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{{Status|Canon}} {{Battle infobox |name=Human-Covenant War |prev=[[Insurrection]] {{c|original conflict}} |conc=*[[Insurrection#During the Human-Covenant War|Insurrection]] {{c|in reduced capacity}} *[[Great Schism]] |next=*[[Post-Covenant War conflicts]] **[[Blooding Years]] **[[Insurrection#Post-war resurgence|Insurrection]] {{c|postwar resurgence}} **[[Sangheili-Jiralhanae war]] **[[Created uprising]] |image=[[File:Other Wiki HCW collage.png|415px]] |caption=Clockwise from top left: [[Insurrectionist]]s are attacked by the Covenant at [[Alpha Corvi II]]; UNSC forces under fire inside a [[Relic (location)|Relic]] on [[Harvest]]; a {{Class|CAS|assault carrier}} [[glassing]] [[Kholo]]; [[John-117]] on a [[Pelican]] over [[Installation 04]]; [[Sangheili Honor Guardsman|Sangheili Honor Guardsmen]] fighting [[Jiralhanae]] at the start of the [[Great Schism]]; [[Arbiter]] [[Thel 'Vadam]], John-117, Sergeant [[Avery Johnson]], and [[343 Guilty Spark]] on [[Installation 08]] |date=*[[2525|February 11, 2525]]<ref>[[First Battle of Harvest]]</ref>–[[2552#December|December 11, 2552]]{{Ref/Game|H3|Campaign}} {{C|[[2553#March|March 3, 2553]] ([[Voi Memorial|official ceremony]])}} *[[Ages of Reclamation#Ninth Age of Reclamation|Ninth Age of Reclamation]]-[[Ages of Retribution#First Age of Retribution|First Age of Retribution]] {{C|Covenant timekeeping}} |place=The [[Orion Arm]] of the [[Milky Way]]{{Ref/Note|The Human-Covenant War briefly extended outside the Milky Way galaxy for the [[Battle of Installation 00]]}} |result='''Human-Sangheili victory'''<ref>''[[Believe]]'', [[Museum]]</ref> *Covenant Empire collapses{{Ref/Level|Id=The Covenant|H3|H3:The Covenant|The Covenant}} *[[Flood]] threats sterilized and contained{{Ref/Reuse|The Covenant}} *Activation of the [[Halo Array]] averted<ref>'''[[Halo: Glasslands]]''', ''page 50''</ref> *Human and [[Fleet of Retribution|many]] Sangheili forces [[Treaty of 2552|reconcile]]{{Ref/Level|Id=Halo|H3|H3:Halo|Halo}}<ref>''Halo: Glasslands'', p. 60</ref> *[[Sangheili-Jiralhanae war|Ongoing conflict between former Covenant factions]]{{Ref/Anthology|Id=HETR|Evo|Story=The Return}} |side1=*{{Icon|UEG}} '''[[UEG]]''' **{{Icon|UNSC HCW}} '''[[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]]''' *{{Icon|Covenant FB}} '''[[Covenant separatists]]''' {{C|From [[2552#November|November 3, 2552]] onwards}} **'''[[Fleet of Retribution]]''' ---- *{{Icon|Insurrectionist}} '''[[Insurrectionists]]''' **'''[[United Rebel Front|URF]]''' |side2=*{{Icon|Covenant FB}} '''[[Covenant]]''' |side3=*'''[[Flood]]''' |side4=*{{Icon|Forerunner}} '''[[Sentinel|Forerunner constructs]]'''{{Ref/Note|'''Allied''' with UNSC/Fleet of Retribution '''only''' during the 1st half of the Battle of Installation 04 (UNSC only), Battle of Installation 05 and Battle of the Ark. Elsewhere and excluding these battles, Forerunner constructs were '''hostile''' to the UNSC/Fleet of Retribution' (including during the 2nd half of the Battle of installation 04 (UNSC only), Battle of the Etran Harborage (UNSC only), Battle of Onyx (UNSC only) and the Raid on Installation 08). However, Forerunner constructs were '''hostile''' to both Flood and Covenant forces throughout the entire war.