Harpy

The Harpy (Latin: Divum veneficus meaning 'Sky Witch') was a type of creature forming part of the collective known as The Swarm. Fast, agile and vicious, the Harpy served in a close air support role for the Swarm, directly assisting masses of infantry in combat against enemy units. Often used as basic fodder units alongside the Drone, Harpies were much stronger and more potent however they were not nearly as intelligent. They were used akin to air support, also as rapid melee units to quickly engage enemy forces. They could easily pick up a fully armoured soldier and carry them to their deaths or feast on them on the wing, and in large swarms even posed threat to armoured vehicles and serious danger to air support vehicles. Armed with extremely powerful wings and razor-sharp blade-like legs, the sight of Harpies on the horizon was heavily demoralising to defending units and signified a serious threat. Harpies were the larval form of Dragons, most but not all of them transformed, with about twenty percent staying as Harpies and growing to inordinately large sizes.
==Usage==
Harpies were used as close air support for the Swarm, assaulting enemy infantry and armoured vehicles equally effectively. Their size, and strength, fluctuated considerably during their lifespans, and as a result so did their usage. Smaller Harpies were generally used as infantry of the skies, engaging whatever they could and acting as fodder, their large numbers making up for their relative weakness. Larger ones were used for engaging heavier vehicles and defending Swarm positions, as, while they were slower and less agile than younger Harpies, they were much stronger and could carry away armoured vehicles easily and dash them on the ground below.
==Physical Characteristics==
All Harpies had one large set of wings which generated enough lift to carry the Harpy four times over. They had four large legs that were lined with huge, razor-sharp blades, used for savage melees and picking up larger objects. Their underbellies housed two smaller limbs that they used for carrying off individual soldiers, which they then either feasted on in flight or dropped to the ground below. Their elongated insectoid heads housed six reddish eyes, and long dual-pronged mandibles for tearing into exposed flesh. They were lacking in armour compared to other Swarm types, possessing only a very thin layer of naturally occurring carbon nanofibre exoskeleton to give small arms protection whilst allowing speed and agility in the air.
Young Harpies were usually only about 150cm in height, not especially strong, and just as lacking in intelligence as all Harpies were. The younger Harpies were used as fodder in battle or as close air support for ground units, and could just about manage to carry away a fully armoured soldier.
As Harpies got older, they became considerably stronger and larger, being in excess of three metres in length in later years. These Harpies were much stronger and used for engaging armoured vehicles and larger targets, being slower and more armoured but stronger and larger. Fully grown Harpies could be in excess of five metres in length.
Harpies, like other Swarm types, had larval and adult stages. The Harpy was no different in this respect, but not all of them would reach the adult stage. When they were mid-way through their lifespans, and growth, (about 2m long and 7-8 years old), Harpies would be used as Scavengers. During this stage around 80% of them would begin to suffer from pain and would be entered into semi-organic conversion pods. Six months later they would emerge in their adult form of Dragons. Dragons were themselves numerous and widespread throughout the Swarm, used akin to light vehicles, infantry support and weapons platforms.
The remaining 20% of the Harpies, due to an inherited genetic mutation, did not transition into their adult forms and instead lived out the rest of their lives as Harpies. These grew to much larger sizes because of this and formed the 'Heavy' group of Harpies.
==Behaviour==
A strictly hive-oriented organism, Harpies were only really happy inside a Swarm colony, or hive-like vessels. When forced out to engage enemies they stuck together in groups of about 40 to 50 for younger ones and 10-20 for older ones. This en-masse tactic stemmed from their behaviour but allowed them to overwhelm the enemy more easily. Not particularly intelligent, Harpies were nonsentient and, although could interpret and understand orders from Queens, were not capable of independent thought further than simple urges.
==Types==
===Basic===
The Basic Harpy was armed with 2 short range weapons and were usually used in a forward combat role supporting Swarm ground troops, or for defending Swarm armies while they fed or slept. Individually they were weak but could overwhelm more advanced Allegiance and UNSC units with numbers. Basic Harpies were the younger, weaker ones and most did not live past this early, risky role.
===Scavengers===
The older, surviving Basics, after they grew considerably in size, were used mainly to collect the dead bodies from the battlefield for consumption by the Swarm. In combat they were less often seen, but could crush tanks and flying vehicles without trouble. Scavengers also worked as heavy lifters, moving large objects during any construction project by the Swarm or lifting armoured vehicles into action. during this phase the majority of the Harpies would end their larval stage and become Dragons.
===Heavies===
Heavies were the largest and most powerful Harpies, acting in a similar manner to aerial gunships. They could defeat heavy armoured vehicles and were fitted with a small number of weapons hardpoints. They were few in number but dominated any battle they fought in. Heavies were formed from the 20% of Harpies that did not transition into their adult form, Dragons.
==='Buggers'===
Named so for their disdain from Allegiance soldiers, 'Buggers' were younger Harpies strapped with large quantities of explosives. Indistinguishable from Basic Harpies in Swarms, Buggers would separate from the main group and fly kamikaze-style into large groups of infantry or onto the top side of armoured vehicles, destroying them. Often not seen until too late, efforts were made to engage any Harpy that split off from the main group, for fear of it being a Bugger. If, however, their explosives were detonated by them receiving fire while on the wing and still within the swarm, the explosives could cause fratricide and decimate most, if not all, of the harpy swarm, ridding the Allegiance troops of a dangerous group of foes. Only a very limited number of Buggers existed. Later in the war, the term 'Bugger' was applied to all Harpy types in general, though the term continued to be used to describe suicide Harpies alongside this later use.
Category:The Swarm