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The Terminid Horde of the Second Galactic War descends from the Bugs of the First Galactic War. They are the result of a century of selective breeding and genetic experimentation by the Federation of Super Earth in the Element-710 farms. For a detailed look into the Bugs from Helldivers 1, see this article.

History

First Galactic War

• 

“	The federation has decided that the Bug threat is becoming too great. Senator John W. Killjoy declared: "The Bugs have been a plague in this galaxy for far too long, they must now be eradicated before they spread to other worlds." [...] "The Helldivers are the outfit best suited for this task. While they're on the surface of the many bug infested worlds, they have the possibility to activate lost oil pumps that are essential to the survival of the human race." This is also proven by scientist Henk Ploeg Ph.D.: "The Bugs rapidly generate vast quantities of oil when they decompose. This is beneficial, but is not the primary reason why the Bugs must be exterminated. They are far too dangerous to be allowed to live."	„
	~ Bug War Announcement

The Bugs, or Terminids,^[1] were originally a sentient extraterrestrial species, their form reminiscent of very large Earth insects, arachnids, or crustaceans. As far as the scientists of Super Earth know, their homeworld is originally Kepler Prime, a desert planet on the eastern fringe of the galaxy.

Before the First Galactic War started in the 2040s, the Federation discovered that Terminids generate vast quantities of the oil known as "Element-710" - essential for fueling the Alcubierre FTL Drives - during their decomposition, similar to how Earth's pre-human lifeforms provide fossil fuel sources. When war against the Bugs was first announced, mention was made of "lost oil pumps" on Bug-infested planets that the Helldivers were to reactivate. These oil pumps could also be found on Kepler Prime, with the implication being that humans had attempted the extraction of E-710 on the Terminid homeworld beforehand – possibly triggering the Bugs to attack them.

Super Earth propaganda depicted the Bugs as a threat that would infest the entire galaxy if not suppressed. However, when the war against the Bugs was won in 2084, the tune was quickly changed; suddenly, the Bugs were a rare and valuable species that was a potentially unlimited supply of oil for Super Earth, and eliminating them "just wouldn't be right from a moral perspective". Following this, a certain scientist called Dr. Henk Ploeg worked on a way to safely breed the Terminids in a controlled manner.

Element-710 Farms

“	You know these actually aren't exactly the same bugs we fought during the Great Galactic War? Yeah, 100 years of rapid evolution, not to mention all the genetic modification they got on the E-710 farms.	„
	~ Service Technician

After the defeat of the Bugs during the First Galactic War, the creatures were confined to farms and bred, raised, and harvested to produce E-710. This, along with Super Earth conducting tests on them, forever altered the biology of the Terminids, turning them solely into a biological source of spaceship fuel. Reportedly unavoidable spills of toxic chemicals on E-710 farms would also create new and dangerous Bug variants such as the Bile Spewers. This farming would last all through the Great Democratisation until February 2184, when billions of Terminids would rise up and overrun the Eastern sectors, marking one of the two starting events of the Second Galactic War.

After the start of the Second Galactic War, human rebels would set up illegal broadcasts telling Federation citizens that the Terminid menace was the fault of their government; broadcasts that the Helldivers would immediately be deployed to shut down.

• 
  "Wake up people! The Bug menace is a Super Earth construct!"
• 
  "This threat is all about oil! The government made this!"

Operation Valiant Enclosure

“	The Terminids spent decades content on the E-710 farms. Now their most destructive instincts run rampant, to the detriment of all.	„
	~ Democracy Officer

In retaliation to the Terminid outbreaks and Automaton incursions, the Helldivers were re-mobilised to numbers not seen since the First Galactic War.^[2] The newly recruited Helldivers were immediately issued Operation Valiant Enclosure, an operation to contain the growing Terminids to prepare for the installation of a network of towers called the Terminid Control System, or TCS. This system was capable of spraying Termicide, a chemical that can efficiently kill an entire planet's Terminid population in just a few hours. The location of the TCS was decided to be on the Barrier Planets,^[3] a line of four worlds occupied by the Bugs.

