John Rundal

**Spoiler Warning:** *There are spoilers for the details of the plot and/or ending in the text that follows.*

"*As long as there's prey in my hunting grounds, there's only one thing for me to do. ...Hunt them to extinction.*"
―John in the briefing for Rush Into the Red Star.
**John Rundal** is a character in the *Airforce Delta* series who appears as the tritagonist and one of the main playable characters in *Airforce Delta Strike*.

John is the 3rd Element 2nd position of Delta Squadron, and a former member of an unnamed squadron that was decimated before the game's events.

## Biography

### Background

John was a member of an unnamed squadron before the game's events. The entire squadron was wiped out and John was the only survivor. When others found out he survived, they saw him as a coward and set out to kill him. He was able to survive though, and afterwards, he was transferred to Delta Squadron for having a bad reputation and an inability to work with others.

### Personality

John can be accurately described as an anti-hero. He is often rude, disobedient, arrogant, and seemingly selfish. He is mainly focused on improving his score so he can silence those who doubted him, and will do anything to achieve his goals, even if it involves disobeying direct orders. He is often on bad terms with most of his wingmates due to his lone-wolf personality. He likes to describe himself as a hunter, and the enemy as his prey. However, in some situations, he is known to show some bit of compassion for his teammates (If a certain wingman is nearly destroyed, he'll suddenly tell them to break low and pull back, so they won't get shot down), and sometimes shouts out encouragement (He'll sometimes say to Ken if he is hit by an attack "Don't let that slow you down!").

### Appearance

John is a tall, muscular young man with silver hair and light-yellow eyes. He appears to be of Asian descent.

### Events of AFD Strike

John, along with Ruth, appears in the game's first three missions, but only Ken is playable at this point. The game starts with Ruth, John, and Ken being launched from an airborne aircraft carrier, and they head to Lugerde City to deal with enemy bombers. They find the city being destroyed by the bombers and they deal with them, though John aims at the enemy fighters saying that the bombers don't count in the final tally. During the mission, they encounter Sergei Kinski and Ruth and John converse with him. They eventually manage to deal with the bombers and Sergei is possibly shot down. The 3rd Element succeed in their mission.

Later, they are called upon to attack a fuel refinery in the Cartila Desert, although John does so reluctantly. During the mission, they encounter Giuseppe Ferretti and if he is not shot down, Ruth and John converse with him with the latter calling him a 'buttwipe'. They eventually manage to destroy the refinery and complete their mission. Afterwards, commander Robert Williams arranges a meeting between the Delta pilots, and Jamie Jones, Rick Campbell, Alex Levine, Holst Prendre, Pedro Glankert, and Brian Douglas are introduced. When John introduces himself, he says that he is the star of the unit and he's not giving that up to anyone and he says, 'so stay out of my damn way.'

Later, 3rd Element is sent to attack enemy aircraft formations over Terranos Island. John agrees with enthusiasm. During the mission, they encounter Leon Kleiser and Albert Ungar. John briefly converses with Albert if he is not shot down asking him if he thinks he can escape, and Albert says his name. In the debriefing, John asks Lilia who Albert is, and Ruth says that he is an ace pilot who took down three Mavericks by himself, and had Merv markings on his plane. When Lilia mentions Sergei, John smugly smiles and says that he's an old man now and he'll take him out sooner or later. Lilia tells him not to interrupt her and says that Albert is Sergei's successor. Ken says that he couldn't care less, and says that anyone from the O.C.C. is an enemy of him and that they all deserve to die. Ruth and John get angry and the latter tells him not to touch his prey. Ken says he won't hit Albert unless he comes after him and tells John to have fun with his little hunt. John says that he will and leaves.

Later, John goes missing and is unavailable for the mission Force Scout.

