In the Halo Warfleet book it mentions that a sister ship of the Infinity was being built just before Halo 5. Do you think Cortana would have finished building that ship? I mean if I am conquering the galaxy and I get a free Juggernaught for 500 alloys it would be a hard thing to pass up. More to the point do you think it’s something that might show up in Halo Infinite or a future game?
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The UNSC Eternity wouldn’t have been completed in the span of time between 2558 and 2560 considering that it was used largely for parts, and I’m 90% sure Cortana wanted to subjugate humanity instead of stealing their stuff.
However,
It would be the obvious candidate for another UNSC flagship if the Created uprising is repelled, the ship is completed and Earth isn’t in immediate danger anymore. Until that point, it probably won’t be anything more than a lore tidbit.
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She could have scrapped it and relied on the Guardians and whatever else she could steal from the Forerunners.
But, a single AI can operate a UNSC ship. Presumably if a Created was on a UNSC ship they would just keep it and carry on using it. It’s a prize and a resource to be used. The Eternity would be an asset and it’s a lot easier to finish an incomplete warship than build a new one.Would they have had time to build a Forerunner fleet and where would they have gotten it from. I mean if you’re all about protecting humanity and not asking it’s easier to do that if you’ve got a lot of firepower.
I think they would be pragmatic about that. They were okay about the allied Grunts building mech suits, a Created AI using Human warships or even a Mantis isn’t that out there.
Like if Cortana could have built a fleet of Forerunner warships she wouldn’t have needed the Guardians and there’s no indication she could build more of them. She’s out the conquer the galaxy, that’s a massive undertaking and she’s only had a year so she’d probably have needed every resource she could use.
Plus, she does keep what she steals.
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If Cortana could find a way to repair one of the largest vessels ever built in two years, than I don’t doubt at all that she would use (or at least reoutfit) the UNSC Eternity to meet her own ends. And I am aware that AI are capable of operating these ships, Roland once boasted about that.
But that’s just it. The timeline just doesn’t work for it to appear in the vanilla campaign.
From the start of construction in 2544 all the way until it’s secret deployment in 2553, it took the UNSC- and it’s post-covenant-war workforce- about 9 years to build the Infinity. That’s start to the technical finish.
As for the UNSC Eternity, we really don’t know it’s completion status. According to Halopedia, it was still “incomplete” in late September of 2558 with no elaboration whatsoever. It also states that pre-manufactured modules for the Eternity were redirected for “a maintenance and overhaul cycle” for the Infinity.
With Cortana’s mostly unhindered access to the Promethean army, I don’t doubt that she could mobilize a repair force for the Eternity, but “how fast?” is the question to ask. How fast would they be able to repair and finish the Eternity? Does Cortana know enough about the Eternity to finish it? Will the effects of the Guardian blast on Earth have postponed its progress even further, potentially to a halt in the span of time between 2558 and 2560?
I don’t know, but it’s fun to speculate.
I think that’s fairly unlikely, although it would be fun. It seems like the Infinity is heavily damaged, but I’m guessing that since it is both the UNSC flagship and sort of the 343 industries Flagship, it’s unlikely that it’s totally done for. My guess is that it may make a triumphant return either now or later in another campaign.
If anything, given the “spiritual reboot” and emphasis on older Halo designs etc., I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Spirit of Fire coming in as a deus ex machina. Would really not be surprised to see it come in and sacrifice itself in an epic and dope cutscene.