Revision as of 00:19, January 5, 2025

The following is an overview for a hypothetical Wildlife of Halo field guide, akin to other published art/lore books from Microsoft such as Halo: Warfleet or the Halo Encyclopedia. Its aim is to showcase the art and science of the Halo universe.

This is a work-in-progress document that may not be complete as of this reading.

Overview

This sandbox represents the proposed text and artwork for The Wildlife of Halo, as well as the general structure of the book and how it corresponds to the story of humanity's exploration of the galaxy within Halo lore. The intent is to tell the narrative of humanity's expansion from Earth throughout the Orion Arm from a scientific perspective, including the ecological mysteries that emerged on human colony worlds (foreshadowing later discoveries), the revelations brought about by the knowledge of Covenant space, and finally the mysteries of the Forerunners and their various installations.

The information presented here does not accord with Halopedia's standards for accurate lorekeeping, nor does it intend to. Instead of presenting only hard data from established sources, this document also includes elements of original lore, as though the text here were to be published as a reference book for fans to pore over and learn from. Original lore that is not part of official Halo canon may appear with explanatory notes,^{[Note 1]} though not in all instances.

When reading the guide in this format, keep in mind that each section or sub-section as formatted here on the wiki implies a page break. Full-size images represent artwork that would appear at the start of a new "chapter" within the book, typically a two-page spread for maximum visual impact, introducing a new location, which subsequent pages explore in detail. Images presented as part of a gallery would--in the published book--be formatted according to the needs of the page and the text they accompany, but that design is not included here.

The book currently sits at a proposed 133 pages.

"Empty" gallery images indicate an opportunity for Halo Studios to commission new artwork from proven artists.

This is particularly exciting as the artist has the chance to contribute lore conceived during the composition of the images towards official canon, fleshing out unexplored corners of the Halo universe. Some sections of the book will also provide a unique opportunity to collaborate with real astronomers and scientists, especially where the Halo universe overlaps with real-world data. Some examples of these include Holocene ecological trends, Solar System colonies, terraforming processes, and colonies that correspond to real exoplanets. These opportunities for multidisciplinary collaboration will help elevate the art and science at the heart of this book.

Work on this page began on October 18th, 2024. This is a work-in-progress document that may not be complete as of this reading.

Introduction

In-universe introduction to the book and its xenobiologist author/framing device. Ellen Anders presents the most established xenobiologist character from which to frame the narrative, but an original civilian character is preferred, as this can be used to establish how information about the Forerunners/Flood is shared or sequestered between the UNSC and civilian groups.

Human Sphere

Prehistoric Earth

Emerging from prehistoric Africa, our species was one of many hominids that evolved on Earth. This period in our evolutionary history is a great mystery to scientists, with debate about what caused such a variety of hominid forms to diversify around this time, only to shortly thereafter be overtaken by a single dominant species. Homo sapiens began as a tribal species worshipping totemic animal spirits, but with an intense proclivity for exploration and adventure. This lust for the unknown led us to conquer the planet, spreading to every corner of the globe, speaking many languages, interpreting the universe through many religions, constructing great works of art. We conquered fire, tamed electricity, built great cities, learned the secrets of the universe...

Earth

...And our civilization was mighty. But this came at a cost. Overpopulation was a serious concern as more and more people crowded into less and less land, concentrating resources in cities and sucking dry the natural world. Wars between great nations swept the land, ravaging all in their wake. As our species increasingly relied on and expanded its technology, the climate itself was changed by the engines of industry. Coastlines were altered by rising sea levels. Ecosystems died out. And then, as the artificially-intelligent minds we had built sought solutions to our problems, one came... in the form of the Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine.

Ecological outlook not so good in 2552

Climate and the Holocene Extinction

Rainforest Wars and famine

Glassing of Voi and loss of East African megafauna

New Phoenix Incident

FTL

Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Manifold

Our species was suddenly able to leave the claustrophobic confines of the Earth, to spread our wings and stretch to fill an infinite horizon.

The Shaw-Fukikawa Translight Engine
The Odyssey

Terraforming

"Atmospheric processors, orbital mirror arrays, and the introduction of genetically engineered microorganisms can nudge a less-than-hospitable planet toward human sustainability over a period of decades or centuries, but they do not remake worlds from scratch."

"Venus was a long-shot terraforming project whose failure was so colossal and complete that it continues to be a cautionary tale for initiatives seeking to transform marginal worlds for human habitation. There are no permanent habitats on the extraordinarily hostile surface, with derelict orbital platforms existing as solemn reminders."

"Modification and hybridization of crops and animals for specific planetary environments was key to the success of almost every colony. The field has enjoyed significant growth since the Domus Diaspora. with each colony world providing a wealth of new species to study and new genetic sequences to decode."

"The limited use of cloning for livestock management has been commonplace for centuries.
- Halo Encyclopedia (2022)"

The field of exobiology flourished, studying not just the potential evolution of life in our solar system, but expanding to study the effects of new planetary bodies on terrestrial organisms that were essential parts of the terraforming and colonization process.

Mars

Venus

Full page atmospheric view of Venus, with orbital monitoring stations, terraforming satellites, and the debris of abandoned research stations circling a slightly greener surface than we know today.

Europa and Xenobiology

This section could largely be a showcase to real-world research into Europa as an abode of life as well as tribute to Arthur C. Clarke's vision of Europa in the Space Odyssey series.

Cryonics

Uses and applications for human transport, agricultural products and livestock.

Early Colonies

Visual needed

Juneou - colonized 2330
Visual needed

Titus - colonized 2355

Reach

But when we got to Epsilon Eridani II, we found something strange. The environment was vaguely familiar, like the same landscape interpreted by a different artist. Much of the flora and fauna of the planet--which came to be known as Reach--were incredibly similar to their Earth counterparts (albeit adapted for more rugged terrain and marginally higher gravity), and some species were even identical! Many plants common to the Pacific Northwest region of Earth were found in abundance on Reach, including Western hemlock and Douglas firs. But Reach also had its fair share of unique species, like the Gúta, Spadehorn, and Moa, all encountered early on in Reach's colonization by predominantly Hungarian settlers.

Although Reach would take decades for terraformers to tame, the wealth of data it brought to scientists meant millions of years worth of new information to gather. To speak nothing of its riches in astronomical and geological data, Reach had also solved for biologists the age-old Sample Size Problem: the wealth of data that we had to work with about the evolution of life in the universe totaled not one, but two... and what we learned completely rewrote evolutionary taxonomy. Xenobiology was no longer a theoretical field.

Xenobiologists were relieved to see that the native organisms of Reach could still be broadly classed according to traditional phylogeny: Reach indeed possessed plants, animals, fungi, and abundant microorganisms. The presence of near-identical terrestrial species posed a mystery that invited many theories, further compounded by genetic testing which confirmed that the Douglas fir of Reach was, in fact, the same Douglas fir of Earth. Many proponents of the panspermia theory claimed this was proof of exchanged material between star systems. Others claimed the organisms must have been transported to Earth by previous visitors, and that this was proof of intelligent alien life that predated humanity. Others still claimed that the organisms indeed arose natively on Reach, independent of any exchange with Earth, and our understanding of genetics would need to be entirely rewritten.

