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Inheritors

The Helghast are a race of mutated pale-skinned humans with increased strength, stamina, intelligence and height. They are the descendants of Helghan Corporation colonists who were forcibly resettled on the barren planet Helghan following in the aftermath of the First Extrasolar War. They largely made up the Helghan Empire and New Helghan.

Etymology[]

Scolar Visari first coined the term "Helghast" during a public speech in 2347. Visari purported the term's origin from the Old English word, "gast", meaning "spirit", or "ghost", connoting great fear.[1]

Description[]

The Helghast are distinguished by their pale skins and often lack of hair. Their bodies are evolved to resist and adapt to planet Helghan's hostile conditions, which include: being more suited to the low gravity, strengthened tendons, more oxygenated blood, increased lung function against the planet's pollutants, and their cells have more resistance to high radiation levels.[2][3]

The Helghast are biologically capable of reproducing with normal humans, producing half-human and half-Helghast offspring known as half-breeds.

History[]

The Helghan Corporation colonists were originally the inhabitants of Vekta until the aftermath of the First Extrasolar War forced millions of disaffected colonists to relocate to planet Helghan after refusing to live under ISA rule. The ISA and UCN left the colonists to fend for themselves, preferring to leave the colonists to either survive or die on their own merits rather than aid them.[1]

On Helghan, the colonists suffered decades of death and hardship due to the planet's hostile environment; illnesses, starvation, and mass deaths were commonplace. Most of these first generation colonists died only shortly after their arrival on the planet, with many, many more to follow.[1]

It was not until in 2305 that the third generation of indigenous Helghan were genetically adapted to the environment, becoming biologically stronger than regular humans. Scolar Visari deemed the mutated Helghan population a new race, different from and superior over humanity. Appropriately, he christened this new race as the "Helghast.”[1]

By 2347, the Helghast were galvanized to support 'Autarch' Visari as the new leader of the Helghast and Helghan Empire.[1] Under Visari, the Helghast adopted a culture of xenophobia, nationalism, and militarism. The Empire became the instigator of the Second Extrasolar War, seeking to reconquer Vekta and replace the UCN as the sole dominant power in the galaxy. However, the Helghast were repelled from Vekta and the ISA launched a retaliatory invasion of Helghan in an attempt to capture Visari and force an end to the war. These events led to the death of Visari and ultimately the devastation of Helghan in the Terracide.

The ISA granted refuge to the Helghast survivors on Vekta, where they colonized half of the planet and established their new nation New Helghan. Because of the Terracide, the Helghast became more resentful toward the Vektans, blaming them for the death of their world and Empire, and thus making a permanent peace impossible between the two civilizations on Vekta during an ongoing cold war.

Helghast on other planets[]

Deportatiom

Helghast refugees being deported to New Helghan.

"I can't believe they'd just throw us out like that. We have rights too."
―Helghast deportee[src]

After the Terracide, many Helghast had taken residence on Vekta and Gyre, where they faced varying levels of discrimination from humans and especially from those affected by the Second Extrasolar War.

Since the establishment of New Helghan and the partitioning of Vekta, anti-Helghast prejudice and violence became common on the Vektan side. Despite the persecutions, many disaffected Helghast chose to remain on the Vektan side to seek a better life than in the more repressive New Helghan.[4] These disaffected Helghast were viewed in contempt by Helghast nationalists, who deemed them as "traitors."[5] Following the Black Hand's terrorist attack on Vekta City on 29 June 2390, the Vektan government deported all Helghast residents residing in the Vektan side back to New Helghan, where they were "welcomed" back and interned in the slums as undesirables.[5]

Trivia[]

  • According to Guerrilla developers, the word "Helghast" is based on the Dutch-Germanic word "gast", which means "guy" or "guest". In essence the Helghast (plural) are "guests from hell."[6]
  • ISA soldiers sometimes refer to the Helghast colloquially as "Red Eyes" or "Higs".
  • The Helghast shared the same name with the near-indestructible "Helghast" creatures found in Joe Dever's "Lone Wolf" gamebooks.

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Timeline retrieved from the official Killzone website
  2. Dossier: Planet Helghan
  3. Killzone: Ascendancy Part 1, Chapter 2
  4. Helghast Worker Contempt
  5. 5.0 5.1 Killzone Shadow Fall, The Helghast
  6. Killzone Visual Design
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