Welcome back to Canon Fodder! We’ve got a lore-laden latter end of the year to look forward to and this issue is going to walk you through everything still to come. Let us tarry no longer!

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] The issue has been published in its original form before last week's news regarding the studio. Additional commentary has been added in bold here and there to provide extra context where necessary in light of these events.

At the end of July, Halo: Campaign Evolved was unleashed upon the world—a twenty-fifth anniversary remake of the 2001 original that started this great journey. You’ve had time to play and digest the contents of this game so let’s tackle some questions about it.

Q: Which version of Halo: CE is canon?

The events of Halo: CE have been told and retold from various angles across a variety of media, from the original game to the 2003 novelization, the 2011 remaster, the Fireteam Raven arcade game, and so on. The answer to this is simply… Yes. All of these are part of Halo’s core canon, and where there are differences or contradictions we lean on the source that makes the most holistic sense.

As an example, in Halo 4 during the mission Shutdown, Cortana’s plan to neutralize one of Requiem’s spires is pulled “from our old playbook” in a reference to the Halo: CE mission Two Betrayals where the Master Chief overloaded Alpha Halo’s pulse generators by walking into the beam. This was, uh, changed in Campaign Evolved to instead destroy three objects in the pulse generator rooms. In a case such as this, the original takes canonical precedent. Similarly, to align with how events are depicted in Halo: First Strike, the Longsword model would canonically be regarded as the original C709 as well (rather than the C708 in Campaign Evolved).

On the opposite side of this spectrum, new elements like Captain Jacob Keyes asking the Master Chief to ensure his daughter Miranda gets his unique service pistol is likewise treated as something that is not replacing existing canon but is additive to it.

Q: What’s the deal with the Flood Tank form being present on Alpha Halo? Aren’t pure forms only created once the Flood is in the coordinated stage after a Gravemind has been made?

That is indeed correct and nothing has changed on this front. What’s important to note is that a variety of Flood specimens are contained on Forerunner installations, including pure forms—as seen in the Halo 3 map Cold Storage set on Delta Halo where a Tank form is held within a stasis pod.

Once the Flood broke containment, these already existing pure forms likewise managed to get out. In Halo: Fireteam Raven, the titular ODST squad find themselves facing not just Tank forms but Juggernauts as well.

Q: What’s the deal with the Mark IV armor having energy shields?

While Mjolnir Mark V holds the specific breakthrough of featuring fully integrated energy shields, the use of experimental prototype energy shield modules has been tested on the Mark IV platform since 2531.

As seen in Halo Wars, the Spartans of Red Team possessed energy shielding which was later acknowledged in Halo: The Essential Visual Guide.

PERSONAL SHIELDS
Energy shielding was a key feature of Mark V, although other Spartan squads had field-tested prototypes of this technology as early as 2531.

[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide (2011)]

Other sources of lore corroborate this as well, such as the chest armor description of the Grenadier variant of Mark IV Mjolnir in Halo: Reach which states:

The [G] prototype was the test bed for incorporating shield technology with MJOLNIR PAA.

[Halo: Reach - Armory]

And in the short story Hungry Buzzards included with the premium edition of Campaign Evolved, this prototype module is directly referenced.

John looked toward the observation suite. Finally, a line of figures approached the window, anchored in the center by Whitcomb, Ackerson, and Halsey. He activated his Mjolnir’s experimental energy shields, then pulled his assault rifle and a flashbang grenade off their mounts.

[Halo: Hungry Buzzards]

Finally, in the editorial update to The Fall of Reach as part of Halo: The Master Chief Omnibus, prototype energy shield modules have also been more directly acknowledged.

The fact that the Mjolnir armor possessed fully integrated shields was a stunning breakthrough. For years, there had been little luck back-engineering Covenant shield tech beyond experimental prototype modules that were expensive to replace.

[Halo: The Fall of Reach - Chapter 27]

We of course do want to acknowledge that in a perfect world there would be a different gameplay system for the Mark IV armor, but design and production realities do not necessarily allow for the creation and implementation of such a system. Fortunately Halo’s core canon has many years of sources establishing the precedent for Mark IV armor utilizing prototype energy shield modules.

Q: So, did you retcon the Covenant species in Halo 4 and Halo 5 so that they are experiments made by the Minister of Harmony?

Negative. As we’ve previously established in various sources, including the 2022 Halo Encyclopedia, the appearance of the Covenant species whenever they are notably divergent from the “standard” designs are simply treated as different phenotypical variations.

For a variety of real-world production reasons, there are seldom opportunities to reflect this mix in the games themselves. The stasis pods aboard Triumph of Tolerance offered a rare such occasion where it became possible. What the Minister of Harmony sought from these specimens… well, that’s San’Shyuum business. But we can indeed confirm that he was not their “creator” in any such sense.

We’ll have plenty more to talk about regarding Campaign Evolved lore elements in further upcoming issues, but for now we’ll leave you with one topic everyone’s been asking to learn more about…

You probably want to learn more about the Sacristan Order, don’t you? Well, you’ll have to wait for next issue for that.

Nah, just kidding. I’m not that cruel!

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] This joke sure took on new dimensions after last week's news.

Summarized in a sentence: The Sacristan Order is a zealous group formed in the foundational years of the Covenant, devoted to the orthodoxy of the empire’s religion and foundational tenets.

