Having read all of the books (save lacking finishing the last two most recent ones), I personally would recommend reading the Fall of Reach, and then playing through Combat Evolved. This is a great entry into the universe (similar to how many of us began our journey), and you won't miss specific shock-value moments that potentially could be in things like the Forerunner trilogy. Not to mention, these two will quickly build a love and respect for the universe long before you potentially feel it necessary to drudge through the tougher/less exciting readings. Just my two cents, though
Start with The Fall of Reach by Eric Nylund. Then play Halo CE.
Outside of how you'd want to tackle the games, a good order would be something like:
The Fall of Reach
The Flood
First Strike
Ghosts of Onyx
Kilo-Five Trilogy (I like to think of it as a sequel trilogy to Ghosts of Onyx, even though they have different authors, which is why I paired them up)
Glasslands
The Thursday War
Mortal Dictata
Forerunner Trilogy
Cryptum
Primordium
Silentium
Stand Alones
Broken Circle
Contact Harvest
Cole Protocol
Evolutions
Start with The Fall of Reach by Eric Nylund. Then play Halo CE.
Outside of how you'd want to tackle the games, a good order would be something like:
The Fall of Reach
The Flood
First Strike
Ghosts of Onyx
Kilo-Five Trilogy (I like to think of it as a sequel trilogy to Ghosts of Onyx, even though they have different authors, which is why I paired them up)
Glasslands
The Thursday War
Mortal Dictata
Forerunner Trilogy
Cryptum
Primordium
Silentium
Stand Alones
Broken Circle
Contact Harvest
Cole Protocol
Evolutions
I'd agree with most all of this. One of the few exceptions would be to give a specific reading order to Contact Harvest. I think this book has a huge amount of great insight we hadn't gotten before, specifically dealing with things like the structure of the Covenant, some of the mysteries of the Forerunners, and even some great insight into AI. I went in to this book thinking it was going to be a one-off, but it quickly became one of my favorite books of the series (behind Fall of Reach).
I personally would place the book right after Combat Evolved.
There's been a huge battle that's transpired in both Fall of Reach and Combat Evolved, and during you've learned about this hugely mysterious species called Forerunners.
This book will answer how and why the Covenant began fighting us in the first place, and gives just enough answers to the Forerunners to keep things interesting
Okay before I go further, do you all genuinely believe that Greg Bear planted a lot of seeds in the Forerunner trilogy foreshadowing future story lines?
- the Ur-Didact (already in play)
- genesongs (already in play)
- the Floods endgame
- IsoDidact's possible return
- how Graveminds are amassed, and what can form beyond them
- Catalog (already in play)
- the buried fragment of Mendicant Bias
Having read all of the books (save lacking finishing the last two most recent ones), I personally would recommend reading the Fall of Reach, and then playing through Combat Evolved. This is a great entry into the universe (similar to how many of us began our journey), and you won't miss specific shock-value moments that potentially could be in things like the Forerunner trilogy. Not to mention, these two will quickly build a love and respect for the universe long before you potentially feel it necessary to drudge through the tougher/less exciting readings. Just my two cents, though
I guess I'll give a little bit of what I'm bringing with me into trying to get into the deeper lore. I know a lot of generalities from osmosis and occasional delving into things like Halopedia. (
Things like humanity being just as ancient as the Forerunners and the human-Forerunner conflict due in part to the emergence of the Flood I'm aware of in general terms, if not in specifics
) I have played all the games and I do have a lot of respect for the universe just as it's presented in the games and the expanded materials as seen there. So I'm not new to Halo so much as I'm trying to fill in my knowledge of the canon that you don't get in the games.
That said, if I am to take your advice and come at it from a more release-ordered perspective than a chronological one (something I tend to advocate myself, so I'm not adverse to the suggestion), how should I go at it, considering I intend to mix in my replay of the games with my reading of the novels?
I guess I'll give a little bit of what I'm bringing with me into trying to get into the deeper lore. I know a lot of generalities from osmosis and occasional delving into things like Halopedia. (
Things like humanity being just as ancient as the Forerunners and the human-Forerunner conflict due in part to the emergence of the Flood I'm aware of in general terms, if not in specifics
) I have played all the games and I do have a lot of respect for the universe just as it's presented in the games and the expanded materials as seen there. So I'm not new to Halo so much as I'm trying to fill in my knowledge of the canon that you don't get in the games.
That said, if I am to take your advice and come at it from a more release-ordered perspective than a chronological one (something I tend to advocate myself, so I'm not adverse to the suggestion), how should I go at it, considering I intend to mix in my replay of the games with my reading of the novels?
Honestly, thinking about how I would read/play it again from the beginning, it'd be a hybrid of chronological by release and chronological in-universe, with some odd-balls thrown in. In hind-sight, there are some books that give great insight into things that if read at other times might be a bore. I'll try and formulate a list of how I'd tackle it shortly.
My major problem with the Kilo Five Trilogy is that it featured a bunch of flat, unlikable characters, some of whom will go on to be significant elements of the Halo franchise. Osman's characterization in particular is by far the most uneven, and to me, most of the time she appears incompetent. You never truly get a sense of her cunning, or why she would be a fit to run ONI. There is zero charisma.
Mostly though, it was the axis of the story being centered on the defamation of Catherine Halsey from a bunch of people who don't matter which bothered me the most. You would think Osman would play more of a part, or Naomi, but they end up as cheerleaders as two ODST scrubs and Parangosky take up the balance of Halsey's condemnation.
