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| “ | I've put myself on the line every day since I was eighteen years old. Followed every order. Even the half-assed ones. But now I'm going to save my father. So with all due respect, f*#k you, sir. | „ |
| ~ Marcus to Hoffman, after being ordered to forget about his father and go to the Chancery Bridge. |
| “ | Feel that? That's from Dom, and everyone else you killed, you bitch! | „ |
| ~ Marcus killing Queen Myrrah in revenge for all the deaths she caused. |
| “ | Welcome home, James. | „ |
| ~ Marcus to his son, JD. |
Sergeant Marcus Michael Fenix is the main protagonist of the original Gears of War trilogy and a main character in the games following. He is a Gear soldier in the Coalition of Ordered Governments army, and is a veteran of the Pendulum, Locust and Lambent War. During the interwar period, Marcus would marry his long-time friend and lover, Anya Stroud, and have a child together named James Dominic "JD" Fenix. When the Swarm became a threat, Marcus returned to the military to fight against the creatures alongside his son and friends.
He is voiced by John DiMaggio, who also voiced Bender Bending Rodriguez in Futurama, Jake in Adventure Time, Shnitzel in Chowder, Leadfoot in the Transformers films, Crosshairs in same films, Wakka and Kimahri Ronso in Final Fantasy X.
History[]
Early Years[]
Born Marcus Michael Fenix twenty-one years before Emergence Day in the district of Tyrus and on the planet Sera. He is the son of famed war scientist Adam Fenix and Dr. Elain Fenix.
Marcus was an odd child growing up, constantly jumping from school to school and having an unusual lack of friends. He was never at place wherever he went and it wasn't until he met Carlos and Dominic Santiago that he found a "true" family. Marcus knew that children his age avoided him due to his quiet nature and the fact that his family was rich because of his father's success as leading scientist for the Coalition of Ordered Governments. Because of this, Marcus was constantly bullied and it wasn't until Carlos Santiago stepped in and took a hit for him that he took a stand. Marcus and Carlos instantly became best friends and were inseparable from then on.
Marcus was an entirely different person at the Santiago's. He opened up, was less quiet and felt more comfortable with them than with his own father. It wasn't until his mother disappeared and was assumed dead that Marcus went through another "transformation" of sorts. Carlos and Dominic (Carlos' younger brother) basically took him in afterwards considering the on-going distancing between Marcus and his father.
The Pendulum Wars[]
When he was of age, Marcus finally decided to join the Coalition of Ordered Governments (COGS) as a basic infantryman alongside his "brother" Carlos despite his father's disapproval. Marcus and Carlos were assigned to C Company of the 28th Royal Tyran infantry after they completed basic training. Due to his impressive accomplishments, it wasn't long before he was promoted to Corporal. The breaking point for Marcus was Aspho fields where the COGs defended the point from UIR forces. It was here that Marcus lost Carlos to a sacrifice he made to turn the tide of the battle and save Marcus' life. Marcus and close friend Bernie kept the secret of Carlos' death from his younger brother Dom for years before finally mustering up the courage to tell him.
E-Day and Early locust encounters[]
Nearly a year after the first sign of the locust invasion from the subterranean tunnels of Sera, Marcus was serving alongside his best friend Dom, who was now a Commando in the COG's. Marcus and his unit received orders to evacuate the city of Ephyra before the Hammer of Dawn strikes were initiated. The Hammer of Dawn, a powerful weapon designed by Marcus' father Adam Fenix, was believed the only hope to fight against the Locust despite the destructive consequences that were to be left in it's wake.
Roughly a decade after E-day, Marcus was ordered to defend Ephrya which was one of humanity's last strongholds left after being attacked by the locust. It was here that Marcus went from being famed war hero to traitor of the COG's. Marcus was defending his position from the Locust when he heard news of his father being overrun. He abandoned his position in order to try to save his father and cost the COG's the loss of their capital city. Despite this, Marcus arrived too late only to see his father buried under rubble by a crashed Raven helicopter.
Marcus Fenix was then court-martialed for disobeying orders and cowardice and was sentenced to serve 40 years in the Jacinto Maximum Security Prison.
Gears of War[]
Nearly 14 years after Emergence day and after 4 years of being locked up in prison while the war with the locust raged on, Marcus was finally freed from prison by his long-time best friend Dominic Santiago who was on orders to free Marcus so he could once again fight the Locust. After being freed, Marcus and Dom met up with Lieutenant Minh Young Kim and Private Anthony Carmine of Delta squad. They received orders from Colonel Victor Hoffman himself to retrieve the Sonic resonator and find Alpha team who were in last possession of the weapon.
