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{{Era|Forerunner|HCW}}
{{Status|Canon}}
{{Cleanup}}
{{References}}
{{References}}
{{disambig header|the Flood form|other uses|Gravemind (disambiguation)}}
{{disambig header|the Flood intelligence|the [[Halo 2]] campaign level or other uses|Gravemind (level)|Gravemind (disambiguation)}}
{{Flood Species Infobox
{{Flood infobox
|name= Gravemind (''Inferi sententia'')
|name= Gravemind (''Inferi sententia'')
|image= [[File:Gravemindcapture.jpg|300px]]
|image= [[File:HTMCC-H2A Gravemind.png|350px]]
|height= 84.8 meters (279.8 feet) (form on [[Installation 05]])<ref>[http://nikon.bungie.org/misc/sloftus_scalecomparison/?display=Forerunner '''halo.bungie.org''': ''Determining the Real Sizes of Objects in Halo'']</ref>
|height=
|distinctions= Collective Flood consciousness; frequently speaks in trochaic heptameter
|distinctions= Massive worm-like head with many tentacle appendages. Collective Flood consciousness; frequently speaks in trochaic heptameter
|species= [[Flood]]
|species= [[Flood]]
|attacks=
|attacks= [[Neural physics]]
|notable=
|notable=
}}
}}
{{Article Quote|I am a monument to all your sins.<ref>'''[[Halo 2]]''' level ''[[Gravemind (level)|Gravemind]]''</ref>}}
{{Quote|I am a monument to all your sins.|The Gravemind<ref name="h2gm">'''[[Halo 2]]''', campaign level, ''[[Gravemind (level)|Gravemind]] (opening cinematic)''</ref>}}
A '''Gravemind'''<ref>''[[High Charity (level)|High Charity]]'', ''Cortana: "Flood controlled dropships are touching down all over the city! That creature beneath the Library, that 'Gravemind', used us. We were just a diversion."''</ref> ('''''Inferi sententia''''', meaning ''"Thinking Dead"''), formally known as a '''compound intelligence''',<ref>'''Halo 3''', ''[[Terminal/Halo 3#Terminal Five|Terminal 5]]''</ref><ref>'''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]''', [[Library (feature)|Library]]: ''Proto-Compound Intelligence''</ref> is a Flood form that serves as the controlling consciousness of the entire [[The Flood|Flood]] species. A Gravemind manifests as a near-omniscient intelligence existing throughout all Flood forms, with a huge body composed of Flood biomass serving as its central "brain."
The '''Gravemind'''<ref>'''Halo 2''', campaign level ''[[High Charity (level)|High Charity]]'', (''Cortana: "Flood controlled dropships are touching down all over the city! That creature beneath the Library, that 'Gravemind', used us. We were just a diversion."'')</ref> ('''''Inferi sententia''''', meaning ''"Thinking Dead"''),<ref name="bestiarum">'''[[Bestiarum]]'''</ref> infrequently referred to as the '''Ancient One''',<ref>[[Halo 4]] - [[War Games]] - [[Ancient One]] "Gravemind! The Ancient One...", [[Announcer]]</ref> and formally known as a '''compound intelligence''',<ref>'''Halo 3''', ''[[Terminal (Halo 3)#Terminal Five|Terminal 5]]''</ref><ref>'''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]''', [[Library (feature)|Library]]: ''Proto-Compound Intelligence''</ref> is the shared consciousness of the entire [[Flood]] species which first emerges when the Flood reaches the [[Coordinated Stage]]. While this compound mind inhabits all Flood forms, it is distinctly embodied in processing nodes of agglomerated Flood biomatter known as [[key mind]]s. The Gravemind is the highest stage of the Flood's development, though its complexity and capabilities depend on the size and number of the key minds which can, at the height of a Flood outbreak, engulf entire worlds.<ref name="deluge">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/deluge-delights ''Halo Waypoint'': "Canon Fodder - Deluge Delights"]</ref>


==Life cycle==
==Biography==
A Gravemind originates as a [[proto-Gravemind]] -- a Flood form created by merging the bodies and biomass of numerous sentient life forms, as well as redundant Flood forms. After a proto-Gravemind has been created, nearby [[Flood combat form|combat forms]] will continue to supply it with fresh bodies, allowing it to accumulate mass, increase in size, and gain more memories and intelligence from consumed hosts. Eventually, the Proto-Gravemind reaches a certain "critical mass" and becomes self-aware - a Gravemind. This critical mass tends to be in the thousands, if using human-sized bodies as a measuring unit.
===Origin===
[[File:H2A Gravemind Loadscreen.png|300px|thumb|left|The Gravemind's massive full figure.]]
Millions of years before the present, the ancient and powerful civilization known as the [[Precursor]]s held a position of stewardship over the galaxy, populating it with numerous lifeforms and watching over their evolution. However, one of their created races, the sapient species known as the [[Forerunner]]s, [[Forerunner-Precursor war|staged a massive rebellion]] against their creators and were successful in nearly wiping them out entirely. The remaining Precursors sought ways to render themselves dormant until such a time as they could safely roam the galaxy again.


When the Flood assimilate the entire ecosystem of a planet, a Gravemind will evolve into a [[Key Mind]].<ref name="silentium">'''Halo: Silentium''', ''String 18''</ref> The Gravemind and its subordinate Flood forms will continue to accumulate bodies. Eventually, when the Flood infection has become too large for even the Gravemind to control — or when all life in the galaxy has been consumed — the Flood infection will reach the [[Intergalactic Stage]]. At this point, the Flood will use all resources that it has at its disposal to leave the galaxy, with the intent to create a new Gravemind elsewhere.
Around a million years after the downfall of the Precursors,<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''page 173''</ref> a being later known as the [[Primordial]]—a mutated Precursor—was confined to a Precursor [[stasis capsule]] and placed beneath the surface of a small planetoid at the edge of the [[Milky Way]] by an unknown group of beings, suspected to be ancient Forerunners. Meanwhile, most of the last surviving Precursors converted their bodies into an organic powder, and planned to regenerate back into their original forms at a later time. However, the millions of years that followed rendered the powder defective, and the resurrection process instead yielded malformed, parasitic lifeforms that could assimilate organic matter - the nascent stage of the Flood.


==Description==
Prior to [[107,445 BCE]], a number of automated starships of unknown origin came from the [[Magellanic Clouds|Magellanic satellite galaxies]] and crashed upon numerous worlds at the galaxy's borders. These vessels were eventually discovered by the ancient humans and San'Shyuum, who found that they contained millions of glassy cylinders carrying a fine powder of non-living, moderately simple organic material. This powder was dispersed among the human and San'Shyuum worlds, eventually creating and unleashing the first known Flood outbreak in this galaxy.
The first known Gravemind, known as the [[Primordial]] or "the Captive" by Forerunners, bore little resemblance to its later incarnations. It took the form of a large, multi-limbed, humanoid Flood form. It is unclear as to whether this entity was the intelligence of the Gravemind inhabiting an infected [[Precursor]], if it was a Flood form composed of many hosts merged together, or if it was simply a "pure" Flood form created to serve as the Gravemind's body.


The Gravemind encountered during the Human-Covenant War was a massive Flood form, with an amorphous body composed of numerous tentacles. One of the larger tentacles ended in a massive "mouth" composed of fleshy, leaf-like jaws; This organ allows the Gravemind to vocalize. During its time beneath [[Installation 05]]'s [[Library]], some of its tentacles grew to be miles long and stretched throughout the Installation.
During the course of their onslaught against the humans and San'Shyuum, the Flood would frequently capture, infect, and merge host organisms into unified masses with an encompassing intelligence; Graveminds. Soon after, the Flood collective made the decision to recede from the galaxy, halting the parasite's spread across human-controlled space. The Flood were driven out and retreated from the Milky Way, not to be seen again for another thousand years. While these early Flood were destroyed, and their Graveminds with them, the Flood would return in newer, more capable forms.


[[File:GravemindCloseup.png|thumb|250px|Installation 05's Gravemind with [[Arbiter]] [[Thel 'Vadam]]ee and [[SPARTAN-II Program|Spartan]] [[John-117]].]]
===Forerunner-Flood war===
The Gravemind, like the Proto-Gravemind from which it formed, is made up of countless infected corpses. Gravemind references this fact often, often calling his current whereabouts an empty grave or burial mound. Even its name, "Gravemind", references this: it is the mind of the grave. The consciousness of the Gravemind is formed from the accumulated intelligence and memories of every Flood host ever consumed.  
[[File:Originsgravemind.jpg|thumb|250px|A Gravemind present during the Forerunner-Flood war.]]
During the [[Forerunner-Flood war]], the Flood created many Gravemind forms, which collectively coordinated the Flood's efforts against the Forerunners. Eventually, Forerunner naval tactics began to fail, and the Forerunners developed the [[Halo Array]] as a desperate countermeasure, which would destroy all sentient life in the galaxy, thus denying the Flood "food" for growth. This was only to be used as a last resort, and the Forerunners refused to use the system.


The Gravemind is the controlling intelligence behind the parasitic Flood species. When a creature is assimilated into the Flood, its knowledge is transferred directly to the Gravemind, and the remainder of its mind is destroyed. In addition, it appears each Gravemind also retains the memories and knowledge of previous Graveminds.<ref>'''[[Halo Encyclopedia]]'''</ref> This has made the Gravemind virtually omniscient, and ensures that should the Gravemind be destroyed, its consciousness will never truly die as long as some Flood forms are left. In an [[Terminal/Halo 3|archived]] conversation with the Forerunner [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] known as [[05-032 Mendicant Bias|Mendicant Bias]], he compared himself to the AI, describing it as "a single intelligence inhabiting multiple [[wikipedia:Class (computer science)|instances]]" and calling himself "a compound [intelligence] consisting of a thousand billion coordinated minds inhabiting as many bodies as circumstances require". While it is not known how the Gravemind is able to communicate with subordinate Flood forms across the galaxy, his self-comparison to a computer network implies that similar techniques may be used, with each Flood form possibly acting as a [[Wikipedia:Node (networking)|networking node]] and redistributing the Gravemind's commands to other forms.  
While the Flood would gain and lose individual Graveminds during the war, their numbers were still nevertheless sufficient to form and maintain a collective array to coordinate the parasite across the galaxy. The Flood would continue to be an unstoppable and persistent threat to the Forerunners, who, despite their best efforts, were unable to stop the parasite's spread across the galaxy, despite many lengthy naval engagements that lasted for nearly 300 years. As they continued to lose the war to the Flood, the Forerunners would reluctantly turn to other, more risky endeavors. In accordance with their existing plan, multiple installations, including [[Installation 00|the Ark]] and numerous [[Shield World]]s were constructed by the Forerunners as shelters for themselves and the sentient species of the galaxy, indexed as part of the [[Conservation Measure]], when the Halos fired.


It is widely believed that the Gravemind uses some form of telepathy to command its disparate Flood components. This theory is reinforced by the Gravemind's ability to communicate with John-117 during the events of ''[[Halo 3]]'' - he appears to speak directly to John's mind. However, this may have been an example of the Gravemind somehow contacting John's [[SPARTAN neural interface|neural interface]].
====Mendicant and the Primordial====
Around 43 years before the Array's activation, the Forerunners, specifically the [[Faber|Master Builder]], deployed the first active [[Contender-class artificial intelligence]], [[Mendicant Bias]] who would be in command of one of the original twelve Halo rings, [[Installation 07]]. This installation's first assignment was a test firing at the former Precursor world of [[Charum Hakkor]]. The purpose of this assignment was to determine the effects of the Array against the Flood before it was deployed in earnest against the Flood's stronghold in the core.


Like all Flood, the Gravemind itself is genderless; however, most characters have interpreted its personality as being masculine, and some have referred to it as a "he". Given that the Gravemind is a being composed of millions of absorbed consciousnesses, such a distinction really has no meaning.
This low-powered test firing destroyed every Precursor structure on the planet, and purged the [[Charum Hakkor system]] of all neurologically complex life, including the planet [[Faun Hakkor]]. An unexpected development of this test was the emancipation of the [[Primordial]], a surviving Precursor imprisoned on Charum Hakkor's surface. When the ancient entity was brought to Installation 07 for study, at the Master Builder's orders, it entered into an extended conversation with the AI. During the course of the conversation, which ran for 43 years, the being explained the truth about the Mantle and the fullness of the Precursors' plan of unity and peace through the galaxy-wide infection by the Flood.


