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This topic has moved here: Subject: How can the humans understand the Covenant?
  • Subject: How can the humans understand the Covenant?
Subject: How can the humans understand the Covenant?

Don't worry, you're still your mom's favorite Bnet member.

In Halo CE and Halo Reach the humans cannot understand the Covenant when they speak. But in Halo 2, Halo 3, ODST and Wars they can. At first I thought after CE Cortana gathered some data that deciphered the Covenant language for the Chief's armor or something. But that doesn't explain how the ODST's can understand them, nor how the marines can in Halo Wars. So how do they understand the Covenant? Did they just decide to start speaking English after CE? That would kind of make sense if it weren't for the fact that the humans understand them in Wars. Unless they could speak English the whole time. But if the Covenant could speak English the whole time, why didn't they on Halo or on Reach? And for that matter why would the Brutes speak English in Halo 3 and ODST? All they discussed were their battlefield tactics ("Everyone, throw a grenade!"), so wouldn't it be a good idea to speak a language humans cannot understand?

  • 09.26.2011 2:56 PM PDT
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They have translators, as is mentioned in some of the books. Dunno why the Chief doesn't have 'em in CE, why they aren't in Reach, or why ODSTs have 'em, but, oh well.

  • 09.26.2011 2:58 PM PDT


Posted by: Orna Talamee
They have translators, as is mentioned in some of the books. Dunno why the Chief doesn't have 'em in CE, why they aren't in Reach, or why ODSTs have 'em, but, oh well.


Pretty weak if you ask me.

  • 09.26.2011 3:11 PM PDT

Space. The Final Frontier. These are the voyages of Murphy's Laws on the StarShip Enterprise

apparently, the translation software was updated after the events of Halo:CE. Can't remember where it says it though

  • 09.26.2011 3:12 PM PDT

"Find where the liar hides, so that I may place my boot between his gums!" - Rtas 'Vadum

Well it all depends on whether Marines and ODST have translation hardware in their helmets. After Halo 2 they can understand the Covenant, so I would assume the answer to be yes and that the UNSC distributed Cortana's software patch to them. As for Halo Wars, the only ones that talk to Humans are Ripa and Regret to my knowledge. So maybe they can speak english. Some Covenant can speak it fairly well.

  • 09.26.2011 3:16 PM PDT

Don't worry, you're still your mom's favorite Bnet member.

Posted by: EachToxic wolf
apparently, the translation software was updated after the events of Halo:CE. Can't remember where it says it though
that makes the most sense. And I suppose we can say the Covenant were speaking English to the humans in Halo Wars, after all any dialogue the Covenant said in the presence of a human was something they wanted the humans to understand. So it makes sense.

  • 09.26.2011 3:19 PM PDT

Well in First Strike I believe Cortana got a ton of data which she brought back and that probably advanced the translator tech significantly.

But here's what I think actually happened.


Halo CE was the first game in the series, and it shows in that. Not alot of story development compared to later games.

Halo 2 came around, and the plot benefited from actually being able to talk to these aliens we spent the whole first game despising, and Bungie just chalked it up to improved tech with the Mark VI suit.

I'm not sure how related First Strike's plot point of having all this new data from Ascendant Justice is, it could have just been a happy coincidence that answered this question in our understanding of the covenant, or it could have been an intentional seal to the plot hole, either way... does it matter?

  • 09.26.2011 3:23 PM PDT

Generalizations.
Helping idiots hate other idiots since people have existed.

Because Microsoft magically made them speak english for marketing purposes.
There you go. *Troll Face*

  • 09.26.2011 4:13 PM PDT

Do I try hard??... Yes, yes I do.


Posted by: oaklandp8ntbalr
Because Microsoft magically made them speak english for marketing purposes.
There you go. *Troll Face*

Perfect answer!

  • 09.26.2011 4:16 PM PDT
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Do not waste your tears, I was not born to watch the world grow dim. Life is not measured in years, but by the deeds of men.

Posted by: goldhawk
We should know better, because we are better.

Willing suspension of disbelief and convenience. Can't have you reading subtitles for all the Covenant parts of Halo 2.

  • 09.26.2011 4:32 PM PDT

Vengeance only leads to an ongoing cycle of hatred.

Translators.

  • 09.26.2011 5:15 PM PDT

Posted by:ScubaToaster
Posted by: HipiO7
This man, this man right here put it so eloquently that I actually cancelled my own 2000+ word long post.
/slow clap for respect


:)
The person who said participating is important, not winning, obviously never won anything.

All UNSC forces were issued a translator, I think.

ODST's being the Special Forces group they are, it's only natural to assume they would have a better version of the translator the regular grunts receive, and a step lower on what the Spartan's would receive.

  • 09.27.2011 7:16 AM PDT

Posted by: EachToxic wolf
apparently, the translation software was updated after the events of Halo:CE. Can't remember where it says it though

Mark V to Mark VI. Makes sense this way.

  • 09.27.2011 7:59 AM PDT

"Wort Wort Wort." loosely translated means: Life is too important to be taken seriously.

  • 09.27.2011 8:09 AM PDT
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Posted by: Xd00999
Willing suspension of disbelief and convenience. Can't have you reading subtitles for all the Covenant parts of Halo 2.
that is true.....

  • 09.27.2011 8:21 AM PDT

-blam!- Was that actually blammed out? Or did I just type it? You'll never know.

Posted by: Ruby of the Blue
Posted by: Orna Talamee
They have translators, as is mentioned in some of the books. Dunno why the Chief doesn't have 'em in CE, why they aren't in Reach, or why ODSTs have 'em, but, oh well.


Pretty weak if you ask me.

Yeah it is. sci-fi is full of weak explanations for things. Just give it a break.

  • 09.27.2011 9:23 AM PDT