Battles of Restless Storms

The Battles of Restless Storms were a series of engagements of various size that dominated the first phase of the Sangheili-San'Shyuum War. The fourteen year campaign cost the Sangheili tremendously in ships and soldiers, but the Empire was ultimately successful in compelling the San'Shyuum to abort their investigations and withdraw from the planet. 
==Background==
In 938 B.C.E., a sizable San'Shyuum expedition arrived near a former Forerunner world, seeking its treasure trove of artifacts and technology; in their way, however, was a Sangheili fleet charged with guarding the planet against trespassers. Irreconcilable differences in religious perspectives ultimately resulted in conflict, with the resulting engagement terribly one-sided: all but one of the Sangheili ships lost in action, and the nearby lunar garrison destroyed as well. The victorious San'Shyuum proceeded to make landfall on the Forerunner world, naming it "Restless Storms" for its constant inclement weather. The surviving Sangheili vessel - the heavy cruiser Solemn Vow - made emergency repairs quickly and fled without alerting the remaining San'Shyuum warship yet to make landfall.
Despite their easy victory over the Sangheili, the Reformist council requested immediate reinforcements to safeguard the investigation and protect the expedition from further attacks by a clearly hostile species. Drawing from the fleet at Swift Winds, three cruisers and two destroyers were outfitted and deployed to Restless Storms, arriving seven days after the initial engagement. 
==First Battle of Restless Storms==
Shortly after the arrival of the damaged Solemn Vow at Pious Fortitude, a battle fleet was dispatched to Restless Storms with orders to drive the Reformists from the planet at all costs. Commanded by veteran Fleet Master Thel 'Koramee, the Fleet of Fearless Alacrity arrived in-system thirty-five days after the Battle of Reverent Devotion. 'Koramee's thirty warships, comprising five battleships, eight cruisers, and seventeen destroyers, proceeded quickly towards Restless Storms, where they were confronted by a Reformist force of four cruisers and four destroyers. 
Fleet Master 'Koramee deployed his fleet in a loose chevron formation, with battleships and heavy cruisers at center, light cruisers on their flanks, and destroyers arrayed as a forward screen. His immediate opponent, Warrior-Prophet Moh Casto, focused his cruisers opposite, with his destroyers deployed evenly on either side. Neither officer made any attempt at reopening negotiations and engaged at the earliest opportunity; 'Koramee's vessels simply fired first. As at Reverent Devotion, San'Shyuum point defenses easily intercepted the Sangheili missile barrage, with the destroyers initially focusing exclusively on interception while the cruisers went on the offensive. 
The three Reformist light cruisers struck at 'Koramee's destroyer screen, blasting seven destroyers apart with coordinated plasma turret fire, creating a sizable gap. Before the Sangheili fleet could adequately react, Casto's heavy cruiser fired all primary and secondary armaments at the large capital ships of Fearless Alacrity, shattering and exploding three battleships and four heavy cruisers, 'Koramee's flagship among them. The Sangheili formation collapsed. The fleet's remaining heavy capital ships surged forward, attacking the San'Shyuum with wild abandon, while the remnants of the destroyer screen fled in panic. The weapons of the Sangheili warships proving no more effective than the initial barrage, the Sangheili resorted to ram attacks, and found some small measure of success: varying damage to the heavy cruiser and two destroyers. 
Fearless Alacrity lost twenty-five of thirty vessels and suffered 21,923 fatalities including its commanding officer, while inflicting severe damage on a Reformist heavy cruiser and minor damage on two Reformist destroyers. Despite their heavy losses and the overwhelming strength of their enemy clearly demonstrated, the Sangheili were not deterred, and vowed to not only drive the San'Shyuum from Restless Storms, but to destroy the sacrilegious species in its entirety. For their part, the Reformists were shaken by the sheer ferocity of the Sangheili attack, but quickly resolved to stand firm at Restless Storms. 
 
==Second Battle of Restless Storms==
Following the initial defeat at Restless Storms, the Sangheili vowed to fight on and within several weeks, a larger fleet was readied to make a second attempt. The Fleet of Faithful Resolve, under the banner of Fleet Master Ando 'Chavamee, comprised eighty-one warships, including three carriers, seven battleships, twenty-six cruisers, and forty-five escorts. Eager to take up the offensive against the San 'Shyuum, 'Chavamee and Faithful Resolve moved against Restless Storms as quickly as possible; the fleet master and his staff planned to form a standard battle line - a destroyer screen in front, followed by battleships and cruisers - and a tactical support force, providing the fleet's carriers with adequate protection. The battle line would advance against the Reformists while the carriers deployed single ships to further support that advance. 
