The Arbiter

Lore & Background

The concept of the Arbiter came from early story discussions for Halo 2. Bungie designer Jaime Griesemer and story director Joseph Staten discussed playing from the perspective of an alien soldier to see the other side of the war. "What if you were the guy whose butt was on the line for protecting the most valuable religious object in the entire world, and you blew it?" said Staten. "That seems like a pretty interesting story, and one we should tell."

The Arbiter changed very little during development, as the overall appearance of the Sangheili had been designed for the previous game, 2001's Halo: Combat Evolved. The only substantial difference between the Arbiter and other Elites was special ceremonial armor. During Halo 2's early developmental stages the character's name was "Dervish", a name from the Sufi sect of Islam. Bungie picked the name because of its evocation of an otherworldly holy warrior.

However, after the September 11 attacks, sensitivity to the name remained high, and the character's name was changed. The switch came so late that the game's voice lines had to be re-recorded, and some game manuals were printed with the wrong name. For Halo 5, the Arbiter's armor was redesigned, explained in-universe as a tribute to previous Arbiters and as a symbol of transition for the Elites. 343 Industries designed the armor to look "medieval" and antiquated, and incorporated brass and leather accents instead of something more futuristic.

Reader's Guide

Thel 'Vadamee begins as a disgraced commander in Halo 2, given the rank of Arbiter to atone for his failure to stop Master Chief from destroying the first Halo ring. As a playable character, the Arbiter was identical to the Master Chief, save for the replacement of a flashlight with an active camouflage system. His missions include silencing a renegade Elite and retrieving the key to activate Delta Halo. After being betrayed by Tartarus and rescued by Gravemind, he learns the truth about the Halo rings and allies with humanity to stop their activation.

In Halo 3, he assists human forces alongside Master Chief, kills the final surviving High Prophet at the Ark, and crashes safely to Earth. In Halo 5: Guardians, he leads the Swords of Sangheilios against a Covenant faction on Sanghelios, is rescued by human soldiers, and assists in an assault on the final Covenant stronghold of Sunaion. A different Arbiter, Ripa 'Moramee, appears in the 2009 real-time strategy game Halo Wars, which takes place 20 years before the events of the main trilogy.

Lead designer David Pottinger described Ensemble's Arbiter as a "mean guy. He's Darth Vader times ten." Parts of the Arbiter's backstory before the game's events are explained in a tie-in graphic novel, Halo Wars: Genesis.

Did You Know?

• The Arbiter's name was originally 'Dervish', but was changed late in development due to concerns about reinforcing a perceived United States-versus-Islam allegory in the game's plot.
• Actor Keith David voices the Arbiter in Halo 2, 3, and 5, while David Sobolov voices the Arbiter of Halo Wars.
• The Arbiter makes a non-canon appearance as a guest playable character in Killer Instinct: Season Three, voiced by Ray Chase.
• Bungie kept the Arbiter's inclusion as a playable character a secret on the scale of a 'Shyamalan plot twist', never including it in weekly development updates.