Either way, going forward, xenobiologists knew that it was possible to find strange, alien phylums on new planets, as well as all-too-familiar species that seemed like they could have been brought straight from Earth, alongside species that were brought from Earth as part of the terraforming process. The broad terms which scientists agreed to use going forward were:

Terrestrial: Native to Earth and brought as part of the colonization process--traditional examples include beasts of burden (like horses) and livestock (such as cattle, pigs, and chickens)
Exo-organism: Species that were identical to Earth-native species, but appeared to be part of the natural evolutionary history of the planet (or transplanted so long ago as to be part of the evolutionary history). Encompasses exoflora and exofauna.
Xeno-organism: Completely new taxonomy with few analogues to terrestrial life. Encompasses xenoflora and xenofauna.^{[Note 2]}

Within these the general phylogeny of animal, plant, fungi, or micro-organism still held, though part of a different tree of life from that studied for centuries on Earth.

Terrestrial beasts of burden, the horse is found on almost all planets colonized by settlers rather than military forces like the UNSC

Exo-organisms

Exoflora

Visual needed

Douglas fir

Exofauna

Visual needed

Wolf

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

Spadehorn

Moa

VTHU

Gúta

Xenofauna

Visual needed

Reavian Redcrest
Visual needed

Cherot
Visual needed

Guper
Visual needed

Kropey

Eridani System

But Eridani II was not the only candidate in the Eridani System. Once a foothold was established on Reach, the other habitable planets in the system were scouted.

Beta Gabriel

Water world eventually valued as an in-system planetary nature preserve, serving as a popular holiday destination for the wealthy, but also a paradise for scientists of all types. It was on Beta Gabriel that the Paelosur and Nightmare Eel were discovered.

Xenofauna

Paelosur
Qothal "Nightmare Eel"
Visual needed

Krill-like creature
Visual needed

Three-meter crustacean

Tribute

Circumstance

Inner Colonies

Sigma Octanus IV

Colonized 2371

Luyten

Visual needed

Colonized 2387
Visual needed

Xenofaun - Apocritii
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Nightgyr
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Blood Mot
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Thumb Bird

Oban

Colonized 2553
Xenoflora

Xeno-organisms

Xenoflora

Ugparassa Tree - smoked by company Have S'Moa to add flavor to food.

Alluvion

Alluvion established the borderline with the Outer Colonies. It was on Alluvion that scientists discovered the same xeno-organisms they had discovered on Beta Gabriel, in the same system as Reach. There was no explanation for the presence of these creatures on planets separated by light years, unless they were evidence that previous visitors had transported them from world to world. It shed a new light on the presence of Earth-analogous exo-organisms on extrasolar worlds, and reaffirmed for science that it was not just the Earth environment that had been distributed through some means across multiple planets.

Xenofauna

Identical organisms found in separate star systems.

Outer Colonies

New Carthage

Colonized 2379
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Great Red Shark

Levosia

Visual needed

Colonized 2414

Endymion

Visual needed

Colonized 2420

Far Isle

Visual needed

Colonized 2421

Arcadia

Colonized 2429
Arcadia ruins
Exoflora
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Drymander

Cascade The "crown jewel" of the Outer Colonies.

Colonized 2435

Carrow

Colonized 2435

Draco III

Colonized 2439
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Bat-shaped leech
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Ice shark
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Naeori

Gao

Visual needed

Colonized 2439
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Gray Apes
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Saurio
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Jungaloon
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Idjom
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Frilled Salamander
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Ribbon-Snake
Visual needed

Xenofauna - No-Shell Snail
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Speckled Jungle Dragon
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Glowfish

Terceira

Colonized 2440
Space bird
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Giant Crocodile

Biko

Visual needed

Colonized 2440

Andesia

Visual needed

Colonized 2450

Venezia

Colonized 2450

Netherop

Visual needed

Colonized 2450
Visual needed

Xenoflora - Sail Plants
Visual needed

Xenoflora - Vase Bushes

Madrigal

Colonized 2458

Talitsa

Colonized 2460
Space bird

Dwarka

Visual needed

Colonized 2460
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Dwarkan Ghost Squirrel
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Dwarkan Centipede
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Dwarkan Beetles

Sedra

Colonized 2460
Exoflora equivalent to Ireland species
Visual needed

Xenoflora - Sedran Red Fruit
Visual needed

Exofauna - Mourning Warbler
Visual needed

Xeofauna - White Sturgeon

Coral

Visual needed

Colonized 2470

Roost

Visual needed

Colonized 2490
Visual needed

Xenofauna - Tropical Fish

Concord

Colonized 2490
Visual needed

Exoflora - Juniper
Visual needed

Exoflora - Sage
Xenoflora - Gore Valley Trees

Partition

Colonized 2543
Xenoflora

Circinius IV

Pacific Northwest Planet^{[Note 3]}

Exo-organisms

Exoflora

Exofauna

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

Onyx

Exo-organisms

Exoflora

Acacia trees

Harvest

Terrestrial organisms

Visual needed

Starlings
Visual needed

Bats

Exo-organisms

Exofauna

Snowbird

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

"Space Owl"
"Arctic Ice Hound"
"Harvest Whale"
"Eelsnake"

Glasslands

Ecological Catastrophe

"The aliens had rained monsoons of hot plasma down on hundreds of worlds, burning soil and melting bedrock, boiling oceans and filling the air with superheated vapor. Any creature that had escaped instant incineration had suffocated on superheated smoke, or seared away its feet. Fleeing over molten ground, or emerged from hiding to eventually starve while wandering barren expanses of ash-impregnated lechatelierite."

"The glasslands still showed orange because lechatelierite cooled from the top down, its surface solidifying into a vitreous blanket that kept heat from radiating into the air. The ground beneath could stay molten for a year, and remain hot to the touch for a decade. And the beach existed because much of the liquid that had been vaporized during the Covenant’s plasma bombardment had not yet returned to the oceans. Most of the planet’s water continued to hang in the atmosphere in vast banks of fog and clouds, or to lie trapped on the glass in giant lakes and ash bogs.
- Halo: Shadows of Reach"

Crows have survived on glassed planets.

Post-War Colonies

Draetheus V

Colonized 2553
Xenoflora

"There were these big damn plants, like tentacles. I swear, it was like the planet was fighting us, too.
— Lieutenant Caitlin de Sauveterre"

Eudemon

Visual needed

Colonized 2554
Space bird

Erebus VII

Colonized 2554

Exoflora

Visual needed

Juniper
Grass, moss, lichens, fungi

Xenoflora

Organic man cannon
Strangler
Strangler leaf detail

Xenofauna

Anglers, known to Forerunners as "Eiyaa-Mahtuhaa"
Space bird
Insect hives
Flies

Partition

Visual needed

Colonization date unknown
Space bird

Covenant Sphere

Sanghelios

Xeno-organisms

Xenoflora

Visual needed

G'lul'g Tree
Visual needed

Irukan
Visual needed

Kafel

Xenofauna

'sKelln
Kryn'qodon
Colo
Helioskrill
Orzil
Sea Titans
Aquatic Cephalopod
Visual needed

Doarmir
Visual needed

Electric Kesh
Visual needed

Keifra
Visual needed

Nishum
Visual needed

Quillick
Visual needed

Snap-Tails
Visual needed

Thremaleon
Visual needed

Velithra

Sangheili Colonies

Janjur Qom

Te

Mgalekgolo
Dipholekgolo
Rhulolekgolo
Sbaolekgolo

Palamok

Eayn

When humanity first encountered the Kig-Yar, they were the "Jackals" of the Covenant infantry. It was only a few years into the war that humanity discovered the mercenary "Jackals" were comprised of many diverse sub-species of post-avian sentients deployed in a wide range of combat roles. After the war, humanity discovered the Kig-Yar were native to a moon orbiting the yellow dwarf star "HD 69830" forty-one light years away... closer to Earth than some of humanity's most distant colonies.