}} |commanders1= [[UNSC High Command|High Command]] *[[Fleet Admiral|FADM]] [[Terrence Hood|Lord Terrence Hood]] *[[Admiral|ADM]] [[Preston Cole]]† (MIA, assumed KIA) *[[Admiral|ADM]] [[Margaret Parangosky]] *[[Admiral|ADM]] [[Michael Stanforth]]† *[[Admiral|ADM]] [[Danforth Whitcomb]]† [[Fleet of Retribution]] *[[Arbiter]] [[Thel 'Vadam]] *[[Shipmaster]] / [[Fleetmaster]] [[Rtas 'Vadum]] ---- [[Insurrectionists]] *[[Governor]] [[Jacob Jiles]]† |commanders2= [[Hierarchs|High Prophets of the Covenant]]† *[[Prophet of Truth|High Prophet of Truth]]† *[[Prophet of Regret|High Prophet of Regret]]† *[[Prophet of Mercy|High Prophet of Mercy]]† [[High Council|Covenant High Council]]<br> Military commanders *[[Chieftain of the Jiralhanae]] [[Tartarus]]† *[[Fleetmaster]] [[Nizat 'Kvarosee]] *[[Special Operations Commander]] [[Rtas 'Vadum]]ee {{c|pre-Great Schism}} *[[Arbiter]] [[Ripa 'Moramee]]† *[[Fleetmaster]] [[Voro Nar 'Mantakree]]† {{c|pre-Great Schism}} *[[Imperial Admiral]] [[Xytan 'Jar Wattinree]]† {{c|pre-Great Schism}} *[[Supreme Commander]] [[Thel 'Vadam]]ee {{c|pre-Great Schism}} |commanders3=[[Gravemind]]† |commanders4= [[Sentinel|Forerunner constructs]] *[[343 Guilty Spark]] {{C|[[Wounded in action|WIA]]}} |forces1= |forces2= |forces3= |forces4= |casual1= ;Human population reduced considerably *Approximately 23 billion civilian and military casualties by October 20, 2552;{{Ref/Anthology|Id=HE:PH|Evo|Story=Palace Hotel}} billions more during the [[Battle for Earth]]<ref>'''Halo: Glasslands'''. ''page 151''</ref> *Widespread infrastructure, structural, and environmental damage to the vast majority of UEG colonies ;Heavy Sangheili casualties *Devastation of the Sangheili colony, [[Joyous Exultation]]. *Destruction of the Sangheili colony, [[Glyke]] *Billions of civilian casualties ---- ;Heavy Insurrectionist casualties *All [[Eridanus Rebels]] killed *Moderate Rubble rebel casualties *[[Outer Colonies]] [[Massacre of the Outer Colonies|decimated]] |casual2= ;Heavy casualties for all Covenant races *Destruction of the Covenant holy city, ''[[High Charity]]'' *Destruction of the Covenant battle station ''[[Unyielding Hierophant]]''. *Near-extinction of the ruling San'Shyuum |casual3= ;Extreme casualties for the Flood *High Charity destroyed *Installation 05 sterilized *All Flood forces destroyed at the Etran Harborage, Installation 04 and Installation 08 |casual4= ; Heavy casualties for Forerunner constructs *Destruction of [[Installation 04]] and its replacement [[Installation 08]] *Glassing of [[Installation 05]] *Devastation of [[Installation 00]] }} {{Series/War/Human-Covenant War}} {{Quote|Your destruction is the will of the Gods... and we are their instrument.|The Covenant's declaration of war.<ref>''Halo: The Fall of Reach'', p. 98 (2001)</ref>}} The '''Human-Covenant War'''{{Ref/Note|The name "Covenant War" is most often used by media from [[343 Industries]]. However, the less common "Human-Covenant War" is more descriptive and is therefore used by ''Halopedia''.}} was a major interstellar conflict pitting [[humanity]] and its [[United Nations Space Command]] against the Covenant during the mid-26th century between [[2525#February|February 11, 2525]] and [[2552#December|December 11, 2552]]. There were two additional factions sporadically involved in the conflict: the [[Flood]] and a small number of surviving [[Sentinel|Forerunner constructs]]. Both factions proved to be invaluable to the efforts of humanity, as the information taken from Forerunner constructs and the Flood invasion of ''[[High Charity]]'' were helpful in [[Great Schism|splitting the Covenant apart]] in November 2552. The war was instigated by the [[Hierarchs|High Prophets]] of the Covenant following a discovery which led them to believe that humans were directly related to the Forerunners, contradicting their [[covenant religion|ancient religion]]. Seeking to keep various political and religious orders intact, the High Prophets declared a holy war of genocide against the human species, and the discovery of their relation to the Forerunners was kept a secret. With superior firepower, numbers and technology, the Covenant would repeatedly overpower the UNSC across hundreds of human-inhabited worlds, including the