Terminal Visuals
Wait, I thought you were done with the terminals? What’s this all about?
Well, to the point: Visuals.
Certain things could not be directly examined in the context of the previous three articles, so as an addendum of sorts, we wanted to show off some of the interesting pictures and symbols found in the terminals – possibly bridging some gaps and filling in cracks within the fiction along the way.
Thanks to urk of NeoGAF, we’ve acquired some amazing video captures of the terminal entries at high resolution. You can find those on Vuze at the following links:
Terminal 01 (Normal/Legendary)
Terminal 02 (Normal/Legendary)
Terminal 03 (Normal/Legendary)
Terminal 04 (Normal/Legendary)
Terminal 05 (Easy/Normal/Heroic/Legendary)
Terminal 06 (Normal/Legendary)
Terminal 07 (Normal/Legendary)
All-in-all there are 16 terminal instances relating to the Forerunners and their archive. We really appreciate the time and attention urk took in capturing these items and we’re using them in this very piece. Remember to use the pause button frequently to examine each entry closer, as we run through each panel rather quickly.
You can also check out HBO’s interesting terminal interface called Forerunner Terminal Network Archives for additional content and ways in which you can view the terminals.
But what about the visuals?
The Forerunner language has offered an amazing lexicon of symbols which some fans have deciphered or at the very least cataloged. One symbol, which stands out above all of them, is this one…
For those who have played Halo: Combat Evolved, you may remember it from ‘The Silent Cartographer’ (img) while others may remember seeing it on Halo 2′s multiplayer map called Ascension (img). This image is everywhere – plastered across all aspects of the Halo Array and even on the face of Halo 3′s Bestiarum – a Forerunner archive of several key sentient species (img). The monitors in Forge have this engraved in their encasement, even the Ark’s surface reveals the architecture was molding into the shape of the symbol (img). If you’re familiar with the Legendary ending of Halo 3, you’ll recognize the lower portion of the same exact symbol near the northern axis of the mysterious planetoid facility.
To the Forerunners, this symbol obviously meant something special. We doubt that it had to do with a functional or practical purpose because of the frequency in which it occurs and the diversity of its locations, but we do feel it may be acting as an emblem for all of those otherwise separate elements of the Halo Array, including what many have proposed is a shield world in the screenshot above.
Some have pointed out the visual connection between this image and an actual sword and shield, a metaphorical analog of the Halo ringworlds and the shield facilities operating in tandem. These “shields” were discussed extensively during Halo: Ghosts of Onyx, they were mentioned during the ‘Cortana message’ lead-up to the unveiling of the portal in Halo 3′s ‘The Storm,’ and interestingly, they’re also found in the Bestiarum as one of the confirmed sources for the information within. We know that the Array Installations acted as a sword, slaying the Flood, but we also know, thanks to the Onyx Project mentioned of in the terminals, that there were facilities made which could shield the firing of the Halo Array – perhaps this is the installation seen in the Legendary ending.
Whatever the symbol is, we know that it is directly related to the Forerunners and their story. We can be sure, if the end of Halo 3 is any indication, that the Forerunners and/or their properties will be heavily featured in a future Bungie title. If you still harbor doubt, take your Halo 3 manual out and flip it around so that you can examine the back cover. Hopefully this future Bungie project, whatever it is, will offer more explanation as to the meaning of symbol and possibly even deliver more information on the Forerunners themselves.
Of course, there were plenty of other symbols in the terminals – at least one symbol for each character represented in archive. Below are a composite of captures showing every symbol and each character they likely represent.
From left to right…
- The first is, of course, respectively Didact and Librarian. Most of the terminals with their fragmented conversations have both symbols, but a few were one-sided messages. The Librarian is the only symbol which can be selected as part of a multiplayer armor permutation.
- The next two images are of Mendicant Bias. We’ll detail why there are two images and three separate symbols representing him below.
- The fourth image is of Mendicant Bias and a compound intelligence speaking on behalf of the Gravemind and, by proxy, the Flood.
- The fifth may have been a point of confusion for some (including us). It actually represents the archive – the Librarian’s record, or at least the AI caretaker of that record on the Ark. You’ll notice that it is very similar to Librarian’s symbol, but with a few minor differences. This icon is present in the description of the events on G617g and when 343 Guilty Spark attempts to gain access to the terminals.
- The sixth and final image is of Offensive Bias, clearly similar to Mendicant’s icon in a variety of ways, but also distinctively different.
