Fallen

"We have butchers at our gates, four-armed and eager for slaughter."

- Fallen Grimoire entry

The Fallen, known in their own language as the Eliksni, are an insectoid alien species that fights against the remnants of humanity, as well as the other races vying for control of the Solar System. Notorious scavengers and raiders, the Fallen seek to reclaim their glory by retaking the Traveler at any cost.

Overview
"The stories say the Fallen were once a proud people. Great, in their own way. We've only known them as pirates and butchers"

- Ghost

The Fallen are a nomadic race of pirates and scavengers descended from a once-great civilization. This is evidenced by their social organization into various Houses in the manner of nobility, the banners and flags of which are still flown like heraldry. The Fallen search the stars for artifacts of their lost civilization. They first arrived in the Solar System after the Collapse, arriving in their massive Ketches to loot and pillage humanity's former worlds, leaving grief and wreckage in their wake.

The Fallen are antagonistic toward the Cabal, Taken, Hive, and Vex, and are known to be in conflict with the latter two over territory and technology. They have ordinarily avoided the Cabal until the Taken War, when the House of Wolves attempted to make their new home on Mars using abandoned Cabal bases. They lack any type of established stronghold such as the Citadel or the Hellmouth, instead preferring to squat in ruins or inside their ketches.

History
"Remember the hope that brought us here. Remember the age before the Whirlwind, when ether ran free, when we ruled ourselves and our futures as kings. We wanted more than glimmer and glints and herealways. Always remember that we came to this star in hope. And remember that we were denied!"

- Skolas, Kell of Kells

The Fallen's name for their own race is "Eliksni". According to Variks, the Loyal, the Fallen once encountered the Traveler, or the "Great Machine", before an event or entity called the "Whirlwind" (possibly the Darkness) that destroyed their civilization. In the aftermath, the surviving Fallen became embroiled in a bloody civil war over their civilization's ruins, before achieving a tenuous peace and embarking on a journey into space to locate the Traveler in order to return to greatness once again. The Fallen eventually arrived at the Solar System shortly after humanity's Collapse, and rediscovered the Traveler on Earth.

The Fallen's overall approach to recapturing the Traveler has been aimless, however, due to the conflicting ambitions of the Kells. The House of Devils mounted a massive assault of the Last City not long after its founding, but the battle that became known as Six Fronts ended in a victory for the City, and the Devils have since focused their efforts on scavenging the Cosmodrome. The House of Winter conducted a guerrilla campaign against human settlements and Guardian expeditions, but their interest later turned to the Vex ruins of the Ishtar Sink, which in turn has resulted in a losing war of attrition with the Hezen Corrective. Outcasts from the larger Houses have banded together to form the House of Exile, which has taken to pillaging the human ruins and Hive temples in the Ocean of Storms. The secretive House of Kings is believed to be manipulating a number of other Houses with the long-term goal of seizing the Traveler from the Guardians; this scheme may have precipitated the Battle of the Twilight Gap, one of the few times that any number of the Houses actively cooperated with each other. The Kings however, have kept to the shadows and have avoided major conflict with the City. Meanwhile, the House of Wolves was caught up in the Reef Wars with Awoken, which ended with the imprisonment of their nobility and Queen Mara Sov being crowned as their Kell.

In recent times, the Guardians have undertaken increasingly bold offensives against Fallen operations and leadership. The House of Devils has been decapitated, as its Kell, Archon, and Prime have each been slain; the House of Winter has similarly suffered a loss of its ruling triumvirate, recently with the death of their Kell, Draksis, Winter Kell. The House of Kings' leaders are believed to yet live, but a number of its Barons have been assassinated. The anarchic House of Exiles has no real leadership to speak of, but efforts to acquire Hive technology have been thwarted.

The "Kell of Kells"
"Skolas said, "I am Kell of Kells. All Houses shall burn. All will bow before the Wolf banner."

- Variks

An unexpected counterattack by the Fallen came in the form of the House of Wolves' rebellion against the Awoken. Their previous Kell, Skolas, returned (possibly aided by the Nine) and claimed the prophesied title of Kell of Kells, seeking to unite all of the Fallen Houses under his rule alone. Prowling Wolf Packs swarmed sites on various worlds, marshaling the other Fallen to pledge to Skolas' banner. The resurgent Wolves were broken through the efforts of the alliance of Guardians and Reef agents and Skolas was re-imprisoned and later killed, but some holdouts remained and went into hiding.