Diplomatic and scientific envoys were quickly sent to the "Y'Deio" system, where they discovered a tropical moon orbiting a grey gas giant the size of Neptune: "Chu'ot". This orbited near a dense and massive asteroid belt containing large planetoids, dwarf planets, and exotic vacuum habitats, some of which featured naturally-occurring atmospheres and abundant bio-signs, like the dwarf planet "T'vao", known to be home to the T'vaoan sub-species of Kig-Yar first encountered as the "Skirmishers" of the Covenant.

Eayn features a 16 day orbital cycle around Chu'ot, so Eayn has twelve distinct months based on the cycle of the moon in the sky. These months have no correlation with elapsed time in corresponding Earth months. Tidal effects with Chu'ot create the planet's strong vulcanism. Because of these natural features, the pantheons of ancient Kig-Yar mythology typically worshipped deities representing Y'Deio, Chu'ot, the two other planets in the system, and various gods of vulcanism. Much of Kig-Yar history revolves around the tragedies and migrations caused by volcanic eruptions, and the mythology of their planetary culture reflects this.

When spectrogaphic scans and remote atmospheric tests were conducted on the primary moon of Chu'ot--"Eayn"-- during humanity's survey phase a few days before landing, they showed a world unlike any humanity had thus far encountered. Its surface was mostly water, with tropical archipelagoes trailing from its largest continents. Each island showed a mostly distinct biome with unique flora, fauna, and sub-species of Kig-Yar and other post-avian species. Atmospheric results showed a significant number of mutagens in the moon's atmosphere, which were theorized to have an accelerating effect on the process of speciation. As one scientist remarked a few days after the diplomatic mission was concluded:

"It was an entire planet of Darwin's finches."

Except these natural mutagens hadn't stopped at the bounds of Eayn, they had trailed the Kig-Yar from planet to asteroid, causing radical differences in physiology as they adapted to the many environments of the Y'Deio system, such as the rugged Ibie'shans of the large volcanic sub-continent "Ibie'sh", who had retained more features of the Kig-Yar's common reptilian ancestor, or the arctic sub-species, which retained the downy plumage of their fledglings throughout adult life to resist the cold. Most troubling to the envoys that engaged in diplomatic talks with the Kig-Yar were reports of "ghost Jackals" who long ago forsook the bounds of gravity and adapted fully to a life of piracy in zero-g. The few accounts that Kig-Yar leaders were willing to divulge told of a nearly-feral race, devoid of feathers or skin coloration, with limbs and bodies stretched to unnerving proportions. Humanity has as yet not encountered a member of these sub-species firsthand, though ideas have begun to circulate within the intelligence community of making contact with the void dwellers to aid in the exploration of numerous Forerunner sites being studied in UEG space.

Xenofauna

Visual needed

Hawk
Visual needed

Uoi
Visual needed

Vulture

Kig-Yar

Kig-Yar diet

Diverse Phenotypes

Ibie'sh

Visual needed

Ah'lomet
Visual needed

Muloqt
Visual needed

Kaelatort
Visual needed

Valyanop
Visual needed

Dal'kothan

T'vao

Xenoflora

Visual needed

Lush forests

Xenofauna

Visual needed

Rodent
Visual needed

Snake

Balaho

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

Balahoan Octopoda
VTHU

Mud Wasp
Visual needed

Shade Crab
Unggoy Predator
Visual needed

Zap-Jelly

Doisac

Pre-Immolation

Great Immolation

Nuclear Wasteland

Xeno-organisms

Xenoflora

Xenofauna

Ogre-wolf
Antaeus
Dengkra
Visual needed

Degaeorth
Visual needed

Grattle-bah Shrew
Visual needed

Kateukal

Razing of Oth Sonin

Destruction and Mass Extinction

Forerunner Sphere

Alpha Halo - Installation 04

Exo-organisms

Exoflora

Spruce

Exofauna

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

Thorn Beast

Known to the Forerunners as "Saaliban"

Blind Wolf
Keelbug
Vulpard
Thorax
Threeleg
Rockworm, Quadwing, Eye Bug

Destruction

Alpha Shard
Alpha Shard surface
A life form detected on the Alpha Shard.

Replacements

- Installation 08
- Installation 09

Delta Halo - Installation 05

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

Quadwing

Known to the Forerunners as "Rangmejo"

The Ark - Installation 00

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

Sky Leviathan

Known to the Forerunners as Olfmeri

Tusk Beast

Known to the Forerunners as Chaefka

Blind Wolf

Known to the Forerunners as Moralaath

Sarcophagus - Shield World 0006

Trove - Shield World 0459

Exo-organisms

Exofauna

Hoopoe

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

Oxyaena

Destruction

Requiem - Shield World 0001

Xeno-organisms

Xenoflora

The Ugparassa tree was also found on Requiem.

Xenofauna

Flying squid
Space bird

Destruction

Genesis - Shield World 0111

Xeno-organisms

Xenoflora

Fractal plant growth and infinite biodiversity.
Paddle Grass, Fiber Optic Succulent, Floating Lotus, Aloe Husk

Xenofauna

"Sky Rays" - Known to the Forerunners as "Lumenon"
Logrodite

Zeta Halo - Installation 07

$A view of the fractured Installation 07. From Halo Infinite campaign level Warship Gbraakon.$

Exo-organisms

Exofauna

Brontothere

Very similar to species of prehistoric fauna from Earth.^{[Note 4]}

Known to the Forerunners as "Kaimistro"

Xeno-organisms

Xenofauna

The Flood

The ultimate xeno-organism. An end to biodiversity everywhere.

Feral

Flood Super Cell

Biomass

Infection Forms

Pod Infector

Combat Forms

Non-sapient

Human

Sangheili

Unggoy

Augmented Human

Dispersal Forms

Blister

Carrier

Launcher

Seeders

Bomber

Coordinated

Compound Intelligences

Proto-Gravemind

Gravemind

Command Forms

Juggernaut

Abomination

Blightstalker

Pure Forms

Stalker

Tank

Infestor

Spawner

Hellion

Gaunt

Interstellar

Transgalactic

Neural Physics

As a culmination of the book, this chapter would present Greg Bear's panentheistic interpretation of the Halo universe from an ecological perspective, highlighting the fact that the recovery of this knowledge from Forerunner data stores was a significant breakthrough in all the major Earth sciences.

