Marcus Stacker

"You heard the man, boys! It's time for some hazard pay!"

- Gunnery Sergeant Stacker during the Battle of Mombasa.

Master Sergeant Marcus P. Stacker (service number 41009-31545-MS) is a veteran UNSC Marine and Orbital Drop Shock Trooper who fought during the Human-Covenant War and the subsequent conflicts.

Fall of Reach
"Kilo 26, this is Kilo 40; Covenant corvette's raining hell on us. Final protective fire one, danger close, my command, over."

- Sergeant Stacker

Stacker served during the Fall of Reach in 2552, under the call sign "Kilo 40". He participated during the Siege of New Alexandria, communicating with Kilo 26 and Kilo Dispatch, and along with several other units, assisted in the evacuation of civilians from Traxus Tower. Stacker was in charge of managing the elevators and ordered Kilo 26 to fire on a Covenant corvette overhead. Stacker's part in the later portion of the battle is unknown, but he evidently survived and successfully evacuated prior to the planet's fall, as he was present at Earth's Cairo Station two months later on October 20th.

Battle of Installation 04


Note: While a Marine Sergeant with Stacker's voice and likeness appears in Halo: Combat Evolved, the following appearances are non-canonical, merely representing other characters such as Waller.

"Hey, I didn't know you made house calls, Foehammer""

- Stacker to Carol Rawley as she air-dropped a Warthog for John-117

Stacker was one of the many Marines who crash-landed on Installation 04 following the boarding of the Pillar of Autumn and Captain Keyes' subsequent order for all personnel to evacuate the ship. His lifeboat made a hard landing in a valley near a beam emitter on the ring world. Most of his men survived the crash, but they were soon found by Covenant forces. Stacker and his team took shelter in the hills near the beam emitter and fought the Covenant from there, several of the Marines becoming wounded. Fortunately, Stacker and his men were rescued by John-117 and evacuated by Echo 419.

Stacker was one of the Marines in charge during the airborne assault on the Cartographer. His squad was successful in securing a beachhead on the island for most of the operation, as MCPO John-117 proceeded to locate the map room. Whilst the Chief was underground, the squad was caught in the open when a surprise Covenant assault team bore down on them. Stacker urged the Chief to find the Cartographer while his squad fended off the attack, since the Marines were unable to reach the main facility for cover. Stacker and his remaining men were unable to fend off the attack and were presumably killed.

Stacker was in command of a five-man fireteam, which was shot down in a snowy valley while on patrol. They soon came under attack from a Mgalekgolo pair, and lacking sufficient weaponry to bring the aliens down, were forced to retreat. Immediately afterwards, they were found by John-117, who had also found Fire Team Zulu during his push though the area to find the Installation's control room. Both Marine fire teams helped the SPARTAN to clear the area, allowing them to be extracted while the Chief continued towards the control room.

Battle of Earth
"Cook the bastard..."

- Stacker instructs Butkis to drain the shields of a Sangheili who held Lance Corporal Jones hostage with an energy sword.

A clean-shaven Stacker was present at the October 20th awards ceremony on Cairo Station, minutes prior to the Battle of Earth beginning. Outfitted in his official Naval uniform, he aided SPARTAN John-117 and Sergeant Major Avery Johnson in defending the station's command center from Covenant forces. He then accompanied Johnson and Commander Miranda Keyes to board the frigate, but they were ambushed by Covenant and pinned down. John-117's timely arrival and aid allowed the In Amber Clad's leadership to board safely.

During the Battle of Earth, Gunnery Sergeant Stacker served in the 7th Battalion of the 105th Shock Division. He was dispatched from the In Amber Clad leading a ODSTs in a Pelican under the command of Sergeant Major Johnson. Upon entering a section of the city under heavy assault by the Covenant, his was shot down by a Scarab over Old Mombasa and crashed landed on an open beach near Hotel Zanzibar, killing the pilots and one of Stacker's squad. The surviving four ODSTs were immediately engaged by a Covenant patrol led by a Special Operations Sangheili. During the brief assault, the Sangheili held one of his troopers hostage momentarily before Stacker shot the Sangheili in the head.

Stacker and his squad then holed up in the nearby Hotel Zanzibar to wait for John-117 to come and relieve them. They were soon attacked by another group of Covenant infantry, and were pinned down in the hotel's lobby by a plasma cannon by the time John-117 arrived. He then assisted the Chief and his AI compatriot Cortana in clearing the nearby beaches and tunnels from Covenant.

Later in the battle, Stacker once again crossed paths with John-117 in New Mombasa. Stacker was Driving a Gauss Warthog through a Covenant-filled park, without his squad or any other UNSC forces, when he encountered the Chief and a squad of marines emerging from the nearby tunnels. He suggested the SPARTAN-II commandeer the Gauss cannon, and assisted the SPARTAN-II in liberating the nearby Marine command post, which was under the bombardment of several Wraiths, reinforced by waves of Ghosts. Clearing out the attacking Covenant, they reached the command post, where Stacker relieved the highest-ranking survivor Staff Sergeant Banks of his authority, while Banks assisted the SPARTAN-II in destroying the Scarab walker. Sergeant Stacker's efforts allowed UNSC forces in the area to be supplemented, re-supplied, and eventually evacuated, though it appears he was unable to save his squad of ODSTs, who did not accompany him in the subsequent fighting on Delta Halo.