Later, John and the other pilots are sent to capture the enemy's transport squadron, and to destroy the enemy's airships surrounding the transports, then to guide the transports back into friendly airspace. They succeed in their mission. When Ken gets angry about General Bolotnikov having defected, he believes that he is still an enemy and wants to kill him. John stops him saying, "Put a lid on it Ken." and Ken leaves. Ruth thanks John, but he says that he did not do that to receive thanks. Ruth is confused and John says that if Ken pulls anything, the whole Element will be barred from missions. He also tells Ruth that Ken has been like this ever since he joined Delta, and he also says to not let something like this to happen again, saying that he doesn't want it to happen in his missions. John then leaves.

Later, when Delta Squadron is sent to the Drycharl Desert to attack a new air-defense system created by the enemy, Lilia mentions that the area next to them has the fighter squad that's closest to their targets. John asks her how strong the fighter squad is, and she says that it's a full squadron that should be reasonably strong. Delta then heads for the Desert. Along the way, they encounter Donald Chan and two reinforcements. John leaves to fight the enemy squadron, and if the player plays as him, they will be diverted to the mission Lone Wolf where John fights the enemy squadron and encounters Francine Davout and Jake Emerson. Ruth and Ken eventually show up and they hit bingo fuel and they leave the battle zone. In the debriefing, Robert tells John that he really did it this time. Ruth tells Robert and Lilia that John was disobeying orders, but they silence her. John then tells them about Francine and Jake and they start looking into it. If the player plays Lone Wolf, then completes the game with John, then starts a new game, then plays the mission Twister with either Ruth or Ken, a mission called Far Behind will appear where they help John fight the enemy squadron. John converses with Francine and Jake and eventually they hit bingo fuel and they leave the battle zone. In the debriefing, Ruth gets mad at John for disobeying orders, but Lilia tells her that they would have been wiped out if John was locked up. John tells Lilia about Francine and Jake, and she tells him to shoot Francine down. John then leaves with a sinister chuckle.

Later, Delta Elements 1 and 3 are sent to defend the Ballga airbase from enemy fighters. During the mission, they encounter Sergei, Albert, and Ellen McNichol. They eventually manage to bring down the enemy fighters and save the airbase, completing the mission.

Later, John and all the other pilots are sent to regain the airspace near the Chiron orbital lift and assist the ground troops as they advance in Armagest City. Along the way, they encounter Sergei, Giuseppe, and two reinforcements. They manage to deal with them and head for the city. There, they encounter Pierre Gallo and if the player is playing as either Ruth or Ken, John will talk to Pierre saying, "Watch your mouth!" and "Shut up and take it like a man!" They eventually manage to destroy the anti-air radar system in the city and shoot down Pierre, completing the mission. In the debriefing, John mentions to Holst that Pierre was no beginner and that otherwise, he wouldn't have given him so much trouble and that Pierre was as good as Sergei. Holst asks John if he thinks Pierre has experience and John says that it is the only possible explanation, otherwise he would have been able to take him.

A while later, John and the other pilots are called upon to destroy the Kotor Stronghold. On their way, they encounter Francine and Jake a second time, and John converses with Francine. They eventually manage to wipe out the enemies and they head over to Kotor. There, they encounter Sergei and Albert. The Delta Squadron then flies through numerous underground bunkers and destroy their internal hatches with help from Land Walker. If Sergei is allowed to survive by the time the 5th hangar is destroyed, he must be shot down. Sergei is killed and Delta completes their mission.

Afterwards, John and the other pilots are sent to clear a path for bombers that are being sent to attack the enemy's new railguns. Along the way, they encounter five bombers and Pierre. They manage to deal with them and head to Marinor Glen. At the canyon, large wind turbines are activated, creating a barrier of wind above the canyon. Ken, Ruth, and John are accompanied by David Smith, Collette Le Clerc, and Constance Le Clerc, but they are knocked out by the wind. As they fly through the canyon, they are pursued by Albert, Ellen, and two reinforcements. Ken converses with them if he is not being played as. They eventually manage to reach where the machines are located, and they destroy the machines by breaking their supports, causing them to topple over, completing the mission. In the debriefing, John gets annoyed with Brian for being in his way and tells him to move it. Holst gets angry at him and tells him to show some maturity. When Pedro gets worried for Ken being worried for Ellen and for Ruth trying to comfort him, John tells him that it makes "two useless, sentimental idiots" and Pedro tells him that his response was pretty cold. John laughs and says that it leaves more prey for him and leaves.

