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Looking for the UNSC Navy rank Master Chief Petty Officer, the level Sierra 117, or the Halo Wars character John Forge?

John-117
File:Master Chief-H3.png
Biographical information
Birthplace:	Eridanus II
Date of birth:	c. 2510
Gender:	Male
Height:	208 centimetres (6 ft 10 in) (without armor)
Weight:	130 kilograms (290 lb)(without armor)
Political and military information
Spartan tag:	117
Rank:	Master Chief Petty Officer Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (posthumous)

"They let me pick. Did I ever tell you that? Choose whichever Spartan I wanted. You know me. I did my research. Watched as you became the soldier we needed you to be. Like the others, you were strong and swift and brave. A natural leader. But you had something they didn't. Something no one saw, but me. Can you guess...? Luck."

— Cortana

"He is neither the smartest nor the fastest nor the strongest of the Spartans. but he is the bravest - and quite possibly the luckiest. And in my opinion, he is the best."

— Dr. Catherine Halsey

Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy John-117 is a SPARTAN-II commando of the UNSC Naval Special Warfare Command. He became one of the most important heroes of the UNSC during the Human-Covenant War. With nearly 30 years of active duty, he is one of the most decorated war veterans in the United Nations Space Command and has earned every known medal in the UNSC except the Prisoner of War Medallion. In 2553, John-117 went missing in action after the Battle of Installation 00, when he and the current Arbiter Thel 'Vadam stopped the Flood threat.

He is the protagonist and main playable character in Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2, and Halo 3. In the games, John is only ever referred to by name once, by Cortana, in the ending cutscene of Halo 3 before the credits. He is referred to universally by humans simply as the "Master Chief", "Chief" for short and "Sierra-117". The Covenant is aware of the power of the Spartans, and refer to the Master Chief as "the Demon". John is referred to as "Reclaimer" by both 343 Guilty Spark and 2401 Penitent Tangent, although this seems to be a universal title given to all humans, rather than specifically referring to John-117.

Biography

Childhood and Spartan training

John-117 as a young child, with Halsey deciding his fate with a 21st century quarter.

Born in about 2510, John lived with his mother and father in Elysium City, on the colony world of Eridanus II. He attended the Elysium City Primary Education Facility Number 119. As a child, John had brown hair, freckles, and a small gap between his front teeth. In a memory, John recalled that his mother was "kind and smelled of soap." The would-be UNSC Marine Lieutenant Parisa was a childhood friend of John's. John once saved her from drowning at Lake Gusev, after which John promised to marry her and keep her safe. A photo of the two was also taken by Parisa's father soon after, and would be kept as a memory by Parisa long after she thought John had passed away.

At the age of six, he was identified by Dr. Catherine Halsey as one of 150 preliminary candidates for the SPARTAN-II Program. John was an ideal physical and mental candidate, standing a head taller than the majority of his schoolmates, having greater physical proportions, possessing greater strength, exhibiting superior reflexes, and having an aggressive drive for success. When Dr. Halsey and Lieutenant Jacob Keyes visited Eridanus II in 2517 to study him, they were impressed with his intellect and luck. In a final test of his viability as a candidate, he was asked to determine which side an old coin would land on. He watched the coin as it flew in the air and caught it before it could land; correctly stating which side was face-up, on the side of the eagle. Later that same year, John and 74 other six-year-old children were "conscripted": they were covertly kidnapped from their homes and replaced with flash clones, all of which would later die of natural causes to cover up the kidnappings. John, along with the other candidates, was taken to the planet of Reach. Dr. Halsey informed them of the SPARTAN-II Program and how they would be the protectors of Earth and all its colonies. The next morning John discovered his service tag, stitched into his training uniform, and his new name: John-117. .

John began a new life, training with other Spartans under Chief Petty Officer Franklin Mendez. For eight years he learned history, military strategy, weapons, and was given physical fitness training. Early on, he bonded with Kelly and Sam, who would become two of the few close friends he would ever have.

During his training, John quickly proved himself to be considered one of the program's top candidates. Both Dr. Halsey and Chief Mendez identified him as one of four emerging leaders within the Spartan-II group, along with Kurt-051, Jerome-092, and Frederic-104. Dr. Halsey expressed her belief the most strongly in John as having the skills and natural ability to lead the entire Spartan-II group, although Mendez disagreed, instead believing Kurt would fulfill that role.

When the Spartans were eight years old, they were sent on a training mission in which they were dropped over a forest located deep in one of Reach's snow-capped mountain ranges and expected to get safely to their extraction Pelican dropship. The children also had instructions to leave the last child arriving behind, or the punishment would be painful, but John-117 knew that he could not do that. After telling the Spartans where to meet, the Spartans looked to him as their leader, a role he was initially surprised to be given, but eventually accepted. When the group came upon the Pelican, it was guarded by armed men. Those men were actually UNSC Marines, but were not in uniform, thus leading the Spartans to mistake for a hostile threat. John showed early acumen in critical thinking and tactics, not wishing to take for granted that guards would be friendly toward them. He came up with a plan to take the men down, capture the dropship, and ensure the safe extraction of every team member, as he made sure he was the last person aboard. To do this he ended up hijacking the dropship with the help of Déjà, and beat down the men with stones, causing severe injuries among the Marines. Chief Mendez was not visibly pleased, as John had attacked his Marines and no one had been left behind. But both Mendez and Halsey recognized John's initiative, and promoted him to squad leader. After this, despite other Spartans rising in rank and at least a couple rising to lead their own teams, he remained the de facto leader of the Spartans as a whole.

John's leadership skills were correctly observed, as the result from their mission clearly solidified his role as the overall leader of the Spartan-IIs. He also became the established leader of the Spartan-II's Blue Team.

John-117 fighting a group of Shock Troops on the Atlas.

At the age of 14, John underwent the dangerous SPARTAN-II Augmentation Procedures. These procedures caused 30 of the Spartan trainees to die, and 12 to become physically disabled. John was one of 33 Spartans who made it through the process unscathed, while the rest who could still operate were sent for jobs in the Office of Naval Intelligence. At only 14 years old, it is said that John had a body of an 18-year old Olympic athlete; the augmentation process gave the Spartans faster reflexes, greater strength, enhanced eyesight, and made their bones nearly unbreakable. Following their augmentation procedures, John and the other Spartans were transferred to the Atlas in order to recover in a microgravity environment. During his first visit to the Atlas' gym, John was confronted by four ODSTs, whose sergeant then ordered the five of them into the boxing ring. In the ensuing fight, John killed two of the ODSTs, and left the others severely injured. According to Major Antonio Silva, this incident was orchestrated by the Office of Naval Intelligence in order to test the Spartans' augmentations.

Early military career

John wearing his MJOLNIR Mark IV armor.

John-117's first mission was against rebels in the asteroid belt of the Eridanus System, where his home world was located. He was shot in the side by live ammunition while leading his squad to capture rebel leader Colonel Robert Watts, without heavily injuring him. The mission casualty list is 11 dead rebel soldiers and un-known rebel civilians. He received a Purple Heart after this mission for taking a round in the side.

Three months after the Eridanus mission, John and his Spartans were briefed on the massacre that took place on Harvest shortly after first contact with the Covenant. A short time later, the UNSC Commonwealth, under the command of Captain Wallace, brought the Spartans and Dr. Halsey to the Damascus Testing Facility at Chi Ceti, where they received the MJOLNIR Mark IV Powered Assault Armor. When a Covenant ship, the Unrelenting, attacked the Commonwealth, John and the SPARTAN-IIs took part in their first battle with the Covenant. The Spartans used thrusters to launch from a Pelican dropship. Each Spartan carried an ANVIL-II Air-to-Surface Missile to destroy the Covenant ship. Only two other Spartans made it to the ship with John: Samuel-034 and Kelly-087. They entered the ship through a hole in its hull, caused by a MAC round from the Commonwealth. They succeeded in completing the mission and destroyed the Covenant ship, but due to a breach in Sam's armor, caused by retaliation fire from Covenant forces, he was unable to leave the Covenant ship. Volunteering to stay behind and ensure the destruction of the enemy vessel, Sam was killed in the ensuing explosion. John was affected profoundly at the loss of one of his friends. This UNSC victory against the Covenant showed John that the Covenant weren't invincible and could be beaten, but at a very high cost. John and the remaining Spartans would fight the Covenant for the next 27 years, employing their MJOLNIR armor.

File:Master Chief Petty Officer John SPARTAN-117 wearing his Mark IV armor.jpg

John as the operation kicks off

Main article: Raid on the Third Fleet of Glorious Consequence

In 2544, John, along with Fred-104, Kelly-087, Solomon-069 and Arthur-079, was part of a mission to rescue Dr. Catherine Halsey from a Covenant fleet. The team utilized OF92/EVA "Booster Frame" fighters, which were designed for ship boarding actions, and infiltrated a Covenant Assault Carrier. Aboard the Assault Carrier, John encountered Major Domo Thel 'Lodamee, who challenged John to an Energy Sword duel. Thel was forced out of the duel when his Fleetmaster separated the lower section of the Assault Carrier to kill the Spartan, pulling him back into the upper section. Both combatants were left unscathed. The Spartans completed the mission and rescued Dr. Halsey, but Arthur and Solomon were killed. John was saddened by his teammates' deaths and vowed to be stronger and never let such a loss happen again.

