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The Arbiter is the playable deuteragonist of Halo 2 and Halo 3.

Overview
The Arbiter, Thel 'Vadam, is a playable elite in the Halo series, and the first protagonist to be introduced after the Master Chief. A former Zealot, he offers a unique perspective for players to experience the Covenant's motivations and story from their viewpoint. Arbiter's gameplay is near identical to Master Chief having the same base stats and controls.

Campaign
Halo 2 opens with Thel 'Vadam, an elite Supreme Commander, on trial following events of Halo: Combat Evolved. He is being prosecuted for the destruction of Installation 04 at the hands of the Master Chief. Thel is stripped of his rank and branded with a Mark of Shame, after which he is not seen again until his first playable appearance in the mission The Arbiter. Arbiter has access to all of the same mechanics players would expect when controlling the Master Chief. However, rather than having a flashlight integrated into his armor the Arbiter can instead activate a limited duration active camouflage that will recharge after depleting. The Arbiter is playable for 6 of the 14 playable singleplayer missions. Aside from the narrative differences that come from playing as an elite Arbiter is also accompanied by covenant npc allies on many of his missions.

Campaign
After the events of Halo 2 the Arbiter along with other elites have formed an alliance with humanity. He is present from the first mission and accompanies the Master Chief as an non-playable character ally throughout the campaign. Arbiter no longer has levels dedicated to him being the primary playable protagonist, instead every single mission can have a second player assume control of the Arbiter during cooperative play. During these co-op missions the npc version of Arbiter will be fully replaced by the second player, along with all associated dialogue and scripted interactions not occurring. The Arbiter has seen a minor visual redesign compared to his Halo 2 incarnation. His armor is more of a bronze color in comparison to his earlier silver, he now has mandibles guards similar to other elite armor designs, and a flashlight can be seen mounted on his left shoulder. While the npc retains the ability to use the armor's integrated active camo, players are not. The only way the Arbiter differs from Chief in Halo 3 is by spawning with his own covenant weapons. Unlike the npc he never spawns with the energy sword.

List of appearances

 * Halo 2
 * Halo 2: Anniversary
 * Halo 3