Master Chiefs Rank - Lore and Theory

[@Lewis-xd4bm]

I’ll try again, hope those oni censorship people can’t get here in time... ETA on most detailed halo ring, release date?

[@Stratonetic]

"This medium has licence to defend itself. Make your decisions accordingly."

[@sunflowersumo5676]

I second this

[@thatrandomeliteultra1158]

Those damn O.N.I. government censorship.

[@Installation00]

01000001 01101110 01100100 00100000 01001001 00100000 01110111 01101001 01101100 01101100 00100000 01110100 01110010 01111001 00100000 01110010 01100101 01110011 01110000 01101111 01101110 01100100 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01100001 01100111 01100001 01101001 01101110 00101110 00001010 00001010 01001001 01110100 00100000 01110111 01101001 01101100 01101100 00100000 01100010 01100101 00100000 01110010 01100101 01101100 01100101 01100001 01110011 01100101 01100100 01011011 01010010 01000101 01000100 01000001 01000011 01010100 01000101 01000100 01011101 00001010 00101111 00101111 00101101 00101101 00001010 01000011 01001111 01000100 01000101 00100000 01010111 01001111 01010010 01000100 00100000 01000100 01000101 01010100 01000101 01000011 01010100 01000101 01000100 00001010 01010100 01001000 01001001 01010011 00100000 01001111 01010010 01000111 01000001 01001110 01001001 01000011 00100000 01001001 01010011 00100000 01000010 01000101 01000011 01001111 01001101 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01000001 00100000 01010000 01010010 01001111 01000010 01001100 01000101 01001101 00001010 01001001 01001110 01000110 01001001 01001100 01010100 01010010 01000001 01010100 01001001 01001111 01001110 00100000 01000011 01001111 01001101 01010000 01001100 01000101 01010100 01000101 00101110 00100000 00001010 01001000 01001111 01010011 01010100 01001001 01001100 00100000 01010100 01000001 01001011 01000101 01001111 01010110 01000101 01010010 00100000 01010000 01000101 01001110 01000100 01001001 01001110 01000111 00101110 00001010 01010000 01010010 01001111 01010100 01001111 01000011 01001111 01001100 00100000 01001101 01010101 01010011 01010100 00100000 01000010 01000101 00100000 01000001 01000010 01001001 01000100 01000101 01000100 00100001 00100000 00001010 00101101 00101101 00101111 00101111

[@c.d.x34]

@@Installation00 The fact that, that pile of binary actually translates to something that makes sense, is fantastic.

[@TheRealGuywithoutaMustache]

Chief is quite literally the physical manifestation of the word "badass"

[@ThatOneGuy-iv9sn]

Just Some Guy without a Mustache you are every where and very correct

[@seanmcgrath3826]

You are correct sir; the only other character who comes close is the Doomslayer

[@aegyobot1923]

reddit comment right here

[@thechadcruzaider7864]

@@seanmcgrath3826 Doomslayer is badass given form

[@seanmcgrath3826]

@@thechadcruzaider7864 Doomslayer & Master Chief as a duo would be utterly unstoppable

[@brodyman30]

Growing up my dad was in the army. And in 2008 he became a Chief Warrant Officer. And the few times I went to work with him I was blown away at the fact that everyone in his unit called him "Chief" which made a 8 year old me very excited and happy.

[@Hiihtopipa]

I remember going to my dad's work too! He was a captain at that stage.

[@lo-rez]

CWO is pretty neat. Each one I've met has been down-to-earth, and I loved calling them "Chief" (technically you'd call them "Mr./Ms. X", but "Chief" is acceptable as well).

[@Stratonetic]

"You will be the defender of Earth and all of her colonies"

[@nobleactual7109]

I'd give it a like but you are at 117

[@cypherpillar9009]

Shit gives me chills

[@dustindubbo2892]

“Maybe just now Earth and a few colonies, got a bit of a glassing problem that came up.”

[@CaseyCollier]

Question: Why does Master Chief not have the prisoner of war medallion? Answer: Because he simply doesn't get captured... ever.

[@peternash7104]

Prophet of Truth: We finnally got him surrounded. You were a fool to stay aboard the High Charity without any backup. Now you can watch your planet get glassed. MC: I'm not locked in here with you, you're locked in here with me. Prophet of Truth: (5 minutes later) Open the airlocks and yeet the Demon out of here.

[@CaseyCollier]

@@peternash7104 Master Chief gets chained in a cell aboard High Charity... Chief: "These chains and doors are only a minor inconvenience on my path towards killing your leadership. Prepare yourselves for defeat..."

[@isaachinds3736]

Technically Cortana briefly captured him and Blue team in a cryptum before Osiris broke them out.

[@CaseyCollier]

@@isaachinds3736 We don't talk about Halo 5's story though... That was B.S.

[@mrbreck1]

Gravemind captured chief.

[@kakarotlifted7302]

He is like the Alexander The Great of the Navy's NCOs. Imagine a King that fights his own battles. Wouldn't that be a sight! -Achilles, Troy(2004)

[@whisperedflame6952]

It’s crazy to think that John got his rank of Master Chief at only the age of 15. Not only that, but he jumped 4 positions in his promotion. He was determined to prove he could hold it, even if he didn’t truly ‘earn it.’

[@Otterdisappointment]

He’s like every 9 year old COD player’s fantasy of how they’d do in the military

[@whisperedflame6952]

Basilisk 😂

[@seanmcgrath3826]

@@Otterdisappointment Sounds like my youngest nephew

[@0XIIIIII]

@@Otterdisappointment except those 9 year Olds die like 800 times and say "they are beast"

[@omni-man.2929]

He fully sent it

[@TheStrayHALOMAN]

136 campaigns… Halo 136 confirmed!