==Biography==
The Primordial told Mendicant that the Forerunners were never meant to inherit the Mantle and that they had defied the Precursors. It also told the AI that if the sentient life in the Milky Way could not defy the Flood, especially the humans, then all life would be brought together and unified into the logical, advanced form of life; a collective, conglomerated entity without conflict and pain. It claimed that the Forerunners had forced the galaxy towards perpetual stagnation by stifling growth, conflict, and progress in their misuse and illegitimate claim to the Mantle. Eventually, Mendicant Bias became convinced by these arguments, and turned rampant, seeking to "correct" the flawed, misguided ways of the Forerunners.
===Origin===
 
Millions of years before the [[Human-Covenant War]] or even the [[Human-Forerunner war]]s, the ancient and powerful civilization known as the Precursors held a position of stewardship over the galaxy, populating it with numerous lifeforms and watching over their evolution. However, one of their created races, the sapient species known as the Forerunners, staged a rebellion against their creators and were successful in nearly wiping them out. The remaining Precursors sought ways to render themselves dormant until such a time as they could safely roam the galaxy again.
To this end, Mendicant Bias began to cooperate with the Primordial on Installation 07, where they continued to infect humans and Forerunners alike in a series of brutal experiments.<ref>'''Halo: Primordium''', ''page 67''</ref> 43 years after the release of the Primordial, Mendicant Bias used the Halo ring to [[Fate of Maethrillian|attack]] [[Maethrillian|the Capital]] of the Forerunner [[ecumene]], and managed to inflict heavy casualties on the Forerunners, though it was soon forced to retreat. Eventually, the return of the Forerunners to the rogue installation and the shutdown of the facility and its custodian led to the recapture of the rogue Halo, resulting in a temporary setback for the Flood and Mendicant Bias. The [[IsoDidact]] interrogated the Primordial and eventually forced it to undergo a billion years of entropy in a reverse [[timelock]], disintegrating its physical form; however, the being had managed to transfer its consciousness into the Flood's neural network. Now effectively synonymous with the Gravemind, the Primordial assumed control of the Flood's efforts with a renewed purpose.<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''page 167''</ref><ref>'''Halo Mythos''', ''page 32''</ref>
 
====Final years====
The Forerunner military continued to delay the use of the Halos for a time, instead continuing to deploy more conventional strategies against the Flood in the following years.<ref>'''Halo: Primordium''', ''page 374-375''</ref> However, these measures failed to halt the Flood's spread across the Forerunners' ecumene. Entire worlds were engulfed by the Flood and converted to [[key mind]]s, enabling the Flood to control the Precursors' [[neural physics]] constructs and dominate the Forerunners in naval engagements by using [[star road]]s as weapons.{{Ref/Reuse|silentium}}
 
During the last years of the war, the Gravemind captured the [[Ur-Didact]], who recognized it as the same intelligence as the Primordial, who he had interrogated ten thousand years earlier. The Gravemind tortured and corrupted the Didact's mind by informing him of not only the truth about the Precursors and the Flood, but also the Flood's true intentions: To bring eternal suffering to all life in the galaxy as punishment for the Forerunners' crimes against the Precursors. The Gravemind explained that like the Precursors, the Flood desired to create life. But this time, their creations would be made without free will or individuality, and would never be able to challenge their creators as the Forerunners had. The Gravemind then released the Ur-Didact, knowing his damaged psyche would bring further ruin to the Forerunners.<ref name="ReferenceA">'''Halo: Silentium''', ''String 13''</ref>
 
Although Mendicant Bias' disparate parts had been scattered across the ecumene for study, these facilities were overrun by the Flood in the coming years and eventually, a Gravemind successfully reactivated the AI. Later, the reconstituted Mendicant Bias assisted the Flood and the Graveminds in their assault on the [[greater Ark]] and [[Omega Halo]], resulting in the destruction of both installations.<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''String 33''</ref> As the Forerunners were preparing to fire the Halo rings, all available Flood-controlled vessels were gathered into a vast fleet which attacked the [[Maginot Sphere]], intent on reaching [[Installation 00]] before the rings could fire. The Flood, led by Mendicant Bias, faced off against the remains of the Forerunner fleet coordinated by Mendicant Bias' replacement, [[Offensive Bias]] in a [[Battle of the Maginot Sphere|final, brutal battle]].


The last surviving Precursors converted their bodies into an organic powder, which would regenerate their original forms at a later time. However, the millions of years that followed rendered the powder defective, and the resurrection process instead yielded malformed, parasitic lifeforms that could assimilate organic matter - the nascent stage of the Flood. Though records of this time are virtually nonexistent, it appears that one of these mutated Precursors assimilated several other organisms, becoming the first Gravemind.
Just before the [[Halo Array]]'s activation, the primary Gravemind imprinted the [[Mind transfer|archived essences]] of [[Forthencho]] and three of his warriors on human bodies and sent them down to [[Earth]] to deliver a message to the [[Librarian]]. Forthencho informed her that the [[Domain]]—which was a Precursor creation—would be destroyed when the Halos were activated. The Gravemind expressed satisfaction in knowing that the Forerunners' history would be lost and viewed this as the Flood's final act of revenge against the Forerunners. Soon afterwards, the Graveminds were destroyed and the Flood collective consciousness was rendered inert by the activation of the Halo Array.<ref name="Terminal">'''Halo 3''', ''[[Terminal (Halo 3)|Terminals]]''</ref> However, over a century later, [[IsoDidact|Bornstellar Makes Eternal Lasting]], formerly the IsoDidact, viewed a message from the Librarian which told of the Gravemind's final revelation and requested that he restore the Domain. Bornstellar led [[Mission to Maethrillian|a mission]] to [[Maethrillian]] that succeeded in beginning the regeneration of the Domain, depriving the Gravemind of its perceived final victory.<ref>'''[[Halo: Fractures]]''', "[[Promises to Keep]]"</ref>


This early Gravemind, called the Primordial by humans and Forerunners who encountered it, did not take on the form of its later counterpart, being far smaller and more discrete in form. This being was confined to a Precursor [[stasis capsule]] and placed beneath the surface of a small planetoid at the [[Milky Way]] edge by an unknown group of beings, suspected to be ancient Forerunners. The creation of this Gravemind and the downfall of the Precursors occurred almost concurrently, for the Flood was an important factor in their long-term plans for life in the Milky Way.
===Human-Covenant War===
{{Quote|Relax. I'd rather not piss this thing off.|Master Chief to a struggling Arbiter, while both are being held prisoner.}}
[[File:Halo-2-Anniversary-Gravemind-2.png|thumb|250px|left|The Gravemind with John-117.]]
Through neglect shown by the Monitor of [[Installation 05]], [[2401 Penitent Tangent]], a Flood outbreak occurred a few thousand years after the firing of the Array, and the Gravemind was able to find enough biomass to rebuild itself deep under the [[Library]] of the installation. During the [[Battle of Installation 05]], it assimilated the dead [[Prophet of Regret]] into itself and also captured the [[Monitor]]; possibly as a result of this, the Gravemind was capable of utilizing Delta Halo's [[teleportation grid]]. The Flood intelligence later "rescued" and captured both [[John-117|Master Chief]] and the [[Thel 'Vadam|Arbiter]], when the former fell into a lake while trying to escape from a Covenant ship, and the latter was thrown into a chasm by a traitorous [[Tartarus]]. The Gravemind tried to convince the Arbiter of the true nature of the Halo Array, and proposed a truce to prevent the Covenant from activating the rings and killing them all. It then used the installation's [[teleportation grid]] to teleport them respectively to ''High Charity'' and Delta Halo's control room in order to find the [[Index]].
[[File:Evo Weakness Rookard.jpg|thumb|150px|The Gravemind torturing Cortana.]]
The Gravemind later captured the {{UNSCShip|In Amber Clad}} and used it to board the [[Covenant]] holy city ''[[High Charity]]'', crashing the frigate into a city wall and releasing numerous [[Pelican]]s full of the Flood plague, taking advantage of the distraction caused by both the [[Great Schism]] and the Master Chief. Within days it took over the entire city and all life within it. The UNSC AI [[Cortana]], who was left on ''High Charity'' by the Master Chief, was quickly contacted by the Gravemind, which started to psychologically torture her in order to subjugate her and obtain useful information from her. As Gravemind tortured Cortana in search of information, the two would enter in a conversation about diverse themes, such as John-117 and the danger he posed to the Flood, which the Gravemind acknowledged as a fact.<ref name="Human Weakness">'''Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe''', ''Human Weakness''</ref> Meanwhile, the Gravemind slowly started to become ''High Charity'' itself after taking it over completely, converting the whole city into a Flood environment and as his base of operations.<ref>http://blog.ascendantjustice.com/halo-3/hindsight-halo-3/halo/</ref>
====Earth, The Ark and the Flood's destruction====
{{Quote|I am a timeless chorus; join your voice with mine, and sing victory everlasting!|The Gravemind to John-117.}}
[[File:Gravemind Halo3.jpg|thumb|250px|left|The Gravemind telepathically contacting John-117 on Earth.]]
The Gravemind initially planned to attack and infest Earth; even though the Elites quarantined the area, it managed to send a [[Indulgence of Conviction|single Flood-infested ship]] to Earth; it even allowed Cortana to leave a message for the Master Chief on the ship, in order to lure him to his destruction (although the Gravemind did not know what was the content of the message). The infestation of Earth was contained; the Gravemind used High Charity to make a [[Slipstream space|slipspace]] jump to [[Mars]] and would have continued the attack, but after having assimilated the knowledge of the infected Regret (and possibly [[Prophet of Mercy|Mercy]] and Cortana), it learned about the [[Prophet of Truth]]'s plans to use the Ark to remotely activate the entire Halo Array. Realizing the extent of the danger it faced, the Gravemind did not attack Earth but instead once again used the Covenant Holy City to slipspace jump to the Ark. Despite the Gravemind's immense technological expertise—including its use of exotic [[Precursor]] science—the strain caused by this jump caused ''High Charity'' to crash into the Ark.<ref name="Bulletin924">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/the-halo-bulletin-knowledge-drop '''Halo Waypoint''' - The Halo Bulletin: 9.24.14'']</ref>
[[File:GravemindMainTentaclesHalo3.jpg|thumb|250px|The Gravemind betrays [[John-117]] and [[Thel 'Vadam]] once more as his main tentacles appear.]]
At the Ark, the Gravemind led a massive Flood attack on both the Covenant and the UNSC/[[Fleet of Retribution|Sangheili]] alliance at the [[Installation 00 Citadel|Citadel]]; after the Prophet of Truth managed to start the activation sequence of the Halo Array, the Gravemind contacted the Master Chief and the Arbiter through two of its [[Pure Forms]], once again forming an uneasy alliance with them to reach the Prophet and stop the firing of the rings. Together they were victorious, and the Gravemind even managed to infect Truth himself, gloating at his defeat before the Arbiter slew him. With the crisis averted, the Flood intelligence quickly betrayed its former allies; the duo managed to escape from their foe and discover [[Cortana]]'s solution to the Flood—a [[Installation 08|replacement Halo ring]] made by [[Installation 00|the Ark]]. To activate it, the Chief infiltrated High Charity to retrieve Cortana, who had the [[Activation Index]] from the first [[Installation 04]].


Prior to 110,000 BCE, a number of automated starships of unknown origin came from the [[Magellanic Clouds|Magellanic satellite galaxies]] and crashed upon numerous worlds at the galaxy's borders. These vessels were eventually discovered by the ancient humans and San 'Shyuum, which contained  millions of glassy cylinders carrying a fine powder of non-living, moderately simple organic material. This powder was dispersed amongst the human and San 'Shyuum worlds, eventually creating and unleashing the first known Flood outbreak in this galaxy.
As the Chief traveled deep into High Charity, he faced multiple Flood forms and was taunted by the voice of the Gravemind which allowed Cortana to briefly send pained messages as it corrupted and tortured the UNSC AI. The Gravemind became increasingly frustrated at the Spartan's progress, becoming suspicious of what Cortana was hiding from him and threatening to "feast upon [the Chief's] bones" if she did not reveal the secret.


