{"id":23052,"date":"2015-09-13T00:06:52","date_gmt":"2015-09-13T05:06:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/halofanforlife.com\/?p=23052"},"modified":"2015-12-23T20:36:09","modified_gmt":"2015-12-24T01:36:09","slug":"canon-fodder-infinity-and-beyond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/halofanforlife.com\/?p=23052","title":{"rendered":"Canon Fodder: Infinity and Beyond"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is a reblog from Halo Waypoint:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

BY\u00a0GRIMBROTHER ONE<\/p>\n

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ISSUE 41<\/strong>\"canonfodder-9-10-15-6abe42550a464ed2a3986c19e9e6b00a\"<\/a>Welcome back, story-supporters!\u00a0Last week we gave you your first details\u00a0on the upcoming Halo novel from Joseph \u201cPlease do the Grunt voice\u201d Staten,\u00a0Halo: Shadow of Intent<\/em><\/a>. This week we\u2019ve got a smattering of lore-laden topics to touch on, starting off with a few words from current lead writer on the\u00a0Halo: Escalation\u00a0<\/em>comic series, Duffy Boudreau. Many of you have been following Duffy\u2019s work quite closely over the past few months, as he\u2019s brought fans page after page of new Halo story goodness, featuring lore loaded with deep implications for the greater Halo narrative. Most recently, Duffy has been responsible for penning \u201cThe Absolute Record\u201d story arc, which helps directly bridge the gap between the events of\u00a0Halo 4: Spartan Ops\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Halo 5: Guardians<\/em>. I sat down with Duffy to ask about his role in creating new fiction, as well as how it feels to take on such a mantle of responsibility. Let\u2019s get started, shall we?<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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COMIC RELIEF<\/h2>\n

GrimBrother One: Can you talk overall about how the experience has been writing for Halo? What has made the experience unique compared to other work you\u2019ve done?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Duffy Boudreau:\u00a0<\/strong>First off, working with 343 has been great. Any time I have a question about some crazy detail\u2014let\u2019s say the top speed of a Harvester or something\u2014they\u2019ll have an answer for me. It\u2019s also been fun working with them on big-picture story stuff, figuring out where each potential story fits in the overall Halo saga, what the implications are going to be on future events in the universe.<\/p>\n

The most unique aspect of Halo, for me, is the massive amount of diehard fans. It\u2019s a writer\u2019s dream to have such an involved audience and I love the fact that Halo fans are split into these hardcore factions about how they feel about certain characters or major events in Halo history. That\u2019s an aspect of Halo that really gets me going creatively.<\/p>\n

GRIM: You\u2019re absolutely right on the \u201cdie-hard fans\u201d point, that\u2019s for sure! So speaking of connecting back to the big picture, you\u2019ve worked on four different story arcs for\u00a0Halo: Escalation<\/em>\u00a0now, \u201cThe Janus Key\u201d and \u201cThe Absolute Record\u201d in particular have a special place in the fiction as they are in essence direct continuations of the\u00a0Halo 4: Spartan Ops<\/em>\u00a0storyline. What type of preparation did you do to prepare for these specific arcs?<\/strong><\/p>\n

DUFFY:\u00a0<\/strong>I revisited Spartan Ops a bunch. And with any story research, you start with the foundational material and you put on your viewer\u2019s hat and ask yourself \u2014 \u201cWhere do I want to see the story go from here?\u201d\u2014 and \u2014 \u201cWhat questions need to be answered for all this great stuff to be paid off?\u201d You start making a list, then you\u2019re rolling.<\/p>\n

I also took a look back at some Forerunner history, to cover The Librarian\u2019s involvement in the story. Even though she\u2019s not physically present, she\u2019s the one who set everything in motion, so her intentions are definitely affecting the main conflict.<\/p>\n

GRIM:\u00a0I think that fans certainly appreciate the commitment to investing in the established fiction. On the other side of the coin, we see\u00a0Halo: Escalation\u00a0<\/em>not just looking back, but looking forward. In \u201cThe Glass Horizon,\u201d we got to experience the origin story of Spartan-IV Holly Tanaka, who players will become even more familiar with throughout\u00a0Halo 5: Guardians<\/em>. Can you speak to the process of helping introduce a character like that, helping to give a foundation for them within an entirely different medium?<\/strong><\/p>\n

