MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark V: Difference between revisions

{{quote|This - is everything I had always dreamed it could be.|[[Catherine Elizabeth Halsey|Dr. Catherine Halsey]]}}

The '''MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark V''' was the fifth version of the [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor]] series. The initial version of the Mark V [[powered exoskeleton]] was issued to the [[SPARTAN-II Program|SPARTAN-IIs]] and several [[SPARTAN-III Program|SPARTAN-III commandos]], including the members of [[Noble Team]], on [[2551|November 24th, 2551]],<ref>[http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=BWU_012910 '''Bungie.net''': ''Bungie Weekly Update, 1/29/10'']</ref> while the final version of the armor was unveiled for [[Operation: RED FLAG]] in [[2552#August|August 2552]].<ref name="vis">'''Halo: The Essential Visual Guide''', ''page 119''</ref><ref name="enc">'''Halo Encyclopedia (2011)''', ''page 97''</ref><ref group="note">''Halo: The Fall of Reach'' and ''Halo Waypoint''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s ''MJOLNIR Project 2'' video state that the Mark V was issued on August 29, 2552. However, a number of later sources, including the aforementioned Weekly Update, Dr. Halsey's personal journal, the 2011 edition of the ''Halo Encyclopedia'', and ''Halo: The Essential Visual Guide'' retcon this, clearly stating that the Mark V was issued on November 24, 2551; the test performed by John-117 was intended to gauge the pairing of the Mark V suit with a piggy-backed AI, not to observe the suit's performance ''per se''. The two latter sources reveal that the suit issued in November 2551 was a prototype of the one issued in August 2552, explaining its noticeably different appearance in ''Halo: Reach''.</ref> The Mark V armor was in service until [[2552#October|October 2552]], when it was replaced by the [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark VI|MJOLNIR Mark VI]].<ref>'''[[Halo 2]]''', campaign level ''[[The Armory]]''</ref>

==Introduction==

In [[2542]], seventeen years after the [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark IV|MJOLNIR Mark IV]] entered service, production began on the next generation of MJOLNIR Armor, in order to improve SPARTAN-II/MJOLNIR effectiveness against the [[Covenant Empire|Covenant]] in combat. A team under the leadership of Chief Technical Officer [[Catherine Elizabeth Halsey|Dr. Catherine Halsey]] would spend the next ten years developing the suit. Using data collected from the Mark IV, hundreds of minor technical improvements were made to the Mark V, the suit's armor plating underwent a total redesign and better materials were developed for its use. Separating the Mark V from the previous version of the system are two major breakthroughs in the ways in which the suit improves its wearer's combat effectiveness.

The first major difference was the addition of a layer of computer memory superconductor that would allow an [[artificial intelligence]] to piggyback into the field with the operator to both provide and gather real-time intelligence.  The synthesis of an artificial intelligence with the human brain is not possible without an upgrade to the user's standard [[neural interface]]. This [[SPARTAN neural interface|specialized]] version of the neural lace was issued to all SPARTAN-IIs before they could interface with the Mark V. Like the standard neural interface, the specialized neural lace translates electrochemical signals to digital code and routes them through an interface connection at the rear of the skull. Through this interface, the user's thoughts command the armor's movement and weapons; and input from the on-board sensors is fed directly to the user's mind. In addition, an AI personality and processing matrix can be carried by the armor and delivered to the suit via the specialized neural lace and on-board storage in a crystal data chip no larger than a personal credit card. Without the armor, a SPARTAN's reaction time is charted at twenty milliseconds; with the Mark V, and a AI installed, the time translating thought into motion is rendered almost instantaneous.

The second major breakthrough was the addition of a self-recharging energy shield system, reverse-engineered from captured [[Kig-yar point defense gauntlet]]s, which repel objects and energy bursts, plus any other hazardous elemental energies. While impacts on the shield place a substantial drain on the system's power supply, the system's energy regenerates once the user is no longer under fire. However, the adaptation of the shield covering the entire body weakens the magnetic field, making the Mark V's shield system vulnerable to sustained fire.