[@alexmiller1175]

That's actually an awesome idea. A halo game that follows Master Chief throughout the Human-Covenant War, through these 136 engagements, culminating with the flight from reach.

[@snowfox8028]

@@alexmiller1175 Wouldn't it be pre covenant war to?

[@ulty1472]

Snow Fox he took on one pre-covie war mission

[@holicekaderliiii6787]

In Halo Escalation issue #8 Admiral Terrance Hood speeks to John, "You're home now. We could finally make an officer of you. You'd have Admiral without much of an argument from anyone." Johns response... priceless," No offense sir, but "The Admiral" doesn't have quite the same ring to it."

[@omarcortez9394]

Is this why he is not an officer ? He just keeps turning it down?

[@holicekaderliiii6787]

@@omarcortez9394 I think he just doesn't want a desk job.

[@beeman4266]

@@omarcortez9394 Yes. Although I don't know why he couldn't be a commander. Master chief petty officer is technically the highest enlisted rank in the UNSC so he couldn't be promoted any higher and still fight. But Jerome is a commander and still fighting along with Fred. But then again John is THE Master Chief and it wouldn't feel right to hear Commander John 117 so.. that's probably why they keep him as a Master Chief.

[@jetttokiwa]

"They are often referred to as Top Chief by crew out of respect for John 117" *That's right...they don't want no smoke from The Chief*

[@QixTheDS]

The God Damn Master Chief to refer to him officially.

[@hiddendesire3076]

One thing I always found a bit off. Halo 4 and Halo 5 we see Chief as standing taller than Spartan IV’s, but in game in the few instances we are near them, the height is often adjusted to where they stand as an equal in height.

[@thezucc2927]

I'd say that's mostly due to 4's engine being made for both the campaign and multiplayer. They may have just not adjusted the first person camera to be "higher" on the scale.

[@camerongooch9606]

Its was just a giant fuck up by the cgi developers. John is 7,2 in his armour 3s and 4s are between 6,9 to 7 feet tall in armour so not a huge difference between the two. Jorge in reach towered over his spartan 3 teamates because he was 7,4 so he had a bit more height. The game developers used the spartan 4 in game model for masterchef so he was a bit shorter in game and he was dramatically oversized in the cut scenes especially in 4. Hope that answers your questions.

[@hiddendesire3076]

Cameron Gooch E’yup, fully answers it.

[@mrbreck1]

I put the chief being so much bigger at end down to what the librarian did to him, looked like he was outgrowing his armor in some places, the black undersuit was more pronounced on chief than the other spartans and he does change his armor between games on occasion.

[@jasonreimann6791]

Cameron Gooch hey bro, nice gooch 👍

[@OutspokenSeeker]

I know technically he has to go to officers school to achieve a higher rank, since he's pretty much the poster boy of the entire (good) Spartan programs successes, and being the unofficial leader of all Spartan II's in the field, it's safe to say that he's certainly qualified for the positions in reality, if not technically. Palmer gets her bloody promotion handed to her on a shiny plate and she still only knows how to use Spartan IV's as standard infantry. At least Carter was a solid commander, and Fred is one of the most decorated II's behind chief.

[@icyknightmare4592]

Well, Palmer was an ODST. ODSTs aren't the most versatile or creative bunch.

[@skullking2247]

@@icyknightmare4592 tell that to the rookie

[@cheeseballgooberpants3591]

Skull King And Buck don’t forget Buck!

[@OutspokenSeeker]

@@icyknightmare4592 The others are right, Buck has shown significantly more charisma and leadership qualities than Palmer. There were plenty of better choices for leading an entire generation of Spartans anyways, not some trigger happy trooper who uses special forces in marine roles. Why not even select a II, or a III to act as the head of the IV's?

[@icyknightmare4592]

@@OutspokenSeeker You're right, a II would have been a better pick for leadership if the IVs were to actually become Spartans. A better way to say it would be that the IVs lack the finesse of earlier generations. They have the augmentations and the armor, but not the mentality. Osiris is a stand out team, same as Noble was, and a clear cut above the average of their generation. Buck or Jun would do just fine if a II couldn't take over.

[@Ikcatcher]

My friend who just started Halo was left surprised when I told him Master Chief is an actual navy rank and isn’t just a badass name for John

[@Gabriel_the_Shemite]

LOL. When I first joined ROTC, I was surprised when heard my XO was called Master Chief. I was like "You mean the guy from Halo, HE'S HERE!?"

[@SovietTricycle]

Fun fact: the requirements to become a Chief Petty Officer is 1 DUI, Article 134, and Banging the new check in. You need 2 out of the 3 in order to qualify and to be selected for board.

[@vongoliablue]

Damn hearing master chief of the Navy gave me goosebumps .

[@BlackEpyon]

It makes sense, given that he's treated with such reverence that even admirals listen to what he as to say.

[@Skylancer727]

Almost as much as the character you account is named after. XD

[@BlackEpyon]

@@Skylancer727 I don't know, I think Wing Zero was more popular than Epyon. It's got more of a "Dark Knight" feel to it.

[@Skylancer727]

@@BlackEpyon I was talking about Lelouch V Britainia. Basically the antithesis of morally grey monster. Basically killed his entire family and himself just for his youngest sister to not live in the shadows of a morally bankrupt world. F*ck.

