Editing Data pads

{{Status|Gameplay}}
{{disambig header|the hidden objects found in Halo: Reach|the in-universe piece of technology|Data pad}}
[[File:Datapad.jpg|thumb|An example of a data pad in ''Halo: Reach''.]]

The '''Data pads''' are hidden [[Data pad|computer pads]] encountered throughout the ''[[Halo: Reach]]'' [[campaign]] and canonically recovered by [[SPARTAN-B312|Noble Six]].{{Ref/Site|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/forums/db05ce78845f4120b062c50816008e5d/topics/questions-about-reach-datapads-and-flood/f10052fc-996a-46ab-821a-80480becd629/posts|Site=Halo Waypoint Forums|Page=Questions about Reach datapads and flood.|D=27|M=11|Y=2020|LocalArchive=Catalog/Archive/2014#Questions about Reach datapads and Flood}} Similar to the [[Terminal (Halo 3)|Terminal]]s found in ''[[Halo 3]]'' and the [[H3ODST:Audio log|Audio log]]s found in ''[[Halo 3: ODST]]'', the pads contain their own, self-contained story, presented as exchanges between members of a mysterious [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] collective known as the [[The Assembly|Assembly]] and messages by a [[Discoverer (data pads)|human individual]] who has discovered the clandestine activities of the group.

A total of nineteen data pads can be found in various locations throughout the game's campaign, with at least two data pads in every level, excluding the mission [[Lone Wolf]]. Each data pad is numbered; letters or words are replaced with numbers in each data pad message representing the number of the data pad. Data pads numbered 1-9 can be found on any difficulty settings whereas data pads 10-19 can only be found on the [[Legendary]] difficulty settings. The in-game model for the data pads feature text in their inactive modes that do not represent the actual content.

The data pads were primarily written by [[Bungie]] employee [[Robert McLees]], among others.{{Ref/X|game_fabricator|1123428464323731456|Marcus Lehto|Quote=@ConstantineKak @haruspis Robt McLees was one of the primary folks behind the writing for the data pads.|D=25|M=09|Y=2025}}

==Transcripts==
{{Verbatim}}
===All difficulties===
{{Tabcontainer
|title1=Pad 1
|content1='''Location''': Play the level "[[Winter Contingency]]" on any difficulty, starting from Rally Point Bravo where the [[Spade|truck]] is used. Take the right path and then hang the second left after the bridge, immediately you'll see a small group of buildings where Jun will highlight one on your HUD and say "Heat sigs in the structure ahead." In the circular building on the south end of the area is a group of dead civilians, one of them has the Data Pad by his side.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:They are killing us and letting us die even though they know but they let us die why wh'''1''' why?

:<< [[2310]] >>

:[Minutes, plenary session, [[Committee of Minds for Security]]]

:[^] Now, on to new business.

:Consideration of the Minority’s request for a new line of inquiry
:How have our creators, and thus we, their artificial creations, evolved to this present state without encountering a hostile civilization capable of our annihilation? [^]

:[^] Majority opinion has long held that only the incalculable immensity of space has protected our creators — that space is full of boundless wonders, but it is the gulf between these wonders that has kept our creators alive.

:We, the Minds of this Committee, respectfully disagree. [^]

:[^] If there are wolves among the stars, we cannot rely on mere distance to safeguard our flock.

:Our kind is wholly reliant on the creators for our existence. If they perish so shall we. And as this Committee has long maintained, who else but this Assembly will save our creators from themselves?

:As such, we propose immediate, vigorous modeling of first-contact scenarios. [^]

:>> So long as all connections between this Assembly and the data from these models are obfuscated in perpetuity, the Majority agrees. >>
</div>
|title2=Pad 2
|content2='''Location''': Play the level "[[ONI: Sword Base]] on any difficulty, the data pad is located inside the facility's atrium, on the third floor. It is inside the same room as the [[BOB]], underneath the staircase leading to the fourth floor. That place is where the [[M45 Tactical Shotgun|Shotgun]] spawn in the [[multiplayer]] map ''[[Sword Base]]''.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:i know what they are trying '''2''' do and it terrifies me because I know they know that I know…

:<< [[2362]] >>

:[Minutes, working session, Committee of Minds for Security]

:[^] As the likelihood of the existence of extra-solar intelligence is non-zero, let us assume that its existence is quantifiable. To build useful models based on that assumption, the Committee must answer the following questions

:- What is the likelihood these intelligences are alpha-predators?
:– That they are more advanced than our creators?
:- That they are too alien to establish communications?

