Jiralhanae Warlord

"Indeed, many a prideful chieftain has forgotten who their work should be enriching and have wound up on the receiving end of a Warlord’s personally-fashioned gravity hammer."

- Jeff Easterling on Jiralhanae Warlords.

Jiralhanae Warlords are a class of favored Jiralhanae Captains and Chieftains serving in the Banished.

Roles and responsibilities
Jiralhanae Warlords are among the most fearsome infantry in the Banished forces and are promoted by Decimus, and later Escharum, for their raw strength, savage lust for battle, and the complete absence of mercy to serve as loyal agents positioned to intercede on the Banished leaders’ behalf to bring recalcitrant packs to heal and direct critical faction operations. If a Banished captain has been chosen and promoted, they can lead a Banished forged clan representing the main Banished force with the highly esteemed mantle of Warlord, operating directly under command of a War Chief or Warmaster Atriox himself. Warlords are powerful and skilled Jiralhanae veterans with and extraordinary strategic acumen that have been systematically tested in the rigors of combat over many years. The commitment of a clan is first to Atriox, even above the loyalty they must have for their own battle brothers. While the Jiralhanae who make up Atriox's Chosen share their leader's cunning, Decimus encourages more base traits in his warriors, chief among which is an unquenchable thirst for blood.

Answerable only to Warmaster Atriox and the War Chief, warlords are no doubt feared by many lower-ranking Jiralhanae and hated by Banished Sangheili warriors, such as Let 'Volir’s troops, though none can deny the warlords’ loyalty or violent proficiency in culling the Banished ranks of weaker links.

Organization
Warlord role are typically held by former Captains. Although some Jiralhanae Warlords may be well rather higher-ranking chieftains—including those led by Decimus' command during the Second Ark Conflict—in their own right, unlike traditional clans which had joined the Banished fully formed, warlords lead clans forged in the fires of battle explicitly for the Banished.

History
A number of Warlord Chieftains led by Decimus were deployed during the Second Ark Conflict, including Pavium, one of two leaders of the Clan of the Long Shields alongside Voridus. Several former Captains who became Warlords and Chieftains under Escharum participated in the Battle for Zeta Halo.

Armor
Banished warlords have the privilege of tailoring their armor and equipment according to their own preference, but those recently appointed to this role are often dignified with a silver armor that hearkens back to the Covenant of an earlier age. This specific design actually predates both Banished and Covenant, and was worn by the most renowned pack leaders during the dark times of the First Immolation. Most notably, Pavium features his own unique Warlord Chieftain power armor gifted by Decimus.

Weaponry
Jiralhanae Warlord Chieftains under Decimus' command within the core group of the Banished are armed with gravity hammers and are usually equipped with energy shields to supplement their already-heavy armor and hides. Those gravity hammers may rather be a warlord’s personally-fashioned unique gravity hammers, which are wielded by many prideful Jiralhanae chieftains who have forgotten which their work should be enriching, and have wound up on the receiving end of these gravity hammers. These modified gravity hammers emit a massive shockwave which damages and stuns all nearby ground units. Jiralhanae Warlord Captains under Escharum are armed with Forerunner heatwaves, while their chieftain counterparts are armed with gravity hammers or Grenflekt Workshop Scrap Cannons. Both variants carry spike grenades.

Halo Wars 2
The Jiralhanae Warlord is exclusive to Decimus and can be built at the War Council. Warlords are great against infantry and vehicles, okay against structures, and cannot attack aircraft. In Blitz a Warlord costs 170 energy and features the Siphon ability to steal health from enemies. When either Jerome-092, Douglas-042, or Alice-130, except Commander Jerome defeats the Warlord in a point-blank range, it has a chance to trigger an execution kills. This also works for the Warlord when defeating the Spartans in point-blank range.
 * Info: Melee hero, Powerful area attack, cannot attack air, One active hero limit.
 * Tier: 1
 * Cost: Population 0, Supplies 300, Power 275
 * Warlord upgrade: Hammer Pull
 * Info: Equips Warlord's hammer with a gravity beam to drag targets closer
 * Tier: 1
 * Cost: Supplies 0, Power 300
 * Warlord upgrade: Hammer Stun
 * Info: Warlord's Hammer stuns and deals AoE
 * Tier: 2
 * Cost: Supplies 0, Power 460
 * Warlord upgrade: Siphon
 * Info: Warlord gains health with each attack
 * Tier: 3
 * Cost: Supplies 0, Power 600

Halo Infinite
In Halo Infinite Jiralhanae Warlords are silver-armored Captains or Chieftains. Warlord Captains are armed with Heatwaves, while Warlord Chieftains are armed with Grenflekt Workshop Scrap Cannons or gravity hammers. Like other Jiralhanae, Warlords carry spike grenades.

Unlike their normal counterparts, Warlord Chieftains are equipped with personal energy shields. Their shields, in addition to their armor and substantial health, make them some of the strongest non-boss enemies in the game.

Production notes
In Halo Wars 2 Open Beta and Blitz Beta, Jiralhanae Warlords wear the same armor as Atriox's Chosen.

List of appearances

 * Halo Wars 2
 * Halo: Divine Wind
 * Halo Infinite