When reviewing the symbols, one interesting subject which comes up is that of the relationship between Adjutant Reflex and Mendicant Bias. For those not in the know, Adjutant Reflex played a heavy role in the Iris ARG (alternate reality game) leading up to Halo 3′s release. The entity registered an account with Bungie.net’s forums and began posting mysteriously intriguing messages. It has never been fully disclosed as to what the true purpose of Adjutant Reflex was or the nature of the entity’s relationship to Mendicant Bias. Based on the information he provided in his posts, we believe that Adjutant Reflex may have been a facilitator of the Halo Array on the Ark – an AI construct specifically in charge of the Array and, in this case, in charge of the creation of Installation 04′s replacement.
We also believe that at some point he was directly assaulted by Mendicant Bias. The account on Bungie.net was hijacked by a third-party and the avatar was changed to the symbol seen frequently related to Mendicant’s entries in the terminal archive (img). Mendicant Bias, for reasons only speculated on, has several symbols associated to himself.
Why?
As Mendicant is better described as a network of separate parts, perhaps they are different elements of a whole which compose the construct in its entirety. The ARG may, in fact, be showing the reconstitution of Mendicant Bias from the perspective of Adjutant Reflex.
As Mendicant said in the terminals:
I have found the shard that was lost. They brought it back to me.
One part (the red circle and off-center dot) may have served as the Forerunner’s point of contact, funneling memorandums, reports and recommendations to the Forerunners, while the other could communicate with the Gravemind (the blue circle and strange symbol seen in the avatar). Both are even seen communicating with each other at one point (as the two symbols combine and both become red), when Mendicant discusses cutting fire breaks into infested systems – stating memorably that “half-measures will not suffice.” At some point, Mendicant began to forcibly seize control of the Ark in his efforts to make amends for his sins. Adjutant Reflex is the likely candidate who it was seized from, hence the hostility embedded in the situation.
Perhaps one day we’ll have a full account of the story of Adjutant Reflex, but till then we’re left to guesswork and errant speculation. Well, hopefully not too errant…
In the bottom-left portion of the terminal interface, a series of even more interesting images appear. While we’re not certain of the exact nature of each of these pictures, we’re going to offer a few possibilities based on the adjacent text and context of the entry:
The first image we have is in the very first terminal. Mendicant’s text talks about evacuating a planet before the Flood have taken it completely. Clearly, this planet has some sort of protective barrier and there’s apparently a Keyship to the left with circular icons, possibly representing the Flood, on the top-right. This could mean that as the Flood begins to take hold of the planet, their population should evacuate on the Keyships at the other side. The enhanced portion of the image appears to be the orbital bombardment of key locations also spoken of in the same text.
Here we see what appears to be 343 Guilty Spark accessing a terminal. The image is accompanied by the conversation between Guilty Spark and the archive’s facilitator about the core purpose of Installation 00 – the manufacturing of Array Installations. We originally thought he may be talking to Mendicant Bias during this discussion, but it’s now clear that this was some managing AI construct on the Ark (before Mendicant took control), as the symbol is related to the same database which discovered the Flood’s infestation on G617g.
The next image we see appears to be directly related to the Ark’s security system. When the remainder of Mendicant was retrieved from the Forerunner dreadnought, “the shard” was found. What part of his network he was referring isn’t mentioned, but it could be referencing the disparity between the two symbols that represent Mendicant in the terminals, as stated earlier. This image of the Ark and its towers seem to represent the region of the installation which Mendicant’s personality array was being held.
This image is easily the most enigmatic.
It appears during a recommendation of Forerunner armor from Mendicant, so one would assume that it is, in fact, armor worn by the Forerunners. At first, it seemed unlikely. It doesn’t appear to have the lean, angular design of a Forerunner ship, nor does it look like a suit functional for a bipedal sentient, presumably humanoid like we have assumed the Forerunners to be. Could the Forerunners be anatomically different than we suspected…or could the strange shapes in the image actually be something else entirely?
Well, if you look closely, you’ll notice the shape of a human inside this object (img). This may very well have been a suit, some very alien form of armor which completely encapsulated and regulated a Forerunner against the infection of the Flood. True, this estimation could be off the mark, but there’s little else to go by in what is clearly an intentionally enigmatic sketch of something extremely foreign to human eyes.
