Despite this lingering of certain memories, no trace of the original mind remains; only a simplistic and primal urge to assimilate other species drives the organism after infection. The faces of the human forms are also more readily recognizable. The Didact eventually lost to the Builders and the entire Warrior-Servant race was marginalized, with their fleets and forces disbanded or forced to submit under Builder control. Why does God decide to destroy mankind? Precursor artifacts and structures, composed entirely of neural energy, were also destroyed. It is unknown whether a few still escaped. It is also capable of flexing and moving in coordination with other cells, and can be arranged to mimic any bodily organ that is required for the Flood's use. The Gravemind, realizing the imminent threat posed by Truth, soon sensed John-117 and Thel 'Vadam's presence in the Citadel. However, the Precursors eve… The sheer numbers of Flood forms on the planets overwhelmed Forerunner ground forces. The Flood are also prodigious climbers, able to scamper on walls with little hindrance to the organism . However, there are known medical conditions that scramble the neural frequencies of the host (apparently without major negative manifestations in the host) which subsequently prevents flood infection. However, two external forces, the Covenant and the UNSC, wanted the Index as well: the Covenant, to activate the Halos and set off the misinterpreted "sublimation event" of the Great Journey, and the UNSC to secure the Index and prevent the Covenant from doing so. Flexible striped rods sprouted from their heads, which in turn were also consumed by fellow Pheru, causing abortions and unnatural births. PERSONALITY. As they went up, Sergeant Johnson supported them with his Spartan Laser. Without the Spirit's Slipspace Engine, however, the ship was lost in space, with humanity's only knowledge of the Flood lost with it. There was a significantly elevated number of Enforcers present, even automated sentinel construction factories flying over watch, and automated factories built into the landscape, each churning out Enforcers and Sentinels, further swelling their numbers even in intense combat. John-117, having successfully stayed in front of the wave of Flood running rampant in the streets, stowed away on the Forerunner Dreadnought that was leading Truth's fleet to Earth. This countermeasure was only temporary, however, and the victim would eventually either decay and die or be fully subsumed by the Flood. Sergeant Avery J. Johnson is the only known human to survive a direct assault by an Infection Form without aid. For other uses, see, Political entities, religious organizations, and civilizations, Halo 4 : King of the Hill Fueled by Mountain Dew, The Art of Halo: Creating a Virtual World, The Great Journey: The Art of Building Worlds, ventured into the derelict and wrecked High Charity, technologically advanced, spacefaring race, Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe, Halo: The Great Journey: The Art of Building Worlds, https://www.halopedia.org/index.php?title=Flood&oldid=1382819, The Flood become truly dangerous during the. Thus, the only logical foolproof way to eliminate them permanently is to take away their food sources. The Covenant. The Plasma Rifle is also a good weapon of choice to use (if the assault rifle/shotgun are unavailable) as its high rate of fire can quickly destroy Infection Forms while still being powerful enough to destroy Combat Forms. Despite this lingering of certain memories, no trace of the original mind's personality remains; only a simplistic and primal urge to assimilate or destroy other species drives the organism after infection. When John reached the Proto-Gravemind, it had already killed Keyes. This led both groups to Installation 04, and in turn, the Flood that were kept there in stasis. The first stage of a Flood outbreak is typically initiated by contact with Flood spores or even more reduced forms of Flood biomatter, should no extant Flood forms be present. As it does so, the form analyzes the entire genetic code of its host, allowing the Flood to determine the most effective use of the victim. [29] Even the most basic form of Flood genetic material is virulent; once inserted into a host, it will mutate the host's DNA over the course of generations until it is capable of forming its own Flood super cells. [67], During the human-Forerunner wars, humanity (who at the time was a technologically advanced, spacefaring race) believed they had discovered another way to defeat the Flood. Unique Halo 2 Posters designed and sold by artists. This multi-tiered defense was patrolled by hundreds of Sentinels and Sentinel Majors, and several Enforcers. The Flood were eventually able to infect Human worlds, sparking