The Arbiter

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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.

In Their Own Story

Presented in Halo 2, the rank of "Arbiter" is bestowed upon a Covenant Elite by the High Prophets during a time of crisis; the position is typically given to shamed Elites as an opportunity to regain their honour prior to their deaths via suicide missions. The Arbiter in the main Halo games is named Thel 'Vadamee. Previously a commander in the Covenant military, he is shamed for failing to stop the human soldier Master Chief from destroying the Forerunner ringworld Halo (as depicted during the events of Halo: Combat Evolved). Thel 'Vadamee is spared execution by the High Prophets and becomes the newest Arbiter. His first mission is to silence a renegade Elite who has been preaching that the Prophets have lied to the Covenant. The Arbiter is then sent to the newly discovered Delta Halo to retrieve the key necessary to activate the ring. Though he succeeds in his mission, the Arbiter is betrayed by the Brute Chieftain Tartarus; Tartarus reveals that the Prophets have ordered the replacement of the Elites with Brutes in the Covenant power structure. Though the Arbiter is believed dead, he and Master Chief are rescued by the parasitic Flood intelligence Gravemind. Gravemind reveals that the activation Halos are weapons of destruction, not salvation, and sends the Arbiter to stop Tartarus from activating the ring as the Covenant falls into civil war. In the process, the Arbiter and allied Elites forge an alliance with the humans Miranda Keyes and Avery Johnson. Together they kill Tartarus and stop the activation of Delta Halo, triggering a failsafe; the remaining Halo installations are put on standby from remote activation from a Forerunner installation known as the Ark. While Thel 'Vadam remains a playable character in Halo 3 during cooperative gameplay (the second player in a game lobby controls him), the game's story never switches to the point of view of the character as in Halo 2. For much of Halo 3, the Arbiter assists human forces in their fight against hostile Covenant forces alongside Master Chief. They follow Covenant forces through a portal to the Ark, where the Arbiter kills the final surviving High Prophet. During the escape, the ship Arbiter and Master Chief are on is split in two; the Arbiter crashes safely to Earth while Master Chief is presumed lost. Thel 'Vadam reappears in Halo 5: Guardians, where his forces, the Swords of Sangheilios, remain locked in combat with a faction of Covenant on Sanghelios. When a group of human soldiers travel to Sanghelios and rescues the Arbiter from attack, the Arbiter assists them in an assault on the final Covenant stronghold of Sunaion. After the human artificial intelligence Cortana begins subjugating the galaxy, the Arbiter and the Master Chief are finally reunited.

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.
• The name change came so late that voice lines had to be re-recorded and some game manuals were printed with the wrong name.
• 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.