  |
This article's content is marked as Mature The page contains mature content that may include coarse language, sexual references, and/or graphic violent images which may be disturbing to some. Mature pages are recommended for those who are 18 years of age and older. If you are 18 years or older or are comfortable with graphic material, you are free to view this page. Otherwise, you should close this page and view another page. |
| “ | Guys, that sounded like there were dozens of em'. Hundreds. Like a... like a swarm. | „ |
| ~ Delmont Walker to Kait Diaz and JD Fenix, after an attack on their village |
The Swarm are the main antagonists of the game Gears of War 4 and Gears 5. They are a species of creatures that came to existence over 25 years after the Lambent Pandemic. The Swarm is later revealed to be the successors of the Locust Horde. It is still unknown how they became active after the annihilation of the Locust Horde.
History[]
Origins[]
After the events of Gears of War 3, the Locust Horde were rendered extinct after the Imulsion Countermeasure Weapon was deployed. However, they were not actually dead but instead they were covered in impenetrable crystalline shells (after the Imulsion Countermeasure Weapon forced a genetic evolution within them). Unable to dispose of the bodies, the survivors of the COG dumped the cocoons into highly classified locations across Sera, most notably the osmium mine beneath Fort Reval and the gorge beneath Tollen Dam. For 25 years there was peace, until shortly before the 25th anniversary of the end of the Locust War, the Locust began to re-emerge as the Swarm.
Gears of War 4[]
The presence of the Swarm became active when they started kidnaping COG (Coalition of Ordered Governments) citizens in order to convert them into more members of the Swarm. The Swarm then continued their raid by attacking a village and took everyone except James, Delmont, and Kait (the main characters in the game). They were safe from the Swarm due to being in the generator room and were locked inside by Kait's mother, Reyna, in order to keep them safe (although, consequently, Reyna was kidnapped during the process). Later on, James found a hand that Reyna had cut off from one of the mysterious creatures and takes a chunk of crystal off. Delmont then suggests they go to Marcus Fenix (who was the main character of the previous games and JD's father) for help. The three make their way to Marcus' house, where JD shows him the crystal. Marcus later accompanies them to the osmium mine beneath Fort Reval.
Along the way, the group encounter a strange red biomass and a large group of pods. After discovering the remains of a COG citizen within one pod, the group quickens their pace, only to be attacked by a much larger creature (Snatcher) that abducts Marcus during the confusion. Soon after, JD, Kait and Del find themselves in a frantic battle against Juvies (members of the Swarm) which resemble humans, to much larger versions called Drones that are capable of speech, can wield and use fire arms, and use coordinated tactics. The battle eventually culminates against large predatory creatures called Pouncers.
Later on, deep within the mine, the group discovers a large mass of Locust bodies, still contained within their crystalline pods. However, soon after discovering the pods, the group stumbles across many opened pods, and soon after fight a Scion, a former member of the Locust Horde. It is then revealed that the Swarm are in fact evolved versions of the Locust Horde.
After they fight through the Swarm, they eventually find Marcus trapped in a pod and free him. Marcus tells them that while he was within the pod, he was connected to the Swarm's hive mind network, along with the disturbing revelation that the Locust had never died. Those that survived they became the Scions, and are now using the humans that they've kidnapped to build an army. Marcus then informs Kait that the Swarm is treating Reyna differently, and that she's being held at another burial site, located nearby at Tollen Dam.
The four then fight their way back to the surface. Marcus suggests taking a detour to get backup from a "friend", but Kait refuses to wait. The squad makes it to the top of the dam, but upon seeing the extent of the second Swarm hive, JD relents and asks if Marcus' friend can help. To contact him, they'll need to reach a radio tower, located in the nearby town of Speyer. They soon encounter a Scion Elite called the Speaker with a missing hand, who is determined to be the same one who took Reyna. The Scion speaks, saying that Reyna is "right where she belongs". The Speaker attacks using a Swarmak, a mutated Locust Brumak, but the creature is taken down and killed. After using the Speaker to spread a message to the Swarm Hivemind, Kait stomps his head in.
Pushing through the town, Marcus gets in contact with a friend and old acquaintance. Two giant mechs arrive at the agreed rendezvous point. The pilots are to be Damon Baird and Augustus Cole (supporting characters from the previous games). It's revealed that Baird was the one who was spying on JD and provided assistance in the COG settlement. Del, Marcus, Cole, and Baird board a King Raven, piloted by Samantha Byrne, leaving JD and Kait to pilot the mechs. The squad push through heavy Swarm resistance and return to the dam. After the mechs break through the dam and emerge on the dried riverbed where the hive is, a gargantuan Swarm creature erupts from the ground. The mechs and helicopter coordinate to take it down, but the Raven is downed. JD tears off the damaged helicopter's rotary system with the mech and uses it to kill the creature. However, they find Reyna in the heart of the Swarm Hive partially transformed. At Reyna's request, Kait cuts her free, effectively euthanizing her mother.
