When does Halo Wars 2 take place? Here’s what we know

Apr 14, 2022

Reading time: 2 min

The second outing for Halo RTS series Halo Wars takes place many years out from the original Halo game, but when exactly does Halo Wars 2 take place?

Halo Wars 2 follows the story of the UNSC Spirit of Fire and introduces the Banished faction, who would go on to be the central antagonists in Halo Infinite. The game follows the crew of the Spirit of Fire, which has been declared Lost With All Hands after being set adrift in space for 28 years. The game begins with the Spirit of Fire finding itself at the Ark, a Forerunner Installation that can create Halo rings.

When does Halo Wars 2 take place?

Halo Wars takes place in the year 2559, 28 years after the events of the first Halo Wars game and in the immediate aftermath of Halo 5: Guardians. The crew awakes from cryogenic sleep with no shipboard AI and in an unknown universe. In the time between the first game and its sequel, the Halo universe evolves in many ways.

Two years ago, the UNSC Spirit of Fire called on all units to fight in a campaign against Atriox and the Banished on the Ark. Happy Birthday, Halo Wars 2! pic.twitter.com/7mfkMZNylO
— Halo (@Halo) February 21, 2019

What happens in Halo Wars 2?

By the time the Spirit of Fire finds itself at the Ark, the war between the Covenant and Humanity has ended after the death of the Prophets. The crew of the Spirit of Fire are unaware of this development as Halo Wars 2 begins and investigates a UNSC signal coming from the surface of the Ark. This turns out to be a UNSC AI named Isabel, who relays that a Covenant splinter force called the Banished led by a Brute named Atriox have taken over the Ark.

Through a series of conflicts with the Banished, the UNSC forces use the ark to create a Halo ring for the purposes of slip-space travel. The ship’s professor goes with it to try and aid the Spirit of Fire in being able to navigate back to UNSC territory from their unknown position. In a post-credits scene, the Halo ring is halted by the appearance of a Forerunner Guardian.