[@adamharvey8444]

@@Skylancer727 ALL HAIL LELOUCH

[@cryptosporidium1375]

He holds the highest authority for every spartan two since Kurt died.

[@mrbreck1]

Master chief of the navy is a three star billet iirc, army sgt major of army iirc is a 2 star billet but i could have that backwards.

[@TheDude2552]

What about serin osman?

[@bagochips834]

Fred technically holds the highest rank as a 2nd Lieutenant, but he usually abdicates command to John, because John is unofficially-officially in charge of all Spartan IIs.

[@TheDude2552]

Isn’t osman an admiral considering she’s in charge of ONI

[@bagochips834]

@@TheDude2552 she washed out due to her body rejecting the augmentations, so she doesn't really count.

[@unscsniperjun6417]

Next video “how rich is master chief”

[@MarkoDash]

probably quite a bit, he's bit serving a long time and never spends any of it.

[@lilsammich8252]

If you count the armor and the money put into his body he is a billionaire.

[@seancassell3778]

Whatever it is, it is not enough, uncountable.

[@venkatkiran91]

Is he even paid? Considering the navy basically owns him.

[@Blin240]

Yes pls

[@andrewhall6524]

I feel bad for the one guy who accidentally hit the dislike button

[@cia387]

Yea

[@Installation00]

We'll win him over, eventually.

[@cia387]

@@Installation00 hi my man

[@Installation00]

@@cia387 hows it going?

[@lil_vault_boy]

@@Installation00 was just wondering what do you think will become of odst's if the majority of them became spartan iv's

[@DefensorMilitas]

Wow. Can't believe I never caught that John was MCPON

[@oneal3224]

My guess? Oni or some other propaganda piece gave the Chief the rank "Chief Petty Officer of The Navy" immediately after he went MIA in halo 3 to make him a propaganda piece for the navy.

[@Skylancer727]

Probably. Gives them something to parade about and write in the history books. Especially since Chief is basically one of their loose ends being a still living Spartan. Gives them something more to talk about and makes his history book place more impressive sounding.

[@Otterdisappointment]

“The only international organization the world could rely on” (UN)involved in inter-planetary peace

[@Synthmilk]

Look up the number of times U.N. military intervention was vetoed by the various members of the Security Council and you'll notice it's not really the U.N. that's ineffectual as a whole, it's two countries in particular which are sabotaging it from within.

[@grahamrich9956]

@@Synthmilk Also look up Dag Hammarskjöld if you want to know the other side of why the UN isn't more powerful today, especially when it comes to furthering peace.

[@Zenlore6499]

“The player is canon.” Are our Spartans not in control of their actions?

[@Callsign_Bear]

By that I think he meant that our Spartans actually exist in universe. That *WE* are the Spartans.

[@jansenrosa7062]

Conspiracy theory: was that glitch and other sound shortly afterward O.N.I trying do hack Installation 00's video?

[@SpartanFlyboy]

It’s possible Hood promoted John from MCPO to MCPOotN during the Cairo Station cutscene in Halo 2. We don’t see John actually receive an award, and during that time when John should be getting mentioned, we see the arbiter stripped of rank and humiliated. Given the exact opposites of the rest of the cutscene it fits the form of the cutscene. I think this also fits because, at the time, ONI was really trying to milk John and the rest of the Spartan II’s badassery for a morale boost. As one of the jobs of the MCPOotN is public and naval relations, his promotion and involvement with the MCPOotN office allows ONI Section II greater ability to use him as a tool for morale. I considered it, but don’t think it’s likely that John was awarded MCPOotN posthumously because 1) the rank needs to be inhabited by living person to fulfill its duties and unless the current MCPOotN was retiring and the command staff took the time to promote a “dead” person and then someone else and 2) The promotion of a person who is likely not living screws with ONI section II’s morale campaign concerning the Spartan IIs. Their entire messaging campaign of “Spartan’s Never Die” instantly melts away with the posthumous elevation of John to the office only to have someone else take his place. Whereas it’s a lot simpler to reassign the office away from an NCO listed as MIA.

[@ThatsTuff888]

Can you do a detailed breakdown of the thrusters in the suit of halo 5 please

[@akiranakahara7569]

I agree. I wanna know the fundamentals for the thrusters and their history in regards to being apart of Mjolnir

[@rurutherussian]

Glad he stopped with the “hi my freaky darlings thing” lol

[@acrustykrab]

Yeah those intros are annoying, so many people try. Or hey guys it's

[@lilsammich8252]

But i liked being a freaky darling. Nicest thing anyone tells me anymore.

[@seanmcgrath3826]

@@lilsammich8252 I liked it too. Reminded me of an old GF who used to call me that (because it's true, in my case)

[@Jedi_Spartan]

Weird how the rank of Master Chief sounds much more badass and high ranking/commanding than it actually it.

[@Tottleminerftw]

Didn't hood try to promote him to admiral

[@isaachinds3736]

Yeah in Halo escalation he refused because it doesn't have the same ring to it and it would distance him from the frontlines.

[@maikson97]

yes

[@cyqry]

@@isaachinds3736 "I don't think that 'The Admiral' has quite the same ring to it, sir." "Was that a joke, Chief? I didn't think you had it in you" I'm surprised Hood didn't give him a standing order to never attempt humour again.

[@SchneeflockeMonsoon]

Daniel Heywood Of course he did. He just knew that he didn’t belong there. John-117 is a tactician of a team and of himself, and he knows his place is in the fire, not someone directing ships from afar and commanding the flames.

[@SchneeflockeMonsoon]

Daniel Heywood Of course he did. He just knew that he didn’t belong there. John-117 is a tactician of a team and of himself, and he knows his place is in the fire, not someone directing ships from afar and commanding the flames.