DUFFY:\u00a0<\/strong>It\u2019s a big responsibility to introduce a character like Tanaka, but that\u2019s the most exciting thing. Knowing fans of hers are going to go back and discover it\u2014and it better be good, you know? Part of \u201cThe Glass Horizon\u201d that\u2019s interesting to me is that Tanaka is such a stoic and reserved person that she\u2019s not going to be telling this story to many people, so it\u2019s kind of like a secret history. Sure, in Part One she tells her colleagues part of the story \u2014 but that\u2019s for a very specific reason, she\u2019s trying to spur them to action. But she\u2019s not the type of person I see telling that same story at the bar or something.<\/p>\n

The medium part of the question is a good one, but honestly, I don\u2019t really think of it being any different. There are some logistical differences, but I try to tell the same stories in the comics that we\u2019d all want to see on the screen. Comics are a primarily visual medium, and the best of them\u2014my favorites anyway\u2014are the ones that are most cinematic in terms of storytelling. So that\u2019s what we were hoping to achieve, that readers imagining \u201cThe Glass Horizon\u201d unfolding in front of them in this epic way, because while the story is more intimate and personal, those landscapes are still vast and mythic.<\/p>\n

GRIM: We can totally agree there! On the subject of interesting characters, many fans have actually started to latch on to the character of Ayit \u2018Sevi, who we first met in the \u201cExposure\u201d story arc, but has now become a pivotal character within \u201cThe Absolute Record.\u201d Can you talk a bit about his development?<\/strong><\/p>\n

DUFFY:\u00a0<\/strong>I\u2019m happy to hear fans are latching onto him because developing Ayit has been one of my favorite parts of working with Halo. I was thinking a lot about Sangheili culture and how it manifests itself in these different post-war factions, how it\u2019s coming to terms with its historically subordinate\u2014relative to its real power and potential\u2014role within the Covenant.\u00a0Collectively, the Sangheili are asserting themselves\u2026 but what happens now if an individual Sangheili starts going down that road? Becomes a total mercenary? Of course, this individual has to be an anomaly within that culture, a real outlier. And Ayit, should his real character ever be known in that community, would be considered a sociopath by their standards\u2014the very traits that make him more \u201chuman\u201d are condemned in his native culture.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s for this reason\u2014that nobody really knows what to do with him, or how to handle him\u2014that he\u2019s so fun to write. The idea of Thorne having to partner up with him so fresh off their tussle during \u201cExposure\u201d entertained me to no end. We\u2019ll see how long those two make it together\u2026<\/p>\n

GRIM: Heh, were it so easy! Changing gears a bit, do you have a favorite piece of Halo fiction other than what you\u2019ve worked on? Is it a game, a book, something else entirely?<\/strong><\/p>\n

DUFFY:\u00a0<\/strong>That\u2019s a tough one. There\u2019s so much Halo fiction out there that I dove into and inspired what I was doing, so it\u2019s hard to single-out one work\u2026 Lately, I\u2019ve really dug\u00a0Hunt the Truth. It\u2019s a really unique format\u2014Ben Giraud\u2019s audio journal combined with all this other media. The voice-work in there is amazing: Keegan Michael-Key, Cobie Smulders, Kumail Nanjiani, Phil Lamar, and, of course, Stacy Keach! Everyone needs to go listen to that.<\/p>\n

GRIM: Couldn\u2019t agree with you more there. One last thing, what is one thing you hope fans take away from your work in the Halo universe?<\/strong><\/p>\n

DUFFY:\u00a0<\/strong>I just hope that the struggles and personalities of these characters that I\u2019ve dealt with in my work on Halo\u2014Tanaka, Ayit, Palmer, Jul, and Halsey\u2014continue to resonate with fans as the story of Halo grows. And that new generations of Halo fans will come in to this world and connect with these characters. At the end of the day, that\u2019s what it\u2019s all about.<\/p>\n

GRIM: It is indeed. Thanks so much for joining us today, and for the passion you pour into the Halo universe!<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