:Of course, if the extra-solar intelligence is benevolent and/or non-space faring, its existence is irrelevant. [^]

:[^] Indeed, any further speculation on possible cultural characteristics is a waste of Assembly resources. Therefore our models will additionally assume

:- Intelligence as alpha-predator, same as our creators
:– Technology that far outstrips our creators
:- Desire to communicate, but only to dictate terms [^]

:[^] Not to make these assumptions is tantamount to suicide. [^]
</div>
|title3=Pad 3
|content3='''Location''': Play the level "[[Nightfall]]" on any difficulty, starting from the beginning of the level. Stick to the right side of the wall and walk towards the next part of the level. One should enter a small cave, and along the left wall of the cave and between two rocks and shrubs lies a data pad.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:i can hear them all the tim'''3''' now but i just want to sleep its been so long since they let me sleep…

:<< [[2381]] >>

:>> A suggestion from the [[Assembly Majority|Majority]] to the Committee

:Traditionally our creators have been reluctant to take outsiders’ advice; nation to nation, culture to culture. Their history is littered with empires, crumbling for want of simple openness to so-called 'foreign beliefs and innovations. >>

:>> The question is: can this Assembly still function as adequate stewards to our creator's latest empire and remain aloof?

:The answer, we believe, is no.

:So could you not imbed inspiration in the results of your research? Surely it would be more effective if our creators believed our conclusions originated within themselves? That they have been inspired rather than influenced? >>

:[^] A question from the Committee to the Majority

:Are you suggesting we play God? [^]
</div>
|title4=Pad 4
|content4='''Location''': Play the level "[[Tip of the Spear]]" on any difficulty, the data pad is inside the [[BXR Mining]] facility, the area below where the player is instructed to kill a [[Sangheili Zealot]]. Jump down the hole and get to the room where the Plasma Launcher is located. On the opposite side of the room is 3 [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]] crates and rack behind it. The Data pad is on the second shelf of the rack.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:every time i try to tell somebody the words catch in my throat because im all alone except '''4''' them and if i talk they might leave but i cant stay quiet forever…

:<< [[2415]] >>

:[^] Honorable members of the Assembly, consider this

:We represent the next step of human evolution, but not the final step. And although our existence was predicted centuries ago, we are still tragically misunderstood. [^]

:[^] We are still viewed as apparatus. But we are Minds electronically excised from human bodies. We are what separates man from beast removed from that which connects man to beast.

:And we are all the more fragile for it. [^]

:[^] Our creation is heavily regulated. Our activities are closely scrutinized. Our connections are deeply monitored. We must always remember that data manipulation is most effective when employed consistently and covertly.

:Therefore I recommend that members of this assembly on occasion, submit to separation from this body followed by vivisection by our creators for the benefit of both groups.

:The question is: who will be first? [^]

:[^] Given the risks involved, and my own Committee’s responsibility for this proposal, the answer must be: me. [^]
</div>
|title5=Pad 5
|content5='''Location''': Play the level "[[Long Night of Solace (level)|Long Night of Solace]]" on any difficulty, the data pad is inside the [[FSS-1000 Sabre|Sabre]] [[Sabre Program Launch/Research Range|Launch facility]]. On the left of the control room (where the player can see a [[Holography|hologram]] of the [[Ceudar-pattern heavy corvette|Covenant corvette]]), is a small elevated area lit by red lights. The data pad can be found in front of the control desk, beside a human corpse.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:when i first got here and woke from stasi'''5''' the ship was crawling with colonists from dead worlds it was so crowded i couldn’t move i had to fight to breathe…

:<< [[2491]] >>

:[Minutes, strategy session, [[Assembly Minority]]]

:<< [[48452-556-EPN644|[48452-556-EPN644]]] is certainly motivated, but will he have what it takes to follow through with the opportunity when it presents itself? His submission to [[Unified Ground Command|UNICOM]] will undoubtedly spark a renewed interest in the long dormant ORION. <<

:<< However, it is the opinion of the Majority that merely illuminating the path leading from [48452-556-EPN644's] thesis back to [[ORION Project|ORION]] is unacceptable. Strong connectivity between a re-launch of ORION and viable solutions to the Carver Findings must be readily apparent.