There is a truly interesting premise in the moral implications of the Spartan-II project - about the cost of humanity in the name of war and/or science - and the cult of personality that is Catherine Halsey. But it's done a severe disservice by the limited perspective these wack ass characters offered, as well as the detachment Traviss had with respect to the material when she would Michael-Jordan-in-Space-Jam reach with immersion shattering comparisons to 20th century war criminals. There is no further illumination of the Spartan-II project other than the laughable clone retcon that only exists to give Parangosky moral leverage (again, really???). These books are particularly wasteful lorewise, and a missed opportunity as a character study.
Everything else in the book was a simulacrum of other, better executed elements of Halo books: the interaction with Forerunner technology, the action, Halsey's characterization in general, an AI's struggle with its identity. It truly feels like a book without an identity; what it should have focused on, the books didn't nearly enough. ONI is no more fleshed out after the Kilo Five Trilogy than where Nylund left them in Onyx.
As such, the KFT felt bloated and unsubstantial. It tries to do too many things at once while missing plenty of opportunities to provide further context behind ONI and Halsey herself. I think it was a severe mistake to try and use the exact material fans of the series think to be badass and interesting as the spear to skewer that very perspective in blunt fashion. Nothing was handled with grace. You address the obvious impact such a project would have on the families of the abducted children, and you choose the perspective of the guy who becomes a terrorist/insurrectionist. The third party opinion is that of veteran killers, who would sooner be murderers than martyrs. It's all very one note and corny and boring.
And I understand 343 wants it done this way to both castigate Halsey as well as show the hypocrisy and untrustworthiness of ONI. They seem to want to make the Master Chief a real boy, so that requires some introspection from all parties involved. And of course the real key to Chief's humanity was always going to be Cortana, of which they might as well be siblings, both born (more or less) from Halsey. It looks like 343 learned some lessons because this #huntthetruth stuff is already far more compelling than the KFT for me, approaching it all from the civilian angle.
Add me, if you want to live! Just kidding.. I'm decidedly so-so in multi-player but love Co-op when I get time.
Going through Halo 4 again.. so much better than I remembered (and I remembered liking it). I got it at midnight at launch and played nonstop until I beat it at like 9-10AM the next day, so I got the gist of the story but my sleep deprivation probably caused me to forget some of the more nuanced details.
When the ur-Didact comes out of the cryptum it seems like he WOULD have been almost accepting of humanity being in charge, but then he realizes that we've yet to take the mantle and he sees his chance to act.
I love all the threads they're weaving, I read the Kilo-5 and Forerunner Saga as they came out, and I almost felt like they were perfectly, but subtly referencing each other.. which I loved.
So much Halo goodness! I love that this thread is so active again!
Add me, if you want to live! Just kidding.. I'm decidedly so-so in multi-player but love Co-op when I get time.
Going through Halo 4 again.. so much better than I remembered (and I remembered liking it). I got it at midnight at launch and played nonstop until I beat it at like 9-10AM the next day, so I got the gist of the story but my sleep deprivation probably caused me to forget some of the more nuanced details.
When the ur-Didact comes out of the cryptum it seems like he WOULD have been almost accepting of humanity being in charge, but then he realizes that we've yet to take the mantle and he sees his chance to act.
I love all the threads they're weaving, I read the Kilo-5 and Forerunner Saga as they came out, and I almost felt like they were perfectly, but subtly referencing each other.. which I loved.
So much Halo goodness! I love that this thread is so active again!
My major problem with the Kilo Five Trilogy is that it featured a bunch of flat, unlikable characters, some of whom will go on to be significant elements of the Halo franchise. Osman's characterization in particular is by far the most uneven, and to me, most of the time she appears incompetent. You never truly get a sense of her cunning, or why she would be a fit to run ONI. There is zero charisma.
Mostly though, it was the axis of the story being centered on the defamation of Catherine Halsey from a bunch of people who don't matter which bothered me the most. You would think Osman would play more of a part, or Naomi, but they end up as cheerleaders as two ODST scrubs and Parangosky take up the balance of Halsey's condemnation.
There is a truly interesting premise in the moral implications of the Spartan-II project - about the cost of humanity in the name of war and/or science - and the cult of personality that is Catherine Halsey. But it's done a severe disservice by the limited perspective these wack ass characters offered, as well as the detachment Traviss had with respect to the material when she would Michael-Jordan-in-Space-Jam reach with immersion shattering comparisons to 20th century war criminals. There is no further illumination of the Spartan-II project other than the laughable clone retcon that only exists to give Parangosky moral leverage (again, really???). These books are particularly wasteful lorewise, and a missed opportunity as a character study.
Everything else in the book was a simulacrum of other, better executed elements of Halo books: the interaction with Forerunner technology, the action, Halsey's characterization in general, an AI's struggle with its identity. It truly feels like a book without an identity; what it should have focused on, the books didn't nearly enough. ONI is no more fleshed out after the Kilo Five Trilogy than where Nylund left them in Onyx.
As such, the KFT felt bloated and unsubstantial. It tries to do too many things at once while missing plenty of opportunities to provide further context behind ONI and Halsey herself. I think it was a severe mistake to try and use the exact material fans of the series think to be badass and interesting as the spear to skewer that very perspective in blunt fashion. Nothing was handled with grace. You address the obvious impact such a project would have on the families of the abducted children, and you choose the perspective of the guy who becomes a terrorist/insurrectionist. The third party opinion is that of veteran killers, who would sooner be murderers than martyrs. It's all very one note and corny and boring.