Following the signing of the Writ of Union, uniting the Sangheili and San’Shyuum as allies, the most devout clerics, scholars, and temple guardians formed the Sacristan Order. Originally dedicated to rooting out rebellious Sangheili who resented the Covenant’s formation and sought to undermine this fledgling empire, the Sacristan Order’s duties gradually expanded over the years and they became the prime enforcers of orthodox doctrine in the Covenant religion.

Unlike the Covenant military, the Sacristan Order does not have traditional ranks but is instead primarily formed of different roles suited to each member and species. Let’s take a look at how that applies to each unit.

MENDICANT

Unggoy mendicants are initiates to the Sacristan Order composed of those deemed most pious and capable of demonstrating advanced knowledge of the Covenant’s holy writs. Branching from traditional military service, mendicants primarily serve as attendants to Unggoy deacons on missionary vessels to learn the ways of conducting religious services.

APOSTLE

Unggoy mendicants who pass trials of faith are elevated to the role of apostle, typically serving their Sangheili sanctum guardians and superiors within the Sacristan Order. Their status is denoted by additional armor of ivory and gold.

ARCHDEACON

The highest rank attainable by Unggoy in the Covenant, deacons are those few who have served longest and survived against all odds without wavering in faith and adherence to their duties. Archdeacons attached to the Sacristan Order are held in the highest respect—at least, as high as it gets for an Unggoy.

DEVOTEE

Typically renowned more for their mercantile and privateering skills than their piety, Kig-Yar devotees of the Sacristan Order are selected from those who recover or are commended for the protection of valuable artifacts.

PROCURATOR

Much like Unggoy mendicants, Kig-Yar devotees are put through trials of faith to be elevated to the role of procurator. Granted specialized missionary vessels, procurators are often the first units to be sent to artifact sites of interest as scouts.

SEER

The most devout orders of the faithful require eyes and ears in the dark. Clad in black-gold armor, Kig-Yar seers are expert assassins equipped with advanced helmets devised by the Minister of Harmony that further augments their sharpshooting capabilities.

GESTALT PRIEST

The San’Shyuum have pruned and cultivated many strains of Lekgolo over the long history of the Covenant but their species remains frustratingly enigmatic even to those most devoted to studying their ways. Those few who display fanatical loyalty to the Covenant are elevated to serve as gestalt priests, their ivory-gold armor inscribed with scripture telling ancient tales of the divine derived from holy texts.

SANCTUM CLERIC

Sangheili clerics wear their devotion for all to see as the mark of the Great Journey—the unifying symbol of the Covenant—is branded onto their forehead. Beneath their blood-dark robes and wrappings are lines of scripture written into their flesh, psalms and songs of the ancient Forerunners they seek to follow into godhood.

SANCTUM ACOLYTE

A role derived from the ancient arpaktiko warrior order, Sangheili sanctum acolytes devote themselves wholly to matters of combat, even studying heretical tools—such as the crude ballistic weaponry utilized by humans—to ensure the Covenant possesses a complete understanding of its foes from without.

SANCTUM SUPERIOR

Sanctum acolytes provided with specialized training and nurture their combat experience on the battlefield or in orbit may attain the role of superior.

SANCTUM MASTER

Sangheili who have served elevated political or military roles for over sixty annual cycles may petition for the favor of the Prophets to add their wisdom and experience to the Sacristan Order. 

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] Many have been asking whether this novel will still be releasing. To this we can say that it is absolutely our intent to see this project cross the finish line. Troy has written a fantastic story and a good chunk of the editorial process has been conducted. In my remaining time at the studio, I will be doing all I can to ensure this can be achieved.

Just a few weeks ago we revealed the cover art for the next novel by Troy Denning, titled Halo: Fireteam Noble.

This stunning art was illustrated by Garrett Post, accomplished artist and long-time Halo fan who has contributed illustrations to Halo: Evolutions and the 2022 Halo Encyclopedia.

Beginning in April 2560, following the loss of the Avery J. Johnson Academy, the Spartans are reeling from recently sustained losses. Laconia, Nysa, the continued disappearance of the UNSC Infinity… it’s a big, bad galaxy out there and the power vacuum in the wake of Cortana’s demise continues to offer no end of dangers for humanity. In the immortal words of Bonnie Tyler (or the Fairy Godmother from Shrek 2), we’re holding out for a hero.

But what’s a hero without some baggage? Jun has been out of active combat for years and has been suffering from survivor’s guilt, both as a member of Noble Team and Alpha Company. He’s stepping into some shoes he might’ve otherwise left unfilled as he reluctantly takes up the role of fireteam leader.

Joined by Rosenda-A344, Hieu Dinh, Sigrid Eklund, and Atis ‘Moramai, Fireteam Noble reflects similar archetypes to the original Noble Team while also reflecting the present state of the galaxy in 2560.

Rosenda is a friend and fellow survivor of Alpha Company, but as she was poached by ONI in late 2551 and never integrated into Spartan Branch do her loyalties on this mission truly lie with Jun when she’s serving an agenda beyond his purview? Dinh and Eklund naturally come as a pair, but these lone wolves are used to working by themselves and not as part of a team. After Dinh’s exposure to the rogue AI Iratus and the fall of Nysa there is great concern over how compromised Dinh may be.

We can’t wait for you to go on the journey Troy has been cooking up for Fireteam Noble, but that’ll all come in good time!

Pre-order Halo: Fireteam Noble here!

We have a bit of a surprise announcement for you all, which is that a new Halo novella will be dropping out of slipspace next year!

Introducing Halo: Burn the Road Home.

Written by Kenneth Peters, Senior Franchise Writer at Halo Studios (whose work can also be found in Halo Warfleet, The Official Spartan Field Manual, and the 2022 Halo Encyclopedia), this novella delves into some unexplored areas of the universe.

