Forerunner: Difference between revisions

Next to nothing is known about the Forerunners, except that they were an advanced civilization, coming to power after the disappearance of another race, known to them as the [[Precursors]]. The Forerunners reached their peak before activating the [[Halo Array]] around 100,000 years ago, exactly as planned (as explained by [[343 Guilty Spark (Monitor)|343 Guilty Spark]] in [[Halo 2]]). <ref>''Halo 3 Limited Edition'' - [[Bestiarum]]</ref> Ironically, the Latin word Forerunner translates into Precursor, the very name they revere.

The Forerunners were highly technologically advanced during their reign; some speculated that the ancient faction had the ability to accelerate a species stage development (of course, this is only speculation). Being the ''only'' known race ever to achieve Tier 1 technology based on the [[Technological Achievement Tiers]] measurement, they were only superseded by the mysterious Precursors at Tier 0; evidence of which has been found on various planets. The fact that the Halos were scattered around the galaxy also hints at the possibility that the Forerunner empire covered most, if not all, of the galaxy. It has also been hinted at in the [[Terminals]] that the Forerunners received their "[[Mantle]]" from the coinciding "[[Precursors]]".  

Later in their history, a Forerunner survey team came into contact with an extra-galactic parasite known as the [[Flood]] on the planet [[G 617 g]] (details of this first contact are unavailable). After this first contact, the Forerunner realized the great danger that the Flood posed to the entire galaxy and attempted to contain them. The attempt to contain the Flood was a failure, primarily because in the beginning, they treated the Flood as a disease, attempting to contain it and quarantine it, instead of treating it as a severe threat and declaring an all out war on the Flood. They did not start war until it was far too late. <ref>[http://blog.ascendantjustice.com/halo-3/the-terminals/a-voice-from-the-tomb-i/]</ref>

At first, the Forerunners were reluctant to use the Array. The [[Gravemind]] managed to convince a [[Contender-class Artificial Intelligence|Contender-class AI]], [[Mendicant Bias]], to unite with the Flood. Mendicant Bias soon led his massive fleet in an attack on the "Maginot Line", the final barrier between what the Forerunners could protect and what they had to let go. The Forerunner were given no choice but to activate the Halos, killing themselves and all life of sufficient biomass and cognitive ability in the Milky Way, with the exception of those species safely placed on [[the Ark]].

Covenant Luminaries (which are actually stolen Forerunner equipment designed to detect other Forerunner objects) can detect Humans, previously mislabeled as "Forerunner Artifacts", leading to the initial Human-Covenant contact which sparked a [[Human-Covenant war|seemingly endless war]].  Ironically, the Covenant worships the Forerunners but fight Humans, who may be Forerunner descendants based on the fact that they are detected by Luminaries.

Forerunner constructs and sentries use a broad variety of weapons, typically high-energy powered beams. These weapons proved to be very effective when battling the [[Flood]], burning them to the point that they cannot be revived by their [[Infection Forms|compatriots]]. The Forerunners installed and constructed these intricate beam weapons inside their paradigm Arrays, allowing them to build an army of machines to battle the Flood without sending any Forerunner into real battle. Forerunners made active use of plasma weaponry as well, as shown by the Covenant, whose weapons and technology are solely based off of Forerunner artifacts.

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*The Forerunners seem to be similar to the Silver Race of Greek mythology. Similarly, the Forerunners are very similar to the Ancients in the Stargate series in that they both built technologically advanced rings as well as galactic scale weaponry, and are thought of as gods by aliens. They also went extinct thousands of years ago, and thought of humans as their children. They show some similarities (their highly advanced technology and the fact that they mysteriously vanished) to the [[Marathon (video game series)#The_Jjaro|Jjaro]], a race of aliens from a previous [[Bungie]] game,  ''[[Marathon (video game series)|Marathon]]'', the Eloh from the MMORPG ''[[Wikipedia:Tabula Rasa (video game)|Tabula Rasa]]'', the [[Wikipedia:Old Ones (Warhammer 40,000)|Old Ones]] from [[Wikipedia:Warhammer 40,000|Warhammer 40,000]], the Protheans in ''[[Wikipedia:Mass Effect|Mass Effect]]'', the [[Wikipedia:Precursor (Star Control)|Precursors]] of ''[[Wikipedia::Star Control | Star Control]]'', the [[w:c:starwars:Rakata|Rakata or Builders]] of ''[[Wikipedia:Star Wars|Star Wars]]'', the [[Wikipedia:Progenitors (Homeworld)|Progenitors]] of ''[[Wikipedia:Homeworld|Homeworld]]'', the Chozo and Alimbics of ''[[Wikipedia:Metroid|Metroid]]'', the [[Wikipedia:Ancients (Stargate)|Ancients]] of the ''[[Wikipedia:Stargate|Stargate]]'' television series, the Xel'Naga in ''Starcraft'', the [http://biosector01.com/wiki/index.php/Great_Beings Great Beings] of ''[http://biosector01.com/wiki/index.php/BIONICLE Bionicle]'', the Time Lords, of "Doctor Who", and most especially, the Krell of the film Forbidden Planet. The concept of a highly advanced extinct race leaving technological relics behind is not a new concept and has appeared in several other media such as books and films like Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. The Forerunner also bear a striking similarity to Larry Niven's Pak Protectors (''Ringworld'' Series), whom also built a Ring-like Station but disappeared, leaving the Ringworld to go off balance from its own sun.