#Forerunners

[goblin-sovereign]

Just made this piece of shit

[zilentis]

a Forerunner Builder, Inspiration-From-The-Domain, and her little Huragok; Far Too Dense.

The Forerunner is less impressive, but I’m still happy with her (she looks like a Forerunner). What I was really focusing my effort on, was the cute Engineer, I really really wanted one and I’m so proud of him. Almost entirely sculpted from Greenstuff

[halopedia]

Did You Know that the Boomerang Nebula was the site of a Burn, a region of space so consumed by the Flood that it was deemed off-limits by Forerunner fleets? During the Flood war, the nebula was reported to contain Precursor star roads.

[grayrazor]

IMO “ancient aliens built the pyramids and taught us agriculture” is a lot less interesting idea than “there were advanced technological aliens on Earth, but they went extinct millions of years before humans evolved.”

Their cities crumbled and were buried, their machines became junk and then dust, and the Earth forgot about them.

[holyshonks]

Halo: Epitaph Review

You got that right! Spoilers below the cut.

I want to start by saying that this book felt like an apology in the same way that Infinite is an apology.

The first quarter to half of the book is just summarizing the events of the Forerunner trilogy, Halo 4, and Escalation, in the form of the Didact slowly regaining his memories. While I definitely appreciated the refresher (I forgot a lot since then), I also couldn't help but wonder who it was for. To anyone who had never engaged with any of that media, a huge amount of the book is just a rather dull recounting of events in a desert setting. To that end, the book feels targeted directly at people who love the Forerunner stories and were horrified by the hasty introduction and death of the Didact. It is, in essence:

"We're sorry we took a pivotal, beloved character with a rich story arc, introduced him to the fandom at large with zero context, and then killed him in a shitty comic. What if we did this instead?"

And is it an upgrade? Well, let's see.

The Plot

The plot of the book is that, after being super-composed (sigh), the Didact awakens in a strange desert, stripped of his memories. He slowly regains them, becoming stronger in both body and mind. He is angry at humanity, and is determined to destroy them. We get caught up with the story so far, as well as some new Didact backstory. He discovers a Haruspis, a Forerunner rate that served as custodians to the Domain, who tells him that they are outside the dormant Domain, which shut down after the Halos were fired. Forerunner souls cannot pass into it anymore because of this, including the Didact. Also, Cortana is there, trying to convince the Warden Eternal, who is guarding the Domain, to let her in. The book becomes about both foiling Cortana, who wants the Domain to herself, and killing the Warden Eternal so that the Domain can be reactivated. Lots of failed attempts, some arguing with Cortana. Along the way, he runs into other souls who are trapped outside the Domain, including, to his surprise, his old enemy, Forthencho. He explains that humans that were composed also come here. They scuffle. Didact gets punched a bunch.

Eventually the Warden sides with Cortana and allows her in the Domain, and she looses her Created upon it. The Didact makes another attempt to enter, and kills some AIs while he's at it, including this one, who has a wine mom personality that I found amusing.

Now we're in the last quarter of the book, where things start to get interesting. All the while, the Warden is chasing the Didact with his millions of forms across the Domain, leading to a Scooby-Doo-style villain chase where the Didact is throwing himself through portals and doors to evade him and eventually find Cortana. By this point, the Didact has softened and he no longer wants vengeance. There's no discussion of the Xalanyn, which I was hoping for. In a moment I don't agree with, the Didact tries to reason with Cortana and says some things that clearly rattle her before he takes his leave. Next, the final standoff with the Warden, with the help of the friends the Didact made in the desert.

The thing I liked about the last portion of the book is that it finally feels the way the Forerunner trilogy felt: a universe that felt endless and expansive, but also, a classic coming-of-age with unlikely allies. In fact, just as I thought that, the book said this:

It also had that familiar thread of silliness, such as the Didact clowning on Haruspis' hat, and during the last final battle, where, after acquiring a quantum sword, the Didact learns that the Warden has a larger, better quantum sword.

They fight, Didact wins, hooray. He reactivates the Domain and he and Forthencho make a wager to see who can get rid of the most AIs that are still in the Domain. In addition, human souls(?) can now access the Domain. However, as expected, the Didact's final action is to reunite with his wife.

The Thoughts

This book is essentially just a re-write of the Didact's ending, giving him a proper close that I didn't really realize I wanted or needed, but actually? I missed the Didact. I liked the Didact, a lot, something I kind of forgot after Halo 4. I also forgot how nice it is to read from the perspective of a Forerunner with context about the tech. Most of what we see in Halo are people marveling at the mystery of Forerunner objects. Here, the Didact knows exactly what he's looking at, which was refreshing.

