- For the skill, see Helios (Maya).
Helios is the Hyperion corporation's base of operations near Pandora.
Background
Styled as a letter "H", the moonbase is a massive space station that can travel to wherever in the galaxy the Hyperion President deems necessary or profitable. After the events of Borderlands, Handsome Jack took over Hyperion and moved the moonbase to orbit above Pandora's moon, Elpis. During Borderlands 2, Handsome Jack spends much of his time on the moonbase, conversing with the Vault Hunters through ECHO. In any outdoor location, the moonbase can be seen in the sky.
The moonbase is capable of launching orbital assaults known as moonshot blitzes which are capable of devastating the target areas. The moonbase can also send a ground assault almost anywhere by launching loaders and constructors.
Supplies may be called in from the moonbase. Hyperion ground forces set up a supply beacon at a drop site to requisition said supplies, and the supplies are delivered in cargo containers in the same manner as the blitzes. The supply beacons can be used to requisition everything from equipment to Fast Travel stations, although the latter will first have to be calibrated by the moonbase staff before they can function, but will immediately become operational once landed. Two known supply drop sites include the Orbital Delivery Zone in Opportunity and the Extraction Plant at The Highlands - Outwash.
Involvement
In the five years since the first Vault on Pandora was opened, Hyperion had been fighting the Crimson Raiders led by Roland for control of the planet. The Raiders' headquarters was located in the city of Sanctuary, which had to be reinforced with a shield generator to protect it from moonshot blitzes from the moonbase. The generator draws its energy from power cores that burn out periodically, requiring replacements that force the Raiders to venture from the safety of the city to seek. During the mission The Road to Sanctuary, the Vault Hunters deliver a new power core for Sanctuary's shield generator just before the moonbase launches another blitz, sparing the city from what would have been a devastating attack.
During A Dam Fine Rescue, the moonbase delivers W4R-D3N and a large force of Loaders to the Bloodshot Stronghold to capture Roland while also wiping out the Bloodshot gang.
Later, when the Vault Hunters defeat Wilhelm, they retrieve a unique power core from his remains that could theoretically sustain Sanctuary's shields indefinitely. When installed in the generator in Rising Action, however, the core is revealed to be a trojan horse that allows Angel to infiltrate and disable the shield's systems, rendering Sanctuary defenseless. The moonbase then begins a heavy bombardment of the city, killing many of its inhabitants before Lilith uses her powers to phase the city to the Highlands and out of the moonbase's range.
During Bright Lights, Flying City, Angel attacks the moonbase when the technicians on board delay establishing a Fast Travel link with a terminal the Vault Hunters deploy in Overlook. In order to expedite the Fast Travel request, Angel deactivates the moonbase's life support as a death threat, which shortens the time for the request from three to six weeks to a few minutes.
After the Vault Hunters defeat Handsome Jack and The Warrior during The Talon of God, they ensure The Warrior's destruction by calling in a moonshot on it.
During Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep, Brick, Lilith, and Mordecai play a game of "Bunkers & Badasses" with Tiny Tina while the six other Vault Hunters "interrogate" a Hyperion spy for the moonbase's access codes. After the game is finished, Maya informs the group that the spy has finally divulged the codes and asks if they feel like blowing the moonbase up. Despite this, during Ultimate Vault Hunter Upgrade Pack Two: Digistruct Peak Challenge, the moonbase is still visible in the sky from Digistruct Peak. It is unknown whether the Vault Hunters failed to blow it up, or it's left for any other reason.
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