the Human-Flood war. John-117 rescued Cortana and managed to overload the reactors by destroying three connecting pylons. They explained to Sergeant Lopez that it was extremely strange that a civilian ship like the Mona Lisa could be in such a classified location, and even more strange that it would be roaming space without an escort, since typical prison ships rely on an escort in case of a prison riot. Pod infectors are capable of attacking only at point-blank ranges, exploding in damaging bursts when meeting an opponent's personal energy shields or instantly grabbing hold of an unshielded enemy organism and infecting it. Mechanisms used to perpetuate this infection range from subtle philosophical persuasion through mutual conversation to more predatory techniques, such as swarming AI networks with a self-replicating information infestation with the ability to convert most machine intelligences near-instantaneously. Flood Combat Forms do not "feign death" anymore. He tells her that the elites never showed, but a growl can be heard from his radio. Against orders, Marine officer McKay destroyed the warship with whatever Flood forms were still aboard, killing hundreds of UNSC personnel, including an infected Jenkins, but saving Earth and possibly billions of lives from the Flood. However, one of the attacking combat forms, PFC Wallace A. Jenkins, who was one of the Marines in the original expeditionary mission to the supposed arms cache, was infected by a weak and elderly Pod infector whose powers of infection had been dulled by centuries of hibernation, making Jenkins' transformation into a combat form incomplete. [61], While the Forerunners could not find a cure for Flood infection, the Composer was designed to eliminate its effects by extracting a Flood victim's consciousness into digital form and then re-inserting it in an artificially-constructed body devoid of infection. For more uses of the term Flood, see its disambiguation page. As Atriox looked at the remains of the Proto-Gravemind, a horde of Sentinels were seen flying overhead to remove all Flood contamination. [45] Voridus, Pavium and Banished forces, with the help of the Ark's defenses, in particular a Retriever Sentinel, managed to kill the Proto-Gravemind before it could become a Gravemind. As John-117 raced toward the unfinished Halo, Sergeant Johnson assumed command of the UNSC frigate Forward Unto Dawn. These aspects were most prominently demonstrated during the two major outbreaks in the Forerunner era, particularly the Forerunner-Flood war. The REAL reason the Halos were created was to contain a destructive, parasitic hive-mind known as the flood. These are as follows. Small dosages were administered to Pheru, popular domestic animals among humans and San'Shyuum, which resulted in more docile behavior. While the force attempted to track down Sesa 'Refumee to assassinate him and destroy his forces, the Heretics unleashed the Flood that were held within the station. 4. 686 Ebullient Prism. Upon the release of Halo 3, an entire biological history had been explored, elevating the Flood from creepy space monsters/cannon fodder to a life-form that is truly horrific. [8] A significantly mutated Precursor, one that would later be known as the last surviving one of its kind,[10] was sealed in a Precursor stasis capsule and placed in a small, ravaged planetoid at the galaxy's edge around 9,000,000 BCE. Even though Path Kethona was sterilized by Omega Halo near the end of the Flood war, given the Flood's extragalactic origin, it is possible that more pockets of Flood exist outside the galaxy - or more disturbingly, that other, more distant galaxies may have fallen to the Flood. The Flood are also vulnerable to temperatures on the other end of the spectrum. Combat Forms retain the general profile of their original species, although they are significantly mutated. The Flood were also gathering body parts for a new proto-Gravemind aboard the Infinite Succor. As the Forerunner-Precursor war drew to a close, the few remaining Precursors that were pushed out beyond the edges of the galaxy to Path Kethona sought vengeance against the Forerunners. They soon moved to similarly infest the planet DM-3-1123b. The Pelican raced off as High Charity collapsed behind them. At the conclusion of the Battle of Voi, with the Prophet of Truth activating the Portal and the Jiralhanae fleet escaping to the Ark, a Flood-infested Covenant cruiser appeared out of Slipspace, having penetrated the Elites' blockade of High Charity and crash landed into the city of Voi in an effort to spread the parasite. The group turned around to face their pursuers, a swarm of fleshy, twisted monsters - Flood. [53] When infected by these mechanisms, host organisms tend to mutate at a more restrained level