John served in over 200 missions against the Covenant, including the Harvest Campaign, the Battle of Jericho VII, where he and a handful of Spartans single-handedly killed over a thousand Grunts, and the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV, in which John and his Blue Team detonated a HAVOK Nuclear Warhead to clear Covenant forces from the city of Côte d'Azur. This was one of only a few UNSC victories against the Covenant. By summer of 2552, he had received every medal awarded by the UNSC except the Prisoner of War Medallion the reason being the Covenant forces do not take prisoners and John would not allow himself or any other SPARTAN to be captured by the enemy.

Fall of Reach

Main article: Fall of Reach

The Fall of Reach, though brief, was of great significance for John. Here he received the MJOLNIR Mark V Powered Assault Armor, which improved his strength and reaction time more effectively than his older Mark IV suit. He was also introduced to and partnered with the AI Cortana, who would become a close friend and ally to him. In the first test of their partnership, the two were put through a practically suicidal test in an attempt by Colonel Ackerson to get rid of John. John refused to cheat the test and was determined to win it by Ackerson's rules. Despite nearly being killed, Cortana and John's teamwork had them pass the test in an early show of the incredible partnership the two would come to develop. The majority of the Spartans, led by Fred S-104, went to the planet's surface to protect the Orbital Defense Generators which powered the planet's twenty Orbital Defense Platforms. John, with Linda and James, was sent to Reach Station Gamma to destroy an unsecured NAV database onboard the Template:UNSCship. If the Covenant obtained the database, they would discover the location of every human world, including Earth; the location of Earth by then was still a closely guarded secret. The NAV database was destroyed, but Linda and James were ambushed by Covenant Sangheili; James was lost in space, and Linda was critically wounded. John saved four other Marines on the station, including Staff Sergeant Avery Johnson. The team returned to the UNSC Pillar of Autumn and was placed into cryo-sleep as the ship landed on, then fled Reach and, following the Cole Protocol, jumped into Slipspace with coordinates deduced by Cortana from constellation data retrieved earlier, in hopes of leading the Covenant away from Earth.

Defense of Earth and humanity

Installation 04

Main article: Battle of Installation 04

File:180px-Masterchief-and-company.png

The Master Chief with Captain Keyes and Cortana on the Pillar of Autumn.

Once the ship had arrived safely at Installation 04, it emerged that the UNSC Halcyon-class cruiser UNSC Pillar of Autumn had been followed through Slipspace by around a dozen Covenant ships, who ultimately engaged the Autumn and sent several boarding parties to board the ship. Captain Jacob Keyes ordered John to be woken from cryosleep, and tasked him with ensuring the escape of Cortana (who was the ship's AI), while he crash-landed the Pillar of Autumn on the unidentified ring.

Initially, fighting on Halo was between UNSC and Covenant forces, but after Captain Keyes unwittingly releasing an ancient parasite, the majority of both forces were infected, and the fighting shifted to combating the new enemy.

Flood infestation of Installation 04

"Do you have any idea what that bastard almost made you do?"

— Cortana

"Yes... activate Halo's defenses, and destroy the Flood, which is why we brought the Index to the Control Center."

— John-117

John-117 was sent out by Installation 04's Monitor, 343 Guilty Spark, to retrieve the Index, an activation device for the Halo ring that the Master Chief is led to believe would destroy all Flood forms within a large radius. Upon John's return to Halo's Control Room, Cortana revealed that Halo's true purpose is to destroy all sentient life forms in the galaxy to starve the Flood, not to kill the Flood themselves. John was then forced to disrupt Halo's firing system by disabling Halo's Phase Pulse Generator in order to delay the Monitor's plan.

John soon joined the three-sided combat among the Covenant, the Flood and the Forerunners' Sentinels. Soon after, he tried to rescue Captain Keyes, but was too late. Captain Keyes had been transformed into a Proto-Gravemind Flood form. After infiltrating the Truth and Reconciliation, the Chief managed to retrieve the Captain's neural implants, which he used to activate the Pillar of Autumn's self-destruct sequence. After the sequence was aborted by 343 Guilty Spark, he proceeds to manually overload the fusion reactors, which would subsequently destroy both the Pillar of Autumn and Installation 04.

After successfully destroying the fusion reactors on the Pillar of Autumn, John-117 used a Warthog to reach the extraction point where Pelican Echo 419 would pick him up. John-117 reached the extraction point, only to witness the Pelican crashing into the Autumn's hull after being shot down by a pair of Banshees. The Chief quickly diverts his escape route towards the ship's hangar bay, which housed a Longsword fighter. Only a handful of UNSC forces survived, including Lieutenant Elias Haverson, Corporal Locklear, Warrant Officer Sheila Polaski, then-Staff Sergeant Avery Johnson, Private First Class Chips Dubbo, and then-Staff Sergeant Pete Stacker.

Journey to Earth and Operation: FIRST STRIKE

Main article: Operation: FIRST STRIKE

John-117 fighting aboard Ascendant Justice.

After the destruction of Alpha Halo, Cortana and the Master Chief fled through space in the Longsword they had escaped in. He discovered three cryotubes floating nearby, one containing Linda-058, and retrieved them. Soon after, the Covenant flagship Ascendant Justice came into the system along with a few cruisers, some of which had possibly escaped Halo's destruction and called the flagship to Threshold. A nearby Pelican dropship ,which had docked on an asteroid floating among Halo's debris field,fired at the cruiser to distract it. After a successful escape from the Covenant battle group, John linked the two vessels and brought its passengers aboard the Longsword. The crew of the Pelican then helped John in capturing the Ascendant Justice; the human survivors then traveled to Reach to look for surviving Spartans. John eventually located some of his fellow SPARTAN-IIs on Reach, along with Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb and Dr. Catherine Halsey. They returned to the ship and linked it with the UNSC Frigate Gettysburg. They began to travel toward Earth and soon discovered a base belonging to the Eridanus Rebels, led by Governor Jacob Jiles. After receiving some repairs, they were forced to abandon the rebels in the face of a Covenant assault, and made their way toward the Covenant refit-and-repair station, Unyielding Hierophant, where an enormous fleet was poised to invade Earth.

John faced a dilemma regarding the combat data on the Flood which Dr. Halsey had given him. Providing the standard data set to Lieutenant Haverson would protect Sergeant Johnson from possible experimentation by ONI. However, providing him the complete data, which contained reference to Sergeant Johnson's escape from the Flood due to his Boren's Syndrome, would result in Johnson's death.

John and the few remaining SPARTAN-IIs, Linda-058, Grace-093, William-043, and Fred-104, focused on finding a way to stop the Covenant from reaching Earth, the location of which had been discovered. They decided to destroy the 'Unyielding Hierophant. The SPARTAN-IIs infiltrated the station; after spending eleven hours on board, they arrived at a temple, where a copy of Cortana warned them of the Brute guards stationed at the temple. Linda took a sniping position and the other four Spartans entered the temple. They were ambushed by Brutes, and John was nearly killed, but the team managed to kill their attackers. Grace, however, was killed by three Brute Shot rounds. John activated the fail-safe on her armor, denying her compromise by the Covenant.

The team sabotaged the generators in the Unyielding Hierophant; as they escaped through a side door, the fail-safe on Grace's armor activated, disintegrating a Covenant lance. John, Fred, and Will were quickly spotted by three Banshees, but their Elite pilots were killed by Linda's sniper fire. The Banshees were then captured by the Spartans. John doubled back to retrieve Linda, who killed four more Banshee pilots who were attempting to kill John. They then escaped by destroying a glass atrium, and arrived back at the Gettysburg.

Vice Admiral Whitcomb and Lieutenant Haverson piloted the Ascendant Justice straight toward the Unyielding Hierophant. Whitcomb discussed the battles of the Alamo and Thermopylae with John, then prepared to fight the Covenant off while the Unyielding Hierophant's fusion reactor detonated. Each of the 500 Covenant ships maneuvered next to the Ascendant Justice. The Admiral and the Lieutenant were killed when the fusion reactor exploded, annihilating 486 ships of the Covenant fleet, leaving only around a dozen intact; these ships later joined the Prophet of Truth's rebuilt fleet in the attack on Earth. John left after witnessing Whitcomb's and Haverson's sacrifice, and arrived at Earth with the last members of his team, Linda, Will, and Fred, as well as Johnson and Cortana.

Battle of Earth

Main article: Battle of Earth

Master Chief gives the Covenant back their bomb, and turns the tide of the Battle of Earth.

"Sir, permission to leave the station?"

— John-117

"For what purpose Master Chief?"

— Terrence Hood

"To give the Covenant back their bomb."