We’ll have more to share about Burn the Road Home in the future, but for now here’s the official blurb for what’s to come.

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] As with Fireteam Noble, we are determined to see this through to completion.

2560. Over seven years after Covenant forces invaded the planet Criterion, its human survivors are still struggling to rebuild amid mounting resentment toward the Unified Earth Government. When separatists ambush a reconstruction convoy and steal critical equipment, Colonial Administration Authority Marshal Imani Havel uncovers a conspiracy far more dangerous than local rebellion.

With contact from Earth mysteriously silent and Criterion’s defenses stretched thin, Havel’s pursuit leads through abandoned industrial ruins and a vast graveyard of human and Covenant warships orbiting the planet. But as shadowy off-world operatives emerge from the darkness, she realizes the stolen resources are only the beginning—and that an unimaginable threat has already been set in motion.

Outmanned, outgunned, and with no Spartans coming to the rescue, Havel and a battered UNSC assault force must expose the enemy’s true plan before Criterion’s violent past comes crashing down upon its fragile future....

Earlier this year, Halo: Waypoint Chronicles – Volume One released to the world and we’ve had a great time seeing the reactions from fans to the stories within that collection—especially when it comes to fan art for a particular Sangheili convert living in Rio de Janeiro!

In case you missed it, myself and my illustrious colleague Jeff Easterling just recently did an interview with Jesse Bartel regarding the book which you can check out here: Damage Per Second – “An Interview with HALO Lore Masters Jeff Easterling and Alexander Wakeford”

There is, as they say, no rest for the wicked however as we are well underway on all things related to the next volume of Waypoint Chronicles. We announced earlier this year that we’re expanding the stable of authors and you’ll be seeing who a couple of those are rather soon.

In the meantime, let’s take a closer look at the trio of tales that just released over the course of the last month!

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] Work had been completed on multiple new Waypoint Chronicles from myself and Jeff, but also some additional authors as well. We want to make sure that these drop out of slipspace transit and bring some light to an otherwise dark time.

Throughout November to December, we have scheduled publication for a good few Waypoint Chronicles that will drop weekly on Halo Waypoint.

Unfortunately we have not been able to create audiobook versions of these due to (*gestures around*) y'know, all this, but at the very least you will have the text to devour.

As much of the work is already done, it is also our hope that a Volume Two print anthology, ebook, and audiobook will be able to release later in 2027.

Speaking of Volume Two stories, just yesterday saw the release of the final part of Still Midnight, a three-part Waypoint Chronicle made in collaboration with the incredibly talented folks at JumperScape.

In case you missed ‘em, here are the three parts:

Watch on Youtube

Watch on Youtube

Watch on Youtube

And yes, we have indeed seen you asking where the written version of this story is.

Still Midnight was scripted as an audio-first experience, immersing listeners in the soundscape of its settings and leading with its absolutely marvelous cast of voice actors. As such, in Volume 2, we will have the scripts compiled for you to read through with some additional embellished flavor.

With that established, let’s take a closer look at some of the characters and locations featured in Still Midnight.

When coming up with the characters, we initially pulled reference from our existing bank of concept art to get a general idea of how they might look. Community Team’s own Nick Boulton volunteered to translate these into a unified style of sketches presented along with the bios below.

ERSU ‘KYBOL

Formerly an Ossoona stealth operative in the Covenant military, the onset of the Great Schism saw ‘Kybol join the ranks of Rtas ‘Vadum’s Fleet of Retribution where he was stationed aboard the battlecruiser Pious Inquisitor. As part of an emerging group of Sangheili youths who were questioning the War of Annihilation, ‘Kybol came to seek penance for his service to the Covenant and trained as a ranger before volunteering to be stationed aboard the UNSC Infinity.

AUDRA GALINIENE

After securing a coveted work experience placement aboard the UNSC Infinity in October 2557, Dr. Audra Galiniene quickly grew accustomed to living aboard the ship. At the end of her six-month placement, during which time she was present for the Requiem Campaign and subsequent missions through April 2558, Galiniene received a recommendation from Dr. Henry Glassman to become a permanent member of the crew.

RILEY ANDERSON

Eldest among the group, Sergeant Riley Anderson is a man of the UNSC Marine Corps through and through—one hardened by many years of battles survived while countless comrades have been lost to the Covenant. Assigned to the UNSC Infinity while it was under construction in the Oort Cloud, Sergeant Anderson was renowned for his calming sense of clarity in high-pressure scenarios which earned the respect of all who served with him.

GUSTAVO TORRES

A civilian contractor turned permanent crewman in the wake of the Created uprising, Gustavo Torres specialized as a “pit crew” technician for Infinity’s S-deck and was occasionally deployed to perform battlefield maintenance on Spartans’ armor to ensure optimal performance. Initially interested in the job because of a salary that would lead to his early retirement, Torres developed bonds with several other crewmembers and became valued for his deep knowledge of Mjolnir systems.

Torres was notably tented under Operation: BREAKER TRIP where he assisted Spartan Jameson Locke who was deployed to Zeta Halo ahead of Infinity for a highly classified mission.

MARINA REBLEDO

Formerly a UNSC marine, Corporal Marina Rebledo retired from active service after the end of the Covenant War and pursued a new career as a psychotherapist specializing in treatment for military personnel. In July 2557 she was assigned to the UNSC Infinity, shortly following the New Phoenix incident, and took up residence in one of the ship’s commissaries that became known as “Universal Translator” where she also served as a bartender.

