Minister of Etiology: Difference between revisions

Minister of Etiology
Biographical information
Died:	September 21, 2552
Personal details
Species:	San'Shyuum
Gender:	Male
Hair color:	Gray
Eye color:	Blue
Political and military information
Affiliation:	Covenant (formerly) Ministry of Etiology; ; Flood;
Title(s):	Minister of Etiology; Minor Prophet; Legate;

Revision as of 15:06, July 14, 2024

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"I see you never studied, Commander. They are the Flood, one of the many tests and obstacles we must pass to activate the holy rings and begin the Great Journey."

— The Minister of Etiology, to Rtas 'Vadumee and Bero 'Kusovai^[1]

The Minister of Etiology, also known as the Legate, was a San'Shyuum politician and Minor Prophet, serving as the Covenant Minister of Etiology during the Human-Covenant War. He was stationed aboard the Fleet of Particular Justice's Mjern-pattern agricultural support ship Infinite Succor during the Battle of Installation 04.^[1]^[3] He was one of two San'Shyuum personnel in the fleet, the other being the Minor Prophet of Stewardship.

Biography

Early life

The Minister of Etiology spent much of his life studying the Flood. Eventually he was assigned to the Fleet of Particular Justice as the master of the support ship Infinite Succor.^[4] While assigned to Infinite Succor, the Minister had a safe room installed on the ship for his own protection, fearing a naval boarding action would easily overwhelm the ship's small on-board security force due to its total lack of any Sangheili - something he considered lacking. The crew of the ship were left unaware of this fact.^[1]

Battle of Installation 04

"We...have command codes. Will soon leave, spread."

— Etiology as the Proto-Gravemind

During the Battle of Installation 04, Infinite Succor was in orbit over Installation 04 along with the rest of the Fleet of Particular Justice, when it became subject to the ongoing outbreak of the Flood on the ring. Late in the campaign, the Dextro Xur-pattern Spirit dropship Brilliant Gift was able to leave the ringworld's surface and crash in Infinite Succor's hangar bay, depositing its cargo of Flood forms onto the ship - which promptly began to infect its crew. The Minister of Etiology retreated to his safe room as soon as the boarding alarm was sounded, and disabled the ship's primary controls to ensure the Flood would not be able to take control of the ship and escape the Soell system, also disabling the ship's self-destruct system. The minister planned to wait for reinforcements to arrive - something which proved true later when a Covenant Special Operations strike force led by Commander Rtas 'Vadumee was tasked by the fleet's Supreme Commander, Thel 'Vadamee, to board Infinite Succor, rescue the minister, and destroy the ship.^[1]

Upon initial contact, the minister refused to re-enable Infinite Succor's self-destruct, worrying that Rtas and his troops were a ruse; that they had been infected by the Flood and were trying to trick him into opening his safe room. Consequently, he demanded that the team head to the ship's medical bay and submit scans to him that proved they were clean of Flood infection - before directing them to head to the hydroponics bay and into the safe room. During his time watching the strike team, he observed the Flood's behaviour change as it infected the Sangheili officers leading the force, and the Flood's evolution into a new stage - growing more organised and altering the atmosphere on-board to facilitate the creation of a Proto-Gravemind. He observed that the Flood appeared to inherit the knowledge of their victims and worried that they were planning to use the ship's borer to escape into slipspace and begin spreading the infection across the galaxy.^[1]

The Minister of Etiology is infected by the Flood.

The Minister absorbed by the Flood.