The Taken War
"Taken will not rest. Will claim every house. Consume every banner. You must stand, Guardian, yes? Or all shall fall."

- Variks, the Loyal

Every Fallen house was devastated by Oryx's arrival, with great numbers of Eliksni being Taken and made to serve Oryx. The House of Devils and Kings were both driven from their lairs by a massive Taken offensive that temporarily seized control of the Cosmodrome. The House of Winter also suffered heavy casualties after rescuing another Archon Priest, Nixis, from the Prison of Elders. The resultant infestation decimated Winter and was only stopped by a determined Guardian counterattack. The only two Houses that appeared to have fully escaped the Taken were the House of Exile on the Moon, and the House of Wolves; the former being possibly a side effect of their proximity to the Hellmouth.

Taking advantage of the chaos caused by the Taken War, elements of the House of Wolves emerged from hiding, rallying under Keldar, an Archon that had escaped the Reef Wars and Skolas' Rebellion. Keldar offered the Wolves a new god to worship, the rebuilt Orbiks Prime, the Wolves' previous god. Orbiks Prime attempted to reassemble the House on Mars, directing its servants to seize Cabal outposts already weakened by the Taken invasion. However, thanks to intel provided by Variks, the Loyal, the Guardians hunted down Keldar and Orbiks; destroying the Prime Servitor and killing their Archon, leaving the Wolves broken and leaderless; this time, for good.

SIVA Ascendant
"Long have we wandered in the blind prison of flesh. Those old lives now a memory, transposed by another. The gift brings pain, yes, but godhood must come at a price. ~consume enhance replicate ~"

- Aksis, Archon Prime

A year after the Taken War, the Devil Splicers moved to corrupt the Cosmodrome with SIVA, an ancient Golden Age technology built to create cities and various structures. Lord Saladin quickly moved to combat the SIVA threat, combating the Devil Splicers and SIVA at their source. A fireteam of Guardians later moved to assassinate Aksis, Archon Prime, the leader of the Devil Splicers, and the true source of the new SIVA outbreak.

Months later, the Devil Splicers sought to regain their advantage against the Guardians by making an alliance with the crew of the mercenary, Taniks, the Scarred. Using SIVA, the Splicers resurrected the mercenary into Taniks Perfected. Though his mind and body were overtaken by SIVA, the Splicers gained a leader in the process since Taniks' leadership and cruelty remained intact. However, their efforts proved futile as Variks intercepted chatter of their plans and informed the Vanguard. Launching a Strike on the Moon, the Guardians followed Taniks to and through his ship, similar to the battle with his previous self. Despite his SIVA-enhanced body and varied weapons, Taniks was killed, leaving the Splicers and Taniks' crew leaderless and severely weakened.

Withdrawal
"He was in one of the fireteams out at the Cosmodrome. He pulled me aside, and said it to me straight: the Fallen Houses are gone. The siege is broken. The stalemate we’ve had with the Eliksni for what, a hundred years? It’s over. We won."

- Guardian report to Zavala.

Eventually the Fallen House of Devils withdrew completely from the Cosmodrome, leaving behind piles of ceremonially burnt banners and armor. The other Fallen Houses—Winter, Exile, Wolves—appear to have done the same, withdrawing en masse everywhere and abandoning their former territories.

Around this time, Prince Uldren Sov arranged a meeting with Kell of Kings in order to build a personal army of Fallen for his own purposes.

Homeworld
The Fallen homeworld was described as a paradise, possibly so after the coming of the Traveller. "Carefully tended lakes and rivers" are mentioned along with "fields of lush iridescent crops" and "groves of starkly colored trees". The sky was a light pink. Well-regulated air traffic was common.

Biology
Fallen are a hardy species, and can survive in a wide range of environments without heavy armor or complex modifications to their physiology. Fallen have four arms, partable mandibles and typically wear a helmet with a built-in respiration apparatus. Through means either natural or artificial, the Fallen can regrow their arms if removed from their body. Their blood color is reddish purple.