[@BigHeadClan]

I'm pretty sure the Rank awarded John at the end of Halo 3 was a postmortem promotion, within all of the written lore and even the games Chief is under the command of Captains and even Lt-Commanders leading up to said game. I suspect the promotion was a symbolic gesture as John who was thought to be dead would continue to inspire humanity and represent the potential greatness of the USNC.

[@xevinsjaegernaut1414]

If we are going to be technical all enlisted personnel are technically under all officers BUT enlisted as high as master chief or master chief of the navy have a lot more respect and depending on the officer are frequently treated as equals. Not to mention if a lowly ensign tried ordering around a master chief they'd likely get overwritten by their superiors.

[@BigHeadClan]

@@xevinsjaegernaut1414 True enough.

[@hikaru248x]

I get the impression that the rank of MCPON in the UNSC Navy is functionally similar to that of Fleet Admiral in the US Navy, just at the enlisted level. To elaborate a bit, the real-world rank of Fleet Admiral is a step above Admiral, which is the highest rank normally obtainable. Fleet Admirals are only appointed in wartime, with there only ever being four of them, all during WWII. The thing to note here is that "Fleet Admiral" is a separate, higher rank than "Admiral", with the paygrade of O-10. Based on S-117's interaction with other members of the UNSC Navy, the extensive authority often handed to him by the officers he is under the command of, and the points Installation00 made in this video, it would seem that the relationship between the rank of MCPON and that of "regular" master chiefs as being similar to that between Fleet Admirals and "regular" admirals, with MCPON being effectively the paygrade of E-10 in the UNSC Navy.

[@specialayden2588]

Hey, can you do a video covering all the different UNSC ship classes?

[@luisalmanza119]

I was so sad when Crowther died. His talk with the Chief about giving him the rank is one of my favorite moments of the expanded lore.

[@LockeTheChief]

It’s absolutely possible for John-117 to be the Master Chief of the Navy as of 2552 and beyond. I feel like at the scale of the UNSC the job of being the MC of the Navy will be much harder to do as one person, so it would only make sense for that rank to have more than one person occupying it in the future.

[@stonegiant4]

Ooh ooh I know this one! I just read halo: silent storm and he was given it by an admiral to cement his authority over the odst's he was working with.

[@basketcase289]

Hey us Civil Engineers got a shout out here with that International Society of Civil Engineers, also cant wait for that to be founded next year gonna start tailoring my resume right now

[@arcticbeak]

So ... how's the pay?

[@user-ks7tx2wb7y]

Halo 4s cut scene's were just gorgeous!

[@TheGeechman]

These are halo 2 cutsecens

[@TheGeechman]

Cutscenes

[@user-ks7tx2wb7y]

Miss the first minute and four seconds did you?

[@user-ks7tx2wb7y]

And 9:46 -11:20......also halo 4. I also like the halo 2 anniversary cutscenes the character models are amazing but in certain scenes the colours are a bit too vibrant for my tastes.

[@smalliesmalls9601]

Just color correct it yourself not too hard

[@camerongooch9606]

Your not Vsaurce 1 2 or 3 Your goddamnn installation00

[@AstolfoCh]

Vsauce00 Jokes aside, I absolutely love your in-depth analysis and dedication in your videos. Please please please keep it up.

[@thorshammer7883]

How would endgame crisis factions from Stellaris at full strength from a lore perspective instead of gameplay fair against Halo factions like the UNSC, Covenant, or Forerunners and Silentium era Flood?

[@RandomCommentDue]

A bit unrelated to Chief, but I noticed something on the Reach campaign while playing it. Kat in the glassing of New Alexandria does not have her helmet on (only one in that scene without a helmet on) during the radiation spike of "40 million reotgens" before the glassing beam fires. So that likely means that Kat was dead well before the sniper killed her. Who actually probably was doing her a favor in that case.

[@thezucc2927]

When the glassing beam fires, Carter and Jun also don't have their helmets on until they get in the elevators. If we're going by your logic, then they would've died as well from radiation poisoning, before Carter actually died and Jun disappeared until the Spartan IV program came into being. Along with that, the shielding of their MJOLNIR was disabled due to the radiation scrambling it as well. Any of them could've really died, but that's besides the point.

[@RandomCommentDue]

@@thezucc2927 Ah, in the cutscene it looked like she was the only one without a helmet. Also, Carter and Jun have their helmets on before they get in the elevator. Kat is the last to put it on.

[@Meravokas]

There isn't anything to say that she was getting readings from the datapad itself so much as sensors in the local region, she even says "Detecting local radiation spikes". Plus with the genetic alterations for Spartans, the DNA damage threshold before mitosis breakdown could be far higher. Detection technology could be well in advance of what have and allows detection from safer distances. And full radiation dosage is based on FULL body exposure and internal exposure from radioactive particulates. Plus the kind of radiation isn't mentioned. Not all radiation that's detectable in such quantity is directly deadly. Consider that the likely Radiation exposure of those in Hiroshima that survived within the blast radius due to building collapse keeping the heat of the blast wave from killing them would normally have been high enough to kill via exposure. Few of those people died from it. More people died from ingestion of the fallout laced rain afterwards in thirst.

[@eppersonamarey18]

Within in each military branch, there's job command position, for example John's job or role is spartan, most likely John holds the command position of Command Master Chief of Spartan's

[@thorshammer7883]

How many ships did the UNSC have before the Human-Covenant war and then after during Halo 4?

