Lord Shaxx – Winning Through Vengance

“I am no “follower” of anything. Thanatology is just an excuse for insomnia and that Ahamkaras are for cheaters. I find the Acataleptic belief that Darkness is incomprehensible to be pessimistic nihilism. Its opposite—the Osirian position that Darkness must be understood—to be misanthropic narcissism. But I will also take good ideas where I can get them. And Osiris’s belief that Guardian minds and bodies can be sharpened as one sharpens a sword is a good idea. You’ve seen the results in the Crucible. Do I really have to say any more?”
— Lord Shaxx

Lord Shaxx is the manager of the Crucible and a vendor for Crucible-related items. Find him in the Tower. Near the Vanguard. However, in Destiny 2 he is located in the Courtyard, behind the vaults. The Crucible Quartermaster, Article 99-40 assists him in his duties. He does not serve as a vendor in Destiny 2. Lord Shaxx serves as the announcer in the Crucible as well. However Lord Saladin Forge hosts Iron Banner.

Defender of the Last City

A Growing City

“I forget you used to be a Warlord.”
“What do you mean ‘used to?'”
“I thought you’d thrown in with Saladin and Felwinter.”
“I did. But I never stopped being me.”
— The Drifter and Lord Shaxx

Shaxx was a Warlord during the Dark Age. He eventually submitted to the Iron Lords but still maintained the attitude of a Warlord. During the first years of the City Age, he traveled to the famous camp that would become The Last City. He helped to build the city alongside people such as a younger Speaker and Zavala. Shaxx also fought alongside Zavala and Lord Saladin Forge during the Battle of Six Fronts. He also participated in the construction of the Last City’s Wall and the Towers. He and Zavala became students of Saladin, although they did not join the Iron Lords.

The Crucible handler was also present during the schism between the infamous exile, Osiris, and his former teacher, the Speaker. Shaxx didn’t have an opinion on Osiris at the time. He grew irritated that his “messages” began to spread and cause strife among the Guardians and the City itself. Shaxx even had to personally break up a few fights before they got out of hand.

The Battle of Twilight Gap

“I faced an impossible choice: disobey my superior or let the City burn. I relive it every day. There are some who have never forgiven me.”
— Shaxx, recounting his decision at the Battle of Twilight Gap to Redrix-3 and Josef.

When the Fallen Houses laid siege to the Last City, Shaxx fought in the Battle of the Twilight Gap. To break the Fallen assault, he commanded a fireteam that consisted of Anastasia Bray, Liu Feng, Nkechi-32, Abdi, and Truce. The battle turned against the Vanguard. They were forced off the wall. When Shaxx heard Saladin over the comms order a full retreat to the Ridgeback District, he was stunned. Shaxx glanced around the battlefield. Hundreds of dead Fallen and Guardians alike were scattered around Twilight Gap.

Reloading, he saw the city was not under direct assault yet. As Saladin yelled at him to comply with the retreat order Shaxx noticed a gap. A fateful gap within the Fallen ranks that would allow them to reach the Wall. Disregarding Saladin, Shaxx ordered Nkechi to take Adbi, Truce and Liu Feng to come with him. Ana provided both teams with cover fire. His team followed his orders, and as they leapt upon the Wall Shaxx cut off his radio feed with Saladin. The six of them held the Wall long enough for Saladin and Zavala to regroup the rest of the Guardians. They collectively launched a counterattack, which allowed the Vanguard to emerge victorious and save the Last City.

Vanguard Losses

The loss many Guardians at Twilight Gap caused Shaxx to fear the Last City could not withstand another full-scale assault. He then mentored young Guardians in the Crucible. This was to ensure the next generation of Guardians would be forged into the best warriors possible. He waited to rejoin the war outside of the City until he accomplished his task. Shaxx ignoring the commands of Saladin during the battle resulted in a falling out between the two Titans. Zavala was left with issues against both of them due to the battle. Others have attempted to get the three Titans to sort out their differences. But after the battle, their stubborn nature prevented those efforts from working. Shaxx oversees Iron Banner but does not manage it because of his disputes with Saladin.

Terrors in the Darkness

“What madness is this!”
“Lord Shaxx! The Consensus did not—”
“We barely eked out victory at Burning Lake. And now you think we’re ready to attack the Moon?”
— Shaxx arguing with the Consensus against the assault on the Hive’s moon fortresses

Despite his focus on the Crucible, Shaxx did serve in several battles for the Vanguard. When the Great Ahamkara Hunt began on Venus, Shaxx travelled there. He fought alongside Zavala and the Hunter Eris Morn one year into the Hunt. The three of them defeated an Ahamkara. Shaxx then sat beside the dying creature and rested his hand on its snout. This confused his two comrades. The Ahamkara’s corpse exploded into green fire. This left behind a crater which contained a sitting Shaxx engulfed in flames. Zavala and Eris began to speak and Shaxx quieted them. They quietly listened to the whispering voice of the slain Ahamkara. A sound they had all grown used to over the course of the Hunt.

