GOLIATH Program

"Sicut Tonitro."

- The motto of the GOLIATHs, meaning "Like Thunder".

Overview
The GOLIATH Program was a Army-backed attempt to create elite supersoldiers through chemical and physical augmentation. They attempted to recreate the lethal effectiveness of the SPARTANs without following in it's footsteps, following their own agenda and recruitment methods. Their aim was to match and indeed replace the SPARTANs without using the morally questionable kidnapping of children and dangerous augmentative surgery. GOLIATH was drawn from consenting -though not entirely aware- adults.

The results were spectacular, but dangerous. The GOLIATHs proved volatile, unstable, and less disciplined. The Program's developing and admittedly flawed augmentation procedures resulted in side-effects more far reaching then any of their estimates could have predicted. Ultimately this and other factors contributed to the eventual destruction of GOLIATH.

Conception
GOLIATH was the brainchild of then-Brigadier General Gregor A. Ashfield of the UNSC Army. In December of 2530, he witnessed firsthand the effectiveness of the SPARTAN-II Program when their team helped rescued his unit from the Covenant. While he was awed by their prowess, he resented that only one branch of the UNSCDF had such a incredible and threatening force under it's jurisdiction. It was his idea to create a independent force of supersoldiers to "even the playing field" as he put it and give the Army a political strongarm against the Navy's longstanding strategic dominance.

He proposed the idea to his commanding officer who pitched it to UNICOM who then passed all the way up to HIGHCOM. The idea caused some debate among the higher echelons and Ashfield was summoned to present the idea personally. Determined to make this pass, he tried to convince the brass that it was not be necessary to abduct children and then risk them with dangerous and highly fatal surgery, that GOLIATH would make more with less death. With the prospect of making SPARTAN-caliber soldiers while averting any possible political scandals, Ashfield was able to sway the brass and GOLIATH was green-lighted, with Ashfield as director of operations.

Recruitment
"The UNSC Army is now recruiting special forces operators for a new special forces unit. You have been selected to take part of a new special forces You have been selected to take part of a new special forces branch. Should you accept you will be the elite of the UNSC. Contact the provided number if you accept."

- Recruitment notices sent out to hopeful GOLIATH recruits.

GOLIATH was up and underway towards the end of January of 2531 as the needed personnel and equipment were moved to Fort Jorge on New Fallon. New staff were enlisted, trainers, Scientists and researchers of numerous fields were called in to work under GOLIATH, including some previously affiliated with the SPARTAN-II Program. However GOLIATH would have a few hurdles to leap that SPARTAN did not. GOLIATH would be smaller and less well funded than it's counterpart. SPARTAN was already well established with a five year head start, most funding that would have gone to GOLIATH went to SPARTAN funding. But the Program's project heads proved resourceful and made due with what they had.

Recruitment notices were sent out privately to those deemed to be of suitable stock. To avoid potential scandal recruits were drawn instead from consenting adults from Army Airborne and other Army special units. Recruits had to be male, over twenty-one years of a age, and had to meet the Program's physical requirements. Under the not-entirely-false guise of a new special army unit, over sixty promising recruits signed up for service.

Training
Every candidate was already a veteran of another special forces outfit, Airborne or otherwise and therefore had already gone through atleast two cases of screening and intense special forces training to make it this far.

Augmentations
The project also made use of important but less prominent and dangerous use of surgical augmentation.

GOLIATH Personnel

 * General Gregor Ashfield
 * GOLIATH-01
 * GOLIATH-02
 * GOLIATH-13