While conversing with 'Vadumee, the minister repeatedly emphasised his own importance, and that the strike team's priority was to escort him to safety. He also noted that Infinite Succor lacked any vacuum suits suitable for Sangheili, on account of its lack of Sangheili crew, meaning that it would be impossible to simply depressurise the ship and kill the Flood that way. As such, 'Vadumee instructed that Sub-commander Bero 'Kusovai take a strike team to their boarding ship Glorious Advance while he took the other troops to Infinite Succor's engineering deck to enact the self-destruct. If 'Vadumee did not return, 'Kusovai was to signal the fleet to fire upon and destroy Infinite Succor. The minister objected to 'Vadumee's plan, noting that splitting the force would be insufficient to provide him adequete protection while he was escorted to Glorious Advance. 'Vadumee in turn noted that the time and effort it would take to escort the minister to safety would be a huge risk, especially with the Flood tirelessly working to hack Infinite Succor and leave the system - by contrast, it would be a simple matter to kill the frail San'Shyuum and posit that he had simply been killed in the initial attack. 'Vadumee promptly struck the minister before picking him up and throwing him across the room - killing him and taking his access codes.^[1]

After 'Vadumee and his entourage left the safe room to finish their mission, the Flood infected the now-dead minister - absorbing him into the Proto-Gravemind and gaining all of his knowledge - including the command codes needed to operate Infinite Succor. As 'Vadumee worked to enact Infinite Succor's destruction, the Flood used the minister's face to taunt him, noting that the Forerunners had failed to stop the Flood, and that the Covenant had no chance. Despite this, 'Vadumee successfully completed his mission, causing Infinite Succor to fly into Soell and be destroyed.^[1]

In-game information

Halo: Fleet Battles

The Minister of Etiology is available as a Heroic Character in Halo: Fleet Battles. As a Heroic Character he must be assigned to a specific formation base within the fleet at the start of the battle.^[3]

^{MINOR PROPHET}
MINISTER OF ETILOGY - 80 points
Special Orders
ZEALOTS: 0-2 per full 1000 Points / 1VP KIA	Each Zealot costs +10 Points
Prepare My Transport Cost: 2 Order Defense die The Minister of Etiology is never without an escape plan. Should the element containing the Minister be destroyed, roll a Halo dice - on the roll of any result other than a fail, the Minister may be placed on a nearby friendly vessel within 12". Should Minister roll a fail when trying to escape, or have no friendly formation base within 12" however, the Minister is removed from the game and the enemy fleet gains and additional +4 victory points.
Protect The Minister! Cost: 2 Order Attack die The Minister may force an enemy firing solution targeting his own formation base to re-target a different member of his battle group - even if a loadout would require the formation to be the nominated (missile barrage, for example). This order may be issued after the formation containing the Minister is declared the target of a firing solution.
Unique Ability
Whilst utterly self-possessed and concerned only with politics, the Minster claims a high rank within the Covenant hierarchy and can bend even Fleet Commanders to his will. After any initial order dice have been rolled during the order dice phase, the Minister may change a single friendly Covenant order dice to be any result.

Production notes

The Minister of Etiology was first introduced in The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor, a story in the Halo Graphic Novel with an extremely heavily stylised visual style. As part of this style, the minister is illustrated as having four fingers on each hand rather than the three as shown in all other media. A minor oversight is also shown later in the story when the Legate is grabbed in a chokehold by Rtas 'Vadumee, then slammed to the floor. In the next panel, he is seen unharmed, his headpiece unbroken, and his being is robustly frail as any other Prophet. This is just a simple printing glitch, meant to be in a prior page.^[1]

The minister was later featured in Halo: Fleet Battles as a Heroic Character, and given a new and definitive illustration more in keeping with Halo's canon visual direction (shown at the top of this page).^[3]

Gallery

The Minister in the Graphic Novel
Halo: Fleet Battles busts of the Minister and other Covenant leaders

List of appearances

Halo: The Flood
- Adjunct (Mentioned only)
Halo Graphic Novel
- The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor (First appearance)
Halo: Fleet Battles

Sources

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l Halo Graphic Novel - The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor
^ Halo Encyclopedia (2011 edition), page 284
^ ^a ^b ^c Halo Waypoint, Canon Fodder - Infinity & Beyond (Retrieved on Dec 23, 2019) [archive]
^ Twitter, Halo (@Halo): "Assigned to Thel ‘Vadamee’s Fleet of Particular Justice as master of the support ship Infinite Succor, the Minister of Etiology would eventually meet his end fighting the very threat he had spent much of his life studying – the Flood." (Retrieved on Nov 22, 2019) [archive]