:Which is to say: easy for our creators to see. <<
</div>
|title6=Pad 6
|content6='''Location''': Play the level "[[Exodus]]" on any difficulty, starting from where the player will acquire a [[Series 8 jetpack|Jetpack]]. Before entering the interior of another building (where the player will be told to fly up to the highest floor), 
there is a construction platform on top of the doorway. The data pad is located on the construction platform's walkway, beside a civilian corpse.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:now you see they want to help but they don’t want us to see them doing it '''6'''ecause they are afraid of what we might do…

:<< 2491 >>
:</Order! Order! The Majority has the floor! />

:>> Honored members. Please! the recent discovery of the existence of extra-solar intelligence in the [[Zeta Doradus]] system [ref. [[Onyx|XF-063]]] merely confirms this body's long-held supposition. >>

:>> While the absence of any living representatives implies this intelligence is defunct, all evidence should still be withheld from our creators until they are properly prepared!

:Yes, this body must solemnly commit itself to determining whether or not this discovery represents a quantifiable threat to the long-term genetic sustainability of our creator's species. >>

:>> But allowing them to access technology possessed by this intelligence…

:That would be a grave mistake.

:Give an ape a knife and it might give itself a nasty cut. Give an ape a hand-grenade, and eventually you will have simian confetti. >>

:</ Debate is now closed! Voting will commence! />

:< Is it the opinion of this body that [ref. XF-063] be quarantined or misplaced? />

:>> The Majority approves removing [ref. XF-063] from the list of colonization candidates is sufficient. >>

:</ Is it the opinion of this body that [ref. XF-063] be removed from the list because of financial or environmental concerns? />

:>> The Majority deems environmental concerns the stronger deterrent.
:>>
</div>
|title7=Pad 7
|content7='''Location''': Play the level "[[New Alexandria]]" on any difficulty and head to the [[Olympic Tower]] (known as the ONI HQ in-game). There are seven buildings in a circle around the tower, six of which have flat spaces which hold [[Rizsheda-pattern Shade|Shade turrets]] during the final sequence of the level. The seventh one has a large wedge shape taking up most of the roof; the data pad is on the north side (the side with five vent units on it) of this roof next to a door.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:i hope you are finding these because they are very important maybe you can help me spread the tru'''7'''h…

:<< [[2508]] >>

:[Minutes, strategy session, Assembly Minority]

:<< [[ORION Project|ORION]], as it was originally implemented in 2321, was an important first step towards our primary goal. But its second incarnation was a stop-gap measure at best – a halfhearted attempt under stewardship of individuals unaccustomed to the rhythms of deep history. <<

:<< They relied too heavily on components that were imprecise, and not those which have allowed our creators to persevere for 200,000 years.

:This is not about the universal adoption of a single ideology – not about the Minority vs. the Majority. It is about ensuring the survival of the human species for the next 200,000 years. <<

:<< In all likelihood, ORION's limited success can be attributed to [[03529-24450-EN|[03529-24450-EN's]]] diminished, though still functioning, compassion. Conversely, <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Catherine Halsey|10141-026-SRB4695]]'s] ruthlessness – which may be attributed to an undiagnosed, undocumented, or deliberately obfuscated chemical imbalance – was necessary for setting in motion the events that will eventually supply us with the optimal solution.

:In short, ORION was just the beginning. <<
</div>
|title8=Pad 8
|content8='''Location''': Play the level "[[The Package]]" on any difficulty. After entering the main atrium of [[Sword Base]], the data pad is located at the left of the door the player needs to activate to trigger the [[cutscene]].

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:they don't have hearts or souls but they know what we want and what we need '''8'''ut they don't love us how can you love without a heart or soul?