Another message from Mendicant Bias, this one referencing the possibility of using facilities similar to the Onyx Project – shield worlds – which Forerunner populations could be evacuated to. Is this an image of a shield world or is he referencing a planet already struck down by the Flood? We may eventually find out the answer to this question, but probably not until Bungie’s next Halo game.
And here is a shot of what appears to be G617g, presumably with the individual locations of where the two exploratory groups lost contact. Of course this is where it all started – ground zero for the emergence of the Flood in our galaxy.
And then the final image shows a series of icons, a Keyship and an interesting insignia. Although this accompanies the Forerunner letter from father to son, the image, like some of the others, remains incredibly enigmatic.
You’ll notice that we failed to include the character icon above, but this was not done by mistake. The image doesn’t appear to relate to a specific character or AI construct, but rather a program. Whatever it was, it relied heavily on the Forerunner Keyships and, in the end, Mendicant Bias, whose icons you can see near the top of the image.
The icon should be carefully examined, as it appears to be very similar to the Reclaimer symbol we’ve come to know in previous Bungie titles and novels. Perhaps this symbol deals with the Forerunner’s plan to protect humanity, a future civilization mentioned in the letter. If that is true, the image below must deal with the Conservation Measure, the Halo Array and the last ditch effort to destroy the Flood, the commissioning of Mendicant Bias.
All of these parts are essentially the tapestry of the Forerunner terminals in total; the last image appears to be a mosaic of the story they told. The Keyships, the Conservation Measure and Mendicant Bias – all elements of a rich story which we will hopefully see more on from Bungie in the future.
/vociferous
Edit: We’ve been fortunate to have some talented readers of the blog; one by the name of Vulcan Stark has successfully recreated the Forerunner symbols we discussed above. They’re of a high quality and we thought it would be wrong not to include them here for all of you to enjoy.
- Mendicant Bias 01
- Mendicant Bias 02
- Mendicant Bias 03
- Offensive Bias
- The Archive
- The Flood
- Didact
- Librarian
Thanks, Vulcan and keep up the good work!
Well done. I heard of this website through bungies weekly update and no I have read everything on this website. You guys have done an amazing job. Keep up the great work.
Comment by Nick — May 10, 2008 @ 11:14 am
Good article, but what is the difference between the last two pictures, they look identical to me?
Comment by slikz21 — May 10, 2008 @ 11:52 am
The image of the Armor reminds me of the battle suits of the S’Pht’Kr from Marathon 2: Durandal. While not directly and canonically related, they may be related ideas of the developers.
Comment by Sheepe — May 10, 2008 @ 2:33 pm
Also, the hexagons (and pieces thereof) in the symbols may represent intelligence, with the Gravemind’s being a reference to how many create one (look at the lines like arrows pointing in)
However, in the case of Mendicant Bias and Offensive Bias you have half a hexagon. My opinion is that this represents the limitations of the intelligence, with Mendicant Bias being Upper Limited (or as unlimited as possible, but the Forerunner felt it was still limited) and Offensive Bias being Lower Limited (or intentionally limited in intelligence)
The Didact is represented as being behind a wall (the horizontal line) and the Librarian is represented as being in many place.
Then you have the Ark AI which is filled in. This may represent it as being a core AI or one fitted to a specific installation and immobile.
Just a few theories…
Comment by Sheepe — May 10, 2008 @ 2:43 pm
Incredible analysis, inspirational insight.
Comment by Alex — May 10, 2008 @ 8:50 pm
Look at the forrunner armor, you can kind of see an elite head, and some sort of reptilian head inside the elite head thing, is the reptilian head our first glimps at a forrunner, maby the image is just of a helmet, with forrunner head inside. (Sorry about misspellings)
Comment by bryan — May 11, 2008 @ 9:06 am
The relationship between Mendicant Bias and Ajundant Reflexcould be based or are related like the fragments of the Melissa AI in the I Love Bees ARG. Though I didn’t read the forums during Iris, AR’s name reminded me of the System Peril Distributed Reflex. Though AR isn’t a repair mechanism, if anyone is atavistic about their fiction like Bungie is, I think that it hints Mendicant and AR are fragments of the original Mendicant Bias.
And also, the armor pictured clearly has the figure of a humanoid inside of it. I would also note that the design looks similar to that of covenant engineers. It was proven in the beastiarium that the engineers were made of forerunner nanotechnology and floated with the use of gas bladders. So it wouldn’t surprise me if the depcited armor floated and engulfed the wearer in a responsive, nano-engineered cocoon or casing similar to the S’Pht’Kr battle armor. It would be even cooler if the skin was amorphous and had properties similar to ferrofluid, which becomes solid when polarized.