Burning Lake

Shaxx was present at the Battle of Burning Lake, the first battle with the Hive. The Vanguard barely won the battle. Shaxx submitted a report to the Consensus detailing the Hive Knight’s Light-stealing swords. This prompted him to look into developing countermeasures against those weapons. Shocked by discovering their sinister plan, he looked deeper. Despite how close they came to defeat at Burning Lake, Consensus was preparing for an assault on Hive’s moon fortresses. Boldly barging into the Consensus Hall, Shaxx demanded to know what madness had taken ahold of them.

He questioned if they had even read his report about Burning Lake. Shaxx appealed to Zavala to see reason and prevent the assault. He needed to learn more about the swords and train against them. His old friend informed Shaxx that this was for the Consensus to decide, not him. Shaxx’s fears proved well-founded. As the resulting battle to reclaim the Moon ended in complete failure. This failure is officially ‘the Great Disaster’. Thousands of Guardians perished by the swords of Crota, Son of Oryx and his spawn.

Master of the Crucible

“The tactics and techniques that will save us in wars to come are birthed in the Crucible, during live-fire training. The Vanguard are so preoccupied with their own agendas they’re missing the Vanguard of tomorrow rising right before their eyes. Ghosts find Guardians. The Crucible forges them.”
— Lord Shaxx

Lord Shaxx often had to deal with the politics of the City’s Consensus and weapons foundries. Shaxx was approached by Modris Wyndham and Sya Droysen. These two representatives of Tex Mechanica wanted him to fix Crucible fights to make their weapons look good. Pretending to consider their offer, he asked them to meet him in an abandoned district of the City. Shaxx instead had Arcite 99-40 contact them with a message. The message explained they were not the first to try and subvert the integrity of the Crucible. He did not care if the Consensus did not believe their actions illegal. Shaxx then presented a choice. Ten Titans could crash through their factory on “business” or Tex Mechanica could make up their mistake up to him.

Lord Shaxx expressed his belief that Saint-14 was dead to Cayade-6. Cayade did not know the status of the former Titan Vanguard. Shaxx doubted that the Exo disappeared into thin air. Saint’s eccentric nature was a strength according to Shaxx. Cayde recalls mocking Saint’s claim that he had seen the future and saw a Guardian savior who would one day arrive. ‘Belief was a hell of thing’, said Shaxx. Shaxx left to watch a Crucible match debuting a new recruit from Old Russia.

Lord Shaxx and his Desire for the Crucible

Around the time of Crota’s defeat, rumors abounded in the Tower regarding Shaxx’s connections to Osiris, which caused the Speaker to launch a formal investigation. Shaxx displayed his outrage. He sent a letter to the Speaker declaring that he followed no one and found most ideologies espoused by Guardians like Osiris or Ulan-Tan to be flawed, but that he did think that Osiris’ belief that the minds and bodies of Guardians could be sharpened like one sharpens a sword correct, and that the results in the Crucible spoke for themselves.

Shaxx now desired new Crucible arenas and personally led a unit of Redjacks to the Cosmodrome. Shaxx secured a section of the wall dubbed Sector 618 by the Vanguard. He believed that the location had the spirit of war about it and liked the extra challenges the chaotic terrain added to Crucible matches. He worked with Holborn’s Host to discover the existence of Fleetbase Korus on the Martian moon of Phobos, they reported to the Vanguard that it was under the command of Primus Ta’aun of the Skyburners.

A New Arena Emerges

After creating another new arena in the midst of the European Dead Zone, Shaxx responded to worries about security by noting that very little remained dead now and that they must be ready for anything. He also aided Amanda Holliday in finding new tracks for the Sparrow Racing League, ordering his Redjacks to create a track on Venus in the heart of Vex territory so that the bravery of Guardians could be tested alongside their speed.

While drinking coffee (and having a heated argument) Shaxx was teleported before Queen Mara Sov. Shaxx demanded to know where he was. The Queen merely knocked the coffee cup out of his hand and handed him a copy of William Shakesphere’s The Tempest and demanded he read it aloud. Insulted, Shaxx used his Arc abilities to incinerate the text and declared that no one told him what to do and that he knew the entirety of The Tempest by heart. He proceeded to recite the famous play to Mara over the next several hours, although he never removed his helmet during the performance.

