Characters / Halo: The Banished

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CLASSIFICATION: TVTROPES
SUBJECT: THE BANISHED

Index

• Main Index
• UNSC
  • Artificial Intelligences
  • SPARTAN-I Program
  • SPARTAN-II Program
    • The Master Chief
  • SPARTAN-III Program
  • SPARTAN-IV Program
  • Navy
  • Marines and ODSTs
  • ONI
• The Covenant
  • Sangheili/Elites
• The Banished
• Forerunners
• UEG Civilians
• Other Factions

In General

The Banished

"We do not bow our heads. We do not kneel before false idols. We stand together! Fight together! Lay down our lives to protect our creed! Atriox showed us the way! Together, we are invincible! We are the Banished!"

A Brute-dominated mercenary organization which originated as an anti-Covenant rebellion, having split from the Covenant before the Great Schism. In the aftermath of the Human-Covenant War, the Banished have not only been able to salvage much of the Covenant's former power, but have even managed to overrun the Ark by the start of Halo Wars 2. As of Halo Infinite, they have taken over Zeta Halo and crushed the UNSC fleet; combined with the recent defeat of the Created, this leaves the Banished as the dominant power in the galaxy.

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• Badass Army: The Banished war-machine is feared for a reason, they may field a much smaller force than the original Covenant, but engaged them in a brutal conflict with guerilla tactics to a stalemate, and their soldiers, most of them seasoned ex-Covenant mercenaries, are pound-for-pound of higher skill and discipline than their counterparts, supported by powerful contraptions and vehicle support.
• Bad Boss: The Phoenix Logs indicate that Banished commanders tend to treat their Grunts like literal punching (and kicking) bags, often for no reason beyond simple stress relief.
• The Bad Guy Wins: By the start of Infinite, the Banished have officially defeated the UNSC and Cortana's army in a Curb-Stomp Battle off-screen. What's left of the former are nothing more than ragtag remnants scattered about around Zeta Halo with many missing-in-action to other locations unknown amidst being hunted down by Escharum, while the Infinity is explicitly destroyed, and the hostile A.I. and Guardians are completely eradicated. This doesn't mean all of their plans are fulfilled, and Master Chief is able to severely damage their efforts once he returns, but for six months, the Banished were unanimously victorious.
• Color-Coded Armies: Their equipment is largely red and silver themed.
• Combat Pragmatist: See Contrasting Sequel Antagonist below for more detail. By and large, the Banished have cast off much of the Covenant’s battle doctrine.
  • On the tactical level, Sangheili and Jiralhanae are fully integrated into small units. By that same token, human weapons are no longer taboo.
  • Their technology reflects a similar mindset. Dreadnoughts designed from the ground-up to salvage wreckage and convert it into war material while smaller, more recognizable vehicles have received upgrade packages that would once have been dismissed as heretical.
• Contrasting Sequel Antagonist: The Banished may share the same species as the Covenant, but are a completely different force in terms of their attitude and approach.
  • The Covenant Empire was a long-lived religious hegemony whose every aspect of being revolved around the worship of the Forerunners; a conglomeration of starkly different species rife with corruption and infighting, held together by the promise of spiritual ascendancy through "The Great Journey" through activation of the Halo rings. The Banished are a rapidly rising power comprised of outcasts, mercenaries and others who had grown disillusioned with the Covenant's lies, structured under a ruthlessly meritocratic ideology that values strength regardless of origin or species.
    • This is immediately in their infantry squad structuring; whereas Brutes and Elites under the Covenant led squads into battle separately from each other, the Banished feature both species working side-by-side as cohesive units.
    • The rejection of the Covenant also allowed the Banished to hire humans to their cause.
  • The Covenant held the Forerunners to such a zealous degree of worship, that interactions with their technology were heavily restricted and subject to layers of religious bureaucracy; a fatal flaw that stymied technological advancement within the empire and was frequently leveraged by the opposition. The Banished bear so little reverence for the Forerunners that they gladly use/abuse their technology in ways that the old Covenant would have deemed heretical, ultimately affording them increased flexibility when dealing with foes. Unfortunately, this also means some of them don't believe in the Flood.
  • Further highlighting their fanatical dogma, the Spartan supersoldiers (Master Chief in particular) had garnered enough infamy within the Covenant military to afford them the mythical title of "Demon". While the moniker hasn't completely worn off, the Banished are more likely to refer to the Chief as "Spartan" or his full title, reflecting their dismissal of myth or superstition.
  • In terms of aesthetics, Covenant equipment and vehicles feature "organic"-looking designs with smooth curves in varying shades of pink, purple and occasionally blue. Banished technology compounds on the aesthetic of brute technology, with decidedly more angular designs complemented with sharp edges/blades/spikes, dominated by a colour palette of black, silver and red.
  • Halo 4 and 5 featured Jul 'Mdama's Covenant Remnant, who maintained the rigid caste system of the original Covenant and sought to start a new fight against humanity despite their dwindling resources and support. They were never seen as anything more than a nuisance who required the Prometheans as semi-allies to not be completely steamrolled by the revitalized UNSC forces. In contrast, the Banished are introduced as smashing the UNSC in the aftermath of Halo 5's ending, taking advantage of the chaos sown by the Created War to emerge from the shadows and properly stake their claim in the galaxy.
• Cult of Personality: Have turned to this stance as of late after Atriox's disappearance and supposed death in Infinite, with Escharum deliberately enshrining Atriox as a near-Messianic Archetype to keep them in line, ironically enforcing a similar level of indoctrination that the Covenant had enforced on its members later on to ensure the Awful Truth of their religion didn't get out to the public, going against everything Atriox believed in when forming the Banished.
• Equippable Ally: In Infinite, Grunts going for a suicide run can be grabbed and thrown by any Brute they pass by to 'help' them hit the Chief in an blue explosion on impact.
• Equal-Opportunity Evil: While the Banished's members tend to be competitive with each other at best, Atriox himself generally sees all of those who join the Banished as having equal potential for greatness like him regardless of species, seeking to secure a future for all their kind. They will even accept humans, on Installation 07 a human inspector commands a prison camp. Perhaps the biggest accomplishment of this is not only getting Brutes and Elites to begrudgingly become brothers-in-arms, but also getting Grunts to get some universal respect, with Brutes openly bantering with them and Elite superiors half-affectionately nicknaming them 'little warriors' in battle.
• Evil Counterpart: To the Swords of Sanghelios. Both are Covenant splinter factions with a fondness for crimson led by charismatic warriors who also happen to be brilliant and pragmatic strategists. However, the Swords are an Elite-led faction which ultimately seek peaceful relations with the rest of the galaxy, while the Banished are a Brute-led faction who seem to be more interested in all-out conquest.
• Eviler than Thou:
  • The Covenant, which inflicted a massive Curb-Stomp Battle against humanity during its prime, never even came close to catching on Atriox's head.
  • In the backstory of Infinite, Cortana destroyed Doisac and its more than 12 billion inhabitants to punish Atriox for his defiance. Fans incorrectly theorized that after taking Cortana as their own prisoner, Atriox "implied to her that they planned to activate the Halo to kill trillions". It was later revealed that Atriox sought to use Zeta Halo to find the Endless to be used as an asset.
• Evil Versus Evil: They may have fought against the Covenant during the height of its power, but their own intentions don't seem to be all that benevolent either.
• Evil Versus Oblivion: They completely put their war-effort against the Spirit of Fire on hold and engage the Flood in this, knowing full well if they can't contain them all of the galaxy will perish.
  • In retrospect, Infinite reveals this is the main reason for their activity on Installation 07, as Cortana was actively hunting them down, with Doisac—the Brute homeworld—being destroyed as a consequence for refusing to join her in the first place, revealing the true scope of their desperation and the depravity they'll stoop to in trying to save themselves.
• Face Death with Dignity: Unlike Grunts and Jackals who cry for help or panic, critically injured Brutes and Elites in Infinite will sometimes solemnly say Farewell. or Very well... to nearby allies before the killing blow is dealt to them.
• From Nobody to Nightmare: The Banished were outcasts, mercenaries, and proverbial space pirates, essentially being little more than a ragtag faction that wanted nothing to do with the Covenant beyond picking fights and stealing their equipment, though their capability was never in doubt. Once the Human-Covenant War ended, their pilfering of the aftermath and Atriox smartly utilizing the political tensions to his advantage led to the Banished building up enough power to eventually eclipse the Covenant and accomplish what they couldn't: defeat humanity.
• Heavily Armored Mook: Not only are the Banished's Jiralhanae more heavily armored than most of their Covenant counterparts, but the Banished versions of standard Covenant vehicles tend to have extra armor plates wielded on.
• A Lighter Shade of Black: Unlike the Covenant, they're not planning to genocide all of humanity and are (in theory) much more equal.
• Never Be Hurt Again
  Escharum: "The Banished will never bow - to anyone - again! Not the Covenant! Not the Prophets! Not... Her."
• Old Soldier: A good amount of the Banished forces are Covenant veterans. While they've all denounced their faith, many of them still fondly remember their combat service, reminiscing on the war they waged against humanity. Outside of High Value Targets, most of whom having a level of infamy in the Covenant before joining the Banished, high ranking Grunts, Jackals and Elites occasionally reference their old allegiance.

  (Banished Elite) I once dreamed of glassing the human planets... now I am closer than ever to living that dream.

  "(Banished Grunt Mule) Is it me, or have we been fighting the same guy for years''?
  (Banished Jackal) Covenant dead, Banished pay smaller... but Banished strong.
• Ramming Always Works: Banished space battle doctrine practically revolves around this trope. While many of their warships are salvaged wholesale from Covenant stockpiles, their homegrown designs have prows that function like colossal gravity hammers.
• Red and Black and Evil All Over: Their main color scheme is plenty of bare black metal with red details, which is colored all over their bases and commandeered vehicles. Their actual uniforms, however, actually differ - while the best of the best members like high ranking Jackals and Brutes wear red and black, other species like Grunts and Elites wear armor that harken back to their Covenant days (orange, purple, white for Grunts and blue, red and gold for Elites).
• The Revolution Will Not Be Civilized: Are no less brutal (no pun intended) than the Covenant they split from.
• Rising Empire: The Banished has been able to gather a huge amount of power, war material, mercenaries and influence during the Post-War period, to the extent their only real rival are the Swords of Sanghelios in terms of strength; with ONI especially concerned with the fact they are getting so strong, they're starting to build ties with human criminal networks, and begin to influence the rims of the Outer Colonies.
• Shock and Awe: The Banished in Infinite make heavy usage of electric-based weaponry, with the shock rifle and dynamo grenade capable of arcing their bolts from target to target.
• Spikes of Villainy: They go even further with this aesthetic than most Brutes do; even their Wraiths have spikes!
• Standard Evil Empire Hierarchy:
  • The Emperor: Atriox, Warmaster of the Banished.
  • The Right Hand: Decimus, Atriox's second-in-command.
  • The General: Escharum, the War Chief who commands the Banished forces when Atriox isn't around.
  • The Guard: Tremonius and Chak 'Lok, who both control different strategic points on Installation 07.
  • The Oddball: Jega 'Rdomnai, who leads the Hand of Atriox, an elite team that specializes in killing Spartans.
  • The Man Behind the Man: The Harbinger, who is allied with the Banished so they can help her release the Endless.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: A majority of the Banished, especially the Sangheili members, feel extremely uncomfortable about their allies and would prefer to kill each other over old feuds, with Atriox alone keeping the whole band running.
  • By Infinite, their feud continues with insults such as "You are as bad as the Brutes!". Banished Sangheili remain committed only for their payment as mercenaries, though some look up to Atriox and comment on how odd it is he came from a species they detest.
• Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: At the end of the day, the Banished functioning in the present after the Human-Covenant War are simply a consequence of the survivors of Cortana's Created conflict who are all fleeing for their lives as well as seeking vengeance against Cortana for their lot in life.
• Used Future: A lot of their equipment has a crudely modified look to it, as a result of their habit of raiding Covenant arsenals and improving what they find with Jiralhanae engineering. Atriox himself is a good demonstration of that philosophy: his armor appears to be cobbled together from UNSC sources, while his Gravity Hammer includes parts from the Energy Sword that was used to try and execute him.
• What a Piece of Junk: Their vehicles may look like they were put together from scrap (and several probably are), but they can more than hold their own against anything their enemies can throw at them.