I like Sheepe’s about the intelligences indicating hexagons. I would agree that it could indicate significant sentience, which could produce awareness. Explaining their presences in the Librarian’s, Didact’s, MD’s second avatar, the Flood’s and The Stationary Ark AI. It could be argued that The ASA would not fit this, but as MD and Guilty Spark went rampant over 100,000 years, ASA could have as well.
And finally props to that screencap of the legendary ending. You can really only see it well enough with the right HD setup. I concur that, even though Bungie said their next project wasn’t Halo, that the next Halo release should probably have dealings with ONYX or a least a shield world. It would get a kick if descendats of the forerunners lived inside or if the remnants of team Blue and Katana were to meet up with the Chief.
Comment by Diddler — May 11, 2008 @ 9:12 pm
All the entries on this website are absolutely fantastic! What a great intellectual treatment of this stories depths! My brain rejoices at every entry on this site! The HALO universe is very rich in history and the AJ website is by far the best in treating it with interest and respect.
Please keep up the great work, what a tremendous resource for the readers interested in this multi-faceted backstory!
Comment by TLB — May 12, 2008 @ 12:06 pm
In regards to the hexagons indicating intelligence, It creates some interesting possibilites. The fifth icon image could represent an intelligence within an intelligence, a subroutine for instance.
However, it is the last terminal picture that is the most interesting. The inner hexagon could represent the forerunner, the broken outer hexagon the Precursors and the upper haxagon Humanity. This would fit with the forerunner religious beliefs about the precursors, in that the precursor hexagon is surrounding or even protecting the forerunner hexagon.
It would then show bothe the precursors and forerunner lifting humanity, passing on the mantle. The symbol even looks something like a person holding an orb or smething up above their head.
As to the symbol representing a program, I agree, but not a computer program. Rather it indicates a precedure or agenda, perhaps to pass on the mantle to humanity.
Comment by Rictus — May 12, 2008 @ 12:36 pm
A thought abut the golden/yelow symbol that has popped up every where – The Forerunners based there whole socitiy on their religion, what if this is the symble for thier religion (the mantle..?) ?
Comment by aassaa123 — May 12, 2008 @ 9:00 pm
Excellent article.
To slikz21:
Those pictures are not identical. The first one has the numbers 212 and the second one is blurred
Comment by xpoisoner69x — May 12, 2008 @ 10:08 pm
Awsome work guys, and I love how many theorys all of us hase, aparently this story NEEDS to be a move BUT only if done RIGHT it wuld have to be multiple moves (big story) and wuld need high funding and the right story sorces… by the way I realy wish they involved the rest of the sparten 3s that went to onyx in halo 3
Comment by Zach — May 12, 2008 @ 11:08 pm
I don’t see any evidence to suggest that the red double-hexagon is a symbol for Mendicant Bias. Wherever we know he is speaking, the symbol is the red/blue sideways-’h’ thing, or there is no symbol at all. In fact, Terminal 3 on legendary suggests that the red double-hexagon is something else, as the speaker refers to MB in the third person.
Comment by Omega — May 13, 2008 @ 5:19 pm
Omega, there is sufficient evidence to suggest that the red symbol also pertains to Mendicant.
As stated in the article, it’s often seen with a red-colored variant of the blue symbol we know to be Mendicant’s, but furthermore, Terminal 2 on Normal shows us the image featuring both symbols and it is Mendicant.
How do we know that it is Mendicant? The content.
In Terminal 6 (T6-07 if you’re using the attached bibliography), Offensive Bias references this statement as being one originating from Mendicant about 6 years prior to the final battle, presumably just before Mendicant interfaced with the compound intelligence.
Other parts of the terminals show that the red symbol in question is being used when someone of significance who left the Maginot sphere on an important mission is communicating back to the Forerunners. The only entity which fits that criteria in the terminals is Mendicant.
Comment by vociferous — May 14, 2008 @ 6:50 am
Yes, but voc, bungie has a nasty habbit of leaving bits, somtimes crucial bits out. Perhaps they were thinking out side the terminals. Posibility.
