Amanda Holliday

Amanda Holliday
Biographical information
Homeworld:	Earth
Species:	Human
Gender:	Female
Hair color:	Blonde
Eye color:	Green
Political and military information
Affiliation:	Vanguard
Rank:	Shipwright

"The shipwrights of the Tower repair and recommission the ships of the City's Guardians."

— In-game description

Amanda Holliday is a human shipwright and pilot found in the Tower's hangar. She repairs Guardians' personal spaceships, as well as sells new ships and Sparrows. Amanda is also involved in organizing the Sparrow Racing League and works closely with the SRL pilots to upgrade their Sparrows and experiment with new designs.

Biography

Journey to the City

"We were some of the last refugees to make it to the City. Yeah, yeah, I've heard all the jokes. Know what? We did get lost. Many times. It wasn't all that funny at the time. My mama's shotgun, The Chaperone, was the only reason I made it here."

— Amanda

Amanda was born on the road to a refugee family travelling towards the Last City. Her people were scavengers, and her childhood was spent fixing up vechicles that helped her family survive. Her mother Nora carried a weapon named The Chaperone, a finely decorated shotgun that she used to protect the refugee group.

While travelling with another family who had a young daughter named Lucia, the band was forced to take shelter in a crashed dropship in a forest due to bad weather. While the adults scavenged food, water, and supplies nearby, Amanda and Lucia were bored and began making decorations to brighten their refuge at Nora's suggestion. Amanda was shown by Lucia how to work with the electronic components they scavenged form the dropship which they used to create small lights all around the ship. Once they finished decorating, the families made up songs to sing together to celebrate and pass the time. Not long after this Amanda and her family became separated from Lucia's family, and she never learned the fate of her friend.

Amanda's mother died while defending her family on the road as they were crossing the Panama Ravine. She and her father buried Nora with the Chaperone before carrying on their journey towards the Last City. Sadly, when they were only a half-day's walk away from the gates of the City, Amanda's father also perished, leaving her the only survivor of her family and refugee group to reach the last safe haven for humanity under the Traveler. A young Amanda stood in the Tower with Commander Zavala, watching a ship flying in the sky with wonder. Her love of flight, and a knack for working with Golden Age tech, allowed her to become the Tower's Shipwright when she grew up. Amanda also began to celebrate The Dawning and would decorate her workspace in the Tower hanger with lights, just as she had done with Lucia when she was younger.

Tower Shipwright

"Interesting tech, Cayde. Isn't this Eris Morn's ship?"

— Amanda, questioning Cayde-6 about the stealth drive

When a newly risen Guardian from the Cosmodrome in Old Russia arrived at the Tower, Amanda inspected the Arcadia-class Jumpship they had used to escape the Fallen. After finishing her repairs to the ship she informed the Guardian that the warp drive was missing and that they were lucky to not have exploded upon takeoff.

Cayde-6 looking over Amanda's work on the stealth-drive equipped Guardian ship.

Amanda was responsible for outfitting Eris Morn's ship with stealth technology, at the behest of Cayde-6. As she oversaw the maintenance Frames installation of the last stealth drive, she told Cayde that it was interesting technology and questioned why they were modifying Eris' ship, but he dodged the question. She then noted that Zavala had sign-off on all launches and that she needed to know what was going on. She did not believe his lie that it was for a stargazing tour, he told her the truth about his plan to use in for an unsanctioned mission to board the Dreadnaught. Amanda chose to log it as a "test flight" and stated that it would be ready for him to depart soon, but he protested that he would not be the one flying it.

Amanda worked with Tex Mechanica to recreate her mother's shotgun, the Chaperone, and award a copy of it to the winner of a Crucible contest. She created an exact replica of the weapon her mother used, down to it tracery, although it was far more powerful due to Tex Mechanica's engineering. Amanda hoped that whichever Guardian won the shotgun would live up to her mother's heroism. She also helped bring the Sparrow Racing League to the mainstream, acting as host for the races, and assisting Guardians in obtaining Licenses.

The Red War

Fall of the Last City

Amanda flying a Hawk during the Fall of the Last City

"Come on, big guy. Do something."

— Amanda, wishing for the Traveler to awaken

When the Red Legion invaded The Last City, Amanda was ordered by Commander Zavala to pick up The Guardian from the Tower in her Hawk and aid them in reaching Dominus Ghaul's flagship, the Immortal. As she dodged through the aerial battle above the city, destroying several Cabal ships along the way, Amanda looked at the Traveler as the Cabal attached a cage to it. Amanda quietly whispered a plea to the Traveler to help them before executing a risky maneuver to deposit the Guardian aboard the Immortal so they could disable it. She told the Guardian to contact her when they were ready for extraction, but Amanda soon lost contact with them as the Cabal's cage on the Traveler activated and stripped the Guardians of the Light.

