Halo: The Fall of Reach

Halo: The Fall of Reach is a 2001 science fiction novel by Eric Nylund based on the Halo series of video games and acts as a prequel to Halo: Combat Evolved, the first game in the series. It is set in the fictional Halo universe, taking place in the 26th century across several planets and locations. The novel details the events which led up to the game and explains the origins of the SPARTAN II super soldiers, narrating the story of the series protagonist, the Master Chief. The book was well received by critics who thought it added depth to the plot of the game.

The novel was reportedly finished in seven weeks, eventually becoming a Publisher's Weekly bestseller with nearly two hundred thousand copies sold in America and the United Kingdom.

Background and writing
Eric Nylund had discussed the possibility of a Halo related novel with Eric Trautmann, a member of Microsoft's Franchise Development Group, before Halo:Combat Evolved was developed but it was postponed due to legal technicalities. Nylund thought positively of the delay as it "gave [him] a chance to see the game in almost every stage of development before [he] started writing." He wrote the book based on an outline approved by Bungie and the "Halo Story Bible", a book containing all information on the characters and universe in which Halo takes place, so that his story would not conflict with other Halo publications. Nylund found it easier to write with the "Bible" available as the details of the universe he was writing in were already established, only minor alterations were made to fit the novel into the universe. A seven week deadline was established for Nylund to write the book and throughout the writing he worked between two and four hours each morning.

Summary
The book describes how the Spartans were created and suited up with advanced MJOLNIR armor. Later on in the book the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) receives a transmission sent by a new threat, the Covenant, a race of alien invaders who have been watching and studying our civilization for who knows how long. Armed with state-of-the-art weaponry Master Chief and his Spartans seek to destroy the Covenant and to keep Reach under the control of the Human race. The book details the following engagements: the Battle of Harvest, the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV, the Battle of Chi Ceti, the Battle of Reach and Operation: TREBUCHET.

DATE: August 17, 2517 - August 30, 2552

Setting
The Fall of Reach takes place in the Halo universe and spans several decades, beginning in 2517 describing events up to 2552. In the Halo universe faster than light travel is possible through slipspace another dimension where special relativity does not apply. This has allowed humans to colonize hundreds of other planets which are controlled by the United Nations Space Command (UNSC). Feeling repressed by the UNSC's heavy-handed rule, some colonies revolt; fearing rebellion will tear the UNSC apart, military leaders approve the SPARTAN Project, a secret squad of super soldiers to quietly suppress rebellion.

Characters
The protagonist of The Fall of Reach is Master Chief, detailing his conscription and training while other characters who will later play a large role are introduced. Dr. Catherine Halsey, the creator of the SPARTAN Project is introduced alongside Jacob Keyes when he is a Lieutenant although by the end of the book he has been promoted to Captain. Franklin Mendez is the trainer of the Spartans teaching them their physical combat skills while an AI named Déjà teaches them military history and strategy. Cortana, Master Chief's AI companion through much of the series, is also present as Dr. Hasley's aide in the lead up to the Spartans' mission.

Plot
The prologue begins on the planet Jericho VII on February 12, 2535 and it reveals the Spartans as a whole as well as their purpose. As the seemingly unstoppable Covenant war-machine moves into place to glass Jericho VII, a young team of Spartan super soldiers are sent to prevent the destruction of the planet.

The story itself begins with Dr. Catherine Halsey and Lieutenant Jacob Keyes on board the Han, a UNSC diplomatic shuttle. Their mission is to identify a potential candidate for Halsey's Spartan-II program. The plot then goes on to show in detail the brutal indoctrination and training regime that John and the other Spartans are put through.

On February 3, 2525 first contact is made with an alliance of alien races that refers to itself as The Covenant. On that day, a single Covenant Warship exterminated the surface population of the Outer Colony Harvest. Three UNSC battleships are sent to investigate this incident, initiated first engagement protocols and attempted contact, engaged the Covenant ship in battle, and are subsequently routed. Only one, the Heracles, manages to return to Reach badly damaged. By December of the same year, the UNSC has mobilized a massive Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Preston Cole, with orders to reclaim the Harvest Colony and stop the Covenant advance.

Cole's Fleet manages a victory at Harvest, but at a high cost - two thirds of his ships are destroyed. Despite significant tactical brilliance on the part of Human commanders, Covenant technology guarantees a four to one kill/loss ratio in most battles. One by one, the Outer Colonies fall below the onslaught and by 2535, all have been destroyed.