During the course of their onslaught against the humans and San 'Shyuum, the Flood would frequently capture, infect, and merge together host organisms into unified masses with an encompassing intelligence; the second known generation of Graveminds. When the humans turned the tide of the war in their favor and stumbled upon a "cure," the Flood were driven out and retreated from the Milky Way, not be seen again for another thousand years. While these early Flood were destroyed, and their Graveminds with them, the Flood would return in newer, more capable forms.
After the Chief rescued Cortana, the Gravemind became enraged, realizing that she planned to use the incomplete Halo to destroy him. It attempted to kill them both but failed as the Chief successfully destroyed ''High Charity'', presumably killing the Gravemind. But after traveling to Installation 08, the Chief discovered that the Gravemind had survived and was attempting to rebuild itself on the new Halo. Despite its best efforts, the Gravemind failed to stop the Chief. In the end, the Gravemind was destroyed as Halo's activation destroyed itself and the Flood that had escaped containment.<ref>'''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', ''page 14''</ref> In its final moments, however, the Gravemind addressed the Master Chief telepathically one last time, with an ominous warning:
{{Quote|Resignation is my virtue, like water I ebb and flow. Defeat is simply the addition of time to a sentence I never deserved, but you imposed.|The Gravemind to John-117.}}


===Forerunner-Flood war===
===Legacy===
[[File:Originsgravemind.jpg|thumb|250px|A Gravemind present during the Forerunner-Flood war.]]
{{Main|Second Ark Conflict}}
During the [[Forerunner-Flood war]], the Flood created many Gravemind forms, which collectively coordinated the Flood's efforts against the Forerunners. Eventually Forerunner naval tactics began to fail, and the Forerunners developed the [[Halo Array]] as a desperate countermeasure, which would destroy all sentient life in the galaxy, thus denying the Flood "food" for growth. This was only to be used as a last resort, and the Forerunners refused to use the system.
The Gravemind's warning proved sound: in [[2559#June|June 2559]], [[Banished]] forces on the Ark led by [[Jiralhanae]] brothers [[Pavium]] and [[Voridus]] were sent to scout the shell of [[High Charity]] and salvage the wrecks around it for weapons to use in the Banished's [[Second Ark Conflict|conflict]] with the {{UNSCShip|Spirit of Fire}}. However, defying orders to leave the former Covenant holy city untouched, Vordius deactivated the Ark's Sentinel defense network and burned a hole in the [[containment shield]] with a [[Barukaza Workshop Scarab]]. The Flood, having survived within the wreckage, were released upon the Ark once more.<ref name="What Could Go Wrong?">'''[[Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare]]''', campaign level ''[[What Could Go Wrong?]]''</ref> The Flood quickly formed a [[Proto-Gravemind]], causing the Flood to develop greater coordination and sophistication as time went on, in particular recognizing the threat posed by the controls to reactivate the Ark's Sentinel defense network.<ref name="The Archive">'''[[Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare]]''', campaign level ''[[The Archive]]''</ref> This Proto-Gravemind retained a measure of the deceased Gravemind's intellect, but the Gravemind's new vessel had to feed and spread in order for the Gravemind to fully manifest once again.<ref name="IH2">'''[[Halo Wars 2]]''', ''[[Phoenix Logs]]'' - ''Proto-Gravemind''</ref>


While the Flood would gain and lose individual Graveminds during the war, their numbers were still nevertheless sufficient to form and maintain a collective array located near the galactic core. The Flood would continue to be an unstoppable and persistent threat to the Forerunners, who, despite their best efforts, were unable to stop the parasite's spread across the galaxy, despite many lengthy naval engagements that lasted for nearly 300 years. As they continued to lose the war to the Flood, the Forerunners would reluctantly turn to other, more risky endeavors. In accordance with their existing plan, multiple installations, including [[Installation 00|the Ark]] and numerous [[Shield World]]s were constructed by the Forerunners as shelters for themselves and the sentient species of the galaxy, indexed as part of the [[Conservation Measure]], when the Halos fired.
After reactivating the Ark's Sentinel defense network,{{Ref/Reuse|The Archive}} the Proto-Gravemind was discovered by the Banished. By this point, it was close to becoming a full-fledged Gravemind which the Banished knew from the stories would be virtually unstoppable. Aided by the reactivated Sentinels, the Banished attacked the Proto-Gravemind in an effort to destroy the creature before a new Gravemind could be formed. With the help of a [[Retriever Sentinel]] summoned when the Banished cleaned out a nearby Sentinel lock, the Proto-Gravemind was slain, preventing the rise of a new Gravemind. The Banished and the Ark's Sentinels were then finally able to contain the Flood outbreak.<ref name="Manifestation">'''[[Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare]]''', campaign level ''[[Manifestation]]''</ref>


Around 43 years before the Array's activation, the Forerunners, specifically the [[Faber|Master Builder]], deployed the first active [[Contender-class artificial intelligence]], [[05-032 Mendicant Bias|Mendicant Bias]] who would be in command of one of the original twelve Halo rings, [[Installation 07]]. This installation's first assignment was a test firing at the former Precursor world of [[Charum Hakkor]]. The purpose of this assignment was to determine the effects of the Array against the Flood, before it was deployed in earnest against the Flood's stronghold in the core.
In November 2559, Spartan [[Olympia Vale]] recalled the Gravemind's account of Forerunner treachery after she and [[Keely Iyuska]] realized that the fugitives on [[Netherop]] were surviving [[Precursor]]s. In Vale's opinion, the Gravemind had been rationalizing an act of vengeance so horrific that it would have been evil no matter how the Forerunners had betrayed their creators if it was even true. Vale's mind lingered on the words of the Gravemind which had been embedded in the intelligence summary as an audio file and which had been so powerful that they remained lodged in her memory to this day: ''"all that is created will suffer. All will be born in suffering, endless grayness will be their lot. All creation will tailor to failure and pain..."'' Considering the collective events that had come to define the galaxy's history up to that point, Vale couldn't help but wonder if this invocation by one of the Forerunners' creators had been woven into the structure of the universe itself.{{Ref/Novel|Id=Out17|17}}


This low-powered test firing destroyed every Precursor structure on the planet, and purged the [[Charum Hakkor system]] of all neurologically complex life, including the planet [[Faun Hakkor]]. An unexpected development of this test was the emancipation of the Primordial, an already existing Gravemind from the downfall of the Precursors. When the ancient Gravemind was brought to Installation 07 for study, at the Master Builder's orders, it entered into an extended conversation with the AI. During the course of the conversation, which ran for 43 years, this Gravemind explained the fullness of the Precursors' plan of unity and peace through the galaxy-wide infection by the Flood.  
After being [[Mind transfer|Composed]] by [[John-117]], the [[Ur-Didact|Didact]] was forced to relive his confrontation with the Gravemind by [[Cortana]] who trapped the Promethean in his worst memories.{{Ref/Novel|Epi|18}} The Didact subsequently learned from the [[Haruspis]] that his corruption by the Gravemind, aside from some echoes that he was holding onto, was burned away by the Composer's power, restoring the Didact's sanity.{{Ref/Novel|Epi|20}}


The Gravemind told Mendicant that the Forerunners were never meant to inherit the Mantle, and that they had defied the Precursors. It also told the AI that the if sentient life in the Milky Way could not defy the Flood, especially the humans, then all life would be brought together and unified into the logical, advanced form of life; a collective, conglomerated entity without conflict and pain. It claimed that the Forerunners had forced the galaxy towards perpetual stagnation by stifling growth, conflict, and progress in their misuse and illegitimate claim to the Mantle. Eventually, Mendicant Bias became convinced by these arguments, and turned rampant, seeking to "correct" the flawed, misguided ways of the Forerunners.
==Overview==
The Gravemind is, as its name suggests, the "mind" of the Flood parasite. When a creature is assimilated into the Flood, its knowledge is transferred directly to the Gravemind. In addition, it appears each Gravemind also retains the memories and knowledge of previous Graveminds.<ref>'''[[Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition)]]'''</ref> This has made the Gravemind virtually omniscient and ensures that should the Gravemind be destroyed, its consciousness will never truly die as long as some Flood forms are left. In an [[Terminal (Halo 3)|archived]] conversation with the Forerunner [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] known as [[Mendicant Bias]], it compared itself to the AI, describing Mendicant Bias as "a single intelligence inhabiting multiple [[wikipedia:Class (computer science)|instances]]" and calling the Gravemind "a compound [intelligence] consisting of a thousand billion coordinated minds inhabiting as many bodies as circumstances require". While it is not known how the Gravemind is able to communicate with subordinate Flood forms across the galaxy, its self-comparison to a computer network implies that similar techniques may be used, with each Flood form possibly acting as a [[Wikipedia:Node (networking)|networking node]] and redistributing the Gravemind's commands to other forms. This is almost certainly related to the Precursor connection to the concept of [[neural physics]], which could enable them to form a trans-sentient network without any need for any conventional communication methods.  


To this end, Mendicant Bias began to cooperate with the Timeless One on Installation 07, where they continued to infect humans and Forerunners alike in a series of brutal experiments.<ref>'''Halo: Primordium''', ''page 67''</ref> 43 years after the release of the Timeless One, Mendicant Bias used the Halo ring to [[Battle of the Capital|attack]] the [[Capital]] of the Forerunner [[ecumene]], and managed to inflict heavy casualties on the Forerunners, though it was soon forced to retreat. Eventually, the return of the Forerunners to the rogue installation and the shutdown of the facility and its custodian led to the capture and destruction of the Timeless One, and the recapture of the rogue Halo, resulting in a temporary setback for the Flood and Mendicant Bias. The Forerunner military continued to delay the use of the Halos for a time, instead continuing to deploy more conventional strategies against the Flood.<ref>'''Halo: Primordium''', ''page 374-375''</ref>
The relationship between individual Graveminds, and specifically whether the mobile forms under the control of one Gravemind would be influenced by another, is not entirely clear. The Forerunners theorized that since the Graveminds are entirely identical in terms of personality and goals, it would be impossible to discern any meaningful distinction between them.{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}} In addition, separate collectives under the control of individual Graveminds will seek to connect and coalesce into a unified whole.<ref name="wp flood">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/species/flood '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Flood'']</ref> It would appear as though multiple Graveminds existing simultaneously simply causes them to function as highly powerful processing nodes for the overall Flood intelligence, essentially acting as key mind forms on an exceptionally large and complex scale. In essence, no matter how many individual Graveminds form, there is still only ''one'' Gravemind intelligence.