Amanda was contacted again by Zavala, who asked her to retrieve him from the battle and begin the Vanguard's retreat from the Last City. She angrily told him that she had no time to be his chauffeur and that thousands of people like her were trapped and dying in the City below her. The Vanguard Commander countered that the City was lost and that they were all the same now without the Light. Amanda refused to believe running was their only option and told Zavala that he could fly his own ship out of the City, but he noted she was the best pilot in the system and that they would need her to keep their ships repaired. She tried protesting one last time that they could not just abandon everyone trapped in the City, and only agreed to retreat when Zavala stated he believed that this was their only chance to ensure humanity's survival.

Retreat to Titan

After the evacuation fleet escaped Earth, Amanda worked with Zavala and Deputy Commander Sloane to determine their next course of action. They decided upon using the New Pacific Arcology on Saturn's moon of Titan as a base to plan their counterattack against the Red Legion. As the fleet traveled to the moon, Amanda and Sloane helped Zavala craft a message to send through the solar system to rally Guardians there. Amanda told Zavala that his message made it sound like they had already lost the war, but he did not listen to either her or Sloane's critiques and sent the message out. When the fleet arrived at Titan, they found the Hive had already infested the Arcology, and dozens of Lightless Guardians fell attempting to secure a landing zone for the fleet. Their efforts were only saved when the Young Wolf, who had recovered their Light, arrived and pushed back the Hive.

Although the control center in Siren's Watch was secured, they needed to restore power to it. Amanda and Sloane provided instructions to the Young Wolf on how the power could be activated in the Tidal Anchor, but were informed that the Hive had infected everything. When Sloane told Amanda that they needed her in the air to observe the Hive, she protested that her Hawk had taken a beating during the evacuation from Earth. The Deputy Commander reassured her that they would put her ship at the top of the repair queue, which unnerved Amanda, as she had been traumatized by the fall of the Last City. Amanda guided the Young Wolf through reactivating the pistons that powered the New Pacific Arcology and directed them towards the ones that Hive growth had jammed. Once the pistons were clear, Amanda noted they still did not have power, and suggested the Young Wolf reset the circuit breakers on the central control platform, which finally restored power and caused Amanda to celebrate.

With their foothold secured, Amanda and the resistance turned their focus towards decrypting intercepted Red Legion transmissions in the hopes that they could provide an advantage over their foe. Amanda detected a large amount of power being directed towards the heart of the Arcology and believed that it indicated the location of a network of CPUs that would be powerful enough to decrypt the transmissions. When the Young Wolf entered the Arcology, they discovered that its operating system still worked. Amanda suggested they find an access terminal that would allow them to pinpoint the location of the CPU network. When they located it, an alarm was triggered that alerted the entire Hive nest. Amanda worriedly noted that the Guardian would not make it out of there, and Zavala ordered her to fly to the Arcology and pick them up. She reluctantly prepared her Hawk for the rescue, but as she left, Zavala asked to fly fast and safe, which helped calm her nerves. Amanda soon arrived at the Arcology, flying in through a massive hole in the buildings roof, and successfully extracted the Young Wolf and the recovered CPU network core. Zavala praised both of them for completing the mission, which Amanda hoped would finally start turning the Red War in their favor. However, the transmission revealed that the Red Legion had a superweapon known as The Almighty pointed at the sun, which would wipe out the solar system once the Cabal were finished with it.

Retaking the City

Following the reformation of the Vanguard and their plan to strike at the Red Legion, Holliday provided The Guardian with aerial fire support and a tank so the Guardian could board a Cabal transport ship. During the final battle for the City, Amanda presumably fights alongside the Vanguard forces and upon Ghaul's defeat, resumes her duties in the new Vangaurd hangar, selling jumpships and Sparrows to all Guardians.

A New Golden Age

As the Vanguard set up their operations in the new Tower, Amanda worked with Commander Zavala to monitor shady individuals who passed through the hanger bay. She also resumed working with the Guardians involved in the Sparrow Racing League, assisting Cron-8 in working on a new Sparrow engine that could manipulate space-time, although she warned him that she had only previously seen such engines work with NLS Drives on jumpships and operated in space. Despite that, Amanda had a few ideas on how to get around such issues and invited Cron to come down to her workshop in the hanger to test her ideas out. She and Marcus Ren also began workshopping the idea of Sparrow jousting. After the Young Wolf killed Bracus Zahn, Amanda examined a bomb strapped Sparrow the Cabal arms dealer had been developing. She was relieved that the Guardians had eliminated Zahn, commenting that he had been close to creating the fastest bomb she had ever seen that could approach and detonate before a Guardian even noticed it.

During the first Dawning after the liberation of the Last City, Amanda was scheduled to take part in the celebratory air show. However, it was canceled to foggy conditions making it unsafe to fly. Determined not to disappoint the people of the Last City after all they has suffered in the past year, Amanda took the Cerulean Flash and flew over the city streets one-thousand feet below the recommended safe airspace, delighting the citizens. As she returned to the Tower, Amanda thought to herself that whatever reprimand she received would be worth it.

