343 Industries has brought something truly fresh to the Halo universe. Just recently, 343 industries dropped yet another #FictionFriday segment of their Halo lore and it is monumental. The story revolves around Dham ‘Mashatt, a Covenant warrior who apparently has murdered his superior officer—an Unggoy named Bibjam who was switching sides to the Swords of Sanghelios with the help of Grunt—who was a traitor. After all that, ‘Mashatt was arrested on Genesis, befriended 031 Exuberant Witness (remember her from Halo 5?) and considered taking up the role of a protector of the shield world. What a ride, huh?
What is really controversial now is the whole “Elite having a Grunt as a squad leader” situation. Like, isn’t this something that has always been part of the Covenant hierarchy? It is a well-known fact that most of the time the Elites are in charge, while the Grunts are just, well, the cannon fodder who occupy the lowest level of the hierarchy. This new lore fact is really dividing the Halo community.
One gamer very clearly asked “@Halo An elite had a grunt squad leader…?” and truly? That is the inquiry that baffles everyone. It does not sound so strange for the Covenant structure we have been acquainted with over the years. Still, a few lore experts immediately came forth to state that it is not entirely impossible. A user going by the moniker Noble the Mechanic mentioned Stolt—the colossal Grunt who is reportedly close to six feet and is in charge of all the rangers on the Shadow of Intent ship, even Elites. And what’s even more incredible—Stolt purportedly fought a Spartan II in hand-to-hand combat and came out on top. So does it mean that some of the Grunts are extraordinary?
However, there are not many who support the new lore. Some of the players brand it “so goddamn stupid” and are pretty much saying that 343 is using ludicrous writing. One person even called it a “DEI Hire” which is, well, that’s a point of view. Responses are completely varied, while some players express their gratitude to the lore expansion, others dismiss it as a bunch of nonsense.
On the other hand, there are players who are just confused about where all this is heading. One person wrote, “Can’t wait for some lore junkies to reword and pad this exact text blurb to make it sound like a deeper part of the plot even though it adds nothing and will go nowhere.” This is pretty harsh but you have to at least partially agree—Halo’s storyline has definitely become quite elaborate through the years.
Next, there is the connection with Exuberant Witness. For those who may not remember, she was the young AI from Halo 5: Guardians who assisted Chief in Genesis. Now, the story is telling us she made a friendship with the Elite who became a guardian? It is quite nice to see how 343 is still revealing the details of that era, even though the Halo Infinite storyline has already moved the story forward.
What is even more amusing is that some players have completely given up on the lore drops and only demand real game content. “@Halo Where’s the new campaign?” one person asked, which honestly? Total mood. The Halo community has been waiting for new multiplayer content for what appears to be an eternity, and what they get instead are minor lore releases that most players don’t even know the characters involved.
But you know what? That’s exactly what Halo is all about—the universe is so vast that for another person, every tiny detail matters. Some players are whining about the writing quality, while others are happy with the story and are asking for more character returns. One even tweeted “@Halo Chak ‘Lok & Jega ‘Rdomnai for ONE MORE GAME” indicating that even the newest villains from Infinite have their followers.
The whole story of Dham ‘Mashatt and the deserter Grunt Bibjam does open up some interesting questions regarding the post-Covenant universe. The previous hierarchy is no longer in place, could it be that we are observing the rise of the new power dynamics? The ruling class of the Covenant, the Prophets, had always enforced the rigid caste system but without them, maybe the change in the Covenant is more profound and varied than what we anticipate.
However, one cannot help but wonder if 343 is actually making up the story as they go along. A gamer went as far as to accuse them “Yall definitely just came up with that this morning” and honestly? With some of the lore drops feeling so random it is hard not to understand their point of view.
In the end, the entire Halo expanded universe has always been a mix of great imagination and… questionable choices. Do you remember the confusion that Halo 5’s story caused all? Yes. Thus, these little #PlayStation and Xbox tags