[hgn-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l Halo Graphic Novel - The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor

[Enc11-2] Halo Encyclopedia (2011 edition), page 284

[CFBeyond-3] Halo Waypoint, Canon Fodder - Infinity & Beyond (Retrieved on Dec 23, 2019) [archive]

[4] Twitter, Halo (@Halo): "Assigned to Thel ‘Vadamee’s Fleet of Particular Justice as master of the support ship Infinite Succor, the Minister of Etiology would eventually meet his end fighting the very threat he had spent much of his life studying – the Flood." (Retrieved on Nov 22, 2019) [archive]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

@@ Line 7: / Line 7: @@
 |homeworld=
 |birth=
-|death=[[2552#September|September 21, 2552]]<ref name="hgn">'''[[Halo Graphic Novel]]''', ''[[The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor]]''</ref>
+|death=[[2552#September|September 21, 2552]]{{Ref/Comic|Id=hgn|HGN|Story=The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor}}
 |causeofdeath=
 |parents=
@@ Line 23: / Line 23: @@
 *[[Flood]]
 |rank-title=Title(s)|rank=*[[Minister (title)|Minister]] of [[Ministry of Etiology|Etiology]]{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
-*[[Minor Prophet]]<ref>'''[[Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition)]]''', ''page 284'' (2011)</ref>
+*[[Minor Prophet]]{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc11|Enc11|Page=284}}
 *Legate
 |sn=
@@ Line 30: / Line 30: @@
 {{Quote|I see you never studied, Commander. They are the Flood, one of the many tests and obstacles we must pass to activate the holy rings and begin the Great Journey.|The Minister of Etiology, to [[Rtas 'Vadum]]ee and [[Bero 'Kusovai]]{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}}}
-The '''Minister of Etiology''', also known as the '''Legate''', was a [[San'Shyuum]] politician and [[Minor Prophet]], serving as the [[Covenant]] [[Minister (title)|Minister]] of [[Ministry of Etiology|Etiology]] during the [[Human-Covenant War]]. He was stationed aboard the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]]'s {{Pattern|Mjern|agricultural support ship}} ''[[Infinite Succor]]'' during the [[Battle of Installation 04|Battle]] of [[Installation 04]].{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}<ref name="canon fodder">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/canon-fodder-infinity-beyond '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Canon Fodder - Infinity & Beyond'']</ref>
+The '''Minister of Etiology''', also known as the '''Legate''', was a [[San'Shyuum]] politician and [[Minor Prophet]], serving as the [[Covenant]] [[Minister (title)|Minister]] of [[Ministry of Etiology|Etiology]] during the [[Human-Covenant War]]. He was stationed aboard the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]]'s {{Pattern|Mjern|agricultural support ship}} ''[[Infinite Succor]]'' during the [[Battle of Installation 04|Battle]] of [[Installation 04]].{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}{{Ref/Site|Id=CFBeyond|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/canon-fodder-infinity-beyond|Site=Halo Waypoint|Page=Canon Fodder - Infinity & Beyond|D=23|M=12|Y=2019}} He was one of two San'Shyuum personnel in the fleet, the other being the [[Prophet of Stewardship|Minor Prophet of Stewardship]].
 ==Biography==
 ===Early life===
-The Minister of Etiology spent much of his life studying the [[Flood]]. Eventually he was assigned to the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]] as the master of the support ship ''[[Infinite Succor]]''.<ref>[https://twitter.com/Halo/status/1197877643346989057 ''Twitter'', Halo "Assigned to Thel ‘Vadamee’s Fleet of Particular Justice as master of the support ship Infinite Succor, the Minister of Etiology would eventually meet his end fighting the very threat he had spent much of his life studying – the Flood."]</ref>