heavily defended strongholds of [[Reach]] and [[Earth]]. Humanity would win only scattered and costly victories. The conflict was also the cause of the [[Great Schism]] within the Covenant. Forced to fight a war on two fronts, the formerly monolithic empire was torn apart. The [[Battle of Installation 00|final battles]] of the war were fought on [[2552#December|December 11, 2552]], ending the Covenant,{{Ref/Site|Id=fortitude|URL=http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/Universe/detail/a/bfe5038b-314a-4f17-a6be-f7613e0e3788|Site=Halo Waypoint|Page=Hero-Fortitude|D=9|M=5|Y=2012|local=Heroes Never Die#Hero-Fortitude}} and the ceasefire between humanity and the Sangheili was formally ratified as a [[Treaty of 2552|treaty]] on [[2553#February|February 2553]].<ref name="ceasefire">'''Halo: Glasslands''', ''pages 358-361''</ref> The official end of war [[Voi Memorial|ceremony]] took place on [[2553#March|March 3, 2553]]. The war was incredibly costly to both sides, with over twenty-three billion humans and billions of Covenant individuals killed during the hostilities.{{Ref/Reuse|HE:PH}} An outbreak of the virulent parasite known as the Flood almost consumed both factions near the war's end. The conflict lasted for a total of twenty-eight years. After the [[Treaty of 2552|ceasefire]] was declared, the Great Schism continued in the form of [[Sangheili-Jiralhanae war|wars]] between the Sangheili and the Jiralhanae until at least [[2559]].{{Ref/Reuse|HETR}} Concurrent to this, the Sangheili species fell into [[Blooding Years|civil war]], as did the Jiralhanae, while the UNSC itself had to deal with a resurgence in [[insurrectionist]] activity. In the wake of the Covenant's cessation, its former member species fragmented and formed many new [[Covenant remnants|splinter factions]]. Among the most notable of these smaller groups was the religiously devout [[Jul 'Mdama's Covenant faction|new “Covenant”]] formed in the disarray following the war by [[Shipmaster]] [[Jul 'Mdama]]. The UNSC occasionally engaged in [[Post-Covenant War conflicts|smaller conflicts]] with Jul's faction and a few others, until late [[2558]].{{Ref/SpOps|Id=Spops|Departure}} ==Nomenclature== The conflict is descriptively known as the '''Human-Covenant War'''.{{Ref/Novel|TFoR||Detail=back cover description}}{{Ref/Novel|HTF|Detail=back cover description}} A shortened name for it is the '''Covenant War''',{{Ref/Book|EVG|Page=19, 74, 75, 92, 95, 98, 105, 112, 113, 120}}<ref>'''Halo Waypoint''': [http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/intel/featured/video/headhunters-1/c3d2dcb3-ac3d-4771-a270-e55e33ae118b ''Headhunters'' Part 1], [http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/intel/featured/video/herocourage/c2ada678-e9ce-4db9-9ce9-1864070bd198 ''Hero - Courage'']</ref> It has been infrequently known as the '''Great War'''<ref>''Halo: First Strike'' (2010), [[Petra]]</ref> or the '''Human-Covenant Conflict'''.<ref>''[[Halo: New Blood]]'', p. 5 (Google Play edition)</ref> Members of the [[Covenant]] refer to it as the '''War of Annihilation'''.{{Ref/Novel|SoR|Chapter=3}}{{Ref/Novel|DW|Chapter=1}}{{Ref/Book|Enc22|Page=193}}{{Ref/Site|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/the-new-halo-encyclopedia-is-out-today|Site=Halo Waypoint|Page=The New Halo Encyclopedia is Out Today|D=11|M=03|Y=2023}} ==Background== ===Insurrection=== {{Main|Insurrection}} Prior to the war, and beginning in [[2494]], humanity was in the midst of an undeclared civil conflict known as the Insurrection.{{Ref/Anthology|Id=history|Evo|The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole|Detail=Section Two: Noncommissioned Years}} In [[2513]], the UNSC had begun [[Operation: TREBUCHET]] to root out the [[insurrectionist]]s and impose order in humanity's Outer Colonies.