Afterwards, John and the other pilots are sent to assist the bombers in their attack on the Navarone battery. Along the way, they encounter Francine and Jake. Jake is killed during the fight, and they manage to deal with the other enemies. They also encounter strange new vehicles shaped like crabs. The 2nd Element deals with them. They reach where the railguns are located and all the bombers are shot down by one of them. David, Collette, and Constance enter one of the railguns and they blow it up. Amelia tells them to leave and Delta takes care of the rest. They manage to destroy the other railguns and complete their mission.

Later, John and the others are sent to Armagest City to stop the enemy's attempt to resupply using the Chiron lift. They encounter Ellen and Donald. Donald is killed if he is shot down, but the mission does not require him to be. Ellen is not required to be shot down either. When the lift comes online, Delta attacks the elevator car and they manage to stop it, completing the mission. However, Pierre learns about this, and, flying a large mech, fires a powerful laser beam at the lift, causing it to explode and slowly break up.

Afterwards, 1st and 3rd Elements are forced to deal with the fragments of the lift, and they prevent the large fragments from falling to Earth to avoid disaster. During the mission, they encounter Albert, who converses with Ken if he is not under the player's control. They eventually manage to destroy the fragments and succeed in their mission.

Afterwards, 1st and 3rd Elements are sent to the Uranometria base to provide cover for the last heavy-lift vehicle (HLV) known as Starlight as it takes off. They encounter Leon, who is killed if he is shot down, but the mission does not require him to be. They eventually manage to destroy all of the crabs clinging to the Starlight that were attempting to stop it. The Starlight then picks up speed and launches. The Starlight then flies high in the air and Delta docks on it. The Starlight then flies up into space along with several other HLVs as they approach the mothership Isis, completing the mission.

Later, John and the other pilots are sent to defend the E.D.A.F. armada from an enemy formation. If Ellen is not unlocked at this point, she will appear as an enemy and she converses with Ken if he is not being played as. They eventually manage to wipe out the enemy formation and succeed in their mission.

Later, John and the others are sent to the L-2 Colony to attack what is believed to be the O.C.C.'s main base. 2nd Element attacks the enemy fleet while 1st and 3rd Elements attack the enemy's fighters and mechs. During the mission, they encounter Francine who wants to avenge Jake and she converses with John if he is there and not being played as. They eventually manage to wipe out the enemies and complete their mission. Afterwards, it is revealed that L-2 was not the enemy's main base and that they are lead by an alien called Navigator who is located at the planet Mars. John expresses enthusiasm towards going to Mars as long as he can find prey there, much to Lilia's delight.

At Mars, they defend four ships as they descend to the planet's surface. They encounter Francine one last time and she is killed during the mission. They are able to fight off the enemies, but three of the ships have been downed. Luckily, they are able to defend the last ship Isis as it descends to Mars. There, the E.D.A.F. construct a base and prepare for the final battle. In the mission's debriefing, John is feeling unhappy and Amelia shows up and asks him what's wrong. John tells her at first that it's nothing, but then he smiles and says that he actually feels mad about a 'certain prey' (Francine) going down today. He says that she had this interesting way of talking and thinking and he says that he shot her down, and that she was all upset over the death of Jake. John states that Francine is a fool to wallow in sentimentality and that he himself was an even bigger fool to go romantically chasing after her. Amelia gets irritated and tells him that it's about time he stops with the tough guy act and that he should let himself grieve when someone close to him dies. John responds with, "Sad huh? Hmph! Don't make me laugh." He then tells Amelia about his past, being part of a unit that was wiped out with him being the only one left. He says angrily that he never got the chance to grieve because when everyone found out he survived, they stopped their grieving and set out to kill him. He says that he guesses that grieving was not as much fun for them as coming after him. He then yells that all there are in this world are hunters and prey and that he's a hunter and the enemy is all his prey. He then says that as a hunter, he will survive to the very end and that he will even hunt down those 'dogs' that turned on him. John then leaves and Amelia gets worried saying that's no way to live.

