Merg Vol's Covenant

This remnant faction was one of the several splinter groups of the former Covenant who continued to worship the Forerunners and oppose the UNSC in the wake of the Human-Covenant War, the Great Schism, and the disappearance of the San 'Shyuum. The group was led by Merg Vol.

Draetheus V
"The fighting started when a splinter sect of Covenant ignored the Ceasefire of 2552 and attacked UNSC forces. By the time the fighting was done... Well, it didn't end well for the UNSC and Covenant, either one."

- Roland

At some point between April 2553 and July 2557, cult leader Merg Vol led a fleet to the UNSC-controlled word of Draetheus V in order to gain control of the planet's moon, X50, in actuality a powerful Forerunner superweapon with the capability to destroy planets. The battle saw significant losses on both sides and the Draetheus V was nearly destroyed by Vol's firing of X50. The main hostilities concluded with Spartan Sarah Palmer killing Vol and sabotaging X50's main weapon, bringing the Covenant's quest to a halt. However, the Covenant returned when a looping Forerunner code began emanating from X50.

Dissolution
After the Battle of Draetheus V this faction was dissolved, and one of its survivor members, Parg Vol, joined the faction led by Jul 'Mdama.

Military structure
As in the Covenant hegemony's prime, the Sangheili served as this group's military leadership caste. The Unggoy likewise continued to serve as cannon fodder. The Kig-Yar, (at least the Jackals), were deployed as snipers and light infantry. Unlike Jul 'Mdama's Covenant faction, this group also employed Jiralhanae and Yanme'e infantry. The group also have employed Hunters, though it is unclear whether this was so.

Notable individuals

 * Merg Vol - The faction's religious and military leader; killed during the Battle of Draetheus V
 * Parg Vol - Commander of the faction's ground forces; later became a freelance assassin and arms dealer before joining Jul 'Mdama's Covenant

Military assets
Merg Vol's Covenant utilized much of the same equipment that the original Covenant used. Most Unggoy and Kig-Yar used the Type-25 plasma pistol, while Sangheili personnel were typically armed with the Type-51 plasma repeater. Higher ranking members of the group used the Type-33 Needler and Type-52 focus rifle. Jiralhanae within the faction regularly used Type-25 Brute Shots and Type-2 gravity hammers. Type-32 Ghosts and Type-26 Wraiths made up the majority of the faction's ground vehicles with Type-52 Anti-Aircraft Wraiths serving as anti-aircraft artillery. The faction also made use of the Type-38 Tyrant and mega turret. Like the original Covenant the Type-26 Banshee remained as the man aircraft of the faction. Both Type-25 Spirits and Type-52 Phantoms were used as troop transports with at least one Phantom gunboat being used as Parg Vol's personal transport. The faction's fleet was composed of at least four s and five s.

Most members of Merg Vol's Covenant (regardless of species) wore armor that saw common use during the Human-Covenant War. However, Vol himself wore a variant of the Zealot combat harness common to Zealots from Hesduros, which is ubiquitous in Jul 'Mdama's Covenant.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Spartan Assault