Mendicant Bias: Difference between revisions

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m (...awakens what The Covenant thougth- was the Dreadnought's Oracle... Corrected "thougth" to "thought." Also capitalized flood in the last sentence.)
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|image=
|image=
|began= Unknown
|began= Unknown
|ended= [[2553]] (Destroyed with [[The Ark]]?)
|ended= [[2553]] (Destroyed with the [[Ark]]?)
|gender= Male (?)
|gender= Male (?)
|description= N/A; occupies multiple locations at once.
|description= N/A; occupies multiple locations at once.
|affiliation= [[Forerunners]], [[Flood]]
|affiliation= [[Forerunners]], [[Flood]]
|function= To discover weaknesses of the Compound Mind.
|function= Combat the Compound Mind.
|battles= The Original Battle of the Ark
|battles= Original Battle of the Ark
}}
}}
'''05-032 Mendicant Bias''' as it is referred to by Offensive Bias, is a [[Contender-class Artificial Intelligence|Contender-class]] [[Forerunner]] [[AI]], the most advanced AI at the time, created to study and exploit the weaknesses of the first [[Gravemind]], or Compound Mind. At some point he was contacted by the Gravemind with a message of peace, charging the Forerunners with being so gluttonous and prideful as to deny the next step of evolution: the [[Flood]]. Convinced of these charges, Mendicant Bias abandoned his original purpose and became [[rampant]], developing a hatred for his makers.
'''05-032 Mendicant Bias''' was a [[Contender-class Artificial Intelligence|Contender-class]] [[Forerunner]] [[AI]]. It was the most advanced AI at the time of creation.


After going Rampant, Mendicant sent a message to the [[Forerunners]] saying "what takes you millenia to create, I destroy in seconds"<ref>[[Halo 3]]</ref> and the [[Forerunners]] confirm him as Rampant. Then the [[Forerunners]] create a similar AI called [[Offensive Bias]] to combat Mendicant.
==Biography==


Siding with the [[Flood]], he led a massive assault of infected forces on [[Installation 00|The Ark]] to halt the [[The Halos|Array sequence]] but was outsmarted and defeated by [[Offensive Bias]]. Mendicant Bias stowed away on the [[Forerunner Dreadnought]]. In [[Halo: Contact Harvest]] it is revealed that Mendicant Bias was the sophisticated A.I. that Cortana fought to delay the launching sequence in Halo 2. At the time of the Harvest massacre, the [[Prophet of Truth]] (at that time known as Fortitude) awakens what [[The Covenant]] thought was the Dreadnought's Oracle, and says "FOR EONS I HAVE WATCHED AS YOU MISINTERPRETED," referencing what [[The Covenant]] thought was the glyph for Reclamation. "THIS IS NOT RECLAMATION, THIS IS RECLAIMER". The [[Deacon]] that read the glyph from a [[Luminary]] misinterpreted [[Harvest]]'s population as "Holy Relics", when they were actually [[Reclaimer]]s. It is revealed that Mendicant seems to have realized that what he did to the Forerunners was wrong when he states "I WILL REJECT MY BIAS AND MAKE AMENDS."<ref>[[Halo: Contact Harvest]], Page 274-276</ref> He also states that the Reclaimers are his makers, making them Forerunner and saying, "MY MAKERS ARE MY MASTERS. I WILL BRING THEM SAFELY TO THE ARK"<ref>[[Halo: Contact Harvest]] Page 276</ref> He then begins to dislodge the Dreadnought from [[High Charity]], in an effort to take off, which would have destroyed High Charity, but he gets disconnected from its systems, due to a fluke involving the many [[Lekgolo]] worms wriggling in the ship's internal systems.
===Beginnings===
Mendicant Bias was tasked with resisting the [[Flood]] by studying and exploiting the weaknesses of the first [[Gravemind]], or Compound Mind. At some point the Gravemind contacted Mendicant Bias and convinced it to abandon the Forerunner, charging that the Forerunner were so gluttonous and prideful as to deny the next step of evolution: the [[Flood]]. Mendicant Bias then became [[rampant]], developing a hatred for its creators and actively working toward their destruction.