Fallen depend on a substance called Ether to survive, which only Servitors can produce. Servitors convert scavenged matter and energy, presented to them ritualistically by the Fallen, directly into ether via unknown processes. While Servitors were revered in ancient times, they have now become a symbol of the degradation of Fallen society and their lost glory. Higher-ranking Fallen get a bigger ration of ether, and more ether allows Fallen to grow in size; this is why Captains are taller than Vandals or Dregs, and why Kells and Archons tower over other Fallen. In the description of the Elder Cipher we learn that the Kell of a House controls and distributes ether flow using their own personal cipher. When a Fallen is killed, a quantity of ether escapes its body and dissipates.

Houses
"Why do you think the Houses are named the way they are? House Winter. Maybe it's geographic? House Kings, some kind of global ruling sect? Strange to think about how these terms have survived, their context completely removed."

- Ghost Fallen society is divided into a number of Houses, none of which are known to maintain friendly relations with one another, save for the House of Judgment, which was meant to live among the other houses and keep the peace. Each House is ruled by a Kell, who acts as the political leader of a House and commands a Ketch. Prime Servitors are exalted as gods among the Fallen, inspiring fanatical devotion from the House to which they belong and providing a steady supply of vital ether and new lesser Servitors. Archons serve as both high priests and chief engineers of a House, mediating between the Kell and the Prime Servitor in addition to overseeing maintenance of the House's machines. Houses require all three to be fully stable; without a Kell a House becomes prone to infighting, without an Archon a House's Prime Servitor is vulnerable to attack, and without a Prime Servitor a House cannot produce new Servitors for ether. As such, Fallen do not take the loss of their leaders lightly. If any or all of these leaders were to be killed, then members of the House would panic and scatter, weakening the House to the point of being permanently broken.

Below the upper echelon of House leadership are the Barons and Captains and the individual crews they command. Captains are Fallen who have managed to gather a following of a number of Vandals and Dregs, who serve as the Captain's crew, commanding respect through brute force. Most Captains swear fealty to a certain House, but some operate independently. A step above Captains in rank are the Barons, who possess a Skiff as well as lead a crew.

The majority of Fallen Houses consist of Vandals and Dregs. Vandals serve as both seasoned infantry and skilled workers. They aspire to become Captains and one day lead crews of their own. Dregs are the lowest class in Fallen society. Docked of their lower pair of arms in a ritual of humiliation and obedience, Dregs zealously fill the roles of shock troops and menial laborers in crews. The life expectancy of a Dreg is notoriously short, but those few who survive to be promoted to Vandals are permitted to regrow their arms.

Known Houses

 * House of Devils—Earth
 * House of Exile—Moon
 * House of Judgment—The Reef
 * House of Kings—Earth
 * House of Rain—believed extinct, destroyed by the Whirlwind
 * House of Scar—unknown, possibly destroyed by the House of Winter
 * House of Stone—unknown, possibly extinct
 * House of Winter—Venus
 * House of Wolves—Unknown outer system worlds (formerly); Ceres (formerly); The Reef (formerly); Earth; Moon; Venus; Mars

Major Characters

 * Aksis, Archon Prime
 * Aksor, Archon Priest
 * Draksis, Winter Kell
 * Dresiks, Splicer Baron
 * Iliksis, Light Stealer
 * Kaliks Reborn
 * Keldar, Archon Priest
 * Kovik, Splicer Priest
 * Orbiks Prime
 * Paskin, King Baron
 * Riksis, Devil Archon
 * S.A.B.E.R.-2
 * Sepiks Prime
 * Sepiks Perfected
 * Simiks-3
 * Skolas, Kell of Kells
 * Taniks Perfected
 * Taniks, the Scarred
 * Variks, The Loyal
 * Vosik, the Archpriest
 * Vekis, King Baron
 * Yavek, Wolf Baron
 * Keksis, the Betrayed
 * Driviks, the Chosen