Although Mendicant Bias' disparate parts had been scattered across the ecumene for study, these facilities were overrun by the Flood in the coming years and eventually, a Gravemind successfully reactivated the AI. Later, the reconstituted Mendicant Bias assisted the Flood and the Graveminds in their assault on the [[greater Ark]] and [[Omega Halo]], resulting in the destruction of both installations.<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''String 33''</ref> As the Forerunners were preparing to fire the Halo rings, all available Flood-controlled vessels were gathered into a vast fleet which attacked the [[Maginot Sphere]], intent on reaching [[Installation 00]] before the rings could fire. The Flood, led by Mendicant Bias, faced off against the remains of the Forerunner fleet coordinated by Mendicant Bias' replacement, [[Offensive Bias]] in a [[Battle of the Maginot Sphere|final, brutal battle]]. The Graveminds were destroyed or stopped by the activation of the [[Halo Array]].<ref name="Terminal">'''Halo 3''', ''[[Terminal/Halo 3|Terminals]]''</ref>
===Life cycle===
[[File:HTMCC-H2A NoSalvationOnThisRing.png|thumb|250px|The Gravemind under Installation 05.]]
A Gravemind originates as a [[proto-Gravemind]]—a Flood form created by merging the bodies and biomass of numerous sentient life forms, as well as redundant Flood forms. After a proto-Gravemind has been created, control over individual Flood forms transfers to its emerging compound intelligence, replacing the localized individual-level control present during the [[Feral Stage]]. Nearby [[Flood combat form|combat forms]] will continue to supply the proto-Gravemind with fresh bodies, allowing it to accumulate mass, increase in size, and gain more memories and intelligence from consumed hosts. Eventually, the proto-Gravemind reaches a certain "critical mass" and becomes self-aware - a Gravemind. By this point, local biodiversity has typically been eliminated with the host species' total absorption into the Flood.{{Ref/Reuse|wp flood}}


===Human-Covenant War===
When a Flood outbreak progresses far enough, typically the later phases of the [[Interstellar Stage]], the Flood will no longer have need for the widespread creation of [[Flood combat form|dedicated combat forms]], instead simply overwhelming a given location with [[Flood spore|spores]] and using infected individuals to accumulate biomass for a Gravemind and [[Flood hive|its lair]];<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''pages 231-232''</ref> by this point, the Gravemind may create more efficient [[Flood pure form|pure forms]] for combat and other purposes via the spontaneous generation of Flood Super Cells.{{Ref/Reuse|wp flood}} Entire planetary ecosystems are assimilated into advanced [[key mind]] nodes; these enormous collectives possess tremendous processing power, being able to outsmart even the most powerful [[Forerunner]] [[artificial intelligence]]s or control the [[neural physics]]-based architecture of the [[Precursor]]s.<ref name="silentium">'''Halo: Silentium''', ''pages 186-187''</ref>
{{Quote|Relax. I'd rather not piss this thing off.|Master Chief to a struggling Arbiter, while both are being held prisoner.}}


Through neglect shown by the Monitor of [[Installation 05]], [[2401 Penitent Tangent]], a Flood outbreak occurred a few thousand years after the firing of the Array, and the Gravemind was able to find enough biomass to rebuild itself deep under the [[Library]] of the installation. It assimilated the dead [[Prophet of Regret]] into itself and also captured the [[Monitor]]. During the [[Battle of Installation 05]], the Gravemind was capable of utilizing Delta Halo's [[teleportation grid]]. After capturing the [[John-117|Master Chief]] and the [[Thel 'Vadam|Arbiter]], the Gravemind gave them their "assignments" to stop the Halo's activation, and then teleported them to their respective targets. It is not known how the Gravemind, a non-mechanical Flood form, was able to tap into the teleportation grid. However, it is possible that when the Gravemind captured 2401 Penitent Tangent he absorbed the knowledge of how to access Halo's teleportation grid, as was done by Cortana from the control center of [[Installation 04]].
Theoretically, when the Flood infection has become too large for even the Gravemind to control — or when all life in the galaxy has been consumed — the Flood infection will reach the [[Transgalactic Stage]]. At this point, the Flood will use all resources that it has at its disposal to leave the galaxy, with the intent to create a new Gravemind elsewhere.


Gravemind later used the {{UNSCShip|In Amber Clad}} to board the [[Covenant Empire|Covenant]] holy city ''[[High Charity]]'', crashing the frigate into a city wall and releasing numerous [[Pelican]]s full of the Flood plague. Within days he took over the entire city and all life within it.
===Appearance===
A Gravemind is comprised of a combination of pure [[Flood Super Cell]]s and the neural networks of the sentient beings absorbed within.{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}} Although its consciousness is distributed throughout all Flood forms in range, a Gravemind is typically, if not always, centralized within a large "body" of Flood tissue derived from the initial proto-Gravemind. In most cases, this body is a shapeless, amorphous mass, typically with numerous tentacles that can reach many miles in length depending on the size of the Gravemind. The Gravemind can rearrange this body as it wishes; during the Flood invasion of ''[[High Charity]]'' during the Human-Covenant War, the Gravemind leading the assault transplanted itself into the station and almost completely engulfed it, converting itself and the station into a Flood hive. As the development of a Gravemind progresses, it will sometimes shed dead biomass to alter its anatomy to a desired shape.<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''page 209''</ref>


===Earth, The Ark and the Flood's defeat===
[[File:HTMCC-H2A ThisRingWillMakeUsBrothers.png|thumb|250px|Installation 05's Gravemind with [[Arbiter]] [[Thel 'Vadam]]ee and [[SPARTAN-II program|Spartan]] [[John-117]].]]
{{Quote|I am a timeless chorus; join your voice with mine, and sing victory everlasting!|The Gravemind to John-117.}}


The Gravemind initially planned to attack and infest Earth, but after having assimilated the knowledge of the infected Regret (and possibly [[Prophet of Mercy|Mercy]]), it learned about the [[Prophet of Truth]]'s plans to use the Ark to remotely activate the entire Halo Array. Realizing the extent of the danger it faced, the Gravemind did not attack Earth but instead used High Charity to make a [[Slipstream space|Slipspace]] jump and crash-land on the megastructure. It convinced the Master Chief and the Arbiter that it would ally with them to stop Truth from activating the rings, but betrayed them the moment the crisis was averted. The duo managed to escape from their foe and discover [[Cortana]]'s solution to the Flood—a [[Installation 04B|replacement Halo ring]] made by [[Installation 00|the Ark]]. To activate it, the Chief infiltrated High Charity to retrieve Cortana, who had the [[Activation Index]] from the first [[Installation 04]].
===Communication===
Graveminds have shown the capacity to communicate through non-verbal means; this ability, which can best be described as a form of telepathy, allows a Gravemind to coordinate the Flood forms it controls and to directly converse with uninfected individuals.{{Ref/Reuse|bestiarum}} While this ability is poorly understood, it is likely that given the Flood's [[Precursor]] origins, it is related to the Precursor concept of [[neural physics]].


As the Chief traveled deep into High Charity, he faced multiple Flood forms. Taunted by the voice of the Gravemind, which allowed Cortana to briefly send pained messages as he corrupted and tortured the UNSC AI. The Gravemind became increasingly frustrated at the Spartan's progress, becoming suspicious of what Cortana was hiding from him and threatening to "feast upon the Chief's bones" if she did not reveal the secret.
The Gravemind encountered by Master Chief John-117 and the Arbiter on Installation 05 had shaped one of its tentacles into a massive "mouth" composed of fleshy, leaf-like jaws; this organ allowed the Gravemind to vocalize without the need for telepathy.


After the Chief rescued Cortana, the Gravemind became enraged, realizing that she planned to use the incomplete Halo to destroy him. He attempted to kill them both but failed as the Chief successfully destroyed ''High Charity'', presumably killing the Gravemind. But after traveling to Installation 04B, the Chief discovered that the Gravemind was attempting to rebuild himself on the new Halo. Despite his best efforts the Gravemind failed to stop the Chief. In the end, the Gravemind is thought to have been destroyed once and for all, as Halo's activation destroyed itself, the Ark,<ref>'''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]''', ''page 14''</ref> and the Flood.
Throughout nearly all encounters with the "modern" Gravemind, it has shown a fondness for speaking in poetic style - specifically, trochaic heptameter. When pressed about this detail by Cortana, it states that'' "I have the memories of many poets far beyond your limited human culture. And I have the quickness of intellect to compose all manner of poetic forms as I speak rather than labor over mere words for days."''<ref>'''Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe''' - ''"Human Weakness"'', ''pages 373-374''</ref>


==Personality==
===Personality and motivations===
{{Quote|Do I take life or give it? Who is victim, and who is foe?|The Gravemind to [[John-117]] on [[Installation 08]].}}
[[File:Gravemind.svg|200px|thumb|The avatar of the Gravemind as seen in the [[Terminal (Halo 3)|Terminal]]s.]]


{{Quote|Now the gate has been unlatched, headstones pushed aside. Corpses shift and offer room, a fate you must abide!|The Gravemind after [[Prophet of Truth|Truth]]'s death.}}
Although multiple Graveminds have existed throughout time, sometimes contemporaneously with one another, they all share precisely the same obscure, complex and highly intelligent personality. It also appears to retain the memories of anything and everything it has ever assimilated, even in the case of near-complete annihilation of the Flood. When the Halo array was fired for instance, all Flood biomass in the galaxy was eliminated in its entirety, yet the Gravemind retained its personality and memories when next encountered thousands of years later. This would seem to indicate that the Gravemind has the ability to somehow preserve itself in a non-physical form even if destroyed. When it was first seen by the [[John-117|Master Chief]] and the [[Thel 'Vadam|Arbiter]], the Gravemind was calm and collected, if not seemingly sad or mournful, and it spoke with a sullen tone in its voice. It was also quite logical and rational, psychologically analyzing the duo, and trying to convince the Arbiter of the [[Halo Array|Halo rings']] true purpose, to which the Arbiter reacted with stubborn pride. The Gravemind showed no irritation to this nor the bickering of [[2401 Penitent Tangent]] and the former [[Prophet of Regret]].{{Ref/Reuse|h2gm}} Later, though, the Gravemind showed a more emotional side, basking in its victory at ''High Charity'', and displaying a sinister air of anger when demanding answers from the newly captured [[Cortana]].


[[File:Gravemind.svg|200px|thumb|right|The avatar of the Gravemind as seen in the [[Terminal]]s.]]
It is also known to be quite manipulative: during the [[Battle of Installation 05]], the Gravemind tricked the Chief into being a decoy to distract the [[Hierarchs|High Prophets]] as it attempted to take over ''High Charity'', and later during the [[Battle of the Citadel]], it helped the Master Chief and the Arbiter to kill the [[Prophet of Truth]], only to betray them when they had outlived their usefulness.


The Gravemind has an obscure and complex personality. When he was first seen by the Master Chief and the Arbiter, he was calm and collected, if not seemingly sad or mournful, and he spoke with a sullen tone in his voice. He was also quite logical, psychologically analyzing the duo, and trying to convince the Arbiter of the [[Halo Array|Halo Rings']] true purpose, to which the Arbiter reacted with stubborn pride. The Gravemind showed no irritation to this nor the bickering of [[2401 Penitent Tangent]] and the former [[Prophet of Regret]]. Later, though, the Gravemind showed a more emotional side, basking in his victory at ''High Charity'', and displaying a sinister air of anger when demanding answers from the newly captured [[Cortana]].
The Gravemind often touts to others that the Flood represents peace and salvation. At the same time, however, it is very much aware of the pain and suffering its victims are subjected to. It sees this as fair retribution for the Forerunners' crimes against its Precursor ancestors. According to the Gravemind, the Flood, down to its very nature and the suffering it inflicts, serves as an appropriate reflection and reminder of the pain that the Precursors ultimately brought on themselves by giving their creations free will; it considers itself a "monument" to the sins of other sentient beings. It regards the Flood as a continuation of the Precursors' desire to create life, but unlike before, the life they bring forth would no longer possess free will or individuality. Embittered by the Forerunners' rebellion, the Gravemind saw the Flood as a means to unite all life in eternal misery so that it could never hope to rise against the Precursors again.<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''pages 173-175''</ref>


In ''Halo 3'', his personality undergoes a similar progression. [[Floodgate|Early on]], he is shown to have a calm and collected personality, [[the Covenant (level)|but once the activation of the Ark is prevented]], the Gravemind bursts into a victorious, maniacal laugh, briefly boasting in iambic heptameter. In the following level, [[Cortana (level)|Cortana]], a broader spectrum of his personality is asserted. He begins with his calm and collected voice, as well as a slightly confident tone. As the Chief finds his way deeper into ''High Charity'', however, the Gravemind becomes more irritated by his progress, and begins to shout at him. Once Cortana is rescued, the Gravemind begins to emit a series of mangled, animal-like roars, and speaks in an infuriated tone. In [[halo (Halo 3 level)|the final level]] of ''Halo 3'', Flood Dispersal Pods crash onto [[Installation 04B]], and the Gravemind begins to speak again, this time in an angry yet confident tone.
The Gravemind appears to have the ability to sort and isolate memories from specific individuals that it has absorbed and has, in several instances, projected some of the personalities it contains to further its own goals. On Installation 05, it assimilated and reanimated the [[Prophet of Regret]], using him as a puppet in its attempt to convince [[Arbiter]] [[Thel 'Vadam]] of the truth about the Halos.{{Ref/Reuse|h2gm}} During the [[Forerunner-Flood war]], a hundred thousand years earlier, it absorbed the family of [[Faber]], the [[Master Builder]], and used their disillusionment toward the Master Builder to its advantage by taunting him with a message from his family.<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''page 251''</ref>