Brutes

Atriox

Atriox

"Yes... run... little Demons."

Homeworld: Doisac
Birthdate: May 28, 2510
Debuted in: Hunting Party
Voiced by: John DiMaggio (Halo Wars 2), Ike Amadi (Halo Infinite)

"I am not Tartarus or some fanatic. I am not Truth. I am not Regret. I am their remedy."

Atriox is the powerful Jiralhanae warmaster who leads the Banished, a violent faction of ex-Covenant mercenaries and criminals. He originally fought on behalf of the Covenant, but was banished after thwarting his own execution. A deadly warrior and brilliant military leader, Atriox inspired many others to join him in exile. He has led his followers for over a decade, during which time he amassed a large amount of ordnance and materiel, especially following the collapse of the Covenant Empire in 2552. By 2558, he had become a symbol for even Jiralhanae not serving with the Banished to rally around. Atriox's full ambitions are unclear, but they are grandiose, and he is both a terrifying warrior, and a brilliant commander.

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• Ace Custom: His energy mace was created using parts of a gravity hammer and an energy sword, and his armor is made from pieces of UNSC equipment and other technology.
• Affably Evil: Atriox is surprisingly well-spoken and philosophical for a Brute, as well as far more pragmatic as he can talk his way through situations that typically would end in a bloodbath if it was any other Brute but him.
• Anti-Villain: Of the Noble Demon variant. Atriox is ruthless, but is fairly honorable, and has something of a strong moral code.
• Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Watching him take on Three Spartan II's in close-quarters combat and win will immediately tell you why the rest of the Banished believes in him so fanatically.
• Badass Boast: Just after forcing Red Team to retreat:
  Atriox: Run, little demons... Hunt them down. Find out where they came from. And bring me back anything… useful.
• Bad Boss: The Phoenix Logs indicate that he values strength to the point where he'll kill officers who've failed him too many times, something which is also hinted at in Awakening the Nightmare.
  • That said, compared to a majority of other splinter faction leaders, including some of his own men like Decimus, Atriox is still a surprisingly Benevolent Boss given how long he allowed Voridus to be a thorn in his side and his general policy of accepting anyone into his ranks, even Humans and Sangheili, so long as they prove themselves loyal to the cause or, more specifically, useful to him.
• Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work: While humanity was crushed by the Created, it was Atriox and his Banished, not the UNSC, that beat back Cortana's forces.
• Badass Normal: By Brute standards at least. Brutes are already physically stronger than other species, but it doesn’t change the fact that Atriox is completely unaugmented and yet he was still able to fight and best an entire company of ODST commandos, alongside a trio of SPARTAN II super soldiers without breaking a sweat.
• Big Bad: Of Halo Wars 2. Though he doesn't appear in it much, he's the one directing the Banished against the Spirit of Fire as they battle for control of the Ark. By Halo Infinite, he's displaced Cortana as the dominant power in the galaxy.
• Bodyguarding a Badass: It's shown in the final cinematic of Awakening the Nightmare that Atriox has an honor guard of Brute warlords. As the beatdown he delivered to Red Team demonstrates, he hardly needs any sort of guard.
• Bond Villain Stupidity: He has the Master Chief himself at his mercy, but chooses to drop him into space rather than kill him conventionally. Escharum speculates he spared the Master Chief on purpose in an audio log, but Escharum's judgment also isn't exactly stable by that point.
• Carry a Big Stick: His personal energy mace, "Chainbreaker".
• Combat Pragmatist: Will use whatever resources and allies are available to get an upper hand. Quoth Master Chief:
  Master Chief: Atriox beat me. Surgically. Precisely. Brutally.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Upon introducing himself in Halo Wars 2, Atriox completely overwhelms Red Team, despite the latter consisting of three Spartan-IIs who themselves mowed down a large group of Sangheili elite guards in Halo Wars (and go on to mow down plenty of Atriox's own troops). To be fair, the Spartans were caught completely off-guard, and using equipment approximately 28 years out of date.
  • Accomplishes yet again against the Master Chief himself in the opening of Infinite, although unlike Red Team, Chief does take a hell of a lot more damage on the chin with three direct hits from his hammer and deals a good few punches that actually staggers Atriox before finally going down.
• Dark Messiah: While he's openly atheist, he ironically fits this. He's a charismatic figure who rose up against a corrupt and tyrannical regime, unified numerous different alien races that were previously hostile towards each other under the same banner and leads them in going up against the reigning Empire of the galaxy. There's a lot about Atriox that would make him seem like The Hero, if he weren't also a brutal warlord leading a campaign of loot and plunder across the galaxy. Taken a step further when Escharum turns him into a semi-divine figure after he goes missing as a means to rally the Banished and ensure they stay together.
• Despair Event Horizon: It's very clear Atriox went past it after Cortana committed genocide against his people on Doisac and subjected him to a fate of Forced to Watch.
• The Dreaded: The Covenant absolutely feared him, putting him on par with the whole of humanity as a target, and rightly so.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Atriox is a ruthless warlord but has a personal code.
  • He's very quick to withdraw every warrior under his command to battle the Flood after Voridus accidentally unleashes a feral brood dwelling within the quarantined remains of High Charity.
  • In Rise of Atriox, after getting his hands on a device that would have given him the power to mind-control a vast Yanme'e army, he decides to destroy it instead, declaring that he only wants followers who genuinely respect his power.
  • Atriox refuses to conscript anyone. He will only accept those who want to join the Banished.
  • He detests racism, and the concept of genocide enrages and disgusts him. When he hears that some of his warbands are mistreating and even killing some of their human Hired Guns, Atriox is deeply upset.
• Evil Counterpart: Let's see. He's a warrior who had grown tired of the Covenant's beliefs, began a successful rebellion against them, is a cunning strategist which is not that common among his race, and is very charismatic with many followers by his side. Atriox is basically the Brute version of Arbiter Thel 'Vadam.
• Eviler than Thou: Not even the Covenant, in their prime no less, could hope to stop him.
  • Also proved to be Cortana's better in Infinite, dismantling her entire empire before she could retaliate and practically had her at gunpoint for an unconditional surrender, having to pull a Redemption Equals Death to stop Atriox from getting a complete victory.
• Evil Sounds Deep: Even compared to how most Brutes already have deep voices, Atriox's voice is outstandingly deep.
• Facial Horror: When Atriox is revealed to still be alive in the Legendary ending of Infinite, he is shown to have suffered severe injuries to the left side of his face from Cortana's Heroic Sacrifice as it is seemingly hollowed out and saggy badly that gives him a more deranged, feral appearance especially without his war paint adorning him anymore.
• Fantastic Racism: Seemingly played straight at first as the end of the Shadows of Reach book upon his return to the galaxy he shows hostility to the humans allied with him, which is highly unbecoming of his pragmatic nature and previous characterization overall—but it is actually subverted as later events reveal that he actually values humans, as shown when he expresses frustration and rage towards the more bigoted members of the Banished who had exiled and/or killed their human followers for the actions of a handful fleeing during the Flood outbreak. The reason for the discrepancy is implied to be simply a response of frustration over being stranded and having to deal with the Spirit of Fire's forces on the Ark for an indeterminate time, something he quickly got over since his momentary hatred of humans vanishes afterwards.
• Four-Star Badass: Introduces himself by beating three Spartan-IIs (each one of whom is a One-Man Army in and of themselves) at the same time with relative ease; no wonder the rest of the Banished listen to him.
• Galactic Conqueror: By the end of Infinite the Banished have become the reigning power in the galaxy, with Atriox at its reins.
• Genius Bruiser: He has the physical strength to crush a MJOLNIR helmet with one hand, and is also a highly intelligent general who has managed to win countless followers to his side. This is aptly demonstrated in Halo Infinite, in which he defeats the Master Chief in combat and outplays Cortana, successfully wresting control of the galaxy from her.
• Genocide Backfire: Cortana seriously misjudged Atriox, thinking destroying his homeworld would break him. It only galvanized his resolve and made him more dangerous.
• Greater-Scope Villain: For Halo Infinite. While he only appears in person to John-117 once, he casts a shadow over the entire conflict on Zeta Halo with his Banished. The Stinger shows him still alive and putting a new plan in motion.
• Hero Killer: Atriox made his name as a Stalker "hunting demons". He has no confirmed Spartan kills, but he's butchered countless ODST units. He showcases his ability to kill Spartans by beating the entirety of Red Team to an inch of their lives. In Infinite, he again shows how much of a threat he is by nearly killing John-117 himself in their first encounter, to the point that the majority of the Banished and UNSC believed Chief to actually be dead from their fight.
• Humans Are Special: It is extremely downplayed, but Atriox does stand out one of the few Banished leaders who welcomes Humans to join, provided they prove loyal and useful to him. However, this is shown more in the Expanded Universe than the video games, where his faction is in opposition to the player.
  • It is stated that he has no beef with humans and has hired some into the Banished. He just hates their governance, the UNSC.
  • From cut dialogue from Atriox's propaganda in Infinite, he has explicitly stated that Humans would still be welcome if they proved themselves. Escharum evidently allowed some Banished humans to be kept alive such as the inspector in Halo: The Rubicon Protocol.
• Hypocrite: Atriox considered vengeance to be petty, yet seeks vengeance on Cortana when she does mass killing by destroying his planet.
  • Revenge: His reason for his actions in Infinite were speculated to be due to wanting to have vengeance for the destruction of Doisac, by destroying Cortana's reign altogether. But the Halo Encyclopedia revealed his main reasons are to find the Endless, thus it can be inferred that from a strategic point of view, Atriox only sought revenge against Cortana from that moment as a secondary objective because eliminating her also would eliminate the biggest problem that the Banished faced at the time over indulging in a petty act in itself.
• Irony: Despite initially forming the Banished as a way to defy the Covenant thanks to him losing his faith in the 'Gods', Atriox in the present day is regarded with an air of divinity by his own troops, with banter from Banished Grunts, Brutes and Elites complimenting his wisdom and praising his existence despite him having gone missing some time ago, coming concerningly close to even swearing by his name like the Covenant of the previous era would to the Prophets.
• Immune to Bullets: Getting shot with battle rifles at close range does nothing to him, merely bouncing off his armor.
• I Regret Nothing: Atriox's response to Cortana asking, "If you knew how you were going to die, how would you live your life differently?" is "I would change nothing."
• Just Toying with Them: The Spartan-IIs didn't bring any weapons that could pierce his armor. He spends most of the fight knocking them around but the pain he caused just by grabbing one, the cut he left with Chainbreaker and the fact that he crumbled a helmet after the fight made it clear he could have done much worse if he actually considered them a threat.
• Large and in Charge: Downplayed example. While not as big as Tartarus, Atriox is larger than the average Brute, but is nonetheless dwarfed by the Hunters in his ranks.
• Magnetic Hero: To the Banished anyways, as while individually its members struggle to cooperate with each other, everyone follows Atriox without hesitation, to the point where even the Banished's Sangheili mercenaries can't help but begrudgingly respect (and fear) him. In fact, he deliberately invokes this trope as a way to recruit followers, to the point where it's shown that he deliberately let himself get captured by Let 'Volir precisely because he knew he'd be able to convince the Shipmaster to join him.
• Nay-Theist: Atriox, in his growing contempt of the Covenant, abandoned his religious faith towards the Forerunners; he doesn't see them as gods any more than he sees the Spartans as genuine demons.
• Never Found the Body: Why the Banished believed him to be dead because Cortana's redemptive Heroic Sacrifice left him stranded and critically injured with no way to inform his people of his status for six months... until after the base campaign.
• No-Sell: The Spartan-IIs can't put a scratch on him when they face him. The guns they carry all bounce off his armor. Attacking him with a knife doesn't seem to hurt him either.
  • Which makes it all the more surprising that despite the Curb-Stomp Battle he inflicts on Master Chief, he is able to actually visibly stagger him at all with Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs unlike the entirety of Red Team combined, showing that while unbelievably strong he is still beatable.
• Not Quite Dead: Revealed in the Legendary ending of Infinite to still be alive and well, although not completely unscathed, as he completes his original plan to awaken the Endless to complete his plan.
• One-Man Army: As Red Team found out the hard way.
• Orcus on His Throne: Aside from his initial fight with the Spartans, he isn't seen on the front lines during the main campaign of Halo Wars 2. In fact, he's barely seen in the game at all.
  • Likewise he's not the main villain of Halo Infinite either despite the Banished being the chief adversary, though this is less out of his own choice and more due to being preoccupied with other matters at the moment.
• Outside-Context Problem: Atriox proves to be this for Cortana. She legitimately did not believe Atriox constituted a serious threat as she believed she knew all the tricks someone like him had to offer. It cost her everything in the end.
• Pay Evil unto Evil: With how far gone Cortana was at the point he had defeated her and the untold death she callously inflicted across the galaxy—especially on the Brutes themselves by rendering them nearly extinct—Atriox's complete beatdown of Cortana comes off as sweet karmic punishment for her trying to play God.
• Power Fist: Has an augmented power gauntlet which significantly enhances his strength.
• Pragmatic Villainy: Part of what makes him so dangerous in the first place.
  • He may be a vicious warlord, but he's perfectly willing to resolve things peacefully as long as he can still get his way. This is particularly well-demonstrated in his story from Tales from Slipspace; when he confronts his would-be Elite assassins, he chooses to speak to them as equals rather than treat them as enemies, unraveling their loyalties to the point where they betray their commander and join the Banished instead, allowing Atriox to strengthen his forces without a fight.
  • Unlike most Brutes, he seemingly holds no real hatred towards the Elites, and has no interest in furthering the genocidal feud between the two species, seeing it as a waste of good warriors for a pointless cause. This allows Atriox to be one of the few post-Covenant warlords who are able to recruit a significant number of both Brutes and Elites.
  • Despite fighting Humans on the Ark, Atriox holds no animosity toward them, viewing them as capable warriors worthy to recruit as stated in the Official Spartan Field Manual. In addition his Chieftains have influenced Human criminals as well.
• Rebel Leader: When the Banished first started, he was initially leading an uprising against the Covenant. Eventually, his numbers swelled to the point he became an entire separate threat on par with humanity.
• Revenge by Proxy: Atriox didn't seem to have any particular beef with Master Chief beyond his more general disdain for the UNSC. But he nevertheless actively targeted Chief, threw him into space to apparent death, and then showed the latter's body to Cortana, the destroyer of his homeworld, because he knew seeing this would upset her more than anything.
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge: He and the Banished go on one after Cortana blows up Doisac. The result is the Banished curbstomping Cortana's forces, effectively removing her as a threat to the universe.
• The Social Darwinist: The Phoenix Logs indicate that he runs a "twisted meritocracy" where his subordinates are expected to constantly compete against each other for power and status.
• The Strategist: Is described as such, and the fact he leads a faction that fought the Covenant during its prime says something about his skill.
• Stealth Expert: Atriox's role in the Covenant was a Stalker after all, and not just a Stalker but a Stalker in-service and trained by the Firstblade of the Silent Shadows, one of the most elite operators in the setting, being part of the Bloodstars. Case in point Atriox is an infiltration expert, and a master in guerilla warfare, his skills are to the point he was able to get the drop on SPARTAN Red Team.
• Surpassed the Teacher: Though Atriox has mysteriously vanished after defeating the Master Chief and the Infinity, with many assuming him dead, so his mentor, Escharum, has assumed command over the rest of the Banished in his stead.
• Tranquil Fury:
  • Exhibits it at the end of Awakening the Nightmare as he chews out Voridus and Pavium for unleashing the Flood when he had explicitly told them not to go inside High Charity, which not only released the parasite once more, but heavily disrupted his own plans for dealing with the Spirit of Fire in the process.
  • In Halo Infinite, Cortana destroys Doisac when Atriox refuses to join her cause, and all he can do is watch as it happens. Atriox remains calm and in control, but it is clear that he is absolutely furious and full of rage, swearing to Cortana that she will suffer the consequences of her actions.
    Cortana: Look upon Doisac one last time and remember: you chose this path. (Doisac explodes)
    Atriox: As did you, Cortana.
• Underestimating Badassery: After crushing Red Team, Atriox dismisses them as 'Little Demons'. He's later dumbfounded and furious when one of them, alongside an AI, single-handedly destroys his flagship.
• We Have Reserves: He and his clan were the trope's titular reserves during the Human-Covenant War; as Isabel exposits, they were used as "expendable muscle" with forty at a time sent to fight and die. Atriox caught the Covenant's attention by being the first to return alive. He survived every mission until he finally publicly seceded, adding more credentials to his badassery.
• The Worf Effect: In his very first scene, Atriox single handedly takes on SPARTAN Red Team and beats them to an inch of their lives, showing how big the latest threat is in the post Human-Covenant War era. He also nearly kills the Master Chief during the intro of Infinite.
• Worthy Opponent: Almost applauds the brazen defiance of Cutter and his forces, comparing them to his own brothers-in-arms, to the point he actually does offer a chance to Run or Die earnestly. Cutter spits on the offer.
• You Have Failed Me: A conversation between Voridus and Pavium implies that Atriox punishes repeated failure by crushing the offender's skull with his mace. The end of Awakening the Nightmare implies he has this in mind for Voridus once they finish cleaning up the remaining Flood.