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LAST ONE, TURN THE LIGHTS OUT<\/h2>\n

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Speaking of action that jumps off the pages, we continue our bountiful Halo harvest this year with the fourth literary release of 2015, Troy Denning\u2019s\u00a0Halo: Last Light<\/em>,\u00a0which drops officially this coming September 15th<\/sup><\/a>. It\u2019s a must read for fans of Spartans, especially Blue Team, as the combination of excellent characterization and detective-style narrative blend together to create a piece quite unlike any other in the Halo fiction so far. Well known fiction-focused community member Toa Freak from the\u00a0Halo Canon YouTube channel<\/a>\u00a0says\u00a0Halo: Last Light\u00a0<\/em>is “A murder-mystery set in the Halo Universe that perfectly captures the turmoil following the Covenant War, and does extremely well by beloved characters.” The folks at that same community channel also have a great series of Blue Team primer videos to help get you ready for\u00a0Halo 5: Guardians\u00a0<\/em>that you should definitely give a look. And since we are on the subject of\u00a0Halo: Last Light,\u00a0<\/em>you might as well start with\u00a0their take on Spartan-II Fred-104<\/a>, a fan-favorite Spartan that features prominently both in the new novel, and the upcoming game.<\/p>\n

You can experience\u00a0Halo: Last Light<\/em>\u00a0for yourself next week, which if nothing else, will help further ease the wait between now and the release of\u00a0Halo 5: Guardians\u00a0<\/em>this October. If you are looking for a chance to get a\u00a0very special\u00a0<\/em>copy of your own, I’d advise you to keep an eye out for Bravo’s Community Update later today, as we might just be giving away copies of the new novel signed by author Troy Denning. And by “might” I mean “we are.”\u00a0And of course, once the book has been out in the wild for a bit, we\u2019ll be doing our customary deeper dive into its pages right here in Canon Fodder, so stay tuned!<\/p>\n

JOINING THE FLEET ELITE<\/h2>\n

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In case you missed it, not long ago our friends and partners at Spartan Games headed to THE event for tabletop gaming in the United States, GenCon 2015 in Indianapolis. If you were one of the lucky fans in attendance, you might have gotten a glimpse of some of the prototype units for the upcoming Halo ground game, as well as for further additions to\u00a0Halo: Fleet Battles<\/em>. If you\u00a0weren\u2019t\u00a0<\/em>able to make it, then have no fear, as we\u2019ve got you covered right here. 343 Industries\u2019 own Kenneth Peters was also at GenCon to support Spartan Games and explain the lore behind the game to fans. Today he has his own field report from the GenCon trenches.<\/p>\n

SETTING THE TABLETOP<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u201cI expected GenCon 2015 to be busy, but\u00a0over 61,000 gamers was a sight to see! In addition to helping Spartan Games plan the next wave of\u00a0Halo: Fleet Battles<\/em>\u00a0I had the opportunity to talk Halo with all manner of fans regarding everything from canon minutia to game mechanics. We\u2019re very happy with the response to\u00a0Halo: Fleet Battles<\/em>\u00a0(it completely sold out), but more is yet to come! With the usual caveats that plans can change and some models are not yet final, here\u2019s an update on the tabletop games set in the Halo Universe!\u201d<\/p>\n

FLEET ACTIONS<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u201cThe centerpiece for\u00a0Halo: Fleet Battles<\/em>\u00a0at GenCon 2015 was definitely the scale model of Rho \u2018Barutamee\u2019s flagship, the\u00a0Long Night of Solace<\/em>. Yes,\u00a0scale<\/em>\u00a0model. Meaning that the vessel was over four feet long! You could fit the entire Covenant fleet from the starter box in its cavernous hangar bay! The\u00a0Solace<\/em>\u2019s imposing presence at the demo table drew impressive crowds of onlookers and more than one offer to buy the model outright. In addition to running demos and showing off the\u00a0Long Night of Solace<\/em>, Spartan Games had previews of upcoming miniatures on display for gamers and collectors looking to expand their existing\u00a0Halo: Fleet Battles<\/em>\u00a0force.”<\/p>\n