Obelisk
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| This article's title is a callsign, an alias, or a nickname, as no proper name for the subject has been revealed. |
"Obelisks"[Note 1] are a type of Forerunner structure found on select installations, including the Ark.
Overview[edit]
Appearance[edit]
Obelisks resemble enormous dark grey metal towers with glowing portals near the top, resembling eyes. These eyes emit extremely bright orange light, capable of lighting up large expanses of land from far away.[2] Notably, their darker metal and more brutalist construction suggest a similar origin to that of the structures found within the Sentinel wall and quarantine zone of Installation 05.
Function[edit]
The obelisks are typically constructed in groups of six, pointing inwards towards select stone structures in the middle of desert expanses. When attempting to leave the predetermined "zone" in which they protect, they are capable of firing extremely powerful orange directed-energy weapons from their "eye".[2]
In at least one instance of the defenders' placement, underneath the "shrines" in which they protected was a "crypt" area[2], indicating the shrine defenders' purpose is one of preventing escape.
History[edit]
The obelisks were built on Installation 00[1] and at least one other planet[2], defending similarly-built areas of stone structures in the desert. At some point likely during the Battle of Installation 00, the Jiralhanae occupied the zone occupied by the obelisks on the Ark, though the Brutes were later forced out of the region by forces of the UNSC Aegis Fate.[3]
In-game information[edit]
Halo 3[edit]
Obelisks are found on the Halo 3 multiplayer maps Sandtrap and Sandbox. On Sandtrap, the towers are used to enable Brute jumpmines that surround the map's boundaries; if a player exits the map, the obelisk towers fire at them with harmless beams that then trigger the mines to explode. The Obelisks return on the Mythic Map Sandbox, though instead fire gauss cannon-like projectiles at players who attempt to escape the map. Prior to this lethal response, the defenders fire a form of battle rifle-like weapon at players. When this weapon hits a player, it flashes their screen yellow to alert them to their impending demise.[4]
Production notes[edit]
Obelisks appear in Halo 3 on the maps Sandtrap and Sandbox. In the Halo 3 game files, the mesh, shader, and textures for the structure are named the obelisk,[5] with the specific functionality to enable their in-game weaponry termed the shrine_defender and sandbox_defender, respectively.[6][7] In Halo 3, "defenders" are a kind of map feature used to enable interactive elements on multiplayer maps: others include the cov_defender on Snowbound and the mon_defender on Cold Storage.[8][9]
Within the Halo community, the obelisk towers are infamous for being the subject of a number of rumours surrounding the Da Vinci Code objects near their "eyes". In reality, these specific objects are the aforementioned "defenders", used to fire Sentinel beam-like beams into the desert if the player exits the map's boundaries.[4]
Obelisks were at one point intended to appear in Halo 4. The cut map Z01_Fortress features several of them arrayed around its exterior, in a similar fashion to Sandbox and Sandtrap.
Gallery[edit]
The cut Halo 4 map
Z01_Fortress, with several towers.
Notes[edit]
- ^ While never officially named, the constructs are named as
obeliskin Halo 3 game files, see production notes for more details. Should an official name be provided, this article should be updated accordingly.
Sources[edit]
- ^ a b Halo 3, multiplayer map Sandtrap
- ^ a b c d Halo 3, multiplayer map Sandbox
- ^ Halo 3, multiplayer map Sandtrap: Map description
- ^ a b YouTube, Halo 3 - Mystery Of The DaVinci Code Easter Eggs (REVISITED & SOLVED) (Retrieved on Jun 18, 2025) [archive]
- ^ Halo 3, game file
tags\levels\multi\shrine\bitmaps\forerunner - ^ Halo 3, game file
tags\objects\levels\multi\shrine\shrine_defender - ^ Halo 3, game file
tags\objects\levels\dlc\sandbox\sandbox_defender - ^ Halo 3, game file
tags\objects\levels\multi\snowbound\cov_defender - ^ Halo 3, game file
tags\objects\levels\dlc\chillout\mon_defender_integrated
