House of Reckoning (location)
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- "The House of Reckoning. Such an appropriate name. Many of your kind have entered this arena. None have left!"
- — Escharum speaking to John-117.[1]
The House of Reckoning was a Banished facility on Installation 07. During the Battle for Zeta Halo, it served as War Chief Escharum's headquarters.[2]
Facilities[edit]
- "Within these iron halls, through the Trials of Atriox, all shall know what it is to be Banished—our living history, how we once served the Covenant. All shall know what it is to be meat."
- — Escharum.[3]
The House of Reckoning is a towering structure held in suspension between two clusters of Forerunner hexagon columns, at the end of a Banished-fortified path, near the entrance to one of Installation 07's Repository sites. The main entrance is situated at the base of the building, accessible by a bridge from inner courtyard at the second gatehouse.[4]
The House of Reckoning has at least four floors. The first three floors serve as arenas for the Trials of Atriox. These chamber were large hangar bay-like rooms that contained "training" arenas—mock battlefields made from stolen and salvaged UNSC sandbags, weapons, vehicles, and even structures—placed on beds of sand, dirt, small rocks, and large boulders (likely acquired from the surface of Zeta Halo itself) atop of large, raised platforms. The third floor contained a single structure—made from UNSC debris—the interior of which was set up to mimic an urban, close-quarters combat zone. Each of these arenas could be monitored from an observation room on their respective floors.[1] The fourth floor possessed a Banished torture machine like the ones used at Chak 'Lok's Tower.[1]
The House of Reckoning also had a command room, where Escharum monitored and directed his troops via a holotable. He also communicated with the Harbinger from this room.[5]
History[edit]
The House of Reckoning served as Escharum's headquarters during the first six months of the Battle for Zeta Halo. Escharum monitored the war from here and issued orders, proclamations, and occasional admonitions to the Banished commanders via "inbound decrees." The commanders then forwarded Escharum's decrees to their troops.[6] Escharum also held in-person meetings with Tremonius, Jega 'Rdomnai, and other high-ranking Banished leaders at the facility.[7]
In addition to serving as Escharum's headquarters, the House of Reckoning also served as the final destination for UNSC POWs after they'd been interrogated at Chak 'Lok's Tower. Within the House of Reckoning, some prisoners were forced to undergo Trials of Atriox, in which they'd be placed on artificial battlefields and forced to fight against overwhelming numbers of Banished troops.[3] Despite being allowed to arm themselves with scavenged UNSC weaponry, no prisoner survived the arenas. Other prisoners were simply tortured to death by Jega 'Rdomnai for his amusement.[1]
In late January 2560, Spartans Hudson Griffin, Panago, Henri Malik, and Sarkar attempted to infiltrate the House of Reckoning and assassinate Escharum. However, Escharum had anticipated their actions and his guards ambushed the Spartan team when they arrived. The mission failed, with only Spartan Griffin surviving.[8]
Cica May 28, 2560, Jega 'Rdomnai kidnapped Fernando Esparza, the pilot of Echo 216, and brought him to the House of Reckoning. Knowing that John-117 would try to rescue the pilot, Escharum kept Esparaza alive inside a torture machine on the House's fourth floor. Escharum then relayed the coordinates of the House of Reckoning to the Master Chief.[9] After fighting his way through the heavy defenses surrounding the House,[10] the Master Chief stormed the stronghold and fought his way through the first two Trials of Atriox arenas. He fought and defeated Jega 'Rdomnai inside the third arena, before finally arriving at the fourth level where Escharum was waiting for him. The two warriors clashed and after a lengthy battle, the Master Chief triumphed and freed Esparza. Escharum lived long enough to assure the Master Chief that his death would only inspire others to take up his cause.[1]
Gallery[edit]
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Concept art[edit]
Concept art of the entrance to the House of Reckoning.
Concept art of an M808 Scorpion approaching the House of Reckoning.
Concept art depicting UNSC hardware collected in the House of Reckoning.
Concept art of a throne room for Escharum at the top of the House of Reckoning, with a generic Chieftain as a stand-in for Escharum.
More concept art of the throne room.
More concept art of the throne room.
More concept art of the throne room.
Concept art of the throne itself.
More concept art of the throne itself
Concept art of John-117 looking up at the throne room.
More concept art of John-117 below the throne room.
Screenshots[edit]
Fortifications in the courtyard at the base of the structure.
The bridge connecting to the structure itself.
Escharum speaks with the Harbinger from the House of Reckoning.
The first room for the Trials of Atriox.
Another view of the first room for the Trials of Atriox.
UNSC fortifications in the first room for the Trials of Atriox.
UNSC equipment and prefabricated buildings in the first room for the Trials of Atriox.
The second room for the Trials of Atriox.
A half-dismantled D77-TC Pelican in the second room for the Trials of Atriox.
A radar dish in the second room for the Trials of Atriox.
The third room for the Trials of Atriox
Interior of the third room for the Trials of Atriox.
The central chamber on the House's fourth level.
John-117 undergoes the Trials of Atriox.
List of appearances[edit]
- Halo Infinite (First appearance)
- Halo: The Rubicon Protocol
- Halo: Trial of Reckoning
Sources[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Halo Infinite, campaign mission Reckoning: House of Reckoning
- ^ Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition), page 445
- ^ a b Halo: Trial of Reckoning
- ^ Halo Infinite, campaign mission Reckoning: The Road
- ^ Halo Infinite, campaign mission Graveyard: Pelican Down
- ^ Halo Infinite, Banished Audio Log: Outpost Intel #2 - A Warning
- ^ Halo Infinite, campaign mission Ringfall: Foundation
- ^ Halo Infinite, Spartan Audio Log: Retaliation #3 - Confrontation
- ^ Halo Infinite, campaign mission Reckoning: Repository
- ^ Halo Infinite, campaign mission Reckoning: The Road