This book was very much written for lore-loving Halo fans who were disappointed to see how he was killed off. It had to be, because the people who only play the games wouldn't know who he is, or the stupid way he died. On the other hand, that makes this book pretty dull for the uninitiated. I would not recommend this book to a newcomer.

Cortana absolutely did not need to be in this book. Not in the slightest. It seems like they were just trying to further entrench Eviltana to account for Infinite, while also finding a way to get rid of her army of AIs. I really didn't like the implication in the book that Cortana changed her mind about taking over the galaxy because of the Didact. One of the things I actually liked in Infinite is that Cortana realized that her actions were wrong, and tried to make up for it on her own accord. Having the Didact convince her of the error of her ways really cheapens this moment.

The other thing that kind of fell flat is the Didact's belief that his new calling is to forge his own path:

But that's not true. This choice was the Librarian's, who wanted him to forgive and learn from humanity all along. He, of all people, should know this.

Now, about the Librarian. The Great Manipulator. There's irony in the fact that she is ostensibly the character with the most agency in the entire universe, but is consistently a narrative wisp. She "is" Halo--the course of the universe as they know it unfurled from her plans. Everything that happens, happens because of her.

And yet, we never see or hear from her in any meaningful way. We never hear her story from her mouth. I already knew that she wouldn't appear, save for a big reveal at the end, because Halo novels have done this no less than twice before. It's frustrating to see her consistently presented as this ethereal figure with no real voice.

At least in Point of Light, Spark challenges her a little bit--he accuses her of manipulating him, of abandoning him and then asking for his help, of assuming he will assist her because of her imprinted influence, and ultimately, he does, because that's how powerful she is. I wanted to see some of that, to have the Didact call her out or even just disagree with her, a little. Instead, he spends the book yearning for her (I will concede that his flashbacks are a little cute, alright? You got me there).

The Librarian is complex. She's a hero and a villain. Everyone who knew her would tell you so. But you'll never hear it from her! Sigh.

Also, her choice of words: "Took you long enough, Warrior." Is that a reference to Halsey in Halo 5? We're really drawing that parallel??

To the original question of "What if we did this instead":?

I mean...I prefer the Didact "alive" than dead so, yes? I guess? You really can't be a Halo fan in 2024 without being very forgiving.

In the end, he's still essentially "checked out" making it clear that he's not going to meddle in mortal affairs anymore. So narratively, he's dead. But yeah fine, this kind of dead is better than being super-composed.

The book also slams the door on the (very huge) implications of humans being allowed in the Domain. Is it all humans? Only composed humans? The Forerunners rose to power because of their access to the Domain. Does that mean that humanity will--oh, sorry. Oh, sorry, what? The Domain is fading into obscurity? We're not telling anyone its open so we don't have to deal with that? Got it.

This point also made me laugh because the Didact is satisfied and resting on his laurels because adding humans to the Domain created "diversity", and therefore, balance. Hey, Didact? There's an entire galaxy of intelligent species out there??

Which begs one final question: Do Unggoy go to heaven?

[frogblast-the-ventcore]

Blood Angel vs Forerunner Promethean

Art by Nicolas Siregar

[doom-dreaming]

Halo 4 - Terminal 07: Cryptum

[superspunkus]

a didact i did for halo 4′s 10th anniversary earlier this week :)

[dougielombax]

Here we go again.

Parallels

Or

Seeing Patterns in Things that Aren’t Thete

Part 42

World-Building (literally!)

1. The Magrathean people practically made millions out of building specially commissioned custom planets for many such clients.

Eventually they would come to create the Earth for a client species of hyper intelligent pan-dimensional beings.

Along with a copy of the planet also known as Earth Mark II. Functioning as a vast supercomputer to calculate the question to the ultimate answer of the meaning of life, the universe and everything.

- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (1978). Douglas Adams.

(Picture taken from the 1981 BBC TV series adaptation)

2. “So am I the only one freaked out by the fact that we’re actually INSIDE the planet?”

- Serina.

Halo Wars (2009)

The Foreunners would similarly create many such shield worlds in their war against the Flood.

(Similar in principle to those built by the Magrathean people but quite different in their intent)

Created as fortress planets.

Hosting research facilities, wildlife conservation projects and many other things.

Creating many shield worlds such as Requiem, Onyx, Trove, Genesis, Bastion (a copy of Earth), among others.

I’d been planning this post for quite some time.