CALEB WARD

A warrant officer with a profound love for the G79H Pelican, Caleb Ward was known as an intrepid pilot with charm and wit in equal measure. His death is rarely talked about but his friends always make sure to leave an empty chair at the table to honor his memory.

TOBIAS MARTELL

A professor of xenoanthropology and regular guest lecturer at the University of Edinburgh for prospective Naval Intelligence recruits, Tobias Martell uniquely specialized in studies relating to the parasitic lifeform known as the Flood. A civilian consultant for ONI Section One, Martell has been privy to a wealth of highly classified information regarding the parasite. His work has directly informed containment measures and the training of hazop units. Due to his knowledge and known fascination with fringe conspiracy groups, ONI handlers are instructed to keep a close eye on Martell’s activities and associations.

VARO 'AHTAL

Though a warrior of the Swords of Sanghelios, Varo 'Ahtal—a ranger aboard the UNSC Infinity—held many doubts about the Arbiter's alliance with humanity. His dubious feelings reflected a commonly held perspective among the Sangheili following the Covenant's fall, uncertainty clouding what was once clear, particularly coming from a clan that knew great prestige under Orsu Lar 'Ahtalee's stewardship as kaidon. In the end however, Varo ultimately gave his life to protect a few human crewmen he managed to save from the Banished forces boarding Infinity.

ADJUTANT REPOSE

One of many submonitors stationed on Gyre 11 after it was retaken by the IsoDidact and converted into Zeta Halo of the neoteric array, Adjutant Repose was given purview over a series of storage and containment facilities that utilized advanced timelock technology.

UNIVERSAL TRANSLATOR

The UNSC Infinity is more than just a warship, it’s home to over seventeen thousand of humanity’s best when staffed at optimal capacity. While far from a luxury liner, the facilities, features, and comforts offered by Infinity are leaps and bounds beyond what UNSC forces endured throughout the Covenant War. Named after the M90 shotgun adorning the bar, Universal Translator is just one of several commissaries where crewmen gather to wind down, banter with colleagues, share stories, and take part in ship-wide R&R events.

While this liveliness gradually diminished over the year that Infinity spent on the run across interstellar space, losing crewmembers with each mission undertaken, Universal Translator remained a vibrant pit stop as the need for downtime became increasingly important for a crew under constant pressure.

ARTIFACT CONTAINMENT CHAMBER

The first Forerunner artifact recovered from Requiem by Fireteam Crimson, this mysterious slipspace device played a pivotal role throughout the Requiem Campaign. With a translocation link to the site known as Librarian’s Rest which Jul ‘Mdama made his primary headquarters, Promethean forces were able to leverage this connection to invade Infinity by simply phasing through the artifact. When ‘Mdama attempted to destroy Infinity by initiating Requiem’s containment failsafe protocol, two other slipspace artifacts “anchored” the UNSC flagship to the shield world and required manual shutdown.

Numerous attempts to jettison this artifact from Infinity have proven fruitless as it simply translocates aboard after reaching a certain distance threshold, leading analysts to conclude that it is “bonded” to the ship’s Forerunner engines. This has spurred efforts to understand how the artifact works and unlock its potential to serve Infinity rather than imperil it. Simply and unromantically nicknamed “the slab” by science personnel, recent breakthroughs resulted in this artifact becoming a notable part of plans concerning the effort to dethrone Cortana at Zeta Halo.

SITE REQ-096-E

Located a few kilometers away from the site nicknamed “The Cauldron” within Requiem, Site REQ-096-E lies on the border of Covenant territory where an occupation citadel is situated.

After Fireteam Crimson acquired the slipspace artifact and were en route to deliver it to Infinity, new orders redirected the Spartans to assist with another nearby operation which necessitated handing the device over for final delivery.

CONTAINMENT FACILITY

Embedded deep within the substructures of Zeta Halo are numerous facilities dedicated to research, containment, and storage for specimens held within cylixes. One particular facility is overseen by the submonitor known as Adjutant Repose who found himself contending with the sudden arrival of a group of Reclaimers, Flood specimens being released, and an urgent need to enact containment protocols.

Like many facilities on Zeta Halo, timelock technology is utilized based on the Forerunners’ own knowledge of advanced higher dimensional engineering and information gleaned from study of the Ancestor-San’Shyuum alliance’s “time bolt” feature applied to the cage of an ancient, terrible creature that once held dominion over the ring when it was designated Gyre 11. A localized temporal stasis field can be slowed or accelerated, though utilization of this technology even on a small scale requires immense amounts of power.

UNDER THE METARCH'S GAZE

In the wake of Cortana's demise, control over local Promethean units came under the highest remaining authority. With Zeta Halo's monitor missing, in deep hibernation within the Conservatory, 08-145 Offensive Bias assumed command.

OVER YONDER

Escaping the containment and storage facility beneath Zeta Halo, a lone Promethean Knight unit points toward an uncertain destination.

Halo: Parasite’s Wake by the acclaimed author and franchise newcomer Tim Lebbon is almost here, releasing on October 20! Here it is, real and physical, with pride of place on my Halo bookshelf.

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] We can confirm that Parasite's Wake is indeed still coming. The book was completed a few months ago, it's off press and physical copies exist. Do yourself a favor and pick one up!

This novel is the perfect companion to Halo: CE as it follows a group of marines stranded on Installation 04 attempting to regroup with UNSC forces at the Pillar of Autumn’s crash siteas the events of the game unfold.