And I understand 343 wants it done this way to both castigate Halsey as well as show the hypocrisy and untrustworthiness of ONI. They seem to want to make the Master Chief a real boy, so that requires some introspection from all parties involved. And of course the real key to Chief's humanity was always going to be Cortana, of which they might as well be siblings, both born (more or less) from Halsey. It looks like 343 learned some lessons because this #huntthetruth stuff is already far more compelling than the KFT for me, approaching it all from the civilian angle.
Well said. I got to wonder what it would've been like if Nylund himself did the trilogy instead. And I agree 100% with you on the way they're handling the #Huntthetruth campaign they're doing.
I guess I'll give a little bit of what I'm bringing with me into trying to get into the deeper lore. I know a lot of generalities from osmosis and occasional delving into things like Halopedia. (
Things like humanity being just as ancient as the Forerunners and the human-Forerunner conflict due in part to the emergence of the Flood I'm aware of in general terms, if not in specifics
) I have played all the games and I do have a lot of respect for the universe just as it's presented in the games and the expanded materials as seen there. So I'm not new to Halo so much as I'm trying to fill in my knowledge of the canon that you don't get in the games.
That said, if I am to take your advice and come at it from a more release-ordered perspective than a chronological one (something I tend to advocate myself, so I'm not adverse to the suggestion), how should I go at it, considering I intend to mix in my replay of the games with my reading of the novels?
Well the Forerunner trilogy is chronologically first. But it's kinda... "out there". Like the Silmarillion to Lord of the Rings if that makes any sense. But they're some of my favourite books, even outside of Halo. I would read those once you've had a handful of books tackled. The Fall of Reach is THE book that defined the expanded Halo universe, and is very much what lead to how the story was presented in Halo 2 I feel. It's also a great introduction to the series. It's the first, and the best, to this day I would say. Eric Nylund worked very closely with Bungie on creating the universe and building a proper backstory to a lot of what we don't hear about in Halo CE, but perhaps wondered. The last page is basically exactly where Halo CE begins, too, which is pretty cool. You could also play Halo Reach once you've read this one, as it's sort of a companion parallel story to a lot of what takes place in the book.
As said before, The Flood is a novelization of Halo CE, so if you're into that kind of thing, go for it. But it's skippable, and not written by Nylund.
First Strike is Nylund's second book, and it takes place between Halo CE and 2. Reading it before Halo 2 will give you a much grander perspective on just what is going on during the events of the game.
The stand alone novels, like Contact Harvest can be read at any point I think. But most of them are rich with references to the "older" stuff in the series, so you'll benefit from leaving those until a bit later. I'd agree though that Contact Harvest, which chronicles the "First Contact" between Humanity and the Covenant and the reasoning behind the whole war between them. It's written by Joe Staten, who was a very big part of crafting the world of Halo at Bungie. I would say read this one either after Halo 2 or 3, since those two games heavily cover the war between Humans and Covenant. You'll get to take a step backward and get a new appreciation for all that went down in the main trilogy. You can go ahead and do Halo 3 ODST either before or after Halo 3 at this point.
Ghosts of Onyx is Eric Nylund's last (latest?) book, and it sets up much of what we're dealing with in Halo 4, along with Karen Traviss' Kilo-Five trilogy that acts as a direct sequel to the events in Ghosts of Onyx. They explore a lot of the UNSC-side of the story, and the mysteries of the Forerunners, too. I don't want to spoil too much. Ghosts is more of a sequel to First Strike than anything, but it's somewhat stand alone, too.
After these books, you can either choose to play Halo 4, or go back to tackle the Forerunner trilogy by Greg Bear first. These books take place 100 000 years before Halo CE, and act somewhat as the folklore for the really ancient aspects of the Halo universe. If you've read and played enough, these books are mind-blowing. I'll leave it at that.
Note: The Fall of Reach was also turned into a comic, titled "Fall of Reach". But I wouldn't recommend reading that unless you've read the novel. I'm a purist that way. It more adds visuals to it than anything and cuts out a ton of the fluff. There are also "definitive" edition re-releases of The Fall of Reach, The Flood, and First Strike, which have a few errors corrected to make them fit a bit better with the games and other media (Bungie had a habit of changing dates and what not, nothing huge, but still worth noting). If you can't get those, it's fine, they're more worth it for the extra short stories that are included in the "adjunct" sections at the end of the novels.
Broken Circle and the Cole Protocol can be read whenever, so long as you've beaten at least Halo 2 and read a couple books already. And Evolutions is a collection of short stories (including one by our very own Stinkles), and is a very fun read, in a sort of bathroom digest type way.
I hope that helps!
Also: Don't forget to watch the terminals in Halo CE: Anniversary, Halo 2 Anniversary, and Halo 4. They're supplementary, but in the case of Halo 4, very necessary.
Below is the list of how I would go back through all the main media again. Some of it is very specific as to why, while other aspects of it is just because of what I'd want to be focused to from one aspect of media to another. I've noted specific entries with parenthesis when I feel the entry is either not necessary and/or could be enjoyed at various other places without too much of any issue.