[@yulfine1688]

Not very many. Its hard to say as more this likely a couple hundred at most of various ships not including fighters...covenant was probably a few thousand to tens of thousands. But its entirely possible it was more.

[@patton3rd1]

It's estimated that there were around 2,000 warships in the UNSC Navy in 2525 (not including fighters and pelicans, etc). That estimate is based on the line of text in a Halo Reach data pad that said if the covenant fleet was the same size as the UNSC it would take the covenant 30 years to glass the entire surface of Earth given, 15 seconds per acre was needed to glass. 15 seconds per acre = 2.1 million acres per year per ship. X 2,000 ships = 30 years to reach the 126 billion acres of surface area of the earth.

[@Da__goat]

Video 117, on my birthday! One of my favorite KZbin channels!!! Amazing!!!

[@MaxwellAerialPhotography]

I think there is something else behind his rank. The Spartan-II’s were as much a propaganda tool as a war fighting tool, the rank of Master Chief would carry immense respect but no real authority, as even the highest ranked enlisted man is technically outranked by the lowest ranking officer. It was possibly a way for ONI and the navy to keep control of the public ally known Spartan-II’s while granting them immense prestige and public recognition.

[@Zimzilla99]

Technically ain’t Chief way higher but just kept the name cause of the ring the name had.

[@BigHeadClan]

Chief is a Non commissioned Officer as such there is a limit to how high a rank he can achieve, to actually advance farther in rank he would need to attend officers school.

[@Anime-117]

Correct, in current standards he is just an E-9 I believe Edit: Indeed an Enlisted Grade 9, nice rank

[@imperiumgrim4717]

@@BigHeadClan basically a specialist rank or a warrant officer

[@phoenixjones7191]

@@Anime-117 "just" an E 9. The majority of the current navy is below e4 and e5. An E 9 is some serious shit. After that it's admirals. Not many people can tell chief what to do lol.

[@BigHeadClan]

@@Anime-117 Glad I remember my facts correctly had looked that up about 10 years ago when researching my Grandfathers rank from WW2. Hah

[@uwu_commrade1682]

It would be really cool if they made a special rank just for him as sort of the actual leader of any and all spartan fireteams and squads like an admiral type position. Even though I know the cheif would never be able to not be in the field it would be epic to see him as getting the recognition he actually deserves

[@mrmachinickho5591]

S4 cmdr Sarah palmer is CO of all Spartans on board the unsc infinity. Think she was a LT in the Marines before being drafted into the S4 program. John had no problem addressing her as mdm or cmdr, but I guess everyone on S deck knows who is the top dog

[@silvervalkiri920]

I'm writing my own sci fi universe atm and watching your videos makes me go back and rethink all my ship designs and such. I have a lot planes that turn into mechs. I think if you expand from Halo. Please, try Macross and Robotech. They've been left in the past but I really think you could help save them :)

[@SchneeflockeMonsoon]

John 117 will never die, or at least... never be allowed to be confirmed as dead. When he does pass, ONI will make a statement that he was last seen in crypostasis and MIA when the ship was lost in slip space. They’ll keep the myth alive that he might come back... one day.

[@thesurvivalist.]

Served in 30 year, and still had the body of a man in his 20's

[@darkguardian1314]

Should cover why Spartan II were kept at low enlisted ranks except Fred and he was a Lt.

[@clothar23]

One could argue that until Gen IVs the Spartans weren't actually enlisted soldiers or even part of the military at all. So any rank given to them is likely either a courtesy or to help facilitate their integration into UNSC hierarchy.

[@Meravokas]

He certainly doesn't get treated to his rank upon his return to the UNSC in Halo 4 if it stays similar in equivocal ranking amongst commissioned officers, I'll say that much... Admiral what's his nuts on the Infinity treats John like last years trash.

[@ElementttH2H]

Former Captain Del Rio, and honestly that is correct, and the Model IV's (I am not calling them Spartan IV's till they get their shit together and stow it) also don't give him the proper respect either to his Rank, Title or Experience and Abilities, and as MCPON he can shitcan a lot of them from higher ranks for not only endangering themselves, but others for not properly wearing their equipment, and not giving the position they are in, proper respect and dignity. If they wish to be Spartans, they have to act like it, not whinging brats, and certainly not like a bunch of hotshots with superiority complexes just because they have Spartan Armor, Weapons, and rank.

[@Meravokas]

@@ElementttH2H Palmer eventually showed it. And of course Lasky had a profound respect for him because of past events. But the reason Chief went along with Palmer is because she was the commander of the detachment. To John, rank or not. Command was Command. Hence why in many cases, John and Johnson happily swapped control of ground command in the first three games, if not John deferring to Johnson. But When Del Rio showed zero respect and insulted him to no end, he went against him at every opportunity.

[@ElementttH2H]

@@Meravokas She did, but it took entirely too damn long, if you're a Military Officer, Enlisted, NCO or CO than you should give others respect as you wish it, because thats the fastest way to have your men and women under you, hate your guts and disobey orders more and more, I'd have to agree with Halsey's assessment and 00's that the Model IV's are hardly Spartans, more Augmented and Enhanced Marines and ODST's with a hotshot personality, only a good handful truly have the bearing and dignity of a Spartan, and those few are rare and few in number.included in that is the fact they aren't even understanding their Armor, Weapons, and other info, or learning more about as much as possible in downtime, makes them hardly competent with what they have been given. Spartan II's read everything from History, Culture Philosophy, Field and Maintenance Manuals all the way to even some Scientific Theories, relating and pertaining to their field roles, and a large encompassing amount of other records to both field tests, battle worthiness reports, tactics, strategy, logistics protocol, sub protocol, and anything they can find that is needed for the time, or even not needed than. that and 30 some odd years experience, training, understanding of themselves, their team mates, all the way to when and how to use weapons, in every way they can, without killing themselves or others, means they have know how, intelligence, wisdom, practice and experience, whereas most Model IV's can hardly even say they have even a breadth of the same, hell even the Spartan III's who were fire and forget suicide Companies of men and women given improper armor, armament and training were more effective as Spartans than a IV is, and there are only maybe 30, maybe 45 left from all Companies, Alpha, Beta and Gamma and any that were Headhunters

[@cheeseballgooberpants3591]

Lady Samantha Aren’t the surviving Spartan lll’s mostly from Gamma company?