In Halo 3, the Prophet of Truth took the ship to [[Installation 00|The Ark]], finally releasing the AI onto the Ark, unintentionally allowing him to send the player messages in each [[Terminal]], eventually telling the player: ''"I'll tell you who I am. I am Mendicant Bias. This is what I have done."''
===Fall from Grace===
:"''What takes you millennia to create, I destroy in seconds.''" - A rampant Mendicant Bias to the Forerunner.<ref>[[Halo 3]]</ref>
The defection of Mendicant Bias severely compromised the Forerunner plan. In response the Forerunner created another AI, [[Offensive Bias]], to slow Mendicant Bias' advance, prevent Mendicant Bias from accessing the [[Ark]], and buying time to activate the [[The Halo Array|Halo array]].


Incomplete and disrupted detailing Mendicant's eventual defection are on [[Terminals]] 1-4 and can only be seen while playing the Legendary difficulty of the game. Terminal 5 shows several hostile messages sent from Mendicant Bias to his makers, confirming his rampancy. Terminal 6 shows a chronological recording of the battle between Mendicant Bias's forces against Offensive Bias, as perceived by Offensive himself, detailing Mendicant's eventual fall. This message may only be seen while playing Legendary difficulty, otherwise Mendicant will tell you "No. There is more. But you are not worthy... Not yet.". The final message hidden in Terminal 7 is an apology made by Mendicant directly to [[Master Chief]] for his betrayal, saying he will help the Reclaimer leave the Ark safely but it will not make up for the damage he did. How Mendicant helps the player is unknown. However it is possible that Mendicant was the one that raised the re-constructed Installation-04 from the Arks forges and closed the control room doors after [[Master Chief]], [[Sergent Johnson]], and [[The Arbiter]] entered and before the Flood could come in.
It seems that Mendicant Bias was unable to disable the Halos directly, perhaps not knowing their locations, and so the only chance it had to stop the coming cataclysm was to secure the Ark and stop the firing sequence from there. While it did not know the location of the Ark either it was aware of a means to get to it via the [[Portal]]s and [[Key Ship]]s. The Forerunner had subsequently destroyed or disabled most of the Key Ships. However, it seems that Mendicant Bias managed to locate (or thought it had) one of the remaining Key Ships which led to the final titanic battle with Offensive Bias.


Ultimately, Mendicant Bias was [[Terminals#Terminal_Six|outsmarted and defeated]] by Offensive Bias and the successful activation of the Halos.


===Repentance===
:"''For eons I have watched as you misinterpreted. This is not ''reclamation'', this is ''reclaimer" - Mendicant Bias revealing the Covenant's error.<ref>[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]</ref>
:"''I will reject my bias and make amends... My makers are my masters. I will bring them safely to the Ark''" - Mendicant Bias declaring its penance.<ref>[[Halo: Contact Harvest]] Page 274-276</ref>
Following its defeat, Mendicant Bias somehow was transferred into a [[Forerunner Dreadnought]]. The ship was later found by the [[Covenant]] and installed in ''[[High Charity]]''. Mendicant Bias presence was known to the Covenant and it was regarded as an [[Oracle]].
In [[2525]], it was consulted by the [[Prophet of Truth|Prophet of Fortitude]] and [[Deacon]] concerning the large number of Forerunner artifacts or "Holy Relics" on [[Harvest]]. In a shocking revelation Mendicant Bais revealed that the "Holy Relics" were actually humans and that the Covenant faith was based on an age-old mistranslation. The glyph on the [[Luminary]] was mistaken as "reclamation" when it truly meant "reclaimer". This had the potential to undermine the entire Covenant's unity and faith and would lead to a revolution in Covenant politics and, ultimately, the [[Human-Covenant War]].
The AI seems to have concluded that its ancient actions against the Forerunner had been mistaken and announced to its Covenant hosts its intention to bring the "reclaimers" to the Ark. To this end it attempted to leave ''High Charity'' by launching the dreadnought, an act that would have seriously damaged ''High Charity''. Mendicant Bais was foiled only by chance; it was disconnected by some [[Lekgolo]] worms wriggling inside the ship.
During the [[First Battle of High Charity]] in [[2552]], the [[UNSC]] [[AI]] [[Cortana]] fought Mendicant Bias to delay the launching of the dreadnought, allowing [[SPARTAN-117]] to board and return to [[Earth]].<ref>[[Gravemind (Level)]]</ref> In the proceding events Mendicant Bias was carried through the [[Voi]] [[Portal]], where it was finally released into the Ark's systems. Once on the Ark it attempted to communicate with SPARTAN-117 through [[Terminals]], claiming it sought atonement by helping the Spartan. Exactly what form that assistance took is uncertain.
:"''And so here at the end of my life, I do once again betray a former master. The path ahead is fraught with peril. But I will do all I can to keep it stable - keep you safe. I'm not so foolish to think this will absolve me of my sins. One life hardly balances billions.''" - Mendicant Bias to SPARTAN-117


== See also ==
== See also ==
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[[Category:Forerunner A.I.]]
[[Category:Forerunner A.I.]]
[[Category:Halo 3]]
[[Category:Halo 3]]

Revision as of 23:59, February 27, 2008

05-032 Mendicant Bias
Biographical information

Began service:

Unknown

Ended service:

2553 (Destroyed with the Ark?)