Halo: the Fall of Reach
Halo: Combat Evolved
(Halo: the Flood)
Halo: Contact Harvest
(Halo Wars)
Halo: First Strike
Halo 2
Halo 3:ODST
(Halo: Broken Circle)
(Halo: Cole Protocol)
Halo: Ghosts of Onyx
(Halo: Reach)
Halo: Cryptum
Halo: Primordium
Halo: Silentium
Halo: Evolutions
Halo 3
Halo: Origins
Halo: Glasslands
Halo: Thursday War
Halo: Mortal Dictata
Halo: New Blood
Halo: Spartan Assault
Halo: Forward Unto Dawn
Halo 4
Halo: Escalation
Halo: Nightfall
Hope this helps. If there are questions as to why I chose specific items to be placed in specific locations, ask away
Wesleyshark: Wesley S Shark
Poodlestrike: Poodlestrike
CRIMSONxSERAPH: CRIMSONxSERAPH
Toa TAK: Toa TAK
AYF 001: AYF 001
Fuchsdh: Fuchsdh
THEF3AR: F3AR THE LEGEND
GringoSuave89: GringoSuave89
Calm Killer: Calm Killer
MAX PAYMENT: MAX PAYMENT
IlSignorCornetto: SignorCornetto
If we are sharing GTs, mine is Mouroutaru, always up for campaign and mp (though I am average at best)
Lore related , I only read the forerunner trilogy and was pleasantly surprised by it though I felt it suffered from some pacing issues at the end. Also lots of interesting ideas, but the integration into Halo 4 was lacking. Some suggested to people that they needed to read the books to understand what was happening in the game, but really it just made it confusing in a different way.
At this point I'm just glad they are attempting to make it all more cohesive.
Haha. Xbox Live Beta participant back in.. 2003? It was the call-sign I always used so I just went with it.. let me tell you how much fun it was to be "NSA" during the whole Snowden/Kinect/NSA/etc scandal..
If anything I'd give Cryptum and Primoridum a read, or just Cryptum at the very least before you play Halo 4.
I wasn't surprised to see most people who hadn't read the first book were exteremtly lost on some parts of Halo 4's story. I know a lot of my friends are since I'm the only one nerdy enough to be into the Lore.
Cole Protocol isn't a big priority, I think. And you can completely skip The Flood and anything written by that author.
Below is the list of how I would go back through all the main media again. Some of it is very specific as to why, while other aspects of it is just because of what I'd want to be focused to from one aspect of media to another. I've noted specific entries with parenthesis when I feel the entry is either not necessary and/or could be enjoyed at various other places without too much of any issue.
Halo: the Fall of Reach
Halo: Forward Unto Dawn
Halo: Combat Evolved
(Halo: the Flood)
Halo: Contact Harvest
(Halo Wars)
Halo: First Strike
Halo 2
Halo 3:ODST
(Halo: Broken Circle)
(Halo: Cole Protocol)
Halo: Ghosts of Onyx
(Halo: Reach)
Halo: Cryptum
Halo: Primordium
Halo: Silentium
Halo: Evolutions
Halo 3
Halo: Origins
Halo: Glasslands
Halo: Thursday War
Halo: Mortal Dictata
Halo: New Blood
Halo: Spartan Assault
Halo 4
Halo: Escalation
Halo: Nightfall
Hope this helps. If there are questions as to why I chose specific items to be placed in specific locations, ask away
I moved Forward Unto Dawn to right after Spartan Assault (quite a jump).
I originally wanted to be able to first read of Chief's actions (Fall of Reach), then see them (FUD), then play as him (CE)...but I remembered the Cortana bit at the beginning and then the older Lasky bit at the end, and decided to move it.
May you have a...great journey...in your reading/viewing/playing.
- confirmed by Stinkles himself! Medium and scope was not specified, but it was unmistakably noted that we should expect to see him again.
- Glasslands slowed the pace as it opened, but man did it spiral into glorious spy vs spy type chaos once it found its feet. Thursday War was solid. Mortal Dictata was absolutely fantastic, as it broke down so many tropes and muddied the waters a bit, mirroring a lot of themes and pitfalls that were also touched on in Primordium and Silentium. Even though both trilogies are their own thing, they all flow together really well, overall, and as they both pour into the events of Halo 4.
I forgot Halo Legends! There's never a bad time to watch that again, especially Origins. I have a tiny love affair with this collection of anime short stories in the halo universe. Very approachable too if you're not familiar with Halo at all. More so than the live action stuff I think.
Also, a few of the short stories from Evolutions were adapted into motion comics with audio and voice acting, which you can find on YouTube, including Stinkles' short. They're wonderful as well.
I forgot Halo Legends! There's never a bad time to watch that again, especially Origins. I have a tiny love affair with this collection of anime short stories in the halo universe. Very approachable too if you're not familiar with Halo at all. More so than the live action stuff I think.
Also, a few of the short stories from Evolutions were adapted into motion comics with audio and voice acting, which you can find on YouTube, including Stinkles' short. They're wonderful as well.
Sad they never got to some of the stories. I've told myself that if they don't, I want to tackle doing a Terminals-style adaptation of The Impossible Life and Possible Death of Preston J Cole, but I've got a few other projects to polish off before I could attempt it
Sad they never got to some of the stories. I've told myself that if they don't, I want to tackle doing a Terminals-style adaptation of The Impossible Life and Possible Death of Preston J Cole, but I've got a few other projects to polish off before I could attempt it
I've got a lock-in (no, not Lockout, though we might experience both a Blackout and a Lockdown ) tonight, so tonight is definitely out for me. Sometime tomorrow once I get caught up on some Zs I'm available so far as I know.