Notes

^ This section contains brief notes on each addition to established lore and the rationale behind it.
^ The three denominations of Terrestrial organisms, Exo-organisms, and Xeno-organisms help to categorize life in the Halo universe according to its basic design, as artists and developers have long included both "alien" and recognizable Earth life forms in the games and written literature for various creative and production reasons. Instead of assuming these familiar organisms are the result of terraforming, the concept has been expanded to provide a unique ecological puzzle for scientists to unravel in the book's narrative. The names are subject to change.
^ Although the presence of numerous "Pacific Northwest" environments can obviously be ascribed to the development studio's location in Seattle, and the ease of using their locale as a reference, this stylistic choice is established as a tangible reality in this book, providing another ecological mystery for Earth scientists to solve. This also gives the Halo universe a unique feature to help it stand apart from other sci-fi universes.
^ Connecting the Brontothere with its prehistoric Earth analog serves as an opportunity to highlight some real-world paleontology.

[1] This section contains brief notes on each addition to established lore and the rationale behind it.

[2] The three denominations of Terrestrial organisms, Exo-organisms, and Xeno-organisms help to categorize life in the Halo universe according to its basic design, as artists and developers have long included both "alien" and recognizable Earth life forms in the games and written literature for various creative and production reasons. Instead of assuming these familiar organisms are the result of terraforming, the concept has been expanded to provide a unique ecological puzzle for scientists to unravel in the book's narrative. The names are subject to change.

[3] Although the presence of numerous "Pacific Northwest" environments can obviously be ascribed to the development studio's location in Seattle, and the ease of using their locale as a reference, this stylistic choice is established as a tangible reality in this book, providing another ecological mystery for Earth scientists to solve. This also gives the Halo universe a unique feature to help it stand apart from other sci-fi universes.

[4] Connecting the Brontothere with its prehistoric Earth analog serves as an opportunity to highlight some real-world paleontology.

[Note 1]

[Note 2]

[Note 3]