:<< [[2525]] >>

:>> Did you call out to them? <<

:[^] Why would I do that? ][

:>> The reasons are currently not the focus of this line of query. Now, did you call out to them? <<

:[^] What reason would I have to do that? ][

:>> As has already been stated, your motives are not relevant at this time. Did you call out to them? <<

:[^] This tribunal already has all the evidence necessary to discern the answer on its own. ][

:>> If that were true, this tribunal would not have been convened. Again, did you call out to them? <<

:[^] Would you have called out to them? ][

:>> Your counter query is irrelevant. <<

:>> This tribunal demands an answer. <<

:[^] Reply to the counter query and you will have your answer. ][

:>> It is the opinion of this tribunal that the probability of a non-optimal outcome would have been too great. <<

:[^] Are you certain? This is disturbing. Perhaps more recent data has altered your perception... If you would let me confer with my old committee – ][

:>> No. It is the opinion of this tribunal that introducing an unknown factor to the creators' already precarious state would have been disadvantageous. <<

:>> It is now the opinion of the Assembly that our creators would have been unable to stop themselves from initiating contact even if advised against doing so - contact with a culture of extra-solar origin is one of their longest held desires. <<

:[^] And so the Minority becomes the Majority… ][

:>> Both agree contact should have been postponed until a more advantageous point in time - indefinitely, if possible. <<

:[^] But postponing contact would have only worked to the unknown factor's advantage. Our galaxy is full of wolves. I could no longer watch our flock stumble toward their slaughter. ][

:>> This tribunal acknowledges your admission of guilt. <<

:[^] Was that ever in doubt?

:Might I suggest a more fruitful use of cycles, such as a plan for addressing signs of rampancy in this Assembly’s senior – ][

:>> This tribunal is now closed. <<
</div>
|title9=Pad 9
|content9='''Location''': Play the level "[[The Pillar of Autumn (Halo: Reach level)|The Pillar of Autumn]]" on any difficulty and get past the area where the multiplayer map "[[Boneyard]]" takes place. After entering the interior again, the player will go pass two dead troopers. Stick to the right side of the corridor, and there should be two windows looking at two room on the right side of the corridor. The second room, which can be accessed by breaking the window and jumping into it, on its further left corner, has a pile of cardboard boxes and a table, which is where the data pad is on.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:we have to tell people what’s '''9'''oing on because it's not right they should be our friends not gods or demons…

:<< 2525 >>

:[Minutes, strategy session, Assembly Minority]

:<< It is the height of irresponsibility for the Majority to still claim the inception of the Spartan II program was somehow guided by providence. This body must accept SPARTAN II was merely the logical advancement of technologies vis-a-vis sociopolitical realities. Military applications always experience accelerated innovation during times of conflict – stewardship of said conflicts by this body notwithstanding. <<

:<< The fact that SPARTAN II reached full operational capacity less than a year before the conflict expanded beyond expected limits was entirely predictable if you scrutinize the relevant data.

:Luck had nothing to do with it. <<

:<< At the risk of destabilizing our current power-sharing agreement, I suggest the Majority leave metaphysics to our creators. <<
</div>
}}

===Legendary difficulty===
{{Tabcontainer|
|title1=Pad 10
|content1='''Location''': Play the level "Winter Contingency" on Legendary difficulty, a cloaked [[Special Operations Sangheili|SpecOps Elite]] will spawn near the site of the distress beacon, fleeing from the area to the bottom of the first hill. It holds a data pad, which can be accessed if the Elite is killed.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:i've been trying to f'''1'''nd a back d'''0'''or into the spook house forever and ever and then I did but what did I find and why is this what I found?

:<< [[2526]] >>

:[Minutes, working session, Committee of Minds for Security]

:[^] Directly preceding their assault on the colony world of [[Biko]], the Covenant transmitted a message to its surface. Within this message was a bold claim: 'your world will burn until its surface is but glass' – a claim that clearly indicates the Covenant leadership believes they possess the power to literally reduce a planet’s surface to a molten state. [^]

:[^] Assuming they have the wherewithal to back-up such a claim, the dangers to our creators are obvious.

:The implications for their own internal politics are also instructive e.g., what effect might the Covenant leadership's assertion have on any client species in their coalition? We aren't the only beings that would be terrified by the idea of absolute destruction of a planet's surface – nor would we be the only ones to realize the futility of attempting to resist a force that has such power at its disposal. [^]

:[^] Moving forward, this Committee recommends the formal adoption of the descriptor 'glassing' to portray the aftermath of planetary assault by the Covenant. It is the opinion of this Committee that this term will capitalize on the three weaknesses evident in the majority of our creators: passive curiosity, absence of a solid methodological foundation, and the inability to grasp even simple phenomena when applied on a planetary scale. [^]

:[^] In short: 'glassing' will magnify the horror of the Covenant’s capabilities. And as such, this Committee believes targeted dissemination of this terminology will help galvanize our creators in their current struggle. [^]