We’ll have a preview of the novel going up soon, but players of Halo: Campaign Evolved will already have experienced a glimpse of the story through the Master Chief’s eyes as they explored the Library and came across Staff Sergeant Marvin Mobuto—originally introduced in the 2003 novelization Halo: The Flood—who serves as one of the primary characters of the novel.

From the beginning, you know the end. Alas, the other Reclaimer did not make it to the Index…

PRE-ORDER HALO: PARASITE’S WAKE

Halo: The Master Chief Omnibus is less than two months away, collecting The Fall of Reach, The Flood, and First Strike in a gargantuan tome complete with an updated editorial pass and new adjunct material for each book.

If you haven’t pre-ordered yet, now’s the time to do so!

We previously covered some of the updates being made to The Fall of Reach back in Issue 166, but we have some additional notes to provide for your reading pleasure.

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] As with Parasite's Wake, the omnibus is also complete and still very much on the way. Picture attached as proof!

THE EPIC RETURN OF BLUE-FIVE

Last year, we initially stated that Blue-Five was trimmed from the manuscript in the prologue of The Fall of Reach. As the editorial process continued on the book, adhering to the desire to maintain as much of the original as possible and following the mantra of “It’s not a bug, it’s a feature,” Blue-Five clawed his way out of the depths and was restored to his rightful place.

You may well ask, who on earth is Blue-Five? Well, to a degree, the overall anonymizing of Blue Team in the original 2001 novel's prologue left the reader wondering which of the Spartans we meet will make it to that point, but a quarter of a century later that is obviously very much not a mystery any longer.

For Blue-Five, we saw an opportunity to create a nice bit of parallelism between the very beginning of The Fall of Reach and the very end of First Strike, which led us to Will-043. Blue Team’s roster rotates throughout the early Halo novels, but at the start and the end of the omnibus it’s made up of the same Spartans.

POPULATION HARVEST

In Chapter 11 of The Fall of Reach, it is stated that the colony Harvest has a population of three million. However, Contact Harvest states that Harvest had a population of about 300,000. Despite this change, both the comic Halo: Fall of Reach - Boot Camp and Halo: The Essential Visual Guide corroborate the three million figure stated in the original 2001 novel. Where do we sit on the matter?

While not explicitly addressed in the omnibus, the original values are maintained. Harvest the colony overall had a population of three million, the city Utgard had 300,000. In the event of future reprints we would seek to more directly rectify this discrepancy.

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] We were super excited about the opportunities to update some of the other novels and even potentially do more omnibus editions. I know I'd have loved to have the Forerunner Saga compiled as a full volume, including 'Promises to Keep' and Bornstellar's epilogue from Halo: Fractures.

Oh, speaking of which, let me tell you that it has always bothered me that Bornstellar's epilogue never got a title. I spoke to Jeremy Patenaude a while back and received his blessing to rectify that. We have dubbed that story's title 'Eternal Lasting.'

UNRELENTING

After the Spartans acquire their Mjolnir armor from the Damascus testing facility on Chi Ceti IV, they engage the Covenant Zanar-pattern light cruiser named Unrelenting. Some oddities occur here that we have sought to address.

Beyond John, Kelly, and Sam, the other thirty Spartans essentially disappear from the story with little clarification as to what they’re doing. Are they also partaking in the boarding operation? Are they remaining behind aboard the Pelican? Wait… how on earth could a single Pelican, even with a modified troop bay, have room for thirty fully armored Spartan-II super-soldiers, Dr. Halsey and the three rescued technicians, and a dozen spare sets of Mjolnir armor?

Additional lines have been added to smooth out some of these elements. Firstly, there are two Pelicans in play here to more believably split the personnel and cargo. And secondly the activities of the other Spartans are more directly acknowledged, with John, Kelly, and Sam initiating the boarding operation while holding the others in reserve in case they don’t make it—whether by overshooting their target or not making it aboard Unrelenting.

TESTING, TESTING

In Chapter 27, the Master Chief undergoes a surgical operation to upgrade components in his neural interface before he is paired with Cortana. In Dr. Halsey’s personal journal the timestamp for her entry on this date notes that there is a three-hour window between the procedure being completed and the testing of the Mjolnir Mark V armor with Cortana. This span of time is not necessarily evident in the novel, so an additional line has been added to note that the next few hours saw numerous tests being run to ensure John’s neural interface was fully functional.

Speaking of timelines, we should probably address The Big One…

When The Fall of Reach released in 2001, the titular event of the novel was understood to have taken place over the course of a single day on August 30, 2552. Reach was discovered by the Covenant because of a tracking device planted on the hull of the UNSC Iroquois in the Sigma Octanus system. Reach fell in a matter of hours as the Covenant successfully bypassed the orbital MAC platforms and unleashed their fullest might.

When Halo: Reach released nine years later these events were re(t)contextualized. Reach became an extended military campaign featuring a series of initial skirmishes lasting several weeks from late July before Covenant fleet reinforcements arrive on August 14 and lay siege to the planet, targeting urban population areas like the city of New Alexandria.

Over the last sixteen years, various pieces of fiction have sought to provide more connective tissue between these events, broadly reconciling the book and game stories to both be true and minimize contradictions.

There is, however, one lingering issue that has not yet been tackled.

The Pillar of Autumn.

In the book’s epilogue, Cortana enacts Captain Keyes’s order for the Autumn to flee the Epsilon Eridani system before 0700 hours on August 30, 2552.

In the game, the Autumn is docked planetside at 1652 hours in the Asźod ship-breaking yard where Captain Keyes receives a high-priority package from Noble Six.