[@cheeseballgooberpants3591]

Lady Samantha And I agree that the lV’s are just hotshot marines that think title spartan makes them invincible and the few that are, are few in the lV’s program

[@fakeking4931]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the reason he was stuck as Master chief was that he wasn't technically part of the UNSC or something. The fact that spartans II are kidnaped children and not enlisted when coming to age played a part in that. Not to mention their existence is that of military personal only and not civilians. He could easily have had the rank of commander or something. This is what I remember from back in the days of Halo 3 and I could pretty much be imagining this.

[@phoenixjones7191]

No I don't think you're imagining it. I read once but can't recall now that the Spartan program had a different command structure. Today spec ops fall under the same command structure. In any case chief had seniority over every Spartan by respect. Frank actually outranks him technically but deferred to him during combat.

[@lightfootjpauls]

Master Chief could have been Comand Master Chief, an honorary rank inside a command, such as a ship, when each department should have a Master Chief. Command Master Chief (CMC) should be the most senior MCPO in the command, hence John could be the CMC of the SPARTAN IIs. After Halo 3, he could have recieved a posthumous (assumed) promotion to MCPON.

[@kanoreese1253]

Though some Spartans have a higher rank than MC, he is the defacto leader of all Spartans.

[@JGooden762]

I never noticed the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy connection before. It's strange that a MCON would be so involved in combat, but given the needs of the UNSC at the time, it makes sense. It would be a very symbolic move to give the MCON position to such a front-line soldier. Makes a lot of sense and makes Master Chief that much more significant.

[@ianbirge8269]

I doubt that given Master Chief's very active role in front-line combat, that he would perform the "normal" duties associated with MC of the Navy. I think it is more so that the rank is answerable only to very high authority in the Navy, while also not being an actual officer rank, limiting his authority over other naval personnel.

[@PackHunter117]

Why would a Spartan 4 get that rank instead of a surviving Spartan 2?

[@earnestbrown6524]

Because you are just about the only Spartan 4 that is competent and not a dick.

[@lilsammich8252]

The Spartan 4 was like John117. A badass before the enhancements is my guess.

[@PackHunter117]

Earnest Brown So? What about Kelly, Linda, Fred, Jerome, or the other Spartan 2s?

[@lostinYourReality]

PackHunter117 corruption, politics. As someone who’s serving, the military isn’t all about logic or what makes the most sense most of the time.

[@PackHunter117]

lostinYourReality Ok fair enough

[@SakaraCoyfox]

That explains why hes able to completely disobey orders on occasion xD Also, does he have the Medal of Honor? Because, the cutscene at the end of Halo 4 has everyone saluting him, and in the modern military that is literally the only case in which an enlisted person would be saluted at all with the exception of an officer simply returning a salute (also worth noting that to the best of my knowledge, even if a buck private has the Medal of Honor, a 5 star general would have to salute them)

[@mrmachinickho5591]

Yes he does. In "fall of reach" doc halsey was helping Cortana choose her carrier spartan and when Cortana picked 117, Halsey noted that he got a MOH equivalent medal, "legion of honor" I think. However John dislikes wearing all the medals, and his dress uniform for the matter, but prefers wearing his MJ armour when on active duty

[@hitmon1265]

Didn't Hood offer to make the master chief a O-9 an admiral but refused from Halo Escalation issue # 8, here what hood said to chief and I quote " you're HOME now, we could finally make an OFFICER of you. You'd have ADMIRAL without much of an argument from anyone." but chief refused saying and I quote "No offense, sir, but "THE ADMIRAL" doesn't have quite the same ring to it". I'm surprised you didn't mention this.

[@shadowlessxpan]

I absolutely love Halo. I love the games, books and all the lore. I am also very proud of my Grandfather to have reached the rank of E9 in his career in the US Navy. Not a day goes by without thinking of him. To me, he was the Master Chief. Rest in peace Grandpa.

[@icekick1173]

Ive been watching a couple other halo KZbinrs and they dont quite compare you deserve a hyper accurate vector when it comes to lore

[@Ratkill9000]

If and when John retires from being a soldier, he's going to have one hell of a bank account. 30+ years and never takes any time off. He's set for life.

[@Qardo]

Issue is. Spartans never retire. Even in old age. A Spartan will die fighting. Dying of Old Age is a dishonor.

[@Ratkill9000]

@@Qardo Except with Maria. She did retire.

[@smalliesmalls9601]

Qardo Except for... I don’t know, the dozens that did... come on man

[@ramennight]

hu, does that mean in Halo 4 when Chief defies Andrew Del Rio, it not him ignoring a superior officer, but ignoring a lesser officer? As you said the rank was often equivalent to Vice or Read Admiral, and wasn't Del Rio only a captain? Or did I miss hear something?

