Second Battle of Mombasa

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Template:Battle The Second Battle of Mombasa was a bloody engagement between UNSC and Covenant Loyalist forces ^[1].

Background

It appears that the Battle of Mombasa did not end with its entire destruction. Later, during the Second Battle of Earth, Human and Covenant forces clashed again in its ruins, both forces surging forward to capture it and whatever prize or tactical value it may have held.

Elements from both the 506th Tank Regiment and the 77th Marine Regiment battled furiously for it, with snipers from both sides taking a heavy toll upon the enemy. Ultimately, the battle lasted seven days, with the UNSC forces in a desperate situation. With ammo becoming scarce and all hope seeming lost, Spartan Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 stepped into the battle.

Timeline

Battle for the Landing Zone

The Second Battle of Mombasa took place in 2552. The battle began on the outskirts of the war zone, where UNSC and Covenant forces engaged each other in a bitter fight for control of a Landing Zone. The UNSC never gained full control of it, always being pushed back by the Covenant whenever they seemed to secure it and vice versa.

The Northern Bridge Falls

Despite a valiant defense by the Marines, there was no way they could hold the bridge for much longer. With Brute forces surging over it and hitting the Marines' vulnerable flanks, there was only one option remaining. At 14:00, the order came through to destroy the bridge, to force the enemy down into the Valley where UNSC trenches lay to slaughter the enemy with fire from elevated positions. However, this was not the case as the Covenant forces had already begun to surge down the trenches with the destruction of the Bridge.

The Hill

The most ferocious and bloody bottleneck in the battle, the UNSC forces sent to defend it took 2/3 casualties. After the second bridge was destroyed, the trenches at the foot of here, a last ditch defensive measure, came under heavy attack, garnering heavy Marine casualties.

Snipers

Snipers from both sides battled for control, with UNSC Snipers fighting on one end of the destroyed southern bridge and Covenant Jackal snipers halting Marines outside the Landing Zone before being sent into a route by UNSC infantry and tanks.

The 506th arrive

Tasked with securing a road to the southern bridge span, the 506th Tank Regiment plowed forward, taking heavy casualties. Though outnumbered, they took their objective, leaving a path for the second wave of UNSC infantry to follow.

John's Gambit

It was at the top of the "Hill" bottleneck that Master Chief Petty Officer Spartan John-117, launched a gambit to retake the hill for the UNSC forces, by allowing himself to be captured by Brute forces there. Although the intuitive gamer will note that no such incident ever occurs during gameplay.

Other Notable UNSC Combatants

Pawel Czernek- Major Pawel Czernek, who was active for 30 years in the UNSC from 2551 to 2581. He was one of the few surviving combatants who fought in The Battle of New Mombasa. Filmed in a documentary circa the turn of the 27th century at the Museum of Humanity. He related his role in the battle while examining a diorama of the battle - he manned an overturned Warthog's turret - and described the morale Master Chief engendered during the battle ("We knew Master Chief was in the fight. He gave us hope.") The elderly Maj. Czernek wears a prosthetic metal right leg. It is unclear where or when he suffered that traumatic injury.^[2]
Ian Callahan- A soldier who was captured by two Jackals during the Battle of New Mombasa, and saved by an unknown Marine.^[3]
James Dessen- Corporal James Dessen was posthumously awarded a Red Legion of Honor medal for his extraordinary bravery during the Battle of New Mombasa.^[3]
Thomas P. Porter- A Scorpion tank driver during the Battle of New Mombasa.^[3]
Thomas Chang- Sergeant Chang was a veteran of numerous battles with the Covenant, and successfully completed the task of securing a forward HQ during the Battle of New Mombasa. He was killed during a Covenant air assault.^[3]
Jackson Law- The sole survivor of a Warthog patrol during the Battle of New Mombasa. He sustained serious injuries when his warthog was destroyed by Covenant plasma bombardment.^[3]
Sian Wong- A UNSC sniper during the Battle of New Mombasa. Sustained severe burn injuries from a retaliatory Banshee strike.^[3]
Russel Tinnier- A UNSC marine during the Battle of New Mombasa assigned to destroy a strategic bridge.^[3]
Thomas C. Meyer- A UNSC marine who used his rocket launcher to destroy the bridge alongside Tinnier.^[3]
Emmanuel Lomax- "Emmet" Lomax encountered Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy, John-117 during the Battle of New Mombasa, after receiving a precious 4 hours sleep in an abandoned building.^[3]
Caio Zanato- Sole survivor of his squad during the Battle of New Mombasa, promoted to the rank of Private First Class.^[3]

Trivia

The battle lasted seven days, in keeping in Bungie's trademark use of the number 7.
Master Chief's involvement in the battle is an apparent discrepancy, since no such battle is seen in Halo 3, though it may appear in a future issue of Halo: Uprising.
This battle is considered to be non-canon. It was part of Microsoft's Halo 3 Ad Campaign and not Bungie's work. Microsoft at that time had no control or idea of Halo 3's story, and therefore it is not present in said canon. Also, it does not appear in Halo 3 or Halo: Uprising.
There is also a gap between October 21 (the day Truth started back to earth) and November 3 (around Halo 3) allowing for John-117's cooperation in the battle.
It is speculated that, as the diorama was supposedly made as part of a museum display many years after the war, that it may in fact be an intentional distortion of what actually happened, in order to prevent knowledge of the Forerunner, the Halos, the Ark, etcetera from being gained by civilians. The motives for this are currently unknown, but it would fit with the fact that there has been no description of such a battle in any other location. Likewise, the battle indeed may have taken place, with John-117's participation added to provide an official explanation for his disappearance.

Images

Marine fire teams defeat Brute forces outside of the LZ.
The Covenant advance is halted by the destruction of the northern bridge.
Marines fall under the relentless advance of the Covenant War Machine.
The snipers of the 77th Marines pick off Covenant soldiers from their elevated position.
The Scorpions of the 506th Tank Regiment arrive.
John prepares to launch his attack.
Marines of the 77th regiment engage some Brutes.