We have Divine Wind to look forward to, which will pick-up the threads from at least two books/arcs (Shadows of Reach, Retribution) and potentially two other arcs
If taking place on the Ark - Halo Wars 2And
If the front cover has a Prelate, potentially Shadow of IntentSo, what, do you think will be next for the books side of the lore?
In all likelihood we’re not seeing anything else launching before Infinite, but there are so many other threads to pick up within the Universe:
Alpha-9, following Bad Blood - Rion Forge and the Ace of Spades, following Point of Light - Spark following Point of Light - Intrepid Eye following Retribution (unless destroyed on Argent Moon) - The San’Shyuum flotilla following Shadow of Intent - The Shadow of Intent following Shadow of Intent - The Xellan Elites after Broken Circle - Onyx and the Servants of the Abiding Truth following Legacy of Onyx - Gray Team following EnvoyI’ve omitted a few arcs from before the end of the Covenant War for various reasons (relevance in post-war timeline, Cassandra Rose Clark saying her sequel was rejected)
We just got a third part to Rion Forge and her rag-tag band of misfits in their duel mission of utilising the Librarian’s key and continuing to pursue the Spirit of Fire. I doubt we’ll hear anything more about her until 2023 at the earliest if the pattern of release holds up.
Problem with trying to ascertain what comes next after Divine Wind is that the sequence of release for follow up novels is variable. For example, the original book starring Grey Team came out back in 2008. Tobias Buckell didn’t release a sequel until almost a decade later. Most of the other books appear to be standalones. Some may have the potential of carrying over into later stories but so far the only plots with an established overarching thread post-war are the pursuit of the Spirit of Fire by the Ace of Spades crew, Veta Lopis’ Ferret team connection with the Keepers of the One Freedom, Alpha-Nine participating in a new mission, Onyx’s human/Sangheili/Unggoy population conflicting with the Servants of the Abiding Truth, and theoretically Grey Team in their first proper post-war mission.
If I were going to take a shot here at guessing what will follow up after Divine Wind… Maybe a third book starring Alpha-Nine? They’ve become a fan favourite of the Halo community and it would be interesting to witness the dynamics of their newly reinstated squad during the Created conflict in action. We could also see a follow up to Onyx’s internal fight since we haven’t heard anything from them after they returned to slipspace.
I do like your idea of delving into Rtas’ pursuit of the Covenant San’Shyuum. Most species have been more or less accounted for. Last we heard of the San’Shyuum their numbers were severely depleted and they were hiding amongst the Jiralhanae providing them full access to their technology in exchange for protection. We may get som insight to their predicament with this potential Prelate in Divine Wind but I feel like knowing what’s become of Rtas and the Shadow of Intent are just as important for many fans.
One other thing, we hear Intrepid Eye get referenced in Renegades as a miscalculation they (ONI) wouldn’t repeat with Spark. Sounds like she was discovered some time after Retribution but we don’t know what became of her or her current whereabouts. Wasn’t she trying to ascertain who was worthy of inheriting the Mantle amongst humanity? I’d have to back and read the first two books of the Lopis/Ferret team trilogy.
Edit: You mentioned something about Cassandra Rose’s proposal for a third book getting rejected. What was that about?
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> One other thing, we hear Intrepid Eye get referenced in Renegades as a miscalculation they (ONI) wouldn’t repeat with Spark. Sounds like she was discovered some time after Retribution but we don’t know what became of her or her current whereabouts. Wasn’t she trying to ascertain who was worthy of inheriting the Mantle amongst humanity? I’d have to back and read the first two books of the Lopis/Ferret team trilogy.
>
> Edit: You mentioned something about Cassandra Rose’s proposal for a third book getting rejected. What was that about?
I saw about Cassandra Rose Clarke’s third Halo rejection (by the publisher, I think?) on twitter. Ur Haruspis can probably shed more light on that.
Yeah the Intrepid Eye arc is definitely one of worth pursuing I think.
I hope to have an Alpha-9 book after Infinite releases that caps off the “Blood Trilogy” as I’ve seen it referred to. I’d prefer a game, but I’d be happy to have a book too as I enjoy reading.
But beyond the more current stuff, I’d like some more detail on the early days of humanity’s expansion into the Sol System. I’m a huge fan of The Expanse books and the TV show that is based on that series of books. It’s an interesting section of the science fiction genre. It’s more gritty and scientifically grounded, focusing on the harsh realities of trying to survive in the vacuum of space long before humanity develops FTL capabilities.