— John-117

Aboard Cairo Station, John received the MJOLNIR Mark VI Powered Assault Armor and attended an awards ceremony with the newly-promoted Lieutenant Commander Miranda Keyes and Sergeant Major Johnson. The ceremony was interrupted by the arrival of Regret's Fleet, initiating the Battle of Earth. John successfully repulsed Covenant boarders from the station. Upon discovering a Covenant Anti-Matter Charge on board Cairo Station, John fought his way through waves of Elites, Grunts, and Drones until he reached the bomb and allowed Cortana to access and deactivate it by transfering her back to his suit. Afterwards, she chose to rejoin him despite his offer for her to remain on the station. He used the charge against the Covenant by launching himself and the device, via decompression of one of the station's launch bays, towards an Assault Carrier. A timely strike by Longsword interceptors opened a breach in the warship's hull, allowing John to direct the bomb into the ship's fusion core. He then proceeded to use the blast from the bomb to launch himself back into the UNSC In Amber Clad.

John was then deployed to New Mombasa, East African Protectorate aboard the UNSC In Amber Clad, in an attempt to board Regret's Carrier. Both of the strike teams' Pelican dropships were shot down by a Scarab. John and the surviving Marines on his team fought their way to the other Pelican's crash site. After rendezvousing with Gunnery Sergeant Pete Stacker at Hotel Zanzibar in Old Mombasa, the Master Chief destroyed Covenant units along the shore of the city as he chased the Scarab. Upon arriving at the edge of Old Mombasa, John received a Scorpion Tank from Sergeant Major Johnson.

After fighting through numerous highway tunnels and suburbs, John reached the city center, where Marines under the command of Staff Sergeant Marcus Banks were pinned down by Covenant forces. With the assistance of the Marines and a large stockpile of weapons, John boarded the Scarab and was able to destroy it and the Covenant forces protecting it. John was then transported to In Amber Clad to intercept the Prophet of Regret's flagship. When the flagship started to enter Slipspace, Lieutenant Commander Keyes was granted permission to follow it. John and all on board In Amber Clad were brought to Installation 05.

Installation 05

Main article: Battle of Installation 05

Master Chief on Installation 05 hunting down the Prophet of Regret.

Forced to act quickly once at Installation 05, John deployed groundside in an SOEIV along with several Orbital Drop Shock Troopers. This team was tasked with locating and assassinating the Prophet of Regret. Cortana informed John of Regret's intent to fire Halo as soon as possible. He tracked the Prophet of Regret to a temple in the middle of a lake, but not before witnessing hundreds of Covenant vessels coming out of Slipspace, followed by High Charity. He quickly dispatched the Prophet of Regret, and escaped the temple shortly before it was destroyed by an overhead cruiser. John jumped off the edge of the structure and into the lake below.

Losing consciousness and being unable to swim in the lake, he was captured by the Flood's central intelligence, the Gravemind. Shortly after, the Arbiter was also captured. The Gravemind appealed to the common interest of the Flood and the humans share, that of not wishing the Halos to be fired. John agreed. The Gravemind then tasked both captives with locating the Index, sending them to the two most likely locations. John was sent to High Charity, interrupting a sermon by the Prophet of Truth. The conflict between the Sangheili and Jiralhanae was beginning, leading the Covenant on the path to civil war: John was caught right in the middle.

John chased the surviving Hierarchs through High Charity, eventually catching up to the Prophets and their Brute escorts. However, only a dying Prophet of Mercy, who had been compromised by a Flood Infection Form, was left to tell him that Truth was heading to Earth. John faced another crucial dilemma: the Covenant had the Index and could activate Halo; however, Earth's stood little chance of withstanding Truth's reassembled fleet. Ultimately, John followed the latter priority, forced to leave Cortana behind so that if Halo were activated, she would detonate In Amber Clad's reactors, not wanting to risk detonating them remotely. John boarded the Forerunner Dreadnought, which was bounding for Earth, but not before promising to return for Cortana after he stopped Truth.

Return to Earth

John-117 and the Forerunner Dreadnought return to Earth; with John using a piece of the Dreadnought as a shield.

"Master Chief, you mind telling me what you're doing on that ship?"

— Lord Hood

"Sir, finishing this fight."

— John-117

After a series of firefights, captures and escapes, John exited the Dreadnought and crash-landed on Earth, where he was found by Sergeant Johnson, the Arbiter, and the rest of their squad. Johnson believed the Chief to be dead, and requested heavy lifting gear in order to recover the Spartan's body. However, John awoke to battle-ready condition only moments later, showing his incredible tolerance to pain and shock. He attempted to attack the Arbiter, believing that the Elites were still the enemy. Johnson informed him that the two races were now allies, as the disillusioned Arbiter and the Sangheili had defected from the Covenant.

John and the Marines traveled through the jungle, searching for evacuation to a nearby military base. Johnson and his team split up from John and the Arbiter; the sergeant and his squad were soon captured by loyalist Covenant Brutes, although they were rescued by John and 'Vadam. After taking heavy fire from Phantoms, a Pelican dropship evacuated the team to a UNSC base known as Crow's Nest.

The base soon came under attack, but not before Fleet Admiral Terrence Hood told John his plan. Lieutenant Commander Keyes decided to evacuate all forces, many of whom were injured. John, Thel and the remaining UNSC Marines defended the base during its evacuation, planting a massive bomb to destroy the base along with the invading Covenant forces. The Master Chief fought his way through many Brutes, escaping the explosion in an elevator. He met up with several Marine survivors underground, and they escaped the base and headed for the city of Voi along Tsavo Highway, crushing Covenant resistance on their way.

At the Battle of Voi, John pushed through many Loyalist forces as he made his way to what was believed to be the Ark. Rather, this turned out to be a device that opened up a portal to the Ark. With Marine support, John destroyed three Anti-Air Wraiths, a Scarab, and a Covenant Anti-Aircraft Battery, allowing Lord Hood's remaining frigates to fire upon Truth's Dreadnought, with little effect. Truth then activated and fled through the Portal with his remaining Loyalist forces, while the UNSC remained behind to determine their next move.

Just as the battle seemed finished, a Flood-infested Covenant warship crash-landed in Voi. John, 'Vadam, and the remaining Marines fought to contain the Flood infection, learning that the only way to contain the Flood was to destroy the warship. During the battle, Shipmaster Rtas 'Vadum came to aid the UNSC. He deployed a Special Operations Sangheili strike team through Orbital Insertion Pods, assisting John as he was sent to retrieve Cortana from the cruiser, as it was believed that she was on board. Aided by 343 Guilty Spark, John retrieved a damaged data device and was brought aboard 'Vadum's flagship, Shadow of Intent. This data turned out to be only a message, rather than Cortana herself. The Sangheili were able to stop the Flood infestation by glassing the city and its surroundings, much to Hood's displeasure.

The Sangheili and the UNSC watched Cortana's recording, which contained a warning that High Charity, now overwhelmed and controlled by the Gravemind, was heading for Earth. However, she offered hope, with information of a way to stop the Halos from firing and neutralize the Flood threat. Convinced of the reliability of Cortana's message, John resolved to journey to the Ark, while Hood mobilized remaining UNSC forces on Earth. John accompanied a joint UNSC-Sangheili task force through the portal aboard the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn to the Ark.

Installation 00

Main article: Battle of Installation 00

The Sangheili carried UNSC forces through the Slipspace portal which led to the Ark. The team was determined to stop Truth from activating the remaining six Halos. They descended in Pelicans while the Shipmaster's fleet fought hard against the Brute ships. They flew to the surface of the Ark to eliminate the Covenant Loyalists in the area, to secure a landing zone for Forward Unto Dawn, and to find the Ark's Cartographer. Traveling in Scorpions, Warthogs, and captured Prowlers, John and other Marines located the Cartographer and learned that Truth was in the Installation's Citadel. John then escaped from the Cartographer and proceeded to assault the fortress.

John-117, Thel 'Vadam, and a squad of Marines were assigned to separately attack three Barrier Towers, which were emitting a protective shield around the Citadel. Although John and 'Vadam managed to deactivate two towers, Sergeant Johnson was captured in the battle, being spared to serve as a Reclaimer. John, 'Vadam, and the Elites deactivated the last tower, lowering the shield. Just as the Shadow of Intent was about to destroy the Citadel, the Flood-controlled High Charity exited Slipspace, bringing the Flood into the battle and disabling the Shadow of Intent.

After defeating the last remnants of the Loyalist forces around the Citadel, including two Scarabs, John and 'Vadam entered the Citadel. Although Miranda Keyes had forced her way in, breaking through the central window with her Pelican, she was soon surrounded. As she hesitated before killing Johnson and herself, Truth shot and killed Keyes with a Spiker. Truth then forced Johnson to begin the activation sequence. In an unexpected turn of events, John and 'Vadam made a temporary alliance with the Flood to stop the activation of the Halos. The final Loyalist defenses were crushed by the Flood as John and the Arbiter reached Truth, who was already being infected by the Flood. Then 'Vadam executed him with his energy sword, while John deactivated the rings.