Gender:

Male (?)

Description:

N/A; occupies multiple locations at once.

Political and military information

Affiliation:

Forerunners, Flood

Functionality:

Combat the Compound Mind.

 

05-032 Mendicant Bias was a Contender-class Forerunner AI. It was the most advanced AI at the time of creation.

Biography

Beginnings

Mendicant Bias was tasked with resisting the Flood by studying and exploiting the weaknesses of the first Gravemind, or Compound Mind. At some point the Gravemind contacted Mendicant Bias and convinced it to abandon the Forerunner, charging that the Forerunner were so gluttonous and prideful as to deny the next step of evolution: the Flood. Mendicant Bias then became rampant, developing a hatred for its creators and actively working toward their destruction.

Fall from Grace

"What takes you millennia to create, I destroy in seconds." - A rampant Mendicant Bias to the Forerunner.[1]

The defection of Mendicant Bias severely compromised the Forerunner plan. In response the Forerunner created another AI, Offensive Bias, to slow Mendicant Bias' advance, prevent Mendicant Bias from accessing the Ark, and buying time to activate the Halo array.

It seems that Mendicant Bias was unable to disable the Halos directly, perhaps not knowing their locations, and so the only chance it had to stop the coming cataclysm was to secure the Ark and stop the firing sequence from there. While it did not know the location of the Ark either it was aware of a means to get to it via the Portals and Key Ships. The Forerunner had subsequently destroyed or disabled most of the Key Ships. However, it seems that Mendicant Bias managed to locate (or thought it had) one of the remaining Key Ships which led to the final titanic battle with Offensive Bias.

Ultimately, Mendicant Bias was outsmarted and defeated by Offensive Bias and the successful activation of the Halos.

Repentance

"For eons I have watched as you misinterpreted. This is not reclamation, this is reclaimer" - Mendicant Bias revealing the Covenant's error.[2]
"I will reject my bias and make amends... My makers are my masters. I will bring them safely to the Ark" - Mendicant Bias declaring its penance.[3]

Following its defeat, Mendicant Bias somehow was transferred into a Forerunner Dreadnought. The ship was later found by the Covenant and installed in High Charity. Mendicant Bias presence was known to the Covenant and it was regarded as an Oracle.

In 2525, it was consulted by the Prophet of Fortitude and Deacon concerning the large number of Forerunner artifacts or "Holy Relics" on Harvest. In a shocking revelation Mendicant Bais revealed that the "Holy Relics" were actually humans and that the Covenant faith was based on an age-old mistranslation. The glyph on the Luminary was mistaken as "reclamation" when it truly meant "reclaimer". This had the potential to undermine the entire Covenant's unity and faith and would lead to a revolution in Covenant politics and, ultimately, the Human-Covenant War.

The AI seems to have concluded that its ancient actions against the Forerunner had been mistaken and announced to its Covenant hosts its intention to bring the "reclaimers" to the Ark. To this end it attempted to leave High Charity by launching the dreadnought, an act that would have seriously damaged High Charity. Mendicant Bais was foiled only by chance; it was disconnected by some Lekgolo worms wriggling inside the ship.

During the First Battle of High Charity in 2552, the UNSC AI Cortana fought Mendicant Bias to delay the launching of the dreadnought, allowing SPARTAN-117 to board and return to Earth.[4] In the proceding events Mendicant Bias was carried through the Voi Portal, where it was finally released into the Ark's systems. Once on the Ark it attempted to communicate with SPARTAN-117 through Terminals, claiming it sought atonement by helping the Spartan. Exactly what form that assistance took is uncertain.

"And so here at the end of my life, I do once again betray a former master. The path ahead is fraught with peril. But I will do all I can to keep it stable - keep you safe. I'm not so foolish to think this will absolve me of my sins. One life hardly balances billions." - Mendicant Bias to SPARTAN-117

See also

References

  1. ^ Halo 3
  2. ^ Halo: Contact Harvest
  3. ^ Halo: Contact Harvest Page 274-276
  4. ^ Gravemind (Level)
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