The Taken War

After the Guardian secured a landing zone on Oryx, the Taken Kings Dreadnaught, Shaxx ordered his Redjacks to board the massive Hive warship, determined to carve out new Crucible arenas there as revenge upon the Hive God for his invasion of the Solar System. He boasted that by the end of the Taken War, they would be holding Crucible matches atop Oryx’s throne.

Oryx’s invasion rekindled Shaxx’s interest in Hive swords. He set out to learn how to craft swords for Guardians to wield against the Hive. After Oryx’s death, Shaxx was approached by the Guardian. Eris Morn gave a shard of Oryx’s sword Willbreaker to The Guardian. The Shard fascinated Shaxx. He questioned what the Guardian intended to do with it. He offered to reforge the blade into a new weapon for the Guardian. This required Hadium Flakes from the Dreadnaught to repair the blade. After the Guardian gathered the necessary materials and returned, Shaxx explained that he could craft the blade with any of the three elements to make the Arc Edge, Sol Edge, or Void Edge and asked which the Guardian would prefer.

An increase of power

After the Guardian improved upon the sword, Shaxx had them return to him and noted that he could increase its power even more. He asked the Guardian to test the sword’s strength against powerful Hive and Guardians in the Crucible. Shaxx then explained the sword hovered between ‘the Light’ and ‘the Darkness’. They must ensure it was sealed into the light by using it to slay Ecthar, Sword of Oryx. While working on the swords, Shaxx turned to the Cryptarchy for aid. He utilized Ikora’s notes to ensure that the swords were forged in Light.

Age of Triumph

After the emergence of a group of Guardians known as the Shadows of Yor who utilized copies of Thorn, the dreaded weapon of the murderous Guardian Dredgen Yor, Shaxx met with Ikora to discuss the situation after the Shadows participated in a match on Blind Watch. Ikora was worried Yor’s corruption was creeping into the Crucible again. The Shadows may have been corrupted. She suggested they monitor the situation. Shaxx agreed with her. He believed that Zyre Orsa, one of the leaders of the Shadows (and his friends) were overcoming the Darkness of Thorn. They succeed where Yor had failed. His former pupil disagreed with him. They asserted that the Thorn was becoming a far too common pestilence in the Crucible.

During The Dawning, Cayde-6 conned him into loosening up to mingle with the City’s children after Shaxx failed to outrun his Golden Gun in a bet, a feat that Shaxx grudgingly accepted once he started training two kids in the ways of the Crucible. He was vindicated when one of those kids discreetly hit Cayde with a ball. On the way back to the Tower, he once again bet that he could beat the Golden Gun, and Cayde happily accepted.

The Red War and Lord Shaxx

“If the Cabal want war, give them war.”
— Shaxx
On the anniversary of the Battle of Six Fronts, the Last City and its Guardians were preparing to celebrate the unity of the City and foundation of the Vanguard. However, the City was suddenly assaulted by the Cabal’s Red Legion, and the Tower suffered heavy damage during the initial stages of the battle. Shaxx and his Redjacks immediately began aiding in the defense of the Tower, and he made it his priority to assist civilians in escaping the Cabal assault. In a cargo bay near the North Tower, he saved a group of civilians from a group of Red Legion soldiers. Spotting Eva Levante amongst the group, Shaxx helped her to her feet and asked for her help to organize the civilians to follow him to safety.

Escort to Destruction

Leading them through the burning Tower, he escorted the group to a trio of waiting Hawks. Before leaving to find more civilians, Shaxx bid farewell to Eva, calling her comrade, and then charged back into the wreckage of the Tower. Shaxx began gathering civilians for evacuation outside of his personal armory. The Young Wolf eventually arrived, and Shaxx gave them access to his armory to take whatever weapons they needed from it and gave them directions to reach the hanger. He remained behind to continue guarding the civilians, but urged the Young Wolf to wage war upon the Cabal. Upon the fall of the Last City, an enraged Lord Shaxx retaliated by hijacking some of the Cabal’s capital ships and converted them into Crucible arenas.

Shaxx, Arcite 99-40, and his team are cut off by a Cabal energy barrier during the liberation of the Last City.

Relocation

Shaxx and Arcite 99-40 relocated to The Farm, where he continued to organize Crucible matches. He was reunited with the Young Wolf there, who had managed to restore their connection to the Light thanks to the Shard of the Traveler within the European Dead Zone. Shaxx told them that only their Light could forge a path to victory for them, and that his Crucible would help prepare them for their future battles.

After the resistance had gathered at the Farm under the leadership of the Vanguard and Suraya Hawthorne, Shaxx was a part of the strike team led by Zavala that participated in the assault on the occupied Last City to free the Traveler from the Cabal. As they fought their way through the City, Shaxx was separated along with Arcite and other Guardians from Zavala and Hawthorne when the Cabal blocked their path with an energy barrier. As Zavala advanced, Shaxx and his team waited for Hawthorne to disable the barrier so they could rejoin the battle.

Liberation from the Red Legion

The Last City was liberated from the Red Legion. The Traveler awakened during the Young Wolf’s battle against Dominus Ghaul, which restored the Light to Shaxx and the rest of the Guardians. Shaxx relocated from the Farm and began to once again organize Crucible matches from the Last City in the new Tower. When he met with the Young Wolf in the aftermath of the battle. Shaxx said the fight had been glorious at the meeting with Young Wolf after the battle. In fact, Young Wolf’s rage brought tears to his eyes. He thanked them for liberating their home, and Shaxx admitted he could not have done it better himself before suggesting they celebrate their victory by fighting in the Crucible.

Evolving the Crucible

Shaxx stands at his new Crucible control center at the new Tower.
“Spread the word. Starting today, the Crucible is ranked. And you’ve all just been seeded. Go make history.”
— Shaxx

Several months after the reclamation of the Last City, Shaxx decided that he would institute a ranking system into the Crucible. He decided to announce this during an ongoing Crucible match by dropping down with his Fist of Havoc onto one of the participating fireteams. Standing in the middle of a fresh crater, Shaxx beckoned the Guardians to gather around him as they were revived by their Ghosts. One of the Guardians, Redrix-3, attempted to question Shaxx, but was only able to stutter at him.

Shaxx watched as Redrix’s Ghost quickly healed his chest again, allowing the Exo to speak and inquire how many more tests Lord Shaxx was going to make them take. He informed Redrix and the others that there would not be anymore tests, but that the Crucible was now going to be ranked and that they were all the first to be seeded, and asked that they spread the word among the other Crucible contenders.

Personality and Traits

Bold, proud and fierce are the words that could best define Lord Shaxx. Next to Zavala, Shaxx is a perfect exemplar of the Titan Guardian. The Crucible handler is completely dedicated to the mission in preparing the Guardians for whatever force the Darkness brings, acting as a tough but encouraging mentor to them.

He praises those who perform admirably or put up a decent fight while being harsh to those who fall short, normally berating them to do better. Despite this, Shaxx doesn’t see a match lost as failure but as a lesson to learn from, as he explained to the children he trained during the Dawning. In addition, Shaxx normally looks for ways to create new challenges in the Crucible, either in new maps or match types, as he doesn’t want the Guardians to grow complacent to the regular matches.

A Responsible Leader

Shaxx takes his responsibilities in the Crucible very seriously but is aware of how most look upon the Crucible as a glorified arena and how the Consensus factions and Weapons Foundries use it to further their agendas. For this reason, he is uncompromising on how he runs it, refusing to let others try to influence it or even cheat.

For example, when Tex Mechanica sought to bribe him to make their weapons look better, an unimpressed Shaxx threatened to send squads of Titans on the representatives unless they changed their offer. Another reason he’s distrustful of the Consensus is how they launched the mission to reclaim the moon from the Hive. Despite his loud protests on learning more about their enemies, resulted in nothing but the slaughter of countless Guardians.

A free thinker

In addition, Shaxx doesn’t have a high opinion on the philosophies and religions that have taken form in the City. In his opinion, he is no “follower” of anything but the forging of better Guardians. Shaxx believes that thanatology is just an excuse for insomnia, that Ahamkaras are for cheaters, the Acataleptic belief that the Darkness is incomprehensible to be pessimistic nihilism, and its opposite—the Osirian position that the Darkness must be understood—to be misanthropic narcissism.

Lord Shaxx also possess a nearly unbreakable will, as he simply refuses to give up on any obstacle, whether it is in battle or researching a difficult weapon like the Swords. Even when the Last City fell and Zavala began to lose faith, Shaxx never faltered in their chances in defeating the Red Legion and reclaiming the Last City.

Pride, Honor and Respect

At times, Shaxx can be prideful, as he refuses to back down from a challenge and rarely accepts defeat, even from Cayde-6, which led to him losing a bet. Even so, he honors his end of a bet, as Lord Shaxx agreed, albeit grudgingly, to train a few children in a game of dodge ball, in a manner similar to the Crucible. In addition, his falling out with Saladin left both refusing to apologize for what divided them. Regardless, he has worked with Saladin in operating the Iron Banner.

While most of the other individuals in the Tower have respect for at least one class of Guardian, Lord Shaxx respects them all, normally finding the best qualities in each and never favoring one over the others.

Though Lord Shaxx was a Warlord, he had “Thrown in” with Lord Saladin Forge and Lord Felwinter, yet he states he’s still himself. This shows he still thinks of himself as a Warlord, suggesting he takes pride in his identity.

If you are a fan of Lord Shaxx, check out The story of Shaxxercize