Decimus

Decimus

Homeworld: Doisac
Birthdate: June 16, 2498
Debuted in: Halo Wars 2
Voiced by: T.J. Storm

The loyal right hand of Atriox himself, Decimus is a powerful and bloodthirsty warrior who is the embodiment of every horror story UNSC soldiers have ever swapped about fighting Brutes. A former soldier of the Covenant, Decimus was one of the very first to join the Banished, having been swayed by Atriox's strength.

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• Bad Boss: In direct contrast to Atriox, Decimus is more of a typical Brute... right down to threatening those who fail under his command with either dying by the enemy or dying by his hand.
• Blood Knight: Takes particular delight in tearing his enemies apart in hand-to-hand, and primarily fights because he enjoys it.
• The Brute: He has Atriox's physical strength, his sense of strategy less so.
• Combat Pragmatist: He openly states he'd have killed the Spartans rather than spare them to toy with them like Atriox did and later shows no hesitation in calling down orbital strikes on his own position or his own troops, knowing full well that he can survive them, but his enemies and troops can't.
• Defiant to the End: Even as he's dying, he uses his last words to tell the Spirit of Fire's crew that his death will be their last victory.
• The Dragon: He became Atriox's right-hand man upon defecting from the Covenant, and is referred to as such by the Spirit of Fire crew.
• Expy: Decimus is reminiscent to an Ork Warboss in respect to both his behavior and his appearance in combat.
• Fantastic Racism: Resents the Elites for how they treated the Brutes during the time of the Covenant, and thus takes sadistic joy in ordering them on suicide missions.
• Frontline General: Very much enjoys fighting on the frontlines, to the point where he's the only major non-DLC Banished commander who exists as a controllable in-game unit, and the only one to be directly fought against in the Halo Wars 2 campaign (besides Atriox's brief cutscene fight).
• "Get Back Here!" Boss: Lampshaded by Red Team during their mission raiding his base, repeatedly teleporting away from their forces as they approach.
  Douglas-042: He never sticks around, is it something we said?
• The Heavy: He's the most active Banished member in the main campaign and the only boss fought by the Spirit of Fire.
• I Fight for the Strongest Side!: A fervent believer in "might makes right"; it's the very reason why he joined Atriox to begin with.
• Large and in Charge: He didn't become Atriox's right hand for nothing.
• Names to Run Away from Really Fast: A Brute with a name that invokes decimation, a Roman military method of punishing legionnaires by massacring every tenth one for their incompetence or treachery. Sounds like a swell guy!
• Powered Armor: Fights in a heavy powered exoskeleton that borders on Mini-Mecha territory.
• Recurring Boss: Is fought twice in the game.
• Religious Bruiser: Despite his disdain for the Covenant, it turns out that he still secretly worships the Forerunners.
• Sadist: While fighting him, he gloats about his raid on the Henry Lamb Research Outpost, and openly shows joy in murdering the innocent scientists there.
• I Shall Taunt You: Clearly enjoys taunting Red Team whenever they fight him... when he isn't threatening his minions that is. Even his dying words are taunts aimed towards the Spirit of Fire and its crew.
• Super-Strength: Described as strong even for a Brute.
• Undying Loyalty: To Atriox.
• What a Piece of Junk: His Powered Armor, looking like it's about ready to explode on him even as it is ready to wipe the floor with you.

