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| |image=Fallofreach.jpg | | |image=Fallofreach.jpg |
| |Author= [[Eric Nylund]] | | |Author= [[Eric Nylund]] |
| |Publisher= [[Del Rey Books]] | | |Publisher= [[Del Rey Books]] die all of you !!!!!!! |
| |Date Released= October 30, 2001 | | |Date Released= October 30, 2001 |
| |Length= 340 Pages | | |Length= 340 Pages |
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| |Shipping Mass= 358 g | | |Shipping Mass= 358 g |
| }} | | }} |
| '''''Halo: The Fall of Reach''''' is a prequel to ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'' and is also the first Halo novel to be published. Written by [[Eric Nylund]] and published on October 30, 2001.<ref name=xbox.com2>{{cite web | last=Longdale | first=Holly | url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/spotlight.htm | title=Game Worlds in Written Words | accessdate=September 2 | accessyear=2006 }}</ref> | | '''''Halo: The Fall of Reach''''' is a prequel to ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'' and is also the first Halo novel to be published. Written by [[Eric Nylund]] and published on October 30, 2001.<ref name=xbox.com2>{{cite web | last=Longdale | first=Holly | url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/spotlight.htm | title=Game Worlds in Written Words | accessdate=September 2 | accessyear=-On the second last page of chapter 22 James(a Spartan) salutes the Master Chief with his left hand. This can not be possible as earlier in the chapter as his left arm was burnt down from the elbow. |
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| The novel was reportedly finished in [[7]] weeks <ref name="xbox.com2" /> eventually becoming a ''Publisher's Weekly'' bestseller with nearly 200,000 copies sold in the United States and United Kingdom. <ref name=xbox.com3>{{cite web | last=Greene | first=Marty|url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo2/spotlight2.htm | title=''First Strike'' Author Eric Nylund Q&A | accessdate=September 2 | accessyear=2006 }}</ref>
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| ==Summary==
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| The book tells the story of the very beginning of the elite military division known as the [[Spartan II|Spartan IIs]] were trained; as well as all of the events leading up to the start of ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]''. It also gives a brief view of John's childhood. Later on in the book the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] receives a transmission sent by a new threat, the [[Covenant]]. The [[Covenant]] is a large group of aliens who stumbled upon a human merchant ship, attacked it, and eventually led to a battle between a few of the covenant species and a group of marines, including [[Staff Sergeant Avery Johnson]]. This leads to the following conflicts. The [[Covenant]] later attacks the human colony planet "[[Harvest]]". The first message the [[humans]] recorded was transmitted after the attack on [[Harvest]] in English and was: "''Your destruction is the will of the gods, and we are their instrument!''" This message was also in [[Halo 3]]'s E3 demo as well as in the finalized game. [[The Prophet of Truth]] says this in the beginning cut scene of the level [[Crows Nest]]. Armed with state-of-the-art weaponry, [[Master Chief]] and his [[Spartans]] seek to destroy the Covenant and to keep [[Reach]] under the control of the [[Human]] race. The book details the following engagements: the [[Battle of Harvest]], the Battle of [[Jericho VII]], the [[Battle of Sigma Octanus IV]], the [[Battle of Chi Ceti]], the [[Battle of Reach]] and [[Operation: TREBUCHET]].
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| '''DATE:''' October 10, [[2517]] - August 30, [[2552]]
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| ==Story Synopsis==
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| {{Spoiler}}
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| The prologue begins on the planet [[Jericho VII]] on February 12, [[2535]] and it reveals the Spartans as a whole as well as their purpose. As the seemingly unstoppable Covenant war-machine moves into place to [[glass]] [[Jericho VII]], a young team of Spartan super soldiers are sent to prevent the destruction of the planet. Unfortunately, their mission is unsuccessful, and they retreat to their nearby vessel and watch as the planet is [[glassed]].
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| The story itself begins with [[Dr. Catherine Halsey]] and [[Lieutenant Jacob Keyes]] on board the ''[[Han]]'', a [[UNSC]] diplomatic shuttle. Their mission is to identify a potential candidate, [[John]], for Halsey's [[Spartan-II program]]. The plot then goes on to show in detail the brutal indoctrination and training regime that [[John]] and the other Spartans are put through and are taken away from their family. Chief Petty Officer Mendez trains the Spartan II's, showing them the many virtues required (ex. courage, skill, etc.) while Deja (an AI created by Dr. Halsey for the Spartan-II program) teaches them history, mathematics and physics. After a daring training mission, John is made squad leader of the remaining Spartans. Later, the [[Master Chief|Chief]] meets [[Cortana]] (Halsey's identical AI) and, through teamwork, pass a test, which required them to pass an anti-tank minefield, kill/injure fellow soldiers, and survive air-raids from a [[Skyhawk]] jump jet armed with rockets, but not without quite a few scratches and bruises.