The mostly collected and impassive tone that is frequently heard from it can be justified by his implied near omniscience; his knowledge of the present and ability to accurately predict the future means that he has little reason to worry about anything. He only becomes truly irritated or angry when an unforeseen event happens, or when there is something he doesn't know. Triggers for his anger include Cortana's secrets and the Chief's ability to rescue her. When defeated, he shows sadness, not anger; it may be that he has become used to omniscience, and is only truly angered when he is wrong. This is supported by the fact that in the level Cortana, his tone quickly changed to confidence and almost amusement when he realized parts of the Master Chief's objective (with phrases such as "''Of course, you came for ''her''! We exist ''together'' now. Two corpses in one grave''").
The Gravemind does not appear to have a biological sex, as the Flood macro-organism does not reproduce sexually. Despite this, when the Gravemind referenced its shared goal with the Master Chief and the Arbiter to stop Installation 05 from firing, it spoke of the possibility of that goal making the three of them "brothers", indicating that it does in some fashion consider itself to be male. This may be a reflection of the nature of the [[Primordial]], the core Precursor consciousness that the Gravemind's personality appears to be built around. However, it is not known whether or not the Primordial was in fact male, or whether the Precursors possessed biological sexes at all. Additionally, Cortana viewed the Gravemind she encountered as male. She compared its attempts to assimilate her with the logic plague to a "bad date" being sexually intimidating, and described its violation of her in ways evocative of a rape. However, this comparison would appear to originate from Cortana's own psychology rather than indicating anything in particular about the Gravemind.<ref>''[[Human Weakness]]''</ref><ref>''[[Halo 3]]'', [[Cortana (Level)|Cortana]]</ref>


He is also known to be quite manipulative: in ''Halo 2'', Gravemind tricks the Chief into being a decoy to distract the [[Hierarchs|High Prophets]] as he attempts to take over ''High Charity'', and in ''Halo 3'', he helps the Master Chief and the Arbiter to kill the [[Prophet of Truth]], only to betray them when they have outlived their usefulness. It is also notable that the original Gravemind was able to convince the Forerunner AI [[05-032 Mendicant Bias|Mendicant Bias]] to join his cause and turn his fleet upon the Forerunners by telling him that the Flood are the next step of evolution and that the Forerunners are denying it.
===Logic plague===
{{Main|Logic plague}}
The emergence of a Gravemind enables the Flood to employ a form of philosophical corruption the Forerunners referred to as the [[logic plague]]. This makes it possible for the Flood to infect not only biological beings but also AIs, by using a series of techniques ranging from highly persuasive, convincing arguments to what appeared to be a sophisticated form of software infection transmitted via self-replicating patterns of code. The most notable victim of this manipulation was [[Mendicant Bias]], who succumbed to the Gravemind's philosophical arguments after an exchange lasting nearly 43 years. The Gravemind also nearly succeeded in subjugating the UNSC [[smart AI]] [[Cortana]] by force, but she was recovered by [[John-117]] before it could do so.


The Gravemind is not violent when it doesn't benefit him; this is what makes a Gravemind a key point in Flood evolution. Unlike the savage and bloodthirsty Combat and Pure Forms that precede and obey him, the Gravemind is able to put aside differences when it is necessary for its continued survival.
This corruption can also be applied to organic beings; although the Gravemind most commonly operates by absorbing all sentient biological lifeforms, it instead chose to corrupt the [[Ur-Didact]] in order to use him as a tool to induce strife within Forerunner society. Much like AI corruption in certain occasions (namely, in the case of Cortana), this process involved a direct and agonizing invasion of the Didact's mind, as well as devious exploitation of his existing attitudes and beliefs, leaving his psyche severely disturbed.{{Ref/Reuse|ReferenceA}}


By the end of the game, the Gravemind gives a short monologue in a disheartened tone, cryptically admitting that he knows he can do nothing to stop his fate, which he believes was unjustly forced upon him. He says that the activation of Installation 04B will only add time ''"to a sentence [he] never deserve [d]"''. This seems to suggest that the Gravemind does not understand why the living races hate the Flood; indeed, he seems to think that it is only natural to absorb all life in the universe.
==Non-canon and dubious canon appearences==
===Silver Timeline===
{{Quote|It's very old, the monster. Older than the light, older than this rock... older than your god. It knows us... inside and out. Smells our fear. Sees our secrets. It's been here... all that time. Waiting. To meet you... in the dark. There's nothing you can give it. The only thing the monster wants is for you to know... that there's nothing you can ever love that it can't take away. You believe me now, don't you?|[[Kwan Ha]] to [[Kessler]]{{Ref/Film|Id=Sanctuary|TV|Episode=[[Sanctuary (TV Series)|Sanctuary]]}}}}
On [[The Rubble/Silver|the Rubble]], [[Kwan Ha]] took shelter in a cavern with cave paintings of the Gravemind consuming worlds. Kwan would tell [[Kessler]] about the monster, although [[Soren-066/Silver|Soren]] denied that such a monster existed.{{Ref/Reuse|Sanctuary}}


Throughout nearly all encounters with the Gravemind, he has shown a fondness for speaking in poetic style - specifically, iambic heptameter. When pressed about this detail by Cortana, he states that'' "I have the memories of many poets far beyond your limited human culture. And I have the quickness of intellect to compose all manner of poetic forms as I speak rather than labor over mere words for days."''<ref>'''Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe''' - ''"Human Weakness"'', ''pages 373-374''</ref>
After the [[Fall of Reach/Silver|Fall of Reach]], [[The Mother]] warned Kwan in a vision that the monster was close now.{{Ref/Film|Id=Aleria|TV|Episode=[[Aleria (TV Series)|Aleria]]}}


==Trivia==
==Trivia==
{{Linkbox
{{Linkbox|gallery=yes|gallerypage=Images of the Gravemind|quote=yes}}
|quote=yes
*The Gravemind is voiced by [[Dee Bradley Baker]].
}}
*The term "Gravemind" was coined by Bungie staff member Jaime Greisemer.<ref>[http://halo.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=Feast_of_Bones '''Bungie.net''': ''Feast of Bones'']</ref>
*The term "Gravemind" was coined by Bungie staff member Jaime Greisemer.<ref>[http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=Feast_of_Bones '''Bungie.net''': ''Feast of Bones'']</ref>
*In ''Halo 3'', the Gravemind's face is never shown, unlike in ''Halo 2'', when it is shown in its introductory cinematic. However, the Gravemind is shown in the [[Halo 3 Instruction Manual|''Halo 3'' instruction manual]] as being slightly changed in looks, being the first detailed design of the Gravemind before ''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]]''.
*In ''Halo 3'', the Gravemind's face is never shown, unlike in ''Halo 2'', when he is shown in his introductory cinematic.
*In several [[Forerunner]] data logs, the controlling intelligence of the Flood is referred to as a "[[wikipedia:Social insect|Compound Mind]]".
*In several [[Forerunner]] data logs, the controlling intelligence of the Flood is referred to as a "[[wikipedia:Social insect|Compound Mind]]".
*The Gravemind resembles Audrey 2 from ''[[wikipedia:Little Shop of Horrors (film)|Little Shop of Horrors]]'', a tentacled, plant-like alien who is fed humans to grow and who is bent on world domination. Bungie staff and fans jokingly call it the "''Little Shop of Horrors'' Reject"{{Citation needed}} Parallels can also be drawn with [[w:c:StarCraft:Overmind|Overmind]] from the ''[[w:c:StarCraft:StarCraft|StarCraft]]'' franchise, the graboids from the ''[[wikipedia:Tremors (film)|Tremors]]'' movie series, the [[w:c:deadspace:Brethren Moons|Brethren Moons]] from the survival-horror game ''[[w:c:deadspace:Main page|Dead Space]]'', and even Sauron from ''[[Wikipedia:Lord of the Rings|Lord of the Rings]]''.
*The Gravemind resembles Audrey 2 from ''[[wikipedia:Little Shop of Horrors (film)|Little Shop of Horrors]]'', a tentacled, plant-like alien who is fed humans to grow and who is bent on world domination. Bungie staff and fans jokingly call it the "''Little Shop of Horrors'' Reject"{{Citation needed}}
*Originally, the Gravemind was meant to have skulls as teeth; this was cut from ''Halo 2'' and ''Halo 3'' because it would have made it difficult for the parasite to speak.<ref>'''[[The Art of Halo]]''', page 56-57</ref>
*Originally, the Gravemind was meant to have skulls as teeth; this was cut from ''Halo 2'' and ''Halo 3'' because it would have made it difficult for the parasite to speak.<ref>'''[[The Art of Halo]]''', page 56-57</ref>
*The Gravemind frequently speaks in [[Wikipedia:trochaic|trochaic]] [[Wikipedia:heptameter|heptameter]]. In ''Human Weakness'', it was revealed that this is merely preference and he converses normally with Cortana after she criticizes him for it. He also mentions that he possesses the memories of poets of many alien cultures.
*The Gravemind frequently speaks in [[Wikipedia:trochaic|trochaic]] [[Wikipedia:heptameter|heptameter]]. In ''Human Weakness'', it was revealed that this is merely preference and it converses normally with Cortana after she criticizes it for it. It also mentions that it possesses the memories of poets of many alien cultures.
*The Gravemind is one of the few extraterrestrials to learn John-117's name.<ref>'''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe|Halo: Evolutions]]''', ''[[Human Weakness]]''</ref>
*The Gravemind is one of the few extraterrestrials to learn John-117's name.<ref>'''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe|Halo: Evolutions]]''', ''[[Human Weakness]]''</ref>
*The Gravemind was initially going to have a much greater presence in ''Halo 2'' and would have been introduced in the level ''[[Forerunner Tank]]'', but due to time constraints, Bungie removed the level and instead made a long cinematic for his introduction.
*The Gravemind was initially going to have a much greater presence in ''Halo 2'' and would have been introduced in the level [[forerunnertank]], but due to time constraints, Bungie removed the level and instead made a long cinematic for his introduction.
*The Gravemind is voiced by [[Dee Bradley Baker]].
*The Gravemind pictured in the ''Halo 3'' instruction manual looks strikingly similar to Ogdru Jahad's Behemoth manifestation from the 2004 ''Hellboy'' film.
*The Gravemind pictured in the ''Halo 3'' instruction manual looks strikingly similar to Ogdru Jahad from ''Hellboy''.
*From  gameplay, the Gravemind (through his Combat Forms) has rarely been heard calling John-117 and Thel Vadam "The Coffin" and "Pallbearer", respectively.


