Reconciliation Era

"Yet it is true that we have our place in the stars, and our place in the galaxy's history. The Great War could not extinguish us, and we have now spread further than ever before. Yet now, caught in the aftershock of a collapsing empire, we are taking our greatest steps into the unknown yet. Our harsh first contact was the traumatic sunset of our childhood dreams, and now, after that dark and dreadful night, we have finally reached the dawn of a new day. Like any new day, it will bring with it change, which terrifies us; for it is one of our most primal urges to cling onto the status quo. But the sooner we realize the inevitability of that change, the more content we will be. For being alive to experience it is a luxury granted to a select few of us."

- Martian celebrity sociologist and author Ald Olivares, 2564

The Reconciliation Era covers events following The Great War era, i.e. the Human-Covenant War. To the former Covenant, this is a time marked by soul-searching and strife after the loss of High Charity and the breaking of the Writ of Union in the Great Schism, and indeed the early decades are known to some as the Sundering Days. It is also a period of new opportunities for those willing to seize them, and is characterized by technological, societal and religious diversification within the Covenant Sphere. To humanity, it is a time of relief for the first time in decades, yet even as the Covenant threat fades away, their shadow looms large upon the ashen ruins of Man's nascent empire. The end of the war is only the beginning of a long and arduous period of reconstruction, resettlement and reconciliation.

For humanity, the period of time that immediately followed the war was known generally as the Years of Disquiet, and was characterized by widespread uncertainty, disbelief over the war's end, as well as the looming risk of a Covenant resurgence, the Sangheili alliance falling apart, or a full-fledged Sangheili occupation of the human sphere. The latter fears were largely alleviated by the Concord of Reconciliation establishing itself on a foundation of a truce with the UNSC, as well as treaties between the UNSC and the Concord over the course of the 2550s further defining the two polities' standing relative to one another. By the 2560s, the climate of apprehension gradually gave way for a more hopeful outlook as the UNSC and the Phoenix Initiative took further strides to rebuild and reestablish themselves.

To view all of the era pages, see Timeline.

2553

 * January 12: The Arbiter returns to Earth aboard the fore half of the Forward Unto Dawn. He, along with Rtas 'Vadum and other allied commanders, would spend the next two months consolidating ex-Covenant forces within the human sphere, making alliances, fighting remaining Truth loyalists, and securing key locations such as the Onyx debris field and Installation 04's wreckage.


 * February 2: the formation of the Concord of Reconciliation is ratified by the Singular Bond, a pact among a collection of Sangheili commanders allied with Thel 'Vadam and Rtas 'Vadum.


 * February 5: Operation: FORTRESS SIEGE begins. The Epsilon Eridani system is retaken in the first major action after the Battle of the Ark. This results in a Concord/UNSC victory and the death of one of the Brute Warmasters operating in UNSC territory. In the aftermath, the UNSC is left in control of the system and begins its resettlement.


 * February 24: the Treaty of Luna is signed by the Concord and the leadership of the UNSC and token representatives of the UEG. This marks what is often considered the official end of the Human-Covenant War.


 * March 3: The Voi Memorial ceremony commences. The Arbiter and Rtas 'Vadum depart for Sanghelios aboard the Shadow of Intent.


 * April 6: The Shadow of Intent arrives at Sanghelios.

2554

 * The first Grand Council of the Concord is convened by the Concord in tenuous cooperation with the self-declared Covenant government-in-exile at the Strewn Shore, beginning an uneasy and at times vague alliance between the two polities. The most notable result of the convocation is the formal revocation of the previous Hierarch triumvirate's legitimacy and the declaration of the anathema issued on humanity as invalid. While many would defer to the Council's ruling, opponents of the Arbiter's coalition would view it as a mere charade.


 * For much of 2554 and early 2555, the conflict between the Concord and the Jiralhanae loyalists is at a stalemate. The two sides play cat-and-mouse, trading a lot of territory but not fighting decisive battles. Each side has forces tied down defending major strategic bases (Sol system, Epsilon Eridani, Alpha Halo, Tempest crossing) and not much to spare for an offensive push. So the best they can do is to bait each other into a set-piece battle, which finally happens over Alpha Halo.