To reach the Umlaut Sector, the Helldivers were ordered to take Heeth and Angel's Venture.^[4] Both were taken by February 14th, but surprise Automaton attacks into the Xzar Sector put Operation Valiant Enclosure on hold until a Terminid outbreak on Veld threatened to derail all effort on the front. The outbreak was crushed with ease within a day^{[citation needed]}, but the Terminid attacks on Heeth and Angel's Venture^[5] pushed the S.E.A.F.'s efforts out of the Umlaut Sector.

Terminid Control System

“	The Terminids are a force to be harnessed, not a scourge to be cleansed. Liberty demands our temperance.	„
	~ Democracy Officer

Finally, on March 12th, Super Earth High Command issued the activation of the Terminid Control System, which would supposedly contain the Terminids forever,^[6] blocking them behind an impassable wall of Termicide. Over four days, brave engineers and Helldivers worked day and night to rid the worlds of the Umlaut Sector from the Terminid Horde, and on March 15th, all TCS towers in the Sector were activated, culling 99.6%^[7] of all Terminids across all four planets.

With the end of Operation Valiant Enclosure and creation of the Terminid Control System, the S.E.A.F. continued their liberation of Terminid territory in Operation Prime Liberation and Operation CBCT Protection. During this operation, on March 21st, an evolution among the ranks of Terminids was confirmed by the Ministry of Science. These Terminids were capable of flying, and were named Shriekers. Similarly, the Terminids forced Spore Spewers and Shrieker Nests to develop augmented protection against grenades and small explosive munitions.

Meridia Supercolony

“	The Termicide has backfired, twisting the planet of Meridia into a Terminid Supercolony. An unforseeable, devastating outcome. We must act now, before even more planets fall.	„
	~ Democracy Officer

Despite the early mutations, the Terminid Control System continued to work well until the Termicide itself failed. Through a novel process called "hormesis", the Terminids managed to not only develop resistance to the Termicide but, even worse, managed to use it to dramatically increase their reproductive pace, getting such a boost that they managed to transform Meridia into a Supercolony in April of 2184.

From April to June, this Terminid Supercolony managed to wreak havoc all over the Eastern Sectors until, on June 2nd, Meridia was destroyed through the use of the Dark Fluid in order to re-stabilize the Terminid front.

The Gloom

“	One shudders to envisage what repulsive larvae gestates within the Gloom, as we speak.	„
	~ Democracy Officer

“	The Gloom has altered the very air of the worlds caught in its haze. Once-familiar worlds are now foreign lands, nesting grounds for skittering new monstrosities.	„
	~ Democracy Officer

The Gloom appeared on August 6th, 2184, around the vicinity of the planet Enuliale, which had fallen during the initial February outbreak. It is a mysterious nebula composed of extremely high concentrations of intergalactic Terminid spores, which are spore clouds that are capable of getting across the emptiness of space and can provoke Terminid outbreaks wherever they go.

From the Gloom sprang up old Terminid variants, such as the Impalers, which were first re-discovered on August 6th, 2184 during the defense of Socorro III. With the Gloom, new spore outbursts would continue to bolster the Terminid expansion for the months after the campaign at Socorro. From August to October, the Helldivers would be forced to maintain significant contingents at the Terminid Front in order to hold the line against the Terminids while providing resources for the Democracy Space Station. This tug of war would ultimately take a turn for the worse once the DSS was activated, as the Terminid Research Preserve at Acamar IV was breached and soon spiraled into the near-total loss of the Jin Xi Sector.

It wasn't until the Illuminate resurfaced on December 12th, 2184 that the Terminid Front would shift. With the Helldivers now further fragmented, the S.E.A.F. frontlines collapsed and the Terminids would not only advance all the way back to Cirrus but also invaded the Farsight Sector for the first time in the war. Due to the Illuminate attack on Super Earth via the Meridian Black Hole, the Terminids essentially had a free hand at spreading unfettered. By the time of Operation Pest Control, the Terminids had reached their furthest expansion to date, as they managed to reach all the way to Caramoor in the Korpus Sector.