+The Minister of Etiology spent much of his life studying the [[Flood]]. Eventually he was assigned to the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]] as the master of the support ship ''[[Infinite Succor]]''.{{Ref/Twitter|Halo|1197877643346989057|Halo|Quote=Assigned to Thel ‘Vadamee’s Fleet of Particular Justice as master of the support ship Infinite Succor, the Minister of Etiology would eventually meet his end fighting the very threat he had spent much of his life studying – the Flood.|D=22|M=11|Y=2019}} While assigned to ''Infinite Succor'', the Minister had a safe room installed on the ship for his own protection, fearing a [[naval boarding]] action would easily overwhelm the ship's small on-board security force due to its total lack of any Sangheili - something he considered lacking. The crew of the ship were left unaware of this fact.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
 ===Battle of Installation 04===
 {{Quote|We...have command codes. Will soon leave, spread.|Etiology as the [[Proto-Gravemind]]}}
-During the [[Battle of Installation 04]], ''Infinite Succor'' was in orbit over [[Installation 04]] along with the rest of the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]], when a Covenant [[Spirit]] dropship filled with [[Flood]] [[Flood combat form|combat forms]] crashed into the ship's docking bay. Soon after, the [[Special Operations Commander]] [[Rtas 'Vadum|Rtas 'Vadumee]] led a Covenant [[Covenant Special Operations|Strike Team]] on board the ship. The team fought through a multitude of Flood infected creatures, including human combat forms and infected animals from the ship's hunting grounds, all the way to the bridge, only to find [[Infinite Succor]]'s controls disabled.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
+During the [[Battle of Installation 04]], ''Infinite Succor'' was in orbit over [[Installation 04]] along with the rest of the [[Fleet of Particular Justice]], when it became subject to the ongoing [[Outbreak at the Containment Facility|outbreak]] of the [[Flood]] on the ring. Late in the campaign, the {{Pattern|Dextro Xur|Spirit}} dropship ''[[Brilliant Gift]]'' was able to leave the [[Halo array|ringworld's]] surface and crash in ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s [[hangar bay]], depositing its cargo of Flood forms onto the ship - which promptly began to infect its crew. The Minister of Etiology retreated to his safe room as soon as the boarding alarm was sounded, and disabled the ship's primary controls to ensure the Flood would not be able to take control of the ship and escape the [[Soell system]], also disabling the ship's [[self-destruct]] system. The minister planned to wait for reinforcements to arrive - something which proved true later when a [[Covenant Special Operations]] strike force led by [[Commander (Covenant)|Commander]] [[Rtas 'Vadum]]ee was tasked by the fleet's [[Supreme Commander]], [[Thel 'Vadam]]ee, to board ''Infinite Succor'', rescue the minister, and destroy the ship.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
-Here they met the [[San'Shyuum|Prophet]] Legate, Minister of Etiology who revealed to them that he had disabled the ship's primary controls, including the [[self-destruct]] sequence to prevent the Flood from getting at the systems. The Minister ordered the entire group medically scanned before he would meet with them, due to the situation of Flood outbreak aboard the ship and refused to unlock the self-destruct because it posed too much risk that if the team was infected, they could then hack into the other primary systems.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
+Upon initial contact, the minister refused to re-enable ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s self-destruct, worrying that Rtas and his troops were a ruse; that they had been infected by the Flood and were trying to trick him into opening his safe room. Consequently, he demanded that the team head to the ship's medical bay and submit scans to him that proved they were clean of Flood infection - before directing them to head to the hydroponics bay and into the safe room. During his time watching the strike team, he observed the Flood's behaviour change as it infected the [[Sangheili]] officers leading the force, and the Flood's [[Flood outbreak|evolution into a new stage]] - growing more organised and altering the atmosphere on-board to facilitate the creation of a [[Proto-Gravemind]]. He observed that the Flood appeared to inherit the knowledge of their victims and worried that they were planning to use the ship's [[borer]] to escape into [[Slipstream space|slipspace]] and begin spreading the infection across [[Milky Way|the galaxy]].{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