Upon arrival in-system, Fleet Master 'Chavamee divided his ships into two groups as planned: seven battleships and eleven heavy cruisers in front, screened by eight light cruisers and twenty-seven destroyers, with Faithful Resolve's two fleet carriers and one light carrier, escorted by seven light cruisers, eight destroyers, and ten frigates, deployed some dozen kilometers behind the battleships. Sangheili single ships, primarily fighter-bombers, were deployed quickly and formed up alongside the battle line; this accomplished, the Fleet of Faithful Resolve proceeded towards Restless storms, even as their San 'Shyuum opponents responded to their presence. 
With the original task force flagship so badly mauled, and two of her escorts clearly strained, the Reformist defense fleet had undergone major changes in the Sangheili's absence: all three damaged warships withdrew to San 'Shyuum colonies for repairs, with reinforcements more than replacing them. Retaining Moh Casto as commander, the Reformist fleet comprised three heavy and four light cruisers, accompanied by eight destroyers. In addition, the Warrior-Corps contingent on Restless Storms was increased threefold, and construction orders were placed for additional warships. 
With the appearance of Faithful Resolve, Warrior-Prophet Moh Casto ordered his reinforced fleet into formation: heavy cruisers at center, two light cruisers on either side, and four destroyers both above and below. Achieving formation well ahead of the Sangheili, Casto ordered the fleet to perform an in-system jump, confronting Faithful Resolve much earlier than 'Chavamee and his officers had expected. While Casto's appearance did take the leadership of Faithful Resolve by surprise, Fleet Master 'Chavamee immediately ordered focused fire against the center of the Reformist formation: more than a hundred thousand missiles were launched against Casto's heavy cruisers and destroyer screen. 
As in the previous engagement, Casto ordered the destroyers to handle the barrage, with assistance from the light cruisers as needed; instead of risking the heavy cruisers, however, Casto intended the trio of Reformist heavy cruisers to methodically "snipe" the heavier Sangheili warships from a less-risky position. Had Fleet Master Ando 'Chavamee and his Ship Masters attacked conventionally, Casto's tactics likely would have easily decimated Faithful Resolve; as it was, the Reformist destroyer screen was decisively breached less than ninety seconds into the engagement. The Sangheili heavy cruiser Unflinching Spirit and light cruisers Pious Resilience and Ardent Prayer rammed two Reformist destroyers in the "top" section of Casto's screen; all three Sangheili cruisers were crippled in the action, but at the result of one San'Shyuum destroyer disabled and one destroyed - the first Reformist vessel lost to enemy action. 
Through the gap thundered a second charge of warships, comprising three battleships (Warrior's Prayer, Loyalty and Faith, and Incorruptible) and two heavy cruisers (Radiance and Faithful Judgment), which rammed two reformist cruisers and two destroyers. In less than three minutes, the Sangheili had successfully destroyed two Reformist warships and put four more completely out of action. His formation shattered, Warrior-Prophet Casto ordered a fighting retreat and communicated to the expedition on Restless Storms the dire situation. Fortunately for Casto - and by extension, the entire expedition - Senior Warrior-Prophet Lom Rolm overrode the councilors on Restless Storms and launched the keyship Transcendence first into space and then towards Casto's steadily retreating flotilla. 
Casto's fighting retreat was slowly becoming a route of Reformist warships: despite easily destroying eleven Sangheili warships (two light cruisers and nine destroyers) and 119 fighter-bombers, Fleet Master 'Chavamee continued to press the attack and his screen refused to break. Before Rolm arrived, Casto's flotilla suffered further losses, with one destroyer lost and two light cruisers effectively crippled. Transcendence arrived just in time for an additional warship - Casto's second remaining heavy cruiser - to explode. Rolm immediately opened fire with keyship's advanced armaments, easily piercing the battle line's screen and obliterating one battleship, two heavy cruisers, and five destroyers. 'Chavamee, well aware of the power of the keyship, initiated a rapid withdrawal, buying time with his remaining fighter-bombers and firing a final wave of missiles and some of Casto's stricken vessels. Rolm reacted with alacrity, intercepting the entire barrage and eliminating 127 fighter-bombers as well, but was unable to further damage or destroy any warship of Faithful Resolve before the Sangheili fled the system.