Operation: FIRST STRIKE: Difference between revisions
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{{Era|HCW}} | {{Era|HCW}} | ||
{{ | {{References}} | ||
{{battle | {{battle | ||
|prev=[[Massacre at Eridanus Secundus]] | |prev=[[Massacre at Eridanus Secundus]] | ||
|conc= | |conc= | ||
|next=[[Battle of Earth]] | |next=[[Battle of Earth]] | ||
|name= | |name= Operation: FIRST STRIKE | ||
|image=[[File:FS cover full.jpg|300px]] | |image=[[File:FS cover full.jpg|300px]] | ||
|conflict=[[Human-Covenant War]] | |conflict=[[Human-Covenant War]] | ||
|date= [[2552#September|September 13 | |date= [[2552#September|September 13, 2552]] | ||
|place=[[ | |place=[[Tau Ceti system]], inside the Oort cloud | ||
|result=Decisive UNSC victory | |result=Decisive UNSC victory | ||
*Covenant armada destroyed | *Covenant armada destroyed | ||
* | *Covenant invasion of the [[Sol system]] delayed | ||
|side1=[[United Nations Space Command]] | |side1=[[United Nations Space Command]] | ||
|side2=[[Covenant Empire|Covenant]] | |side2=[[Covenant Empire|Covenant]] | ||
|commanders1=*[[Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb]]† | |commanders1=*[[Vice Admiral]] [[Danforth Whitcomb]]† | ||
*[[Master Chief Petty Officer | *[[Master Chief Petty Officer]] [[John-117]] | ||
*[[Cortana]] | *[[Cortana]] | ||
|commanders2=*[[Prophet of Truth]] | |commanders2=*[[Prophet of Truth]] | ||
*[[Tartarus]] | *[[Tartarus]] | ||
|forces1=*Hybrid vessel ''[[Gettysburg]]-[[Ascendant Justice]]'' | |forces1=*Hybrid vessel ''[[Gettysburg]]-[[Ascendant Justice]]'' | ||
* | *Five [[SPARTAN-II Program|SPARTAN-IIs]]: | ||
**[[John-117]] | **[[John-117]] | ||
**[[Fred-104]] | **[[Fred-104]] | ||
| Line 30: | Line 30: | ||
*[[Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb]] | *[[Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb]] | ||
*[[Sergeant Major]] [[Avery Junior Johnson]] | *[[Sergeant Major]] [[Avery Junior Johnson]] | ||
|forces2=* | |forces2=*''[[Unyielding Hierophant]]'' | ||
*Over 500 vessels (various classes) | *Over 500 vessels (various classes) | ||
*[[Unggoy]], [[Kig-yar]], [[Mgalekgolo]], [[Sangheili]], [[Jiralhanae]] | *[[Unggoy]], [[Kig-yar]], [[Mgalekgolo]], [[Sangheili]], [[Jiralhanae]] | ||
|casual1= | |casual1= | ||
*Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb | *Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb | ||
*Lieutenant Haverson | *Lieutenant Elias Haverson | ||
* | *One SPARTAN-II | ||
**[[Grace-093]] | **[[Grace-093]] | ||
*''Ascendant Justice'' | *''Ascendant Justice'' | ||
|casual2= | |casual2=Approximately 488 vessels | ||
* | *''Unyielding Hierophant'' | ||
}} | }} | ||
{{Quote|We're going to take this fight to the Covenant. We're going to launch a first strike.|John-117}} | {{Quote|We're going to take this fight to the Covenant. We're going to launch a first strike.|John-117}} | ||
'''Operation: FIRST STRIKE''' was a raid by | '''Operation: FIRST STRIKE''' was a raid by survivors of the [[Battle of Installation 04]] and the [[Fall of Reach]] on the [[Covenant Empire|Covenant]] space station ''[[Unyielding Hierophant]]'' on [[2552#September|September 13, 2552]]. It was the largest UNSC victory since the [[Battle of Sigma Octanus IV]],<ref name="Alamo"/> and the most decisive since [[Admiral]] [[Preston Jeremiah Cole|Preston Cole's]] last stand at the [[Battle of Psi Serpentis]].<ref>'''[[Halo: Evolutions]]''' - '''[[The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole]]'''</ref> | ||
==History== | ==History== | ||
===Background=== | ===Background=== | ||
Having discovered the location of [[Earth]], the | Having discovered the location of [[Earth]], Covenant forces under the command of the [[Prophet of Truth]] were building a [[Truth's fleet|massive invasion fleet]], consisting of about five hundred ships to invade humanity's homeworld. Truth kept his knowledge of Earth's location hidden from his fellow [[Hierarchs]], [[Prophet of Regret|Regret]] and [[Prophet of Mercy|Mercy]]. The assembly of the fleet, which was led entirely by the [[Jiralhanae]], also remained secret; Truth planned to have the Jiralhanae [[Changing of the Guard|usurp]] the [[Sangheili]] as the [[San 'Shyuum|Prophets']] protectors, simultaneously eliminating his fellow Hierarchs.<ref>[http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/intel/theuniverse/events/complex/ten-twenty/f4adbef8-e9bc-44f8-aefa-d8e9b69f7139 '''Halo Waypoint''', ''Ten Twenty'']</ref> | ||