Comment by aassaa123 — May 14, 2008 @ 5:10 pm
When the double red hexagon is seen in the background of the initial terminal entries it is in an objective, third person perspective observing the flood’s activity.
Mendicant Bias was created to observe and report on flood activity. Yeah, Bungie forgot to leave that out too.
Comment by Diddler — May 15, 2008 @ 12:25 pm
hey on that final image i would just like to speculate that that kinda looks like “a reclaimer” type of person. from that achievement logo. (not sure wich one it is)
Comment by bowser962 — May 15, 2008 @ 4:35 pm
never mind i didnt read it all. didnt know you had already said that.
Comment by bowser962 — May 15, 2008 @ 4:40 pm
Regarding the last image:
Quick correction: The letter in Terminal seven is from son to father, not father to son.
I would speculate that the blue symbol simply represents the son writing the letter (I can’t see where the ‘reclaimer symbol’ connection is coming from; we know the symbol for reclaimers is the marathon logo, which doesn’t look much like the symbol in the terminal).
The presence of the MB symbol next to the dreadnaught leads me to believe that it is the same one we see in Halo 2 (on High Charity) and Halo 3 (on Earth), as we know from CH that MB was on that ship. The insignia below the ship could be the ship’s ID. All of the symbols to the left of the ship and insignia look like statistics on the dreadnaught (weapons/other systems) or statistics on the dreadnaught and other related ships/systems. Perhaps the son that wrote the letter was serving on that dreadnaught under Mendicant Bias?
As an aside, where is the symbol for 343 GS? It doesn’t appear in the video upon which these screens were taken.
Sorry if my comments sound critical, I really enjoyed reading the article. I was actually gathering screenshots/transcripts to make a similar compilation of speculation on the terminal images over the week before this article was posted (though obviously our interpretations differed in a few places :] ).
Comment by Omega — May 16, 2008 @ 11:00 pm
About the Forerunner Armor image, the object shown sort of reminds me of those little fleshy things floating around in the tank at the beginning of The Oracle mission in Halo 2. Anyone else see the resemblance?
Comment by Steel Pickle — May 22, 2008 @ 9:24 pm
Wow…you guys are amazing and I am grateful for you taking your time to do this. I love Halo and reading across this site almost is like another game.
Comment by Ricky — May 23, 2008 @ 12:32 am
Hey, you know the armour? It looks like a helmet, just tilted. Sortof similar to the ones brut stalkers wear. See the scanner, and the mouth?
Comment by Guido — May 23, 2008 @ 9:23 am
i agree with guido, the ‘suits’ look like helmets
Comment by Seth — May 23, 2008 @ 12:47 pm
where do you get the meanings of these symbols from? this all seems kind of like random info to me, although I have never really read into the terminals in-game(skipped right through the talking for the achievment) but I read your explanations of the terminals
Comment by rob — May 23, 2008 @ 2:41 pm
guys awsome site its people like you that keep halo and all its related items goin!!!
remember kirby cant aim
Comment by coktail assasin — May 23, 2008 @ 5:18 pm
Fantastic Job, this really filled in the blanks for me. However, the image above that is the supposed armor, if anything i think it is the helmet being portrayed because if it is indeed armor that looks rather large and bulky to be a suit. Mendicant mentions the armor as a Combat Skin, so i would imagine something more slim fitting like the Master Chief’s suit(which is also rated as Combat Skin-2), of course far more advanced. I do not think that is a suit matching their anatomy because that makes it look as if they float and referencing to the Halo book Ghosts of Onyx, the Forerunners had steps in their architecture, so they must be at least bipedal.
Comment by sythe992 — May 24, 2008 @ 2:26 am
A note for the armour terminal:
Personally i think that that image is Mendicant Bias himself, for 2 reasons, if you put that thing into perspective of what you would expect a forerunner monitor built to command their fleets and essentially be a warlord for their last stand, he kinda fits the bill for looking so mechanical and dangerous, and the second reason….if guitly spark said Master chiefs armour was a class 2 or whatever skin, then if that were a higher level i doubt it would turn from a MJOLNIR looking armour to something like that
Comment by Aaron — May 24, 2008 @ 2:46 pm
great work.
the final symbol, that much closely represents the marathon symbol could possibly be Master Chief, or better yet, Cortana hacking through the Chief’s network into the terminal. its just an idea, hope you have more stuff soon.
D13 N4S7Y
Comment by Chris (D13 N4S7Y) — May 25, 2008 @ 5:22 pm
Nice finds guys.I enjoyed reading.