To protect the location of Earth, the UNSC establish the Cole Protocol. When human forces are forced into retreat, they must not execute a Slipspace jump in the direction of Earth, even if this forces them to jump without the necessary navigational calculations (a "blind jump"). If such a jump is not possible, and if capture is imminent, the captain must order a self-destruct. The on board ship AI construct, normally imperative to navigation and tactical decisions, must either be destroyed or removed.

By 2552, many of Humanity's Inner Colonies have been destroyed by the Covenant. In a move of desperation, the Office of Naval Intelligence Section-3 SPARTAN division orders a secret plan to capture a Covenant ship using their SPARTAN forces and find their homeworld and capture a Prophet, one of their religious leaders. A group of SPARTANs, led by the Master Chief, are chosen for this mission, and board a specially outfitted ship known as the Pillar of Autumn (under the command of Captain Jacob Keyes). This plan, however, is interrupted by the necessity of destroying the Navigational Database of a ship still docked at a station orbiting Reach just before its fall. During this battle, Reach is overrun and glassed, and the human Hleet is obliterated. Worse still, the Master Chief thinks that all of the SPARTANs but himself are killed on the surface of the planet. Cortana plots an exit vector in compliance with the Cole Protocol, though not completely at random. She had decrypted Forerunner glyphs found by the Master Chief on Sigma Octanus IV. The NAV coordinates led the Pillar of Autumn to what the Covenant had been searching for: Halo.

For more information on the battle click here Battle of Reach.

Reception
Critical reaction to the book was positive, particularly regarding the depth the book added to the Halo universe. The Fall of Reach also sold well becoming a Publisher's Weekly Bestseller. Reviewer Eric Qualls commented that "[it was] interesting to read and give[s] you a much greater understanding and appreciation of the overall Halo universe." Qualls also made a positive comparison to Robert A. Heinlein's Starship Troopers regarding the manner of story telling. Brad Gallaway also praised the back-story the book adds and the quality of the story. Fellow reviewer Gene Park noted the descriptions in the book went beyond what was presented in the game calling them "vibrant and rousing." He also complimented the characters presented in the novel saying they all "fit nicely into the Halo universe" but some times there were too many characters to remember. Sal Accardo of 3D Action Planet said of the book; "[it] isn’t going to win any Pulitzers anytime soon. It’s well written, and a solid page-turner, but it’s still basically an action movie presented in book form" but praised the gritty presentation of the Spartans.

Trivia

 * There are several inaccuracies in the book, among which are the Banshees being described as needing to wait for their plasma cannons to recharge.


 * An excerpt of this book, along with Halo: The Flood and Halo: First Strike, was included in a directory on Halo PC. It was able to be found on the disc under the "Goodies" section.


 * If you count the number of dead Spartans (30), with critically damaged Spartans (12), ejected out of the program, and divide it by 6, you'll get Bungie's favorite number: 7. (42÷6=7)


 * Interestingly, the first section of this book is titled "Reveille" and involves characters emerging from cryo-sleep. The first section from Halo: Combat Evolved is also appropriately titled "Reveille" and also involves someone waking from cryo-sleep. Reveille is a traditional bugle call of the U.S. military, sounded at the start of each day on military installations to wake up the troops.


 * The power of the shields on the Covenant ships is a-bit inconsistent in this book. In one instance, a ship hit with nuclear warhead is still functional, actually appearing to shrug the explosion off. However, during a battle where Keyes using a pair against two Covenant ships (which were larger then the one from the previous instance), the EMP from the warheads knocks out the shields on the ships, although nuclear explosions also generate an EMP effect.


 * In the end of the book, there is the Halo: Combat Evolved logo with a rating box, saying that it is rated T(Teen) while it is actually rated M(Mature).


 * In Halo 3, Cortana states several quotes from this book, all of which are Dr. Halsey's. Such as: "Can I speak with you please? What's your name? It's very nice to meet you. You like games? So do I.", "You have been called upon to serve, you will be trained...and you will become the best we can make you. You will be the Protectors of Earth and all her Colonies.", and "Could you sacrifice yourself to complete your mission? Could you watch him die?" (In the game, "yourself" and "him" are changed to "me", referring to Cortana)


 * Although this is the first book in the Halo series, there is no mention of the SPARTAN-I Project (ORION).


 * The Banshees on the cover appear to have a green sheen on them, much like the Halo 3 Banshee.