In its final phase, the Mark V MJOLNIR battle armor weighs a quarter ton, and with its SPARTAN wearer. The SPARTAN/MJOLNIR combination is designed to be the most devastating intelligence tool ever created, as the AI can greatly increase the wearer's reaction time and vastly improve intelligence gathering capacity.

[[John-117]] was the first SPARTAN to test the MJOLNIR Mark V with a smart AI implemented within the armor during a "live-fire" combat scenario. His test was to ring a bell after going through an obstacle course. This course involved ten [[Orbital Drop Shock Trooper]]s, a minefield with [[Lotus Anti-Tank Mine]]s, three automated 30mm chain guns, a forest of wooden poles, and an unexpected [[Skyhawk]] jumpjet utilizing four 50mm cannons and [[Scorpion missile]]s. This test showed that AI's could vastly improve the armor's reaction times.

A number of different variants of the Mark V were manufactured for use in the field. In addition, the armor system is compatible with components and variants created for the earlier or later MJOLNIR generations.

Various upgrades were also designed along with the standard Mark V, in ONI's [[CASTLE Base|CASTLE facility]] on Reach to aid certain Spartans' abilities in combat. The following is a list of known upgrade components and variants:

*'''[[Hydrostatic gel]] layer''': Underneath the armored bodysuit is a gel-filled layer, this gel layer regulates the temperature of the suit and can reactively change its density to conform to the wearer's shape, the temperature inside the suit is controlled by the moisture absorbing cloth suit underneath the hydrostatic layer. The hydrostatic gel layer can also be pressurized to various levels to potentially save the wearers life should the wearer be subjected to high G forces or a high velocity impact; however, over pressurizing this layer can cause nitrogen embolisms.<ref>'''[[Halo: First Strike]]''', "Chapter 2", ''page 13''</ref><ref>'''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''', "Chapter 1", ''page 36''</ref>

*'''[[Polymerized lithium niobocene|Reactive crystal layer]]''': Sandwiched between the external armor and the internal padding is a layer of piezoelectric material that deforms along a preffered axis when exposed to a electric charge. When creating the suit, the liquid crystal material is poured into a capillary system where electric charges can direct the formation of crystal geometries.<ref>'''[[Dr. Halsey's Personal Journal]]''', ''September 1, 2525''</ref> This layer acts as synthetic muscle, allowing the Spartan access to approximately twice their normal strength.  This is not due to a "Leverage Effect," but rather that a human-sized suit will provide about six hundred kilos of lifting power, in addition to an average Spartan's six hundred kilos of lifting power.  Assuming a Spartan has an average body weight of 200 kilos, and that CPO Mendez's assertion that:  "They can lift three times their body weight- which, I might add, is almost double the norm due to their increased muscle density," is indeed accurate.<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', "Chapter 8", ''page 92''</ref>

*'''Memory-processor superconductor layer''': A layer relatively new to the MJOLNIR line, introduced with the Mark V, that is capable of housing an A.I.  Comprised of the same material as a starship's A.I. system, this layer allows an A.I. to travel with a soldier into the field.  The A.I. can then aid the soldier in software inrtusion, hardware hacking, and espionage by listening to enemy chatter.<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', "Chapter 27", ''page 286''</ref>  As a side note, this layer is often confused with the Reactive Metal Liquid Crystal layer, which due to the latter's piezoelectric properties is impossible.

*'''[[Energy shielding#Human Energy Shielding|Energy shields]]''': First used on the Mark V, and later refined on the Mark VI, the energy shield device is reverse engineered from Covenant technology. Beginning in 2532<ref>'''[[Halo Encyclopedia]]''', "Chapter 3", ''page 89''</ref> forty scientists and technicians would spend the next twenty years attempting to make some use of the technology. For decades the attempts at cracking their technology had met with failure after failure; some had given up and others in the scientific community believed the energy shield technology could never be cracked. However at some point before 2552 a breakthrough was made and for the first time the UNSC had successfully cracked and improved upon the technology.<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', "Chapter 27", ''page 249''</ref>

*'''Fusion reactor''': The fusion reactor is the most essential part of the MJOLNIR system, as it provides power to all equipment used by the armor, the reactor is built into the suit and allows for nearly unlimited movement. The fusion reactor in all versions of the MJOLNIR armor are half the size of a normal fusion pack that conventional marines carry around.<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', "Chapter 13", ''page 114''; "Chapter 27", ''page 248''</ref>