### The Last Duel

If Ellen remains on the O.C.C. side and the player plays the mission Priority then later plays Rush Into the Red Star with Ruth, a mission will appear where she fights and kills Ellen. John appears briefly in the debriefing saying he didn't get as many kills as he thought but at least he knows nobody can touch him. He then notices Ken and Ruth feeling upset about something.

### Ending

In the final missions for 3rd Element in the game, Mother Ship and Inside, John takes part along with Ruth, Ken, and possibly Ellen. They attack the large floating fortress and they destroy spheres which causes the fortress' core to open. They destroy it, causing the fort to break up and reveal a large crystalline structure creating a large portal. They fly through the portal and they find themselves in an unknown alien location. They fly through doors that constantly open and close and they encounter three robots which can be destroyed. They eventually reach what appears to be a large chamber and they encounter Pierre who is flying a strange, large mech. After a long fight with Pierre, they eventually defeat him and he is killed by Navigator when he tries to regroup. They then fly through another tunnel and they find Navigator. They kill him and they manage to escape just before the doors close.

### Ellen becoming unlocked

If the player plays as Ken, and shoots down Ellen every time she appears, the debriefings for Up Stream, Meteor Structure, and Departure will change. In the one for Meteor Structure, everyone celebrates their victory and then they notice a strange plane landing. John gets amused and says that it looks like some prey that wandered into their hunting grounds. The pilot is then revealed to be an unbrainwashed Ellen, and she becomes playable for the space missions.

### The Confront

If Ellen is unlocked and Mother Ship and Inside are played with Ken, Lilia mentions that all Delta members have gone off to intercept and Ken and Ellen are the last team left. John is among the pilots who already left and, like the others, he is never seen or heard from again. His fate is left ambiguous as a result even though Lilia likely sent him and the others because she knew they'd come back alive.

## Specifications

* Call sign: Viper 2
* T.A.C. name: Wolf
* Plane colors: Black with greyish-white images of chains and rows of small triangles.

## Characters who can be killed by John

* Sergei Kinski - Killed in Tiger's Cave.
* Jake Emerson - Killed in R-Mite.
* Donald Chan - Can be killed in Up Stream.
* Leon Kleiser - Can be killed in Departure or Decision.
* Francine Davout - Killed in Rush Into the Red Star.
* Navigator - Killed in Inside.

## John's planes

* Su-7BM bis "Fitter A"
* F-106A Delta Dart
* F-4E Phantom II
* FC-1 Fighter China
* MiG-23ML "Flogger G"
* MiG-33 "Fulcrum"
* X-31A
* F-16C Block 50 Fighting Falcon
* F-15C Eagle
* Su-27SMK "Flanker B"
* Eurofighter Typhoon
* Su-47 Berkut (erroneously referred to as "S-37")
* F-100D Super Sabre
* T6-1 (modified prototype)

## Mission Appearances

* BLUE WING KNIGHTS (Not playable)
* operation code H4 (Not playable)
* The "GALE" (Not playable)
* Over the Cloud
* Encount (Twister) (Optional mission)
* Lone Wolf (Optional mission)
* Far Behind (Optional mission/Not playable)
* Doll Master
* Encount (Night Blitz) (Optional mission)
* Night Blitz
* Encount (Tiger's Cave)
* Tiger's Cave
* New Generation (Optional mission)
* Wind Valley (Optional appearance in mission, appears in Debriefing regardless)
* R-Mite
* Turning Point
* Up Stream
* Meteor Structure
* Departure
* Decision (Optional mission/Not playable)
* Skirmish
* The Defender (Optional appearance in mission, appears in debriefing regardless)
* The Decisive Battle (Not playable)
* Rush Into the Red Star
* The Last Duel (Optional mission/Debriefing)
* Mother Ship
* Inside