that maintains the structure and form of the infected life form, albeit with a significant number of haphazardly placed tendrils, claws, and minor organs, such as sensory stalks. Before she could react, he knocked her to the ground with a claw and dragged her away. Due to the lack of evidence, most Forerunners were unaware of the existence or of the true nature of the Flood, and many dismissed it as a simple excuse for humanity's aggressive expansion before and during the initial arrival of the Flood. The neural frequencies of the host are "scrambled", apparently without negative consequences to the host. [16] This may be the reasoning behind keeping Installation Control Rooms in low degree weather, impeding their occupation by the Flood. Cortana, who had to stay behind to detonate In Amber Clad's engines should the situation arise and Installation 05 be fired, was left in the clutches of the Gravemind, who could potentially learn all possible human knowledge from her, including the entire knowledge directly received from Forerunner systems aboard Installation 04. Any weapon wielded by humans, Elites, and Brutes will not be dropped when transforming into combat forms and the combat forms will be also unarmed. If the player is attacked by a Pod infector while their shields are down, the character will die instantly. Halsey once stated that there is a one in a billion chance that research, from someone so inflicted with Boren's Syndrome in a way that they cannot be infected, could be carried on to produce a cure. The Flood, designated as LF.Xx.3273 by the Forerunners (Latin Inferi redivivus[3] meaning "the dead reincarnated"[4]) and referred to as the Parasite[5] and the infection[6] by the Covenant, is a species of highly virulent parasitic organisms that reproduce and grow by consuming sentient lifeforms of sufficient biomass and cognitive capability. Pheru treated with the powder began exhibiting furry growths and fleshy protrusions, which other Pheru were compelled to consume. This was odd, as Pheru were naturally herbivores. This entire process, from the initial kill to total control over a fully mutated host body, takes only a matter of seconds.[50]. Significant physiological and psychological mutations. A good strategy on The Oracle is to dual wield a pair of Needlers; you can usually do this without running out of ammo. With the assistance of 343 Guilty Spark, Cortana's message was repaired, revealing a solution to the Flood menace on the Ark. While Truth attempted to convince the Arbiter to help him, the Gravemind managed to infect Truth, corrupting him from the inside. Though never seen within the story, it can be assumed Infection forms were involved in infecting a victim. Considering writers Tessa Kum and Jeff VanderMeer were not given access to Halo's story bible when writing, If an entire ecosystem of sufficient biomass is infected, the entire planet becomes a. At first, when he saw the Covenant retreating out of the Forerunner structure running from Assault Rifle fire, he believed them to be allied forces. If the Pod Infector units doesn't match it's victim (For example, Pod Infestor attacks infantry unit is not match for infection), it will be destroyed or killed. All will be born in suffering, endless grayness shall be their lot. Burgundy searched the cargo bay for Cranker from within the Pelican via its rear cameras, but only saw his assault rifle's flashlight in the dark. A Gravemind (like the Proto-Gravemind that gave rise to it) is the fusion of pure Flood Super Cells and the complex neuro-system of hundreds or thousands of sentients. "This quest to fulfill the Mantle has haunted me my entire life. After successfully defeating the Flood forces, the UNSC forces created a firebase in the area that Anders' signal appeared to be coming from. Over time this dust became so corrupted that it could only cause horrific disease and mutation. However, in its final moments, the Gravemind addressed the Master Chief and the Arbiter telepathically, warning them that their victory would only slow—not stop—the Flood. Shown in one of the Chambers leading to a Pulse Generator in the Level Two Betrayals, in Halo: Combat Evolved. However, during Flood infection, the Pod infector is unable to tap into the host's nervous system, rendering it incapable of proceeding to large-scale physiological mutation. Exactly how these organs work is unknown; they may provide visual or chemical information, or perhaps a combination of both. John-117 made his way down to the ship after the Arbiter and the remaining Sangheili stayed behind to make sure no surviving Flood would attack him. Although little data exists from any adequately controlled experiment, data gathered in the field suggests that if a mobile form is removed from the influence