Samuel Marcus

Tech Petty Officer Samuel N. Marcus (Service Number: 18827-318209-M) was a UNSC Technician aboard the UNSC Pillar of Autumn in 2552.

Samuel Marcus was tasked with reviving Spartan-117 from his cryo sleep before the Pillar of Autumn's crash on Installation 04. He was a friend of Tech Chief Thom Shephard. He had not seen his wife, Ellen Marcus, in three years as she lived on Earth and the war simply did not allow him the time to visit her, he could only look at her in a photo.

He was killed by a Major Elite, who was amongst the first wave of the Covenant boarding party. Sam could hear the Elite just outside the control room and called for security. Thom Shephard and John-117 could only watch as the Elite warrior entered the control room. Sam issued a cry of "Oh God!", before getting hit by a plasma bolt in the chest. Lying on the floor, he tried to reach a photo of his wife, Ellen. The Elite then walked forward and pinned Marcus's arm to the floor with its foot and examined the picture. Helpless, Marcus could barely hear Thom yell out his name, and was executed when the Elite shot him in the head with its Plasma rifle.

Trivia

• He is the first character seen killed in the Halo series.
• In Halo: CE, there is no way to save him, even if you use the camera cheat in Halo Custom Edition and try to kill the Elite (He appears to be invincible).
• Just like Thom, if you restart the level multiple times, you will notice his face and/or uniform alternate in appearance, however his voice remains the same.
• If you make your way onto the walkways, you will notice that Sam's mouth doesn't move when he talks.
• In game he screams when he is shot and seems to die instantly. While in Halo: The Flood, it said it didn't hurt and seemed to take longer.