Comment by xXxAlHalLoWxXx — May 26, 2008 @ 10:21 am
This was an incredible article; the writing is beautiful, and flawlessly researched. I look forward to more of your work. (and I thank you for adding my images, I’m elated to have them displayed here)
Comment by ARCThunder — May 26, 2008 @ 11:30 am
The picture where you referance armor and speculate on an encapsulating suit, could the image not be a suit but an intracately carved helmet? If you bring out the argument that most forerunner structures are extremely angular ang geometric, ponder this: Would armor not work better if it were more conforming to the body of the wearer? And wouldn’t it make sense to have buildings in geometric perfection but not the armor of the undoubtedly creative and artistic beings that forged them? These are but my thoughts…
Comment by Hunter — May 26, 2008 @ 8:01 pm
Just a thought, the image of the possible forerunner armour. It seems to have the image of a skull in it in light blue outline. Could this be a forerunner helmet rather than a full suit? Also, if I am right, then we can see the forerunner’s skull seems almost reptillian.
Just some thoughts,
Comment by nat130 — May 31, 2008 @ 4:22 am
I too have just heard about you guys through bungie, and i too have not yet read everything on this website. i have taken a big interest in the terminals which begs the question: should bungie make a prequal trilogy? or a prequal based game, in which case the master chief crashes on the planet seen in the legendary ending (presumably onyx) and slowly discovers what happened millenia ago. all in all i think alot of the story gameplay should go back to flash backs back to the flood wars, because there is so much rich history between the flood and forunners (that and im kinda a zombie finatic and the flood was a realy cool feature i found when i played the first halo cause essentially thats what they are). because of the terminals and the legendary ending there is so much they could do for a kind of..hmmm how do i say this…flashback game i guess you woudl call it, because if the planet really is onyx then we all know his spartans, catherine halsey, and chief maendez are still there, so as he slowly gets clues to find them he goes in these flashbacks back to the wars. yeah i knwo its sounds kinda wierd but im trying to explain it as successfully as i can, lol. i hope you all knwo what im talking about. or heres another thought, if John finds out about where the flood originated, because as the terminals say, wasnt their “homeworld” outside of the arrays reach? He finds that its still not over, and say he finds his spartans and company in toe, we all have a big reunion cutscene, big hugs, yadda yadda yadda, and then they go off in search of the flood homeworld to destroy it, and along the way learn about the true history (and who knows maybe we might finally fun into the forrunners or at least have a brief glimpse of what they look like. i guess what im saying is bungie really needs to have the flood return, because outside of the covenant war (which is now over) the flood was the only other major threat, unless bungie comes up with a new enemy, possably something similar to the flood, that ties in with the parasite. anyway let me know what you guys think, you have my email.
Comment by marcus aka everyonesproblem — June 1, 2008 @ 10:40 am
My comment is about the “armor”:
I think it’s very likely that the sketch is a forerunner armor design. Since a class 2 armor system is the equivalent of Master Chief’s armor in Halo: CE (who knows what Mark 6 was though), and Guilty Spark said he should have a class 12 atleast, than this could be like class 30. If the flood cannot get to you with out a full on barrage, i believe it would make great armor.
Comment by Alphalance — June 2, 2008 @ 8:28 pm
I have also herd of this website through bungie. Very nice site.
Comment by IRULE003 — June 2, 2008 @ 9:29 pm
Incredible analyses, everything.
Comment by Paul — June 4, 2008 @ 10:57 pm
I have taken great interest in your guys’ articles and they are simply insightful. I normally don’t post on these kinds of things, but I wanted to comment on the suggested Forerunner Armor. It obviously doesn’t look like something a human would wear entirely, being humans are forerunner, but it does look like a helmet of sorts. In all civilizations helmets were very important because they understood the importance of the head and it served for many ceremonial purposes. Look at us today, the Covenant (elite and brute ranks), and many other cultures.
Perhaps this is just a real close up picture of a forerunner helmet. At first glance without reading I though it was an elite helmet at first. lol
Comment by halosavior — June 15, 2008 @ 8:25 pm
In the second image (silent cartographer) it looks like a broken shield struck by a lightning bolt. To me this seems like a reference to either the Maginot line or the shield world(s)
Comment by Jake — June 22, 2008 @ 10:57 pm
Well i just wanted to point out that in the terminals after the red hack i noticed that right before the hack finished there was English for a second. Well i just finished the campaign again and read the last terminal and in that last second of the hack i read the following statement. “I am Midas bias and this is what i have done”. Any answers on what that could mean?