{{Ref/Anthology|Id=dirt|Evo|Story=Dirt}} As the conflict continued, children across human space would be conscripted into the [[SPARTAN-II program]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=tfor1|TFoR|Chapter=1}} {{stub|section=yes}} ===State of the Covenant=== In [[2492]], the Covenant would make their last major species incorporation, the [[Jiralhanae]], following the discovery of their homeworld of [[Doisac]].{{Ref/Book|Id=EncC4|Enc|Section=Chapter Four: The Covenant - The History of the Covenant|Page=115 (2009 edition), 121 (2011 edition)}} {{stub|section=yes}} ==War== [[File:SSgt Avery Johnson, UNSC Marine Corps.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Staff Sergeant Johnson leading Colonial Militia during the Covenant invasion of Harvest.|left]] ===Isolated battles (2525)=== {{Main|First Battle of Harvest}} Humanity and the Covenant first came into direct contact on February 3, 2525, when a [[Kig-Yar]] [[missionary ship]], the ''[[Minor Transgression]]'', discovered [[Horn of Plenty|a human ship]] transitioning out of [[Slipstream space|slipspace]] and subsequently raided the vessel.{{Ref/Novel|Id=CH1|CH|Chapter=1}} The raid continued to [[This End Up|another]] unfortunate human ship. Some time after, [[Sif]], Harvest shipping operations AI, investigated the raids{{Ref/Novel|Id=CH6|CH|Chapter=6}} and reported her findings to an undercover [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] agent, [[Jilan al-Cygni]], believing that the attacks were Insurrectionist activity.{{Ref/Novel|Id=CH7|CH|Chapter=7}} The ONI agent devised a trap for the raiding parties, which resulted in a [[Skirmish Over Harvest|minor skirmish]] between [[Staff Sergeant]]s [[Nolan Byrne]] and [[Avery Johnson]], and the Kig-Yar privateers.{{Ref/Novel|Id=CH8|CH|Chapter=8}} When the Covenant returned with [[Rapid Conversion|another ship]] and a contingent of [[Jiralhanae]] and [[Yanme'e]], the UNSC proposed a meeting (via pictogram) with the intention to make amends and to trade with the alien species. The Covenant met the UNSC on Harvest, but were only interested in claiming the relics that the [[Luminary]] had detected on Harvest, completely oblivious that the humans were the "relics" in question. The meeting was botched after [[Osmo]], a member of the [[Harvest militia|Colonial Militia]], was attacked by a nervous [[Unggoy]] who was part of a second Covenant force sent to look for the relics. As a result, a firefight erupted between the two groups and the Covenant promptly retreated back to their ship.{{Ref/Novel|CH|Chapter=15}} The political ramifications of these relics were abundant, and two [[San'Shyuum]] bureaucrats, the [[Prophet of Truth|Minister of Fortitude]] and the [[Prophet of Regret|Vice Minister of Tranquility]], were already scheming to use the supposed reliquary to inaugurate a new [[Ages of Reclamation|Age of Reclamation]] with themselves as the [[Hierarchs]] of the [[High Council]]. To do this, they needed the blessing of the Oracle of [[High Charity]]. When the two San'Shyuum approached the [[Prophet of Mercy|Philologist]] to affirm on their behalf, the data from the ''Rapid Conversion'' caused [[Mendicant Bias|the long-dormant Oracle]] to reactivate. Mendicant declared that the Covenant had been misinterpreting Forerunner symbols: the "relics" in question were the humans, calling them [[Reclaimer]]s and his makers. This shocked the three San'Shyuum, who falsely concluded that the humans were actually living [[Forerunner]]s who had been left behind when the others transcended. Although they were able to prevent Mendicant from taking the [[Forerunner Dreadnought]] to take the humans to deliver them to [[Installation 00|the Ark]], Fortitude concluded that if the masses learned that they might be left behind, they would rebel against the Prophets.