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| On February 3, [[2525]] first contact is made with an alliance of alien races that refers to itself as [[Covenant|The Covenant]] (although it is frequently mentioned that, at this point, humanity does not fully understand the Covenant caste system). On that day, a single Covenant Warship exterminated the entire surface population of the Outer Colony [[Harvest]]. Three UNSC battleships, the destroyer Heracles and the frigates Arabia and the Vostok, are sent to investigate this incident, initiated first engagement protocols and attempted contact, engaged the Covenant ship in battle, and are subsequently routed. Only one, the ''[[Heracles]]'', manages to return to Reach badly damaged. By December of the same year, the UNSC has mobilized a massive [[UNSC_Fleet|Fleet]] under the command of [[Vice Admiral Preston Cole]], with orders to reclaim the Harvest Colony and stop the Covenant advance.
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| Cole's Fleet manages a victory at Harvest, but at a high cost - two thirds of his ships are destroyed. Despite significant tactical brilliance on the part of Human commanders, Covenant technology guarantees a three to one kill/loss ratio in most battles. One by one, the Outer Colonies fall to the onslaught and by 2535, all have been destroyed.
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| To protect the location of [[Earth]], the UNSC/Vice Admiral Preston Cole established the [[Cole Protocol]]. If any [[Covenant]] are present, activate selective purge of databases on all ship based and planetary data networks. When human forces are forced into retreat, they must not execute a [[Slipspace]] jump in the direction of Earth, or any major population center, even if this forces them to jump without the necessary navigational calculations (a "blind jump"). If such a jump is not possible, and if capture is imminent, the Captain must order a self-destruct. The on-board ship [[AI]] construct, normally imperative to navigation and tactical decisions, must either be destroyed or removed.
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| However, due to the shortage of good officers, [[Jacob Keyes|Keyes]] was promoted to Commander in 2552 and assumed command of the [[UNSC Iroquois|UNSC ''Iroquois'']]. Shortly thereafter, he foresaw a Covenant attack on Sigma Octanus IV thanks to a paper by [[SPARTAN-084]]. His actions resulted in the destruction of a [[Covenant Destroyer]], two [[Covenant Frigate|Frigates]] and chasing off a [[Covenant Carrier]] with a daring maneuver dubbed the "Keyes Loop". This unprecedented victory against a Covenant force earned him a promotion to UNSC Captain and helped him to become recognized by the entire UNSC. Keyes and the ''Iroquois'' remained in the Sigma Octanus system to partake in The Battle of Sigma Octanus IV. He later returned to Reach (inadvertently disclosing the location of Reach to the Covenant via a homing beacon attached to the ''Iroquois'') and was debriefed by an [[ONI]] council. Here he met [[SPARTAN-117]] once again.
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| By [[2552]], many of Humanity's [[Inner Colonies]] have been destroyed by the Covenant and reach is next. In a move of desperation, the Office of Naval Intelligence Section-3 SPARTAN division orders the execution of a secret plan to capture a Covenant ship using their SPARTAN forces and find their home world in order to capture a Prophet, one of their religious leaders. A group of [[Spartans]], led by the Master Chief, are chosen for this mission, and board a specially outfitted [[Halcyon-class_Cruiser|Halcyon class cruiser]] known as the ''[[UNSC Pillar of Autumn|Pillar of Autumn]]'' (under the command of [[Captain Jacob Keyes]]). This plan, however, is interrupted by the necessity of destroying the Navigational Database of the UNSC ''[[Circumference]]'', a [[UNSC_Prowler|Prowler]], still docked at a station orbiting Reach just before its fall. The rest of the Spartans were sent down to the planet to defend the Orbital MAC generators.
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| [[Image:Reach.jpg|250px|thumb|right|The [[Battle of Reach]].]]
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| During the [[Battle of Reach]], Reach is overrun and glassed, and the UNSC Fleet is obliterated. Worse still, the Master Chief thinks that all of the Spartans but himself are killed on the surface of the planet. Cortana plots an exit vector in compliance with the Cole Protocol, though not completely at random. She had decrypted [[Forerunner]] glyphs found by the Master Chief on [[Sigma Octanus IV]]. The NAV coordinates led the ''Pillar of Autumn'' to what the Covenant had been searching for: [[Installation_04|Halo]].
