File talk:Onyx cover.jpg

Look like

• Does it look like the two spartans are wearing Mark V and Mark VI armor, or are they both wearing the same type? -ED 01:43, 15 September 2006 (UTC)

I dont know...but that third one...do you think thats a marine or Semi-Powered Infiltration Armor?--JohnSpartan117 06:09, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

Yes, that is Mark V and Mark VI armor. Look at the hands as well as helmet designs. And yes, I believe that is SPI. NeoExelor 16:58, 11 January 2007 (UTC)

what kind of armor is the middle guy wearing his helmet is wierd -Relentless Persecution^(talk)||_|(contribs) 20:59, 15 January 2007 (UTC)

Semi-Powered Infiltration Armor. g^ue_st^y-p_er^so_ny-^th_in^gy 22:28, 15 January 2007 (UTC)

Deduction

We never really identified the Spartans on this cover. Kelly was obvious because she was the only character still wearing the Mark V armor during the events of the novel, but the other two Spartans remained a mystery. We still can't guess who is wearing the SPI armor (there are too many who did, including Kurt). For the Mark VI, we were never able to distinguish between Fred, Linda and Will, since we had always assumed they all got the same basic armor as John did. But... since Fred and Linda got those new fancy armors, that only leaves William-043 as the wearer of the basic Mark VI armor. Shall we establish it as such and use it as his main image? Imrane-117 (talk) 01:22, 13 November 2014 (EST)

I'm not sure. First, it would require us to completely ignore the off-universe background behind the image—ie. back when this piece was made, Fred, Linda and Will were all supposed to wear the baseline Mark IV, so the artist may have intended the Spartan in the image to be any one of them. Besides, while it's somewhat unlikely, there's a possibility that Fred and Linda wore the testbed armor set only temporarily (perhaps due to damage?) and received a standard Mark VI before departing for Onyx. And Spartans changing their armor inexplicably is hardly a new thing for Halo. --Jugus (Talk | Contribs) 23:39, 13 November 2014 (EST)

For what it's worth, the armor permutations (mainly helmets) were named in code for their wearers for the most part. The standard Mk VI helmet is attributed to Will in fact. In case it's not on here and the info is wanted, here's the list of the filenames and attributions:

Hemlet Style	Helmet Filename
Pilot (w/ skull)	bungie
Commando	carter
Mark V [B]	default
EVA [C]	emile
Air Assault	female
Scout	jun
Military Police	player_adrianna
Operator	player_isaac
Recon	player_jai
Mark V	player_john117
Scout	player_joshua
Gungnir	player_kelly
CQB	player_kurt
EVA	player_li
Security	player_linda
ODST	player_malcolm
JFO	player_nicole
CQC	player_rosenda
Pilot	player_sam
Hazop	player_skull
EOD	player_vinh
Mark VI	player_will

-ScaleMaster117 (talk) 19:51, 14 November 2014 (EST)

Interesting, I had never heard of that.

@Jugus: I know the artist didn't have the Halo 2 Anniversary Terminals in mind at the time, in 2006. But I'm saying it's retroactively feasible to identify Will, thanks to new information and the fact that it does not conflict with anything else. For example, at the time of Halo 2, the In Amber Clad wasn't supposed to be a Stalwart-class light frigate, simply because this concept didn't exist at all (even for Bungie, I think). Now, it has been retroactively adapted to new information. Imrane-117 (talk) 20:05, 14 November 2014 (EST)

I know, I'm just concerned about overriding possible author intent. Since inconsistent visual appearances are not unheard of, the Spartan on the cover might as well be a "less canon" incarnation of any of the three Mark VI-wearing Spartans, just like the differences between John-117's Mark V designs in the Fall of Reach comic adaptation, Halo: Reach, Halo: Combat Evolved and Combat Evolved Anniversary. They're all different and all of them are still decidedly John-117. And like I said there's two weeks between the events of the terminal and Ghosts of Onyx. What if Fred's prototype Centurion armor, say, took major damage in some operation and he donned a baseline Mark VI before the mission to Havana and then Onyx? The amount of variables is just too high to make conclusive statements unless 343i confirms it. Interesting bit about the filenames though. --Jugus (Talk | Contribs) 11:12, 16 November 2014 (EST)

Point taken. The "many visual representations" analysis does make a lot of sense when compared with John, and I also have to agree that anything could have happened during these two weeks. Furthermore, the lack of any comment from Halsey (as Subtank said) still leaves the question open. For the filenames, I would suggest them to be put somewhere, as it's still interesting. A production note here perhaps. Imrane-117 (talk) 19:01, 16 November 2014 (EST)

First cent: Just curious, where are these from? I have a feeling that these are from Reach. Regardless, I wouldn't place much faith on the filenames. They aren't the best and/or the most authoritative source. Also, Nicole-458 wears a JFO? Whoa! Second cent: if Fred and Linda were given newer armour, Halsey would have said something about the armour in the novel, just like how she commented Jorge's armour in Reach. The absence of this comment would indicate that 343i is retconning their armour appearances in the Ghosts of Onyx novel. That, and Jugus comment above. Just my two cents. — subtank 06:59, 15 November 2014 (EST)

Yes, the above table is from Reach. Sorry, thought I'd referenced that. The Halo 4 helmets have more strange filenames, such as Optimus, Boxhead, Cyclops, Scientist, and Triclops. I wasn't saying that there's enough info on the Onyx cover art to attribute it to a character...I think that's lacking, but I thought the table above an interesting tidbit in case anyone didn't know that Bungie had done that. -ScaleMaster117 (talk) 13:37, 15 November 2014 (EST)