{{Ref/Novel|Id=CH16|CH|Chapter=16}} Fortitude and Tranquility inducted the Philologist into their plan and ascended as the High Prophets of Truth, Regret, and Mercy.{{Ref/Novel|Id=CHE|CH|Epilogue}} [[File:HWG SecondBattleOfHarvest.png|thumb|250px|Cole's fleet destroys the Covenant ship in the Second Battle of Harvest.|left]] ===Open war (2525-2535)=== {{Main|Massacre of the Outer Colonies}} ====Early actions (2525-2530)==== Intending to keep the revelation about the humans a secret and prevent the Covenant from falling apart, the new Hierarchs declared that the humans destroyed the holy reliquary on Harvest, and ordered the entire race to be eradicated.{{Ref/Reuse|CHE}} The first battle of the war was the extended, albeit one-sided, engagement which took place on Harvest where the UNSC managed to evacuate many of Harvest's civilians.{{Ref/Novel|CH|Chapter=21}} Eventually, the Covenant ship responsible for the attack [[Glassing|glassed]] the planet's surface.{{Ref/Reuse|CHE}} Realizing the threat posed to humanity by the Covenant, the UNSC [[Colonial Military Authority]] gave [[Vice Admiral]] [[Preston Cole]] the command of the then-largest fleet in human history with orders to [[Second Battle of Harvest|retake Harvest]],{{Ref/Comic|Id=Genesis|HWG}} which occurred in [[2526]].{{Ref/Anthology|Id=Cole|Evo|Story=The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole}} He would then spend five years chasing the Covenant around the [[Outer Colonies]], fighting them and scoring victories at [[Alpha Aurigae System|Alpha Aurigae]], [[XI Boötis A System|XI Boötis A]], and [[Groombridge-1830]].{{Ref/Reuse|Genesis}}{{Ref/Reuse|Cole}} Meanwhile, the Covenant returned to Harvest, determined to recapture the planet. This led to a five-year long [[Harvest Campaign|series of engagements]] on Harvest between the Covenant and the UNSC.{{Ref/Book|EVG|Page=188}} The threat the Covenant posed resulted in the UNSC deploying the [[SPARTAN-II Program|SPARTAN-II]]s on November 2nd, 2525.{{Ref/Novel|Id=hsschapter2|HSS|Chapter=2}} The Spartans became one of humanity's greatest — and most celebrated — defenders, demonstrating a remarkable ability to turn the tide of battle. Their prowess was not lost on the Covenant, who came to fear the Spartans as "[[demon]]s".<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', ''page 103''</ref> From that point on, the Covenant continued to attack and destroy the humans wherever they were found, using their [[Luminary|Luminaries]] to find human worlds. Though the UNSC forces fought bravely, their inferior technology and numbers meant that even a ''close'' victory was far from guaranteed. The Covenant, fighting a war of extermination, did not need to commit to full ground invasions except in special circumstances; their ships simply needed to destroy space-borne defenses and any other threats around the planet. They would then reduce the planet's surface to glass with orbital plasma bombardment.{{Ref/Book|Enc09|Page=33}} In general, human missiles and magnetic acceleration weapons were asymmetrically matched with Covenant energy shields and plasma weaponry. The few major victories achieved by the UNSC were usually due to tactical genius, extensive use of nuclear weapons, the rapid deployment of Spartan teams, or decisive ground engagements where UNSC technology and skill outmatched Covenant tactics. At the outset of the war, the UNSC employed a [[Wikipedia:defence in depth|defence in depth]] tactical doctrine, making extensive use of [[M5 Talos|automated turrets]] to delay Covenant forces.