## Gallery

### Art

Artwork of John and Francine.John Rundal wallpaper.John Rundal in his flight suit.
### Aircraft

John's Su-7BM bis "Fitter A" paint scheme 1.John's Su-7BM bis "Fitter A" paint scheme 2.John's Su-7BM bis "Fitter A" paint scheme 3.John's F-106A Delta Dart paint scheme 1.John's F-106A Delta Dart paint scheme 2.John's F-106A Delta Dart paint scheme 3.John's F-4E Phantom II paint scheme 1.John's F-4E Phantom II paint scheme 2.John's F-4E Phantom II paint scheme 3.John's FC-1 Fighter China paint scheme 1.John's FC-1 Fighter China paint scheme 2.John's MiG-23ML "Flogger G" paint scheme 1.John's MiG-23ML "Flogger G" paint scheme 2.John's MiG-23ML "Flogger G" paint scheme 3.John's MiG-33 "Fulcrum" paint scheme 1.John's MiG-33 "Fulcrum" paint scheme 2.John's MiG-33 "Fulcrum" paint scheme 3.John's X-31A paint scheme 1.John's X-31A paint scheme 2.John's X-31A paint scheme 3.John's F-16C Block 50 Fighting Falcon paint scheme 1.John's F-16C Block 50 Fighting Falcon paint scheme 2.John's F-16C Block 50 Fighting Falcon paint scheme 3.John's F-15C Eagle paint scheme 1.John's F-15C Eagle paint scheme 2.John's F-15C Eagle paint scheme 3.John's Su-27SMK "Flanker B" paint scheme 1.John's Su-27SMK "Flanker B" paint scheme 2.John's Su-27SMK "Flanker B" paint scheme 3.John's Eurofighter Typhoon paint scheme 1.John's Eurofighter Typhoon paint scheme 2.John's Eurofighter Typhoon paint scheme 3.John's Su-47 Berkut paint scheme 1.John's Su-47 Berkut paint scheme 2.John's F-100D Super Sabre paint scheme 1.John's F-100D Super Sabre paint scheme 2.John's F-100D Super Sabre paint scheme 3.John's T6-1 (modified prototype) paint scheme 1.John's T6-1 (modified prototype) paint scheme 2.John's T6-1 (modified prototype) paint scheme 3.John's Su-47 Berkut flying alongside Ruth's F-15E Strike Eagle and Ken's MiG-29SMT "Fulcrum C".John's Su-47 on an E.D.A.F. air base runway, next to two Alpha Squadron MiG-29s.John's FC-1 Fighter China in flight.John's MiG-23ML "Flogger G" in flight.John's MiG-33 "Fulcrum" in flight.John's F-16C Block 50 Fighting Falcon in flight.John's S-37 Berkut in flight.

## Trivia

* In the pilot selection screen for several missions, John is often seen smiling. This usually happens if something happens during the briefing to make him smirk, such as knowing that there'll be worthy "prey" for him to hunt, making it a likely reason for this.
* John is somewhat similar in personality and voice to Vegeta from the *Dragon Ball* series, and Shadow the Hedgehog from the *Sonic* series. John's English voice actor, Dan Green, once provided the voice for another character in the Sonic series, Knuckles the Echidna.
* John is not playable until the Stand By mission in Phase 2, or Over the Cloud, making him the last character in the game who is available to be played as (or 2nd-to-last if the player unlocks Ellen).
* Rather strangely, even though John does not participate in the mission Twister, he can be played as in that mission in free mission mode. The dialogue between Jamie and Ken about John not being there is not affected if the player plays as him there.