escaping Installation 04B.}} 
Ultimately, Johnson was betrayed and killed by Guilty Spark, who was in turn destroyed by the Spartan. With the ring was activated, John and the Arbiter raced to the now-deserted vessel. After crashing Johnson's Warthog into the ship's oversized cargo bay, 'Vadam headed for the bridge while the Spartan uploaded [[Cortana]] into the ship's mainframe to activate the engines.<ref name="Halo"/> The ship entered the slipspace portal, which collapsed as the ring's energy pulse hit. ''Forward Unto Dawn'' was cut in half as a result.

The forward section, containing the Arbiter, returned to [[Earth]] and crashed into the Indian Ocean. He was rescued from the wreckage by a UNSC recovery team.<ref name="Halo"/> The debris from the ship that landed on Earth was auctioned off sometime after the end of the Human-Covenant War.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike (2010)''', ''Adjunct''</ref>

=== Adrift in space ===
[[File:H4fudback.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The ''Dawn'''s aft half drifting in space.]]
The aft section emerged in unknown space, John and Cortana having survived the Halo's pulse. The Spartan and AI were left in a drifting hulk without working propulsion. After Cortana dropped a [[emergency locator beacon|distress beacon]], John entered a [[cryo chamber]] to wait for recovery.<ref name="Halo"/> During the years that followed, Cortana remained active and alert while the Spartan slept in cryo. In [[2556]], the AI compiled a history of the [[Forerunner]]s and humanity and shared it with the still-unconscious Spartan.<ref>'''Halo Legends''' - ''Origins''</ref> She later took the opportunity to overhaul and upgrade John's [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark VI|Mark VI MJOLNIR armor]], making modifications to its layout using [[nanotechnology|nanomachines]] while also rewriting its firmware.<ref name="Dawn">'''Halo 4''', campaign level ''[[Dawn (level)|Dawn]]''</ref>

=== Arrival at Requiem ===
On [[2557|July 20th, 2557]],<ref name="Game Informer May 2012">'''Game Informer''': ''May 2012''</ref> precisely four years, seven months, and ten days after the Battle of Installation 00, Cortana noticed that the ship's intruder alarms had been activated and awakened John-117 from [[Cryonics|cryosleep]]. After being revived, John fought off the intruders, who turned out to be [[Sangheili]] and [[Unggoy]]. The Chief and Cortana soon realized that a [[Covenant remnant|Covenant fleet]] had surrounded the ''Forward Unto Dawn''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s remains while a group of [[Type-44 Troop Carrier|Phantoms]] unloaded more boarders onto the heavily damaged frigate. During the fight through the ship, the Master Chief managed to launch one of the ship's [[M4093 Hyperion nuclear delivery system|''Hyperion'' nuclear missiles]] and destroy a nearby {{Class|CRS|light cruiser}}.<ref name="Dawn"/> Soon, John and Cortana crashed on the Forerunner [[shield world]] known as [[Requiem]]. The remnants of the ''Dawn'' did not survive atmospheric entry and the ship was torn to pieces, scattered over a kilometers-wide swath on the surface, along with the attacking Covenant vessels.<ref name="Requiem">'''Halo 4''', campaign level ''[[Requiem (level)|Requiem]]''</ref>

Fortunately, dozens of weapons and a handful of [[M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle|M12 Warthog LRVs]] survived the crash, enabling John and Cortana to scout the surface of the shield world. Having discovered Cortana's distress beacon, the {{UNSCship|Infinity}} was deployed to recover the Dawn<nowiki>'</nowiki>s survivors.<ref name="Requiem"/> ''Infinity''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s crew, still following the beacon, attempted to find the Dawn<nowiki>'</nowiki>s crash site inside the installation. However, the ship's locator signal was being faked by the [[Forerunner]] supreme commander known as the [[Ur-Didact]], who attempted to draw the ''Infinity'' inside Requiem to enact his plan of vengeance upon humanity.<ref>'''Halo 4''', campaign level ''[[Forerunner (level)|Forerunner]]''</ref> The wreckage was presumably destroyed along with Requiem itself in [[2558|February 2558]].<ref>'''[[Spartan Ops]]''', [[S1/Exodus|S1E10 - ''Exodus'']]</ref>

== Production notes ==
[[File:FUD_H3-Hyperion_H4-scaled2.jpg|thumb|250px|A comparison between the ''Halo 3'' and ''Halo 4'' depictions of the ship's aft section.]]
Despite maintaining a [[:File:Infinity_fud_scale.jpg|similar profile]], the ''Charon'' class, most notably ''Forward Unto Dawn'', was redesigned in ''Halo 4''. The ship appears much larger, with more of the forward half remaining intact, though it is canonically still 490 meters long. This increase in scale was intended to create a more interesting playspace, much like the dramatic upscaling of the {{UNSCship|Pillar of Autumn}} in ''[[The Maw]]''; otherwise, the first level's playspace would have been cramped and required a great deal of backtracking. The scale is further confused by the Covenant cruisers encountered in the level; while the ''Dawn''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s aft half dwarfs what appears to be a colossal {{Class|CCS|battlecruiser}}, the enemy vessels are actually 300 meter-long ''CRS''-class light cruisers. The ship's cryotubes have also been remodeled and the cryo bay has been rearranged.