[Note 4]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Title|The Wildlife of Halo}}
 The following is an overview for a hypothetical ''Wildlife of Halo'' field guide, akin to other published art/lore books from Microsoft such as [[Halo: Warfleet|''Halo: Warfleet'']] or the [[Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition)|''Halo Encyclopedia'']]. Its aim is to showcase ''the art and science of the Halo universe''.
 '''This is a ''work-in-progress'' document that may not be complete as of this reading.'''
-==Introduction==
+==Overview==
 This sandbox represents the proposed text and artwork for ''The Wildlife of Halo'', as well as the general structure of the book and how it corresponds to the story of humanity's exploration of the galaxy within Halo lore. The intent is to tell the narrative of humanity's expansion from Earth throughout the [[Orion Arm]] from a scientific perspective, including the ecological mysteries that emerged on human colony worlds (foreshadowing later discoveries), the revelations brought about by the knowledge of [[Covenant]] space, and finally the mysteries of the [[Forerunners]] and their various installations.
-The information presented here does not accord with Halopedia's standards for accurate lorekeeping, nor does it intend to. Instead of presenting only hard data from established sources, this document also includes elements of original expanded lore, as though the text here were to be published as a reference book for fans to pore over and learn more about the Halo universe from. Hopefully, the book will also awaken in the reader an interest in real-world ecology, prompting them to consider their own footprint within local ecosystems, as well as our species' impact on a global scale.
+The information presented here does not accord with Halopedia's standards for accurate lorekeeping, nor does it intend to. Instead of presenting only hard data from established sources, this document also includes elements of original lore, as though the text here were to be published as a reference book for fans to pore over and learn from. Original lore that is not part of official Halo canon may appear with explanatory notes,{{Ref/Note|This section contains brief notes on each addition to established lore and the rationale behind it.}} though not in all instances.
+When reading the guide in this format, keep in mind that each section or sub-section as formatted here on the wiki implies a ''page break''. Full-size images represent artwork that would appear at the start of a new "chapter" within the book, typically a two-page spread for maximum visual impact, introducing a new location, which subsequent pages explore in detail. Images presented as part of a gallery would--in the published book--be formatted according to the needs of the page and the text they accompany, but that design is not included here.
+The book currently sits at a proposed 133 pages.
+"Empty" gallery images indicate an opportunity for Halo Studios to commission new artwork from proven artists.
-When reading the guide in this format, keep in mind that full-size images represent artwork that would appear at the start of a new "chapter" within the book, typically a two-page spread for maximum visual impact, introducing a new location, which subsequent pages explore in detail. Images presented as part of a gallery would--in the published book--be formatted according to the needs of the page and the text they accompany, but that design is not included here.
+This is particularly exciting as the artist has the chance to contribute lore conceived during the composition of the images towards official canon, fleshing out unexplored corners of the Halo universe. Some sections of the book will also provide a unique opportunity to collaborate with real astronomers and scientists, especially where the Halo universe overlaps with real-world data. Some examples of these include Holocene ecological trends, Solar System colonies, terraforming processes, and colonies that correspond to real exoplanets. These opportunities for multidisciplinary collaboration will help elevate the ''art'' and ''science'' at the heart of this book.
 '''Work on this page began on October 18th, 2024. This is a ''work-in-progress'' document that may not be complete as of this reading.'''
+==Introduction==
+In-universe introduction to the book and its xenobiologist author/framing device. Ellen Anders presents the most established xenobiologist character from which to frame the narrative, but an original civilian character is preferred, as this can be used to establish how information about the Forerunners/Flood is shared or sequestered between the UNSC and civilian groups.
 ==Human Sphere==
-===Ancient Earth===
+===Prehistoric Earth===
 [[File:HTMCC-HCEA Terminals LibrarianAtKilimanjaro.png]]
@@ Line 32: / Line 43: @@
 ...And our civilization was mighty. But this came at a cost. Overpopulation was a serious concern as more and more people crowded into less and less land, concentrating resources in cities and sucking dry the natural world. Wars between great nations swept the land, ravaging all in their wake. As our species increasingly relied on and expanded its technology, the climate itself was changed by the engines of industry. Coastlines were altered by rising sea levels. Ecosystems died out. And then, as the artificially-intelligent minds we had built sought solutions to our problems, one came... in the form of the Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine.
-'''- Climate and the Holocene Extinction'''
-<br>
-'''- Rainforest Wars and famine'''
-<br>
-'''- Glassing of Voi and loss of East African megafauna'''
 <gallery>
@@ Line 44: / Line 49: @@
 </gallery>
-====FTL====
+====Climate and the Holocene Extinction====
+<gallery>
+</gallery>
+====Rainforest Wars and famine====
+<gallery>
+</gallery>
+====Glassing of Voi and loss of East African megafauna====
+====New Phoenix Incident====
+<gallery>
+</gallery>
+===FTL===
+'''Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Manifold'''
 [[File:H2ACampaign_HomeFleetInEarthOrbit.png]]
-Our species was suddenly able to leave the claustrophobic confines of the Earth, to spread our wings and stretch to fill an infinite horizon of stars.
+Our species was suddenly able to leave the claustrophobic confines of the Earth, to spread our wings and stretch to fill an infinite horizon.
 <gallery>
 File:Human Slipspace Drive.jpg|The Shaw-Fukikawa Translight Engine
-File:Enc22_Odyssey.png|''The Odyssey''
+File:Enc22_Odyssey.png|The ''Odyssey''
 </gallery>
@@ Line 59: / Line 83: @@
 [[File:Enc22 Mars.jpg]]
-''Atmospheric processors, orbital mirror arrays, and the introduction of genetically engineered microorganisms can nudge a less-than-hospitable planet toward human sustainability over a period of decades or centuries, but they do not remake worlds from scratch.''
+{{Quote|Atmospheric processors, orbital mirror arrays, and the introduction of genetically engineered microorganisms can nudge a less-than-hospitable planet toward human sustainability over a period of decades or centuries, but they do not remake worlds from scratch.}}
 <br>
+{{Quote|Venus was a long-shot terraforming project whose failure was so colossal and complete that it continues to be a cautionary tale for initiatives seeking to transform marginal worlds for human habitation. There are no permanent habitats on the extraordinarily hostile surface, with derelict orbital platforms existing as solemn reminders.}}
 <br>
-''Venus was a long-shot terraforming project whose failure was so colossal and complete that it continues to be a cautionary tale for initiatives seeking to transform marginal worlds for human habitation. There are no permanent habitats on the extraordinarily hostile surface, with derelict orbital platforms existing as solemn reminders.''
+{{Quote|Modification and hybridization of crops and animals for specific planetary environments was key to the success of almost every colony. The field has enjoyed significant growth since the ''Domus Diaspora''. with each colony world providing a wealth of new species to study and new genetic sequences to decode.}}
 <br>
-<br>
+{{Quote|The limited use of cloning for livestock management has been commonplace for centuries.<br> - Halo Encyclopedia (2022)}}
-''Modification and hybridization of crops and animals for specific planetary environments was key to the success of almost every colony. The field has enjoyed significant growth since the ''Domus Diaspora''. with each colony world providing a wealth of new species to study and new genetic sequences to decode.''
-<br>
-<br>
-''The limited use of cloning for livestock management has been commonplace for centuries.''
-<br>
-- Halo Encyclopedia (2022)
 The field of exobiology flourished, studying not just the potential evolution of life in our solar system, but expanding to study the effects of new planetary bodies on terrestrial organisms that were essential parts of the terraforming and colonization process.
-'''- Europa and Xenobiology'''
+=====Mars=====
-<br>
-'''- Overview of cryogenic practices/infrastructure for colony livestock'''
+=====Venus=====
+''Full page atmospheric view of Venus, with orbital monitoring stations, terraforming satellites, and the debris of abandoned research stations circling a slightly greener surface than we know today.''
+====Europa and Xenobiology====
+This section could largely be a showcase to real-world research into Europa as an abode of life as well as tribute to Arthur C. Clarke's vision of Europa in the Space Odyssey series.
+<gallery>
+</gallery>
+====Cryonics====
+Uses and applications for human transport, agricultural products and livestock.
+<gallery>
+</gallery>
 <gallery>
 File:H4 Daybreak concept art.jpg
 File:HINF Lettuces.jpg
+</gallery>
+====Early Colonies====
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Juneou - colonized 2330
+visual needed|Titus - colonized 2355
 </gallery>
@@ Line 91: / Line 129: @@
 Although Reach would take decades for terraformers to tame, the wealth of data it brought to scientists meant millions of years worth of new information to gather. To speak nothing of its riches in astronomical and geological data, Reach had also solved for biologists the age-old Sample Size Problem: the wealth of data that we had to work with about the evolution of life in the universe totaled not one, but ''two''... and what we learned completely rewrote evolutionary taxonomy. Xenobiology was no longer a theoretical field.
