Stoics

The Stoics were a faction of San'Shyuum first established during the San'Shyuum Schism. They followed ancient San'Shyuum tradition.

History
The Stoics worshipped the Forerunners and their technology, but they strongly believed that tampering with or directly studying Forerunner artifacts was blasphemous and heretical. Because of these beliefs, they refused to enter the Forerunner Dreadnought that they had discovered upon their homeworld, viewing such actions as desecrating the legacy of the gods. However, another faction known as the Reformists wanted to enter the Dreadnought for possible technological gains and religious enlightenment, a difference in opinion which eventually led to a civil war. At some point in the war, the Reformists formed a stronghold in the fortress of Granduin in the Zelfiss region. However, it was undermined by the Stoics and the fortress fell into a nearby sea known as the Great Apothtea.

Eventually, the Stoics lost the war when the Reformists commandeered the Dreadnought and used it to escape their homeworld. Not wishing to destroy the vessel they considered so sacred, the Stoics allowed the Reformists to escape. After the Reformists took flight in 2100 BCE, the Stoics sent out communication messages threatening that they would be damned for their transgressions to the gods. The Stoics eventually retreated to relatively small areas of Janjur Qom —- likely due to the many large, predatory animals native to the planet —- and much of the planet resultingly became overrun by wilderness. The Reformists continued to monitor their homeworld after the civil war, occasionally sending Eye surveillance drones to the planet to keep them informed on Stoic technology. On one occasion, an Eye was discovered and pursued by a Stoic aircraft.

Shortly after the Writ of Union between the Reformists and the Sangheili was signed and the Covenant was established, the Prophet of Inner Conviction led a team to Janjur Qom to retrieve a group of willing, fertile females to restock the breeding population on High Charity and to steal a Luminary in the grotto of the Great Transition. When the group landed on the planet's surface, they made their way to the grotto and eventually discovered the Luminary and the Purifying Vision of the Holy Path. However, Stoic warriors discovered their location and waited for them outside of the grotto. Vervum L'kosur and Loquen 'Nvong betrayed the Prophet of Inner Conviction and the rest of the team, and tried to execute them in order to steal the relics. In the resulting skirmish, Vervum was killed and Loquen was captured while the rest of the team remained hidden from the Stoics in a concealed room.

After the Stoics left, the team headed to the village of Crellum to retrieve the females. Once they had done so, they attempted to return to their nearby dropship, but they were intercepted by Stoic warriors and their folasteed mounts. A firefight ensured, which ultimately left all the Stoic forces dead; Burenn's tamed ilpdor named Erb killed most of them. The team eventually returned to their corvette, Vengeful Vitality‎, orbiting the planet. The Stoics attempted to shoot them down with missiles, but only one missile hit and Vengeful Vitality‎ was able to escape.

Most, if not all, of the Stoics allegedly perished when their star collapsed in on itself in 648 BCE. However, the only source for news about Janjur Qom's destruction was the San'Shyuum of the Covenant. Although most individuals did not believe that the world was truly destroyed, little was done to dispute it, as only the most powerful San'Shyuum knew where Janjur Qom was located.

Culture and technology
"The plants have been redesigned to work for the Stoics!"

- Sangheili Ranger Vil 'Kthamee

The Stoics were formed by San'Shyuum that opposed the study or manipulation of Forerunner artifacts on Janjur Qom. They believed that the Forerunners were gods and the relics were gifts from them meant to be worshipped. The grotto of the Great Transition was associated with visual images of a legendary goddess that was associated with rebirth. The language of the Stoics was similar to the San'Shyuum language used by the Reformists. It was very old-fashioned compared to the Reformist language, but it posed no language barrier between the two factions. The significantly lower gravity of High Charity and lack of genetic diversity led to the Reformists evolving to be weaker and less muscular than the Stoics, giving the Stoics a physical advantage.

The Stoics had largely resisted technological progress, likely because they believed that development of new technologies may bring upon the wrath of their gods. The Stoics possessed attack vehicles that were capable of flight, which used air compression and gas-ignited fuel to operate Stoic vehicles and to fire their weaponry. The Stoics were also noted to have simple satellites and other structures compatible with a Tier 5 society. They had some form of reflector scanning technology that could detect vehicles entering Janjur Qom's atmosphere, as well as long-range missiles capable of hitting a ship in orbit. However, they were specifically skilled in biotechnology and genetics, as they were unwilling to use hardware technology like the Reformists.

The Stoics domesticated the garfren for milk, cheese, and meat. Resources from smaller villages on the planet were often taken by the Stoics that lived in the capital city. Young male San'Shyuum were often conscripted into the Stoic military. Stoic warriors used folasteed mounts in battle. These mounts were essentially the forest itself creating riding mounts from itself for the soldiers, as if the riders were sliding along the forest's vegetation. Additionally, the vines of the forests had been genetically modified to manipulate objects or even tear apart a living being. The plants were controlled by the riders, but had the ability to feel threatened and could attack if they deemed it necessary.

Anatomy and physiology
The Stoic San'Shyuum were far more muscular and athletic than the Reformist San'Shyuum due to being used to the higher gravity of Janjur Qom. The larger gene pool the Stoics had present on their homeworld also benefited them opposed to the limited gene pool the Reformists had when they left in the comparatively smaller Forerunner Dreadnought.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Contact Harvest
 * Halo: Broken Circle
 * Halo Mythos
 * Halo: Shadows of Reach
 * Sacrifice