Minor Characters

 * Basoriks, Wolves' Guard
 * Conflux Watch
 * Devils' High Emissary
 * Elyksis, Wolf Rebel
 * Ether Runner
 * Fallen Operator
 * Frigoris, Exiled Baron
 * Graliks, Winter Baron
 * Greksis, Devil Claw
 * Karrhis, Archon Rising
 * Kaviss, Splicer Captain
 * Liksor, Wolf Blade
 * Loksis, Devil Claw
 * Meksis, Siege Engineer
 * Minotaur Tracker
 * Naksis, Devil Baron
 * Null Captain
 * Null Servitor
 * Nulsis, Lost to Winter
 * Phikk, Exile Lost
 * Physkin, King Baron
 * Pilxis, Wolf Claw
 * Rahn, Devil Captain
 * Rahndel, the Perfected
 * Riliks, Devil Claw
 * Scorch Servitor
 * Sepiks-23
 * Spy Servitor
 * Survey Boss
 * Splicer Scorch Captain
 * Shock Captain
 * Shock Servitor
 * Ultra Captain
 * Voltage Eater

Wanted Bounties

 * Beltrik, the Veiled
 * Drevis, Wolf Baroness
 * Grayor, Wolf Assassin
 * Kaliks-12
 * Mecher Orbiks-11
 * Peekis, the Disavowed
 * Pirsis, Pallas-Bane
 * Saviks, Queenbreaker
 * Skoriks, Archon-Slayer
 * Veliniks, the Ravenous
 * Weksis, the Meek

Mentioned only

 * Kell of Kings
 * Chelchis, Kell of Stone
 * Virixas, Kell of Wolves
 * Solkis, Devil Kell
 * Simiks Prime
 * Kaliks Prime
 * Kaliks-4
 * Irxis, Wolf Baroness
 * Parixas, the Howling
 * Skriviks, the Sharp-Eyed
 * Varjis, Clever Headed
 * Eramis, the Shipstealer

Command Structure

 * Kell—the political leader of a Fallen House.
 * Archon—high priests and field commanders of the Fallen. Armed with a Shrapnel Launcher, and have both a teleportation ability and Ultra Smash attack.
 * Baron—Captains who not only command crews of Fallen, but also their respective Skiffs and sometimes Ketches. Have stronger shields and more health than regular Captains.


 * Captain—commanders of a Fallen crew. Armed with either a Shrapnel Launcher (common), Shock Rifle (rare), Shock Blades (rare), or a Scorch Cannon (very rare). Equipped with an Arc Shield and can teleport.
 * Elder Captain
 * Enhanced Captain
 * Fused Captain
 * Noble Captain
 * Perfected Captain
 * Queenbreaker Captain
 * Reaver Captain
 * Scorch Captain
 * Silent Fang
 * Splicer Captain
 * Splicer Reaver Captain
 * Splicer Priest
 * Watch Captain
 * Wolf Captain
 * Wolf Enforcer
 * Wolves' Guard


 * Vandal—most common troops of a Fallen crew and can fit in several roles. Armed with either a Shock Rifle (common), Wire Rifle (uncommon), Shock Blades (rare), or a Shrapnel Launcher (rare).
 * Elder Vandal
 * Enhanced Vandal
 * Kell's Guard
 * Noble Vandal—Epic Difficulty
 * Perfected Vandal
 * Stealth Vandal
 * Stealth Elite Vandal
 * Wolf Stealth Vandal
 * Salvage Boss
 * Splicer Vandal
 * Splicer Reaver Vandal
 * Splicer Scout
 * Splicer Shank Master
 * Splicer Operative
 * Survey Boss
 * Twisted Claw
 * Queenbreaker Vandal
 * Reaver Vandal—Major
 * Wolf Melee Vandal
 * Wolf Vandal


 * Dreg—the lowest rank of Fallen who seek to prove their worth. Armed with either a Shock Pistol (common), Shrapnel Launcher (rare), or Shock Daggers (comment).
 * Archon Servant—Major
 * Dreg Lead Scout
 * Enhanced Dreg
 * Feral Dreg
 * Perfected Dreg
 * Pike Dreg—Pike Mounted Dregs
 * Reaver Dreg—Major
 * Splicer Dreg
 * Splicer Reaver Dreg
 * Wolf Scavenger—House of Wolves Dreg