The Gravemind then betrayed John and 'Vadam, laughing as it had succeeded in preventing its own destruction. After fighting past waves of Flood, the two escaped. As they were leaving the Citadel, John saw a vision of Cortana that led him to the exit. There, he learned her plan: a replacement for Installation 04 had been built by the Ark, and was not yet connected with the rest of the Array. Since the Halo was so far from the inhabited galaxy, John decided to activate the ring and destroy the Gravemind, but first headed to the remains of High Charity.

"You know me. When I make a promise..."

— John-117

"You...keep it. I do know how to pick 'em."

— Cortana

On High Charity, John battled his way through hordes of Flood, being taunted with images of Cortana falling into rampancy and by threats from the Gravemind. He finally reached Cortana, who still had the Activation Index from the first Installation 04. John then destroyed the city by overloading its backup generators. On his way out, Cortana detected a friendly contact, which turned out to be Thel 'Vadam. High Charity exploded as the trio narrowly escaped on a Pelican.

Firing replacement Installation 04b

The Master Chief, caught unaware by 343 Guilty Spark's sudden attack on Sgt. Johnson.

The final task for John, 'Vadam, and Cortana was to destroy the Flood by activating the Installation 04b. The three landed on the Halo, finding that the Gravemind was trying to rebuild itself on the Installation. Flood Dispersal Pods released Combat Forms against John and the Arbiter, forcing them to fight their way up to the Control Room, where the ring could be activated. During the battle, Sergeant Johnson arrived to assist the Chief in battle.

After defeating all Flood forces around the Control Room, 343 Guilty Spark unlocked the door to the Control Room. Once inside, however, Guilty Spark realized that the team intended to fire the Halo before it could be completed, which would destroy the ring. After mortally wounding Sergeant Johnson, he then turned on John.

"You are the child of my makers. Inheritor of all they left behind. You are Forerunner. But this ring...is mine."

— 343 Guilty Spark, betraying the Master Chief

John stood his ground, even after being hit by several energy blasts, and fought against Guilty Spark. Although the Monitor seemed to be invulnerable, Johnson shot the Monitor, temporarily distracting him. He then handed John his Spartan Laser, and John destroyed Guilty Spark. Johnson's injury was fatal, and he requested that John "send [him] out with a bang," after handing over Cortana's data chip and imploring him, "Don't ever let her go."

Cortana then activated the second Installation 04, and the survivors fled to the Forward Unto Dawn onboard a Warthog, fighting the Flood and local Sentinels on the way. The team boarded the Dawn and escaped the firing and destruction of the replacement Installation 04. However, the Slipspace portal opened for them could not sustain itself under the stress, and its closure severed the ship in half, sending 'Vadam to Earth. John and Cortana were left drifting in space towards a planet.

Missing in action

"I remember how this war started. What your kind did to mine. I can't forgive you. But you have my thanks. For standing by him to the end. Hard to believe he's dead."

— Lord Hood to Thel 'Vadam at the UNSC Hillside Memorial

"Were it so easy..."

— Thel 'Vadam to Lord Hood

John and Cortana were presumed dead when they did not make it back to Earth. The forward half of the Forward Unto Dawn, bearing the Arbiter, crash-landed on Earth. Lord Hood commissioned a memorial near Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa in honor of UNSC servicemen lost during the war. As there were no pictures to remember him by, John's SPARTAN ID number, 117, was carved onto the memorial by an unknown party, and the UNSC Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy insignia patch was taped beside his ID number. Ironically, he and a few other Spartans are the only ones truly Missing In Action.

Stranded in Space

"Wake me...when you need me."

— John's last words to Cortana

John and Cortana managed to survive the explosion of Installation 04B in the remaining cargo portion of the Forward Unto Dawn, but it was nearly powerless and, without airlocks or a bridge, could not be properly navigated. Cortana, relieved that John had survived, explained this to the Chief, and that it could take years before anyone could discover their distress signal. In a similar conversation to one at the end of Halo 1, Cortana listed what John did and told him "it's finished," and this time, John agreed with her. John placed himself in a cryotube, at which point Cortana said, "I'll miss you." John replied with "Wake me...when you need me."

In 2556, while still stranded in space, Cortana attempted to talk to John while he was still asleep. Unable to get a response from him, she recounted the history of the galaxy, seemingly unaware that John could not hear her, and showing major signs that she was descending into rampancy.

Personality

"I guess some of your luck has rubbed off on me"

— Dr. Halsey

"We make our own luck, but I'll always be there when you need me."

— John-117

John's personality is explored much more deeply in the books than the games, so players can more easily project their own personalities onto the Master Chief.

As a defining character trait, John strives to win at any situation, at all costs. This seems to have been a part of his character even prior to his conscription to the Spartan program, as he used to win at any game he played, including chess, gravball or King of the Hill. He is extremely determined to complete the mission at hand, and often disregards his personal safety and relies on his abilities and alleged exceptional luck. Indeed, he has often emerged victorious from situations many would consider impossible. Still, he is not devoid of fear, but he simply acknowledges the feeling and puts it aside, never showing it. John is generally stoic and taciturn, but not devoid of a sense of humor. He often makes dry remarks about the situation in hand; however, this seems to be more frequent when interacting with Cortana than anyone else, such as the other Spartans.

One thing that was noted is that John tends to keep his word when he gives it to someone. As he was forced to leave Cortana behind on High Charity, John promised to come back for her after dealing with the Prophet of Truth, but Cortana told him not to make a promise like that when he knew he couldn't keep it. However, John did keep his promise, pointing out that he always did to Cortana saying "you know me: when I make a promise..." causing Cortana to respond "you keep it," which seemed to give her strength as she gathered herself quickly when before she was somewhat depressed and hopeless while talking to him.

John holds a personal respect for his trainer and mentor SCPO Mendez, as well as Dr. Halsey, who he considers a mother-like figure.

John appears to deny Halsey's claims about his extraordinary luck at several points in Halo Legends, "The Package".

John posseses a deep friendship with the AI Cortana who was assigned to him for his mission to capture the Covenant Prophets. Despite some inital hesitation towards working with an AI out of fear of conflicting directives, John and Cortana quickly formed a formidable team and John realized quickly that Cortana would be a great help instead of a liability. The two's relationship evolved from a partnership to a close friendship over the course of the Halo: Combat Evolved, probably due in part to all of the time the two spent with each other. During their adventures, John showed absolute trust in Cortana, believing in her when even Lord Hood was unsure of her reliablity, even willing to trust her enough to risk Earth on her word that she had a way to stop the Flood. The two also had similar personalities in some areas: they both had a perpensity to blow things up with John commenting at one point he wasn't sure which one of them was better at it and also tended to come up with crazy plans. After Cortana told John his plan to use a Covenant bomb to blow up a Covenant Carrier was crazy, he offered her to remain behind, but she simply responded with "unfortunatly for us both, I like crazy" and during the series, was shown to have some pretty crazy plans of her own.

John is known to show an exceptional care for soldiers under his command. An example of this is during the Battle of Installation 04. When searching for the survivors of the Pillar of Autumn's crash, Fitzgerald was wounded by an Unggoy Needler. John-117 retrieved a first aid kit and "expertly" treated the wound, before asking the Marine if he was okay, showing that he does have a degree of care and sympathy for soldiers under his command, even if he does do a good job of concealing his feelings. Another example is after Sergeant Avery Johnson is killed by the Monitor at the conclusion of Halo 3.

Age

John's age is affected by the same ambiguities as all beings who undergo extended voyages through space. By technical human Earth years, John is approximately 41 years old at the time he crash-landed on Installation 04, and 45 years old in 2556. However, during the 27 Earth years that he has spent fighting the Covenant, considerable time was spent in Slipspace. The aging process is slowed in slipspace by deep sleep in cryo-chambers; in which cellular aging can be halted almost completely. Also, one could expect that individuals participating in slipspace travel might be subject to the timedilation associated with travel at relativistic speeds, so there could be more discrepancy involved there as well.

Appearance

John-117's face has never been seen in the games, and therefore his appearance is left mostly to one's imagination. The novels Halo: The Fall of Reach and Halo: The Flood give some insight to John's appearance. Early in Halo: The Fall of Reach, when Dr. Catherine Halsey and Lieutenant Jacob Keyes go to Eridanus II to observe John as a child, he is described as "a typical six-year-old male, with tousled brown hair and a sly smile that revealed a gap between his front teeth". In Halo: The Flood, referring to John in 2552, he is described as having "Short hair, with serious eyes, a firm mouth, and a strong jaw." He is described as being unnaturally pale, a consequence of spending most of his time in his armor.

In the ending cutscene of Halo: Combat Evolved, John takes off his helmet, and the camera pans upward, leaving the head obscured by the ship window frame as he sets the helmet to his side. Some people have used Halo: Custom Edition development mode to move the camera. However, Bungie's 3D artists did not produce a separate character model for this occasion, just a separate helmet model; if the animation is viewed from inside the ship, it appears as if John takes off his helmet, revealing an identical helmet underneath. Players have also found an Easter Egg in the Halo 3 Beta. Using a Mongoose, players can reveal what looks like a face in a Spartan's helmet. However, Bungie has confirmed that this is Marcus R. Lehto's face, not John's.