 * A group of Dokabs calling themselves the Keepers of the One Freedom splinters from the overall movement of Jiralhanae Covenant loyalists largely located within human space and the crossing regions. The Keepers call for a religious and political reformation, declaring independence from the Prophets' rule and notably being the first major Jiralhanae-led group to abandon the crusade against humanity. This is notable, as the overall loyalists still derive their legitimacy from their obedience to the Prophets' will. While the Keepers do no initially represent a significant force, they do mark the beginning of a trend of Jiralhanae straying from Truth's teachings.

2555

 * May: A Concord-UNSC joint flotilla and the Jiralhanae loyalists clash over the wreckage of Alpha Halo.

2557

 * By 2557, the Jiralhanae-led Covenant loyalists have been mostly pushed out of UNSC territory, only retaining some footholds in the abandoned systems of Sector 2. Wolfpacks and privateers still prowl UNSC territory, but the UNSC and the Phoenix Initiative are largely free to operate. From this point on, the Great Schism is mostly fought outside UNSC territory; the fighting continues to rage within the galactic spinward side of Covenant space, though the tenuous alliance of Truth-loyalist Jiralhanae master-packs begins to show signs of breaking.

2558

 * The Phoenix Initiative's Slipnet FTL communications project is launched.

2559

 * A very large Covenant loyalist fleet, led by a trio of Jiralhanae Warmasters, departs from Brute territory toward UNSC territory with a mandate to reclaim the Voi Portal. This fleet numbers about 500 capital ships, and could steamroll the UNSC and Concord forces left in UNSC territory. It is intercepted and destroyed by a joint Concord-UNSC fleet before it can reach the route to Ingress Zone Charlie.


 * Zhoist, a major industrial center and reliquary held by the Jiralhanae loyalists, is retaken by the Concord.

2560s
By the 2560s, the UNSC has begun to regain some of its military power, and the Phoenix Initiative's resettlement plans are fully in action. With the Covenant loyalists driven back to the Covenant sphere, the UNSC is able to reestablish itself within the Local Bubble.

2561

 * The Jiralhanae Chieftain Lydus, representing a prominent master-pack, agrees to a truce with the Concord in order to maintain some degree of autonomy, which is seen by many as a turning point in the Great Schism. Several Chieftains follow Lydus' example over the coming years.

2565

 * By the mid-2560s, the unified Jiralhanae front has effectively been broken, and Concord-aligned forces have assumed control of the Covenant's spinward domains. The Jiralhanae have splintered into individual chiefdoms, and though some continue their fight against the Sangheili, many have lost their will to continue the war.

2570s

 * The Concord and its satellite polities are embroiled in various political and military conflicts following the breaking of the Jiralhanae loyalists; this period is generally known as the Blooding Years, or the Tribulations.


 * Jul 'Mdama emerges as a major warlord opposed to the Arbiter's rule.


 * By this point, all major worlds in the human sphere have been linked into the commercial Slipnet, the Phoenix Initiative's faster-than-light communications network.


 * With the UNSC's reconstruction and rearmament efforts yielding tangible results, and unrest mounting within Covenant space, several Concord-aligned flotillas begin to withdraw from human space, though a presence is retained at the Joint-Occupation Zones and key ingress corridors.


 * By the second later of the 2570s, the peripheral effects of the Blooding Years begin to be felt in the Human Sphere. As some elements of the Concord begin to splinter off over political differences, a number of (predominantly Sangheili) warlords opposed to the Arbiter's policy of peace with the UNSC begin to stage invasions on human colonies, with a particular interest on Forerunner reliquaries within human space; their ultimate goal is generally seen to be the Voi Excession, though by this point strategists consider a second invasion of Earth unlikely. Still, this development heightens tensions and leads to resurgent militarization and re-arming for the UNSC, while testing the loyalties of Concord commanders still operating in the Human Sphere.

2580s
The Excession Conflict comes to a head with the Siege of Earth. The UNSC is forced to retreat from the Sol system and the New Diaspora begins. Subsequent failures at attempting to retake the system dissuade further attempts for years, resulting in a years-long stalemate between the UNSC and Jul 'Mdama's forces. The UNSC's focal point shifts increasingly toward the Aquila- and Cygnus-side colonies.