This is a reblog from Halo Waypoint:
BY GRIMBROTHER ONE
ISSUE 67
SKIRMISH AT DARKSTAR
While the loss of Pinnacle Station dealt a massive blow to Liang-Dortmund’s operations on Meridian, demand for the planet’s vitrified resources has neither slaked nor slowed. Working quickly and quietly to avoid the notice of the Created, regional directors at Liang-Dortmund quickly implemented contingency plans to mitigate the economic impact and reconstitute operations on the frontier planet-moon. Though the company’s local headquarters at Meridian Station was devastated, the remote polar outpost of Darkstar Station survived, its workers and engineers largely unaware of the disaster that unfolded on the other side of the planet and the uncertain future that awaits them under Cortana’s rule. Despite the uncertain astro-political climate, Liang-Dortmund continues an accelerated resource gathering operation while tacit permission exists, transferring one of its largest resource processor ships, additional workers, and human resource specialists to Meridian’s orbit in order to continue work and assess the company’s remaining investments. But anomalies abound beneath the battered surface as ancient machinery buried deep in the planet’s mantle stir to life, and the UNSC makes plans to once again revisit the surface in search of answers, regardless of what forces that intervention may unleash.
HFFL: I really enjoy the backstories of these. It really helps to immerse you into the Halo universe just that much more!
CHALLENGERS & CHAMPIONS
A question that has come up a few times over the past couple months has been – paraphrased of course – “Is the HCS/HWC canon?” For those of you unfamiliar with the aforementioned monikers, the query refers to the Halo Championship Series and Halo World Championship. The Halo WC pits the top Halo players and teams in the world against each other, and conveniently enough, the finals will be taking place this very weekend in Hollywood, CA – March 18-20th. Maybe you are just a Halo fan. Maybe you’re also a sports fan. Maybe you’re just someone who loves to soak up the tension and drama that competing for $2.5 million inevitably brings. No matter what category you fall into, you should definitely check it out!
While the “Halo WC” in a literal sense isn’t canonical, the reality of Spartan fireteams competing for glory in the War Games simulations very much is. This was hinted at even back in the LCE bonus materials of Halo 4, which included the scorecard you see here showcasing Fireteam Majestic and Fireteam Castle facing off. Like in actual Halo multiplayer, canonically Spartans train in a variety of different scenarios and environments, assuring that they’ll be able to maintain their razor-edge efficiency no matter what challenges they face.
Also, for those of you looking to add a Mjolnir kit with some competitive flair to your armory, check this out: Starting on Sunday at 4 p.m. PT on your Xbox One (through the Xbox Live Event Interactive app) or Twitch, you can get the Halo World Championship REQ Pack. For free. This special pack includes the all new Ultra Rare “CHALLENGER” armor set (plus a pretty sweet Halo WC 2016 emblem). Note that this will only be available until 9 a.m. PT on Mar. 21, so definitely check it out!
CHALLENGER
Armor: The CHALLENGER’s high-performance thrusters and shield emitter arrays require constant stress monitoring and adjustment to avoid critical failure during a match, much to the dismay of Infinity’s support teams.
Helmet: The CHALLENGER is built on a PROTECTOR frame subjected to hundreds of additional tests and quality assurance checks, minimizing performance quirks that negatively impact competitive performance.
HFFL: This armor set looks fantastic. I was already a fan of the Protector armor set. This variant skin is BALLER!
CHANT-TO-THEME
HFFL: Behind the scenes stuff is just awesome to me. Just as I like Concept Art for productions, learning/seeing how the music is made is just as cool. Knowing more about what goes into a project helps me appreciate the final product when it comes out. Hopefully it does the same for you.