Ballas

Ballas is the chieftain of the Jiralhanae clan called the Ravaged Tusks, who are known to be smugglers and slavers. Allied with the Banished, he led the Ravaged Tusks during their search for a portal to Installation 00 rumored to be hidden on Reach.

Joining the Banished
At some point before July 2559, Ballas and his Ravaged Tusks had formed an alliance with the Banished. Alongside Dokab Castor of the Keepers of the One Freedom and Chieftain Deukalion of the Legion of the Corpse-Moon, he reported directly to War Chief Escharum during Atriox's absence.

The Search for the Portal
When Escharum was contacted by Atriox who ordered him to find and activate the Forerunner portal facility on Reach in preparation for his return to the galaxy, Ballas and the Ravaged Tusks were sent to the human colony alongside Castor, Deukalion, and their forces. Each of the three clans were assigned roughly a third of the world to search, with Ballas' search area including the southwestern third of the Eposz supercontinent.

The clans explored the planet's glasslands until October 2559 with little to show for their efforts. Ballas and Deukalion began to fight over territory and resources stolen from the human "glass-breakers" attempting to resettle their homeworld. However, Castor convinced the two chieftains to help him in his plan to follow a team of Spartans that had attempted to stealthily land on Reach and come into contact with Banished forces at Kisköre Base. As far as the dokab could tell, the UNSC was looking for the Forerunner portal too and they seemingly knew where to find it. All the Banished needed to do was follow them. Meanwhile, Ballas had sent a hundred of his warriors to search Szurdok Ridge for any sign of the portal.

At Castor's insistence, Ballas and Deukalion pledged to assist him in his plan by using their forces to search for the Spartans and draw out while continuing to defend their holdings on Reach. The Ravaged Tusks participated in the failed defense and recapture of New Mohács, a pioneer settlement originally established and operated by the Viery Militia.

Physical description
Ballas is a short and stocky Jiralhanae, almost as wide as he is tall. His head is distinctly rounded. Despite his less than average height, his silhouette is so massive that he nearly fills the loading hatch of a Phantom dropship. At least one of Ballas' fangs is noticeably chipped.

Equipment
Wearing a full set of his signature crimson power armor with matching helmet, Ballas is often seen wielding a Type-2 gravity hammer. During the mission to Reach, Ballas used a Banished Phantom as his personal transport.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Shadows of Reach