==Gallery==
==Gallery==
<gallery>
<gallery>
File:GravemindConceptEarly.jpg|Early concept art of the Gravemind.
File:GravemindConceptEarly.jpg|Early concept art of the Gravemind for ''[[Halo 2]]''.
File:Gravemind Concept.jpg|Concept art of the scene in ''Halo 2''.
File:Gravemind Concept.jpg|More concept art of the Gravemind for ''Halo 2''.
File:Gravemindcapture.jpg|The Gravemind with [[John-117]] and [[Thel 'Vadam]] in ''Halo 2''.
File:H2 Gravemind Closeup.png|Close up of the Gravemind in ''Halo 2''.
File:H3 Gravemind Concept.jpg|Concept art of the Gravemind in ''[[Halo 3]]''.
File:SCAN0056.JPG|The Gravemind in the ''[[Halo 3]]'' Instruction Manual.
File:SCAN0056.JPG|The Gravemind in the ''[[Halo 3]]'' Instruction Manual.
File:Gravemind Halo3.jpg|A Gravemind Moment in ''Halo 3''.
File:Gravemind Halo3.jpg|A Gravemind Moment in ''Halo 3''.
File:Gravemind - Origins.png|The Gravemind in ''[[Halo Legends]]: [[Origins]]''.
File:Gravemind - Origins.png|The Gravemind in ''[[Halo Legends]]: [[Origins]]''.
File:H2A - GravemindConcept.png|Concept art of the Gravemind for ''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]]''.
File:H2A - GravemindConcept_2.jpg|Another concept of the ''Halo 2: Anniversary'' Gravemind.
File:H2A Gravemind Render.jpg|A render of the Gravemind model developed for [[Blur Studio]]'s ''Halo 2: Anniversary'' cutscenes.
File:HTMCC-H2A AMonumentToAllYourSins.png|The Gravemind introduces itself to John-117 in ''Halo 2: Anniversary''.
File:HTMCC-H2A Gravemind&Thel.png|The Gravemind with Thel 'Vadam in ''Halo 2: Anniversary''.
File:HW2-Gravemind.png|The Gravemind in ''[[Halo Wars 2]]''.
File:Gravemind Enc 22.png|Artwork of the Gravemind in the ''[[Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition)]]''.
</gallery>
</gallery>


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*''[[Halo 2]]'' {{1st}}
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*''[[Halo 3]]''
*''[[Halo 3]]''
**''[[Bestiarum]]''
*''[[Halo Legends]]''
**''[[Origins]]''
*''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''
*''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''
**''[[Human Weakness]]''
**''[[Human Weakness]]''
*''[[Halo Legends]]''
**''[[Origins]]''
*''[[Halo: Cryptum]]''
*''[[Halo: Cryptum]]''
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]''
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]''
**''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary Terminals|Terminals]]''
**''[[Terminal (Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary)|Terminals]]''
*''[[Halo: Primordium]]''
*''[[Halo: Primordium]]''
*''[[Halo: Silentium]]''
*''[[Halo: Silentium]]''
*''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]]''
*''[[Halo 5: Guardians]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Shadow of Intent]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo Mythos]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Tales from Slipspace]]''
**''[[Dominion Splinter]]'' {{C|Indirect mention}}
*''[[Halo: Retribution]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo Wars 2]]''
*''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Divine Wind]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Outcasts]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: The Television Series Season Two]]''
**''[[Sanctuary (TV Series)|Sanctuary]]'' {{c|Cave painting}}
**''[[Aleria (TV Series)|Aleria]]'' {{c|Cave painting}}
*''[[Halo: Epitaph]]''


==Sources==
==Sources==
<references/>
{{Ref/Sources}}


{{flood}}
{{Flood}}


[[Category:The Flood]]
[[Category:Flood forms]]
[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Flood characters]]
[[Category:Genderless characters]]

Latest revision as of 12:18, November 7, 2024

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This article is about the Flood intelligence. For the Halo 2 campaign level or other uses, see Gravemind (level) and Gravemind (disambiguation).
Gravemind (Inferi sententia)
The Gravemind.
General overview

Distinctions:

Massive worm-like head with many tentacle appendages. Collective Flood consciousness; frequently speaks in trochaic heptameter

Method of attack:

Neural physics

 

"I am a monument to all your sins."
— The Gravemind[1]

The Gravemind[2] (Inferi sententia, meaning "Thinking Dead"),[3] infrequently referred to as the Ancient One,[4] and formally known as a compound intelligence,[5][6] is the shared consciousness of the entire Flood species which first emerges when the Flood reaches the Coordinated Stage. While this compound mind inhabits all Flood forms, it is distinctly embodied in processing nodes of agglomerated Flood biomatter known as key minds. The Gravemind is the highest stage of the Flood's development, though its complexity and capabilities depend on the size and number of the key minds which can, at the height of a Flood outbreak, engulf entire worlds.[7]

Biography[edit]

Origin[edit]

The Gravemind's massive full figure.

Millions of years before the present, the ancient and powerful civilization known as the Precursors held a position of stewardship over the galaxy, populating it with numerous lifeforms and watching over their evolution. However, one of their created races, the sapient species known as the Forerunners, staged a massive rebellion against their creators and were successful in nearly wiping them out entirely. The remaining Precursors sought ways to render themselves dormant until such a time as they could safely roam the galaxy again.

Around a million years after the downfall of the Precursors,[8] a being later known as the Primordial—a mutated Precursor—was confined to a Precursor stasis capsule and placed beneath the surface of a small planetoid at the edge of the Milky Way by an unknown group of beings, suspected to be ancient Forerunners. Meanwhile, most of the last surviving Precursors converted their bodies into an organic powder, and planned to regenerate back into their original forms at a later time. However, the millions of years that followed rendered the powder defective, and the resurrection process instead yielded malformed, parasitic lifeforms that could assimilate organic matter - the nascent stage of the Flood.

Prior to 107,445 BCE, a number of automated starships of unknown origin came from the Magellanic satellite galaxies and crashed upon numerous worlds at the galaxy's borders. These vessels were eventually discovered by the ancient humans and San'Shyuum, who found that they contained millions of glassy cylinders carrying a fine powder of non-living, moderately simple organic material. This powder was dispersed among the human and San'Shyuum worlds, eventually creating and unleashing the first known Flood outbreak in this galaxy.

During the course of their onslaught against the humans and San'Shyuum, the Flood would frequently capture, infect, and merge host organisms into unified masses with an encompassing intelligence; Graveminds. Soon after, the Flood collective made the decision to recede from the galaxy, halting the parasite's spread across human-controlled space. The Flood were driven out and retreated from the Milky Way, not to be seen again for another thousand years. While these early Flood were destroyed, and their Graveminds with them, the Flood would return in newer, more capable forms.

Forerunner-Flood war[edit]

A Gravemind present during the Forerunner-Flood war.

During the Forerunner-Flood war, the Flood created many Gravemind forms, which collectively coordinated the Flood's efforts against the Forerunners. Eventually, Forerunner naval tactics began to fail, and the Forerunners developed the Halo Array as a desperate countermeasure, which would destroy all sentient life in the galaxy, thus denying the Flood "food" for growth. This was only to be used as a last resort, and the Forerunners refused to use the system.

While the Flood would gain and lose individual Graveminds during the war, their numbers were still nevertheless sufficient to form and maintain a collective array to coordinate the parasite across the galaxy. The Flood would continue to be an unstoppable and persistent threat to the Forerunners, who, despite their best efforts, were unable to stop the parasite's spread across the galaxy, despite many lengthy naval engagements that lasted for nearly 300 years. As they continued to lose the war to the Flood, the Forerunners would reluctantly turn to other, more risky endeavors. In accordance with their existing plan, multiple installations, including the Ark and numerous Shield Worlds were constructed by the Forerunners as shelters for themselves and the sentient species of the galaxy, indexed as part of the Conservation Measure, when the Halos fired.

Mendicant and the Primordial[edit]

Around 43 years before the Array's activation, the Forerunners, specifically the Master Builder, deployed the first active Contender-class artificial intelligence, Mendicant Bias who would be in command of one of the original twelve Halo rings, Installation 07. This installation's first assignment was a test firing at the former Precursor world of Charum Hakkor. The purpose of this assignment was to determine the effects of the Array against the Flood before it was deployed in earnest against the Flood's stronghold in the core.

This low-powered test firing destroyed every Precursor structure on the planet, and purged the Charum Hakkor system of all neurologically complex life, including the planet Faun Hakkor. An unexpected development of this test was the emancipation of the Primordial, a surviving Precursor imprisoned on Charum Hakkor's surface. When the ancient entity was brought to Installation 07 for study, at the Master Builder's orders, it entered into an extended conversation with the AI. During the course of the conversation, which ran for 43 years, the being explained the truth about the Mantle and the fullness of the Precursors' plan of unity and peace through the galaxy-wide infection by the Flood.

The Primordial told Mendicant that the Forerunners were never meant to inherit the Mantle and that they had defied the Precursors. It also told the AI that if the sentient life in the Milky Way could not defy the Flood, especially the humans, then all life would be brought together and unified into the logical, advanced form of life; a collective, conglomerated entity without conflict and pain. It claimed that the Forerunners had forced the galaxy towards perpetual stagnation by stifling growth, conflict, and progress in their misuse and illegitimate claim to the Mantle. Eventually, Mendicant Bias became convinced by these arguments, and turned rampant, seeking to "correct" the flawed, misguided ways of the Forerunners.

To this end, Mendicant Bias began to cooperate with the Primordial on Installation 07, where they continued to infect humans and Forerunners alike in a series of brutal experiments.[9] 43 years after the release of the Primordial, Mendicant Bias used the Halo ring to attack the Capital of the Forerunner ecumene, and managed to inflict heavy casualties on the Forerunners, though it was soon forced to retreat. Eventually, the return of the Forerunners to the rogue installation and the shutdown of the facility and its custodian led to the recapture of the rogue Halo, resulting in a temporary setback for the Flood and Mendicant Bias. The IsoDidact interrogated the Primordial and eventually forced it to undergo a billion years of entropy in a reverse timelock, disintegrating its physical form; however, the being had managed to transfer its consciousness into the Flood's neural network. Now effectively synonymous with the Gravemind, the Primordial assumed control of the Flood's efforts with a renewed purpose.[10][11]

Final years[edit]

The Forerunner military continued to delay the use of the Halos for a time, instead continuing to deploy more conventional strategies against the Flood in the following years.[12] However, these measures failed to halt the Flood's spread across the Forerunners' ecumene. Entire worlds were engulfed by the Flood and converted to key minds, enabling the Flood to control the Precursors' neural physics constructs and dominate the Forerunners in naval engagements by using star roads as weapons.[13]

During the last years of the war, the Gravemind captured the Ur-Didact, who recognized it as the same intelligence as the Primordial, who he had interrogated ten thousand years earlier. The Gravemind tortured and corrupted the Didact's mind by informing him of not only the truth about the Precursors and the Flood, but also the Flood's true intentions: To bring eternal suffering to all life in the galaxy as punishment for the Forerunners' crimes against the Precursors. The Gravemind explained that like the Precursors, the Flood desired to create life. But this time, their creations would be made without free will or individuality, and would never be able to challenge their creators as the Forerunners had. The Gravemind then released the Ur-Didact, knowing his damaged psyche would bring further ruin to the Forerunners.[14]

Although Mendicant Bias' disparate parts had been scattered across the ecumene for study, these facilities were overrun by the Flood in the coming years and eventually, a Gravemind successfully reactivated the AI. Later, the reconstituted Mendicant Bias assisted the Flood and the Graveminds in their assault on the greater Ark and Omega Halo, resulting in the destruction of both installations.[15] As the Forerunners were preparing to fire the Halo rings, all available Flood-controlled vessels were gathered into a vast fleet which attacked the Maginot Sphere, intent on reaching Installation 00 before the rings could fire. The Flood, led by Mendicant Bias, faced off against the remains of the Forerunner fleet coordinated by Mendicant Bias' replacement, Offensive Bias in a final, brutal battle.

Just before the Halo Array's activation, the primary Gravemind imprinted the archived essences of Forthencho and three of his warriors on human bodies and sent them down to Earth to deliver a message to the Librarian. Forthencho informed her that the Domain—which was a Precursor creation—would be destroyed when the Halos were activated. The Gravemind expressed satisfaction in knowing that the Forerunners' history would be lost and viewed this as the Flood's final act of revenge against the Forerunners. Soon afterwards, the Graveminds were destroyed and the Flood collective consciousness was rendered inert by the activation of the Halo Array.[16] However, over a century later, Bornstellar Makes Eternal Lasting, formerly the IsoDidact, viewed a message from the Librarian which told of the Gravemind's final revelation and requested that he restore the Domain. Bornstellar led a mission to Maethrillian that succeeded in beginning the regeneration of the Domain, depriving the Gravemind of its perceived final victory.[17]

Human-Covenant War[edit]

"Relax. I'd rather not piss this thing off."
— Master Chief to a struggling Arbiter, while both are being held prisoner.
The Gravemind with a captured John-117.
The Gravemind with John-117.