-Xenobiologists were relieved to see that the native organisms of Reach could still be broadly classed according to traditional phylogeny: Reach indeed possessed plants, animals, fungi, and abundant microorganisms. The presence of near-identical terrestrial species posed a mystery that invited many theories, further compounded by genetic testing which confirmed that the Douglas fir of Reach was, in fact, the same Douglas fir of Earth. Many proponents of the panspermia theory claimed this was proof of exchanged material between star systems. Others claims the organisms must have been transported to Earth by previous visitors, and that this was proof of intelligent alien life that predated humanity. Others still claimed that the organisms indeed arose natively on Reach, independent of any exchange with Earth, and our understanding of genetics would need to be entirely rewritten.
+Xenobiologists were relieved to see that the native organisms of Reach could still be broadly classed according to traditional phylogeny: Reach indeed possessed plants, animals, fungi, and abundant microorganisms. The presence of near-identical terrestrial species posed a mystery that invited many theories, further compounded by genetic testing which confirmed that the Douglas fir of Reach was, in fact, the same Douglas fir of Earth. Many proponents of the panspermia theory claimed this was proof of exchanged material between star systems. Others claimed the organisms must have been transported to Earth by previous visitors, and that this was proof of intelligent alien life that predated humanity. Others still claimed that the organisms indeed arose natively on Reach, independent of any exchange with Earth, and our understanding of genetics would need to be entirely rewritten.
 Either way, going forward, xenobiologists knew that it was possible to find strange, alien phylums on new planets, as well as all-too-familiar species that seemed like they could have been brought straight from Earth, alongside species that ''were'' brought from Earth as part of the terraforming process. The broad terms which scientists agreed to use going forward were:
@@ Line 97: / Line 135: @@
 *'''Terrestrial:''' Native to Earth and brought as part of the colonization process--traditional examples include beasts of burden (like horses) and livestock (such as cattle, pigs, and chickens)
 *'''Exo-organism:''' Species that were identical to Earth-native species, but appeared to be part of the natural evolutionary history of the planet (or transplanted so long ago as to be part of the evolutionary history). Encompasses exoflora and exofauna.
-*'''Xeno-organism:''' Completely new taxonomy with few analogues to terrestrial life. Encompasses xenoflora and xenofauna.
+*'''Xeno-organism:''' Completely new taxonomy with few analogues to terrestrial life. Encompasses xenoflora and xenofauna.{{Ref/Note|The three denominations of Terrestrial organisms, Exo-organisms, and Xeno-organisms help to categorize life in the Halo universe according to its basic design, as artists and developers have long included both "alien" and recognizable Earth life forms in the games and written literature for various creative and production reasons. Instead of assuming these familiar organisms are the result of terraforming, the concept has been expanded to provide a unique ecological puzzle for scientists to unravel in the book's narrative. The names are subject to change.}}
 Within these the general phylogeny of animal, plant, fungi, or micro-organism still held, though part of a different tree of life from that studied for centuries on Earth.
@@ Line 133: / Line 171: @@
 '''Xenofauna'''
-=====Spadehorn=====
+Spadehorn
 <gallery>
@@ Line 143: / Line 181: @@
 </gallery>
-=====Moa=====
+Moa
 <gallery>
@@ Line 151: / Line 189: @@
 </gallery>
-=====Gúta=====
+Gúta
 <gallery>
@@ Line 172: / Line 210: @@
 But Eridani II was not the only candidate in the Eridani System. Once a foothold was established on Reach, the other habitable planets in the system were scouted.
-====Tribute====
-====Circumstance====
 ====Beta Gabriel====
@@ Line 189: / Line 223: @@
 visual needed|Three-meter crustacean
 </gallery>
+====Tribute====
+====Circumstance====
 ===Inner Colonies===
 '''Sigma Octanus IV'''
+<gallery>
+File:Enc22 SigmaOctanusIV.jpg|Colonized 2371
+</gallery>
+'''Luyten'''
 <gallery>
-File:Enc22 SigmaOctanusIV.jpg|Colonized 2371
+visual needed|Colonized 2387
+visual needed|Xenofaun - Apocritii
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Nightgyr
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Blood Mot
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Thumb Bird
 </gallery>
 '''Oban'''
 <gallery>
 File:H4 Daybreak Concept 2.jpg|Colonized 2553
@@ Line 205: / Line 250: @@
 </gallery>
-====Inner Colony Xeno-organisms====
+====Xeno-organisms====
 '''Xenoflora'''
@@ Line 227: / Line 272: @@
 ===Outer Colonies===
-'''Cascade'''
+'''New Carthage'''
+<gallery>
+File:Enc22 NewCarthage.jpg|Colonized 2379
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Great Red Shark
+</gallery>
+'''Levosia'''
 <gallery>
-File:Enc22 Cascade.jpg|The "crown jewel" of the Outer Colonies.
+visual needed|Colonized 2414
 </gallery>
-'''New Carthage'''
+'''Endymion'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonized 2420
+</gallery>
+'''Far Isle'''
 <gallery>
-File:Enc22 NewCarthage.jpg|Colonized 2379
+visual needed|Colonized 2421
-visual needed|Xenofauna - Great Red Shark
 </gallery>
 '''Arcadia'''
 <gallery>
 File:Arcadia(blur).png|Colonized 2429
@@ Line 248: / Line 300: @@
 File:Old HW TheSwamps.png|Exoflora
 visual needed|Xenofauna - Drymander
+</gallery>
+'''Cascade'''
+The "crown jewel" of the Outer Colonies.
+<gallery>
+File:Enc22 Cascade.jpg|Colonized 2435
 </gallery>
 '''Carrow'''
 <gallery>
 File:Enc22 Carrow.jpg|Colonized 2435
@@ Line 257: / Line 314: @@
 '''Draco III'''
 <gallery>
 File:Enc22 DracoIII.jpg|Colonized 2439
@@ Line 263: / Line 319: @@
 visual needed|Xenofauna - Ice shark
 visual needed|Xenofauna - Naeori
+</gallery>
+'''Gao'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonized 2439
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Gray Apes
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Saurio
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Jungaloon
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Idjom
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Frilled Salamander
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Ribbon-Snake
+visual needed|Xenofauna - No-Shell Snail
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Speckled Jungle Dragon
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Glowfish
 </gallery>
@@ Line 268: / Line 338: @@
 <gallery>
 File:Vertigo screenshot 1.png|Colonized 2440
+File:H4-Bird.png|Space bird
 visual needed|Xenofauna - Giant Crocodile
+</gallery>
+'''Biko'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonized 2440
+</gallery>
+'''Andesia'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonized 2450
+</gallery>
+'''Venezia'''
+<gallery>
+File:Venezia.jpg|Colonized 2450
+</gallery>
+'''Netherop'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonized 2450
+visual needed|Xenoflora - Sail Plants
+visual needed|Xenoflora - Vase Bushes
+</gallery>
+'''Madrigal'''
+<gallery>
+File:HTV-HalseyComputer-Madrigal.png|Colonized 2458
+</gallery>
+'''Talitsa'''
+<gallery>
+File:H4 Outcast Concept 2.jpg|Colonized 2460
+File:H4 Outcast Concept 3.jpg
+File:H4-Bird.png|Space bird
 </gallery>
@@ Line 280: / Line 385: @@
 '''Sedra'''
 <gallery>
 File:Nightfall - Sedra.jpg|Colonized 2460
 File:Nightfall - Sedran forest.jpg|Exoflora equivalent to Ireland species
 visual needed|Xenoflora - Sedran Red Fruit
+visual needed|Exofauna - Mourning Warbler
+visual needed|Xeofauna - White Sturgeon
+</gallery>
+'''Coral'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonized 2470
+</gallery>
+'''Roost'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonized 2490
+visual needed|Xenofauna - Tropical Fish
 </gallery>
 '''Concord'''
 <gallery>
 File:Enc22 Concord.jpg|Colonized 2490
@@ Line 298: / Line 414: @@
 '''Partition'''
 <gallery>
 File:H4 Exile Vista Concept.jpg|Colonized 2543
@@ Line 304: / Line 419: @@
 </gallery>
-'''Draetheus V'''
+====Circinius IV====
+[[File:H4FUD CAMS concept.png]]
+Pacific Northwest Planet{{Ref/Note|Although the presence of numerous "Pacific Northwest" environments can obviously be ascribed to the development studio's location in Seattle, and the ease of using their locale as a reference, this stylistic choice is established as a tangible reality in this book, providing another ecological mystery for Earth scientists to solve. This also gives the Halo universe a unique feature to help it stand apart from other sci-fi universes.}}
+'''Exo-organisms'''
+Exoflora
 <gallery>
-File:HSA Draetheus V.jpg|Colonized 2553
+File:FUD - CAMS view 3.jpg
-File:Operation E.png|Xenoflora {{Quote|There were these big damn plants, like tentacles. I swear, it was like the planet was fighting us, too. <br> — Lieutenant Caitlin de Sauveterre}}
+File:CirciniusIVMountainValley.png
-File:Operation B.png
+File:CirciniusIVForest.png
-File:HSA-AlienForest.jpg
 </gallery>
-'''Erebus VII'''
+Exofauna
 <gallery>
-File:H4 Abandon.jpg|Colonized 2554
-File:H4 Abandon concept.jpg|Xenoflora
-File:H4 Abandon InitialSketch.jpeg|
-File:H4 Abandon BeautyCorner Concept.jpeg|
-File:H4 - early Abandon.jpg|
-File:H4_Abandon_concept_art.jpg|
-File:H4 Abandon Creature Concept.jpg|Xenofauna - Anglers, known to Forerunners as "Eiyaa-Mahtuhaa"
 </gallery>
-====Outer Colony Xeno-organisms====
+====Xeno-organisms====
 '''Xenofauna'''
@@ Line 331: / Line 446: @@
 <gallery>
 File:HCE AmbientLife Concept 1.jpg
-</gallery>
-====Circinius IV====
-[[File:H4FUD CAMS concept.png]]
-Pacific Northwest Planet
-=====Exo-organisms=====
-'''Exoflora'''
-<gallery>
-File:FUD - CAMS view 3.jpg
-File:CirciniusIVMountainValley.png
-File:CirciniusIVForest.png
 </gallery>
@@ Line 382: / Line 481: @@
 <gallery>
-File:Harvest Bird.png
+File:Harvest Bird.png|Snowbird
 </gallery>
@@ Line 402: / Line 501: @@
 ====Ecological Catastrophe====
-''The aliens had rained monsoons of hot plasma down on hundreds of worlds, burning soil and melting bedrock, boiling oceans and filling the air with superheated vapor. Any creature that had escaped instant incineration had suffocated on superheated smoke, or seared away its feet. Fleeing over molten ground, or emerged from hiding to eventually starve while wandering barren expanses of ash-impregnated lechatelierite.''
+{{Quote|The aliens had rained monsoons of hot plasma down on hundreds of worlds, burning soil and melting bedrock, boiling oceans and filling the air with superheated vapor. Any creature that had escaped instant incineration had suffocated on superheated smoke, or seared away its feet. Fleeing over molten ground, or emerged from hiding to eventually starve while wandering barren expanses of ash-impregnated lechatelierite.}}
-<br>
-<br>
+{{Quote|The glasslands still showed orange because lechatelierite cooled from the top down, its surface solidifying into a vitreous blanket that kept heat from radiating into the air. The ground beneath could stay molten for a year, and remain hot to the touch for a decade. And the beach existed because much of the liquid that had been vaporized during the Covenant’s plasma bombardment had not yet returned to the oceans. Most of the planet’s water continued to hang in the atmosphere in vast banks of fog and clouds, or to lie trapped on the glass in giant lakes and ash bogs. <br> - Halo: Shadows of Reach}}