For the first time, John's face was shown without a helmet in Halo: Helljumper Issue 1. The comic illustrated the fight between John and four ODSTs. As expected, his face is seen from the side and is covered up in shadow, hiding any specific facial features.

John's face can be seen clearly on the front cover of Halo: The Fall of Reach - Boot Camp Issue One as a six year old child.

Part of John's face could be seen in the Halo 3 dashboard pack on one of the tabs, where his visor colour was transparent. He was shown to have a scar on his right eye.

In Bungie's Happy Halodays 2010 holiday card, the back of John-117's head can be seen since he is not wearing his helmet.

Trivia

• John-117 is voiced by Steve Downes in the Halo trilogy and in Halo: Reach's Firefight mode.
• Fans have many theories as to the significance of his number, 117. Inside the Halo Universe the number was randomly assigned, but Bungie's choice has been theorized upon in many ways. For more, see List of Biblical References in Halo. It was possibly chosen for its mathematical connections to 7, Bungie's favorite number, since $1\times 1\times 7=7$ and $7^{6}=117649$. John 1 Chapter 1, Verse 7, is a passage referring God who relinquished all evil from the world so people could believe, hence 'Believe' being part of the advertising campaign for Halo 3. Additionally, the song Remembrance is 1:17 in length, as well as Prepare to Drop. It is interesting to note that in the year 117, a man named "John I" became the 7th Bishop of Jerusalem. This covers both his name, John-117, and Bungie's apparent love for the number 7. It could also be probable that John-117 is named partially in honor of "John Spartan," protagonist of the movie Demolition Man, who was kept in cryogenic storage as "Prisoner 117" for forty years. It could just also be a play on James Bond's number, 007. Or even a reference to the 1998 alien invasion TV series First Wave, whose main character was referred to as "Subject 117".Or possibly because 77 secounds in minutes is 1:17 minutes. As well, his number equals seven as 1x1=1, and 1x7=7.
• In both Halo: Uprising and Halo 3, John is referred to as Sierra-117. This is a military-appropriate identifier using the Phonetic Alphabet.
• Bungie's refusal to show John's face has been parodied many times in popular culture.
• A wax sculpture of the Master Chief can be visited at Madame Tussaud's, L.A. and in Amsterdam. He was the first video game character to become a Madame Tussaud's wax sculpture.
• Fable II makes a reference to the Master Chief with a character of legend named "Hal", also called the Minstrel Chief. The armor featured (clearly inspired by Halo's MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor) is known as "Hal's Armor". The Energy Sword also makes an appearance as one of the first weapons you can attain with the Collector's Edition of Fable II. The Assault Rifle can be acquired on the Knothole Island DLC as "Hal's Rifle", and has the largest magazine of any ranged weapon in the entire game, although its damage is low to average. In addition, with the Special Edition, the player can obtain the title "Master Chief" for their hero for free from any title vendor.
• At Comic-Con 2010, Frank O'Connor hinted that future media featuring the Master Chief after the events of Halo 3 may be produced.
• In the Halo: Reach level "The Pillar of Autumn" it is possible to see a quick glance of John during the end cutscene. Holding the right thumbstick to the right during the hanger scene will reveal the Spartan in a cryo-chamber.
• When previewing John's voice in Halo Reach Firefight, he will reply with references to the Halo Trilogy.
• "John" is one of the name options for customized Loadouts in Halo: Reach, along with the members of Noble Team and several SPARTAN-II's.
• In an episode of American Dad, when Steve is in the hospital after an accident, the person in the other room's bed name is John and the room number is 117, probably a reference to John-117.
• One possible reference to 117 is the enlistment year of The Rookie, 2547. 4+7=11 and 2+5=7, making a 117.
• Intended or not, John 1:17 is a verse in the Bible that states "For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ." Revelation 1:17 (from John) reads: When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, "Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last,"
• Reviewers, such as Kotaku, have pointed to John's silent and faceless nature as a weakness to the character, while other publications said this attribute allows players to better assume his role.
• Gaming magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly named the Master Chief as the eighth greatest video game character ever.
• John-117's rank is seven words long, another possible and likely reference to 7 by Bungie.
• Coincidentally, the 2007 film 300 (which is a movie depicting the battle between the Persians and 300 Spartans) has a run time of 117 minutes.
• Also in the movie "Demolition Man", Sylvester Stallone's character is named John Spartan.
• John-117 is the only known Spartan with the rank of Master Chief Petty Officer.
• If a player would (somewhat) recreate John-117's concept art in Halo: Reach, they would need Mark V helmet, UA/Base Security left shoulder, UA/Base Security right shoulder, HP/Parafoil chest piece, Grenadier knee guards, and Default or Gold visor.

Gallery

• John Mark IV.jpg

  John-117 in his Mark IV armor during the Raid on the Third Fleet of Glorious Consequence.

• 's Rescue.jpg

  John-117 after freeing Keyes on the Truth and Reconcillation in Halo: Combat Evolved.

• 01mc.jpg

  John-117 with a shotgun in Halo 2.

• Chief & Arbiter looking good.gif

  John-117 and Thel 'Vadam in Halo 3.

• 

  John-117 in the jungles near Mount Kilimanjaro.

• Chief and Arbiter Escape Halo.jpg

  John-117 and Thel 'Vadam jump into Forward Unto Dawn to escape from Halo's firing.

• John's Profile.jpg

  John-117's Firefight profile in Halo: Reach. Notice that the appearance is the same from Halo 3.

• Master Chief.jpg

  Master Chief in Halo 3

• Master chief christmas card.jpg

  John-117 as seen in Bungie's 2010 Christmas card

• Mjolnir Mark V.jpg

  The Master Chief as he appears in Halo: Combat Evolved.

• Halo3 77650240 Full.jpg
• Cortana and the master chief by Aelita2000.jpg
• 300px-Wounded spartan.gif
• 498x278 halo2 7.jpg
• H3 starrynight 1280.jpg
• Halo-3-20070622024221693.jpg
• HLOGC01XL.jpg
• Ih manual 16b.jpg
• MC Jungle.jpg

  Master Chief fighting in the jungle.

• 800px-Chiefarbiter.jpg

  The Chief and the Arbiter back to back

• Portal Visor.jpg

  The portal reflected in the Chief's visor

• 1771875-web preview.png

  The Chief's appearance in Homecoming

• 640px-117 BIONano Card.jpg

  John-117's biochemical analysis card, created on 04/11/2517.

• MCHR.jpg

  Master Chief as seen in Halo: Reach

List of appearances

Halo: Combat Evolved

Sources

Template:Spartan |name = Jiralhanae (Servus ferox) |image = |homeworld = Doisac |height = 9'2" (280cm) |weight = 510 kilograms (1,100 lb) |haircolor=Light gray, white, brown, or medium brown fur. |skincolor=Gray |weapons = Brute Plasma Rifle (Halo 2 and Halo 3: ODST only)

• Needler (Halo 3: ODST only)
• Brute Shot
• Carbine
• Shotgun (Halo 2 only)
• Spiker
• Incendiary Grenade
• Spike Grenade
• Plasma Grenade
• Plasma Rifle
• Plasma Cannon
• Gravity Hammer
• Mauler
• Shade
• Energy Sword (as seen in the Et Tu Brute Halo 3 trailer)

|vehicles =

• Spectre
• Wraith
• Ghost
• Banshee
• Phantom
• Prowler
• Chopper

|types =

• Chieftain of the Jiralhanae
• War Chieftain
• Chieftain
• Honor Guardsman
• Captain Ultra
• Captain Major
• Captain
• Bodyguard
• Stalker
• Jump Pack Trooper
• Ultra
• Major
• Minor

|affiliation = Covenant, later Covenant Loyalists |notable = *Bracktanus

• Ceretus
• Gargantum
• Lepidus
• Maccabeus
• Parabum
• Tartarus
• Unnamed Army Commander

|othernames = Hair Ball, Fur Ball, Ape, Crazy Gorillas, Sasquatch, Baby Kongs (as well as BK and its phonetic version, Bravo Kilo), Gorilla, Brute, Bo-Bo, Mongrels, Big Scary Guy (by Marines), Dumb Apes, Monkey, Bigfoot, Yeti |hideb = true }}

"With my blessing, the Brutes now lead our fleets! They ask for your allegiance, and you shall give it!"

— Prophet of Truth

The Jiralhanae (Latin, Servus ferox, translated to "wild slave"), known by humans as Brutes, are the newest members of the Covenant. They are a large species of bipedal, ape-like pseudo-ursines from Doisac.

The Jiralhanae were the second Covenant species encountered by the humans following the Kig-yar raid on the freighter This End Up. They were also the first Covenant species encountered by the Harvest Colonial Militia. The Brutes have a profound hatred of the Sangheili, unmatched by any other feud within the Covenant, fired by the Jiralhanae's natural aggressive nature and the Sangheili's attitudes of superiority.