{{Ref/Game|Id=PL Turret|HW2|Phoenix Logs|Detail=Turret}} They were eventually forced to abandon this doctrine as the war continued to grind down human armies and industrial centres,{{Ref/Reuse|PL Turret}} learning the dangers of relying on fixed installations when employed against enemies with orbital fire support.{{Ref/Game|Id=PL Siege|HW2|Phoenix Logs|Detail=Siege Turret}} The UNSC began to develop a modular [[firebase]] system (based on pre-existing [[colony starter unit]]s used for colonization of planets<ref>[http://www.halowars.com/GameInfo/UNSC.aspx ''Official Halo Wars Community Site'': UNSC] (defunct, [[Archive:Halowars.com/UNSC|Archived]])</ref>) in response to pinpoint Covenant targeting of large military command and control installations with orbital strikes, and the inability of standard counter battery systems to detect, deflect, or defeat plasma-based artillery bombardment.<ref name="PL Siege"/> [[File:ApexBattleImage.png|thumb|200px|The {{UNSCShip|Spirit of Fire}} engages the {{Pattern|Sinaris|heavy destroyer}} ''[[Proclamation's Tithe]]'' in [[Trove]].]] ====Escalations (2530-2536)==== Despite the well-publicized victory at Harvest, the UNSC was already on the way to losing the war. A number of colonies had already been glassed by the Covenant or abandoned, including [[Eridanus II]], [[Dwarka]], [[Bliss]], [[Madrigal]], [[Asmara]] and [[Biko]]. In [[2531#February|February 2531]], [[Arbiter]] [[Ripa 'Moramee]], under the command of the [[Prophet of Regret]], began leading searches for [[Forerunner]] technology to aid in the Covenant war effort during the end of the [[Harvest campaign]]{{Ref/Level|HW|HW:Alpha Base|Alpha Base}} and the [[Battle for Arcadia]]. With the Covenant having discovered the Forerunner [[shield world]] [[Trove]] sometime prior, the Prophet of Regret intended to use a fleet of {{Class|Sojourner|dreadnought}}s docked at the [[Apex Site]] to crush humanity "quickly and with ease."{{Ref/Level|Id=HWscarab|HW|HW:Scarab|Scarab}} With Ripa having kidnapped Professor [[Ellen Anders]] at [[Arcadia]] to use as a [[Reclaimer]] to activate the shield world, he was pursued by the {{UNSCShip|Spirit of Fire}}, leading to [[Battle of the Trove|a battle]] at the Etran Harborage. In the battle, Ripa was killed by Sergeant [[John Forge]] who subsequently sacrificed himself to destroy the Etran Harborage by causing its internal sun to go [[supernova]]. The Covenant plan was foiled, but the ''Spirit of Fire'' sacrificed its [[slipspace drive]] to cause the supernova, leaving the ship and its crew stranded in deep space.{{Ref/Level|HW|HW:Escape|Escape}} The UNSC's sole hope apparently lay with the SPARTAN-II Program. However, there were never enough Spartans to decisively turn the tide of the war in favor of humanity. Recognizing this, the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] authorized the creation of the [[SPARTAN-III Program]]. The brainchild of [[Colonel]] [[James Ackerson]], these Spartans would be trained with a greater emphasis on stealth and teamwork, and would be sent on missions against high-priority targets that would be impossible even for elite units.{{Ref/Novel|Id=GoO2|GoO|Chapter=2}} [[File:CP armor.png|thumb|left|200px|A member of Gray Team at the [[Battle of the Rubble]].]] After just six years of combat, space battles with the Covenant had depleted the UNSC's nuclear stockpile to almost nothing in at least one sector of space.{{Ref/Novel|GoO|Chapter=1}} With the majority of the Outer Colonies glassed or abandoned, the UNSC faced an economic crisis, as many of their [[agriculture world]]s had been destroyed, leading to food shortages. On [[Charybdis IX]], food riots were common.{{Ref/Novel|TCP|Chapter=12}} Meanwhile, Covenant forces began to encroach on the [[Inner Colonies]].