Escharum

Escharum

Homeworld: Doisac
Birthdate: July 1, 2471
Debuted in: Halo: Shadows of Reach
Voiced by: Darin De Paul

"I want you to know my name too. To know my legend. How else will you beg me for mercy? I am Escharum. War Chief of the Banished. This is my world now. And you have little time remaining in it."

Atriox's mentor, and following the death of Decimus, the new second-in-command of the Banished. The Jiralhanae commander of the Banished forces on Zeta Halo following the supposed death of Atriox. After becoming aware of the infamous Demon — SPARTAN-117, otherwise known as Master Chief himself — on Zeta Halo, he begins making preparations to meet the human warrior in a final climactic fight—and Chief doesn't have the option of declining the challenge.

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• Anti-Villain: It's revealed towards the latter half of Infinite that Escharum is not quite the monster he presents himself as, seeing himself as little more than just another soldier who's doing what must be done for the sake of his people, especially in light of what happened to Doisac at the hands of Cortana. His actual personality that shines through from his bombastic, vicious persona that he presents, shows a more Noble Demon quality as he follows his word earnestly to the letter but he takes much pleasure in the carnage he's forced to perpetuate among his own ranks to keep them in line as well as against the UNSC. While he enjoys torturing UNSC prisoners, all he wants to do is go out in a final blaze of glory as he's dying anyway.
• Bad Boss: Orders Inslaan 'Gadodgai to kill Castor even when it's obviously a suicide mission.
  • Demonstrates his near tyrannical oppression over his faction of Banished when Tremonius talks out of line, even though his concerns about the Master Chief being alive are legitimate, having Jega 'Rdomnai nearly kill him as to Make an Example of Them before sending him on his way.
• Bald of Evil: Unlike most Brutes, there's not a hair on his scalp.
• Beard of Evil: Sports a tuft of grey hair on his chin.
• Big Bad Duumvirate: Escharum is in charge of the master plan to fully control and fire Zeta Halo and acts as Atriox's Dragon Ascendant during the events of Halo Infinite, with Atriox having suffered an Uncertain Doom prior to the main storyline. However, in order to accomplish the plan he partnered with the Harbinger, who is using the Banished for a potentially much grander goal.
• Blood Knight: Loves fighting and grows weary without a proper challenge. Upon learning Master Chief is alive, he crows that he feels invigorated.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Claims his destruction of the UNSC fleet was this.
• Damage-Sponge Boss: He's by far the most durable boss in the entire series, at least in terms of single player campaign. Not only is he a Puzzle Boss with an externally powered shield that you need to shut off before you can damage him, but even without his shield he can tank an insane amount of firepower before going down, requiring a total of over a thousand assault rifle rounds or 18 or more rocket launcher shots to kill. However, ironically, a combination of electric weaponry and the humble Needler can take him out, as the first will stun-lock him and allowing the latter’s needles to explode for huge amounts of damage .
• Death Seeker: Makes no qualms about Zeta Halo being his last battle and doesn't seem to care much about his own survival.
• Do Not Go Gentle: The reason he's a Death Seeker is that he's dying, and he desperately wants to go out in a blaze of glory, not expire from sickness and old age.
• Dragon Ascendant: With Atriox mysteriously having vanished after his victory over the UNSC Infinity and the Master Chief, Escharum has assumed command over the Banished, directing their forces on Zeta Halo against the remnants of the UNSC.
• Evil Mentor: He was this to Atriox. After Atriox founded the Banished, he personally recruited Escharum into his ranks, signifying that he valued his teacher's wisdom.
• Enemy Mine: Accepts the Keepers of the One Freedom into the Banished.
  • Sided with the Harbinger only out of respect to Atriox's wishes, despite genuinely expressing frustration and disdain with her, because it's the Banished's best chance for survival.
• Fantastic Racism: Unlike Atriox, Escharum is more traditional and despises humans, and considers them no more than "vermin" while still letting some stay in the Banished like the inspector from Halo: The Rubicon Protocol. He conveniently averts this with the Sangheili however to regress back to the Aliens Are Bastards theme of the first Halo game.
  • Audio logs and behavior imply that his Fantastic Racism stems from a belief that the majority of Humanity are Puny Earthlings who don't deserve to live rather than some leftover bias from other Brutes or any prior indoctrinations from the Covenant, but will show due respect towards individual humans who stand above the norm; as he does not share his dismissal of Humanity towards any of the Spartans—especially the Master Chief himself—seeing them as Worthy Opponents enough to construct a force to combat them specifically and longs for The Last Dance with the Master Chief particularly regardless of how it affects his plans.
• Foil: If Atriox comes across as an Evil Counterpart of The Arbiter/Thel 'Vadam, then Escharum comes across as a more honorable version of the Prophet of Truth funnily enough:
  • For starters, both Truth and Escharum serve as leaders of their respective Covenant-based faction, with Truth coming into power of the long-standing Hegemony towards the end of its existence in hindsight whereas Escharum takes command as the Banished is rising in its place.
  • Both Truth and Escharum love to monologue, continuously peppering their dialogue with I Shall Taunt You boasts to their enemies, but whereas Truth was doing it primarily to feel more important than he actually was, Escharum actually can back his words by being a veteran of war and Atriox's teacher.
  • Truth and Escharum are both aware of the truth behind their respective faction's beliefs and propagate a Cult of Personality to ensure that order is maintained within their society; but whereas Truth went mad from the revelation as his faith conflicted with the reality of his religion's Awful Truth which inevitably led to the Great Schism, Escharum is fully aware the kind of belief he's building behind Atriox as a Messianic Archetype and sees it as a means to an end to keeping the Banished in line and from breaking apart without his presence, following his disappearance after taking the Infinity.
  • Both allegedly have omnicidal ambitions with the Halo Array; whereas Truth played with the Covenant's beliefs so he could satisfy his A God Am I delusions under the pretense of completing the Great Journey, Escharum is honest with his beliefs of weaponizing the Halos to wipe out all of their enemies, possibly humans on Earth, that stand before them and not at all clouded by any sense of grandeur beyond that goal, neither is he worried if he himself dies in the process given how he wants to go out in The Last Dance regardless of what actually happens.
  • In the actual game, a greater distinction is made between the two as well; whereas Truth was an egotistical maniac who feigned a Noble Demon demeanour around his followers and didn't care about them in the slightest beyond when it was useful to the point of eliminating even his most successful minions for being too successful, Escharum is revealed to be a conflicted leader who wants to do earnestly do good for his people and ensure that they aren't snuffed out like their homeworld had at the hands of Cortana, and wants no more than to keep the Banished together at whatever cost, even to his own personal beliefs if that's what it took.
  • Finally, whereas Truth died having a massive breakdown as everything falls apart around him in his last moments, refusing to acknowledge any of his mistakes as he's Impaled with Extreme Prejudice, Escharum opts to Face Death with Dignity in the Master Chief's arms and earnestly wishes for him to tell his men he died gloriously fighting him before expiring peacefully.
• A Good Way to Die: As mentioned below, all he wants is to be remembered for dying gloriously rather than his illness or his age. He gets his wish.
• Glory Hound: Cares more about being a legend than his own life.
• Handicapped Badass: He's rather old, he seems to be sick with something fierce, his eye is blind and he's well aware that he's too old and weak to stay alive for much longer, let alone still be in fighting shape. Yet, he gives the Chief a hell of a brawl when the two finally meet and takes an absurd amount of punishment, on top of him apparently teaching Atriox, the other most dangerous Brute around in modern times, everything he knows. Chances are, he was a nightmarish force to be reckoned with in his prime.
• The Heavy: Drives the conflict in Infinite due to Atriox being MIA. He's the one commanding the forces at Installation 07 and behind the plan to repair and fire it. Further making this apparent, his hologram appears throughout the game to boast and taunt the player.
• Incurable Cough of Death: In his more vulnerable moments, he coughs hoarsely, and Jega 'Rdomnai urges him to save his strength. Even in regular recordings, his voice has a notable wheeze in it after more long-winded statements, indicating that he is not doing well.
• I Shall Taunt You: Mixed with Bring It and The Last Dance. That said, when taken into the context of Halo 5: Guardians, it comes across less like a victorious general, and more like a bully laughing at someone who was already thrown down to the ground.
  Escharum: The UNSC lost this war months ago. Your people are broken. Scattered. Hunted. Defeated... by me. I wish I could tell you it was difficult, but it wasn't. We are one step ahead, always. The ring is already under our control, soon the Auditorium as well. The Harbinger and the Banished share the same goal — we fight together to honor the will of Atriox, but... without challenge, I grew... weary. Lost. Alone. But... here you now stand. This is my last fight, a true test of legends, OUR story that will outlive us both. SET A FIRE IN YOUR HEART, SPARTAN! BARE YOUR FANGS! FIGHT HARD! (grinning) Die well.
• Large and in Charge: Like other Infinite Brute Chieftains, he's huge, absolutely towering over Elites and regular Brutes.
• The Last Dance: He's sufferring from some sort of illness which is all but said to be killing him. As a result, he is anxious to meet Master Chief face-to-face, in order to have their final climactic battle before the illness takes him.
• Names to Run Away from Really Fast: He wields the Diminisher of Hope, an unique Gravity Hammer fitted with a red energy blade. He drops it when he dies, and you can even requisition it from FOB weapon terminals afterwards.
• Noble Demon: Apart from the normal Bad Boss moments of Brutes and his distain for humans, he's honorable, polite, and brave, eager to fight Master Chief as his last mission, values his friendships with Atriox and Jega 'Rdomnai, and giving those who impress him nothing but respect.
• "Not So Different" Remark: Escharum continually reminds Master Chief they're both veteran soldiers on opposite sides of a fight, and both will die in battle someday. Master Chief returns it when Escharum dies, telling Echo-216 that they were both soldiers and both questioning if they were doing the right thing.
• Odd Friendship: With Jega 'Rdomnai, his closest friend and most respected soldier, whereas most Brutes would laugh at the idea of befriending an Elite, given the tension between the two species.
• Old Soldier: He's apparently quite old, having been Atriox's teacher and is dying of old age by the time of Infinite's events, and yet is an incredibly powerful fighter.
• Pre-Final Boss: The only thing left to do after fighting him is to battle the Harbinger.
• Red Right Hand: His right eye is pale and blinded with a scar across it.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: His working eye is a deep red.
• Scarred Equipment: His right shoulder pauldron is chipped and has straps that seem to be holding it together.
• Smells of Death: In one cutscene where he's seen coughing, Jega 'Rdomnai mutters that "the scent" is getting stronger and that Escharum needs to rest.
• So Proud of You: His glowing praises of Atriox hints at this since Escharum was his mentor.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: He and the Harbinger can barely tolerate each other, and much of their interactions are along the lines of "your usefulness is pretty limited and you haven't justified yourself."
• This Means Warpaint: Escharum has a white Banished symbol painted on his forehead.
• Turns Red: Once the relays he uses to generate his shield are depleted, along with most of his health, he drops his Scrap Cannon and whips out his personal gravity axe, Diminisher of Hope.
• Undying Loyalty: Proclaims this towards Atriox.
• Villainous Breakdown: Actually Inverted for him; at the beginning of the game when the Banished still control most of Zeta Halo, he is bombastic and emotional. As John turns the tide against the Banished, however, and his health begins to decline, he actually becomes more sober and contemplative as he prepares himself for his Last Dance with Master Chief.
• Villainous Friendship:
  • Despite the longstanding enmity between their two species, he has a close friendship with his Sangheili Blademaster Jega 'Rdomnai and even acknowledges him as "old friend".
  • He taught Atriox, and quite clearly has a great deal of respect for him.
• Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?: Those by his side object to him refusing to lay down the complete and overwhelming wrath of the Banished down on the Chief despite knowing where he is and having the firepower to destroy him with a few orders. As it turns out, he doesn’t really care about anything but dueling him solo for one last glorious battle before death takes him, opting to compromise Banished operations while eagerly awaiting the Spartans arrival.
• Worf Had the Flu: Escharum is dying of some sickness when fighting Master Chief and is elderly to boot, so one wonders how he'd have done had he been at full strength and younger.
• Worthy Opponent: Views the Master Chief as this, claiming him a legend equal to his own. Chief also sees him as one when he dies.
• You See, I'm Dying: Implied to be related to some unknown disease, Escharum knows he doesn't have much longer to live and wants to kill (or be killed by) the Master Chief before he kicks the bucket.