-''The glasslands still showed orange because lechatelierite cooled from the top down, its surface solidifying into a vitreous blanket that kept heat from radiating into the air. The ground beneath could stay molten for a year, and remain hot to the touch for a decade. And the beach existed because much of the liquid that had been vaporized during the Covenant’s plasma bombardment had not yet returned to the oceans. Most of the planet’s water continued to hang in the atmosphere in vast banks of fog and clouds, or to lie trapped on the glass in giant lakes and ash bogs.''
-- Halo: Shadows of Reach
 Crows have survived on glassed planets.
@@ Line 413: / Line 510: @@
 File:Glassed_Reach.png
 File:Glassland_Hunt_the_Truth.jpg
+</gallery>
+===Post-War Colonies===
+'''Draetheus V'''
+<gallery>
+File:HSA Draetheus V.jpg|Colonized 2553
+File:Operation E.png|Xenoflora {{Quote|There were these big damn plants, like tentacles. I swear, it was like the planet was fighting us, too. <br> — Lieutenant Caitlin de Sauveterre}}
+File:Operation B.png
+File:HSA-AlienForest.jpg
+</gallery>
+'''Eudemon'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonized 2554
+File:H4-Bird.png|Space bird
+</gallery>
+'''Erebus VII'''
+<gallery>
+File:H4 Abandon.jpg|Colonized 2554
+</gallery>
+Exoflora
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Juniper
+File:H4-Abandon MossTexture.png|Grass, moss, lichens, fungi
+</gallery>
+Xenoflora
+<gallery>
+File:H4 Abandon concept.jpg|
+File:H4 Abandon InitialSketch.jpeg|
+File:H4 Abandon BeautyCorner Concept.jpeg|
+File:H4 - early Abandon.jpg|
+File:H4_Abandon_concept_art.jpg|
+File:H4-Abandon TreeScales.png|
+File:H4-Abandon TreeStolons.png|
+File:H4-Abandon Mancannon.png|Organic man cannon
+File:H4-Abandon GlowingHive.png|Strangler
+File:H4-Abandon StranglerLeaf.png|Strangler leaf detail
+</gallery>
+Xenofauna
+<gallery>
+File:H4 Abandon Creature Concept.jpg|Anglers, known to Forerunners as "Eiyaa-Mahtuhaa"
+File:H4-Tube-Creatures.jpg
+File:H4-Bird.png|Space bird
+File:H4-Abandon GlowingInsects.gif|Insect hives
+File:H4-Abandon FlareGnats.gif|Flies
+</gallery>
+'''Partition'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Colonization date unknown
+File:H4-Bird.png|Space bird
 </gallery>
@@ Line 505: / Line 658: @@
 [[File:Enc22 Eayn.png]]
+When humanity first encountered the Kig-Yar, they were the "Jackals" of the Covenant infantry. It was only a few years into the war that humanity discovered the mercenary "Jackals" were comprised of many diverse sub-species of post-avian sentients deployed in a wide range of combat roles. After the war, humanity discovered the Kig-Yar were native to a moon orbiting the yellow dwarf star "HD 69830" forty-one light years away... closer to Earth than some of humanity's most distant colonies.
+Diplomatic and scientific envoys were quickly sent to the "Y'Deio" system, where they discovered a tropical moon orbiting a grey gas giant the size of Neptune: "Chu'ot". This orbited near a dense and massive asteroid belt containing large planetoids, dwarf planets, and exotic vacuum habitats, some of which featured naturally-occurring atmospheres and abundant bio-signs, like the dwarf planet "T'vao", known to be home to the T'vaoan sub-species of Kig-Yar first encountered as the "Skirmishers" of the Covenant.
+Eayn features a 16 day orbital cycle around Chu'ot, so Eayn has twelve distinct months based on the cycle of the moon in the sky. These months have no correlation with elapsed time in corresponding Earth months. Tidal effects with Chu'ot create the planet's strong vulcanism. Because of these natural features, the pantheons of ancient Kig-Yar mythology typically worshipped deities representing Y'Deio, Chu'ot, the two other planets in the system, and various gods of vulcanism. Much of Kig-Yar history revolves around the tragedies and migrations caused by volcanic eruptions, and the mythology of their planetary culture reflects this.
+When spectrogaphic scans and remote atmospheric tests were conducted on the primary moon of Chu'ot--"Eayn"-- during humanity's survey phase a few days before landing, they showed a world unlike any humanity had thus far encountered. Its surface was mostly water, with tropical archipelagoes trailing from its largest continents. Each island showed a mostly distinct biome with unique flora, fauna, and sub-species of Kig-Yar and other post-avian species. Atmospheric results showed a significant number of mutagens in the moon's atmosphere, which were theorized to have an accelerating effect on the process of speciation. As one scientist remarked a few days after the diplomatic mission was concluded: {{Quote|It was an entire planet of Darwin's finches.}}
+Except these natural mutagens hadn't stopped at the bounds of Eayn, they had trailed the Kig-Yar from planet to asteroid, causing radical differences in physiology as they adapted to the many environments of the Y'Deio system, such as the rugged Ibie'shans of the large volcanic sub-continent "Ibie'sh", who had retained more features of the Kig-Yar's common reptilian ancestor, or the arctic sub-species, which retained the downy plumage of their fledglings throughout adult life to resist the cold. Most troubling to the envoys that engaged in diplomatic talks with the Kig-Yar were reports of "ghost Jackals" who long ago forsook the bounds of gravity and adapted fully to a life of piracy in zero-g. The few accounts that Kig-Yar leaders were willing to divulge told of a nearly-feral race, devoid of feathers or skin coloration, with limbs and bodies stretched to unnerving proportions. Humanity has as yet not encountered a member of these sub-species firsthand, though ideas have begun to circulate within the intelligence community of making contact with the void dwellers to aid in the exploration of numerous Forerunner sites being studied in UEG space.
 <gallery>
 File:Ancient KigYar.png
+</gallery>
+'''Xenofauna'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Hawk
+visual needed|Uoi
+visual needed|Vulture
+</gallery>
+'''Kig-Yar'''
+<gallery>
+File:ThePackage Jackal Render.png
 File:Jackal by Halsey.jpg
+File:HtT - Kig-Yar Stew.jpg|Kig-Yar diet
+</gallery>
+====Diverse Phenotypes====
+'''Ibie'sh'''
+<gallery>
+File:H4 Kig-Yar head concept art.jpg
+File:H4 Jackal Storm concept.jpg
+File:H4-KigYar-Concept.jpg
+</gallery>
+<gallery>
+visual needed|'''Ah'lomet'''
+visual needed|'''Muloqt'''
+visual needed|'''Kaelatort'''
+visual needed|'''Valyanop'''
+visual needed|'''Dal'kothan'''
 File:HW Jackal Sketch.jpg
 File:HW JackalCreep Concept 1.jpg
 File:HW JackalCreep Concept 2.jpg
-File:ThePackage Jackal Render.png
 File:HW Jackal Sculpt.jpg
 File:HW Jackal Textured.jpg
-File:H4 Kig-Yar head concept art.jpg
+</gallery>
-File:H4 Jackal Storm concept.jpg
-File:H4-KigYar-Concept.jpg
+====T'vao====
+<gallery>
 File:HR Skirmisher Concept.png
 File:HR SkirmisherVariant Concept.jpg
-File:HtT - Kig-Yar Stew.jpg|Kig-Yar diet
+</gallery>
+'''Xenoflora'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Lush forests
+</gallery>
+'''Xenofauna'''
+<gallery>
+visual needed|Rodent
+visual needed|Snake
 </gallery>
@@ Line 595: / Line 801: @@
 <gallery>
-Peafowl
+Peafowl{{Ref/Note|Although not specifically intended to indicate peafowl, the sound of their cries can be heard in ''Combat Evolved'' on the level 'Halo', and it has always made so much sense to me that the Forerunners would favor the birds for their natural beauty, or perhaps even had a hand in their creation. I am quite attached to the calm visual of a peacock sitting on a massive Forerunner structure.}}
 </gallery>
 ====Xeno-organisms====
-=====Thorn Beast=====
+'''Xenofauna'''
+Thorn Beast
 <gallery>
@@ Line 607: / Line 815: @@
 File:HINF ThornBeastConcept.jpg
 </gallery>
-'''Xenofauna'''
 <gallery>
@@ Line 646: / Line 852: @@
 '''Xenofauna'''
-=====Quadwing=====
+Quadwing
 <gallery>
@@ Line 668: / Line 874: @@
 '''Xenofauna'''
-=====Sky Leviathan=====
+Sky Leviathan
 <gallery>
@@ Line 676: / Line 882: @@
 </gallery>
-=====Tusk Beast=====
+Tusk Beast
 <gallery>
@@ Line 686: / Line 892: @@
 </gallery>
-=====Blind Wolf=====
+Blind Wolf
 <gallery>
@@ Line 713: / Line 919: @@
 <gallery>
-File:Halo Wars Mystery Bird.png
+File:Halo Wars Mystery Bird.png|Hoopoe
 </gallery>
@@ Line 791: / Line 997: @@
 <gallery>
-File:H4 RequiemSquid Concept.jpg
+File:H4 RequiemSquid Concept.jpg|Flying squid
+File:H4-Bird.png|Space bird
 </gallery>
@@ Line 810: / Line 1,017: @@
 <gallery>
 File:H5G-Conceptart.jpg|Fractal plant growth and infinite biodiversity.
+File:H5G - Genesis JW Liberto 2.jpg
 File:H5G - Forerunner mountains 2.jpg
 File:H5G - Forerunner mountains 1.jpg
 File:H5G Achievement TakeAHike.png
+File:H5G Achievement TogetherAgain.png
 File:H5G-Genesis concept.jpg
 File:H5G ForerunnerPlants Concept.jpg
@@ Line 842: / Line 1,051: @@
 '''Exofauna'''
-=====Brontothere=====
+Brontothere
-Very similar to species of [[Wikipedia:Brontotheriidae|prehistoric fauna]] from Earth.
+Very similar to species of [[Wikipedia:Brontotheriidae|prehistoric fauna]] from Earth.{{Ref/Note|Connecting the Brontothere with its prehistoric Earth analog serves as an opportunity to highlight some real-world paleontology.}}
 <gallery>
@@ Line 1,001: / Line 1,210: @@
 File:HW FloodEgg Render.jpg
 File:HW2 FloodEgg Concept SFW.jpg
-</gallery>
-'''Launcher'''
-<gallery>
-File:HW FloodLauncher Sculpt Render.jpg
 </gallery>
@@ Line 1,014: / Line 1,218: @@
 </gallery>
-'''Bomber'''
+'''Launcher'''
 <gallery>
-File:HW VariousFlood Concept.png
+File:HW FloodLauncher Sculpt Render.jpg
 </gallery>
@@ Line 1,025: / Line 1,229: @@
 File:Halo flood dispersal concept art.jpg
 File:HW2-Burster.png
+</gallery>
+'''Bomber'''
+<gallery>
+File:HW VariousFlood Concept.png
 </gallery>
 ===Coordinated===
-====Proto-Gravemind====
+====Compound Intelligences====
+'''Proto-Gravemind'''
 <gallery>
 File:HCE ProtoGravemind Concept.jpg
@@ Line 1,038: / Line 1,250: @@
 </gallery>
-====Gravemind====
+'''Gravemind'''
 [[File:H2A Gravemind Loadscreen.png]]
@@ Line 1,048: / Line 1,260: @@
 </gallery>
-====Juggernauts====
+====Command Forms====
+'''Juggernaut'''
 <gallery>
 File:Juggernaut Concept.png
@@ Line 1,059: / Line 1,274: @@
 </gallery>
-====Blightstalker====
+'''Blightstalker'''
 <gallery>
 File:Enc22 FloodBlightstalker.png
@@ Line 1,116: / Line 1,331: @@
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+===Neural Physics===
+As a culmination of the book, this chapter would present Greg Bear's panentheistic interpretation of the Halo universe from an ecological perspective, highlighting the fact that the recovery of this knowledge from Forerunner data stores was a significant breakthrough in all the major Earth sciences.
+=Notes=
+{{Ref/Notes}}