After discovering the | After discovering Truth's plan, and the location of ''Unyielding Hierophant'' in the [[Tau Ceti system]], from a piggybacked transmission, the [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] [[Cortana]] and [[SPARTAN-II Program|SPARTAN]] [[John-117]] formulated a counter plan that would result in either a massive victory or the deaths of the remaining active SPARTAN-IIs. | ||
===The | ===The raid=== | ||
In a desperate attempt to stop | In a desperate attempt to stop the massive Covenant armada from invading Earth, the five Spartans aboard the hybrid vessel [[UNSC Gettysburg|''Gettysburg'']]-''[[Ascendant Justice]]'' - John-117, [[Frederic-104]], [[Kelly-087]], [[Linda-058]], [[William-043]], and [[Grace-093]] - infiltrated the Covenant repair and refit station ''Unyielding Hierophant'' via a captured [[Type-28 Troop Carrier|Spirit dropship]]. After landing in a vast hangar, the Spartans began to sneak through maintenance access and ventilation tunnels until they found the station's reactor core.<ref name="Alamo"/> | ||
As the Spartans approached a large temple-like atrium, they were ambushed by Jiralhanae guards. During this ambush, Grace was killed when the Covenant tracked her [[COM]] signals; after the immediate threat was eliminated, John activated Grace's [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark V|MJOLNIR suit's]] [[fail-safe detonation system]], killing the investigating Covenant soldiers.<ref name="Alamo">'''Halo: First Strike''', ''pages 328-333''</ref> The Spartans then fought their way to a reactor room and set the generators to overload. Once the reactors were set to overload, the Spartans returned to the atrium, opened the airlocks, and blew out a heavily enforced window that enclosed the atrium with hijacked [[Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft|Banshees]], sucking all Covenant forces inside the atrium into space.<ref name="Alamo"/> | |||
Around this time, Cortana's attempts to hack the [[Covenant battle network]] was discovered and she was forced to make hundreds of copies to protect herself. She successfully opened the airlocks and interfered with the Covenant's communications by repeating error messages on their COM systems endlessly. The Spartans then traveled to the far side of a nearby moon and unexpectedly met the UNSC ''Gettysburg'', now separated from ''Ascendant Justice''. | |||
[[Vice Admiral]] [[Danforth Whitcomb]] and [[Lieutenant]] [[Elias Haverson]] took the ''Ascendant Justice'' and crashed straight into the ''Unyielding Hierophant''. Using a hologram, Whitcomb pretended to have the [[Forerunner]] [[Forerunner crystal|crystal]], which had been found beneath [[CASTLE Base]] on [[Reach]], aboard the ship and challenged all Covenant forces in the system to try and take it from him. The Covenant battleships all gathered around the ''Ascendant Justice'' and the overloading battle station, attempting to take the crystal from Whitcomb. The station then overloaded and exploded, killing Whitcomb and Haverson, destroying most of the Covenant fleet, and saving Earth from impending invasion.<ref name="Alamo"/> | |||
===Aftermath=== | ===Aftermath=== | ||
After using a spy drone to view what | After using a spy drone to view what remained of the fleet, the crew of the ''Gettysburg'' made a random [[Slipstream space|slipspace]] jump away from the battlefield and then finally to Earth using the ''Ascendant Justice's'' slipspace drive, which had been fitted to the human ship. The crew then warned Earth of the Covenant's intent to invade the planet. | ||
Meanwhile, on ''High Charity'', the [[ | Meanwhile, on ''[[High Charity]]'', [[Tartarus]], the [[Chieftain of the Jiralhanae]], informed the Prophet of Truth of the armada's destruction. Truth was disturbed but otherwise regarded it as a minor setback. He ordered Tartarus to quietly eliminate those pilots with knowledge of the disaster in order to ensure that his plans were kept hidden from the rest of the Covenant. | ||
==Timeline== | ==Timeline== | ||