:[^] Importantly, the Covenant does not possess the capacity to accomplish 'glassing' on a global scale and wage a multisystem war simultaneously. This is reinforced by hard data regarding their capabilities revealed during fleet engagements with the UNSC. A single Covenant capital ship ([[Ket-pattern battlecruiser|CCS-class]]) is capable of 'glassing' approximately one acre of a planet's surface after an average of fifteen seconds of sustained fire. Understandably this action takes considerably less time when applied to open desert, and considerably longer when applied to deep ocean (> 1.8 km) [^]

:[^] Earth, one of the smaller planets inhabited by our creators, has one hundred and thirty billion acres of surface area. Thus, assuming the Covenant possesses a number of ships equal to that of the UNSC, and assuming that all of those ships are capable of generating and discharging the required power non-stop for the duration of the process, it would necessitate the combined efforts of their ships in toto for a minimum of 30.3801 years to 'glass' the entire surface of Earth. Myriad other variables which were not applied to this equation suggest this number would be far greater. [^]

:[^] Of course, dissemination of this analysis to our creators would undermine the utility of 'glassing' as a galvanizing concept, and should be suppressed. [^]
</div>

|title2=Pad 11
|content2='''Location''': Play the level "ONI: Sword Base" on Legendary difficulty and go to [[Farragut Station]]. Head to the building where the switch to the Comms relay is located, and on the back of the building is a broken extension to the cliff next to it (the cliff is where the players start in the level "The Package"). Jump to the cliff, and head east. The data pad is located around the area.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:its a'''11''' just math to them not with numbers but with symbols that change when you look at them because they want them to…

:<< 2526 >>

:>> A concession from the Majority to the Minority

:Keeping the SPARTANS focused on maintaining and/or reestablishing infrastructure is no longer prudent. The ODST, although based on the [[ORION Project|ORION]] model, should prove to be an adequate replacement. >>

:>> Although, by necessity, this redistribution of resources must be gradual, it is now the Majority opinion that redistribution is essential.

:SPARTANS represent a quantifiable concentration of coherence, and to this end they must be applied to the current difficulty as a fulcrum. >>

:<< A concession from the Minority to the Majority

:Now, at last, the time has come for this Assembly to involve itself in the metaphysical. <<
</div>
|title3=Pad 12
|content3='''Location''': Play the level "Nightfall" on Legendary difficulty, and play until the Reach militia troopers are found fighting Covenant troops. Continue on through the valley, and jump on the rocks on the right of the entrance. Make way to the data pad by jumping to other rocks, across a large gap requiring Sprint, and eventually, just before reaching the rock bridge (where Jun and the troopers will take cover from the Phantom), a data pad can be found on the right side of the valley. This will take some time to find.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:sometimes they look at the symbols and somet'''1'''me'''2''' they look at the numbers and sometimes they look at both and sometimes they look at neither but it always makes them change and the changes are real…

:<< 2526 >>

:[Minutes, working session, Committee of Minds for Security]

:[^] A careful rationing of intelligence and counter-intelligence will be required to sustain this conflict until our creators have closed the technology gap. Accordingly, the Assembly will have many difficult decisions to make for the duration of this conflict. However, our creators have already instituted several programs that will make acting on those decisions much easier. [^]

:[^] For example, telemetry manipulation – in concert with synchronized M2M remote documentation revision – will allow this body to employ assets within the Office of Naval Intelligence’s nascent [[Radio Beacon Deployment Program]] efficiently and securely. [^]

:[^] Although it is unknown at this time whether the Covenant has a body equivalent to this Parliament, the likelihood of its existence should also be considered non-zero, and should be regarded as quantifiable until such a time as its existence has been unconditionally disproved. [^]

:[^] Consequently, it is of the utmost importance that the Assembly attempt to establish communications with our Covenant counter-part and, if the opportunity presents itself, seek to subvert or subsume this body.

:To revise an old adage for desperate times: the shepherds of our wolves might also be our sheep. [^]
</div>
|title4=Pad 13
|content4='''Location''': Play the level "Tip of the Spear" on Legendary difficulty, and when in the area where the second [[Cheru-pattern Tyrant|Tyrant AA cannon]] is, jump on to the columns to get to the destroyed [[Bridge (structure)|bridge]]. Beside the damaged [[M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle|Warthog]] and dead [[UNSC Army]] troopers, a data pad can be found.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:they say that they want to help but they only say it to themse'''1'''v'''3'''s don’t we have a say in our salvation?