Delta squad soon teamed up and saved Augustus Cole, a former Thrashball superstar turned super-soldier. He became separated from Alpha squad and joined Delta after the death of Anthony Carmine. Soon after, Delta squad saved Alpha who were trapped inside the Tomb of the Unknowns. The reunion was cut short when the soldiers were ambushed by locust being led by General RAAM of the Locust army. He murdered Lieutenant Kim and Delta squad was forced to retreat back into the Tomb of the Unknowns. It was here that they had to fight a Beserker, a blind massive creature which was used to reproduce for the locust army. With almost no way to pierce it's near-impenetrable skin, Marcus was forced to use the Hammer of Dawn to melt it's armour to get the killing blow. Marcus soon after notified Col. Hoffman about their situation and was promoted to Sergeant and led Delta squad.
Marcus and Delta squad were then tasked with delivering the sonic resonator to complete project Lightmass which consisted of mapping out the Locust tunnels beneath the surface. They made their way to a stranded outpost to find a vehicle to transport them to the Lethia Imulsion facility. They ended up defending the outpost from a massive Locust emergence team before being forced to move on. After saving the outpost, Delta made their way to the facility which would take them down to the locust tunnels so they could plant the sonic resonator. Marcus and Dom fought through countless hordes of lambent wretches while making their way through the facility and down to the cart control room which would take them down to the tunnels.
Once Delta made it into the tunnels, they had to make sure they completed their mission before dawn before the Kryll, which were very vulnerable to sunlight, would be forced to retreat back into the Hollows. Unfortunately for Marcus and Dom, they encountered a Corpser, a massive spider-like creature that digs through the hollows. After killing the Corpser by destroying the platform that was supporting part of the facility they were located on, they moved on to rejoin Baird and Cole at the pumping facility. After killing waves of enemies, they planted the resonator and barely escaped using the elevator before being hit by the effecting shockwave. Unfortunately, the resonator failed to map the entirety of the Hollows. Luckily, they found a data bot belonging to Marcus' father Adam that contained schematics of the entirety of the Hollows.
Learning about this, Victor Hoffman ordered the preparation of the Lightmass bomb which was planned to be sent straight into the heart of the Imulsion fields to devastate the Hollows and potentially wipe out all of the Locust. The plan was to get to Tyro Station and board the train but the fastest way to get there was through Fenix Estate, which was once Marcus' home. After making their way through the Hordes of Locust that had occupied the Estate, Marcus and Dom finally made their way to the Station and met up with Cole and Baird and held off the locust until the Tyro Pillar arrived which held the Lightmass bomb. Unfortunately only Marcus and Dom were able to board the train leaving Cole and Baird to provide support from a nearby Raven. General Raam inadvertently made his way onto the train to stop Marcus' plans of destroying the Hollows but was delivered the killing blow by Marcus and Dom. The Raven caught up with the train to pick up Marcus and Dom before it eventually crashed into the Imulsion fields and the resulting explosion was believed to have eliminated all of the Locust.
Gears of War 2[]
Taking place nearly 6 months after the Lightmass bombing which evidently failed to eliminate the Locust, Marcus and Dom were ordered to clear out Jacinto Hospital. Marcus met up with new recruit Benjamin Carmine, who was younger brother of Anthony and briefly trained him before assaulting the Locust inside the abandoned hospital.
After Marcus and the newly formed Delta squad consisting of Marcus, Dom, Tai Kaliso and Ben Carmine clear the hospital, they and every other Gear are ordered to assault the city of Landown in part of the plan to drill deep into the Hollows. Marcus and Delta squad board an assault Derrick (massive transport vehicles) with ex-stranded soldier Dizzy Wallin. Even after losing many of their forces due to an aerial assault and an ambush by Kantus high-priest and the Locust Queen's right-hand man Skorge, Marcus and Dom successfully board the Grindlifts that take them straight into the heart of the Hollows while Dizzy and Tai hold Skorge off.
After landing in the Hollows and saving Carmine from the Locust, they make their way further into the Hollow only to discover the reason behind the sinking of humanity's last cities, a giant Riftowrm. The Riftworm is large enough to eat away at a cities foundations causing it to cave in on itself. Marcus, Dom and Carmine witness the sinking of city of Ilima, and infiltrate the sunken warzone to locate any surviving Gears. Delta squad ends up being ambushed before being quickly saved by the Cole Train and they rejoin forces to find Baird who was captured by Locust. The rejoined Delta squad make there way aboard a Locust prison craft, where they find a massively tortured Tai who lost his sanity and blew his own brains out when Marcus offered him a gnasher shotgun.