*'''0510 Hours:''' | *'''0510 Hours:''' John-117 presents the plan to the crew of the ''Gettysburg'' - ''Ascendant Justice''. After much hesitation, Vice Admiral Whitcomb approves. | ||
*'''0530 Hours:''' The hybrid vessel passes through the Covenant armada in | *'''0530 Hours:''' The hybrid vessel passes through the Covenant armada in slipspace and launches a single Spirit dropship. The dropship contains the SPARTAN-IIs: John-117, Fred-104, Linda-058, Grace-093, and Will-043. The dropship is undetected by the Covenant forces. The hybrid ship then hides behind a nearby moon. | ||
*'''0610 Hours:''' The dropship docks aboard the ''Unyielding Hierophant''. The Spartans make their way through access pipes and conduits. | *'''0610 Hours:''' The dropship docks aboard the ''Unyielding Hierophant''. The Spartans make their way through access pipes and conduits. | ||
*'''1551 Hours:''' The Spartan team enters a temple inside the station. They are ambushed by a group of | *'''1551 Hours:''' The Spartan team enters a temple inside the station. They are ambushed by a group of Jiralhanae temple guards. | ||
*'''1555 Hours:''' Grace-093 is killed by | *'''1555 Hours:''' Grace-093 is killed when the guards triangulate her location by intercepting her COM transmissions. John detonates Grace's armor, killing the investigating Covenant troops. | ||
*'''1600 Hours:''' The Spartan team fights into the reactor room, where Cortana's copy initiates an overload of all 512 fusion reactors. | *'''1600 Hours:''' The Spartan team fights into the reactor room, where Cortana's copy initiates an overload of all 512 fusion reactors. | ||
*'''1610 Hours:''' | *'''1610 Hours:''' ''Gettysburg'' and ''Ascendant Justice'' de-link. ''Ascendant Justice'' heads into the midst of the Covenant fleet, hoping to draw more Covenant vessels close to the station as it is detonating. Aboard are Vice Admiral Whitcomb and Lieutenant Haverson. | ||
*'''1620 Hours:''' The Spartan team uses | *'''1620 Hours:''' The Spartan team uses Banshees to escape the station. | ||
*'''1625 Hours:''' | *'''1625 Hours:''' ''Unyielding Hierophant'' explodes, destroying approximately 488 of the 500 vessels in the area and heavily damaging the remainder.<ref name="Alamo"/> | ||
*'''1630 Hours:''' The | *'''1630 Hours:''' The human survivors, including the remaining Spartans, [[Staff Sergeant]] [[Avery Junior Johnson|Avery Johnson]], and Cortana, as well as many [[Huragok]], return to Earth aboard the ''Gettysburg''. ''Gettysburg'' is outfitted with ''Ascendant Justice''<nowiki>'</nowiki>, allowing better precision in slipspace calculations.<ref name="Alamo"/> | ||
==List of appearances== | |||
*''[[Halo: First Strike]]'' {{1st}} | |||
== Sources == | ==Sources== | ||
<references/> | <references/> | ||
{{Human-Covenant War}} | {{Human-Covenant War}} | ||
Revision as of 12:54, July 8, 2011
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- "We're going to take this fight to the Covenant. We're going to launch a first strike."
- — John-117
Operation: FIRST STRIKE was a raid by survivors of the Battle of Installation 04 and the Fall of Reach on the Covenant space station Unyielding Hierophant on September 13, 2552. It was the largest UNSC victory since the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV,[1] and the most decisive since Admiral Preston Cole's last stand at the Battle of Psi Serpentis.[2]
History
Background
Having discovered the location of Earth, Covenant forces under the command of the Prophet of Truth were building a massive invasion fleet, consisting of about five hundred ships to invade humanity's homeworld. Truth kept his knowledge of Earth's location hidden from his fellow Hierarchs, Regret and Mercy. The assembly of the fleet, which was led entirely by the Jiralhanae, also remained secret; Truth planned to have the Jiralhanae usurp the Sangheili as the Prophets' protectors, simultaneously eliminating his fellow Hierarchs.[3]
After discovering Truth's plan, and the location of Unyielding Hierophant in the Tau Ceti system, from a piggybacked transmission, the AI Cortana and SPARTAN John-117 formulated a counter plan that would result in either a massive victory or the deaths of the remaining active SPARTAN-IIs.