+[[File:Legate.png|thumb|250px|left|The Minister absorbed by the Flood.]]
+While conversing with 'Vadumee, the minister repeatedly emphasised his own importance, and that the strike team's priority was to escort him to safety. He also noted that ''Infinite Succor'' lacked any [[vacuum suit]]s suitable for Sangheili, on account of its lack of Sangheili crew, meaning that it would be impossible to simply depressurise the ship and kill the Flood that way. As such, 'Vadumee instructed that [[Sub-commander]] [[Bero 'Kusovai]] take a strike team to their boarding ship ''[[Glorious Advance]]'' while he took the other troops to ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s engineering deck to enact the self-destruct. If 'Vadumee did not return, 'Kusovai was to signal the fleet to fire upon and destroy ''Infinite Succor''. The minister objected to 'Vadumee's plan, noting that splitting the force would be insufficient to provide him adequete protection while he was escorted to ''Glorious Advance''. 'Vadumee in turn noted that the time and effort it would take to escort the minister to safety would be a huge risk, especially with the Flood tirelessly working to hack ''Infinite Succor'' and leave the system - by contrast, it would be a simple matter to kill the frail San'Shyuum and posit that he had simply been killed in the initial attack. 'Vadumee promptly struck the minister before picking him up and throwing him across the room - killing him and taking his access codes.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
-[[File:Legate.png|thumb|250px|left|The Minister absorbed by the Flood.]]
+After 'Vadumee and his entourage left the safe room to finish their mission, the Flood infected the now-dead minister - absorbing him into the Proto-Gravemind and gaining all of his knowledge - including the command codes needed to operate ''Infinite Succor''. As 'Vadumee worked to enact ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s destruction, the Flood used the minister's face to taunt him, noting that the [[Forerunner]]s had [[Forerunner-Flood war|failed]] to stop the Flood, and that the Covenant had no chance. Despite this, 'Vadumee successfully completed his mission, causing ''Infinite Succor'' to fly into Soell and be destroyed.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
-The group met with the Legate in a secret location on the ship, where a plan was devised to get everyone off of the ship and have the ship vaporized by the nearby Covenant fleet. During this time it also became apparent that the [[Flood]] had gained the access codes to ''Infinite Succor'' through one of the infected [[Sangheili]] from 'Vadumee's party. As the Flood continued to spread throughout the ship, they reached the bridge and engineering room and begun fortifying the engineering room. The Flood were attempting a [[slipspace]] jump to escape [[Soell system|the system]]. At this time, 'Vadumee realized the Legate was only concerned with his own life, which had been costing the group precious time. In anger, 'Vadumee slammed the Legate into the floor, telling him that their prime concern was the [[Covenant]]'s safety, not his. The Minister was later absorbed by the Flood, becoming part of the growing [[Proto-Gravemind]] in the engine room of the ship. The infected Legate taunted 'Vadumee, before the latter destroyed the ''Infinite Succor'' by sending it on a slipspace vector with the system's star.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
+==In-game information==
+===''Halo: Fleet Battles''===
+The Minister of Etiology is available as a Heroic Character in ''[[Halo: Fleet Battles]]''. As a Heroic Character he must be assigned to a specific formation base within the fleet at the start of the battle.{{Ref/Reuse|CFBeyond}}
-==''Halo: Fleet Battles''==
+{| class="wikitable" style="width:70%;text-align:center"
-The Minister of Etiology is available as a Heroic Character in ''[[Halo: Fleet Battles]]'' for 80 points. He is able to use two Zealots every full 1,000 points at the cost of 10 points each. As a Heroic Character he must be assigned to a specific formation base within the fleet at the start of the battle.<ref name="HFBHC">'''[[Halo: Fleet Battles]]''' Heroic Character card</ref>