Speaks for itself.

And yes the numbering (42) was an intentional choice.

[nazrigar]

A commission for @thesupremebagel-lord , and a REALLY fun concept to do: a Forerunner Warrior Servant from Halo vs a Blood Angels Space Marine! Considering it’s two of my favorite sci fi settings? I had a LOT of fun here xD.

[playable-elite]

Now that humans are mostly not trying to kill you, what is your favorite thing you've learned about humans? Or most interesting thing?

Forgive me if it is obvious, but: the affinity between humans and Forerunner technology.

There is so very little we know about that connection, and even the Monitors they left behind, which once we worshipped, know little. Or what they do know, they struggle to express when we find them.

The implications shatter Covenant faith to its core, and reach all the way to the deep roots of Sangheili history. The scholars say that worship of the Forerunners is the oldest and strongest of our traditions. It may be that they marked us for it, in the youth of our kind. The San'shyuum were much the same.

But we were born to worlds rich with the remains of their works. I understand that humans had not met the wonders of the Forerunners until very late in your growth. Perhaps things would be very different if humans too had first met Forerunner wonders at their dawn, with eyes unjaded.

[nirahsaooc]

Man learning more about the Precursors in Halo makes me think they are the poster child now of why its not always a good idea to try and delve more into "The ones who came before everyone else" Bits.

Cause you got the precursors, who are super advanced they have changed over billions of years taking on new forms like we change clothes. Living out life as more primitive at times to hyper-advanced as others, basically just this race that can literally do whatever it wants and likes enjoying all facets of life including the warts like war, destruction and evil seeing them as inherent to the universe.

Then you got the Forerunners that the Precursors made, considered them for the mantle of guardianship of the galaxy eventually decided 'Nah they don't deserve it." Forerunners get pissed and all out surprised attack the Precursors and commit genocide upon almost their entire race.

Wait...what?

The Forerunners...beat a race that is insanely more advanced than them, a race whose architecture was IMPERVIOUS to conventional weapons until the Halo Arrays were made....which said arrays weren't invented until AFTER the precursors were killed off. Okay okay there is a theory that the precursors let the forerunners win, because hey they don't care about death. They just come back as something else and continue their merry existence and will watch because hey whatever this could be a fun new chapter of existence for a race like us.

Right, alot of the precursors became a molecular dust to prepare to regenerate later on into previous forms. It got corrupted and became the flood that came back to purge the galaxy of all life.

Wait wait, back up...the dust became corrupted? How? Over time it just became corrupted and mutated, giving rise to the flood after being ingested by other creatures later on.

It just...became corrupted over time? A race that is god tier advanced, that changes forms like we breath. Has does this over and over again through the course of BILLIONS of years...how did they fuck that up?

It just did, so what was left of the precursors came back as the flood to consume the entire galaxy and to get revenge upon the Forerunners and ensure none of their creations could ever rise against them again!

...isn't the theory that the precursors let the forerunners kill them

Yes.

So why the fuck do they suddenly have a roaring desire for rampaging revenge after rolling over and letting themselves be killed?

Well because the dust was corrupted it perverted the precursors.

Right right...because they somehow fucked up the thing they were known to be able to do and had done who freakin' knows how many times over the course of billions of years but this was the first time they had ever fucked it up apparently.

Right also the Primordial a living precursor went on about how the flood was revenge for the Forerunners transgressions.

Wait so now there is a living precursor that wanted revenge upon the Forerunners? I thought it was the corrupted dust stuff. Right yeah the corrupted dust.

So why does a living precursor want this too?

Well they spent so long in stasis that it mutated and altered...

For fucks sake...Okay so this god tier OG precursor had to lay down some roaring revenge against the Forerunners directly right?

No they killed it.

God fucking damn it!

(I'm paraphrasing alot, but basically in essence the more i learn about the ancient precursors who seeded life in all the universe of halo, the more I think someone should have taken the writers/producers/executives whoevers pen/storyboard/charts and just told them "No, we aren't delving into that.")

[halopedia]

Lore Thursday — Assembler

The Assembler Sentinel is a variant of Strato-Sentinel like Retrievers and Stewards. It is used in the construction of Forerunner megastructures like Halo installations and portal complexes, such as the portal to the Ark at Voi.

[cappurrccino]

reason #5,371 that the forerunners are the best: they're like the second most powerful species to ever exist in the halo universe and every single one of them could go toe-to-toe with a greek god for levels of dumbassery and pettiness

[warlordfelwinter]

i did have to draw them again