Operation Righteous Reclamation

“	For too long has the Gloom harbored well-known enemies of Freedom. They can cower in their caves no longer. Justice arrives at last.	„
	~ Democracy Officer

“	The E-710-like substance we are recovering from the Gloom may prove to be of great value. Of course, the security of our citizens comes first. But as the Founders asked, what is security without prosperity?	„
	~ Democracy Officer

Once the Illuminate were repelled, Super Earth set their sights on the Terminids, labelling them as "abettors to the Illuminate invaders" under intergalactic law. Because of this, Operation Debt Collector had the Helldivers kill billions of Bugs as reparations destined to aid the reconstruction of Super Earth's Mega Cities.

The expansion of the Helldiver Fleet and the construction of the new Helldiver Training Facility at Zegema Paradise also saw the Helldivers heavily push back against the Terminids at Gar Haren and Gatria, while the construction of the new Maximum Security Cities in places such as Fort Union had the Helldivers cull some of their most fearsome monstrosities by the millions. Come August, the Helldivers would liberate Bore Rock to allow for the construction of Tyranny Park 2, but this venture quickly turned sour as the park would have a sudden outbreak of the Predator Strain that reached all the way to Sulfura and saw the Terminids attack New Hope City completely unprovoked.

Because of this, the Helldivers would launch Operation Righteous Reclamation on the very first day of September 2185, establishing a forward operations base on Hellmire dubbed "Outpost Alpha" and launching a massive research expedition onto Oshaune deep in The Gloom, which had now been terraformed into a Terminid Hive World where the Helldivers would encounter flying abominations such as the Dragonroach and face down against the once-thought extinct Hive Lords.