*'''[[Force-multiplying circuit]]s''': Located throughout the armor, these systems boost the force applied by the user. They make hand-to-hand combat easier, but also make the armor difficult to adjust to; a slight motion can be translated into a potentially harmful one if not conducted correctly. For this reason it is only possible for SPARTANs to use this armor, as their strengthened bodies are able to withstand the increased power and speed of movement, which, in unaugmented human bodies, results in broken bones or death due to spasms caused by the pain of broken bones.

*'''Lock-down system''': The lock-down system protects muscles and joints from traumatic, high-impact injuries by seizing the suit into a rigid posture through modifying the density of the hydrostatic gel layer.<ref>'''[[Halo 3]]''', campaign level ''[[Arrival]]''</ref><ref>'''Halo Encyclopedia''', ''page 91''</ref><ref>'''Halo: Reach''', campaign level ''[[Tip of the Spear]]''</ref><ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLmtVh_bmhs '''YouTube''': ''Halo Reach Legendary Edition Developer Commentary Part 4'']</ref>

==''Halo: Reach''==

[[File:HaloReach - John117.png|thumb|John-117 [[John-117 in cryo|depicted]] with the Mark V in ''Halo: Reach''.]]

A video on [[Halo Waypoint]], [http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/intel/featured/video/defiant-to-the-end/f2595044-7e26-4928-a24b-8e1a2db3ce45 "Defiant to the End"], depicts the Master Chief and other SPARTAN-II commandos in MJOLNIR Mark V armor. In this video, the only non-default piece of equipment that John-117 wears is the Mark V helmet. Unless his armor was altered before going into cryo, this directly contradicts his appearance in ''Halo: Reach''. A possible explanation could be that the shoulder pieces intended to be included in the characters' armor in the video were not yet unlocked by the video's developers. As a result, rather than using other armor pieces as substitutes for the missing armor pieces, the developers in control of the characters used in the video kept the armor permutations to the minimum in order to prevent speculation that the other unlockable Mark V armor pieces may not actually be canon or subject of question or debate.

 

During the development stages of ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]'', [[343 Industries]] originally had John-117's armor being the same as the one assembled in ''Halo: Reach''<nowiki/>'s armor permutations.<ref name="bts">[http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/intel/featured/video/bts-anniversary-campaign/8a902cd8-dc45-4a35-88ae-39ba04ba8a41 '''Halo Waypoint''': ''BTS: Anniversary Campaign'']</ref> In the final game, John-117's visually updated armor is extremely distinct from the armor set that can be assembled in ''Halo: Reach'', being that of a visually enhanced version of the first game's Mark V character model. However, this appearance is not a disparity ''per se'', as ''[[Halo: The Essential Visual Guide]]'' and the 2011 edition of the ''[[Halo Encyclopedia]]'' state that the base Mark V suits worn by Noble Team, (and thus the Mark V platform featured in ''Halo: Reach''), were a precursor to the one worn by the Spartans assembled for Operation: RED FLAG.<ref name="vis"/><ref name="enc"/> It is also unknown how exactly this updated version is intended to be different from the MJOLNIR Mark V worn by Noble Team. In any case, the armor's appearance in ''Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary'' contradicts his depiction in the [[John-117 in cryo|cryo Easter egg]].

More recently, the ''[[Behind the Scenes: Anniversary Campaign]]'' video showed how the Mark V would appear in the ''[[Halo: Reach]]'' engine. During the development of ''Halo: Anniversary'', the Master Chief's armor was originally meant to simply be a certain combination of Reach-era armor components. Though this plan was scrapped, it does provide some insight as to how the default Mark V worn by the SPARTAN-IIs would have appeared in ''Reach''. Here, the armor appears to be colored sage rather than olive. This appearance seems to be consistent with [[John-117 in cryo|John-117's ''Reach'' cameo]], where his armor's color isn't clear due to the lighting.<ref name="bts"/>

File:2817467-gallery.jpg|The finalized version of the Mark V in ''Anniversary''.