{{Ref/Novel|TCP|Chapter=1}} In response, the UNSC issued United Nations Space Command Emergency Priority Order 098831A-1, otherwise known as the "[[Cole Protocol]]". It stated that no UNSC vessel may lead the Covenant to Earth or any other human population center. Furthermore, all movement through space was restricted to [[UNSC Navy]] vessels.{{Ref/Reuse|Genesis}} [[Insurrectionist]] attacks increased in the face of what the colonies perceived as a removal of their right to freedom of movement. This was to culminate in the discovery of Insurrectionists using Covenant weapons supplied by apparently renegade [[Kig-Yar]]. Shocked, the UNSC viewed this as a major threat to security.{{Ref/Novel|TCP|Chapter=13}} Upon learning of this, the [[Prophet of Regret]] declared such weapons as heresy, and as a result dispatched [[Thel 'Vadam]]ee to destroy the source of the modified weapons: a remote asteroid habitat known as [[the Rubble]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=TCP19|TCP|Chapter=19}} Fleeing from the [[Battle of Charybdis IX]], the {{UNSCShip|Midsummer Night}} chased an Insurrectionist freighter to the Rubble and discovered that the Insurrectionists there had actually formed an alliance with a group of Kig-Yar.{{Ref/Novel|TCP|Chapter=26}} The Jackals were supplying the weapons and the Insurrectionists were modifying them. The crew of the ''Midsummer Night'', including its captain, [[Lieutenant]] [[Jacob Keyes]], were captured,{{Ref/Novel|TCP|Chapter=30}} but later escaped and helped SPARTAN-II [[Gray Team]] and the Rubble's citizens stop an assault from the Kig-Yar leader, [[Reth]], and 'Vadamee's forces. They managed to rescue a million civilians from behind enemy lines and escorted them to [[Falaknuma]].<ref>''Halo: The Cole Protocol'', p. 352</ref> It later transpired that the [[Prophet of Truth]] had ordered the Kig-Yar to ally with the humans so that they could discover the location of [[Earth]] from stolen navigation data or through tracking devices in the weapons. Through this, the Covenant found two more worlds to attack.<ref>''Halo: The Cole Protocol'', p. 347</ref> By the time of the [[Battle of Jericho VII]] in 2535, most of the Outer Colonies were either destroyed, or cut communications with the UNSC.{{Citation needed}} {{clear}} [[File:Origins ii Human-CovenantWar.jpg|thumb|225px|Humanity, heavily out-gunned, lost much ground to the Covenant.]] ===Inner Colony push (2536-2551)=== {{Main|Siege of the Inner Colonies}} For fifteen years, the war ground on in a predictable pattern; costly and rare victories on the ground for UNSC forces, with near total Covenant space superiority.{{Ref/Book|Enc11|Page=205}} The UNSC managed to deal a heavy blow to the Covenant in 2537 with the destruction of the Covenant manufacturing plant [[K7-49]] in [[Operation: PROMETHEUS]],{{Ref/Novel|GoO|Chapter=37}} and again during the [[Siege of the Atlas Moons]] in the same year. However, these victories were offset by the loss of [[New Constantinople]], the loss of its colonies at [[Leonis Minoris]], and the total destruction of the force of SPARTAN-IIIs sent to destroy the Covenant base.<ref>''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', p. 179 ("John had never worked with the Admiral before, but his accomplishments during the battles for New Constantinople and the Siege of the Atlas Moons were well known.")</ref> Throughout the 2540s, the UNSC was dealt ever greater blows with the death of the SPARTAN-II [[Sheila-065]] during the [[Battle of Miridem]] in 2544,{{Ref/Novel|Id=GoO20|GoO|Chapter=20}} followed by the [[Battle of Actium|defeat at Actium]] in [[2545]]<ref>[http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/intel/featured/video/herocourage/c2ada678-e9ce-4db9-9ce9-1864070bd198 '''Halo Waypoint''' video, ''Hero-Courage'']</ref>