Strains Timeline

Predator Strain Timeline

• February 15, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Fenrir III.
• February 16, 2185: Predator Strain abandons Fenrir III, arrives on Erata Prime. Erata resistance rate increases to 3.5%.
• February 18, 2185: Erata Prime is liberated, Predator Strain disappear.
• March 14, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Fenrir III.
• March 15, 2185: Fenrir III falls to the Predator Strain.
• March 16, 2185: Predator Strain appears on Esker. Esker resistance rate rises to 2%.
  • Bore Rock is then attacked from Esker by the Predator Strain.
  • Fenrir III is liberated.
• March 17, 2185: Bore Rock falls to the Predator Strain.
• April 15, 2185: Predator Strain appears on Nivel 43.
• April 16, 2185: Nivel 43 is liberated. Predator Strain disappear from the map.
• April 16, 2185: Terminid offensive begins. Predator Strain attacks Esker, Crimsica, and Fenrir III.
• April 17, 2185:
  • Fenrir III & Crimsica are defended. Esker falls to the Predator Strain.
  • Predator Strain attacks Achernar Secundus, then Bore Rock.
  • Predator Strain later attacks Acamar IV.
• April 18, 2185:
  • Achernar Secundus is defended. Bore Rock falls to the Predator Strain.
  • Predator Strain attacks both Terrek and Erata Prime from Bore Rock.
  • Acamar IV falls to the Predator Strain.
• April 19, 2185:
  • Predator Strain attacks Estanu.
  • Predator Strain attacks both Turing and Crimsica from Acamar IV.
  • Bore Rock is liberated, successfully ending the Predator Strain attacks upon Terrek and Erata Prime.
• April 20, 2185:
  • Estanu falls to the Predator Strain.
  • Acamar IV is liberated, ending the Predator Strain attacks upon Turing and Crimsica.
  • Predator Strain attacks Erata Prime.
  • Erata Prime is defended. Predator Strain only remains on Esker and Estanu.
• April 23, 2185: Illuminate attack Turing.
• April 24, 2185: Xenoentomology Centre on Turing is heavily damaged.
  • Breach of highly-secured specimens causes Predator Strain outbreak on Turing. Planet instantly falls to the Predator Strain. Enemy resistance set to 2.5%.
  • Predator Strain attacks Veld.
• April 25, 2185: Veld falls to the Predator Strain.
• April 26, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Slif.
• April 27, 2185: Slif falls to the Predator Strain.
  • Turing is liberated from the Predator Strain. (Creates the Veld-Slif Encirclement.)
• April 30, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Bore Rock from Esker. Predator Strain disappears from Esker.
• May 1, 2185: Bore Rock falls to the Predator Strain. Minutes later, the Predator Strain attacks Terrek.
• May 2, 2185: Terrek falls to the Predator Strain.
• May 3, 2185: Predator Strain attacks both Azterra and Cirrus.
• May 4, 2185: Azterra and Cirrus fall to the Predator Strain.
• May 5, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Fort Union.
• May 6, 2185: Fort Union is defended.
• May 7, 2185: Cirrus is liberated from the Predator Strain.
  • Predator Strain attacks Krakatwo.
• May 8, 2185: Krakatwo is defended.
• May 10, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Sulfura.
• May 11, 2185: Sulfura falls to the Predator Strain.
  • Predator Strain attacks Krakatwo.
• May 12, 2185: Krakatwo falls to the Predator Strain.
• May 13, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Nublaria I.
• May 14, 2185: Nublaria I falls to the Predator Strain.
• May 15, 2185: Predator Strain leaves Krakatwo and Slif, converges on Nublaria I. Enemy resistance rate increases from 1.5% to 2.5% on Nublaria.
• June 11th, 2185: New FTL Line between Veld and Inari is established. Predator Strain attacks Inari.
• June 12th, 2185: Inari falls to the Predator Strain. Predator Strain attacks Alta V.
• June 13th, 2185: Alta V falls to the Predator Strain.
• June 14th, 2185: Predator Strain on Inari retreats to Veld. Inari is liberated.
• July 11th, 2185: Veld is liberated. Predator Strain disappears from the galactic map.
• August 15, 2185: Predator Strain resurfaces on Gacrux, attacks Acamar IV.
• August 16, 2185: Acamar IV is defended.
• August 18, 2185: Predator Strain abandons Gacrux.
• August 27, 2185: Predator Strain escapes from Tyranny Park 2 on Bore Rock, attacks Terrek.
• August 28, 2185: Terrek falls to the Predator Strain.
  • Predator Strain attacks Azterra and Cirrus.
• August 29, 2185: Azterra and Cirrus fall to the Predator Strain.
• August 30, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Sulfura and Fort Union.
• August 31, 2185: Sulfura falls to the Predator Strain. Predator Strain attacks Nublaria I.
  • Fort Union is defended from the Predator Strain.
  • Nublaria I is defended from the Predator Strain.
• September 3, 2185: Predator Strain disappears from Terrek.
• September 4, 2185: Sulfura is liberated from the Predator Strain.
• September 10, 2185: Azterra is liberated from the Predator Strain.
• September 12, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Hellmire.
• September 13, 2185: Hellmire is defended from the Predator Strain.
• September 17, 2185: Cirrus is liberated from the Predator Strain.
• September 28, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Hellmire.
• September 29, 2185: Hellmire is defended from the Predator Strain.
• October 12, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Hellmire.
• October 13th, 2185: Hellmire is defended.
• October 24th, 2185: Predator Strain attacks Hellmire.
• October 25th, 2185: Hellmire is defended.

Rupture Strain Timeline

• September 2nd, 2185: Rupture Strain is first found on Hellmire.
• September 2nd, 2185: The Rupture Strain abandons Hellmire after its liberation, then moves to Oshaune.
• September 5th, 2185: Rupture Strain surfaces on Nivel 43 and Fori Prime.
• September 9th, 2185: Rupture Strain attacks Gacrux.
• September 11th, 2185: Gacrux falls to the Rupture Strain, who then attack Acamar IV and Pandion-XXIV.
• September 12th, 2185: Gacrux is liberated, ending the Rupture Strain attacks upon Acamar and Pandion-XXIV.
• September 17th, 2185: Arrowhead removes Rupture Strain from the game for 5 weeks in order to adjust their gameplay.
• October 29th, 2185: Rupture Strain has been observed on Bore Rock and Fori Prime.
• October 29th, 2185: Rupture Strain attacks Terrek and Gacrux.
• October 30th, 2185: Rupture Strain attacks Crimsica.
  • Terrek and Gacrux fall to the Rupture Strain.
• November 1st, 2185: Rupture Strain has been rediscovered on Oshaune,
  • Crimsica falls to the Rupture Strain.

References