I’ve been hoping for years that we get a story about the Rainforest Wars and all the complications that humanity faced that led to the creation of the UEG and the UNSC.
> 2533274808716317;2:
> We just got a third part to Rion Forge and her rag-tag band of misfits in their duel mission of utilising the Librarian’s key and continuing to pursue the Spirit of Fire. I doubt we’ll hear anything more about her until 2023 at the earliest if the pattern of release holds up.
>
> Problem with trying to ascertain what comes next after Divine Wind is that the sequence of release for follow up novels is variable. For example, the original book starring Grey Team came out back in 2008. Tobias Buckell didn’t release a sequel until almost a decade later. Most of the other books appear to be standalones. Some may have the potential of carrying over into later stories but so far the only plots with an established overarching thread post-war are the pursuit of the Spirit of Fire by the Ace of Spades crew, Veta Lopis’ Ferret team connection with the Keepers of the One Freedom, Alpha-Nine participating in a new mission, Onyx’s human/Sangheili/Unggoy population conflicting with the Servants of the Abiding Truth, and theoretically Grey Team in their first proper post-war mission.
>
> If I were going to take a shot here at guessing what will follow up after Divine Wind… Maybe a third book starring Alpha-Nine? They’ve become a fan favourite of the Halo community and it would be interesting to witness the dynamics of their newly reinstated squad during the Created conflict in action. We could also see a follow up to Onyx’s internal fight since we haven’t heard anything from them after they returned to slipspace.
>
> I do like your idea of delving into Rtas’ pursuit of the Covenant San’Shyuum. Most species have been more or less accounted for. Last we heard of the San’Shyuum their numbers were severely depleted and they were hiding amongst the Jiralhanae providing them full access to their technology in exchange for protection. We may get som insight to their predicament with this potential Prelate in Divine Wind but I feel like knowing what’s become of Rtas and the Shadow of Intent are just as important for many fans.
>
> One other thing, we hear Intrepid Eye get referenced in Renegades as a miscalculation they (ONI) wouldn’t repeat with Spark. Sounds like she was discovered some time after Retribution but we don’t know what became of her or her current whereabouts. Wasn’t she trying to ascertain who was worthy of inheriting the Mantle amongst humanity? I’d have to back and read the first two books of the Lopis/Ferret team trilogy.
>
> Edit: You mentioned something about Cassandra Rose’s proposal for a third book getting rejected. What was that about?
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> >
> > Found the comment about Battle Born book 3 getting cancelled on CRC’s website - in the comments on this page: http://www.cassandraroseclarke.com/news/halo-battle-born-officially-announced
>
> Thanks. Now I’m wondering what the publisher’s reason for not allowing the third part to get released was. Marketability?
My guess is they either didn’t like it, or the series’ peformance til then wasn’t up to their expectations commercially.
I suspect, they expected a Halo teen novel to sell well to Halo fans, and maybe break into the teen market a bit. I suspect unfortunately the ‘teen’ tag may have put many Halo fans off and the ‘Halo’ tag may not have appealed to as many teens as expected
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> > > >
> > >
> > > Found the comment about Battle Born book 3 getting cancelled on CRC’s website - in the comments on this page: http://www.cassandraroseclarke.com/news/halo-battle-born-officially-announced
> >
> > Thanks. Now I’m wondering what the publisher’s reason for not allowing the third part to get released was. Marketability?
>
> My guess is they either didn’t like it, or the series’ peformance til then wasn’t up to their expectations commercially.
>
> I suspect, they expected a Halo teen novel to sell well to Halo fans, and maybe break into the teen market a bit. I suspect unfortunately the ‘teen’ tag may have put many Halo fans off and the ‘Halo’ tag may not have appealed to as many teens as expected
Makes sense. Once more, thanks for replying.
Yeah, it’s ironic that it may not have taken off with other age demographics when you consider how Halo 5 was developed with a T rating in mind iirc. Personally I wish they would go back to the CE format in terms of things like the blood visuals. You as the player are engaged in high intensity combat situations that see a myriad of small arms and vehicles used against both ground infantry and vehicle constructs. While I can understand not wanting to be too explicit with gore, I think having some aesthetic cues like the aforementioned blood spatter helps to accentuate the consequentialism of the carnage you’re reeking and better demonstrate the notion of war which is what you’re part of in these campaigns.