+|+ <sup>MINOR PROPHET</sup><br>MINISTER OF ETILOGY - 80 points
-===Special Orders===
+|-
-*'''Prepare My Transport'''
+| ZEALOTS: 0-2 per full 1000 Points / 1VP KIA || Each Zealot costs +10 Points
-**Cost: 2 Order Defense dice
+|-
-**Description: The Minister of Etiology is never without an escape plan. Should the element containing the Minister be destroyed, roll a Halo dice - on the roll of any result other than a fail, the Minister may be placed on a nearby friendly vessel within 12". Should Minister roll a fail when trying to escape, or have no friendly formation base within 12" however, the Minister is removed from the game and the enemy fleet gains and additional +4 victory points.
+! colspan=2 | Special Orders
-*'''Protect The Minister!'''
+|-
-**Cost: 2 Order Attack dice
+| colspan=2 |
-**Description: The Minister may force an enemy firing solution targeting his own formation base to re-target a different member of his battle group - even if a loadout would require the formation to be the nominated (missile barrage, for example). This order may be issued after the formation containing the Minister is declared the target of a firing solution.
+;Prepare My Transport
+:Cost: 2 Order Defense die
+: The Minister of Etiology is never without an escape plan. Should the element containing the Minister be destroyed, roll a Halo dice - on the roll of any result other than a fail, the Minister may be placed on a nearby friendly vessel within 12". Should Minister roll a fail when trying to escape, or have no friendly formation base within 12" however, the Minister is removed from the game and the enemy fleet gains and additional +4 victory points.
+|-
+| colspan=2 |
+;Protect The Minister!
+:Cost: 2 Order Attack die
+: The Minister may force an enemy firing solution targeting his own formation base to re-target a different member of his battle group - even if a loadout would require the formation to be the nominated (missile barrage, for example). This order may be issued after the formation containing the Minister is declared the target of a firing solution.
+|-
+! colspan=2 | Unique Ability
+|-
+| colspan=2 |
+:Whilst utterly self-possessed and concerned only with politics, the Minster claims a high rank within the Covenant hierarchy and can bend even Fleet Commanders to his will. After any initial order dice have been rolled during the order dice phase, the Minister may change a single friendly Covenant order dice to be any result.
+|}
-===Unique Ability===
+==Production notes==
-Whilst utterly self-possessed and concerned only with politics, the Minster claims a high rank within the Covenant hierarchy and can bend even Fleet Commanders to his will. After any initial order dice have been rolled during the order dice phase, the Minister may change a single friendly Covenant order dice to be any result.
+The Minister of Etiology was first introduced in ''[[The Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor]]'', a story in the ''[[Halo Graphic Novel]]'' with an extremely heavily stylised visual style. As part of this style, the minister is illustrated as having four fingers on each hand rather than the three as shown in all other media. A minor oversight is also shown later in the story when the Legate is grabbed in a chokehold by Rtas 'Vadumee, then slammed to the floor. In the next panel, he is seen unharmed, his headpiece unbroken, and his being is robustly frail as any other Prophet. This is just a simple printing glitch, meant to be in a prior page.{{Ref/Reuse|hgn}}
-==Trivia==
+The minister was later featured in ''[[Halo: Fleet Battles]]'' as a Heroic Character, and given a new and definitive illustration more in keeping with ''Halo''{{'}}s canon visual direction (shown at the top of this page).{{Ref/Reuse|CFBeyond}}
-*His hands have four fingers each, instead of three like the other San'Shyuum, probably an oversight from the artist.
-*In one scene of the ''Halo Graphic Novel'', the Legate is grabbed in a chokehold by Rtas 'Vadumee, then slammed to the floor. In the next panel, he is seen unharmed, his headpiece unbroken, and his being is robustly frail as any other Prophet. This is just a simple printing glitch, meant to be in a prior page.
 ==Gallery==