Comment by enoop — July 14, 2008 @ 7:16 pm
is it possible that symbol that keeps recuring actually means information (center)? i mean it appears in the besteriam which pardon spelling was full of info…the silent cartographer was an informative place also..the terminals are archives of the forerunners themselves..an the moniters answer all questions put to them with answers and are supposed to inform reclamers of the ring. it may represent an informative sort of thing pehaps?
Comment by anubis9267 — July 15, 2008 @ 7:13 am
what if the recurring golden/orange symbol represents information (center?) as it appears in places where there is informtion eg. silent cartographer imagine halo like an immense shopping mall you know those signs that say ‘you are here’and show you where certain parts of the mall are well that symbol appears outside the building and on the roof of the holo map in the silent cartographer.also the besterium(sorry for spelling) is a informative entity as it also advises and suggests also the smbol does not appear hidde n in some corner it is in plain view on the front. the moniters are also interactive information kiosks as well(or i end to think of them)
the symbol also appears on there casing not hidden in any way. also the terminals archives of the forerunners themselves documenting their history also not hidden but in plain view.
i think this symbol is to help “?” recognize where they might find help or an information center. also i heard a name for the symbol was the “re-call” symbol.
just a thought.
Comment by anubis9267 — July 15, 2008 @ 7:39 am
That supposed “armor” reminds me of both that enclosed S’Pht’Kr battle armor and just as pertinently, the Gravity Throne used by the San ‘Shyuum.
In the terminal that the message is part of, there are statements of things other than “Combat Skins”; there are also things called “battle harnesses” and “platform interface skins” used by those who specialize in combat platforms to ensure that the mind-machine sychronization is at its peak.
So maybe what is pictured is not a battlesuit but a weapon platform. If that is a “human” inside, then we can guess at the object’s size, and it would make sense that it is a weapons platform for serious confrontations with the Flood rather than a “skin”, which implies something mobile, relatively light, and efficient rather than a floating or flying combat platform.
Comment by Howling Darkness — July 25, 2008 @ 10:38 pm
I read every article. Very detailed and interesting. Definetely written by a good author. I don’t doubt the majority of you educated guesses and assumations are correct.
Maybe the item you refer to as a combat skin is what Mendicant & Offensive Bias looked like. Perhaps the were/are similar to Guilty Spark in the way that they levitate and function.
Comment by Alex — August 19, 2008 @ 3:24 am
The image of the Armor kind of looks like a helmet to me. I can see what could possible be eye holes and a mouth hole as well
Comment by Connor — November 19, 2008 @ 7:03 pm
I think the aromour might be a decorative helmit a bit like what the elite’s where. I also think that you can make out the outlines of the creature that wears it. it looks a little like a brutes head.
This is what i think they look like.
http://foruner-research.webs.com/whattheylooklike.htm
Comment by Matthew Thomas — December 17, 2008 @ 2:44 pm
“Another message from Mendicant Bias, this one referencing the possibility of using facilities similar to the Onyx Project – shield worlds – which Forerunner populations could be evacuated to. Is this an image of a shield world or is he referencing a planet already struck down by the Flood? We may eventually find out the answer to this question, but probably not until Bungie’s next Halo game.”
Could it perhaps be the planetoid from Halo Wars?
It is after all infested by the Flood.
The Forerunner ships inside it resembled swords.
The planetoid/shield, guarding the swords/ships.
(?)
Comment by Janaka — March 15, 2009 @ 5:03 pm
Before I discovered this website I thought I knew a lot about Halo. I, and I am sure many others here closely followed the ‘iris’ ad campaign for Halo 3 last summer (I spotted an image from it elsewhere on the site). I noticed there were some other symbols (which looked like text to be translated) on some of the various media related to the iris campaign, symbols that I later noticed in the terminals as forerunner text before it was translated. Forgive me if this already exists or has been done (actually, don’t-just point it out to me, I haven’t been following this as closely as I have in the past, in fact just discovered this site today), but I think an examination of the iris campaign would turn out to be interesting.