- the Ur-Didact (already in play)
- genesongs (already in play)
- the Floods endgame
- IsoDidact's possible return
- how Graveminds are amassed, and what can form beyond them
- Catalog (already in play)
- the buried fragment of Mendicant Bias
The entire plotline around 343 Guilty Spark taking over the UNSC Rubicon and going off to find the Librarian, or who is now Chant-to-Green.
Remember also that the entire Forerunner Trilogy was written from the perspective of 343 Guilty Spark, aka Chakas, who has Forthencho imprinted within him, so we might even get something more on that route; maybe Forthencho has reawakened within Chakas/343 Guilty Spark
The entire plotline around 343 Guilty Spark taking over the UNSC Rubicon and going off to find the Librarian, or who is now Chant-to-Green.
Remember also that the entire Forerunner Trilogy was written from the perspective of 343 Guilty Spark, aka Chakas, who has Forthencho imprinted within him, so we might even get something more on that route; maybe Forthencho has reawakened within Chakas/343 Guilty Spark
The entire plotline around 343 Guilty Spark taking over the UNSC Rubicon and going off to find the Librarian, or who is now Chant-to-Green.
Remember also that the entire Forerunner Trilogy was written from the perspective of 343 Guilty Spark, aka Chakas, who has Forthencho imprinted within him, so we might even get something more on that route; maybe Forthencho has reawakened within Chakas/343 Guilty Spark
How damaged was 343GS by the time he took over the ship? Was he just an entity at that point? Or did he still have use of his floating ball self? I can't recall.
The entire plotline around 343 Guilty Spark taking over the UNSC Rubicon and going off to find the Librarian, or who is now Chant-to-Green.
Remember also that the entire Forerunner Trilogy was written from the perspective of 343 Guilty Spark, aka Chakas, who has Forthencho imprinted within him, so we might even get something more on that route; maybe Forthencho has reawakened within Chakas/343 Guilty Spark
Forthenchos impression put in a separate monitor though, leaving Chakas as his own individual within another monitor? Which monitor is Forthencho in now again? Either way, I would love a second round between the Lord of Admirals and the Forerunners or Flood...
EDIT: Nevermind, he was indeed in 343...Is the wiki right that he was a neanderthal? That doesn't seem to make sense. I know Chakas was, but the LoA was pre-devolution http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Forthencho#cite_note-2
Well the Forerunner trilogy is chronologically first. But it's kinda... "out there". Like the Silmarillion to Lord of the Rings if that makes any sense. But they're some of my favourite books, even outside of Halo..
I agree with that comparison, both are kind of, I guess, on such a large scale that they're almost hard to understand. Not in a bad way, it's just hard to describe, they're very different from say the tactical action of Ghosts of Onyx which is very precise in its meanings.
The entire plotline around 343 Guilty Spark taking over the UNSC Rubicon and going off to find the Librarian, or who is now Chant-to-Green.
Remember also that the entire Forerunner Trilogy was written from the perspective of 343 Guilty Spark, aka Chakas, who has Forthencho imprinted within him, so we might even get something more on that route; maybe Forthencho has reawakened within Chakas/343 Guilty Spark
With that in mind, I'm going to hypothesize something...
What if 343GS/Chakas, being (at least at one time) imprinted with Forthencho, could pass on to Chief the way in which to fight back and defeat the Flood? We know the humans of the Human/Forerunner War knew of such, and of all the people that would know of it and know how to properly use it, the Lord of Admirals would seemingly be toward the top of that list. I'm not sure if the geas Chakas had was lost when he transitioned to being 343GS, though. Hey, it's just a theory.
How damaged was 343GS by the time he took over the ship? Was he just an entity at that point? Or did he still have use of his floating ball self? I can't recall.
343 Guilty Spark Uploaded his AI to the Ships Mainframe, Took out the Ships Smart AI and then took over the ship, putting all the human inhabitants to sleep. His actual Monitor body was tossed out the airlock by the Scientists after they began noticing some corruption trying to take over the ship, but it was too late. So the body is floating in space somewhere, but 343 Guilty Spark is in control of the ship.
Eh. I don't see why the Forerunner trilogy gets praised. The entire thing is written as if Bear is constantly talking down to the audience with its overtly pretentious writing style and constant need to add doublespeak and "mystery" to just about everything that happens in the story.
My major problem with the Kilo Five Trilogy is that it featured a bunch of flat, unlikable characters, some of whom will go on to be significant elements of the Halo franchise. Osman's characterization in particular is by far the most uneven, and to me, most of the time she appears incompetent. You never truly get a sense of her cunning, or why she would be a fit to run ONI. There is zero charisma.
Mostly though, it was the axis of the story being centered on the defamation of Catherine Halsey from a bunch of people who don't matter which bothered me the most. You would think Osman would play more of a part, or Naomi, but they end up as cheerleaders as two ODST scrubs and Parangosky take up the balance of Halsey's condemnation.