Voridus

Voridus

Homeworld: Doisac
Birthdate: January 11, 2529
Debuted in: Halo Wars 2
Voiced by: Ashley Bagwell

A Jiralhanae engineer and lieutenant, Voridus scours the Ark for new technology and knowledge, developing further military applications for infusion gel (the perfected Forerunner version of the technology used in fuel rod weaponry) in the process. Glory-hungry and impulsive, Voridus has repeatedly failed Atriox in the past while trying to prove himself, a trend which exasperates his older brother Pavium.

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• Acid Pool: He can release infusion gel from his armor to create highly corrosive and mutagenic pools of the stuff in his wake.
• Blade Below the Shoulder: He wields a pair of blades on one arm that extend from his gauntlet.
• The Brute: His methods consist of aggressive offense, and is much more in line with the traditional Brutes than his brother, Pavium.
• Cunning Linguist: Speaks fluent English.
• Ditzy Genius: Despite being a brilliant inventor with an instinctive understanding of Forerunner systems, he lacks the common sense needed to be a good military commander. Even after the Flood are released, he seems convinced Atriox will be pleased with him for vanquishing them.
• The Engineer: He's generally the go-to-Brute for the fancy tech jobs, but he's NOT The Smart Guy.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Disapproves of Pavium's annihilation of the humans under his command.
• Evil Versus Oblivion: He and Pavium fight the Keepers of the One Freedom to prevent them from firing the rings.
• Fearless Fool: He dismisses the Flood as Covenant propaganda and charges into High Charity guns blazing. He quickly changes his tune upon seeing that the legend is all too real.
• Genius Bruiser: Despite all the time he spends on developing technology, Voridus is still a vicious and deadly warrior, even by Jiralhanae standards.
• Glory Hound: He has a deep desire to prove himself in Atriox's eyes, which ironically causes him to fail Atriox.
• Leeroy Jenkins: Voridus is highly impulsive and even disobeys orders in his zeal to prove himself, which ends up releasing the Flood from High Charity.
• Lethally Stupid: Dismisses the Flood as Covenant propaganda and sees no problem with tearing open the obvious Sentinel quarantine around High Charity, despite being repeatedly told by Atriox and Pavium that this was a bad idea. While Voridus himself survives, his actions unleash the Flood, nearly resulting in the extinction of all life and the return of the Gravemind.
• Lightning Bruiser: Is fast and vicious in combat, even for a Brute.
• Mad Scientist: Though his most recent batch of inventions is incredibly dangerous to the user, Voridus really doesn't care as long as his creations continue to be tested and developed, even as many of his subordinates find their bodies rotting inside out due to exposure to his technology's toxic byproducts.
• Mook Lieutenant: He and Pavium are more middle-ground commanders than Let 'Volir or Decimus.
• Powered Armor: Wears a suit of heavy armor powered by infusion gel.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Impulsive red to Pavium's cautious blue.
• Sibling Team: He and Pavium often work alongside one another. Even gameplay-wise, their abilities are designed to complement each other.
• Villain Protagonist: He, along with Pavium, are the main characters of the Banished campaign.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Voridus really wants to prove himself to Atriox, but his attempts to do so have a history of causing more problems than they solve.
• You Have Failed Me: If Pavium's word is anything to go by, Voridus was already in hot water with Atriox at the beginning of Awakening the Nightmare. After disobeying a direct order to not go inside High Charity, thus unleashing the Flood once more, it's heavily implied this was the last straw.
  • However, revelations in Halo: Divine Wind show that his initial catastrophic failure had presented an unexpected boon by acquiring the lost Forerunner shards from within High Charity that were the MacGuffin in First Strike that presented Atriox a means to reconnect with his main force in the Milky Way, allowing potentially a chance for greater reinforcements he previously was unable to acquire as well as a means for Atriox to reconvene with said forces in person; all of this has seemingly spared Voridus from his fate, seeing as he's now back in some measure of good graces with Atriox to be allowed a measure of command over the Banished forces stationed on the Ark alongside his brother after Atriox's departure.

Warlord Pavium

Warlord Pavium

Homeworld: Doisac
Birthdate: March 26, 2526
Debuted in: Halo Wars 2
Voiced by: T.J. Storm

A Banished warlord and engineer, Pavium is rather unlike his sibling Voridus, being calm and cautious where his brother is aggressive and impulsive, and focusing on siegecraft and fortification while Voridus prefers violent assaults. Nonetheless, the two work well together, despite the fact that Pavium's advancement within the Banished's hierarchy has slowed by his devotion to Voridus.

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• Arm Cannon: Wields a heavy mortar on his right arm.
• Big Brother Instinct: Pavium cares deeply for Voridus and looks out for him. When the Flood is unleashed, Pavium's top priority is to find and rescue his brother.
• A Father to His Men: Voridus isn't the only Brute he cares for, as he's also not too keen on abandoning the rest of his troops to the Flood, explicitly claiming that he lost too many Brutes in the war.
• Evil Genius: He's a notable Banished Strategist and prefers laid out plans than full frontal assaults.
• Evil Versus Oblivion: He and Voridus fight the Keepers of the One Freedom to prevent them from firing the rings.
• Genius Bruiser: Both a brilliant siege engineer and a formidable warrior.
• Limited Advancement Opportunities: Despite his obvious prowess, Pavium is held back from advancement within the Banished due to his attachment to Voridus.
• Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: He wields a large tower shield that was given to him by Decimus.
• Mook Lieutenant: Pavium could be a higher ranking member within the Banished for his strategic mind alone, but his loyalty to his brother prevents him from attaining anything higher than this.
• The Engineer: With his specialty being fortifications.
• Noble Demon: Possibly one of the nicest Brutes in the series, if not the nicest. His only real slight is being part of the Banished.
  • Divine Wind, however, does reveal he has Fantastic Racism alongside his brother Voridus towards humanity, taking the first chance they were able to purge the humans within their Banished clan's ranks when several defected to the Spirit of Fire out of fear of the Flood.
• Powered Armor: In combat, he wears a customized suit of heavy armor.
• Red Baron: He was named "The Unbreakable" for his discipline and skill in combat engineering. Bonus points for his red armor.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Blue to Voridus's red. He is the more cautious of the siblings while his brother is very impulsive, and focuses on defensive tactics while Voridus focuses upon offensive strategies.
• Sibling Team: With his younger brother Voridus. Even gameplay-wise, their abilities are designed to complement one another.
• Stone Wall: A master of defensive warfare, both as a commander and as an individual warrior. This is reflected in gameplay, as most of his abilities are defensive-focused.
• The Strategist: What sets him apart from other Brutes, is his strategic mind and ability to formulate battle plans.
• Target Spotter: Is equipped with a target designator, making him a devastating forward spotter for artillery.
• Villain Protagonist: One of the two main characters of the Banished campaign, with his brother Voridus.

Tremonius

Tremonius

Homeworld: Doisac
Birthdate: December 21, 2512
Debuted in: Halo Infinite
Voiced by: Brian Sommer

"Escharum's orders are that you should be brought before him! He did not specify in how many pieces."

A Jiralhanae miniboss fought by the Master Chief at the end of the level Foundation, just before he firsts enters the Wide-Open Sandbox of Zeta Halo.

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• Ain't Too Proud to Beg: Tremonius begs Jega 'Rdomnai not to kill him when the latter has him at his mercy for challenging Escharum and badmouthing Atriox.
• Flunky Boss: Has a pair of Jackals backing him up.
• Ground Pound: His main attack is to soar up into the air and rocket boost into the player for a ground pound with a fairly wide radius. The Grappleshot is practically required to safely avoid it.
• Jet Pack: He uses a jump pack, both for flight and evasion.
• Lightning Bruiser: Effectively being a beefed up Brute Jumper, he saunters and flies around the area while firing off shotgun blasts and chucking rockets out. Combining the absurd resilience of a pissed-off Brute and a shield, he’s going to take quite a bit of firepower to take out.
• Made of Iron: He can take a ridiculous amount of punishment for a Brute, having about 3 times as much health as a regular Brute Officer, as well as an energy shield that's slightly stronger than even that of a Gold Elite.
• Only Sane Man: The other Banished leaders see Master Chief as a glorious battle. Tremonius is the only one who sees him as a major problem and is appropriately concerned.
• Quirky Mini Boss Squad: He appears to be part of the "Hand of Atriox", who function as bosses in Halo Infinite.
• Red and Black and Evil All Over: He's armoured in red and black.
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Demands bloody vengeance from Escharum, especially once he finds out the Master Chief lives ...and for good reason, given what Cortana had done to their homeworld of Doisac.
• Shotguns Are Just Better: He wields a Bulldog shotgun for close range, and a Hydra grenade launcher for long range.
• Starter Villain: Tremonius is the first threat the Master Chief faces, and after defeating him, Escharum tells him to not let it go to his head as he considers him unremarkable in every way.
• Wake-Up Call Boss: He's not your typical Brute, and if the player isn't taking the fight seriously or using the newly acquired Grappleshot properly, they might find themselves dying pretty quickly.

Chieftain Bassus

Chieftain Bassus

Homeworld: Teash
Birthdate: March 9, 2475
Debuted in: Halo Infinite
Voiced by: Christopher Swindle

"Spartans not so tough, I think? Break open easy. Soft inSIDE!..."

A Banished Chieftain deployed to ambush the Master Chief at their dig site.