Comment by Connor — March 22, 2009 @ 10:39 pm
I believe the sword and shield references from cortana are deeper than the metaphor of the onyx project and the halo array.
i think it was meant as a recurring theme of the forerunners and as a main difference in humanity.
in practice a shield is useless without a sword, and a sword is much stronger when combined with a shield to protect the wielder.
the forerunners became complacent and peaceful, laying down the sword in and maintaining the shield as the guardians of the galaxy.
this separation of sword and shield permeates throughout the known history of the forerunners.
like a shield they spend much effort and resources into defenses, but lack effective means of a counter-strike, a mistake that allowed the flood to create the necessary foothold.
the flood in this metaphor is the opponent’s weapons, strong enough to overcome the forerunners shield mentality.
then as the shield that is the forerunner race is pushed farther and farther back, they stuggle to find the right sword for the job, all the while never abandoning the ever-weakening shield.
The ark, the line, and shield worlds, and the catalog project are all manifestation of the forerunner’s shield metaphor.
the failed military campaigns are all the failed attempts to rely on the shield while trying to fight the close battles of a dagger.
then the forerunners used a longsword in there attempts at glassing any flood infected world.
but the flood proved to be a force immune to conventional weapons and tactics, like a knight in full plate armor, it could be struck and slowed, but never pierced or cut down.
as long as the forerunners were weighed down by the burdensome shield they have become, they could not wield a weapon powerful enough to wipe out the entire flood.
the array was an ultimate weapon, the kind that required the dropping of all pretenses of defense, a last ditched effort only possible when preservation is no longer possible.
didact and the librarian are also a sword and shield.
didact was the reluctant sword, flawed by hesitation and reliance on a shield.
the librarian is the shield, seeking to protect what it can as well as it can, waiting and urging the sword to strike when necessary and unable to contribute in any way other then perseverance, determination, and self-sacrifice.
When cortana says “I am your sword, I am your shield” I believe she is speaking for many people.
she has understood the sword and shield difference between the forerunners and the flood.
she understands that what is necessary, is to embody both paradigms. I believe she has been in communication with a forerunner AI or at least been able to access the history of teh forerunners while absorbed into the gravemind’s fold.
it is also possible that the gravemind is inspiring this phrase from cortana.
lastly I believe that the secret potential that the forerunners saw in early mankind was a willingness to wield both the sword and shield with equal effectiveness.
they saw our strive to fight. to fight each other, to fight to protect. that we were an extremely effective race in terms of combat potential, but lacked to unchecked aggression lacking in other warrior races, a humble strength undoubtably recognized by the elites in their admiration of the humans they fought against and eventually joined sides with.
Where the forerunners failed by seperating the defensive and and offensive efforts, humans have grown to use a great offense as a great defense. our home planet is not protected by a shield, but rather the largest guns we have created.
our greatest military development, the Spartan Program, embodies the ancient warrior spirit the forerunners no doubt admired. The spartans were known for the phalanx, a formation consisting of wall of shields and spears. as enemies attacked the spartans, teh spartans were able the break the attacks with the rigid defense, without sacrificing the ability to push forward and deal mortal blows to opposing forces.
and in an extra piece of symbolism. The spartan power-suit was designated Mjolnir, the mythical hammer of thor. Despite the suit of armor being an instrument of personal protection, it’s augmenting abilities gave it the power of the greatest weapon in human mytholgies.
Comment by onthefence928 — April 6, 2009 @ 10:10 pm
maybe that foreunner armor is a helmet
Comment by michael — May 9, 2009 @ 6:52 am
Why does Mendicant Bias have three icons? I think I have an answer.
I already raised this issue on the talk page for his Halopedia article; rather than reprinting it here, I shall link to my comments there.
http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Talk:032_Mendicant_Bias#The_Terminal_Icons
Comment by DavidJCobb — September 2, 2009 @ 8:22 pm
If the forerunners ONLY used glyphs to communicate, Cortana must’ve had a heck of the time at the terminals and with the Covenant AIs…
Comment by Forwarduntodawn — December 2, 2009 @ 8:34 am
Oh, and regarding the armour thing. Yes, I do see the human, but it seems largely off porportions. What could’ve been suggested was the composition of a Contender-class AI’s crystal. It was a compound mind and must’ve been comprised of many parts.
Cortana was stored in a flat piece of crystal, probably because her code and mimicked sentience was linear. But Mendicant Bias, being far more capable, might’ve required a 3-dimensional crystal carved in a specific shape to store his codes.
Comment by Forwarduntodawn — December 2, 2009 @ 8:51 am