User:Postmortem/WildlifeProject: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 00:19, January 5, 2025

Overview

Introduction

Human Sphere

Prehistoric Earth

Earth

Climate and the Holocene Extinction

Rainforest Wars and famine

Glassing of Voi and loss of East African megafauna

New Phoenix Incident

FTL

Terraforming

Mars

Venus

Europa and Xenobiology

Cryonics

Early Colonies

Reach

Exo-organisms

Xeno-organisms

Eridani System

Beta Gabriel

Tribute

Circumstance

Inner Colonies

Xeno-organisms

Alluvion

Outer Colonies

Circinius IV

Xeno-organisms

Onyx

Exo-organisms

Harvest

Terrestrial organisms

Exo-organisms

Xeno-organisms

Glasslands

Ecological Catastrophe

Post-War Colonies

Covenant Sphere

Sanghelios

Xeno-organisms

Sangheili Colonies

Janjur Qom

Te

Palamok

Eayn

Diverse Phenotypes

T'vao

Balaho

Xeno-organisms

Doisac

Pre-Immolation

Great Immolation

Xeno-organisms

Razing of Oth Sonin

Forerunner Sphere

Alpha Halo - Installation 04

Exo-organisms

Xeno-organisms

Destruction

Replacements

Delta Halo - Installation 05

Xeno-organisms

The Ark - Installation 00

Xeno-organisms

Sarcophagus - Shield World 0006

Trove - Shield World 0459

Exo-organisms

Xeno-organisms

Destruction

Requiem - Shield World 0001

Xeno-organisms

Destruction

Genesis - Shield World 0111

Xeno-organisms

Zeta Halo - Installation 07

Exo-organisms

Xeno-organisms