Through neglect shown by the Monitor of Installation 05, 2401 Penitent Tangent, a Flood outbreak occurred a few thousand years after the firing of the Array, and the Gravemind was able to find enough biomass to rebuild itself deep under the Library of the installation. During the Battle of Installation 05, it assimilated the dead Prophet of Regret into itself and also captured the Monitor; possibly as a result of this, the Gravemind was capable of utilizing Delta Halo's teleportation grid. The Flood intelligence later "rescued" and captured both Master Chief and the Arbiter, when the former fell into a lake while trying to escape from a Covenant ship, and the latter was thrown into a chasm by a traitorous Tartarus. The Gravemind tried to convince the Arbiter of the true nature of the Halo Array, and proposed a truce to prevent the Covenant from activating the rings and killing them all. It then used the installation's teleportation grid to teleport them respectively to High Charity and Delta Halo's control room in order to find the Index.

The Gravemind torturing Cortana.

The Gravemind later captured the UNSC In Amber Clad and used it to board the Covenant holy city High Charity, crashing the frigate into a city wall and releasing numerous Pelicans full of the Flood plague, taking advantage of the distraction caused by both the Great Schism and the Master Chief. Within days it took over the entire city and all life within it. The UNSC AI Cortana, who was left on High Charity by the Master Chief, was quickly contacted by the Gravemind, which started to psychologically torture her in order to subjugate her and obtain useful information from her. As Gravemind tortured Cortana in search of information, the two would enter in a conversation about diverse themes, such as John-117 and the danger he posed to the Flood, which the Gravemind acknowledged as a fact.[18] Meanwhile, the Gravemind slowly started to become High Charity itself after taking it over completely, converting the whole city into a Flood environment and as his base of operations.[19]

Earth, The Ark and the Flood's destruction[edit]

"I am a timeless chorus; join your voice with mine, and sing victory everlasting!"
— The Gravemind to John-117.
The Gravemind telepathically contacting John-117 on Earth.

The Gravemind initially planned to attack and infest Earth; even though the Elites quarantined the area, it managed to send a single Flood-infested ship to Earth; it even allowed Cortana to leave a message for the Master Chief on the ship, in order to lure him to his destruction (although the Gravemind did not know what was the content of the message). The infestation of Earth was contained; the Gravemind used High Charity to make a slipspace jump to Mars and would have continued the attack, but after having assimilated the knowledge of the infected Regret (and possibly Mercy and Cortana), it learned about the Prophet of Truth's plans to use the Ark to remotely activate the entire Halo Array. Realizing the extent of the danger it faced, the Gravemind did not attack Earth but instead once again used the Covenant Holy City to slipspace jump to the Ark. Despite the Gravemind's immense technological expertise—including its use of exotic Precursor science—the strain caused by this jump caused High Charity to crash into the Ark.[20]

The Gravemind betrays John-117 and Thel 'Vadam once more as his main tentacles appear.

At the Ark, the Gravemind led a massive Flood attack on both the Covenant and the UNSC/Sangheili alliance at the Citadel; after the Prophet of Truth managed to start the activation sequence of the Halo Array, the Gravemind contacted the Master Chief and the Arbiter through two of its Pure Forms, once again forming an uneasy alliance with them to reach the Prophet and stop the firing of the rings. Together they were victorious, and the Gravemind even managed to infect Truth himself, gloating at his defeat before the Arbiter slew him. With the crisis averted, the Flood intelligence quickly betrayed its former allies; the duo managed to escape from their foe and discover Cortana's solution to the Flood—a replacement Halo ring made by the Ark. To activate it, the Chief infiltrated High Charity to retrieve Cortana, who had the Activation Index from the first Installation 04.

As the Chief traveled deep into High Charity, he faced multiple Flood forms and was taunted by the voice of the Gravemind which allowed Cortana to briefly send pained messages as it corrupted and tortured the UNSC AI. The Gravemind became increasingly frustrated at the Spartan's progress, becoming suspicious of what Cortana was hiding from him and threatening to "feast upon [the Chief's] bones" if she did not reveal the secret.

After the Chief rescued Cortana, the Gravemind became enraged, realizing that she planned to use the incomplete Halo to destroy him. It attempted to kill them both but failed as the Chief successfully destroyed High Charity, presumably killing the Gravemind. But after traveling to Installation 08, the Chief discovered that the Gravemind had survived and was attempting to rebuild itself on the new Halo. Despite its best efforts, the Gravemind failed to stop the Chief. In the end, the Gravemind was destroyed as Halo's activation destroyed itself and the Flood that had escaped containment.[21] In its final moments, however, the Gravemind addressed the Master Chief telepathically one last time, with an ominous warning:

"Resignation is my virtue, like water I ebb and flow. Defeat is simply the addition of time to a sentence I never deserved, but you imposed."
— The Gravemind to John-117.

Legacy[edit]

Main article: Second Ark Conflict

The Gravemind's warning proved sound: in June 2559, Banished forces on the Ark led by Jiralhanae brothers Pavium and Voridus were sent to scout the shell of High Charity and salvage the wrecks around it for weapons to use in the Banished's conflict with the UNSC Spirit of Fire. However, defying orders to leave the former Covenant holy city untouched, Vordius deactivated the Ark's Sentinel defense network and burned a hole in the containment shield with a Barukaza Workshop Scarab. The Flood, having survived within the wreckage, were released upon the Ark once more.[22] The Flood quickly formed a Proto-Gravemind, causing the Flood to develop greater coordination and sophistication as time went on, in particular recognizing the threat posed by the controls to reactivate the Ark's Sentinel defense network.[23] This Proto-Gravemind retained a measure of the deceased Gravemind's intellect, but the Gravemind's new vessel had to feed and spread in order for the Gravemind to fully manifest once again.[24]

After reactivating the Ark's Sentinel defense network,[23] the Proto-Gravemind was discovered by the Banished. By this point, it was close to becoming a full-fledged Gravemind which the Banished knew from the stories would be virtually unstoppable. Aided by the reactivated Sentinels, the Banished attacked the Proto-Gravemind in an effort to destroy the creature before a new Gravemind could be formed. With the help of a Retriever Sentinel summoned when the Banished cleaned out a nearby Sentinel lock, the Proto-Gravemind was slain, preventing the rise of a new Gravemind. The Banished and the Ark's Sentinels were then finally able to contain the Flood outbreak.[25]

In November 2559, Spartan Olympia Vale recalled the Gravemind's account of Forerunner treachery after she and Keely Iyuska realized that the fugitives on Netherop were surviving Precursors. In Vale's opinion, the Gravemind had been rationalizing an act of vengeance so horrific that it would have been evil no matter how the Forerunners had betrayed their creators if it was even true. Vale's mind lingered on the words of the Gravemind which had been embedded in the intelligence summary as an audio file and which had been so powerful that they remained lodged in her memory to this day: "all that is created will suffer. All will be born in suffering, endless grayness will be their lot. All creation will tailor to failure and pain..." Considering the collective events that had come to define the galaxy's history up to that point, Vale couldn't help but wonder if this invocation by one of the Forerunners' creators had been woven into the structure of the universe itself.[26]

After being Composed by John-117, the Didact was forced to relive his confrontation with the Gravemind by Cortana who trapped the Promethean in his worst memories.[27] The Didact subsequently learned from the Haruspis that his corruption by the Gravemind, aside from some echoes that he was holding onto, was burned away by the Composer's power, restoring the Didact's sanity.[28]

Overview[edit]

The Gravemind is, as its name suggests, the "mind" of the Flood parasite. When a creature is assimilated into the Flood, its knowledge is transferred directly to the Gravemind. In addition, it appears each Gravemind also retains the memories and knowledge of previous Graveminds.[29] This has made the Gravemind virtually omniscient and ensures that should the Gravemind be destroyed, its consciousness will never truly die as long as some Flood forms are left. In an archived conversation with the Forerunner AI known as Mendicant Bias, it compared itself to the AI, describing Mendicant Bias as "a single intelligence inhabiting multiple instances" and calling the Gravemind "a compound [intelligence] consisting of a thousand billion coordinated minds inhabiting as many bodies as circumstances require". While it is not known how the Gravemind is able to communicate with subordinate Flood forms across the galaxy, its self-comparison to a computer network implies that similar techniques may be used, with each Flood form possibly acting as a networking node and redistributing the Gravemind's commands to other forms. This is almost certainly related to the Precursor connection to the concept of neural physics, which could enable them to form a trans-sentient network without any need for any conventional communication methods.

The relationship between individual Graveminds, and specifically whether the mobile forms under the control of one Gravemind would be influenced by another, is not entirely clear. The Forerunners theorized that since the Graveminds are entirely identical in terms of personality and goals, it would be impossible to discern any meaningful distinction between them.[3] In addition, separate collectives under the control of individual Graveminds will seek to connect and coalesce into a unified whole.[30] It would appear as though multiple Graveminds existing simultaneously simply causes them to function as highly powerful processing nodes for the overall Flood intelligence, essentially acting as key mind forms on an exceptionally large and complex scale. In essence, no matter how many individual Graveminds form, there is still only one Gravemind intelligence.

Life cycle[edit]

The Gravemind explains Halo's purpose to John-117 and Arbiter Thel 'Vadamee.
The Gravemind under Installation 05.

A Gravemind originates as a proto-Gravemind—a Flood form created by merging the bodies and biomass of numerous sentient life forms, as well as redundant Flood forms. After a proto-Gravemind has been created, control over individual Flood forms transfers to its emerging compound intelligence, replacing the localized individual-level control present during the Feral Stage. Nearby combat forms will continue to supply the proto-Gravemind with fresh bodies, allowing it to accumulate mass, increase in size, and gain more memories and intelligence from consumed hosts. Eventually, the proto-Gravemind reaches a certain "critical mass" and becomes self-aware - a Gravemind. By this point, local biodiversity has typically been eliminated with the host species' total absorption into the Flood.[30]

When a Flood outbreak progresses far enough, typically the later phases of the Interstellar Stage, the Flood will no longer have need for the widespread creation of dedicated combat forms, instead simply overwhelming a given location with spores and using infected individuals to accumulate biomass for a Gravemind and its lair;[31] by this point, the Gravemind may create more efficient pure forms for combat and other purposes via the spontaneous generation of Flood Super Cells.[30] Entire planetary ecosystems are assimilated into advanced key mind nodes; these enormous collectives possess tremendous processing power, being able to outsmart even the most powerful Forerunner artificial intelligences or control the neural physics-based architecture of the Precursors.[13]

Theoretically, when the Flood infection has become too large for even the Gravemind to control — or when all life in the galaxy has been consumed — the Flood infection will reach the Transgalactic Stage. At this point, the Flood will use all resources that it has at its disposal to leave the galaxy, with the intent to create a new Gravemind elsewhere.

Appearance[edit]

A Gravemind is comprised of a combination of pure Flood Super Cells and the neural networks of the sentient beings absorbed within.[3] Although its consciousness is distributed throughout all Flood forms in range, a Gravemind is typically, if not always, centralized within a large "body" of Flood tissue derived from the initial proto-Gravemind. In most cases, this body is a shapeless, amorphous mass, typically with numerous tentacles that can reach many miles in length depending on the size of the Gravemind. The Gravemind can rearrange this body as it wishes; during the Flood invasion of High Charity during the Human-Covenant War, the Gravemind leading the assault transplanted itself into the station and almost completely engulfed it, converting itself and the station into a Flood hive. As the development of a Gravemind progresses, it will sometimes shed dead biomass to alter its anatomy to a desired shape.[32]

The Gravemind with John-117 and Arbiter Thel 'Vadam.
Installation 05's Gravemind with Arbiter Thel 'Vadamee and Spartan John-117.

Communication[edit]

Graveminds have shown the capacity to communicate through non-verbal means; this ability, which can best be described as a form of telepathy, allows a Gravemind to coordinate the Flood forms it controls and to directly converse with uninfected individuals.[3] While this ability is poorly understood, it is likely that given the Flood's Precursor origins, it is related to the Precursor concept of neural physics.

The Gravemind encountered by Master Chief John-117 and the Arbiter on Installation 05 had shaped one of its tentacles into a massive "mouth" composed of fleshy, leaf-like jaws; this organ allowed the Gravemind to vocalize without the need for telepathy.

