James Cutter: Difference between revisions

{{Main|Harvest campaign}}

<!--This section needs more information from Halo Wars: Genesis.-->

With the outbreak of [[Human-Covenant War|war]] with the [[Covenant]], Cutter was handpicked by [[Vice Admiral]] [[Preston Cole]] to command the ''Spirit of Fire'' in her new role as center of repair, supply, and forward deployment operations for [[Battlegroup D]], [[Third Fleet]]. Cutter participated in the campaign to reclaim [[Harvest]], the first planet to fall to the Covenant, in early [[2531]]. He developed a close working relationship with the ship's [[Artificial intelligence|AI]], [[Serina]], but was initially suspicious of presence of [[Ellen Anders|Professor Ellen Anders]], a civilian consultant forcibly recruited by the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]]; he suspected that there was more to her than met the eye.<ref name="Crew">[http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/galleries/halo-wars-character-profiles-captain-cutter-and-the-brute-chieftain/?page=5 ''Game Daily'' (defunct link)]</ref> After making a log on the "five years of hell" that led to the reclamation of the planet, ''Spirit of Fire'' remained win the Epsilon Indi system. Cutter believed that although Harvest had been reclaimed by the UNSC, it was unlikely that the Covenant would simply back down.

===Battle of Arcadia===

{{Main|Battle of Arcadia}}

Upon arrival at Arcadia on [[2531#February|February 9, 2531]], Serina reported to Cutter that the colony had come under attack by the Covenant and was in the midst of a full invasion. Cutter ordered Marines to the planet to evacuate civilian population centers.<ref name="Arcadia City"/> After the Marines and [[SPARTAN-II program|Spartan]] [[Red Team]] evacuated [[Pirth City]], Cutter was informed of a Covenant energy dome on the surface of the planet near an [[Arcadia ONI facility|ONI facility]], protecting Covenant forces searching for Forerunner artifacts and concealing their activities. Cutter ordered Anders down to the surface in order to deactivate the energy dome using plasma-based [[M145D Rhino|Rhino artillery tanks]].<ref>'''Halo Wars''', campaign level ''[[Dome of Light]]''</ref> After clearing out Covenant forces under the dome, Anders was captured by [[Arbiter]] [[Ripa 'Moramee]] and taken aboard a Covenant [[CPV-class heavy destroyer|destroyer]]. Forge was in strong favor of rescuing Anders, though Spartan [[Jerome-092]] referred to Anders' capture as a "significant security breach" and suggested that the Covenant ship be destroyed. Cutter gave the order to pursue the enemy vessel through slipspace on to an unknown destination.<ref name="Anders' Signal">'''Halo Wars''', campaign level ''[[Anders' Signal]]''</ref> Though a log buoy detailing ''Spirit of Fire''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s whereabouts had been left near Arcadia, Captain [[Terrence Hood]]'s desire for vengeance against the Covenant caused the log buoy to become irretrievable; as such, Cutter and ''Spirit of Fire'' were lost to the UNSC.<ref name="HE5"/>

===Shield World===

{{Main|Battle of Shield World 0459}}

''Spirit of Fire'' arrived at an [[Shield World 0459|uncharted, desert planet]] (in reality a Forerunner [[shield world]]) on February 23; Anders' transponder signal was detected emanating from the planet's surface. Cutter sent several Marine reconnaissance teams to the planet, where a parasitic lifeform the ship's medical team believed to be a virus<ref>[[Halo Wars Timeline Events|Chief Medical Officer O'Neil's Log, 26 February 2531]]</ref> (actually the [[Flood]]) was soon found to have infested the biosphere.<ref name="Anders' Signal"/><ref>'''Halo Wars''', campaign level ''[[The Flood (level)|The Flood]]''</ref> ''Spirit of Fire'' was eventually drawn downward through a chasm beneath an artificial lake, though Cutter was adamant that all groundside personnel would be recovered rather than abandoned to the Flood.<ref>'''Halo Wars''', campaign level ''[[Shield World (level)|Shield World]]''</ref> Once inside the artificial planet's superstructure the vessel came under attack from both the Flood and local Forerunner [[Sentinel]]s; Cutter ordered response teams to the dorsal surface to keep the ship's interior from being compromised.<ref>'''Halo Wars''', campaign level ''[[Cleansing]]''</ref>

==Legacy==

''Spirit of Fire'' was declared "lost with all hands" on [[2534|February 10, 2534]], the ship having previously been classified as [[missing in action]]. The reason for this change was kept top secret. A memorial service was held for the vessel's crew, but many family members chose not to attend, holding out hope that their loved ones were still alive.<ref>''[[Halo Wars Timeline Events]]''</ref><ref name="ENC71"/><ref group="note">Graeme Devine, the lead writer of ''Halo Wars'', wrote several essays about ''Spirit of Fire'' to assist the game's production team; however, he admits they are "basically fanfiction" and some [[HRUNTING Mark III (B) Exoskeleton#Note|blatantly contradict canon]]. According to {{Plain|[http://www.graemedevine.com/graemedevine/Spirit_of_Fire/Entries/2009/3/14_The_Mystery_of_%E2%80%9CSpirit_of_Fire%E2%80%9D.html Devine's blog]}}, various theories circulated throughout the UNSC as to the ship's fate, ranging from being lost during a covert mission for ONI, destroyed in orbit over Arcadia, defecting to Insurrectionist forces, or being stranded in space. When Captain Cutter's widow, [[Mary Cutter|Mary]], was asked about the defection theory, she physically assaulted the reporter.</ref>

File:HW - CutterSerina.jpg|Cutter and Serina during their arrival at Harvest

File:Cutters Anders over Harvest.png|Cutter and Anders on ''Spirit of Fire'''s observation deck

File:Anders Cutter Watching Explosion.png|Cutter and Anders watching [[Shield World 0459]]'s star

File:Cutter concept.jpg|Concept art of Cutter