In a post-credits scene, Oscar Diaz is revealed to have survived and cuts himself out of the Snatcher that took him.
Gears of War: Ascendance[]
Following the events of Gears of War 4, Delta continues their fight against the Swarm, rescuing Oscar and two other survivors of Reyna and Kait's village who move to Riftworm Village. With the enormity of the threat becoming clear, Baird argues for restoring the Hammer of Dawn satellite network although Jinn refuses. Baird begins to look into it in secret and discovers a clue pointing to Azura.
Gears 5[]
In the time since Gears of War 4, more Locust burial sites have become active, transforming into Swarm Hives that threaten the lives of all of the humans of Sera. Having discovered that there is a prototype Hammer of Dawn satellite on Azura, Baird sends Delta on a secret mission to launch the satellite as a first step towards restoring the Hammer of Dawn network. Kait Diaz is haunted by strange visions featuring the Swarm as well. Delta succeeds in their mission, but Jinn is left enraged by their audacity and Baird is unable to connect to the rest of the network.
Clayton Carmine calls for help from Settlement 2 which is under Swarm threat and evacuation and Delta is redeployed along with other COG forces, including the antagonistic Fahz Chautani. During the battle, Fahz reveals to a shocked Kait and Del that JD ordered the shooting of innocent civilians during a protest, the event that had caused JD and Del to leave the COG in the first place. The Swarm, which has evolved, is now able to control DeeBees and turn them against the humans. Heavily outnumbered, JD uses himself as a targeting beacon for Baird to fire the Hammer of Dawn, successfully destroying the Swarm forces. However, Baird loses control of the Hammer of Dawn which destroys Settlement 2, killing Lizzie Carmine and severely injuring JD.
Four months later, Kait and Del, now estranged from JD, are sent to Riftworm Village which is located skeletal remains of the Riftworm from Gears of War 2 in order to convince the Outsiders there, led by Oscar Diaz, Kait's uncle, to join the COG. The Swarm attacks the village and Kait and Del join in the defense. Kait is captured by a Snatcher while opening the gate for COG reinforcements and is connected to the Swarm Hivemind. Urged on by the voice of Queen Myrrah of the Locust, Kait takes control of several Swarm creatures before one, a Warden, overpowers her control and forces Kait to helplessly watch as he kills Oscar. Kait is rescued by Marcus and JD, but becomes determined to find answers, joined by Del. Recognizing Kait's grandmother's necklace as bearing a Locust symbol, Marcus sends Kait and Del to the New Hope Research Facility in Kadar Valley against orders, although JD orders Del to watch Kait closely out of fear that her connection to the Locust and Swarm could turn her against them.
Fighting their way through Swarm forces in the valley, Kait and Del manage to reach the facility using Oscar's sailing skiff. Fighting through New Hope, Kait and Del find evidence of human experimentation and reactivate the Niles Samson AI shut down by Marcus in Gears of War 2. JACK downloads data providing a clue pointing to nearby Mount Kadar which had once housed the Locust stronghold of Nexus. With the Swarm attacking, Niles activates a chemical purge of the facility, but Kait and Del manage to escape.
From the data recovered from New Hope, Baird learns of a secret lab hidden somewhere nearby, but can't pinpoint its location. Triangulating the message sent to New Hope using comm towers inside the valley, Kait and Del are able to find the location of the lab hidden underground near the foot of Mount Kadar with Kait being hit with ever increasing visions. Kait's DNA unlocks the lab door where the two are greeted by another Niles AI who reveals that the Locust were originally created by genetic experimentation upon children ill with Rustlung, Imulsion sickness. Myrrah was the single child who possessed a natural immunity to Imulsion and even benefitted from its effects. Having originally been hired to find a cure, Niles instead dedicated himself to creating hybrids as the ultimate weapons, creating the Locust.