The enlarged cargo bay, (a defining feature of the ''Charon'' class), is greatly reduced in size, which creates an inconsistency with the final cutscene of the level ''[[Halo (Halo 3 level)|Halo]]''. Rather than having two primary engines on the main hull and two secondaries on the "wings", there are only two primary engines with one secondary nestled between them. The port and starboard hangar bays have been reduced from five small bays on either side to one much larger bay on either side; they are moved much farther back, remaining with the aft section. The point defense guns have been retconned into three separate models, increased in number, and moved to different areas on the hull.

A slightly modified version of the ''Dawn'''s redesign is used as the appearance of the {{Class|Strident|heavy frigate}}.
{{Clear}}
== Trivia ==
{{Linkbox|gallery=yes}}
*On the lower part of the bow there is a black "7" inside a yellow star with a yellow chevron under it, which shows the ship's assignment to the Seventh Fleet. This is one of [[Bungie]]'s myriad [[List of "seven" references in the Halo series|references to the number seven]].
*All three frigates in the level ''The Storm'', (one of them being ''Aegis Fate''), use the same textures as ''Forward Unto Dawn''.
*Like the main vessels of ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'' and ''[[Halo 2]]'', ([[UNSC Pillar of Autumn|''Pillar of Autumn'']] and ''[[UNSC In Amber Clad|In Amber Clad]]'', respectively), ''Forward Unto Dawn'' serves as the main vessel in ''[[Halo 3]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s campaign and is likewise destroyed near the end of the game.
*''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]'' mistakenly lists the ''Forward Unto Dawn'' as appearing in ''[[Halo 3: ODST]]''.

== Gallery ==
=== Profile ===
<gallery>
File:H3-ForwardUntoDawnSide.png|Profile view of the UNSC ''Forward Unto Dawn''.
File:Infinity fud scale.jpg|Size comparison between the ''Infinity'' and ''Forward Unto Dawn''.
File:Mac.jpg|The ''Dawn'' fires its MAC on the Forerunner Dreadnought at the Battle of Voi.
File:Forward into dawn.jpg|The ''Dawn'' arrives over Installation 00.
File:FUD-04-00.JPG|The ''Forward Unto Dawn'' hovering over the new Installation 04B with the Ark in the skyline.
File:FUD Escaping The Ark.jpg|The ''Dawn'' escapes Installation 04B's activation.
File:Halo3.png|The front section of ''Forward Unto Dawn'' enters Earth's atmosphere.
File:Fud_cutaway.jpg|The aft section of the ''Dawn'' just after being severed.
File:H3 - FUD aft.jpg|The aft half of the ''Dawn'' adrift in space.
File:Covenant fleet surrounding FUD.jpg|The Covenant remnant fleet converging around the ''Forward Unto Dawn''.
File:Planet 1.jpg|The aft half of the ''Dawn'' being pulled into Requiem in the [[Halo 4 announcement trailer|''Halo 4'' announcement trailer]].
File:Megabrand - Forward unto Dawn.jpg|An intact Halo 4-era ''Forward unto Dawn'' signature toy by [[MEGA Brands]].
</gallery>

===Interior===
<gallery>
File:Fud bridge.JPG|The interior of the ''Forward Unto Dawn's'' bridge.
File:Dawn.jpeg|The ''Dawn''<nowiki />'s cryobay.
File:H4-Dawn-OperationsRoom.jpg|The ''Dawn'''s operations room.
</gallery>

===''Halo 4'' concept art===
<gallery>
File:H4-Concept-Dawn-Explorations-3.jpg|Early concepts for the ''Forward Unto Dawn''.
File:H4-Concept-Dawn-Explorations-1.jpg|Profile design concepts of the ''Forward Unto Dawn''.
File:H4-Concept-Charon-Frigate.jpg|Finalized concept art of the ''Forward Unto Dawn'' prior to being "halved".
File:H4-Concept-Dawn-Explorations-2.jpg|Engine design concepts of the ''Forward Unto Dawn''.
</gallery>

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo 3]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo Legends]]''
**''[[Origins]]''
*''[[Halo: First Strike]]'' (2010) {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn]]''
*''[[Halo 4]]''

==Sources==
<references/>
{{UNSC Frigate}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forward Unto Dawn}}
[[Category:Human Ships]]