We’ve given only a few hints for the adjunct material in The Flood and First Strike in previous issues, but here we’ll be more direct. The new adjunct for The Fall of Reach directly addresses this hitherto unresolved timeline discrepancy.

Just after Keyes gives the order to jump into slipspace at the very end of Chapter 37, he then receives an urgent message from Dr. Catherine Halsey who informs him that the Autumn cannot leave yet and must retrieve the fragment of Cortana that Noble Team are bringing to him. Cortana proves instrumental in ensuring the Autumn can pull off a timely and unconventional Class-L flash-dock procedure, and we follow the concluding events of Halo: Reach from Keyes’s perspective.

The timestamp in the epilogue—where the Autumn jumps to the Soell system—has been adjusted to 1745 Hours. As a result of these changes, the flow of events concerning the Pillar of Autumn is now fully covered by the book.

The Spartan-II roster is a matter of great contention. Always has been. Probably always will be.

What we present to you here is the (almost) definitive audit of the Spartan-IIs. Who survived augmentation? Who was rehabilitated as a washout? Who didn't make it? What isn't included here are the names of the unestablished dead, those who exist purely as statistics.

First off, some facts.

• 150 candidates were selected for the SPARTAN-II program but only 75 were kidnapped and brought to Reach. The only candidate known to have avoided conscription was Caleb Aagard.
• 26 Spartan-IIs were recalled for the fall of Reach in preparation for Operation: RED FLAG.
• Black Team, Gray Team, Red Team (Alice, Douglas, Jerome), and Kurt-051 were not present at the fall of Reach.

Consolidated lore posits the following:

• 33 Spartans survived augmentation
• 23 Spartans died during augmentation
• 12 washouts were able to be rehabilitated as Spartans
• 4 washouts were able to be rehabilitated for desk jobs
• 2 washouts have unclear fates—Cassandra is receiving treatment in 2552 per Conversations from the Universe while Soren’s ultimate fate remains unknown
• 1 washout (Ralph-103) went on to serve in the UNSC Marine Corps

Now, one thing this list doesn’t necessarily account for is the final lines of Homecoming where it is off-handedly stated:

“Transport to base: Custody of Daisy-023 and Ralph-303 restored. Subjects ETA one hour. After making contact with their clones, the remaining two escapees used their small arms to commit suicide.”

This one line presents an issue for the numbers on this list which are otherwise very nicely aligned. Homecoming in general suggests that there were augmentations conducted before the bulk of the Spartan-IIs, as Ralph says “It’s been seven years” regarding the span of time. Now, that is probably just errata as the result of an oversight, but it’s in the episode so let’s roll with the punches here. Several Spartans may have been augmented as part of an earlier group ahead of the full cohort. Are we saying that’s absolutely the case? Not necessarily.

The most simple solution to the two suicides would be to just make them facility personnel who helped the Spartans escape. They killed themselves after learning about the flash clones, otherwise we would have to take away two more Spartans from the augmentation deaths. This game of mathematics within such limited parameters is fun!

So, on this front, take it with a grain of salt. Unfortunately there was a time in the franchise where Spartan-IIs were dropping like flies and the numbers simply weren’t being tracked properly. We’ve attempted to remedy this as best we can to minimally disrupt established characters and fiction, but some lingering problems remain.

Alas, our part in this is over now, but we wanted to take this last opportunity to show our homework on the matter. And, at the very least, if those who come after roll with the established lore around this, we want to make their lives a bit easier by having this formally recorded.

Finally, to round this issue off, a reminder that The Fall of Reach is getting the full dramatic audio treatment and will release alongside Halo: The Master Chief Omnibus.

In case you missed it, IGN has a seven-minute preview of the prologue.

Based on the updated version of the text in the omnibus itself, you will be soon be listening to a full-cast audio version of the story featuring Tim Dadabo as narrator along with the iconic and beloved voices of Steve Downes (John-117) and Jen Taylor (Cortana, Dr. Halsey)—in collaboration with our long-term friends and partners at Simon & Schuster Audio.

For this issue, we’re revealing the rest of the cast who will be lending their voices to the dramatic audio, some of which will no doubt sound familiar!

Stay tuned for November 10! You can pre-order the unabridged audio here.

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] Here's another extra little gift for you all to ensure this is not lost to time.

Wort's this? For many years the secrets of the Sangheili language have remained under locke and keyes, hidden away from prying eyes as efforts have been made to translate or transliterate the short phrases and terms that appear in the games.

We've got the full cipher that was created for Halo: Reach, and if this truly be the end then we want to share it with you. (You're welcome, Covenant Canon!)

SAMPLES USED FOR DECRYPTION

Look up there - Si’r ’wach p’umu
Go look ahead! – Wort si’r ua’uk
Yes, good! – Wir, wort’k
Go to safety – Wort pi shukupee
More heretics! - Mamu a’umupersh!
Me see one! - Pa sho’ imu!
Wake up! - Zuru ’wach!
Excellent, my skills are! - Udarusump shressh!
Enjoy this do I - Umrifa p’esh ki

ENGLISH – SANGHEILI CIPHER

SAFE = SHUKU
UP = ‘WACH
MEAL = YAR (Yar)
GO = WORT
ME = PA
MORE = MAMU
EE = O’
LL = S
OO = I’
SS = ‘SH
TH = P’
A = U
B (“buh”) = R’
C = R
D = K
E = U
F = K
G = A’
H (“hh”) = A’
H (“hew”) = AN
I  = E
J = R
K = R
L = S or SH
M = P
M (“mmm”) = AM
N = M
O = I
O (“oh”) = A
P (“ph”) = CH
R (“rrr”) = W
R = M
S = SH
T = P
U = W
U (“uhh”) = ‘WA
V = Z
W = Z
X (“ex”) = DA
Y (“ee”) = EE (e.g. TY = PEE)
Y (“a”) = DA
Y (“oy”) = FA

So, what is still coming? Here’s a list of what we’re hoping to deliver over the next year.