Niles reveals that Queen Myrrah is actually Kait's grandmother, having had a romantic relationship with one of his scientists who fled with Reyna following her birth; Reyna's supposed death in the escape attempt led to Myrrah and the Locust rebelling against the scientists. Realizing that the Swarm are seeking her to be their new Queen, Kait forces Niles to sever her link to the Hivemind. However, Niles tricks Kait into going into the Hivemind and awakening Reyna, now possessed by the consciousness of Queen Myrrah and the Swarm's new Queen. Niles awakens his Locust test subjects, including a monstrous Berserker called the Matriarch and tries to flee. However, the Matriarch destroys the AI before being killed by Kait and Del, severing Kait's link to the Swarm Hivemind. Kait warns Del that the Swarm now have a new Queen and that they must reactivate the Hammer of Dawn to have a chance against them.
A couple of weeks later, Baird flies Kait and Del to the country of Vasgar where Garron Paduk, his old friend and Kilo Squad teammate from Gears of War: Judgment, is the leader of a group of nomadic survivors. Having learned of a secret Union of Independent Republics Hammer of Dawn program from data recovered on Azura, Baird recruits Paduk to help them launch three Hammer of Dawn satellites from a nearby UIR rocket base. Kait and Del are eventually joined by a remorseful JD and Fahz after Marcus informs JD of what Kait went through at Mount Kadar. Throughout the mission, Paduk reveals that he was the leader of a rogue force that had tried to launch the UIR's Hammer of Dawn satellites against orders in order to continue the Pendulum Wars; the COG stopping the mutiny with a Lightmass Missile had caused Paduk's scars. Despite attempts by the Swarm, now better armed and organized under the leadership of Reyna, to stop them, Delta succeeds in launching the Hammer of Dawn. Delta comes under attack by the Kraken, a massive underground Swarm creature, but escapes with Paduk's help.
Returning to New Ephyra, Baird is successfully able to reactivate the Hammer of Dawn network. Having learned of Kait's connection to the Swarm Hivemind from Marcus, Jinn attempts to forcefully reconnect Kait to the Hivemind in an effort to find the central Swarm Hive, only to be stopped by Delta and Fahz. The Swarm launch a massive assault on Old Ephyra, attempting to reach the COG capitol on the other side in order to destroy it and end the war in their favor. Delta and Paduk deploy in order to set up targeting beacons for the Hammer of Dawn so that Baird can use it to stop the Swarm. However, although they are initially successful, Queen Reyna arrives with the Kraken and destroys the beacons, killing either JD or Del with the other being saved by Kait.
Kait and the survivor reconnect with the rest of Delta and they retreat to the outer defensive wall of New Ephyra, chased by the Swarm. Delta leads a last stand against the Swarm at the wall, holding off the Kraken while Baird can't risk using the Hammer of Dawn without potentially destroying half of the city. Eventually, JACK seizes control of the system, turns himself into a targeting beacon and flies into the Kraken's open mouth. Using himself as a target, JACK fires the Hammer of Dawn, killing the Kraken and destroying the attacking Swarm forces, saving New Ephyra from destruction.
In the aftermath, Marcus warns that Queen Reyna will be back, but Kait, discarding her Locust necklace, states that they will find her first.
Gears of War: Bloodlines[]
Taking place during the four month time skip in Gears 5, Delta continues their fight with the Swarm minus the still-comatose JD Fenix. Delta attempts to recruit the Outsiders into the COG for their own safety and are mostly successful thanks to Kait. At the end of the book, Kait and Del head off to Riftworm Village to try to recruit Oscar.
Gears: Hivebusters DLC[]
Following the events of Gears 5, Colonel Victor Hoffman recruits Team Scorpio -- Corporal Jeremiah Keegan, Lieutenant Lahni Kaliso and Outsider Leslie "Mac" Macallister -- to lead an operation to destroy Swarm Hives from within using the deadly gas recovered from the New Hope Research Facility. However, en route to meeting Hoffman on Galangi Island, a Swarm Flock attacks Scorpio's Condor, crashing it on Pahanu Island. Scorpio reunites and manages to use the radio in the wrecked cockpit to send a distress call. Scorpio holds off a heavy Swarm attack until Tak arrives in a King Raven to rescue them. As they leave, Scorpio witnesses an unseen creature killing the Swarm forces with an acidic venom.
Meeting with Hoffman in his estate on Galangi, Scorpio agrees to take the mission to destroy a Swarm Hive beneath an old abandoned COG doomsday bunker on Pahanu. However, Scorpio faces numerous challenges, including the Swarm destroying all of the ways to the bottom of the deep shaft. Impatient and impulsive, Mac detonates the bomb early, killing many of the Swarm forces. However, the gas proves to be ineffective upon heavier Swarm such as the Wardens and Snatchers and Scorpio is forced to flee down a river of lava on a giant metal door and are eventually rescued by Tak.