There is a truly interesting premise in the moral implications of the Spartan-II project - about the cost of humanity in the name of war and/or science - and the cult of personality that is Catherine Halsey. But it's done a severe disservice by the limited perspective these wack ass characters offered, as well as the detachment Traviss had with respect to the material when she would Michael-Jordan-in-Space-Jam reach with immersion shattering comparisons to 20th century war criminals. There is no further illumination of the Spartan-II project other than the laughable clone retcon that only exists to give Parangosky moral leverage (again, really???). These books are particularly wasteful lorewise, and a missed opportunity as a character study.
Everything else in the book was a simulacrum of other, better executed elements of Halo books: the interaction with Forerunner technology, the action, Halsey's characterization in general, an AI's struggle with its identity. It truly feels like a book without an identity; what it should have focused on, the books didn't nearly enough. ONI is no more fleshed out after the Kilo Five Trilogy than where Nylund left them in Onyx.
As such, the KFT felt bloated and unsubstantial. It tries to do too many things at once while missing plenty of opportunities to provide further context behind ONI and Halsey herself. I think it was a severe mistake to try and use the exact material fans of the series think to be badass and interesting as the spear to skewer that very perspective in blunt fashion. Nothing was handled with grace. You address the obvious impact such a project would have on the families of the abducted children, and you choose the perspective of the guy who becomes a terrorist/insurrectionist. The third party opinion is that of veteran killers, who would sooner be murderers than martyrs. It's all very one note and corny and boring.
And I understand 343 wants it done this way to both castigate Halsey as well as show the hypocrisy and untrustworthiness of ONI. They seem to want to make the Master Chief a real boy, so that requires some introspection from all parties involved. And of course the real key to Chief's humanity was always going to be Cortana, of which they might as well be siblings, both born (more or less) from Halsey. It looks like 343 learned some lessons because this #huntthetruth stuff is already far more compelling than the KFT for me, approaching it all from the civilian angle.
Fantastic post. You articulated the problems I have with the KFT more than I ever could. The fact that it is used to conclude Ghost Of Onyx is so wrong. Ghost was such a fantastic book. Honestly, I enjoyed the Nylund Trilogy much more than any other new books since 343 took over (The Forerunner Trilogy is fantastic though, although I don't really classify them with the other books).
With that in mind, I'm going to hypothesize something...
What if 343GS/Chakas, being (at least at one time) imprinted with Forthencho, could pass on to Chief the way in which to fight back and defeat the Flood? We know the humans of the Human/Forerunner War knew of such, and of all the people that would know of it and know how to properly use it, the Lord of Admirals would seemingly be toward the top of that list. I'm not sure if the geas Chakas had was lost when he transitioned to being 343GS, though. Hey, it's just a theory.
And that was actually one of the points I wanted to make in a previous draft of that post, before I cut it out. What if, the Chief for example goes off searching for Halsey, and comes across 343GS/Chakas/Forthencho Fragment and Forthencho, seeing Humanity now being an intelligent species again and seeing that the flood is back, gives the Chief the cure for the Flood.
Also I am disappointed that the Chief never got Forthencho as his Geis... it seems like it could have been the perfect move which solidified his badassary... and would have made for a fun tieback when we inevitably fought the Didact in Halo 4... Alas, what could have been
And that was actually one of the points I wanted to make in a previous draft of that post, before I cut it out. What if, the Chief for example goes off searching for Halsey, and comes across 343GS/Chakas/Forthencho Fragment and Forthencho, seeing Humanity now being an intelligent species again and seeing that the flood is back, gives the Chief the cure for the Flood.
Also I am disappointed that the Chief never got Forthencho as his Geis... it seems like it could have been the perfect move which solidified his badassary... and would have made for a fun tieback when we inevitably fought the Didact in Halo 4... Alas, what could have been
I'll agree that having the Lord of Admirals as a geas would be fantastic, the high-probability of Chief's geas being of none other than of the Iso-Didact/Bornstellar-Makes-Eternal-Lasting. If you consider it from that standpoint, in Halo 4, you essentially had the Ur-Didact fighting against the Iso-Didact, evil versus good, while both being two sides of the same coin. What will really be interesting is to see if/when Chief accomplishes the mission laid out for him by the Librarian and achieves the Mantle for humanity. That'd be both a human, and a Forerunner passing the torch, so to speak, and possibly allowing attonement for the sins of the Forerunners of old who betrayed the Precursors to prevent that very passing of said torch.
I'll agree that having the Lord of Admirals as a geas would be fantastic, the high-probability of Chief's geas being of none other than of the Iso-Didact/Bornstellar-Makes-Eternal-Lasting. If you consider it from that standpoint, in Halo 4, you essentially had the Ur-Didact fighting against the Iso-Didact, evil versus good, while both being two sides of the same coin. What will really be interesting is to see if/when Chief accomplishes the mission laid out for him by the Librarian and achieves the Mantle for humanity. That'd be both a human, and a Forerunner passing the torch, so to speak, and possibly allowing attonement for the sins of the Forerunners of old who betrayed the Precursors to prevent that very passing of said torch.
Thinking about that, it makes me wonder if part of the reason Cortana was killed instead of pulling something out of the hat to extend her life, was that in Halo 5 Chief will be guided by IsoDidacts voice, in the way that Chakas heard the LoA in his head.
So anyone know if the wiki above was right, about the LoA being a neanderthal? Doesn't seem to make sense, as this was pre-devolution, I thought the other Homo species only came back after that.
My major problem with the Kilo Five Trilogy is that it featured a bunch of flat, unlikable characters, some of whom will go on to be significant elements of the Halo franchise. Osman's characterization in particular is by far the most uneven, and to me, most of the time she appears incompetent. You never truly get a sense of her cunning, or why she would be a fit to run ONI. There is zero charisma.