[@ianbirge8269]

Not in hard rank, no. In terms of military courtesies, yes. Also to be considered is command position. Del Rio is most definitely the commanding officer of operations aboard Infinity and on Requiem. Lots of nuance to each situation.

[@ramennight]

@@ianbirge8269 ty

[@BlackEpyon]

@@ianbirge8269 It would effectively mean that while Del Rio could do what he wanted onboard Infinity, the one thing he could NOT do was order the Master Chief around. Also note that Del RIo lost command of the Infinity when he left the Master Chief behind.

[@mrmachinickho5591]

Del rio definitely out ranks John, but since S deck is a separate branch all by itself, and John being a war hero and all, he has what it takes to say "No" to delrio.

[@nataliecameron]

I just wanna see a couple of cutscenes of chief just chilling out at this point

[@SchneeflockeMonsoon]

Lord Hood: “How can we ever repay you?” John-117, Looks at Captain Del Rio: “What’s a rank higher than captain?” Lord Hood: “Ah, Colonel-?” John-117: “-Make me a Colonel.” Lord Hood: “Um, very well. You are hereby promoted to Colonel Master Chief.” John-117, Looks down on Del Rio: “You hear that Dirtbag? I outrank YOU!”

[@XxXIRoGuEIxX]

Army/Marine Colonel is the same as a Navy Captain. Make him and Admiral

[@SchneeflockeMonsoon]

Thomas You... you didn’t get the reference, did you?

[@XxXIRoGuEIxX]

@@SchneeflockeMonsoonah damn, maybe I didn't!

[@timdao9381]

red vs blue but still wrong branch.

[@stevenwright1829]

Did no one else catch that cortana line he used in the 4th minute? 😂

[@randomlyentertaining8287]

I know the video was about Chief but you used so much footage of her I gotta say, I still can't get over how gorgeous Miranda Keyes is in the Halo 2 Remaster.

[@LegatusLucius1994]

So is the Master Chief and sergeant major Avery Johnson basically the same rank but in different branches of the military?

[@Ideo7Z]

Basically yes. Though when he was made Master Chief of the Navy, his counterpart in the UNSC would be Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps.

[@mrmacguff1n]

Your goddamn right he's THE MASTER Chief

[@Railhog2102]

The Master Chief's heroic deeds mirror that of a US soldier named Audie Murphy who fought in World War II at one point holding off an entire German assault in Southern France solo which earned him the Medal Of Honor at the rank of Lieutenant despite being only 19 years old. He was with the 15th Infantry Regiment 3rd Infantry Division

[@wb8864]

Within the American Military, it is customary to posthumously promote those who die in a combat zone or combat operation. That may offer an explanation

[@MonkeyMakerMakesThings]

imagine saving humanity's ass more times than they can count, then not even recieve a medal

[@ShibaInuMochi]

Dude that would be monumental and blow my mind if by the end of Halo Infinite or Chief's end, he meets our personal Spartan in the end cutscene and commends him/her the rank of the next MCN.

[@jianxiongRaven]

would love to some cutscene in the game with the master chief in his regular dress uniform. the rank and medals he must have ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@levig7042]

Just a thought, but considering the fact that MC was presumed dead at the end of H3, we know what the UNSC would do about his rank in the case of his supposed death. It could be possible that the rank is at this point in time something more like the role of Arbiter. Given to specific individuals under the correct circumstances, coming with some degree of clearance while still being somewhat ceremonial.

[@Firstranker-70]

*hears some soud glitches in the first two minutes of the video* Oh no! Is he becoming rampant?

[@jwlevay93]

Quick note, the selection board for MCPO now includes Captains and an Admiral. Very impressed with the in-depth research though!

[@danmoua7686]

Imagine seeing a Group of Spartan 2 on the battlefield... A) Fight On 💣💥💥💥 B) Stare and follow why their Spartan 2 👀 👀 👀 👀 C) Get the hell out of that firefight! ☣🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚷🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫☢

[@fallenangel4913]

I thought Chief was just a Master Chief throughout the first 3 games, and was promoted to Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy when it was believed he was dead at the end of Halo 3. So his MCPON position was believed to be posthumous and not actually awarded. And him saying "that's a 4 rank jump, sir" could've just been writer error.

[@sazza0736]

Or the writers were hinting that even Spartans can make mistakes

[@JJumper8888]

He was a Master Chief Petty Officer in H1 already

[@cheungchuihin5886]

I think the master chief petty officer of the navy rank might be a posthumous promotion since he was declared MIA and assumed died, plus in one of the comics Captain Lasky(I think) even says to Cheif that with all he has done and accomplished he could easily be promoted to the rank of general, but John refuses the offer stating that "The General, didn't have the same ring to it"

[@kennedykioko]

Damn chief is MCPON. Quite literally bad ass. He should go CWO5 senior chief warrant officer of the navy.

[@factsoverfeelings1776]

"They are typically referred to as Top Chief". I was in the US Navy for 20+ years and I never ever heard that.

[@travelingspartan2035]

before I watch, two things that don't make sense about the Halo games' dialogue: 1) characters often address the MC as "sir." Don't do that. That is how you address a commissioned officer like a lieutenant, captain or commander, not an enlisted person of any kind. A senior non-commissioned officer would get pissed if some Marine knew his rank and called him sir anyway. 2) with the size of the UNSC Navy, there will be countless Master Chief Petty Officers, as there are countless leadership/administrative positions that need one to fill them. The characters you work with in-game would be fine referring to you by rank, but the rest of the galaxy as a whole only knowing you as "THE master chief" makes little sense.