2026

• Halo: Parasite’s Wake (October 20)
• Waypoint Chronicle: [REDACTED] (November 2)
• Waypoint Chronicle: [REDACTED] (November 9)
• Halo: The Master Chief Omnibus (November 10)
• Halo: The Fall of Reach – Full-Cast Dramatized Audio (November 10)
• Waypoint Chronicle: [REDACTED] (November 15)
• Waypoint Chronicle: [REDACTED] (November 23)
• Waypoint Chronicle: [REDACTED] (November 30)
• Waypoint Chronicle: Shattered Hourglass (December 8)

2027

• Waypoint Chronicle: The War in Heaven (February 21)
• Halo: Fireteam Noble
• Halo: The Fall of Reach – Definitive Edition*
• Halo: The Flood – Definitive Edition*
• Halo: First Strike – Definitive Edition*
• Halo: Burn the Road Home
• Halo: Waypoint Chronicles – Volume Two

*These are updates to the existing definitive editions with edits from the omnibus.

And that’s a wrap for this behemoth of an issue—certainly the longest we’ve had in a while!

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] And the last!

A wealth of fanciful fiction is on the way over the next few months. New Waypoint Chronicles, Parasite’s Wake, the omnibus and dramatic audio, and a little event you may have heard of called Halo Fest that’ll bring us all together to celebrate a quarter-century of this franchise.

Pardon (our dust) the cliché, but we really are just getting started!

[HISTORIAN'S NOTE] Well, that aged rather poorly.

With the events of last week still fresh, Jeff and I wrote up a bit of an “afterword” for folks who have followed Canon Fodder over the years. We wanted a chance to say a proper goodbye to you all.

JEFF EASTERLING

I’ve told the story before, but I still vividly remember sitting in a very specific meeting room in the old Bungie/343 building in Kirkland back in 2014, pitching this little fiction-focused feature called “Canon Fodder.” “We have a lot of great content for things like esports, multiplayer, general announcements, and game content,” I said. “I want to make a feature that is something I always wanted to see as a fan—something exclusively focused on the lore.”

I went on to wax about what formats it could possibly take and what types of topics we’d cover, and I’ll always be grateful for the support and ultimate approval from leadership on the Franchise and Community teams that led to “Canon Fodder” becoming an actual thing. Twelve years, nearly two hundred issues, and multiple “Live” editions later, and it’s honestly become so much more than the sum of its parts.

Canon Fodder in many ways encapsulates everything I’ve loved so much about my time working on this franchise; the celebration of detail dissection, the evangelizing annals of accuracy, and the examination of authenticity vs apocrypha. It’s a blog-bound fiction festival that treats every page like a party thrown for new insights on the fictions, characters, events, locations, and technology of the Halo universe.

Most importantly, it’s the place where we most got to know each other.

This feature, this franchise… it’s nothing without its people. But it’s not just the folks on “this” side of the creative fence… Halo is nothing without YOU. Thank you so much for being a community that cares so fiercely, argues so passionately, and dreams so deeply. I hope you carry this energy forward into Halo’s next chapter and bring just as much joy to its next generation of stewardship as you have to this one.

As a small parting gift, we thought it would be fun to share some never-before-seen visualizations of the Halo universe that hopefully feel befitting of a marvelous and mysterious twenty-five years.

Live well, play Halo, and thank you.

-Jeff/Grim

ALEX WAKEFORD

Permit me, if you will, a final opportunity to go full Halo turbonerd about something.

It has long been a matter of discussion over many years as to why exactly the Forerunners were called "Forerunners." We didn't give them that name in a contemporaneous sense, that is what they called themselves—one that precedes another.

They did this because it was their belief that their stewardship of the galaxy was just one stage in Living Time. Others had come before them. Others would come after. One day, they would pass on the Mantle of Responsibility, and their work would be done.

Now, as we know, it took them a good long while to get around to that. For the better part of ten million years they held onto their authority, committed terrible atrocities against those that threatened their position and rule, and rotted from within before they were ultimately humbled once their crimes and cover-ups manifested as an unstoppable parasite hellbent on vengeance and universal consumption.

One might be tempted to draw certain parallels to real life within this cosmic tapestry, but the main thing I take from that is the understanding that things do not last forever.

Throughout our lives we must make peace with that time and time again, and it's a lesson always worth learning when it arises—especially from circumstances beyond one's own control.

I look back on the last half a decade of my life, the opportunities I've had as just one small part of this incredible franchise that I've loved, played, read, analyzed, grumbled about, and everything between and beyond since I was seven. All that comes to my mind is gratitude.

It's been a true privilege to serve as a steward of Halo, to write stories that live within it, to work with authors and artists and designers and directors, and so many other people with whom I have shared a common love for this series.

But the time has come to let go of the Mantle, to pass into the Domain and stand back to simply watch with hope that the seeds planted in this garden will continue to bear fruit as others come to tend it.

To the wonderful people in the community I've met at the Halo World Championship events, the amazingly talented colleagues I've worked with to build cool stories and experiences, the external partners who have been a joy to collaborate with... it's been a pleasure. It's been the very best of times.