Description

A Pack of Brutes, consisting of many ranks.

Jiralhanae are mammalian in appearance, and have been compared to Earth's bears and rhinoceros. They have thick, gray skin, and are covered with matted, black, tan, or brown fur-like hair. The majority of Jiralhanae shave their fur, with higher-ranking individuals sporting beards or mohawks. Their large, stocky appearance is most likely due to the gravity on their planet, which is about twice the gravity of that on Earth. As they age, the hair will change to a grayish-silver color.

Jiralhanae are immensely strong, hence the nickname "Brute," and are capable of crushing blows in hand-to-hand combat (and have a tendency to win in fist-fights with the Sangheili, although they are also susceptible to the "overhead swing" manouevre). Their teeth are very sharp, and are frequently used as natural weapons. In battle, they are prone to fits of berserk rage, in which they will rush at and pummel any targets within reach with terrifying aggression.

Jiralhanae can speak most languages, including English and Sangheili. They speak in deep, gravelly voices when speaking human languages and speak their native language as a series of grunts, hisses, roars and deep communal howls during ceremonies and for communication.

In many military records, Brutes are referred to as 'Bravo Kilos', since UNSC Marines have nicknamed Brutes "Baby Kongs" or "Gorillas", a reference to King Kong.

The Jiralhanae have been part of the Covenant since before the destruction of the UNSC agricultural colony on Harvest, and were always feared by the Sangheili for their monomaniacal behavior. The Jiralhanaes' plans to seize power over the Sangheili began with their alliance with the High Prophet of Truth during the First Battle of Harvest and continued to gain headway until the eventual splitting of the Covenant. They eventually took the role of the Prophets' Honor Guards from the Sangheili after the Sangheili failed to prevent the assassination of the High Prophet of Regret by SPARTAN John-117 This culminated with the Jiralhanae replacing the Sangheili as the leaders of the Covenant military.

They are rated a Native Tier 4/Adopted Tier 2 species by the Forerunner Technological Achievement Tier scale.

History

The Ark and Reseeding

The Jiralhanae were one of many sentient species indexed by the Librarian for preservation aboard Installation 00. After the Halo Array was fired, the Jiralhanae were returned to Doisac to begin re-building their culture.

Ancient Jiralhanae on Doisac.

A Jiralhanae Chieftain performing a sermon in front of his pack.

The Covenant

Despite their savagery, Brutes have proved intelligent enough to achieve spaceflight and space-faring status, though their warlike nature meant they quickly collapsed into civil war, and quickly afterward, fell back to their former pre-space status and learned nothing from the experience. The Brutes had recently concluded a mechanized war of attrition in which the many Master Packs fought and pummeled each other back to a pre-industrial state. When the Covenant discovered them in 2492, they had just rediscovered radio and rocketry. In their primitive state they were quickly defeated and absorbed into the Covenant.

Their warrior culture makes them formidable opponents, even for SPARTANs, and they were incorporated into the Covenant to serve as fierce guards for the Prophets and as heavy infantry.

Brutes are obviously carnivores, given their fearsome fanged jaws and propensity for violence. It has been stated that they feed on the flesh of their enemies, such as the Humans they face in battle, and have been seen eating the meat of a Thorn Beast, apparently considered a delicacy among Brutes. A Brute once stated he would have gladly devoured the future Arbiter, had he been allowed.

Post-Covenant

Though the Jiralhanae retained their pack and tribal culture, their constant internal feuds began to take a back seat as enmity with the Sangheili built up, caused by the similarity in roles between the two species. Though the Jiralhanae retained the majority of their pre-Covenant technology, they also began to incorporate aspects of Covenant technology into their own designs, such as mounting plasma cannons onto their Prowlers, vehicles with a strong Jiralhanae aesthetic but with some Covenant technology. The Jiralhanae have little need to learn the languages of other species, instead relying on translation devices. Their exact fate, after the disastrous defeat at the Ark, is unknown, though it is extremely unlikely that they would surrender or retreat, or that the Sangheili would allow them to. A Sangheili Shipmaster visiting Kholo noted that at least some Jiralhanae factions had formed separate from the Covenant, waging an internecine war against each other and when the remaining San 'Shyuum retreated into hiding, they returned to their primitive savage nature, allowing the Sangheili to gain the upper hand in battle.

Description

Technology

Even at a glance, it is obvious that the Brutes are one of the most primitive members of the Covenant, at least technologically. Even though they employ Power Armor, and use a selection of the Covenant's weapons such as the plasma rifle, their native technology is crude; they often use weapons propelling spike-like or explosive projectiles. These weapons are often fitted with effective metal blades for melee combat.

Anatomy and physiology

Two Brute Captains standing guard in Halo 2.

A Brute stripped of most of his Power Armor. Note that Brutes in Halo 3 have shaved faces and a carefully groomed beard.

Brutes are physically imposing enemies to face in combat. Standing at approximately 9 feet tall, they not only tower over their human opponents, but the majority of their Covenant allies, with only Mgalekgolo standing taller. They have thick, gray skin that is extremely resilient to damage.

In their first appearance, they are covered in thick, shaggy fur that offers further protection. It covers most of the body except for the head and the shoulder blades. However, the Brutes in Halo 2 are shaggier than those of Halo 3. In Halo 3, the Brutes have what looks like scales on their arms, but it may have been extensions to their armor, or simply their thick skin, as seen from McFarlane action figures. Brutes exhibit two colorations: brown and gray. This is perhaps an indication of age, since lower ranking Brutes are brown and most Honor Guards, and Tartarus himself, are grey. In Halo 3, they are seen with shaven faces, which increase the fearful effect they have on opponents.

In Halo 3 Brutes have mixed red-and-blue blood (on first glance they look completely red, but on closer inspection one would see blue spots in pools of Brute blood). At a casual glance, it appears purple. In Halo 2, however, it appeared black. In Halo: Reach, Brutes have red blood, similar to humans. Brutes resemble a cross between an ape and a rhinoceros, being taller and more muscular in the torso and limbs than a human.

Heavily muscled and possessing an animalistic brutality and strength, Brutes can rely on close combat to defeat their enemies, even more so than their Elite counterparts. However, their great strength may in fact be simply relative, due to the species' evolution on a world with twice the gravity of Delta Halo, Earth, and other planets and structures with one G. Featuring characteristics simian, ursine, and alien, their appearance fits their human given name.

Brutes have digits on each hand including opposable thumbs. As such they can make use of a variety of weapons both of Covenant and human design. Their feet have only two digits. The Halo 3 Tartarus figure has a red tongue but if this is canon is unknown. When it comes to ranged conflict Brutes show a tendency to use large, rapid firing, often powerful weapons. This may be indicative of their mentality and an extension of their brutal nature. The many spikes and serrated edges that adorn their race's weapons, vehicles and armor further exhibit this. It is interesting to note that in Halo 2 Jiralhanae can be seen using human shotguns. Brutes sometimes wield their own handgun-style shotguns, Maulers, in Halo 3.

Brutes are not as mentally slow as they may appear, and are often fairly cunning tacticians. As such they can pilot vehicles & ships and command both land based & fleet encounters with strategic competence, albeit lacking in artistic flair. They also have a higher vocabulary than other members of the Covenant apart from Elites and Prophets. Not to mention, unlike their Elite counterparts the Brutes are not disadvantaged by having to live by a code of honour. This enables them to tactically think out-side the box, though whether the Brutes are very good at that is debatable.

Brutes are known to descend into a highly aggressive berserk killing-rage when all their pack mates have been killed. Their incredible physical strength coupled with a dogged self determination to kill their target makes a berserk Brute a force to be reckoned with, powerful enough even to kill Hunters (if they slam into the Hunter enough). Also, when berserking, they will not hesitate to attack an enemy, even if the target is in a vehicle, such as a Ghost. If the target is in a Spectre or Wraith, they will board it and attempt to kill (in a Wraith) or force the enemy out (such as in a Warthog or Spectre). Interestingly, they will neither attack nor hijack a low flying vehicle (such as a Banshee).

There is a substantial difference between the Brutes of Halo 2 and Halo 3. The Brutes of Halo 2 had very little armor, were unclothed and unshaven. The Brutes of Halo 3 were largely shaven, clothed in tight-fitting garments that reflected their rank and were adorned with Power Armor. This probably had something to do with the Brutes' new-found rank after the Elites' split from the Covenant.

The aesthetic and graphic differences between the two games also had a strong dichotomy between them, for the Brutes in Halo 2 were less detailed and less anthropoid than they were in Halo 3. This is a result of the technology available at the time the two games were made.

Given the absence of power armor at the time of Halo 2, it is possible that the Brutes that were seen were members of Tartarus's pack and/or a subset of the Jiralhanae that shunned the use of extensive protection and emphasized relying on their own strength, skill, courage, and ferocity to protect them, or that all the Brutes you encountered in Halo 2 are from Maccabeus/Tartarus' clan and were banned from wearing armor due to their failure at Harvest. It is also possible that the Brutes of Halo 2 were second in rank to the Elites and the Prophets. Following The Great Schism, the Brutes became the Prophets' main protection, and it became a necessity to outfit them with more advanced equipment.