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> > > > >
> > > >
> > > > Found the comment about Battle Born book 3 getting cancelled on CRC’s website - in the comments on this page: http://www.cassandraroseclarke.com/news/halo-battle-born-officially-announced
> > >
> > > Thanks. Now I’m wondering what the publisher’s reason for not allowing the third part to get released was. Marketability?
> >
> > My guess is they either didn’t like it, or the series’ peformance til then wasn’t up to their expectations commercially.
> >
> > I suspect, they expected a Halo teen novel to sell well to Halo fans, and maybe break into the teen market a bit. I suspect unfortunately the ‘teen’ tag may have put many Halo fans off and the ‘Halo’ tag may not have appealed to as many teens as expected
>
> Makes sense. Once more, thanks for replying.
>
> Yeah, it’s ironic that it may not have taken off with other age demographics when you consider how Halo 5 was developed with a T rating in mind iirc. Personally I wish they would go back to the CE format in terms of things like the blood visuals. You as the player are engaged in high intensity combat situations that see a myriad of small arms and vehicles used against both ground infantry and vehicle constructs. While I can understand not wanting to be too explicit with gore, I think having some aesthetic cues like the aforementioned blood spatter helps to accentuate the consequentialism of the carnage you’re reeking and better demonstrate the notion of war which is what you’re part of in these campaigns.
Unfortunately the issue here is the ratings agencies. Again, from a business sense you don’t want to limit your market- especially when the younger market has more future potential for your franchise. If that comes at the expense of even having a gore option, it’s the price you pay. Plus: very few gamers won’t buy a game if it’s missing gore - it’s a nice to have feature at most. Hence: business decision wins out
On a personal level I agree with you though.
Also, although obviously Meridian provided strong links to Halo 5’s setting, I think it being a prequel and not involving e.g. Chief or a known characternin some way may also have contributed.
The last time before Battle Born that a totally new setting and characters were introduced entirely separately was Shadow and Smoke - and even that was drawing from the Fractures short story with the daughter of a Halo Wars character. Let’s face it- Halo’s answer to Firefly is more compelling as a premise than Halo’s answer to One Tree Hill.
Before that… Saint’s Testimony isn’t a great example because it’s a short novella and standalone. Hunters in the Dark is probably as close as we get and that wasn’t setting up a series and was set on the Ark with which we’re all familiar.
So the next best comparison as a standalone book would be Broken Circle which was totally brilliant.
No offence to CRC as I enjoyed Battle Born, but it wasn’t at the same level as any of those I’ve just mentioned. Breaking into the Halo lore without the assistance of a main franchise character to help is also just really hard. The Spartan IIIs and Veta Lopis benefitted from Blue Team to establish them
> 2535435902217648;4:
> I hope to have an Alpha-9 book after Infinite releases that caps off the “Blood Trilogy” as I’ve seen it referred to. I’d prefer a game, but I’d be happy to have a book too as I enjoy reading.
>
> But beyond the more current stuff, I’d like some more detail on the early days of humanity’s expansion into the Sol System. I’m a huge fan of The Expanse books and the TV show that is based on that series of books. It’s an interesting section of the science fiction genre. It’s more gritty and scientifically grounded, focusing on the harsh realities of trying to survive in the vacuum of space long before humanity develops FTL capabilities.
>
> I’ve been hoping for years that we get a story about the Rainforest Wars and all the complications that humanity faced that led to the creation of the UEG and the UNSC.
Rounding out the Blood Trilogy would be nice. If Buck isn’t set to appear in Infinite’s launch campaign but in a future expansion, they could use it as a sort of “an this is what Buck has been up to” kinda story, but also nicely wrapping up the lose threads started in the previous books, and ODST.
As for the 500 years of history between ‘now’ and current times, how would you feel about an Evolutions 2.0?
Make it a nice 450-500 page collection of 7-9 short stories, each taking place somewhere within the timeline. Each story could be used to explore a small window of Human (and possible alien) development that leads to the Human-Covenant War.
The Rainforest Wars would be a great area for a story. Others could include;
Shaw and Fujikawa’s first successful attempts at slipspace technology. - Humanity’s operations in terraforming the first extra-solar worlds. - An event in 2178 that leads to the formation of the Office of Naval Intelligence. - The legend Sgt Johnson himself, undergoing his ORION Project augmentations and what that was like.I could go on for quite a while, haha!
