Vema 'Togad

"Led by a mighty Arbiter, the Sangheili resisted our entreatment with ruthless force, leading to decades of war."

- A San'Shyuum scribe describes the Arbiter and the events leading up to the War of Beginnings

An Arbiter led the Sangheili in their war against the Reformist San'Shyuum.

War of Beginnings
In 938 BCE, the Reformist San'Shyuum landed on the Sangheili frontier world of Ulgethon and sent a delegation to meet with the Arbiter. Due to the Reformists' view that Forerunner technology should be used and studied, a notion that was considered blasphemous by the Sangheili, the Arbiter used his sword to behead the members of the delegation. When the San'Shyuum discovered this, a war between the two species broke out. The war would eventually lead to the signing of the Writ of Union by the Arbiter's fellow leader, Pelahsar the Strident, and the creation of the Covenant.

Age of the Covenant
In 2552, millennia after the war, a San'Shyuum scribe mentioned the Arbiter and his role in instigating the War of Beginnings as part of The Punished Deeds, a Covenant document detailing the history of the empire and its member species.

List of appearances

 * Halo 2: Anniversary
 * Terminals