Forsaken

Death in the Vanguard

"Took me a long time to feel safe here. I guess that's why I like working in the Tower with y'all. Guardians don't die. 'Least, that's what I thought. But... Forward momentum, buddy. That's what Cayde would want. And, uh... what else can we do?"

— Amanda grieving Cayde with the Young Wolf

Nearly a year after the Red War, the Last City suffered another tragedy when Cayde-6 was murdered by Prince Uldren Sov of the Reef and the Barons of the Scorn. Amanda mourned her fallen friend, and talked with the Young Wolf before they departed the Tower to hunt Cayde's killers in the Tangled Shore. She discussed some of her past of being born outside the walls of the Last City and how her mother had died during the crossing of the Panama Ravine and her father just a half-day away from the gates of the Last City. Amanda admitted it had taken her time to feel safe in the Last City and that working with Guardians had comforted her since they usually never died, at least until recent events. Despite her grief, Amanda resolved to push forward because she knew Cayde would not want her dwelling on his death and the past.

Festival of the Lost

Several weeks after the murder of Cayde-6, Amanda Holliday hosts the first Festival of the Lost in the Tower since the SIVA Crisis. She met with the Young Wolf and reflected on the past year, noting most people were just getting over the Red War when Cayde died. Amanda decided to keep the Tower's spirits up rather than continue mourning, as that would not be what Cayde would have wanted. She then had the Guardian investigate the Haunted Forest.

Near the end of the Festival, Amanda learned from Petra Venj that Reef Cryptarch Master Ives had been murdered. As Petra was busy dealing with the time loop in the Dreaming City, she requested that Amanda investigate Ives' death and sent the deceased Cryptarch's possessions to her. Amanda met with the Young Wolf in the Tower hanger and explained the situation to them and requested they locate the missing pages from Ives' journal to find clues to who his killer was before the trail went cold. Once the Guardian found the missing pages, Amanda used the information within to contact a few of her sources and discovered that the Fallen were likely responsible. She requested the Young Wolf follow up on this lead by investigating the Fallen's bases in Trostland. The Young Wolf discovered several clues, including Ives desecrated robes within Whispered Falls that had been taken as a trophy. Outraged, Amanda used all her sources to try to track the murderers, but was eventually forced to turn to Master Rahool for help. Rahool was devastated by Ives death, and aided Amanda in locating a teleporter in Whispered Falls that they could use to follow the murderers.

When the Young Wolf utilized the teleporter, Amanda tracked their location and was shocked when they ended up in the Cosmodrome, which had been placed under quarantine by Commander Zavala. She quickly masked their signal and advised them to stick close to the wall, as Zavala would be extremely displeased if he learned that the quarantine had been broken. Amanda promised to cover for the Guardian while they hunted down the Fallen and wished them luck. The Young Wolf eliminated Kikliss and avenged Ives murder, although Amanda felt there was something wrong about the whole situation. She advised the Young Wolf that this would likely be the last time they ever visited the Cosmodrome and suggested they look around some before reporting back to her at the Tower. Amanda reminisced that Cayde had once taken her to the Cosmodrome and looked upon the devastation with her, and advised that she should not worry about death since it had been changed by the Traveler, and that if she ever missed her family she should just wait for them to return as Guardians, although she sadly noted she was still waiting. When the Guardian visited the spot their Ghost had resurrected them at, Amanda wondered if they had been part of the exodus during the Collapse or if they had died there sometime later. Meeting again with the Young Wolf, Amanda wondered why exactly the Fallen had murdered Ives and then gone to the Cosmodrome, stating that she felt like they were missing a key part of this mystery. She wearily decided it was above her paygrade and provided the Young Wolf with an exotic engram that she had found amongst Ives' belongings, believing they should have it for avenging the Cryptarch.

Personality and Traits

Amanda is typically very jovial and sarcastic. She gets along well with Cayde-6, as both are willing to bend or break the Vanguard's rules to get tasks done. While on Titan, Amanda's personality seems to undergo a slight change as she appears somewhat subdued and even reluctant to take part in missions. This may be due to shock at having lost the City, and having seen so many Lightless Guardians fall. She recovers following the reclamation of the Last City from the Red Legion.

Trivia

• Amanda Holliday is voiced by Courtenay Taylor.
• Prior to Destiny patch 2.0.0, she appeared cross-eyed in her vendor menu.
• Amanda's appearance changed following Destiny patch 2.0.0. Her face was updated with greater detail, and she received a new outfit and a mechanical right leg. Her personality changed from serious to jokey, matching well with Cayde-6 as seen in multiple conversations between the two.
• It is implied that in Destiny 2's first Festival of the Lost that she might have held romantic feelings for Cayde-6. This is evident when she brings him up in her recap of the year, saying "So much that I didn't get a chance to (tell him)..." when you first get given the quest.

Gallery

• 

  Amanda's old look

List of appearances

• Destiny (First appearance)
  • The Taken King
  • Rise of Iron
• Destiny 2
  • Curse of Osiris (Mentioned only)
  • Solstice of Heroes
  • Forsaken
  • Black Armory
  • Joker's Wild (Mentioned only)