The raid
In a desperate attempt to stop the massive Covenant armada from invading Earth, the five Spartans aboard the hybrid vessel Gettysburg-Ascendant Justice - John-117, Frederic-104, Kelly-087, Linda-058, William-043, and Grace-093 - infiltrated the Covenant repair and refit station Unyielding Hierophant via a captured Spirit dropship. After landing in a vast hangar, the Spartans began to sneak through maintenance access and ventilation tunnels until they found the station's reactor core.[1]
As the Spartans approached a large temple-like atrium, they were ambushed by Jiralhanae guards. During this ambush, Grace was killed when the Covenant tracked her COM signals; after the immediate threat was eliminated, John activated Grace's MJOLNIR suit's fail-safe detonation system, killing the investigating Covenant soldiers.[1] The Spartans then fought their way to a reactor room and set the generators to overload. Once the reactors were set to overload, the Spartans returned to the atrium, opened the airlocks, and blew out a heavily enforced window that enclosed the atrium with hijacked Banshees, sucking all Covenant forces inside the atrium into space.[1]
Around this time, Cortana's attempts to hack the Covenant battle network was discovered and she was forced to make hundreds of copies to protect herself. She successfully opened the airlocks and interfered with the Covenant's communications by repeating error messages on their COM systems endlessly. The Spartans then traveled to the far side of a nearby moon and unexpectedly met the UNSC Gettysburg, now separated from Ascendant Justice.
Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb and Lieutenant Elias Haverson took the Ascendant Justice and crashed straight into the Unyielding Hierophant. Using a hologram, Whitcomb pretended to have the Forerunner crystal, which had been found beneath CASTLE Base on Reach, aboard the ship and challenged all Covenant forces in the system to try and take it from him. The Covenant battleships all gathered around the Ascendant Justice and the overloading battle station, attempting to take the crystal from Whitcomb. The station then overloaded and exploded, killing Whitcomb and Haverson, destroying most of the Covenant fleet, and saving Earth from impending invasion.[1]
Aftermath
After using a spy drone to view what remained of the fleet, the crew of the Gettysburg made a random slipspace jump away from the battlefield and then finally to Earth using the Ascendant Justice's slipspace drive, which had been fitted to the human ship. The crew then warned Earth of the Covenant's intent to invade the planet.
Meanwhile, on High Charity, Tartarus, the Chieftain of the Jiralhanae, informed the Prophet of Truth of the armada's destruction. Truth was disturbed but otherwise regarded it as a minor setback. He ordered Tartarus to quietly eliminate those pilots with knowledge of the disaster in order to ensure that his plans were kept hidden from the rest of the Covenant.
Timeline
- 0510 Hours: John-117 presents the plan to the crew of the Gettysburg - Ascendant Justice. After much hesitation, Vice Admiral Whitcomb approves.
- 0530 Hours: The hybrid vessel passes through the Covenant armada in slipspace and launches a single Spirit dropship. The dropship contains the SPARTAN-IIs: John-117, Fred-104, Linda-058, Grace-093, and Will-043. The dropship is undetected by the Covenant forces. The hybrid ship then hides behind a nearby moon.
- 0610 Hours: The dropship docks aboard the Unyielding Hierophant. The Spartans make their way through access pipes and conduits.
- 1551 Hours: The Spartan team enters a temple inside the station. They are ambushed by a group of Jiralhanae temple guards.
- 1555 Hours: Grace-093 is killed when the guards triangulate her location by intercepting her COM transmissions. John detonates Grace's armor, killing the investigating Covenant troops.
- 1600 Hours: The Spartan team fights into the reactor room, where Cortana's copy initiates an overload of all 512 fusion reactors.
- 1610 Hours: Gettysburg and Ascendant Justice de-link. Ascendant Justice heads into the midst of the Covenant fleet, hoping to draw more Covenant vessels close to the station as it is detonating. Aboard are Vice Admiral Whitcomb and Lieutenant Haverson.
- 1620 Hours: The Spartan team uses Banshees to escape the station.
- 1625 Hours: Unyielding Hierophant explodes, destroying approximately 488 of the 500 vessels in the area and heavily damaging the remainder.[1]
- 1630 Hours: The human survivors, including the remaining Spartans, Staff Sergeant Avery Johnson, and Cortana, as well as many Huragok, return to Earth aboard the Gettysburg. Gettysburg is outfitted with Ascendant Justice', allowing better precision in slipspace calculations.[1]
List of appearances
- Halo: First Strike (First appearance)
Sources
- ^ a b c d e f g Halo: First Strike, pages 328-333
- ^ Halo: Evolutions - The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole
- ^ Halo Waypoint, Ten Twenty