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• Anti-Escape Mechanism: One of the major challenges while fighting Bassus is the fact that he's an extremely fast AOE-melee enemy that you fight in a very enclosed space that isn't conducive to retreating in circles, unlike the arenas you fight most of the other bosses in.
• Dumb Muscle: Not exactly the brightest Brute in the bunch, evident in how he talks more with a notable You No Take Candle inflection unlike the majority of Brutes encountered, especially those in leadership positions and he's disrespected later on for his lack of intelligence in broadcasts. He is still by no means any less dangerous for it.
• Early Game Hell: Besides the enclosed space you fight him in, another thing that makes the boss fight with Bassus particularly difficult is the fact you fight him about two missions before you receive your dodge ability, even though that ability seems tailor made for his boss fight. Swinging over him with the grappleshot to dodge his attacks is a decent alternative, but is less effective on Legendary where he can kill you in one single stray hit.
• Gold-Colored Superiority: He might not be the most high-ranking Brute around in the Banished, but he's easily one of the strongest, reflected by a metallic gold Chieftain harness with red accents.
• I Shall Taunt You: Takes great pleasure in taunting the Master Chief throughout their fight.
• Lightning Bruiser: He can leap across the room and kill the player in one hit.
• Made of Iron: In addition to the above, he's also incredibly resilient. Overall, he seems to be about 50% tankier than a regular Brute Chieftain and takes a little over 200 rounds of assault rifle fire to bring down on Normal difficulty after you drop his shield. Also, unlike regular Brute Chieftains, he's resistant to headshots.
• Smug Super: He's very confident in his skills and he can back it up.
• Third-Person Person: He commonly talks in the third person...and he talks a lot.
• Wake-Up Call Boss: While Tremonius and Chak 'Lok are challenging in their own right, they are still fairly beatable without having to understand much about equipment utilization and timing your attacks too much—Bassus on the other hand? He offers no such mercy and puts you on the spot whether or not you've figured out how to utilize everything you got effectively... otherwise, you will have a very short run against him, repeatedly.

Hyperius

Hyperius

Homeworld: Doisac
Birthdate: April 8, 2512
Debuted in: Halo Infinite
Voiced by: Imari Williams

One of the Banished's "Spartan Killers". Fought amidst the wreckage of destroyed Condors with Tovarus.

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• Ace Custom: His golden Catalus Chopper, which features energy blades on the front and sides that activate while the Chopper is boosting, allowing it to one-shot most vehicles it makes contact with.
• Avenging the Villain: Swears to make you pay if you kill Tovarus first.
• Bash Brothers: With Tovarus.
• Battle Trophy:
  • Has the helmet and torso of a HUNTER-class Mjolnir incorporated into his right shoulder pauldron. The helmet's blue visor suggest the armour to be Locke's, supported by quotes from Propaganda Officer Glibnub and Hyperius himself.
  • Also wears a necklace of Spartan fingers.
• Badass Biker: Rides a Catalus Chopper during his fight.
• Dual Boss: He and Tovarus are fought together.
• Hero Killer: Killed SPARTAN Sorel during a fight at the conservatory. He even might have killed a previous player character, Locke, judging by him having the Spartan's helmet.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: You can hijack his own chopper and use it against him.
• I Shall Taunt You: Calls up Master Chief to taunt him over the deaths of the other SPARTANS.
• Skeletons in the Coat Closet: The chin guard of his helmet appears to incorporate the lower mandible of an unknown creature.
• Unique Enemy: Hyperius and Tovarus seem to be Brute Chieftains (they have the huge size and can use turrets as portable weapons), but are equipped with jetpacks like Brute Officers, and Hyperius starts out in a vehicle.

Tovarus

Tovarus

Homeworld: Doisac
Birthdate: November 21, 2515
Debuted in: Halo Infinite
Voiced by: Keith Szarabajka

One of the Banished's "Spartan Killers". Fought amidst the wreckage of destroyed Condors with Hyperius.

---

• Bash Brothers: With Hyperius.
• Dual Boss: He and Hyperius are battled together.
• Evil Red Head: Sports noticeably auburn fur, unique to other Brutes seen thus far.
• Horns of Villainy: Portions of Tovarus' helmet extend upwards from either side into a pair of hornlike blades.
• Lightning Bruiser: Has a jump pack, wields a Scrap Cannon, sports energy shielding and is ridiculously durable.
• More Dakka: Carries a powerful scrap cannon.
• No Sympathy: Decries Hyperius as a coward if Chief kills him first. Big words from someone who shells the Chief from a distance.
• Unique Enemy: Hyperius and Tovarus seem to be Brute Chieftains (they have the huge size and can use turrets as portable weapons), but are equipped with jetpacks like Brute Officers.

Humans

Inspector

Inspector

Debuted in: Halo: The Rubicon Protocol

A Banished human who is well respected among the Banished during the events of Halo Infinite.

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• Shameful Strip: He forced a UNSC prisoner of war to take off his clothes, threatening him with being stripped by Kig-Yar guards if he does not comply.
• Wardens Are Evil: He oversees UNSC prisoners and is indifferent to their suffering. He even makes a few comedic remarks during the grim situation.

Elites

Shipmaster Let 'Volir

Shipmaster Let 'Volir

Homeworld: Eshin
Birthdate: November 20, 2477
Debuted in: Halo Wars 2
Voiced by: Darin De Paul

Shipmaster of the assault carrier Enduring Conviction, Let found himself with no clear path forward after the fall of the Covenant and its beliefs. Eventually, he and his crew were noticed by Atriox, who offered them fuel and supplies in exchange for their unquestioning service. Now serving as a mercenary commander for the Banished, Let cared only about one thing; keeping his crew alive and well, no matter the cost.

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• The Captain: Of the Enduring Conviction. And a highly capable one too, having earned great infamy among the UNSC for single-handedly destroying many human warships during the war.
• Cool Helmet: One not before seen in Halo media.
• Defector from Decadence: The Phoenix Logs imply that Let and his crew were so incredibly disillusioned with their previous fleet that it only took Atriox half a day to convince them to defect to the Banished, despite Atriox technically being their prisoner.
• Mook Lieutenant: Before Atriox returns to the Milky Way, he gives 'Volir command of all Banished forces on the Ark.
• Fantastic Racism: Refused to join the Arbiter's side because of his peace treaty with humanity.
• A Father to His Men: His only priority is the well-being of his crew, who reciprocate with their Undying Loyalty.
• Ironic Name: Atriox likes to tease that Enduring Conviction is an ill-suited name for the ship of a sellsword captain.
• Morality Adjustment: After the loss of most of his crew, he decides to embrace the Banished's ideals as his own.
• My Greatest Failure: After his ship is destroyed, Let 'Volir is distraught about failing to keep most of his crew safe, and swears to look out for the rest of the Banished under his command.
• Orbital Bombardment: Besides commanding his Elite troops, his main role within the Banished is providing orbital firepower from aboard his ship.
• Punch-Clock Villain: Just a mercenary with no real interest in the Banished's goals... at first.
• Private Military Contractors: What he and his crew have been reduced to.
• The Unfettered: Is more than willing to stain his honor if it'll keep his crew and ship intact.
• You Have Failed Me: After his ship is destroyed, 'Volir appears to be on thin ice, having to prove to Atriox he is still worth his price. However, he manages to redeem himself in Atriox's eyes by securing a portal back to the Milky Way.

Jega 'Rdomnai

Jega 'Rdomnai

Homeworld: Sanghelios
Birthdate: February 19, 2490
Debuted in: Halo Infinite
Voiced by: Noshir Dalal

A Sangheili "Spartan Killer" encountered by the Master Chief on Zeta Halo.

---

• Artificial Limbs: His left arm is cybernetic and equipped with the 'Ghostpierce', a bespoke Bloodblade pattern emitted from either side of the arm. He also has two artificial mandibles.
• Close-Range Combatant: Unlike Chak 'Lok, he doesn't carry a ranged weapon and relies solely upon his energy blade and plasma grenades. He has a somewhat fancier swordsmanship style and seems to utilize his cloaking device much more effectively than Chak 'Lok.
• Custom Uniform: His armor doesn't really correspond to any Covenant-era configuration, and seems to be a unique Banished-specific design (even using the Banished's color scheme), as befitting his position as Escharum's right-hand man.
• The Dragon: To Escharum, in addition to having an Odd Friendship with him. The developers described him as a "subtle sidekick" to Escharum.
• Evil Counterpart: To the Arbiter. Instead of "taking the high road" and becoming The Atoner with a focus on progression, 'Rdomani has given in to his lust for battle and accepted mechanical prosthetics. His wearing prosthetics also makes him one to the half-jawed Sangheili, Rtas 'Vadum, who has yet to replace his lost mandibles.
• Fragile Speedster: Compared to Chak 'Lok. Jega's overall durability is only about 2/3rds that of Chak's (both for his shield and his health), but he's much faster, more unpredictable, and much more skilled at hit-and-run tactics.
• Hero Killer: He's responsible for killing most of the now-deceased Spartans the Master Chief encounters on Zeta Halo.
• Laser Blade: He dual-wields a pair of red-bladed energy swords - Bloodblades - in combat; one based on the Meluth'Qelos pattern shared by other Energy Swords in Infinite, but also the 'Ghostpierce', a bespoke pattern incorporated directly into the Blademaster's prosthetic arm.
• No Body Left Behind: He seems to cloak immediately upon his defeat, leaving no visible body behind. As this is absolutely not how Elite active camouflage is supposed to work, there's speculation that he might still be alive. The description of his 'HVT' banner in Multiplayer ("It was only a flesh wound") and his entry in the 2022 Halo Encyclopedia addressing him in present tense (where other named characters fought and defeated by Chief are referred to in past tense) also tease at his survival.
• Odd Friendship: He has one with Escharum, given they're an Elite and a Brute.
• Offscreen Teleportation: Paying close attention to Jega during his boss fight, one may notice that he'll physically remove himself from the arena and teleport back in, even when in range of an active Threat Sensor. Its likely that this is intended to communicate Jega being equipped with a stronger, more elusive form of active camouflage, rather than any sort of true teleportation ability.
• Proud Warrior Race Guy: Subverted. While Elite culture strongly values honor and a warrior's death, even going so far as to refuse medical aid, Jega is an exception and an anomaly. He lacks any sense of shame for the many battles he's survived and has extensive cybernetic augmentations to repair his damage.
• Quirky Mini Boss Squad: He's part of the "Spartan Killers", which comprise four of the 10 mission bosses fought in Halo Infinite.
• Red and Black and Evil All Over: He's armoured in black with red highlights, and also carries crimson Bloodblades.
• Sadist: Explicitly so, as he loves to take his time deconstructing an opponent over time and filling them with dread when he's going to strike next, regardless of whether or not they can fight back at all. Escharum points this out even how he wanted to take his time torturing and killing Echo-216 before Chief could get there, but prevented Jega from being able to do so, as keep his word in sparing the pilot as long as he showed up, and by promising him a notable opponent to fight or die trying in the Master Chief.
• Villainous Friendship: He and Escharum are quite chummy with each other, jarringly rare for their species. Escharum for his part acts as a wise commander with Jega acting as his loyal right-hand-man, showing consideration for each other and Jega expressing concern for Escharum's terminal illness.

