Ripa 'Moramee

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"The Hierarchs grow impatient! We can delay no longer!"

- Ripa 'Moramee

Ripa 'Moramee was a Sangheili Commander of the Covenant Army during the Third Battle of Harvest and other Outer Colony campaigns in 2531.

Biography
Ripa 'Moramee's first known military action was the suppression of the Sixteenth Unggoy Disobedience and ending the heretical reign of a Kig-Yar Pirate Prince. Later he attempted a coup within his clan on Decided Heart; the coup failed and he was imprisoned in the Weeping Shadows of Sorrow penitentiary for his insubordination. After spending what was deemed a suitable punishment for his deeds, the Hierarchs, specifically the Prophet of Regret, appointed him as the Arbiter, and tasked him with conducting the war of extermination against humanity and uncovering Forerunner artifacts. It was a decision that led to concerned mumblings amongst the Prophets' Honor Guards who had no prior knowledge of this plan. He was not selected just for his combat record alone: the Covenant leaders believed the new Arbiter would not ask politically inconvenient questions, an important factor given the secret status of humanity as Forerunner-designated Reclaimers. The creation of a new Arbiter caused a split in the Covenant: an ever-growing faction of Elites, who were opposed to the new Prophets, seized control of several Forerunner relics, including one that supposedly contained a "key" of some sort. The Arbiter was sent by the Hierarchs to end this rebellion, resulting in a vicious battle that raged for days that ended with the destruction of the heretics. The key, however, was never found.

Harvest
"I care not for your little life! Open the relic!"

- Ripa 'Moramee overruling Field Master Re'gish Wamik's objections to entering the Forerunner artifact on Harvest 'Moramee was present at the Third Battle of Harvest in 2531. The UNSC was aware of his presence but was unable to gather more than cursory intelligence on him. Ripa 'Moramee oversaw the excavation of a Forerunner installation in the planet's northern polar region. The installation's entrance was uncovered by Field Master Re'gish Wamik, and the area was quickly invested by Covenant forces.

Despite concerns by Re'gish Wamik that the humans would "defile" the installation, 'Moramee pressed on due to the impatience and pressure of the Hierarchs. With the UNSC closing in, the Prophet of Regret ordered him to destroy the installation and return to the Covenant with the information he had gathered. Ripa 'Moramee was reluctant to destroy the Forerunner construction but complied nonetheless upon the continued insistence of the Prophet of Regret. The attempt to destroy the relic failed when the demolition teams were thwarted by UNSC ground forces deployed from the orbiting UNSC Spirit of Fire.

The Shield World
"The ancients have granted us the power to doom your race. Let the deconstruction of our gifts begin! The majesty of our new fleet will be unparalleled!"

- Ripa 'Moramee to Ellen Anders upon the activation of the dormant Forerunner fleet on the Shield World

Later that year, 'Moramee was involved in a Covenant attempt to activate Forerunner ships from a recently discovered Shield World. After Covenant attempts to interface with the Forerunner technology failed, 'Moramee was sent to capture Ellen Anders after the Battle of Arcadia by the Prophet of Regret, as it was believed she would have information and knowledge of the Forerunners that the Covenant was unaware of. The Arbiter successfully captured her despite Sergeant John Forge's intervention and escaped by Spirit to an awaiting ship. The pursued him through slipspace, deeming Anders capture to be a "significant security breach". 'Moramee reached the Shield World first and brought Anders to the the Apex site and forced her to interface with the Forerunner controls and begin activating the Forerunner fleet. Soon afterwards the Spirit of Fire arrived on station over the artificial planet surface and began to organize a rescue mission.

Death
"My face will be the last thing your pathetic eyes ever see."

- 'Moramee gloating over Sgt. Forge shortly before his demise

Anders managed to escape from 'Moramee via the Apex's teleport system and alerted the UNSC of the Covenant's intentions. Sgt. John Forge and SPARTAN-II Red Team were quickly dispatched to Apex site with orders to destroy the Shield World using the Spirit of Fire's removed FTL Reactor by causing its core to overheat. An engagement ensued in which Red Team held off the Sangheili Honor Guard assault and Forge engaged Ripa 'Moramee, who had used his cloak to ambush and kill the Marine officer in charge of opening the Apex's entrance. Forge prevailed in the struggle despite the physical disparity between himself and 'Moramee, relying off of combat skill rather than strength. Eventually disarmed and feigning defeat, Forge challenged 'Moramee to look him in the eye before killing him. 'Moramee complied and dragged the sergeant up with one arm while unwittingly bringing his neck within the reach of his opponent. Forge drove his combat knife (nicknamed "Lucy") into his adversary's neck and then used the wounded Arbiter's dropped Energy Sword to stab him through the chest. Ripa 'Moramee's corpse was rolled off the platform by a SPARTAN of Red Team shortly before the FTL Reactor overheated and destroyed the Shield World.

Abilities

 * "Defiant Rage": receive additional health for damage inflicted.
 * "Spiteful Rage": ability costs less resources.
 * "Blinding Rage": increases the Arbiter's and the Covenant's attack power.
 * Additionally, the Arbiter can also summon Suicide Grunts (available at the Command Center).

Upgrades

 * "Fiendish Return": allows the Arbiter to reflect attacks back at the enemy.
 * "Vicious Blades": increases damage inflicted by the Arbiter.
 * "Ghastly Vision": increases Fiendish Return reflection and equips the Arbiter with active camouflage.

Leader Ability- Rage Mode
When activated, you go into 3rd person view and move the Arbiter with the Left thumbstick and attack with the Right.

Trivia

 * He appears as a Hero Unit in Halo Wars, with a special ability called "Rage mode," which allows him to kill several nearby enemies with dual Energy Swords while in 3rd person mode.
 * Out of all the Arbiters that have served the Covenant, only four have been mentioned; this Arbiter is second to be seen on-screen, the first being Thel 'Vadamee.
 * As an apparent Easter Egg, hint text in the Halo Wars demo claims, "Few people know that the Arbiter's given birth name is Shirley," referring to the phrase spoken by the Arbiter, "Surely you jest!" in the first level. This Easter Egg refers to a running gag in the Naked Gun series or from the movie Airplane and from the game Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare; "Surely you're kidding!?" "I am not, and don't call me Shirley!" and "Surely, you can't be serious!?" "I'm serious, and don't call me Shirley!".
 * At the beginning of the level Alpha Base, he is seen lashing out at Re'gish Wamik, telling him "I care not for your little life!." Later at the Apex he is shown striking a Zealot (presumably knocking him unconscious) who was informing him that Spirit of Fire had followed them. These are examples of his violent and arrogant behavior that led to his imprisonment and subsequently assuming the role of the Arbiter task to eradicate Humankind on Harvest.
 * His Energy swords appear to have basket hand guards similar to that of Human fencing swords.
 * He is voiced by David Sobolov.
 * He is the only seen Elite that is seen dual wielding Energy Swords in game (not counting cutscenes).
 * In the Commander profiles that come with the limited edition of halo wars, the Arbiter's height is listed as 8'1", but the average elite height is 8'6" and 'Moramee appears taller than others of his species. Sergeant Forge even described him as "Massive". This is most likely a typo, a discrepancy, or a simple mistake on the card.