Prefect
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
Prefects were a class of Warrior-Servants in Forerunner society, assigned to investigate threats to the Forerunner Ecumene.[3] Unlike the Prometheans, the Prefects did not engage in warfare, but instead watched and observed the worlds of the empire - both those inhabited by Forerunners and their subject species. The Prefects reported to a council of Preceptors, who in turn decided how to react to the Prefects' reports, and which assets to allocate to them. Direct intervention from the Ecumene was rare, though could include anything from Lifeworker teams to the deployment of Peacemaker constructs.[1]
Prefect personal armor was left on Trevelyan at the end of the Forerunner-Flood war. Some time after February 2552 some of these examples were retrieved by the United Nations Space Command, and reverse-engineed by Huragok. This led to the Watershed Division's creation of the Prefect variant for the MJOLNIR GEN2 and GEN3 armor platforms.[4][5]
During the human-Forerunner wars, Prefects were used to investigate Ancestors accused of unnecessarily destroying Forerunner colony worlds. In at least one instance, the recorded memory of an Ancestor was able to communicate her memories of being interrogated by the Prefects to a modern human, thanks to a modern UNSC expedition aboard a derelict ancient human cruiser. In the memories, the Ancestor attempted to explain to the Prefects her actions were not war against the Forerunners but rather against the Flood. These attempts were unsuccessful, and the Prefects instead accused ancient humanity of crimes against the Mantle, believing that the Flood had been set loose as a deliberate bioweapon to justify humanity's supposed war against the Forerunners.[1][6]
Production notes[edit]
The Prefects were first introduced into Halo canon with the release of the Prefect armor in the Champions Bundle DLC for Halo 4. The Prefect armor was designed by concept artist Sean Bigham based on an illustration of a Forerunner "Promethean" (unrelated to the canon concept of Prometheans) done by Isaac Hannaford for the cancelled game, Halo: Chronicles.[7] Hannaford's original illustration was later reused in the Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition), captioned as the canon appearance of the Prefects.[2]
Gallery[edit]
Full artwork of a Forerunner Prefect in their combat skin, originally done by Isaac Hannaford for Halo: Chronicles.
The MJOLNIR GEN2 variant based on a Prefect's armor.
The MJOLNIR GEN3 variant based on a Prefect's armor.
List of appearances[edit]
- Halo 4
- Champions Bundle (First mentioned)
- Halo: Tulpamancy (First appearance)[1]
Sources[edit]
- ^ a b c d Halo Waypoint, Canon Fodder - Anthology Assemble (Retrieved on May 30, 2025) [archive]
- ^ a b Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition), page 323: "
PREFECT_01000101" - ^ X.com, Halo (@Halo): "The Prefects are a class of Warrior-Servants tasked with investigating threats to the Forerunner ecumene, their combat skin has been adapted and integrated with both GEN2 and GEN3 Mjolnir platforms. #FictionFriday" (Retrieved on Apr 11, 2025) [archive]
- ^ WorthPlaying, 'Halo 4' (X360) Champions Bundle To Add New Maps, Mode, Skins, Armor, Bonus Upgrades - Screens (Retrieved on Jun 26, 2022) [archive]
- ^ Halo 4, Armory: Prefect description "A handful of critical discoveries have led to this extraordinary hybridization of human and Forerunner technology."
- ^ Halo: Tulpamancy
- ^ DeviantArt, Halo 4: Champions DLC - Prefect Armor Concept (Retrieved on Oct 10, 2021) [archive]