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| {{Spoiler End}}
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| ==Trivia==
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| *An excerpt from this book, along with excerpts from ''[[Halo: The Flood]]'' and ''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', was included in a directory on ''[[Halo PC]]''. It is found on the disc, in the "Goodies" section.
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| *In the final three sections of the book, starting at [[Sigma Octanus IV]] there is a typo which records all events as occurring 2542 instead of 2552.
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| *Interestingly, the first section of this book is titled "Reveille" and involves characters emerging from cryo-sleep. The first section from ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' is also appropriately titled "Reveille" and also involves someone waking from cryo-sleep. Reveille is a traditional bugle call of the U.S. military, sounded at the start of each day on military installations to wake up the troops. Also, "Reveille" translates in French, to "Awaken"
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| *The power of the energy shields on the [[Covenant]] ships is inconsistent following the canon of the universe and this book. In one instance, a ship hit with nuclear warhead is ''still'' functional, actually appearing to shrug the explosion off. However, during a battle with Keyes using a pair against two Covenant ships (which were larger then the one from the previous instance), the [[EMP]] from the warheads knocks out the shields on the ships through the potent blast. Though it could be explained that in the years following the first Nuke attack on a Covenant ship, the UNSC might have upgraded its nukes. Or that different Covenant ships have different levels of shielding like the elite rankings but instead of rank its based on size.
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| *At the end of the book, there is the ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'' logo with a rating box, saying that it is rated T (for Teen) while it is actually rated M (for Mature).
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| *In ''[[Halo 3]]'', [[Cortana]] states several quotes from this book, all of which are [[Dr. Halsey]]'s. Such as: "''Can I speak with you please? What's your name? It's very nice to meet you. You like games? So do I.''", "''You have been called upon to serve, you will be trained...and you will become the best we can make you. You will be the Protectors of [[Earth]] and all her Colonies.''", and "''Could you sacrifice yourself to complete your mission? Could you watch him die?''"(In the game, "yourself" and "him" are changed to "me", referring to [[Cortana]]) However, this may be because she was malfunctioning, since Cortana was "spawned" (created) from Dr. Halsey's mind.
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| *In ''[[Halo 3]]'' at the beginning of the arrival clip scene, there is a reference to [[Spartan 117]] being extremely lucky. [[Master Chief]]'s luck was mentioned quite a bit during the series. Notably, John's luck is shown when Dr. Halsey flips an old coin.
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| *The [[Battle of Reach]] is one of the only documented battles in which a [[Covenant Supercruiser]] participated.
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| *Both [[Sam]] (correctly) and [[Fhajad]] (incorrectly) are given the service tag 034 in the book.<ref>''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', Pages 40,141</ref>
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| *The Chinese version has many mistakes: e.g. Cortana mentioned that there were 314 [[Covenant]] ships whereas the Chinese version stated that there were 31,400 Covenant ships. Also in Chapter 36, the "UNSC ''Pillar of Autumn''" was translated into ''Pelican dropship''.
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| *In the beginning of the book the [[Grunts]] are said to sound like dogs and their speech could not be translated. Yet ın all three Halo games you can understand the Grunts and do not sound like dogs at all. This is most likely because the UNSC's translation software has been upgraded in the later games.
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| *In the first half or so of the book, a typo removes most "fi" pairs in the italicized text (as seen in the words "'''start le'''" in which the first two letters are missing from the word "file").
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| *On the cover, between the "A" and the "L" in the word Halo, there is a [[Marathon]] symbol. This is the same for all of the Halo Novels.
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| *There is a running inconsistency in the franchise regarding when humans first encountered the Elites. According to ''The Fall of Reach'' the Master Chief first fights an Elite above Reach during [[Battle of Reach|the battle]]. [[Halo: The Cole Protocol|''The Cole Protocol'']] describes Gray team's encounter with Elites several years before the Battle of Reach. [[Ghosts of Onyx]] reveals that the Spartan-IIIs first encountered the Sangheili [[Operation: PROMETHEUS|in 2537]]. In ''First Strike'', Spartan-104 notes that the Elites ''never'' ran away. <ref>''''''Halo: First Strike'''''', Page 137</ref>. Halo Wars prominently features Elites during the [[Second Battle of Harvest]].
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| -On the second last page of chapter 22 James(a Spartan) salutes the Master Chief with his left hand. This can not be possible as earlier in the chapter as his left arm was burnt down from the elbow. | |
| ==External Links== | | ==External Links== |
| *[http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0345451325/ref=sib_dp_pt/102-6002849-0256936 Read the first chapter of ''Halo: The Fall Of Reach''] | | *[http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0345451325/ref=sib_dp_pt/102-6002849-0256936 Read the first chapter of ''Halo: The Fall Of Reach''] |