Chak 'Lok

Homeworld: Malurok
Birthdate: January 15, 2485
Debuted in: Halo Infinite
Voiced by: Fred Tatasciore

"Welcome to my Tower, Master Chief. It is where you will be broken. It is where you will give up your secrets."

A Sangheili Warlord who commands The Tower, a Banished interrogation facility established on the surface of Zeta Halo. He is fought by the Master Chief at The Tower's apex, in response to a distress signal from Spartan Hudson Griffin whom 'Lok was torturing at that time.

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• Achilles' Heel: Electricity will short his camo out and stun him in place for a while, letting you get shots and explosives in. Conveniently, there are plenty of shock coils and shock rifles to pick from if you can grab them in time.
• Affably Evil: He decloaks and politely greets the Chief to his face rather than simply backstab him, though he does taunt him harshly during their fight.
• Armored But Frail: Chak 'Lok has the strongest shield in the game, capable of soaking well over 200 assault rifle rounds before failing. However, under that sturdy shield of his is a surprisingly low amount of health for a boss (only about double the health of a Brute Minor or regular Elite Warlord). The trick, however, is breaking that powerful shield and catching him before he can set up another ambush.
• Big "NO!": He shouts a loud once if you manage to stick him with an explosive.
• Death by Irony: Chak 'Lok, going by his method of torture against Spartan Griffin and the number of shock weaponry in his work area, must have been 'really' fond of electrocuting his victims to death. Fittingly, zapping him helpless and opening fire on him is the best way to take him out.
• Even Evil Has Standards: He subjected many of the humans on the Halo to Cold-Blooded Torture, but even he was disturbed by what the Harbinger did to Lucas Browning.
• Gold-Colored Superiority: Downplayed Trope. 'Lok wears a gold Warlord harness and is clearly tougher than an ordinary Elite, but he's only the second boss in the campaign and thus not the strongest Elite fought.
• Hero Killer: He's responsible for the torture and death of Spartan Griffin.
• Invisibility Cloak: He uses Active Camouflage throughout his battle with the Master Chief.
• Laser Blade: Carries an Energy Sword, though it's not his only form of offence.
• Lightning Bruiser: He cloaks, sword dashes, and runs around his room, alternating between powerful sword swings to hanging back and covering his retreat with a stream of plasma from his Pulse Carbine. While, thankfully, the Energy Sword isn’t a one-hit kill on the Chief anymore, it can and will leave him critically injured for the follow-up slash.
• The Musketeer: He's got an Energy Sword with a Pulse Carbine on backup.
• Torture Technician: He's a rather infamous torturer in the Banished, who was in the process of brutally electrocuting Griffin while he’s strapped down and helpless.
• Worthy Opponent: He decloaks and greets the Master Chief when he arrives, and even calls him "Master Chief" rather than "Demon".

Okro 'Vagaduun

Okro 'Vagaduun

Homeworld: Feldokra
Birthdate: March 2, 2493
Debuted in: Halo: Shadows of Reach

A Sangheili Blademaster among the forces occupying Zeta Halo.

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• Canon Immigrant: He first appeared in the novel Halo: Shadows of Reach, before being faced as an assassination target in Halo Infinite.
• Close-Range Combatant: He doesn't carry a ranged weapon, relying solely on his custom Duelist Energy Sword and plasma grenades.
• Elites Are More Glamorous: He wears a Banished variant of the Infiltration Harness typically worn by Special Operations Sangheili, suggesting that was his position in the Covenant prior to joining the Banished.
• Invisibility Cloak: Uses his invisibility cloak to sneak up on Master Chief during their battle.
• King Mook: Like the rest of the assassination targets, he's not quite as tough as the storyline bosses, only being about twice as durable as a regular Black Ops Elite.
• Laser Blade: His sole weapon is his Duelist Energy Sword, but he's also a very accurate grenade thrower.
• Last of His Kind: The sole survivor of the Bloodbrave Guardians of Suban, a Sangheili sect that was wiped out after attemping to secede from the Covenant.
• Master Swordsman: He has to be to hold the title of "Blademaster". Notably, according to the files in the game, his swordsmanship was renowned even before he was given the title.

Grunts

Yapyap

Yapyap THE DESTROYER

Homeworld: Balaho
Birthdate: October 2, 2438
Debuted in: Halo Wars 2
Voiced by: Nick Ardizzon

A former (sub-sub-)sub-Deacon in the Covenant Ministry of Sanitation who was captured by the Banished, Yapyap has since abandoned his Jiralhanae masters in order to seek out the fabled Golden Methane Hydrate Mines of Sabator hidden somewhere on the Ark (as told to him by a random Kig-Yar fortune-teller). Leading his hordes of Unggoy rebels from atop his Throne of Woe, Yapyap THE DESTROYER may not be the once-in-a-thousand-generations prophesied hero, but he's got more than enough ego, Cannon Fodder, and well-timed bouts of cowardice to compensate.

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• Ain't Too Proud to Beg: Weaponized. His "Please Don't Shoot Me!" ability (which literally is him just begging for mercy) forces a map-wide ceasefire that stops all combat.
• Caps Lock: Why Yapyap THE DESTROYER and not Yayap the Destroyer? Well, he likes to shout that last part.
• Cloudcuckoolander: Many of his announcements have him going off on tangents:
  Harvester constructed: Why do we call it a "Harvester"? How 'bout we call it something nice like "Tickler"!
  Power Extractor constructed: We followed the instructions to assemble a Power Extractor, but why do we have parts leftover?
  Upgrade complete: Mwahahahaha! We're invincible! Huh? We just upgraded?!
  Minibase constructed: What is this, a base for ants?!
• Consulting Mister Puppet: His most trusted confidant and advisor seems to be his Throne of Woe.
• Cool Crown: Well, "cool" might be stretching it, but he (somehow) managed to recover the Prophet of Truth's crown, with what appears to be a crude model of the Ark strapped to it.
• Evil Laugh: Does this whenever a Leader Point is spent.
• Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain: Also apparently weaponized - the "Guilt Trip" leader power severely reduces any veterancy gained from killing his units, which evidently isn't too satisfying of a thing to do.
• Lethal Joke Character: He's a gullible doofus whose army revolves around literal Cannon Fodder, excessive use of methane for both offensive and recreational purposes, and being too pitiful to kill. And yet his endless cheap hordes and ability to stack multiple buffs (including an invincibility one) make him a perfectly viable commander to play as. Also, he's got Grunt Goblins.
• Orcus on His Throne: Parodied. He claims to be more of an "idea Grunt" whose managerial expertise would be wasted on the front lines.
• Small Name, Big Ego: For Forerunners' sake, his own armor has a crude carving of him sitting on a throne while surrounded by sycophants and kowtowers.
• Unwitting Pawn: The Halo Encyclopedia reveals that Yapyap and his rebellion were not crushed by Atriox due to Yapyap's expeditions into unexplored areas of the Ark taking the brunt of the hostile Forerunner defenses.
• We Have Reserves: Somehow, Yapyap has gone through more Unggoy than were ever brought to the Ark in the first place. Don't ask him where all the extra ones came from (it somehow involves arguing with his Throne of Woe).
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Hinted in the Halo Encyclopedia. Let 'Volir, as leader of the Ark's Banished contingent following Atriox's departure, has little patience for Yayap and his rebellion's interference with Banished military operations.
• Zerg Rush: For Yapyap THE DESTROYER, there's no such thing as a problem that can't be solved by throwing more Unggoy at it. Even if those Unggoy are completely unarmed (hey, they've still got their fists and teeth, and there's plenty of throwing rocks to be found on the Ark).

Glibnub

Homeworld: Balaho
Birthdate: Unknown
Debuted in: Halo Infinite
Voiced by: Joseph Staten

Attention Coporal Leo Rodriguez of Bluebell squad. We intercepted your transmission back to earth, and we agree! (On the verge of laughing) You have very little chance of seeing your home again! But, we sure do appreciate all that whining and crying you were doing! Keep it up!

An Unggoy evidentially put in charge of the dozens of propaganda towers on Zeta Halo as the Banished propaganda minister, he's heard throughout the overworld relaying propaganda to demoralize the remaining UNSC forces still stranded on the ring and rally the Banished… to mixed results, which only gets worse as the Master Chief starts smashing his towers and turning the fight around.

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• Cloudcuckoolander: Somehow, an eccentric Grunt was allowed to lead the communication network and say whatever the hell he wants, most of it nonsense or garbage, and nobody in the Banished command chain has a problem with it. Lampshaded by the Grunt himself in one announcement.
  I don't think Esharum has a clue what I'm doing on this radio! If he did, he'd probably boot my ass into space. Good thing he's old and practically deaf!
• Dirty Coward: After the Banished are crippled by a total loss of their upper command structure and some of their best soldiers, Glibnub attempts to appease both sides of the war by soliciting forgiveness from the UNSC and continuing to make half-hearted boasts about their inevitable defeat.
• Dog Got Sent to a Farm: Occasionally implies defeated bosses were promoted out of battle or given a vacation off the ring. This breaks down as more and more bosses and High-Value Targets are killed and becomes pretty much impossible to hide.
• Do Not Adjust Your Set: Going by his regular taunts, he's cutting in on distress broadcasts being sent by surviving human troops just to laugh in their face about their imminent doom, and sometimes to send Banished squads to apprehend or finish off whoever may be left.
• I Shall Taunt You: Quite a bit of his messages are either taunts for the doomed UNSC or for the Chief sulking around the ring.
  Here is a poem for the Master Chief. Your blood is red, your teammate blue, your parents don't remember you. The end.
  This just in! The humans are extremely excited that they've just conquered some tiny insignificant island, while us Banished have the rest of the ring to ourselves. Congratulations, losers! You did it.
  Oh boy, just imagine, all that worthless human culture and industry that'll go up in flames when we activate this ring. It'll be like... you never existed at all! And there'll be nobody alive to mourn the loss! Anyway, have a good day.
• Meaningful Name: "Glib" refers to speech that is inscesent, fluent, and charming, but shallow and insincere, which fits Glibnub's propaganda to a T.
• Medium Awareness: He drops the most fourth wall nudging stuff of any Grunt by far.
  Post-ending announcement: Okay, okay, you beat us. But did you do it on Legendary? Ha!
  [Loudly humming the Warthog Run theme over the mic] ...Man, I hate that song.
  Hey, we got a 'Craig' out there? I keep hearing about some loser named Craig. Why the heck are you getting all the attention? We're just as cool, if not way cooler!
  Why can't we kill the Chief? It's like he's psychic or something. (...) Waaait, I got it! We just gotta plug the controller into ''Player 2''! (...) What the hell do you mean there's no plug?
  Man I sure miss the days when we were M-Rated. If we still were, I could tell all about how big of a gosh-darn-fricken-frack-so-and-so you are! Bleep.
• Prefers Going Barefoot: Mentioned almost directly in a speech taunting humans.
  Thinking about the other humans back on Earth? Well, I wouldn’t worry. We’re not far away now from activating this ring, and once we do, the worries, hopes, dreams, stupid shoes, and idiot haircuts of humans everywhere in the galaxy will come to a decisive and hilarious end.
  