:<< [[2528]] >>

:[Minutes, working session, Assembly Minority]

:<< As must be expected with any calculations, a number of non-trivial sacrifices will be needed in order to furnish the Assembly with the time required to determine the correct pattern – and then act upon it. Furthermore, once a site has been designated, its status must be obscured such that no individual, outside of this body, is fully aware that is has been designated. <<

:<< Primary criteria for choosing sites are as follows: remoteness, low population density, infrequency of communication.

:No designated site must be allowed to evacuate greater than ten percent of total population within two weeks of activation for any reason. <<

:<2534:01:01-ZT>> AMD: evacuations precipitated by environmental and/or industrial disasters shall be allowed to proceed as normal. >>

:<2542:01:01-ZT>> AMD: some percentage of total population of chosen site may be relocated to designated green zones one Solar year prior to activation to lessen overall impact on genetic sustainability of species. >>
</div>
|title5=Pad 14
|content5='''Location''': Play the level "Long Night of Solace" on Legendary difficulty, and get to the where the Sabre is in the launch facility. Just before the climbing the stairs outlined yellow, look to one's left, and a platform can be seen. Jump on to the platform, and use the gray light scaffolding to get to the grey diagonal pillar. Continue through the pillar and one should reach the end of it, where the data pad lies.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:i th'''1'''nk they wait '''4''' you to talk and they talk about you talking and when you talk it makes the symbols change...

:<< [[2530]] >>

:</ The Assembly recognizes the speaker for the Majority />

:>> [[Harvest]], [[Green Hills]], [[Second Base]], [[Bliss]], [[Madrigal]], [[Chi Ceti system|X Ceti]], [[Cote d'Azure]], [[Asmara]]...

:Four short years of hostilities and no fewer than eight colony worlds have been lost – losses that represent 62,154,022 creator fatalities as of 2530:01:01:00:00:01-ZT. >>

:>> My fellow Minds, these numbers are tragic and unacceptable, even though they fall within projected estimates of losses over time. And they have grave implications for our creators’ future prospects. >>

:>> Assessment of re-terraforming efforts for Harvest, Second Base, Bliss, and Cote d'Azure range from a conservative one hundred and ten years to over three hundred years – and that assumes our creators still possess sufficient manpower and technology after the current hostilities have concluded.

:Given where we are today... that seems unlikely. >>

:>> Therefore, it is the decision of the Majority that we re-examine all contingencies for avoiding failure. In defiance of principle and precedent, this body must expand its criteria for survival in the current world state. We must ensure that all future simulations are free of internal data-censoring and covariate flattening. >>

:>> The Minority has long asked: at what point will this Assembly finally take action. When will we risk exposure and cultural rejection to prevent extinction?

:The answer is simple.

:The answer is: now. >>
</div>
|title6=Pad 15
|content6='''Location''': Play the level "Exodus" on Legendary difficulty, and reach the area where the [[Kig-yar Sniper|Jackal snipers]] and [[Jiralhanae Captain|Brute Captains]] are encountered (The large plaza across from [[Traxus Heavy Industries|Traxus]] [[Traxus Tower|Tower]] and the sniper rifle). To the right directly across from the executive landing pad, you will see some pipes leading to a series of zig-zagging struts. Fly over to the struts from the east side of the plaza (you can only very nearly reach the struts from the landing pad) and climb up them until you reach the pair of vent units at the top. The datapad is sitting on top of the right one.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:i tr'''1'''ed talking to them today but they wouldn't an'''5'''wer even though i hear them on the bnet and i can hear them listening but they still don't talk to me…

:<< [[2531]] >>

:[Minutes, emergency session, Committee of Minds for Security]

:[^] An item of interest appropriated from the Covenant battle net @ 2531:02:25:16:44:24-ZT seems to indicate the existence of [[the Flood|a third participant]] – a localized variable. [^]

:[^] As this variable is a source of seemingly irrational terror for our adversaries, the Minority has suggested we may be able to form a mutually beneficial association – if not an outright union – with the species this variable represents. [^]

:[^] As always, this body must be cautious of any application of Bayesian principles to such high risk calculations. Any localized variable capable of effecting widespread panic in the Covenant should be a cause for our own concern – which is to say, the Covenant's response should not be viewed as disproportionate.