Before we sign off one final time, we have some parting gifts for you below.

Daowa-maadthu. We play out our parts in Living Time and accept all that life brings, and all that it takes away.

-Alex/Haruspis

A MONUMENT TO ALL YOUR SINS

We thought it was high time we had a more definitive image of maddening monument to malevolence, the Primordial. Brought to life by Sam Wood.

A creature of horrifying providence and intent known by many names—the Timeless One, the Primordial, and eventually the Gravemind. This twisted progeny of the Precursors was executed by Bornstellar through the use of a timelock on Gyre 11, reducing its form to dust by subjecting it to the passage of millions of years in mere moments.

But the Primordial's experiments had borne fruit. Having infected itself with the Flood, the consciousness of this strange being passed into the parasite's hive mind where it is awakened whenever the Flood successfully form a compound intelligence.

WAR CHIEF SEVERAN

Last surviving son of Tartarus, Chieftain of the Jiralhanae within the Covenant, Severan drew the favor of the San'Shyuum high lord known as Dovo Nesto. With loyalties and belonging split across the Covenant and Banished axes, Nesto's betrayal ultimately consolidated his loyalties toward the latter.

Given command authority over the Banished Home Fleet by Atriox prior to his departure for Zeta Halo, the continued absence of the warmaster has ultimately left Severan as de facto leader of the confederacy's remaining forces.

CLOISTER

The tangled web of manipulative half-truths woven by the San'Shyuum over the ages has concealed much of their history, even among their own kind.

Within Cloister, the gene-forge god machines do their work to reforge the San'Shyuum in the image of their Stoic ancestors. Lithe and hale, bearing renewed strength as a warrior once again, a lone Prelate looks up at the stars through the vigilant-formed quarantine shield around his homeworld and awaits the coming time of reformation and reemergence.

WHAT WE MAY BE AGAIN

The San'Shyuum were once remarkably sophisticated, boasting technology unique among the species of the galaxy. Contemporary efforts by the Sacred Promissory to forge Prelate warriors are but a shadow of their ancient forms. Their mastery of genetic engineering transformed event plant life and vegetation into unique tools, such as the folasteed mount.

FAR BEYOND THE ORION COMPLEX

Much of human history has been lost. From the time of the farmer and the shepherd and their shivering asunder, to the first rise of a space-faring civilization that was scattered across worlds as they suffered a series of technological dark ages, to their triumphant rediscovery of Earth which led to the rise of the Ancestors, and their eventual defeat on Charum Hakkor that brought an end to their empire. The Forerunners have erased a great deal of historical evidence, but even their ecumene's reach had its limits.

Deep within the Perseus Arm, far beyond the Orion Complex, there remain yet undiscovered worlds with their weathered monuments to time beyond knowledge. As the first fledgling discoveries are made in contemporary times relating to the true extent of humanity's strange history, great bounties of knowledge lie in wait to become battlefields for new wars of discovery.

THE SCION

Scion Tul 'Juran has served Shipmaster Rtas 'Vadum loyally aboard Shadow of Intent for several revolutions and now operates alongside the Spartan-II super-soldiers of Gray Team.

THE GRAVEWORLD

As Jul ‘Mdama carried out the Didact’s designs, he initiated Requiem’s stellar containment protocols—an emergency failsafe built into shield worlds enabling to turn stars into “stellar grenades” in the event of a thema or margin arc falling to the Flood.

Requiem’s shell was shattered and scorched as it plummeted into its local star, harnessing exotic slipstream engineering capabilities to rapidly destabilize Epoloch before transitioning through a planet-sized rupture. Emerging elsewhere in the galaxy, dead and adrift, the faithful zealots that remained behind—under the command of Shipmaster Ryn ‘Alun—have begun harnessing Promethean technology, augmenting themselves to achieve a new perfect, divine form that might serve the will of their warrior-god as they await the time of his return.

THE TRIUMVIRATE

Xe’tl Yanevi, Harmony. Dovo Nesto, Sympathy. Jom G’e’qth, Amity.

MEANWHILE ON ZETA HALO...

The battle for Zeta Halo encompasses much of the ring's surface, taking place in vast fields of snow and ice, deep jungles with Banished steel embedded into mighty trees looming over the wetlands, sand-blasted ruins that were once home to the Tudejsa.

HELM'S DEEP

After crashing on the ring's surface, the UNSC Infinity was shrouded by advanced Forerunner baffler systems. Over the course of six months, it appears to be becoming part of the ring itself. Whether she will rise again remains unknown, but her scorched and broken hull serves as a haven for surviving human personnel... and a deterrent as the threat of overloading its engines would destroy all the Banished seek to claim.

THE ENDLESS EMERGE

And finally, as is tradition, we’ll leave you with something that hopefully sparks your imagination and lets your canon curiosities run wild with endless questions.

Behold the Xalanyn, children of Abaddon.

With that, Canon Fodder has come to an end.

Forever? Who knows, eh? Who knows. Those who come after may well choose to continue it, a new author may yet lend their pen to this series for future narrative endeavors. In such an event we'll take this moment to offer a firm handshake to whoever this future person may be. Go forth and deliver unto the community the good word about all things Halo story and lore!

Or perhaps Issue 171 truly is where this feature definitively concludes for the rest of Living Time. And that's okay too. Something isn't great because it lasts forever—it's the time we shared and what it meant to us.

As Philip Larkin once said in An Arundel Tomb, "What will survive of us is love."

And we have loved this great journey with you all so very, very much.