• Tokyo Rose: Half his job is to demoralize the surviving UNSC forces by boasting about the strength of the Banished and describing the gruesome demise of other survivors elsewhere on the ring. How successful he is, is… questionable. Especially considering that in The Rubicon Protocol it's noted that Glibnub is on the UNSC survivors' "most wanted Banished" list mainly because the surviving UNSC forces really, really want to shut him up.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: He fears this will happen to him if Chief manages to shut enough of his towers down to run him out of a job.
  Hey Chief? If you're listening and you're thinking about taking down another tower, WAIT! Okay? Just wait for a sec, because if you take all these towers out, I'm out of a job! A-And if I'm no use to whatever hairy so-and-so takes over for Esharum, I'm dead. You wouldn't want that to happen, right pal? ...Right?
• Villainous Breakdown: As the battle worsens for the Banished, his announcements go from prideful boasting and really petty taunts to anger and despair filled messages over looming defeat.
  It's uh... another beautiful day on Zeta Halo, sun's shining, birdithings are.. bird-thinging and the Banished are totally completely absolutely going to... ah, forget it...
  When I was a larva in the tide pools of Balaho, my dear mother wrapped me in her pleopods and said '"Glibnub! Grow up, and make me proud"'! [Sobbing] Well, here I am! The disembodied source of existential torment for thousands of doomed morons! [Crying loudly over the microphone] I love you, mom! [More crying]
  [Hysterically crying and sobbing over the microphone] I know! I know the mic is on, and I don't CARE!
• You Have Failed Me: He's terrified that his propaganda towers being destroyed will lead to Escharum subjecting him to this.

Hunters

Colony

Colony (Elo Kadu Baqzo and Noo Kadu Baqzo)

Homeworld: Rantu
Birthdate: 2310
Debuted in: Halo Wars 2
Voiced by: Dave White

The being known as "Colony" is actually two Mgalekgolo bond brothers in charge of all Banished Lekgolo activity on the Ark, including the creation of specialized Lekgolo gestalts. They answer only to Atriox himself, and their true motivations are a mystery even to the rest of the Banished.

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• Arc Villain: They serve as the main antagonist of the Operation: SUNBREAKER expansion.
• Ascended Extra: For the Hunters as a whole. For a long time, the Mgalekgolo in the games have been nothing more than silent Mini Bosses. With the debut of Colony, we now have a unique character of the species with a variety of new Hunter units.
• Bad Boss: The Phoenix Log descriptions for the Goliath and Living Barrier imply that Colony has been forcing subordinate Lekgolo to form gestalts that adversely affect the physical and psychological well-being of their members.
• Don't Make Me Destroy You: They give Boomerang Company this ultimatum... which is ignored.
• Dragon with an Agenda: Whatever their true agenda is, it seems clear that they have their own plans for the Ark.
• Enigmatic Minion: Atriox seems to be the only one who knows their true motivation; all that's known is that the pair have shown particular interest in the resting place of the Forerunner keyships, to the point of undertaking missions there without the knowledge of the rest of the Banished.
• Genius Bruiser: Besides being big hulking masses of worm-muscle, they're also responsible for creating and refining many of the Lekgolo gestalts and devices used by the Banished, and have a surprising rapport with the Banished's Huragok.
• I Am Legion: Despite being two entities, the brothers both identify themselves as Colony, as they were once a single entity (like all Hunter pairs).
• Mad Scientist: They have some shades of this, indicated by their willingness to genetically alter their species to create gestalts like the Goliaths with little regard for how this adversely affects their mental state.
• Mook Lieutenant: Colony oversees the Lekgolo units of the Banished, and is responsible for the creation of specialized units like the Goliaths and Hunter Captains.
• Speak in Unison: The bond brothers tend to literally speak as one.
• Terse Talker: Speak only in short sentences and fragments.

The Skimmers

In General

Homeworld: Unknown

A species of small and multilimbed aliens currently seen only under the service of the Banished, Skimmers are equipped with jet boosters as wings and attack in large groups to overwhelm victims from multiple angles, typically armed with shock weaponry.

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• BFG: Relative to their small stature, shock rifles were built by Brutes and meant for their hands, forcing Skimmers to wield the rifle upside down and dangling just to fire it. Particularly rare Skimmers can be found wielding rocket launchers, already large and heavy weapons for human operators that dwarf the Skimmer holding it.
• Cold Sniper: Their favorite weapon is the shock rifle, a weapon normally meant to be used by marksmen that's now put in the hands of a small and nimble enemy, pushing the Skimmers back in most squads to fire from afar.
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: The regular troops wear black and maroon armor and wield shock rifles. Later and more elite variants wear bright pearl-white armor and wield the Commando rifle instead, with the highest-ranked Skimmers clad in red armour and wielding SPNKrs.
• Defeat Equals Explosion: Shooting a Skimmer in its wing will cause it to lose control of its flight and explode once it hits in the ground.
• Devolution Device: If they're truly related to the Harbinger and the Endless as audio logs may imply, and noting the similarities in gray skin/scales between the two, then Skimmers may be what remains of a species deemed too dangerous to be left free by the Forerunners, and were thus imprisoned and eventually degenerated into a primitive and barely even mobile state, hence their reliance on jet boosters specifically built for them.
• The Faceless: Their uniform and helmet doesn't reveal anything about what they might look like, save for grey and scaly skin.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: Owing to their jittery nature, mysteriousness and apparently foul stench, most of the Banished aren’t too fond of their new allies. In combat, you can hear Banished members disparagingly refer to them as it, bugs, or the creature whenever they make a callout on the players position or someone reports on their death, where even Grunts at least get recognition as allies compared to them.
• Glass Cannon: They can't take a beating without crumbling into a bloody heap, but they can easily blast the player dead once they take aim with their shock rifles. Higher ranks come with slightly better armor, but come equipped with the slow firing yet hard hitting Commando Rifle, with the toughest and highest-ranked Skimmers bringing Rocket Launchers to the fight.
• Glowing Eyes of Doom: You'll know when a Skimmer is lining up a shot when their helmet starts to glow in your direction.
• King Mook: The Skimmer Alpha, who is fought inside a cave beside plenty of lesser Skimmers. Killing it gives you access to the purging shock rifle, which sports a smaller magazine but always shocks and stuns enemies on the first hit and has chain lightning to also stun nearby foes.
• Made of Explodium: Whatever is inside their jet boosters, it's volatile enough that shooting their equipment will cause them to go out of control and completely vaporize the creature in a purple haze when they crash into something.
• Outside-Context Problem: The Skimmers are a brand new presence, with neither the Banished or UNSC knowing much about them. Notably, whereas all the Banished High-Value Targets involve assassinating notorious high-ranking commanders and the like, the 'Skimmer Patrol' HVT is simply The Weapon wanting a chance to analyze the Skimmers for more information about them.
• Red and Black and Evil All Over: They mostly wear the signature Banished colors of metallic black with red features.
• Shock and Awe: Aside from the majority of them using the shock rifle, which can disable vehicles and snipe the player, all ranks can throw dynamo grenades to zap and flush the player out, and happen to be of the few reliable sources for the relatively rare grenade.
• The Spook: Currently, pretty much nothing is disclosed about Skimmer origin, culture, language or even true appearance. Both the Weapon and Glibnub, the Banished propaganda minister, make note that nobody knows anything about them period.
  Glibnub: To all the Banished who keep asking, no we have no idea what the Skimmers are, and... yes we probably should. But they're on our side, and are pretty good at killing humans, so who cares?! Now stop asking.
  • Audio logs indicate that the Skimmers may be serving The Harbinger, rather than the Banished as an organization.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: To swarming and flying opponents faced in previous games, namely Drones, Crawlers and Watchers. But whereas previous archetypes bring weak attacks and sheer numbers on their side, Skimmers have deadlier firepower and hang closer to the ground to try and surround opponents, rather than obnoxiously hopping and soaring between surfaces.
• The Unintelligible: Their language consists of screeches, croaks and clicking that cannot be understood save for their subtitles hinting at their mood.
• Zerg Rush: Their introduction has them arrive en masse to swarm the Chief from the Conservatory elevator, after he had followed a trio of them who were dismantling Despondent Pyre. Afterwards, they’re encountered in Banished squads in small groups mixed into the other units.

Artificial Intelligence

Iratus

Creation date: Unknown
Debuted in: Halo Infinite: Multiplayer
Voiced by: Unknown

Iratus was the product of the private company Lux Voluspa, who operated a secretive research program involving creating AI from species other than humanity. Iratus was stolen in a cyberattack by the Banished, making it the first example of an AI under their possession.

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• A.I. Is a Crapshoot: Iratus was planned to be a simple experiment with creating A.I.s from non-human species. However, the Jiralhanae they chose to base it on was himself a member of the Banished, making Iratus's loyalties more easily swayed when stolen. Even while the player uses him, he's stated to be under heavy, heavy lockdown compared to other A.I.s as a precaution to prevent him from pulling a fast one and running back to the Banished.
• Brain Uploading: Created from a Jiralhanae donor brain as part of a wider project to experiment with creating AI from non-human brains. Iratus certainly has the personality of one.
• The Corrupter: Any Spartan "survivor" killed during the Infection gamemode comes back as one of Iratus' puppets, armed with a unique red energy sword and sporting Iratus' face layered over the helmet.
• From Nobody to Nightmare: Most of his time on screen has involved him trapped in Spartan Dinh's head, followed by him being contained in an isolated server and used as a Spartan AI in multiplayer matches. Come Season 4 and it's revealed that he found the location of an ONI blacksite during his time with Dinh, from which he discovers not only the entire history and technical specs on the Spartans, but also how to control their armor. Gameplay-wise, he's the Infection gamemode's titular infection!
• Intrigued by Humanity: While he's a proud and outspoken member of the Banished, he doesn't share the anti-human sentiment they took after the destruction of Doisac, where most of its highest ranking members were born. In fact, he's outright proud of the combat prowess humans are capable of, especially Spartans, and his only major sore spots are the idea of losing a match, the destruction of Doisac itself, and the more typical hatred of The Covenant that the Banished were formed from.
• Meaningful Name: "Iratus", for an AI with a highly irritable personality.
• More Dakka: Played with. He values precision over volume, but he gets absolutely giddy when the player picks up a Battle Rifle since it gives the best of both worlds.
  Iratus: Oooohoohoo, Burst fire! Burst fire!!!
• People Puppets: During the Infection gamemode, infected Spartans are controlled by Iratus, identified by glowing red holograms around the body and infecting other Spartans using a red energy sword.
• Sealed Evil in a Can: Prior to Season 4, Iratus was stuck in Spartan Dinh's mind, actively extracting information and taunting him while the Multiplayer cast worked on drawing the AI onto an isolated server. The plan worked, but Iratus discovered a blacksite under the Live Fire map that he used to learn how to control the Spartans.
• Token Evil Teammate: After a lengthy plan to trick him into containment, he now serves the same purpose as any other Spartan's Personal AI. He routinely tries to convince the player to join the Banished to make the best use of their potential.

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