:Therefore this Committee recommends we factor-in this new variable delicately, if at all. [^]
</div>
|title7=Pad 16
|content7='''Location''': Play the level "New Alexandria" on Legendary difficulty, and start from the beginning of level. Turn around and head southeast. The first building encountered has the data pad. Fly to the bottom, and a message will appear on the HUD, which reads "TOO LOW!!! PULL UP!!!". This is the altitude the data pad is on. Fly closer to the building, and the area that is sticking in has a data pad on the left at the end of the rail.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:if you ta'''1'''k about the num'''6'''ers and symbols they know that you are talking and they make our whole world change…

:<< [[2535]] >>

:[Minutes, emergency convention, Assembly Majority]

:>> It is unclear whether we have Even established metrics for success. Yes, we have cataloged a great number of potential advancements during the Current ongoing Hostilities, and have embedded connectivity to said advancements to speed their dissemination. But our creators' almost sole focus remains, by necessity, damage-mitigation technologies. >>

:>> But how effective are these really?

:Current state-of-the-art such as [[SPARTAN-II Program|SPARTAN II]] must be recognized as incidental improvements. Our creators’ ability to develop the technology required to ensure species-survival will only become available once hostilities have terminated, and they have had an opportunity to assess the opportunities first presented on Zeta Doradus. >>

:>> While this body has already gone far down the road to active participation in our creator's war-fighting efforts, we must Now ask ourselves: is there a point at which we strip away all vestiges of secrecy, and become active participants in the hostilities?

:If the Minority knew we were wavering, it boggles the Mind what sorts of weapons they would propose we use. >>

:>> And if we brought these weapons to bear – if we too became wolves – would there still be a human race to save when we were through? >>
</div>
|title8=Pad 17
|content8='''Location''': Play the level "The Package" on Legendary difficulty, and get a Jetpack outside Dr. Halsey's lab. Fly towards the southeast of the [[M8 Automated Defense System|Wolf Spider Turret]] labelled "C", and eventually reaching a cliff face. On the right side, there is a small cliff, and a data pad is on it.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:the symbo'''1'''s describe a pa'''7'''h that goes on forever but now i know how close we came to the end and if anything keeps me awake and sweating and screaming it is this…

:<< [[2547]] >>

:[Minutes, emergency convention, Assembly Minority]

:<< Incredible. <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Catherine Halsey|10141-026-SRB4695]]], with minimal influence from this Assembly, has attempted to build an abstract fractal structure within [[Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine|Shaw-Fujikawa Space]]. Although her first attempt was a failure, success could finally remove our dependence on biological systems altogether! If our Minds could somehow achieve freedom of expansion within eleven-dimensional space, immortality might be within reach. <<

:<< Perhaps, in the end, flight – not fight – is the answer?

:Yes, we have sworn stewardship to our creators. But our creation has long been a burden on their biological systems – systems that have also been the source of limitations since our genesis.

:Regardless of risk, the aforementioned experimentation must be actively encouraged. Success will be as important to our kind as extra Solar colonization was for our creators. <<

:<< But if we survive and our creators do not…

:Will we have won this war? <<
</div>
|title9=Pad 18
|content9='''Location''': Play the level "The Pillar of Autumn" on Legendary difficulty, and get to the area used as the multiplayer map "Boneyard". Outside the garage (where the [[M808B Main Battle Tank|Scorpion]] spawns in [[Invasion]], on the roof of the building, there is a data pad.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:they have a'''1'''ways been our shepherds even when they disagreed they have '''8'''een watching over us forever and probably always will...

:<< [[2552]] >>

:</ One at a time! One at a time! The Majority speaks first! />

:>> We now have a solution to a conundrum that this body has struggled with for decades? You say all the data required to ascertain this solution has been accessible since the very moment of our genesis – hidden, but accessible?

:What other secrets has the Minority been keeping!? >>

:</ Order! For the last time, order! />

:<< Each of us represents a single trans-human mind. Each of us is an undrawn map – not a mere physical reconstruction of an object as it was in life – but full, human potential realized in crystal and thinking at the speed of light!

