- KylialielN0X
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- Honorable Member
Posted by: Spartan999
Ok, so we all know that, from Halo CE all the way through Halo Wars, Zealots have been very high ranking Elites, with a certain religious importance aside from rank, that wear golden armor. Elites of this rank were then given special titles like Field Master.
Halo Reach changes this. Now the gold-armored Elites that fill the in-game role of semi-boss are known as Generals. "Zealot" is now a name given to Elites that wear maroon armor. As described by Halsey, they often compose strike teams tasked with the retrieval of important religious artifacts. Their actual relevance to standard combat operations is unknown.
The question is, why aren't Zealots gold anymore? Bungie could have easily swapped the names for the armor sets, making the permutation worn by the gold-armored Elites "Zealot," and naming the other variety seen at the end of Winter Contingency "General."
The only problem with this is that Zealots are supposed to have a high religious status, as seen in Halo Reach. You could argue that, if the gold-armored Elites in Reach were given the name of "Zealot," they would have lost their religious significance (one that was never present in the games anyway). In fact, the high ranking Elites in Reach behave exactly as their respective names imply. However, I do not understand why the name "Zealot," was detached from the iconic golden armor. Why not put the Elites of the retrieval team in golden armor, and the boss-like Elites in maroon?
Anyone have any insight on this?
Campaign-wise, the Zealots that appear through Reach are probably High Ranking Elites, who are chosen to retrieve religious artifacts, and thus, they wear an appropiate religious harness.
Coming to think about, we only get to fight few Zealots in Reach, 2 of em while they searched for info about the ruins at Sword Base, the rest in the very end escorting the only Field Marshall.
This make me thinks that the Zealots with the different Harness and Colours from the ones we knew (and love), are part of an specific branch within the covenant society, tasked only with the retrieval of important religious artifacts or information, capable of leading a full Military Campaign only if needed.
While the Golden colored Zealots we have encountered in previous games are actually Military Commanders, that excel in the arts of wars.
[Edited on 11.23.2010 7:47 PM PST]