> 2533274810945725;10:
> > 2535435902217648;4:
> > I hope to have an Alpha-9 book after Infinite releases that caps off the “Blood Trilogy” as I’ve seen it referred to. I’d prefer a game, but I’d be happy to have a book too as I enjoy reading.
> >
> > But beyond the more current stuff, I’d like some more detail on the early days of humanity’s expansion into the Sol System. I’m a huge fan of The Expanse books and the TV show that is based on that series of books. It’s an interesting section of the science fiction genre. It’s more gritty and scientifically grounded, focusing on the harsh realities of trying to survive in the vacuum of space long before humanity develops FTL capabilities.
> >
> > I’ve been hoping for years that we get a story about the Rainforest Wars and all the complications that humanity faced that led to the creation of the UEG and the UNSC.
>
> Rounding out the Blood Trilogy would be nice. If Buck isn’t set to appear in Infinite’s launch campaign but in a future expansion, they could use it as a sort of “an this is what Buck has been up to” kinda story, but also nicely wrapping up the lose threads started in the previous books, and ODST.
>
> As for the 500 years of history between ‘now’ and current times, how would you feel about an Evolutions 2.0?
> Make it a nice 450-500 page collection of 7-9 short stories, each taking place somewhere within the timeline. Each story could be used to explore a small window of Human (and possible alien) development that leads to the Human-Covenant War.
> The Rainforest Wars would be a great area for a story. Others could include;
> - Shaw and Fujikawa’s first successful attempts at slipspace technology. - Humanity’s operations in terraforming the first extra-solar worlds. - An event in 2178 that leads to the formation of the Office of Naval Intelligence. - The legend Sgt Johnson himself, undergoing his ORION Project augmentations and what that was like.I could go on for quite a while, haha!
Oooh an Evolutions 2.0 might be exactly what we need right now. Fractures gave us leads to develop into new series (Rion Forge, Carrow). Plus - I imagine plenty of things which could then link into terminals in infinite as content feeds out. Could even make it truly trans-media and have a short story with a glyph/code in it unlock something from a terminal in the way we used to on the 360 Waypoint app.
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> > > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > Found the comment about Battle Born book 3 getting cancelled on CRC’s website - in the comments on this page: http://www.cassandraroseclarke.com/news/halo-battle-born-officially-announced
> > > >
> > > > Thanks. Now I’m wondering what the publisher’s reason for not allowing the third part to get released was. Marketability?
> > >
> > > My guess is they either didn’t like it, or the series’ peformance til then wasn’t up to their expectations commercially.
> > >
> > > I suspect, they expected a Halo teen novel to sell well to Halo fans, and maybe break into the teen market a bit. I suspect unfortunately the ‘teen’ tag may have put many Halo fans off and the ‘Halo’ tag may not have appealed to as many teens as expected
> >
> > Makes sense. Once more, thanks for replying.
> >
> > Yeah, it’s ironic that it may not have taken off with other age demographics when you consider how Halo 5 was developed with a T rating in mind iirc. Personally I wish they would go back to the CE format in terms of things like the blood visuals. You as the player are engaged in high intensity combat situations that see a myriad of small arms and vehicles used against both ground infantry and vehicle constructs. While I can understand not wanting to be too explicit with gore, I think having some aesthetic cues like the aforementioned blood spatter helps to accentuate the consequentialism of the carnage you’re reeking and better demonstrate the notion of war which is what you’re part of in these campaigns.
>
> Unfortunately the issue here is the ratings agencies. Again, from a business sense you don’t want to limit your market- especially when the younger market has more future potential for your franchise. If that comes at the expense of even having a gore option, it’s the price you pay. Plus: very few gamers won’t buy a game if it’s missing gore - it’s a nice to have feature at most. Hence: business decision wins out
>
> On a personal level I agree with you though.
>
> Also, although obviously Meridian provided strong links to Halo 5’s setting, I think it being a prequel and not involving e.g. Chief or a known characternin some way may also have contributed.
>
> The last time before Battle Born that a totally new setting and characters were introduced entirely separately was Shadow and Smoke - and even that was drawing from the Fractures short story with the daughter of a Halo Wars character. Let’s face it- Halo’s answer to Firefly is more compelling as a premise than Halo’s answer to One Tree Hill.