Throughout nearly all encounters with the "modern" Gravemind, it has shown a fondness for speaking in poetic style - specifically, trochaic heptameter. When pressed about this detail by Cortana, it states that "I have the memories of many poets far beyond your limited human culture. And I have the quickness of intellect to compose all manner of poetic forms as I speak rather than labor over mere words for days."[33]

Personality and motivations[edit]

"Do I take life or give it? Who is victim, and who is foe?"
— The Gravemind to John-117 on Installation 08.
The avatar of the Gravemind as seen in the Terminals.

Although multiple Graveminds have existed throughout time, sometimes contemporaneously with one another, they all share precisely the same obscure, complex and highly intelligent personality. It also appears to retain the memories of anything and everything it has ever assimilated, even in the case of near-complete annihilation of the Flood. When the Halo array was fired for instance, all Flood biomass in the galaxy was eliminated in its entirety, yet the Gravemind retained its personality and memories when next encountered thousands of years later. This would seem to indicate that the Gravemind has the ability to somehow preserve itself in a non-physical form even if destroyed. When it was first seen by the Master Chief and the Arbiter, the Gravemind was calm and collected, if not seemingly sad or mournful, and it spoke with a sullen tone in its voice. It was also quite logical and rational, psychologically analyzing the duo, and trying to convince the Arbiter of the Halo rings' true purpose, to which the Arbiter reacted with stubborn pride. The Gravemind showed no irritation to this nor the bickering of 2401 Penitent Tangent and the former Prophet of Regret.[1] Later, though, the Gravemind showed a more emotional side, basking in its victory at High Charity, and displaying a sinister air of anger when demanding answers from the newly captured Cortana.

It is also known to be quite manipulative: during the Battle of Installation 05, the Gravemind tricked the Chief into being a decoy to distract the High Prophets as it attempted to take over High Charity, and later during the Battle of the Citadel, it helped the Master Chief and the Arbiter to kill the Prophet of Truth, only to betray them when they had outlived their usefulness.

The Gravemind often touts to others that the Flood represents peace and salvation. At the same time, however, it is very much aware of the pain and suffering its victims are subjected to. It sees this as fair retribution for the Forerunners' crimes against its Precursor ancestors. According to the Gravemind, the Flood, down to its very nature and the suffering it inflicts, serves as an appropriate reflection and reminder of the pain that the Precursors ultimately brought on themselves by giving their creations free will; it considers itself a "monument" to the sins of other sentient beings. It regards the Flood as a continuation of the Precursors' desire to create life, but unlike before, the life they bring forth would no longer possess free will or individuality. Embittered by the Forerunners' rebellion, the Gravemind saw the Flood as a means to unite all life in eternal misery so that it could never hope to rise against the Precursors again.[34]

The Gravemind appears to have the ability to sort and isolate memories from specific individuals that it has absorbed and has, in several instances, projected some of the personalities it contains to further its own goals. On Installation 05, it assimilated and reanimated the Prophet of Regret, using him as a puppet in its attempt to convince Arbiter Thel 'Vadam of the truth about the Halos.[1] During the Forerunner-Flood war, a hundred thousand years earlier, it absorbed the family of Faber, the Master Builder, and used their disillusionment toward the Master Builder to its advantage by taunting him with a message from his family.[35]

The Gravemind does not appear to have a biological sex, as the Flood macro-organism does not reproduce sexually. Despite this, when the Gravemind referenced its shared goal with the Master Chief and the Arbiter to stop Installation 05 from firing, it spoke of the possibility of that goal making the three of them "brothers", indicating that it does in some fashion consider itself to be male. This may be a reflection of the nature of the Primordial, the core Precursor consciousness that the Gravemind's personality appears to be built around. However, it is not known whether or not the Primordial was in fact male, or whether the Precursors possessed biological sexes at all. Additionally, Cortana viewed the Gravemind she encountered as male. She compared its attempts to assimilate her with the logic plague to a "bad date" being sexually intimidating, and described its violation of her in ways evocative of a rape. However, this comparison would appear to originate from Cortana's own psychology rather than indicating anything in particular about the Gravemind.[36][37]

Logic plague[edit]

Main article: Logic plague

The emergence of a Gravemind enables the Flood to employ a form of philosophical corruption the Forerunners referred to as the logic plague. This makes it possible for the Flood to infect not only biological beings but also AIs, by using a series of techniques ranging from highly persuasive, convincing arguments to what appeared to be a sophisticated form of software infection transmitted via self-replicating patterns of code. The most notable victim of this manipulation was Mendicant Bias, who succumbed to the Gravemind's philosophical arguments after an exchange lasting nearly 43 years. The Gravemind also nearly succeeded in subjugating the UNSC smart AI Cortana by force, but she was recovered by John-117 before it could do so.

This corruption can also be applied to organic beings; although the Gravemind most commonly operates by absorbing all sentient biological lifeforms, it instead chose to corrupt the Ur-Didact in order to use him as a tool to induce strife within Forerunner society. Much like AI corruption in certain occasions (namely, in the case of Cortana), this process involved a direct and agonizing invasion of the Didact's mind, as well as devious exploitation of his existing attitudes and beliefs, leaving his psyche severely disturbed.[14]

Non-canon and dubious canon appearences[edit]

Silver Timeline[edit]

"It's very old, the monster. Older than the light, older than this rock... older than your god. It knows us... inside and out. Smells our fear. Sees our secrets. It's been here... all that time. Waiting. To meet you... in the dark. There's nothing you can give it. The only thing the monster wants is for you to know... that there's nothing you can ever love that it can't take away. You believe me now, don't you?"
— Kwan Ha to Kessler[38]

On the Rubble, Kwan Ha took shelter in a cavern with cave paintings of the Gravemind consuming worlds. Kwan would tell Kessler about the monster, although Soren denied that such a monster existed.[38]

After the Fall of Reach, The Mother warned Kwan in a vision that the monster was close now.[39]

Trivia[edit]

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  • The Gravemind is voiced by Dee Bradley Baker.
  • The term "Gravemind" was coined by Bungie staff member Jaime Greisemer.[40]
  • In Halo 3, the Gravemind's face is never shown, unlike in Halo 2, when it is shown in its introductory cinematic. However, the Gravemind is shown in the Halo 3 instruction manual as being slightly changed in looks, being the first detailed design of the Gravemind before Halo 2: Anniversary.
  • In several Forerunner data logs, the controlling intelligence of the Flood is referred to as a "Compound Mind".
  • The Gravemind resembles Audrey 2 from Little Shop of Horrors, a tentacled, plant-like alien who is fed humans to grow and who is bent on world domination. Bungie staff and fans jokingly call it the "Little Shop of Horrors Reject"[citation needed]
  • Originally, the Gravemind was meant to have skulls as teeth; this was cut from Halo 2 and Halo 3 because it would have made it difficult for the parasite to speak.[41]
  • The Gravemind frequently speaks in trochaic heptameter. In Human Weakness, it was revealed that this is merely preference and it converses normally with Cortana after she criticizes it for it. It also mentions that it possesses the memories of poets of many alien cultures.
  • The Gravemind is one of the few extraterrestrials to learn John-117's name.[42]
  • The Gravemind was initially going to have a much greater presence in Halo 2 and would have been introduced in the level forerunnertank, but due to time constraints, Bungie removed the level and instead made a long cinematic for his introduction.
  • The Gravemind pictured in the Halo 3 instruction manual looks strikingly similar to Ogdru Jahad's Behemoth manifestation from the 2004 Hellboy film.
  • From gameplay, the Gravemind (through his Combat Forms) has rarely been heard calling John-117 and Thel Vadam "The Coffin" and "Pallbearer", respectively.

Gallery[edit]

  • Early concept art of the Gravemind for Halo 2.

    Early concept art of the Gravemind for Halo 2.

  • More concept art of the Gravemind for Halo 2.

    More concept art of the Gravemind for Halo 2.

  • The Gravemind with John-117 and Thel 'Vadam in Halo 2.

    The Gravemind with John-117 and Thel 'Vadam in Halo 2.

  • Close up of the Gravemind in Halo 2.

    Close up of the Gravemind in Halo 2.

  • Concept art of the Gravemind in Halo 3.

    Concept art of the Gravemind in Halo 3.

  • The Gravemind in the Halo 3 Instruction Manual.

    The Gravemind in the Halo 3 Instruction Manual.

  • A Gravemind Moment in Halo 3.

    A Gravemind Moment in Halo 3.

  • The Gravemind in Halo Legends: Origins.

    The Gravemind in Halo Legends: Origins.

  • Concept art of the Gravemind for Halo 2: Anniversary.

    Concept art of the Gravemind for Halo 2: Anniversary.

  • Another concept of the Halo 2: Anniversary Gravemind.

    Another concept of the Halo 2: Anniversary Gravemind.

  • A render of the Gravemind model developed for Blur Studio's Halo 2: Anniversary cutscenes.

    A render of the Gravemind model developed for Blur Studio's Halo 2: Anniversary cutscenes.

  • The Gravemind introduces itself to John-117 in Halo 2: Anniversary.

    The Gravemind introduces itself to John-117 in Halo 2: Anniversary.

  • The Gravemind with Thel 'Vadam in Halo 2: Anniversary.

    The Gravemind with Thel 'Vadam in Halo 2: Anniversary.

  • The Gravemind in Halo Wars 2.

    The Gravemind in Halo Wars 2.

  • Artwork of the Gravemind in the Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition).

    Artwork of the Gravemind in the Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition).

List of appearances[edit]

Sources[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Halo 2, campaign level, Gravemind (opening cinematic)
  2. ^ Halo 2, campaign level High Charity, (Cortana: "Flood controlled dropships are touching down all over the city! That creature beneath the Library, that 'Gravemind', used us. We were just a diversion.")
  3. ^ a b c d Bestiarum
  4. ^ Halo 4 - War Games - Ancient One "Gravemind! The Ancient One...", Announcer
  5. ^ Halo 3, Terminal 5
  6. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Library: Proto-Compound Intelligence
  7. ^ Halo Waypoint: "Canon Fodder - Deluge Delights"
  8. ^ Halo: Silentium, page 173
  9. ^ Halo: Primordium, page 67
  10. ^ Halo: Silentium, page 167
  11. ^ Halo Mythos, page 32
  12. ^ Halo: Primordium, page 374-375
  13. ^ a b Halo: Silentium, pages 186-187
  14. ^ a b Halo: Silentium, String 13
  15. ^ Halo: Silentium, String 33
  16. ^ Halo 3, Terminals
  17. ^ Halo: Fractures, "Promises to Keep"
  18. ^ Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe, Human Weakness
  19. ^ http://blog.ascendantjustice.com/halo-3/hindsight-halo-3/halo/
  20. ^ Halo Waypoint - The Halo Bulletin: 9.24.14
  21. ^ Halo: The Essential Visual Guide, page 14
  22. ^ Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare, campaign level What Could Go Wrong?
  23. ^ a b Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare, campaign level The Archive
  24. ^ Halo Wars 2, Phoenix Logs - Proto-Gravemind
  25. ^ Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare, campaign level Manifestation
  26. ^ 17
  27. ^ Halo: Epitaph, chapter 18
  28. ^ Halo: Epitaph, chapter 20
  29. ^ Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition)
  30. ^ a b c Halo Waypoint: Flood
  31. ^ Halo: Silentium, pages 231-232
  32. ^ Halo: Silentium, page 209
  33. ^ Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe - "Human Weakness", pages 373-374
  34. ^ Halo: Silentium, pages 173-175
  35. ^ Halo: Silentium, page 251
  36. ^ Human Weakness
  37. ^ Halo 3, Cortana
  38. ^ a b Halo: The Television Series, episode Sanctuary
  39. ^ Halo: The Television Series, episode Aleria
  40. ^ Bungie.net: Feast of Bones
  41. ^ The Art of Halo, page 56-57
  42. ^ Halo: Evolutions, Human Weakness

v • d • e
 
Known Flood forms
Regular Spore • Pod • Seeder • Tadpole • Dispersal pod
Growths Stalk • Blister
Other Flood Super Cell (FSC)
Infected
Structures
Hives Hive • Den • Nest • Colony • Spore Mound • Cocooned base • Blightlands
Defensive Launcher • Root
Other Porta • Vent
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