In Halo: Reach, Brutes are given a drastic physical makeover. The most notable difference is their facial structure. Their bear-esque snout is replaced with a highly ape-like face with a much more pronounced underbite. Their beadier eyes are set deeper into their heads and are accented by much stronger and more menacing eye ridges. Their teeth are smaller and are contained within their human-like lips instead of jutting out. They are completely shaven (with the exception of Chieftans' beards) and have a silvery hide, instead of a dull, tan hide. Their tattoos are much more prominant and seem to cover their entire body.

In Halo: Contact Harvest, it is stated that before Jiralhanae reach full maturity, they naturally release pheromones. Other Jiralhanae can smell these pheromones and tell how others are feeling by the scent. When they do reach maturity, they learn to control the releases of their pheromones and most likely stop them all together.

Culture

Overview

Brutes are extremely zealous creatures, known for their willingness to cling to ancient, bloody traditions and are deep believers in the promise of the Great Journey and in the Forerunners. Their home world is war torn, and Brutes are known for their particular joy in vicious activity, complimented by regimented discipline.

As part of the Covenant, Brutes were required as a prerequisite to convert to the Prophets' religion of worshiping the Forerunners. Previously, their culture revolved around the worship of totems and idols, but they made swift converts. The Brutes are now the most fanatical adherents to the Prophet's faith, although they seem to hold little concept of sanctity, evidenced by Tartarus' handling of the "Oracle".

They prefer using weapons from their homeworld, rather than the Covenant standard-issue plasma-based firearms. Brute weapons are notable for being extremely dangerous, somewhat primitive and brutal, and always featuring a blade attachment such as the Spiker, Mauler, Brute Shot, and the Gravity Hammer. These weapons show their barbaric nature, for example, the fact that all of the weapons are named after ways of injury or causing bodily harm to another being. Although they do have their own type of Plasma Rifle, it is only found in Halo 2 and Halo 3: ODST (the rifle is red, but fires twice as fast as its blue counterpart, also causing it to overheat twice as fast). This type of Plasma Rifle was removed in Halo 3, being replaced by the Spiker.

In general, Brutes have a pronounced dislike of the Sangheili, due to the fact that they believe that they are better protectors of the Prophets than the Elites. The Prophet of Truth took advantage of this to ignite the Great Schism during the events of Halo 2.

File:Brute Army Commander.jpg

A Brute Army Commander yelling at his opponent.

Society

Brutes have a fierce pack culture and lineage, a close knit affair that ties each member to another, and forces them into varying states of rage known as "berserking", and desperate mourning for their fallen pack mates should one die in the midst of battle. What a pack member kills may be the food of the pack. There is certainly a patriarchal scheme that is followed loosely, depending on the social, martial, and sexual success of the patriarch. Patricide is an unfortunate side effect of patriarchy. No females have been observed in military roles.

Each pack is led by a prominent Brute Chieftain that wields a ceremonial Gravity Hammer, passed from one leader to another upon his death, to denote his status. A Brute becomes a pack Chieftain by challenging the current Chieftain to a Mortal duel; the victor claims the title after executing the other. The chieftain rules his pack like his own little empire. Their warrior culture is extremely patriarchal, with rank measured by success on and off the battlefield, unlike the Sangheili.

It is unlikely, given their combative and aggressive nature, that the Jiralhanae have a single cohesive government. Instead, Jiralhanae society can be viewed as an extension to the simply pack structure, but with a number of different levels:

• Alpha Tribes - seem to be the political body of the Jiralhanae, and are comprised of smaller Master Packs. Lead by Alpha Jiralhanae.
• Master Packs - more military oriented groups, Master-Packs are comprised of many smaller packs. Prior to contact with the Covenant, rival Master Packs reduced Jiralhanae society to a preindustrial level through warfare.
• Packs - range in size and importance, with less important packs made up largely of Unggoy or Kig-Yar forces and led by a low-ranked Jiralhanae, and more important packs led by War Chieftains and comprised of more experienced veteran Jiralhanae bodyguards.

Jiralhanae exhibit a variety of facial-hair configurations to denote their status, as well as possibly what pack they belong to. Minors are clean-shaven, Captains typically sport small beards or goatees, and Chieftains frequently exhibit large "mohawks" and long braided beards. However, some Jiralhanae packs do away with shaving altogether and sport long fur over most of their body, as seen during the events of Halo 2.

Some Jiralhanae packs also adorn themselves with tattoo-like symbols over their entire bodies.

Role within the Covenant

Whereas the Sangheili command the Covenant's military and serve as the personal protectors of the San'Shyuum, the Jiralhanae primarily serve as the Covenant's shock troops and secret police. They are typically deployed in packs led by one or more Chieftains or Captains.

The Jiralhanae fill a similar role in combat to the Sangheili, as they are both typically command groups of lesser Covenant infantry. However, Jiralhanae are generally not equipped with energy shields (except for Captains and Chieftains, and all Jiralhanae post-Great Schism) and wield a slightly different arsenal of weaponry.

Jiralhanae troops often seem to be sent in after Elites have failed their task. Examples of this are the assault on the Forerunner Artifact beneath SWORD Base, in which Brutes were sent in after waves upon waves of failed Elite troops. This may allude to the Prophets attitude of Brute favoritism, something that would eventually lead to the replacement of Elites by Jiralhanae in Halo 2 after the Prophet of Regret is killed by the Master Chief.

It is also important to note that the covenant fleets are mostly segregated, with Elite fleets and Brute fleets not intermixing. This is probably done to prevent authority issues within the ranks. These fleets did battle during Great Schism, around the infested High Charity and Delta Halo. During the events of Halo 3, the Jiralhanae had completely replaced the Elites, who had left the Covenant and formed the Separatists.

Naming

Most known Jiralhanae have Latin-sounding names, such as Tartarus and Bracktanus. In Contact Harvest, it is revealed that the "-us" at the end of their name is an honor denoting maturity or experience in battle (similar to the "-ee" suffix on Elite's names.) However, it is possible that different naming conventions are used among different tribes, as evidenced by the names of Gargantum and Parabum.

Homeworld

Main article: Doisac

Doisac is the name of the Jiralhanae home world. It possesses three satellites: Warial, Solrapt, and Teash, and is the fourth planet of the Oth Sonin system. The gravity on the planet is approximately 2.1G while the atmosphere is 1.3 ATM. Surface temperature is between -15'C to 52'C. The estimated population of the planet is approximately 12.5 billion. Its habitat is described as being dominated by magma and magnetism.

Rank Structure

The Brute species is arranged in a pack society, based on a hierarchy determined by viciousness and number of war kills. A “pack master” leads brute packs. A chieftain will frequently be addressed as such while issuing orders during combat. In Halo 2, the ranks were mostly determined by red flags on their backs, the amount of armor they wore and the color of their fur (sometimes even their weapons). Like the Elites, ranks in Halo 3 are differentiated by armor color. Furthermore, the higher the rank, the more advanced and resilient the armor becomes.