of the Gravemind coordinating its group of origin it will revert to a Feral Stage. However, 343 Guilty Spark arrived shortly after. It is often a good idea to use the Jiralhanae Shot's melee, as it will have the same effect as an Energy sword on Combat Forms; it will destroy the body and prevent Infection Forms from reanimating it. While presumably used to transport gas conduits, its walls were rampant with Flood, and it ferried canisters full of Infection Forms. Individual Combat and Carrier Forms have access to the skills and memories of their host; however, once an outbreak establishes a viable Gravemind, the Coordinated Stage begins, and it is at this point the Flood becomes truly dangerous. It is presumed that the Covenant occupants of the research facility had moved through the structure in hopes of finding Forerunner artifacts, and had inadvertently released living Flood specimens. Which Holy Symbol Matches Your Personality? During the search of the debris field, the ship intercepted and secured an escape pod. The Flood are also vulnerable to temperatures on the other end of the spectrum. The Flood had decimated most of the Covenant crew and garrison on board, leaving only isolated pockets of resistance, mostly small numbers of terrified Unggoy and a few Sangheili aboard the vessel. Plasma weapons will easily burn through Flood tissue; the Forerunners incorporated directed-energy weapons into their Sentinels, indicating that they had determined high-enthalpy energy weapons to be the best 'basic countermeasure' available to fight the Flood. Thus, the most effective way to stop a large-scale infestation is to take away their food sources. John-117 successfully retrieved the Index, the item required to activate the ring and returned to Halo's Control Center. Within a very short time, the Pheru were producing far less attractive growths. [5] They sent several ships containing this powder to Forerunner controlled planets. In response to this intelligence, the UNSC moved to secure them, and prevented the Flood from staging another attack. Suddenly he is overwhelmed by something as he screams, and then his radio goes silent. An interesting side effect of this failed infection is that Flood DNA and cells appear to be harmlessly integrated into the host's body. The absolute last resort was the use of the Halo installations, which effectively destroyed all life in the galaxy and starved the Flood into extinction. More than 100,000 years prior to 2552,[7] the Flood encountered a Forerunner research expedition on the planet G 617 g1. When they reached the Proto-Gravemind, the brothers were able to weaken it slightly and send Retrievers that finished it off. Infection forms are somewhat "chubbier" if compared to the trilogy version. Over time this dust became so corrupted that it could only cause horrific disease and mutation. As John-117 and Thel 'Vadam fought their way to the ship, the Sangheili assault carrier Shadow of Intent under the command of Rtas 'Vadum arrived and deployed Sangheili task force to aid UNSC marines. While he was in the brain form state, the Flood began to comb his memories. Any infected units will revert their health back to 100% once the infection process has been completed. The Halo rings were created to control the flood in two different ways. Turret defenses have had their effectiveness reduced against Pod infectors, even those equipped with anti-infantry upgrades. The Flood used unarmed civilian assets to penetrate planetary defense groups, first striking at the Forerunner-held planet of LP 656-38 e, completely bypassing the Forerunner Orbital Fleet and infesting the planet below. Similarly, it was capable of tapping into Installation 05's teleportation grid and utilizing it with great accuracy.[55]. As expected, 10,000 years later, the Flood returned and began its conquest of total galactic domination. The Bestiarum states that the society of the Flood closely resembles a "utopian socialist ideal as there is no wealth, no poverty, no want, no crime, and no disease; every individual works for the advancement of the Flood as a whole." The surviving UNSC forces, which included Sergeant Forge, were ordered to recover some Elephants that were surrounded by Flood forms. [40], With the Proto-Gravemind dead, the Flood threat was greatly diminished. The Flood now only infects the Squad Leader(Either Jiralhanae or Sangheili depending on the Leader) in a Grunt Infantry unit, while the rest are killed. As Benti's group continued onward, the wounded Marine suddenly attacked the group, biting Gersten before being killed by another Marine, Clarence. During its Feral Stage, the Flood is only capable of local coordination through use of pheromone-based communication. 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