- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
A decent portion of the Spartan's bone surface was covered with a strong alloy when they were fourteen years of age. By then, through the extreme training regimen, the Spartans' bodies were much more advanced beyond their years, and they resembled those of adults. The bone surface grafting was very dangerous due to the fact that they could not cover too much surface due to blood cell production as well as continued bone growth. It is described in "The Fall of Reach" that many of the Spartans that did not successfully adapt to the augmentation suffered massive deformations as their skeletons twisted out of shape, and that the Spartans could barely be recognized as human.
No bones, however, were replaced.
As for the Spartans' ages, they are all virtually the same age. They were all taken when they were six years of age for the Spartan-II program in 2511. However, for one who has read "The Fall of Reach", the effects of aging become very much apparent. At the age of fourteen, after the physical, chemical, and biological augmentation, the Spartans were something to truly behold. Using hand-made materials, a team of only a few Spartans, sans-MJOLNIR, as they had no recieved the armor yet, managed to take out a team of titanium-armored heavy battle-suits. To see these kids moving at untraceable speeds, punching into titanium with their bare hands, and moving in such perfect formation that you would believe telepathy is involved is something quite inspiring.
Compare that to the "current" Spartans. Granted that the MJOLNIR-II armor nearly weighs eight-hundred pounds, the Spartans move quite fast. You must also take into consideration, however, the strength-amplification powers of the armor.
Fourteen year old kids punching through titanium armor and throwing a two-ton battle-suit off balance, leaping though the air into the high-rises and support beams of a huge warehouse / Forty-one year old adults in super-armor taking on occasion two hits to bash in a Grunt's skull, managing to leap over... a log.
They may no longer be in their prime physically, but the Spartans are still, by far, the strongest, smartest, and finest soldiers that the human race has created in recent memory.
[Edited on 4/19/2004 6:00:17 PM]