Armament

 * Null Cannon
 * Scorch Cannon
 * Shock Blade
 * Shock Cannon
 * Shock Dagger
 * Shock Pistol
 * Shock Rifle
 * Shock Grenade
 * Shrapnel Launcher
 * SIVA Charge
 * Trip Mine
 * Web Mine
 * Wire Rifle

Automata

 * Fallen Walker—spider-like heavy artillery used to guard key Fallen assets. Armed with a wide variety of weapons, including a main cannon that fires laser-guided explosive rounds at high velocity.
 * Elite Devil Walker
 * Noble Devil Walker
 * Noble Iron Walker
 * Noble Winter Walker
 * Noble Wolf Walker
 * Splicer Walker
 * Perfected Walker
 * Wolf Walker
 * Elder Wolf Walker


 * Servitor—purple spherical machines that supply Fallen with ether. Have their own directed Void energy weapon and can teleport.
 * Elder Servitor
 * Enhanced Servitor
 * Ether Runner
 * Fused Servitor
 * Spy Servitor
 * Splicer Servitor
 * Splicer High Servitor
 * Splicer Emissary
 * Trawl Servitor
 * High Servitor
 * Perfected Servitor
 * Pilot Servitor
 * Prime Servitor
 * Wolf High Servitor
 * Wolf Servitor


 * Shank—robotic drones that scout and patrol territory.
 * Elder Pit Shank
 * Elite Shank
 * Exploder Shank
 * Noble Shank (Solar Shield)
 * Noble Pit Shank
 * Pit Shank
 * Reaver Shank
 * Repeater Shank (Turret Shank)
 * Sensor Shank
 * Sniper Shank
 * Splicer Shank
 * Splicer Reaver Shank—Major
 * Fused Shank
 * Enhanced Shank
 * Perfected Shank
 * Splicer Repeater Shank
 * Splicer Turret Shank—Major
 * Splicer Tracer Shank
 * Splicer Sniper Shank—Major
 * Splicer Exploder Shank
 * Voltage Eater
 * Surveillance Shank
 * Tracer Shank

Vehicles

 * Fallen Skiff
 * Splicer Skiff
 * Ketch
 * Pike
 * Heavy Pike
 * Siege Engine

Organizations

 * The Splicers
 * Devil Splicers

Other

 * Ether
 * Ether Drops
 * Ether Seeds
 * Enhanced SIVA Offering
 * Fused SIVA Offering
 * Glimmer Drill
 * Mesh generator
 * SIVA Cache Key
 * SIVA Node
 * SIVA Offering
 * Splicer
 * Splicer Key
 * Splicer Intel Relay

Alphabet
In addition to Fallen glyphs, Bungie has released a number of images with examples of Fallen writing, including a number of unique letter combinations.

Trivia

 * Their mechanized vehicle units carry overtones of Japanese mecha, and their ships appear like rusted futuristic submarines.
 * According to GameInformer, The Fallen cooperate with both Cabal and Vex forces, who are in fact enemies with one another as seen on Mars. This has yet to be shown in-game, as the Fallen House of Winter is at war with the Vex on Venus, and the House of Wolves later came into conflict with the Cabal.
 * A T-shirt, featuring a Fallen Glyph with various examples of Fallen script in the background, was previously available in the Bungie Store prior to the game's launch. This shirt was also made available at PAX 2013 where its creator, Bungie graphic designer Elliot Gray, gave a little insight into the story behind its creation to a fan who asked him the meaning of the symbols. He indicated that he had used the names of several of the game's developers for the background, then pointed to one name in the corner and indicated that it translated into "Ondarius", which he stated was the name by which one of the Great Houses referred to themselves, although he didn't elaborate on which House it was.
 * The Fallen's history with the Traveler is very much similar to Humanity's, as the Traveler arrived and brought in a Golden Age for both, only for it to be taken away by the Darkness. However, unlike with the Fallen, the Traveler stayed and defended Humanity when the Darkness arrived. The Fallen are likely a prime example of what Humanity would have become had the Traveler not stayed and created the Ghosts to find and raise the Guardians.

List of appearances

 * The Law Of The Jungle
 * Destiny
 * House of Wolves
 * The Taken King
 * Rise of Iron