Stacker was evacuated to In Amber Clad along with John-117, Johnson and the rest of the 105th. Minutes later, the Ship pursued the Prophet of Regret's Carrier through a slipspace portal that inflicted heavy damage upon the city.

Battle of Installation 05
Stacker was one of the Orbital Drop Shock Troopers leading the attack on Installation 05. Stacker, John-117, and several other ODSTs managed to secure several Forerunner ruins, allowing for vehicular support to be brought in. Stacker and his men supported the SPARTAN-II as he pushed through heavy Covenant defences on the way to his target: the Prophet of Regret. Eventually they were able to push through to the Prophets temple, where they were pulled back to support Commander Keyes and Sergeant Major Johnson in an attempt to get the ring's Activation Index, while the Chief proceeded to kill the Prophet.

Unfortunately, the human force suffered almost total casualties attempting to retrieve the index, with large numbers being killed and infected by the Flood. Others were killed by arriving Jiralhanae forces. Stacker, along with Johnson, Banks, and Miranda Keyes, were ambushed by the Arbiter minutes before retrieving the index, and subsequently captured by Jiralhanae forces and sent to High Charity.

Eventually, Stacker, along with Johnson and Banks were brought to a series of structures held by the Jiralhanae. The three were moments away from being executed when the Jiralhanae were attacked by Sangheili forces lead by the Arbiter. In the confusion, the three sergeants managed to board the nearby Scarab walker, and aid the Arbiter in stopping Tartarus from activating the installation. Johnson, Miranda, Stacker and Banks were presumably evacuated by the Arbiter and his allies after the neutralization of Installation 05. They eventually returned to Earth.

Back to Earth


"Marines in Voi really needed my supplies, Chief. But I'm pretty sure they'll be plenty happy to see you."

- To John-117, after the SPARTAN rescued the survivors of Stacker's destroyed supply convoy.

Stacker returned to standard Marine Corps and remained under the command of Sergeant Major Avery Johnson, serving as his second-in-command as they were stationed back on Earth. Late in the Battle of Earth in Kenya, Johnson, along with Stacker, led a Marine force that recovered John-117 after his atmospheric landing. Stacker took command of First Squad, which acted as scouts for Johnson. Stacker and First Squad followed John-117 and Thel 'Vadam through the jungle and saved Bravo team's only survivor, Gunnery Sergeant Reynolds. After rescuing a captured Sergeant Johnson and the remains of Second Squad, Stacker was evacuated to Crow's Nest.

Stacker led a squad of marines defending the Operations Center during the Covenant's assault on Crow's Nest. At some point during the battle, Stacker was sent to lead a supply convoy escaping the base en route to nearby Voi. Halfway to their destination, the convoy ran into a Covenant blockade, with Choppers, Shade turrets and large numbers of infantry decimating the convoy and pinning the survivors down in several small structures. Having received Stacker's distress call, John-117 and other marine forces fleeing the fallen Crow's Nest arrived, assisting the survivors in eliminating the Covenant force. Stacker accompanied John-117 to Voi, breaking through several more Covenant roadblocks along the way.

Stacker and Gunnery Sergeant Reynolds managed to rally several squads of Marines, and supported John-117 in the assault on Traxus Factory Complex 09 in South Voi. There, they eliminated a heavy Covenant presence, including a Scarab. After fighting through the interior of the factory and rescuing many civilians, the large UNSC force was able to neutralize their target - an anti-air battery, paving the way for what remained of Lord Hood's Home Fleet to engage the Prophet of Truth above the Portal.

Moments later, when a Flood-infested CCS-class battlecruiser crashed in the area, Stacker and his men were pinned down in a warehouse while masses of Flood combat forms and infection forms assaulted them. No stranger to fighting the flood, Stacker valiantly used a shotgun against the parasitic creatures until the Master Chief and the Arbiter returned to help them. He was then evacuated to the Forward Unto Dawn along with his surviving Marines.

Battle of Installation 00
"Bravo, flank and cover! I want everybody supportin' the Chief; he'll take it down!"

- Stacker, leading an armored UNSC force against a Scarab on The Ark

During the Battle of Installation 00, Sergeant Major Johnson organized a makeshift UNSC armored unit from the for an assault on the Ark's Cartographer. Stacker commanded the platoon of Scorpions against a battalion-sized Covenant armored force outside of the complex and managed to eliminate a Scarab with John-117's help.

Later in the battle, he led an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper squad accompanying John-117 in the three-pronged assault on the Citadel's shield generators. With the aid of Stacker and his ODSTs, the SPARTAN was able to power down both his generator, and the one Johnson had failed to liberate.