[@greygalaxy8638]

Nice. That would make him and Avery Johnson the highest ranking NCOs in the fleet; Avery being a Sergeant Major (though I can't remember if it was Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps).

[@livein3dlw]

Perhaps it’s more so that he is the master chief of the Spartan branch ?

[@mauricerose3082]

...a Spartan is like a Human Transformer... "Robotech: The Cyclone was a type of Veritech Mecha Armor System that was developed by the Robotech Expeditionary Force and used extensively during the Third Robotech War against the forces of the Invid. Unlike normal mecha, this armor system functioned to enhance the survivability, strengths and abilities of individual soldiers. Its standard vehicle mode made it resemble a motorcycle that was used as the primary means of transport. By sliding a switch, the rider was able to initiate the transformation into Battloid mode where it attached to its operator's CVR-3 armor and became an extension of it. Cyclones were equipped with a modular weapon system that was mounted in vehicle mode and served as hand-held weapons in Battloid mode."

[@teryn3723]

I just finished searching halo videos and viewing it, then I return to KZbin home then I saw your video, I was like huh?? 51min ago...oohkay, more lore I guess XD LOVE YOUR VID!

[@greygalaxy8638]

Equivalent to Vice-Admiral... whoa...

[@alejandrorojas1423]

It's not uncommon for certain military positions to receive special ranks and promotions, particularly in special forces. Someone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong but I recall that upon passing selection and being admitted to an active special forces unit all individuals are immediately granted the rank of E5 aka Sergeant. This is so they have official command authority over most regular enlisted troops were it to become neccesary throughout the course of thier operations. It only makes sense the Master Chief would receive similar accommodation as he is most definitely special forces tier. Additionally, Medical roles, specifically doctors also receive similar promotions except in thier case it's usually full on officers commission. Sometimes even as high as colonel. The reason is 2 fold: 1. So they have the authority to issue legal orders to thier patients even other low to mid ranking officers 2. As a means for the military to entice and retain important individuals that otherwise might consider pursuing a civilian career instead. The officer ranks are of course accompanied by officer pay which is similar to that of a civilian professional like a doctor. Due to the nature of this there is somewhat of a unspoken social contract in regards to "Medical" officers however. While they are of course entitled to all courtesy and respect given to any officer by thier subordinates; its widely understood thier command authority has limits in all but the most dire of circumstances. In keeping with that; Medical officers will usually differ to lower ranking officers or even NCOs in situations outside of thier specialized role like general leadership and management of troops and of course combat operations. Additionally, Medical officers are usually far more relaxed and lenient on enlisted subordinates assuming they are not fellow medical professionals under thier command. That is unless the enlisted individual takes advantage of that privilege which of course would be not only incredibly foolish but also INCREDIBLY disrespectful.

[@Warsaw1]

How much is the e9 pay grade?

[@honorbound2011]

I want to say I love your videos on the Halo breakdown and lore. I would call you the Halo Universe equivalent of voice over to Morgan Freeman. And I love the diligence that you paid to look into the third star indicating the MCPON rank.

[@deadghost50ify]

Crossed anchors for boatswain mates!!

[@themastermason1]

I feel that the reason the Chief has remained MCPON rather than be commissioned/promoted to at least Lieutenant or better, Captain is simply because John-117 has become too inextricably linked to the title/rank of Master Chief and the title makes for excellent propaganda during and after the Human-Covenant War. The fact that Fred-104, a Lieutenant, cedes command of Blue Team back to John upon reunion ultimately shows that rank has effectively become meaningless regarding John within the UNSC military structure. Within the Spartan II's, rank has effectively less meaning as leadership largely comes out of consensus, seniority and situation.

[@theidirianthinker108]

It makes since, Why would you have something that is most helpful, even if worthy of it being higher rank, but why you have something like that on a back burner. I guess as some people i knew use to say, " Better to storm then known to perform. "

[@StacheMan26]

My impression was the rank of Master Chief Petty Officer Of The Navy wasn't something John held for most of his career, but rather one final honor bestowed upon him, presumably posthumously, after he failed to return from the Ark.

[@GrOuNdZeRo7777]

Army and Marine equivalent is Command Sergeant Major, In other words he's a pretty big deal, Glad they kept him as an enlisted man. As far as being MCPO of the Navy, That's likely an oversight on their part, They likely dont know some nuances of military service as evidenced by officers being saluted and them not rendering the salute back or calling chief Sir (an insult to an enlisted man).

[@RichieWo1f1999]

The best thing is that Chief demonstrates you don't half to be a fancy officer to be respected. It proves respect is earned, not given. Also Chief is kinda like a slave to the UNSC. As every enlisted man is. Lol that's why he's so relatable. Only in that way... not fighting aliens way. Lol

[@earnestbrown6524]

20 years in the USN and never noticed that detail.

[@DefyYourselfPictures]

The man can retire and enjoy his pension

[@Skylancer727]

@@DefyYourselfPictures if only he wasn't basically a programmed slave of the UNSC. Fairly certain he isn't allowed to retire unless they say otherwise, and their more likely to have them killed than let then retire.

[@fathanpratama6008]

@@Skylancer727 I don't think Chief could live a normal life... I mean look at the guy he has been through a lot.

[@mauricerose3082]

...John was promoted because it was the practical thing to do...it was imperative...

[@jannegrey]

First of all, I would say that War/Field Promotions can be somewhat bigger. But it suits his character. Not to mention during War time (and even in official peace, there wasn't much peace), not many people care about terms. Especially in the military. And as you pointed out, there are probably differences between today standards and those of 26th Century.