Mostly though, it was the axis of the story being centered on the defamation of Catherine Halsey from a bunch of people who don't matter which bothered me the most. You would think Osman would play more of a part, or Naomi, but they end up as cheerleaders as two ODST scrubs and Parangosky take up the balance of Halsey's condemnation.
There is a truly interesting premise in the moral implications of the Spartan-II project - about the cost of humanity in the name of war and/or science - and the cult of personality that is Catherine Halsey. But it's done a severe disservice by the limited perspective these wack ass characters offered, as well as the detachment Traviss had with respect to the material when she would Michael-Jordan-in-Space-Jam reach with immersion shattering comparisons to 20th century war criminals. There is no further illumination of the Spartan-II project other than the laughable clone retcon that only exists to give Parangosky moral leverage (again, really???). These books are particularly wasteful lorewise, and a missed opportunity as a character study.
Everything else in the book was a simulacrum of other, better executed elements of Halo books: the interaction with Forerunner technology, the action, Halsey's characterization in general, an AI's struggle with its identity. It truly feels like a book without an identity; what it should have focused on, the books didn't nearly enough. ONI is no more fleshed out after the Kilo Five Trilogy than where Nylund left them in Onyx.
As such, the KFT felt bloated and unsubstantial. It tries to do too many things at once while missing plenty of opportunities to provide further context behind ONI and Halsey herself. I think it was a severe mistake to try and use the exact material fans of the series think to be badass and interesting as the spear to skewer that very perspective in blunt fashion. Nothing was handled with grace. You address the obvious impact such a project would have on the families of the abducted children, and you choose the perspective of the guy who becomes a terrorist/insurrectionist. The third party opinion is that of veteran killers, who would sooner be murderers than martyrs. It's all very one note and corny and boring.
And I understand 343 wants it done this way to both castigate Halsey as well as show the hypocrisy and untrustworthiness of ONI. They seem to want to make the Master Chief a real boy, so that requires some introspection from all parties involved. And of course the real key to Chief's humanity was always going to be Cortana, of which they might as well be siblings, both born (more or less) from Halsey. It looks like 343 learned some lessons because this #huntthetruth stuff is already far more compelling than the KFT for me, approaching it all from the civilian angle.
My main problem with the, as some reviews called it, "Crucify Halsey" campaign in the books is that people who had no right to hate her or at least understood her motivations despised her guts. Somehow Halsey's persistence and cold demeanor is the final straw for
Lucy, who had PTSD so severe she lost the ability to speak, regains her voice just so she can tell Halsey to STFU and punch her in the face.
Two problems with that:
1.
S-III's of all people should understand the cost of the Human-Covenant War, since they were primarily orphans from glassed planets.
2.
S-III's were SUICIDE SOLDIERS!!! Halsey did everything in her power to give her S-II's the best chance of survival possible, whereas if a S-III survived a mission, all they could look forward to was another meat-grinder.
Then there's also
Osman, a S-II candidate herself, loathing Halsey despite her denying that she was responsible for allowing her to even survive, let alone have the skills to become CINCONI.
Again in regards to the
S-III's, I can't help but wonder that if Ackerson had survived, that he would've been the focus of this inquisition, rather than Halsey. The ONI PR machine could've said Halsey created these Greek-god like figures, and he turned them into disposable tragic figures.
Now, unless I forgot/misread something, the most puzzling element of this whole debacle to me is
why the S-II origins were declassified/made public in the first place?! I know their existence was made public as moral booster, but that's all the public needed to know.
As for the whole "war criminal" thing, since the UNSC technically didn't lose the war, why would such an investigation even occur? If WW II ended in a cease-fire in 1943, I highly doubt the Nuremberg trials would've still taken place. It just seems like an unnecessary leap of logic to come to such a situation.
Also it felt like there were more characters than there needed to be, and the line "this should've been my real job" was used too much But overall, I liked the change of pace and the cloak-and-dagger side to the universe most people assumed was just alien-face-shooting.
Oh, the Halo Graphic Novel and Halo: Uprising/Neill Blomkamp shorts are some quick but interesting bridges between Halo 2 and 3.
And that was actually one of the points I wanted to make in a previous draft of that post, before I cut it out. What if, the Chief for example goes off searching for Halsey, and comes across 343GS/Chakas/Forthencho Fragment and Forthencho, seeing Humanity now being an intelligent species again and seeing that the flood is back, gives the Chief the cure for the Flood.
Also I am disappointed that the Chief never got Forthencho as his Geis... it seems like it could have been the perfect move which solidified his badassary... and would have made for a fun tieback when we inevitably fought the Didact in Halo 4... Alas, what could have been
Hi guys and gals! (there's gals here right? Ah, who am I kidding... ) I've played all the games except Wars and Spartan Assault as well as Spartan Ops (I've got Assault and Ops though, and will play through them this spring)
I'm currently reading Cryptum as my first Halo lore novel... I'm a few chapters in, should I continue the Forerunner trilogy afterwards or read other books before it? I'm finding it somewhat confusing (lack of establishing/details on locations and characters) but interesting.
It may not be the best place to start, but I heard it helps explain Halo 4 and the Reclaimer trilogy, so I bought it. I'll not be able to check back until about 10 hours from now, hoping for answers. Good night folks.