Rank	Image	Description
Brute Heroes
War Chieftain	File:H3 Brute Chieftain Armor.gif	These Brute Chieftains rely upon powerful weapons like Portable Plasma Cannons and Fuel Rod Guns to crush their foes, while often throwing or possessing Power Drains and Flares. Their armor cannot be stuck by Plasma Grenades/Spike Grenades or Needler needles. However, they can be stuck by Incendiary Grenades or their weapon can by any sticking grenade for an immediate kill. Identification: Dark Golden Armor.
Chieftain	File:H3 Brute Chieftain Weapon.gif	These Brute Chieftains are clad in crimson/black armor and wield close-ranged Melee weapons such as Gravity Hammers. They use Invincibility, a Power Drainer, or a Flare and their Power Armor cannot be stuck by Plasma/Spike grenades or Needler needles. However, they can be stuck by Incendiary Grenades. Also, their weapon can be stuck by any sticking grenade. Often on easy or normal difficulty these brutes aren't as acurate with there gravity hammers and often sloppy. When the difficulty is on heroic or legendary they are alot more acurate and can easily crush their opponents. Identification: Black and Red Armor.
Brute Leaders
Brute Captain Ultra	File:H3 Brute Captain Ultra.gif	The Brute Captain Ultras are the highest captain rank and use heavier weapons, such as Brute Shots and Fuel Rod Guns. Identification: Cyan/Cobalt Armor.
Brute Captain Major	File:H3 Brute Captain Major.gif	The Brute Captain Majors are even more experienced than their younger comrades and lead larger packs into battle. Also usually wield Brute Shots and Fuel Rods Identification: Golden Armor.
Brute Captain	File:H3 Brute Captain Minor.gif	The Brute Captains are experienced Brutes who now lead their comrades and the lesser races into battle. Identification: Purple-Red Armor.
Brute Specialists
Brute Honor Guard	File:Guardsmen2.png	Brute Honor Guards were chosen by the Prophets to replace the Honor Guard Elites as their protectors after murder of the High Prophet of Regret. They are exclusive of Halo 2 and are some of the best warriors the Brutes have. Identification: Orange, Yellow and Red Ceremonial Armor; Red Flag.
Brute Bodyguard	File:H3 Bodyguard.gif	Brute Bodyguards are some of the Chieftain's most reliable warriors and not only protect their chieftain but enforce his tribal law. They seem to be the Halo 3 Brute counterparts of the Honor Guard Elite Unit. Identification: Grayish-Blue/Steel Blue armor.
Jump Pack Brute Captain	File:Bruteultra.gif	These veteran Brutes utilize jump packs to launch aerial attacks from afar, and use their enhanced mobility for guerrilla battle tactics. They seem to be the Brute counterparts of the Ranger Elite Unit. Identification: Jump pack, Gold armor.
Jump Pack Brute Major	File:Brutemajor.gif	These veteran Brutes utilize jump packs to launch aerial attacks from afar, and use their enhanced mobility for guerrilla battle tactics. They seem to be the Brute counterparts of the Ranger Elite Unit. Identification: Jump pack, Red armor.
Jump Pack Brute Minor	File:H3 Brute Jumppack.gif	These veteran Brutes utilize jump packs to launch aerial attacks from afar, and use their enhanced mobility for guerrilla battle tactics. They seem to be the Brute counterparts of the Ranger Elite Unit. Identification: Jump pack, Blue armor.
Brute Stalker	File:H3 Brute Stalker.gif	Brute Stalkers are the secret police of the Brutes and specialize in stealth techniques with their Active Camouflage generators. They seem to be the Brute counterparts of the Stealth Elite unit. Identification: Grayish Black armor, Flame Grenades, Radar Jammers, Maulers.
Brute Infantry
Brute Ultra	File:H3 Brute Ultra.gif	Brute Ultras are now armed with violet Armor, they are comprised of the best of the regular infantrymen, showing tact, cunning skill and strength. Identification: Purple-Blue/Indigo armor.
Brute Major	File:H3 Brute Major.gif	Brute Majors are clad in dark blue Armor and are promoted in a similar fashion to the Elites. They are promoted on the casualties they inflict. Identification: Blue armor.
Brute Minor	File:H3 Brute Minor.gif	Brute Minors are the lowest rank of the Brute race, clad in turquoise Armor and typically armed with the Type-25 Carbine. Not only do they compete for their posting but also for their equipment. Identification: Teal-Green armor, unarmored in Halo 2.

Also in Halo 2, Brute Minors are seen with little to no armor, the only armor being a helmet-like head plate which, ironically, gives no protection from headshots from even the weaker weapons such as the Plasma Pistol and Magnum. It is known they do not switch weapons at any time.

Other Ranks

Chieftain of the Jiralhanae - The Leader of the entire Jiralhanae race. Both Maccabeus and Tartarus were of this rank. Since Tartarus was killed in the Battle of Installation 05, the current Chieftain is unknown, if there is one at all.

Brute Ship Master/Alpha Jiralhanae - Commanders of ships. They may be equivalent to Captains or Chieftains of the Jiralhanae.

Jiralhanae Army Commander - Only in Halo Wars, probably same rank or near same rank as Chieftain of the Jiralhanae. May be a specific rank created for war and conflict, such as the Human-Covenant War.

Gameplay

Main article: Jiralhanae/Gameplay

Unlike Elites, who are masterfully skilled tacticians, the Brute combat mentality relies on overwhelming force, sheer strength, and incredibly strong firepower, hence the name "Brute". They are easily enraged, and when provoked, will drop their weapon and charge their opponent.

Trivia

• During concept stages for Halo 3, the Brutes were planned to use deployable metal shields, rather than the energy shields used by Elites. This idea was eventually cut from the final game, although it would inspire the Brutes ducking animation.
• Before Halo 3 was released, Brutes had lime green blood instead of the dark red blood they have in the final game.
• In Halo 3: ODST the power armor of the Brutes completely lights up, similarly to Elite and SPARTAN energy shields, instead of small sparks marking where gunfire hits their armor like in Halo 3.
• According to the original printing of Halo: First Strike, the Jiralhanae were first encountered by SPARTAN-II personnel aboard the Unyielding Hierophant in 2552. Since the release of the novel, numerous sources have clearly demonstrated that the Jiralhane were encountered throughout the war. The 2010 re-release of Halo: First Strike removes such references to the Brutes being an as yet un-encountered species.
• The word "Jiralhanae" is a Korean word that roughly means "stupid, aggressive lunatic", which describes the Brutes' aggressive personality to a tee.
• In the ViDoc, Et Tu Brute, Chris Butcher describes the Brutes in Halo 2 as "damage sponges", referring to how they weren't very interesting to fight against, acting mainly like less agile Elites who dropped their guns and ran straight toward the player when they got angry. The ViDoc shows Brutes wielding energy swords; however they are never seen doing so in-game. Et Tu Brute also shows a Brute Minor with a Brute Shot using the corpse of another Brute as cover from which to fire from, and another tearing the arms off a captured Marine. Additionally, a Brute Chieftain wielding a plasma cannon wields the version from Halo 2. This is because Bungie was using it as a placeholder until they developed the Halo 3 model.
• In the Et Tu Brute ViDoc, it is revelaed that the Brutes' original concept was inspired by the barbarians that plagued ancient Rome and eventually became assimilated into it. Marcus Brutus betrayed and killed Julius Caesar and was later hunted down by Rome. This is similar to how the Brutes betrayed the Elites and were eventually defeated. The "-us" suffix on the end of Brute names is a Latin noun ending which designates something as masculine.
• In Halo 2, Jiralhanae blood is a dark shade of blue, while it is red with blue splotches in Halo 3, and is red in Halo: Reach.
• John DiMaggio provided the voice of the Jiralhanae chieftains in Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST.
• In the level Anders' Signal in Halo Wars, Serina identifies the Jiralhanae using the actual name of the species, as well as calling them Brutes. This is the first time a Covenant species' actual name is spoken in scripted dialogue.
• Despite having been absorbed into the Covenant in 2492, Halo: Ghosts of Onyx describes the feud between the Jiralhanae and the Sangheili as "ancient".
• Although the Brutes speak English in Halo 2, Halo 3, and Halo 3: ODST, they are unable to do so in Halo: Reach. This was a deliberate design choice intended to reinforce the alien nature of the Covenant, and emphasize their role as the biggest threat to Humanity before the discovery of the Flood.
• It may be noted, one advantage the Brutes have over their Elite counterparts is that Brutes are not disadvantaged by having to live by a code of honour. This lack of a code of honour enables them to tactically think out-side the box, though whether the Brutes are very good at that is debatable.

Glitches

Main article: Glitches

• In Halo 2, if a berserk Brute charges into a group of fixed objects it will continue its charging animation, but it will remain where it is.
• In Halo 3, if any Brute becomes infected by the Flood it will turn into a Flood-infected Brute Minor due to graphical restraints, due to the time constraints. However, if the player triggers a loading point that removes the Flood from the level while a infection form has begun the infection process, the Flood Infection Form will be deleted, the infection process will be stopped yet the transformation will simultaneously complete. This will result in infected Brutes who are allied with the Flood while retaining berserking, appearance, and hijacking abilities. The only noticeable Flood features are signs of Flood infection growing on their back.
• In Halo 3, if a Brute Chieftain with a plasma cannon goes berserk, the weapon disappears. When a Brute chieftain is killed, the plasma cannon reappears by its body. This is because the weapon has no "putting away" animation. However, this was fixed in Halo 3: ODST - if a chieftain goes berserk, the plasma cannon will hang across his back just like a normal two-handed weapon.

List of appearances

• Halo 2
• Halo 3
• Halo Wars
• Halo 3: ODST
• Halo: Reach
• Halo: Contact Harvest
• Halo: The Flood
• Halo: First Strike
• Halo: Encyclopedia
• Halo Wars: Genesis
• Halo: The Cole Protocol
• Halo: Evolutions
• Halo: Ghosts of Onyx

Gallery

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  A few examples of Brute weaponry.

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  An early Jiralhanae model during the production of Halo 3.

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  A Jiralhanae Chieftain wielding an energy sword. Doesn't occur in the final version of Halo 3.

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  Various Jiralhanae ranks as seen in the "Starry Night" trailer.

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  Two Jiralhanae in a non-combat situation.

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  A Jiralhanae as seen in the Bestiarum.

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  A pack of Jiralhanae patrolling the main streets of African mega-city New Mombasa.

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  A Jiralhanae Army Commander, circa 2531.

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  A pack of Brutes in the New Alexandria.

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  A side by side comparison of the Brutes from Halo 3 and Halo: Reach.

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  A Brute Minor killing a civilian in New Alexandria.

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  A Jiralhanae faces an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper.