NOVA Team

"You know as well as I do that we wind up with some that would have chosen—not just kids unlucky enough to survive a . Orders are still being followed and those Spartans are in the field, but they are armed as SPARTANs—and they are making a difference."

- to Nova Team, more formally styled as NOVA Team and occasionally referred to as NOVA or Team NOVA, was a fireteam-sized unit composed of formed in. Nova Team was under the operational control of the, more specifically, the (NAVSPECWAR).

Overview
Nova Team was primarily composed of SPARTAN-IIIs pulled from and  by   and   before the large-scale operations in which the companies were mostly destroyed,   for Alpha and  for Beta.

Prior to the, Nova Team served on numerous fronts such as , , , , and perhaps most significantly, on. Unfortunately, only three of the original members were reportedly alive by the end of.

Nova Team, along with and select other teams, operated more extensively with non-SPARTAN military peronnel than most Spartans. To grant Nova Team more operation freedom when working with standard military personnel, many of its members held ranks higher than those of most Spartans. Nova Team was under the direct authority of the Naval Special Warfare Command (NAVSPECWAR), but its  is unspecified.

The SPARTAN-IIIs of Nova Team were issued equipment on par with that of the s, such as, which is far more advanced than the cheaper worn by the mainline SPARTAN-IIIs. All members of the team were issued along with the other Spartans at some point in late. The members of Nova Team displayed a variety of color schemes and customized variants.

Team composition
Living members
 * Commander John-A222 (Nova One) - A highly-skilled and intelligent Spartan, John served as the leader of Nova Team. He is currently listed as active.
 *  Josh-A124 (Nova Two) - John's second-in-command, Josh served as the team's skilled primary sniper. He is currently listed as active.
 *  Tyler-B307 (Nova Three) - An outspoken and often defensive Spartan, Tyler was the assault specialist of the team. He is currently listed as active.
 *  Drew-G209 (Replacement Nova Member) - A rather self-conscious Spartan, Drew was assigned to the team immediately prior to the . He is currently listed as active.

Members confirmed killed during the Fall of Reach
 *  Nathan-B136 (Nova Five) - Careful and creative, Nathan served as the technician of the team. Killed on August 23, 2552. Listed MIA. Confirmed KIA by during the.
 *  Adam-B226 (Nova Four) - Intelligent and reserved, Adam was the team's intelligence specialist. Killed on August 29, 2552. Listed MIA. Confirmed KIA by during the.
 *  Owen-A197 (Nova Six) - Quiet, but skilled, Owen was the team's heavy weapons specialist. Killed on August 29, 2552. Listed MIA. Confirmed KIA by Covenant during the Battle of Aszod.

New Gamma Company Spartans were considered for replacements on the team such as Robby-G076 and Reece-G324. When one member fell in the line of duty, a new Spartan would be brought in as a replacement. Despite Nova Team's losses on Reach, the new Spartans were assigned to other units.

Potential members
 *  Reece-G324 - Often viewed as irritating, Reece would serve as a potential replacement. His current status is unknown.
 *  Robby-G076 - Loyal but impulsive, Robby served as a potential replacement. His current status is unknown.

History
NOVA Team was formed by the UNSC Navy in the year 2546. Given his prior tactical, leadership, and combat skills, John-A222 was selected to lead the team. In an effort to promote a positive team dynamic, he was given the opportunity to recommend any of his peers that he felt were "adequately suited" for a position on Nova Team. John immediately selected Josh-A124, an especially promising Spartan specializing in marksmanship. The pair had become friends during training for Alpha Company which, in addition to his skills, prompted the latter's assignment to the team as sniper. John-A222 then proceeded to recommend Adam-B226 and Tyler-B307 based on their admirable service records. Nathan-B136 and Owen-A197 were eventually assigned to the team. In addition, a heavier prototype of the Daring-class frigate, UNSC Supernova, was assigned as the team's base of operations.

Nova Team participated in numerous battles throughout the, such as the and the. Nova Team was also deployed on a high priority mission to with the objective of material retrieval or destruction in the cities of Caracas and Enfield, and later, along with multiple other Spartan fireteams to  during the.

Fall of Reach

 * Main article:

Nova Team was sent to Reach along with sixty percent of the after the Covenant,  revealed itself over the planet. Upon arrival, the Spartans were immediatiely deployed to, where a Covenant assault was underway, to slow the Covenant advance while evacuation efforts were organized. A group of students were liberated from a pack of when John stabbed a  in the neck, Josh-A124 ended a  with a well-placed bullet, and the other members neutralized the remaining hostiles.

The team later assisted in the evacuation of after the Covenant initiated an aggressive raid on the city. Tragically, Nathan-B136 was bombarded by a Mgalekgolo while escorting a group of civilians. It was the first loss within Nova Team. As the metropolis was later glassed, John and his remaining men were evacuated to the sublevel bunker of along with Noble Team and other UNSC personnel.

During their deployment, Nova Team engaged in numerous defensive and counter-assault operations throughout. In the final days of the Battle of Reach, Nova Team was deployed, along with several other Spartans, to help defend the shipyard and pipelines in as the remnants of Noble Team transported a high priority package to the dry-docked. It was here that the team was ambushed by Spec Ops Sangheili warriors, and Adam-B226 was killed. As the team continued to hold their ground, Owen-A197 was shot by hostile Banshees. Crippled, Nova Team was later withdrawn along with some of the remaining UNSC forces.

Defense of Earth

 * Main article:

Drew-G209 was assigned to Nova Team to supplement its numbers. During the later Battle of Earth, Nova Team was divided into pairs to serve on multiple fronts. These pairs were John-A222 with Josh-A124 and Tyler-B307 with Drew-G209.

John-A222 and Josh-A124 were initially deployed to where they engaged in intense urban warfare. They later were given various combat/defensive roles in Athens,, , and Geneva. In addition, the pair went to to rescue Drew-G209 and Tyler-B307 from overwhelming hostile forces.

Tyler-B307 and Drew-G209 were initially sent to Japan to engage Covenant forces in Tokyo and Fukushima. They were then reassigned to when a Covenant capital ship arrived to besiege the base. The pair was later sent to where they were pinned down and nearly killed by Covenant forces. Only when John-A222 and Josh-A124 arrived did the Spartans continue their operations.

Trivia

 * When commandeering an or an, John-A222 and Josh-A124 have a reputation of being especially deadly with Josh driving and John in the gunner position.


 * Tyler-B307 and Nathan-B136 had known each other previously from training in Beta Company. The fact that both eventually were assigned to the same squad was purely coincidence.