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[[Image:Forerunner concept h2.png|thumb|right|Concept art for Forerunner structures in ''[[Halo 2]]'', showcasing the Forerunner's ancient, angular design (art by Eddie Smith)]]The Forerunners are a long-lost species which are first cryptically mentioned in ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]''. Little is revealed about the Forerunner in the video games, but ''[[Halo 3]]'' reveals to players that humanity is in fact related to the long-dead race; humanity is thus the only race which can "reclaim" the keys which activate the Halo network. According to the official backstory to the series, the Forerunners came to power after the extinction of an even more ancient race, known to them as the Precursors,<ref name="bestiarum">[[Bungie]] (2007). ''[[Halo 3#Versions|Halo 3 Limited Edition]]'' Bestiarum.</ref> and formed a galaxy wide empire more than 100,000 years before the events of the main ''Halo'' [[Halo (series)#Story arc|story arc]].<ref name="ring-death-years">{{cite web|author=Staten, Joseph; Wu, Louis|date=2006-08-01|url=http://halosm.bungie.org/story/staten083106.html|title=HBO interview with Staten|publisher=[[Halo.Bungie.Org]]|accessdate=2007-01-01}}</ref> Mysteriously, the Forerunners then vanished, leaving behind many relics, including massive [[ringworld]]s known as "[[Halo (megastructure)|Halo]]s". The Covenant in turn worship the Forerunners as deities and relentlessly search for Forerunner relics. The reason for the Forerunner's disappearance is revealed in ''Halo: Combat Evolved'', when the artificial intelligence [[Cortana]] enters one of the Halo's computer networks and learns the truth about the rings: they function as weapons of mass destruction, and were activated by the Forerunner as a last ditch effort to halt the spread of a virulent parasite known as the [[Flood (Halo)|Flood]]. Although the parasite's spread across the galaxy was halted, the Forerunners paid a terrible price— they, and all sentient life capable of sustaining the Flood in the galaxy, were annihilated as well, starving the Flood of sustenance.
===Development===
Paul Russel is considered the architect of the Forerunner's design.<ref>{{cite web|author=Smith, Luke|date=2008-03-25|url=http://www.bungie.net/news/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=13413|title=Legendary Map: Blackout|publisher=[[Bungie.net]]|accessdate=2008-04-05}}</ref><ref name="podcast-russell">{{cite video |people=Armstrong, Chad; Brian Jarrard, Luke Smith|date2=2008-08-21|title=Bungie Podcast: With Paul Russel and Jerome Simpson |url=http://download.microsoft.com/download/4/d/c/4dcc4b82-fee5-4570-b28f-b573a1ad1631/Bungie_Podcast_082108.mp3|format=MP3 |medium=Podcast |publisher=[[Bungie]] |location= Kirkland, Washington|accessdate=2008-08-27}}</ref> In an interview, Russel stating creating the Forerunner's "visual language" was a tough process which only came together "like five months away" from the game's completion;<ref name="aoh-094">''[[#art of halo|The Art of Halo]]'': "Environments", pg. 94.</ref> much of the design was finalized on a single level, "The Silent Cartographer", which features both exterior Forerunner structures as well as deep interior chasms.<ref name="aoh-095">''[[#art of halo|The Art of Halo]]'': "Environments", pg. 95.</ref> Concept artist Eddie Smith is also credited with helping hone the Forerunner's direction, and said that he started work by reading the game's mission synopsis. "I knew what human and Covenant architecture looked like, so I tried to make the Forerunner concepts different," Smith said.<ref name="aoh-095"/> The result was a sleek angular design<ref>{{cite web|author=Smith, Luke|date=2006-11-20|url=http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3155363|title=Previews: Halo 3|publisher=[[1UP.com]]|accessdate=2008-04-01}}</ref> which was distinct from the curves of the Covenant's architecture and the functional human designs. For ''Halo 2'', designers wanted to refine and elaborate on the Forerunner design, without abandoning the style set by Russel;<ref name="aoh-096">''[[#art of halo|The Art of Halo]]'': "Environments", pg. 96.</ref> environment artist Frank Capezzuto found that looking at the Forerunner structures as sculptures rather than buildings helped to drive the designs for ''Halo 2''.<ref name="aoh-096"/>
 
==Covenant==
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