Arguing over the results of the mission, Mac sarcastically suggests using the "nightmare acid" from the creature on Pahanu's beach. Dr. Hana Cole, Hoffman's scientist and the daughter of Delta Squad member Augustus Cole, realizes that combining the acid with the New Hope toxin could create an effective weapon against the Swarm. Lahni remembers stories her grandmother had told of such a creature and suggests visiting the nearby island of Weilehi for further answers. However, Scorpio and Hana discovers that the Swarm has devastated the island and taken the people. From a carving in the village hall, Scorpio learns that they are looking for a bird-like creature called the Wakaatu that was used by the Weilehan in the Awakening, their rite of passage. Scorpio clears the village of Swarm forces, but Hana is abducted by a Snatcher and taken through the lava tubes connecting the island towards the Hive on Pahanu.
Scorpio manages to rescue Hana and Mac comes up with the idea of allowing themselves to be captured by Snatchers in order to get into the heart of the Hive and destroy it. Holding off a massive Swarm attack, Scorpio are eventually extracted by Tak, but an attack by the Wakaatu itself, forces them to cut themselves free and head for higher ground. During this time, Mac reveals that he has deduced that they are actually on a rogue operation and that Hoffman isn't working for the COG. Cornered by the Wakaatu, Scorpio is rescued by Tak and Hana who drives the creature off with the King Raven's door gun. Confronted with the truth, Hoffman admits that he was forced to retire by First Minister Jinn for disagreeing with her insistence that the DeeBees could handle the problem. Mac reveals that he lost his son to the Swarm and convinces the others to continue their mission regardless. Hana reveals that with just one sample of the Wakaatu's venom, she could create an effective weapon against the Swarm.
Returning to Pahanu, Scorpio follows the path of the Awakening in order to find the Wakaatu's nest. Scorpio fights against heavy Swarm forces along with uncorrupted DeeBees from a crashed Vulture. Reaching the Wakaatu's nest, Scorpio manages to defeat the creature, although they don't kill it and Lahni believes that it will ultimately recover. Taking a sample of the Wakaatu's venom, Scorpio delivers it to Hana who synthesizes the new, more effective Venom Bomb by combining the Wakaatu's venom with the New Hope toxin. Hana also creates Adrenaline Injectors in order to awaken Scorpio inside of their pods in the Swarm Hive.
Armed with their new weapons, Scorpio returns to Pahanu and allow themselves to be captured by Snatchers, ready to destroy the Pahanu Hive once and for all.
Gears of War: Hivebusters Comic[]
Taking place immediately following the Hivebusters DLC, Scorpio awakens in their pods in the heart of the Pahanu Hive and plant their Venom Bombs. However, they inadvertently awaken the Hive on their way out and are forced to hold off the Swarm as the Hive is engulfed by the deadly gas. Scorpio is eventually extracted by Tak as the Pahanu Hive is successfully destroyed by Team Scorpio's Venom Bombs.
Returning to Galangi, Scorpio learns that all data points to the mission having been a success and Hana theorizes that destroying a Hive will ultimately result in the deaths of all of the Swarm connected to it, effectively killing the remaining Swarm on the island's surface. Hoffman gives Lahni and Keegan their promised rewards for completing the mission, but offers Mac a new mission that the other two decide to join him on: destroy the Hive beneath Mac's home village of Bravelle, the same one that had massacred everyone that Mac cared about.
Scorpio is flown to the village of Croya where Mac finds and repairs his old delivery truck before a Swarm attack forces them to flee. Chased by a Swarm Flock, Mac wrecks his truck on a kamikaze attack that causes the Flock to flee. As they continue, Scorpio finds the remains of the convoy that Mac's father and ex-wife had died in, an attack that Mac himself had barely survived. Reaching Bravelle, Scorpio allows themselves to be captured once again and successfully destroy the Hive with their Venom Bombs. However, on the surface, Scorpio encounters and fights a Warden who seriously injures everyone. Mac eventually rams the Warden with a truck and kills him by then stabbing the Warden in the eye. Recovering Mac's car, Scorpio drives back to Croya where they learn that Hana's theory is wrong due to spotting Swarm survivors in the distance. Attacked by the returning Flock, Scorpio kills the Flock and are extracted by Tak.
On their way back to Galangi, Mac decides to dedicate himself to continuing to destroy Swarm Hives and Lahni and Keegan agree to join him.
Gallery[]
.jpg "Carrier (Swarm).jpg (12 KB)")
.jpg "Screamer (Swarm).jpg (15 KB)")
.jpg "Snatcher (Swarm).jpg (9 KB)")
