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This topic has moved here: Subject: New Theory: there were no "Forerunner"
  • Subject: New Theory: there were no "Forerunner"
Subject: New Theory: there were no "Forerunner"

I think that "Forerunner" is just a word one of the humans (or maybe Cortana) invented to give a name to the unknown creators of the rings. Does anyone in the game besides Cortana ever use the word "Forerunner"? I can't recall Gravemind or Truth ever using that term. In the books, I think Dr. Halsey and a few other humans used it.

My point is that the Forerunners did not refer to themselves as Forerunners, and neither does anyone who knows their true identity, such as Guilty Spark 343. Whatever name the Forerunners referred to themselves as, it wasn't "Forerunner" and it wasn't "human" because of the remark Guilty Spark made about "human history" on the Pillar of Autumn in Halo 1. My guess is that they called themselves something obscure from the Old Testament, which will be revealed in Halo 3.

That's why when Cortana absorbed the Halo data she didn't immediately make the connection human = forerunner, because back in the day the words "human" and "Forerunner" did not exist. Guilty Spark probably assumed that Master Chief was aware of this connection, which is why Guilty Spark was surprised to see Master Chief's comparatively weak armor. Until Guilty Spark read about human history, he did not realize that the Reclaimers had forgotten their heritage and renamed themselves human.

Something else interesting to think about: did the Forerunners speak English at all? Guilty Spark seems to speak it and so does Gravemind. However, Master Chief has a Covenant-English translator, that's why he can understand the Covenant language when the Arbiter and Truth speak it. Perhaps the Forerunner all spoke Covenant, and so do Guilty Spark and Gravemind, but it all gets converted to English so the Chief can understand it. It makes sense that the Covenant adapted both the Forerunners' language and technology.

It would be kind of weird if 100,000 years ago someone programmed Guilty Spark 343 to be fluent in English. However, Guilty Spark definitely knows English after reading about human history on the Pillar of Autumn. He probably taught himself the language while decoding the Pillar of Autumn documents using his advanced pattern recognition algorithms.

I suppose Gravemind could have learned the English language because of the way the Flood steals people's memories. If Flood combat forms can learn to use Warthogs then I bet Gravemind can pick up English. Based on the rhythmic way Gravemind speaks, I'd wager that he is speaking to Master Chief directly in English, no translation necessary. Yet the Arbiter was also able to understand Gravemind. I guess the Arbiter has an English to Covenant translator (he can understand Sarge well enough) but did the Arbiter's translator preserve Gravemind's unique speech patterns? Or was Gravemind speaking in Covenant in such a way that Master Chief's translator was able to maintain the pattern?

  • 07.12.2006 10:52 AM PDT

The Bring Back Bloodgulch Group have many members looking for more its kind of an unofficial petition to Bungie to bring back Bloodgulch in Reach http://www.bungie.net/fanclub/bx3g/Group/GroupHome.aspx

nice thoughts

  • 07.12.2006 11:14 AM PDT
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-backhand to the face-

  • 07.12.2006 11:40 AM PDT
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hold up. lemme read your post again

[Edited on 7/12/2006]

  • 07.12.2006 11:41 AM PDT
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Proud frenchie, elite fan, anthro artist not hellbent on yiff convention/pics/whatever, mature and intelligent forum guy, 4chaner, halo 2 lover and halo 3 hater.

some elites taunts are (when they kill you) : "may the forerunners be blessed!" or something like that (i'm french, i cant translate exactly in english, but the word forerunner IS said, for sure

  • 07.12.2006 11:41 AM PDT
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Posted by: z0rgy
some elites taunts are (when they kill you) : "may the forerunners be blessed!" or something like that (i'm french, i cant translate exactly in english, but the word forerunner IS said, for sure

Well it was a nice thought anyway, definitely a new theory, or at least for me, I like it when people come up with these new theories that make you think

  • 07.12.2006 11:46 AM PDT
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ok read it.

VERY GOOD

i think the overall theme here is ' language '

the word "forerunner" came from the covie, as cortana starts calling them that after she enters the halo network.

however, GS calls them by the name forerunner at the end of Halo 2. so apparently they have always gone by the name forerunner. whether or not that was the name of their race remains to be seen, but i guess its safe to say it is.

  • 07.12.2006 11:48 AM PDT
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I think forrunners look like aliens that we see now

  • 07.12.2006 11:48 AM PDT
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truth calls them forerunner as well in the level High Charity

i guess we can assume that "Forerunner" is the name of their race

  • 07.12.2006 11:49 AM PDT