unforum

[Phoenix1337]

[SPEC] Ark Speculation

[DreamOfTheRood]

Re: Ark Speculation

[Hank Scorpio]

Never really thought about it before but the covenant are very relative to the halo universe although they dont exist in game yet. The Ark, The Covenant, something to think about.
Anyone with knowledge of the game background know how far back the Covenant go?

Although like stated before, Noah's Ark protected him from a flood sooo..........

[gott_sei_dank]

For me it is the ark of the covenant simply because in Halo 3 MC is going "to finish the fight", how is he going to do that, with the ultimate weapon of course.

As for Noah's Ark, surely a race advanced like the Forerunners, wouldn't bother to physically store all the species when you could sample its dna and store it on a computer,

[HaloPlayer]

in the video games the ark supposedly has the capacity to activate all of the halos when they are in standby mode (which they are), and thus would release the Flood simultaneously. unfortunately, intel in the Halo universe is typically lacking or part of a deception. another question would be whether or not the Ark itself releases the Flood on Earth. If so, the Ark wouldn't be much of a haven.

[Phoenix1337]

Re: Ark Speculation

[AngriBuddhist]

Actually, a story handed down through generations of humans probably wouldn't have contained any references of DNA sampling.

I believe that the Ark in Halo refers to the story of Noah. A story that would have been simplified by the comprehension of it's audience as well as the ages. Noah built the Ark and collected two of every creature because the Flood was coming.

In the Ark installation there will probably be DNA samples of two of every creature in the universe. When the Flood returns the Halo installations are activated and all life in the universe, including the Flood, is destroyed. The Ark then repopulates the universe.

The story of the Ark of the Covenant could be used to describe the power of Halo's Ark but I believe the main function will be life preservation.

[HaloPlayer]

it might've been in Cortana's letters, or some other email, but there is a reference to the events of the flood happening previously possibly evenn repeatedly

[HitsHerMark]

[Nola]

[HitsHerMark]

[psygene]

Re: Ark Speculation

[thebruce]

Ok if we're really going on parallels here, then here's my explanations of the two Arks... and loads of general spec and thinking out loud..in text... (it's long!)

Noah's Ark, the obvious reference, was built to save a portion of humanity - the immediate family of Noah, specifically chosen by God as being worthy enough - while the rest of the world was destroyed entirely by the flood. So the parallel of the Ark being the location from which the re-seeding of the galaxy would begin after its 'destruction' makes perfect sense.

Something that just came to mind however, was that in the comic, there was a native around while the Ark was being built (assuming it's the Ark and the machines are building it), which means, unless the entire earth is shielded against the Halos rather than the Ark installation, that native was destroyed. So most likely the forerunners placed a small number of numerous species they felt were 'worthy' of saving, including the native's race (humans). It's highly doubtful any of the Forerunners saved themselves - either they did and they died out, or they felt they were unworthy for creating the Flood in the first place.

Ark of the Covenant - contrary to popular belief (eg via Indiana Jones), it's not a weapon, nor was it intended to be. It was a sacred container to house significant elements that represent the union/covenant between man and God. It caused death to those who touched (let alone opened) it who weren't worthy - whom God didn't allow or choose. It's not something anyone can 'have' or 'control' to be used as a 'weapon'.

Now of course, in a fictional setting, that story can be adjusted to fit the desired plot (as with Indiana Jones). So the essence of the effect of the Ark of the Covenant could be applied to this theory... as with the previous definition, the Ark of the Covenant was a safe place to store and protect the elements representative of the covenant between God and Man, just as Noah's Ark was a safe place to store and protect the few chosen, worthy people from humanity. So really, the Ark of the Covenant draws from the same purpose of Noah's Ark, but with some added holy/sacred significance.


So I think either of these definitions can apply to the Forerunner's Ark... Which raises another thought - if the either Ark was opened at the wrong time (1) Noah's Ark: it would have killed its inhabitants (2) AotC: it would have killed those who opened it who weren't worthy.

So this implies...
(1) The Forerunner Ark was already used and opened - in which case it may possibly be used again (seems it was built with that in mind).
(2) The Ark was already used and hasn't been opened - in which case either (A) we aren't decended from the 'native' in the comic, but some other non-sentient (at the time) life which managed to survive, and opening the Ark will either kill whatever's in the Ark, or kill us (if we're not worthy). or (B) we are descended from the native, who somehow wasn't killed by the Halos, and possibly a few Forerunners are still in the Ark. #2 is unlikely, since the situation should be that no sentient life existed in the galaxy since the Halos had been fired (the purpose for using the Ark, and we know for a fact they were fired 100,000 years ago).
(3) The Ark hasn't been used - unlikely, for the same reasons as (2) - we know the Halos were fired.

It's pretty much already generally accepted that (1) is what happened. And it's fairly reasonable to assume by the words and actions of Guilty Spark that the "Reclaimers" are 'worthy' or 'chosen', most likely those saved originally by the Ark, so in essence we'd be the ones to build (activate) the Ark again as a safe-haven against the Flood. Just as the Halos have the index which only the worthy (Reclaimers) can use, like Noah and his ark or the chief priests and the AotC, it's safe to assume that the Ark will only be usable by humanity- the Reclaimers. Also, in theory if the Covenant attempt to breach the Ark, and are (ironically, by their standards) found unworthy, they would be destroyed.


---
In a nutshell... Noah's flood is definitely the best parallel, because it makes most sense that the firing of the Halos caused the receding of the Flood, after X amount of galactic 'flooding'. How long did it take the flood to starve off and 'recede' entirely from the galaxy so the Ark could be re-opened? 40 days? 40 years? 40,000 years? ...28 days? We can then presume that humanity was 'chosen' to lead the repopulation of the galaxy. With the sacred aspect of the AotC included, the Ark is the container that would protect the elements representing the 'covenant' between the Forerunners and, well, the galaxy? Meaning humanity is sacred and special. Anyone deemed unworthy of/unchosen by the Forerunners who attempted to use the Ark would be destroyed.

----
Question: with the firing of the Halos taking place 100,000 years ago, destroying all sentient life in the galaxy, where did the Covenant come from? I'm guessing - hoping - we hear more about this either in this ARG or in the game. One theory I found says the Covenant weren't sentient 100,000 years ago thus weren't killed by the Halos. But then, who's the 'native' seen in the comic? If he's human, I'm certain he was sentient, in which case couldn't we assume the Covenant were at least at a similar level? (unless their sentience began and developed at a much faster rate than humanity's)



sheesh, I truly heart the Halo universe! It's so deep and has such a rich history...

and, pretty much the entire conclusion of this post is already generally accepted as Halo canoon AFAIK =P

[Urk]

Adding a little factoid here for you guys to chew on.

[Anton P. Nym]

People ask which meaning of "Ark" is intended, Noachian or Covenant? I'm thinking both apply and are apt. It doesn't pay to be to literal in interpretation; if you can set it up to riff on both meanings, so much the better from a writing standpoint.

-- Steve's hatched out several theories on why the Covenant's component species are still around... his favourite so far is that they had Arks too, but they've become compromised since the foundation of the Covenant.

edited to add: I would be remiss without riffing on the SNL sketch here; floor wax AND dessert topping!