>
> Before that… Saint’s Testimony isn’t a great example because it’s a short novella and standalone. Hunters in the Dark is probably as close as we get and that wasn’t setting up a series and was set on the Ark with which we’re all familiar.
>
> So the next best comparison as a standalone book would be Broken Circle which was totally brilliant.
>
> No offence to CRC as I enjoyed Battle Born, but it wasn’t at the same level as any of those I’ve just mentioned. Breaking into the Halo lore without the assistance of a main franchise character to help is also just really hard. The Spartan IIIs and Veta Lopis benefitted from Blue Team to establish them
Very well said. I agree that having some type of lure in the form of a beloved character or setting to help reign in the prospective reader goes a long way towards the success of the book. Battle Born unfortunately doesn’t have that unless you count the vaguely defined interference of Regret on the planet as he’s discovering the location of Earth.
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> > > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Found the comment about Battle Born book 3 getting cancelled on CRC’s website - in the comments on this page: http://www.cassandraroseclarke.com/news/halo-battle-born-officially-announced
> > > > >
> > > > > Thanks. Now I’m wondering what the publisher’s reason for not allowing the third part to get released was. Marketability?
> > > >
> > > > My guess is they either didn’t like it, or the series’ peformance til then wasn’t up to their expectations commercially.
> > > >
> > > > I suspect, they expected a Halo teen novel to sell well to Halo fans, and maybe break into the teen market a bit. I suspect unfortunately the ‘teen’ tag may have put many Halo fans off and the ‘Halo’ tag may not have appealed to as many teens as expected
> > >
> > > Makes sense. Once more, thanks for replying.
> > >
> > > Yeah, it’s ironic that it may not have taken off with other age demographics when you consider how Halo 5 was developed with a T rating in mind iirc. Personally I wish they would go back to the CE format in terms of things like the blood visuals. You as the player are engaged in high intensity combat situations that see a myriad of small arms and vehicles used against both ground infantry and vehicle constructs. While I can understand not wanting to be too explicit with gore, I think having some aesthetic cues like the aforementioned blood spatter helps to accentuate the consequentialism of the carnage you’re reeking and better demonstrate the notion of war which is what you’re part of in these campaigns.
> >
> > Unfortunately the issue here is the ratings agencies. Again, from a business sense you don’t want to limit your market- especially when the younger market has more future potential for your franchise. If that comes at the expense of even having a gore option, it’s the price you pay. Plus: very few gamers won’t buy a game if it’s missing gore - it’s a nice to have feature at most. Hence: business decision wins out
> >
> > On a personal level I agree with you though.
> >
> > Also, although obviously Meridian provided strong links to Halo 5’s setting, I think it being a prequel and not involving e.g. Chief or a known characternin some way may also have contributed.
> >
> > The last time before Battle Born that a totally new setting and characters were introduced entirely separately was Shadow and Smoke - and even that was drawing from the Fractures short story with the daughter of a Halo Wars character. Let’s face it- Halo’s answer to Firefly is more compelling as a premise than Halo’s answer to One Tree Hill.
> >
> > Before that… Saint’s Testimony isn’t a great example because it’s a short novella and standalone. Hunters in the Dark is probably as close as we get and that wasn’t setting up a series and was set on the Ark with which we’re all familiar.
> >
> > So the next best comparison as a standalone book would be Broken Circle which was totally brilliant.
> >
> > No offence to CRC as I enjoyed Battle Born, but it wasn’t at the same level as any of those I’ve just mentioned. Breaking into the Halo lore without the assistance of a main franchise character to help is also just really hard. The Spartan IIIs and Veta Lopis benefitted from Blue Team to establish them
>
> Very well said. I agree that having some type of lure in the form of a beloved character or setting to help reign in the prospective reader goes a long way towards the success of the book. Battle Born unfortunately doesn’t have that unless you count the vaguely defined interference of Regret on the planet as he’s discovering the location of Earth.
That said… it’s worth querying why that wasn’t done. There’d have been plenty of scope to have a tie-in somehow. Thinking of the literature’s big ‘new entries’ which have set up a sequel without any assistance from more established characters:
Cole Protocol - Hunters in the Dark - ish - Halo: GlasslandsIt’s a really small list… and from that perspective it does seem like commercially it’s the wrong move. A good way in seems to be the short stories route - bring on another compilation!