TL;DR: Should I read other books after Cryptum before finishing Forerunner trilogy or finish it before reading others?
I'd probably read some of the others first, but if you've played all the games mentioned I don't think you NEED to, it will just make some of the surprises in the other books not such a surprise I think.
There's a reading order guide a few pages back I think.
How would he detect that? Chief didn't speak to him for long for one, and the other personality hadn't manifested yet I guess. Other than that I don't know of other ways for him to "detect" a Geas?
Hi guys and gals! (there's gals here right? Ah, who am I kidding... ) I've played all the games except Wars and Spartan Assault as well as Spartan Ops (I've got Assault and Ops though, and will play through them this spring)
I'm currently reading Cryptum as my first Halo lore novel... I'm a few chapters in, should I continue the Forerunner trilogy afterwards or read other books before it? I'm finding it somewhat confusing (lack of establishing/details on locations and characters) but interesting.
It may not be the best place to start, but I heard it helps explain Halo 4 and the Reclaimer trilogy, so I bought it. I'll not be able to check back until about 10 hours from now, hoping for answers. Good night folks.
TL;DR: Should I read other books after Cryptum before finishing Forerunner trilogy or finish it before reading others?
If you look back a page or 2, there was just a whole discussion about that topic
Personally, I'd say wait. Imo, the Forerunner trilogy was the icing on the cake to A LOT of mysteries/unanswered questions raised through the games over the years. And just like cake icing, it's the last ingredient to the recipe and doesn't exactly make much sense to consume on its own. Otherwise you might end up losing a lot of the mystique the games create, since you'd already know the back-story behind the events your characters are facing/puzzled by.
How would he detect that? Chief didn't speak to him for long for one, and the other personality hadn't manifested yet I guess. Other than that I don't know of other ways for him to "detect" a Geas?
I'd read (probably in this thread) that geas could detect one another, obviously likely the Ur Didact didn't have a geas so there's that.. but he did hold him up a number of times, that one commercial had the Didact scanning 117 as well (though I don't know if that's canon or not).
Since he was aware that the Librarian was still up to her old tricks, I would have thought he'd check.. or at least be curious why 117
My major problem with the Kilo Five Trilogy is that it featured a bunch of flat, unlikable characters, some of whom will go on to be significant elements of the Halo franchise. Osman's characterization in particular is by far the most uneven, and to me, most of the time she appears incompetent. You never truly get a sense of her cunning, or why she would be a fit to run ONI. There is zero charisma.
Mostly though, it was the axis of the story being centered on the defamation of Catherine Halsey from a bunch of people who don't matter which bothered me the most. You would think Osman would play more of a part, or Naomi, but they end up as cheerleaders as two ODST scrubs and Parangosky take up the balance of Halsey's condemnation.
There is a truly interesting premise in the moral implications of the Spartan-II project - about the cost of humanity in the name of war and/or science - and the cult of personality that is Catherine Halsey. But it's done a severe disservice by the limited perspective these wack ass characters offered, as well as the detachment Traviss had with respect to the material when she would Michael-Jordan-in-Space-Jam reach with immersion shattering comparisons to 20th century war criminals. There is no further illumination of the Spartan-II project other than the laughable clone retcon that only exists to give Parangosky moral leverage (again, really???). These books are particularly wasteful lorewise, and a missed opportunity as a character study.
Everything else in the book was a simulacrum of other, better executed elements of Halo books: the interaction with Forerunner technology, the action, Halsey's characterization in general, an AI's struggle with its identity. It truly feels like a book without an identity; what it should have focused on, the books didn't nearly enough. ONI is no more fleshed out after the Kilo Five Trilogy than where Nylund left them in Onyx.
As such, the KFT felt bloated and unsubstantial. It tries to do too many things at once while missing plenty of opportunities to provide further context behind ONI and Halsey herself. I think it was a severe mistake to try and use the exact material fans of the series think to be badass and interesting as the spear to skewer that very perspective in blunt fashion. Nothing was handled with grace. You address the obvious impact such a project would have on the families of the abducted children, and you choose the perspective of the guy who becomes a terrorist/insurrectionist. The third party opinion is that of veteran killers, who would sooner be murderers than martyrs. It's all very one note and corny and boring.
And I understand 343 wants it done this way to both castigate Halsey as well as show the hypocrisy and untrustworthiness of ONI. They seem to want to make the Master Chief a real boy, so that requires some introspection from all parties involved. And of course the real key to Chief's humanity was always going to be Cortana, of which they might as well be siblings, both born (more or less) from Halsey. It looks like 343 learned some lessons because this #huntthetruth stuff is already far more compelling than the KFT for me, approaching it all from the civilian angle.
I'd read (probably in this thread) that geas could detect one another, obviously likely the Ur Didact didn't have a geas so there's that.. but he did hold him up a number of times, that one commercial had the Didact scanning 117 as well (though I don't know if that's canon or not).
Since he was aware that the Librarian was still up to her old tricks, I would have thought he'd check.. or at least be curious why 117
Oh, I see. I believe Yprin and the Lord of Admirals only detected each other because they saw each others mannerisms come through. I don't remember it precisely, but I know it wasn't like they pinged on each others radars or anything.
No. We see what the Lord of Admirals looks like in his adulthood and in his old age, in the Halo 4 terminals. Very much human. More akin to what Native Americans looked like than anything else.