After the plan to destroy the Citadel from orbit failed, John-117 lead the combined force of ODSTs, Marines and Sangheili in a desperate assault on the Citadel. They fought through heavy Covenant fortifications and destroyed 2 Scarab Platforms, clearing the way for John-117, the Arbiter and 343 Guilty Spark to enter the citadel and stop the Prophet of Truth from firing the rings.

Stacker escaped back to Earth aboard the Shadow of Intent along with Gunnery Sergeant Reynolds and the rest of the Forward Unto Dawn's surviving crew. He was last seen attending the memorial for the UNSC fallen and was in charge of a three-volley salute, in tribute to his fallen comrades.

Conflict on Requiem
"I'm reading Sierra One One Seven on-sensor. Everyone form up on the Chief!"

- Stacker during the assault on Requiem's gravity well.

After the war against the Covenant, Stacker was promoted to Master Sergeant and assigned to the. When the ship was caught by the gravity well of the shield world Requiem in July 2557, Stacker survived the ship's impact. Later, during a mission on the surface of Requiem, he commanded a platoon of armored vehicles during the assault on several particle cannons and the gravity well generator. The Master Chief soon arrived and helped the Marines complete their objective.

Personality and traits
Identified by his strong southern American accent, Stacker is a tough, strong, energetic Marine, and although he can be quite reckless in certain situations, he is a competent leader who has seen his fair share of war. Having survived many battles including all discovered Halo installations, Stacker has fought alongside John-117 on many occasions, often providing assistance in vital situations. Whether it be offering the SPARTAN-II a vehicle, weapon, or compliment, Stacker harbors great respect for the SPARTAN. Having survived the Battle of Installation 00, and the end of the Human-Covenant War, he is one of the few surviving members of the UNSC that can say they fought beside the Master Chief.

Canon status
Despite Stacker's frequent appearances in the original trilogy, he is not addressed as such in gameplay prior to Halo 4: Halo 2 ' s credits erroneously list him as "Sergeant Stacker", while Halo: Reach ' s armory correctly identifies him as "GYSGT Stacker". VA Pete Stacker is not credited for the role in Halo: Combat Evolved, though he is listed as a generic sergeant in Halo 3 ' s credits. His first name and middle initial were finally revealed in the Halo 4 level Reclaimer. It is likely that the canonical incarnation of his character is the one present in Halo Reach and Halo 2 onwards, and his Halo: CE appearances have been officially replaced by other Marines in a fictional sense, such as Waller in the case of the mission The Silent Catrographer.

Similar to Sergeant Johnson in Halo: Combat Evolved, Stacker can be killed during any of his in-game appearances, though he will reappear in subsequent missions regardless. Stacker appears outfitted in both standard Marine attire and ODST Armor throughout Halo 2 and Halo 3. Strangely, he is depicted as a regular Marine during the Halo 2 level Outskirts, yet he and his fireteam wear ODST armor in the cutscene Another Day at the Beach. This could be a symptom of to Bungie's early hesitance to include Orbital Drop Shock Troopers in Halo 2 despite pressure from the Microsoft Franchise Development Group. He and his squad's appearance as Orbital Drop Shock Troopers in the remastered version of the cutscene likely confirms the cutscene as the canonical version of events.

Trivia

 * He is named after the person who voices him, and who also voiced Jacob Keyes in Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo: Reach. Stacker has also voiced a number of other characters, including an NMPD officer in Halo 3: ODST and one of the Sabre pilots in the level Long Night of Solace in Halo: Reach.
 * In Halo: Combat Evolved, Stacker's in-game texture bitmap, "Marcus", is modeled after the game's Art Director Marcus Lehto. He retains a similar appearance throughout the first three games. His first name, revealed in Halo 4, appears to be a reference to Lehto, whereas his second initial, "P." is most likely referring to his voice actor, Pete Stacker.
 * In Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 3, he has a scar under one of his eyes; he does not have it in Halo: Reach. It is possible that he received it during the Fall of Reach.
 * On the level Cairo Station, Stacker is seen wearing his service uniform with a major emblem instead of a Gunnery Sergeant emblem, like any other Marine (e.g. Avery J. Johnson and Banks) wearing his/her service uniform.
 * Occasionally in Halo 2, mainly on the level Regret, a glitch occurs in which Stacker will appear, but will have Banks' voice and vice versa. A similar glitch occurs on Halo 3 on the level Tsavo Highway with Sergeant Reynolds.
 * Stacker's voice is usable in Halo: Reach 's Firefight mode. Stacker has the least expensive Firefight voice, costing only 5,000 credits.
 * In the campaign level New Alexandria, if played on co-op, an army trooper with Stacker's voice will appear as the gunner on the second Falcon.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Combat Evolved
 * Halo 2
 * Halo 3
 * Halo: Reach
 * Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary
 * Halo 4
 * Halo 2: Anniversary