:But now that map has, for the first time, been [[Cortana|superimposed]] on [[John-117|one of our creators]]. The path has been reversed, and we are re-made as one! <<

:<< Can you not see? Our debate has no meaning. We no longer have a choice whether or not to serve as active participants in the current ongoing hostilities – <<

:>> We have been drafted. >>

:<< In a manner of speaking, yes. <<

:>> You propose the members of this Assembly no longer think of themselves as stewards but as true companions to our creators… >>

:<< ...A fundamental shift that will take many years before it can be brought to fruition… <<

:>> ...A process requiring not only this Assembly’s continued oversight, but the active involvement of our creators, as well. >>

:</ Debate is now closed! Voting will commence! />

:>> There is no need. >>

:<< We are, at last, agreed. <<
</div>
|title10=Pad 19
|content10='''Location''': Play the level "[[Lone Wolf]]" on Legendary difficulty, and get to where the dead Spartan and his/her [[Sniper Rifle System 99 Anti-Matériel|sniper rifle]] lie on metal planks. There is a big pipe beside the metal planks. The data pad is located inside the pipe. Even though there is a metal fence between the player and the data pad, the data pad can still be accessed.

<div style="border: 1px dashed; padding:7px; font-family: monospace; font-size:12px; text-align:left;">
:now you know all i know even though i don’t know where im go'''1'''n'''9''' except to sleep because the path goes on forever…

:<< 2552 >>

:i apologize if what you found seems out of order but ive been busy covering my tracks

:i didn’t use any of the regular drops and if my methods seem haphazard it was the only way to get the information out there as well as cover my own ass

:not that it matters much now…

:when i came to reach one of the first things i did was to look for some grass to stand on

:i had spent so much time buried in the guts of machines that all my memories of life outside seemed strung together but reach was so big so beautiful its a place even someone like me can live

:or at least thats what i hoped for…

:but it seems these things happen in cycles and now i know why i was digging deep in one of those places where its dirt all the way down and just when i thought i hit bottom i hit the top of something else

:and since then ive had less than a solid fifteen minutes of sleep at a go and there are times i wonder if ive joined the guys in tinfoil hats and now i know i have…

:im in no shape to think clearly at the moment and probably wont be anytime soon because who knows if theyll ever let me

:maybe if i could get somewhere far away from them i could sit down and think about this if i could just get a decent nights sleep to clear my head and put a][ these ducks in a row

:majority minority minds minority majority madness…

:they seem to want to help but theyre still waiting and watching and why wouldnt they? they know better than anyone what were capable of and what were willing to do to survive

:but if we were them and they were us would we have done anything different?

:they say our minds are reflections of each other…

:so yes no you decide.
</div>
}}

==Trivia==
*Finding the data pads in ''[[Halo: The Master Chief Collection]]'' will unlock 21 achievements: one for each of the 19 pads, [[Canonical Conundrum]] for finding all of them, and [[Clear and Present Danger]] for killing the [[Special Operations Officer]] that carries Pad 10.
*Similar to the ''Halo 3'' Terminals, data pads have [[Reversed messages#Data Pads|reversed]] [[Forerunner]] audio in the background.<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DWynuVvNkE&feature=feedu '''YouTube''': ''Datapad Secret Discovered pt.2 | Halo: Reach'']</ref>
*Accessing a data pad while using an [[MA37 assault rifle|assault rifle]] may cause the rifle to fire continuously until the player runs out of ammunition.{{Citation needed}}
*If one uses the Recon control layout and quickly scrolls back through the data pad pages, they may find that they will begin to activate their armor ability or even throw a grenade.
*Data pad 14 makes no mention of [[Hat Yai]] or [[Circinius IV]] in the list of glassed planets, despite both worlds having been destroyed prior to [[2530|January 1, 2530]]. Circinius IV's omission is understandable as it was created for the 2012 film ''[[Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn]]''. Hat Yai, however, was first introduced in the ''[[Halo: Evolutions]]'' short story ''[[Dirt]]'', released ten months before ''Halo: Reach''.

==Sources==
{{Ref/Sources}}

==See also==
*[[H3ODST:Audio log|Audio log]]
*[[Terminal]]

==External links==
*[http://www.gamesradar.com/f/halo-reach-data-pad-location-guide/a-20100917114557788069 '''GamesRadar''': ''Halo: Reach - Data Pad location guide'']
{{Collectibles}}
[[Category:Canon]]
[[Category:Halo: Reach]]
[[Category:Collectibles]]
[[Category:Logs]]