Shortly after, they escape via Raven which is then swallowed by the Riftworm, destroying their helicopter and causing the death of Benjamin Carmine, who was mauled alive by parasites inside the Riftworm. To escape the Riftworm, Barid suggests to Marcus that the only way to stop the creature would be to disable it's three hearts and they kill the worm by severing through the skin after the worm breaks through the surface.
Once free, they make their way to Mount Kadar and into the highway of Nexus, the Locust stronghold. Dom, desperate to find his wife, begs Marcus to help find his wife who went missing shortly after E-day. When they finally find Maria, she is near death and brain dead after being tortured for years and Dom chooses to shoot her so she wouldn't have to suffer anymore. Once inside Nexus, Marcus and Dom regroup with Cole and Baird and make their way into the Locust palace to confront Queen Myrrah. Unfortunately she escapes and Marcus and Dom are forced to fight off Skorge who they momentarily defeat before escaping on a few Reavers. After a drawn-out chase, Marcus finally kills Skorge by disabling his Reaver and causing him to be impaled on the forest surface below.
Finally reaching Jacinto, humanity's last stronghold, Marcus receives orders from Col. Hoffman and Chairman Prescott to meet them at the COG defensive position. Marcus explains to Prescott and Hoffman that they're only hope of defeating the Locust is too destroy Jacinto's foundations and flood the Hollows, a plan they discovered from a recording that Adam Fenix left Marcus at an abandoned facility when they escaped the Riftworm. Marcus boards a Brumak and makes his way into underground space beneath Jacinto's foundations and after losing the Lightmass bomb, they use the Lambent Brumak as a massive explosion to finally sink Jacinto and successfully flood the Hollows at the loss of humanity's last stronghold.
Gears of War 3[]
Eighteen months after the sinking of Jacinto, Marcus is aboard CNV Sovereign as part of the rapid reaction force. After being assaulted by Lambent forces, which were found out to be the reason behind the Locust invasion onto surface world of Sera, Marcus hears word that Prescott was still alive after abandoning humanity and was expected to land on the ship. A lambent Leviathan attacks the ship and Marcus, Dom and Delta squad are forced to destroy the ship at the cost of killing the Leviathan. Being stranded on shore, Marcus learns from a dying Prescott that his father was still alive and being held captive by Queen Myrrah all along.
Marcus and Delta squad then head out to find Col. Hoffman, who was part of a resistance force inland against the Lambent forces, to discover the location of where Queen Myrrah was holding his father. They regroup with Dizzy and make their way to Anvil Gate to locate Hoffman. After landing, Hoffman requests immediate assistance in defending the base from Lambent forces and after killing a Lambent Beserker, Marcus and the squad learn about a secret island called Azura which is protected by an artificial hurricane to keep out intruders.
As evident, nothing is as easy as it sounds and they discover a submarine to safely transport them to the island undetected, but first need to receive fuel. Marcus leads his squad to the fallen city of Mercy to retrieve fuel for the submarine from ex-tycoon Aaron Griffin. He only agree's to give Marcus fuel if he get's it for him and Marcus reluctantly accepts after Dizzy is taken hostage by Griffin and his forces. Marcus leads everyone to the Naval ship yards to receive the fuel but are ambushed by remaining Savage locust forces and Dom sacrificed his life for the mission to be successful.
Due to Dom's death, Marcus reaches a breaking-point and explodes on Griffin, forcing him to give up the fuel to Marcus. Marcus and the squad make their way to Azura in the submarine but are assaulted by defensive forces and a rouge Leviathan. Making it through a minefield and a whirlpool, they finally reach Azura and Marcus orders Dizzy to keep the submarine at a safe distance until they complete the mission. Marcus, guided by his father, deactivates the Maelstrom Barrier which was surrounding Azura allowing for the assault forces, led by Baird and Cole to arrive. With Delta squad finally reunited, they make an assault to free Adam Fenix who reveals he knew about the Locust and Queen Myrrah years before Emergence day. Adam reveals that he created a weapon to destroy the Locust and Lambent which were revealed to be a living paradisiacal organism which was slowly killing the planet and leaving humans largely unaffected the blast.
On their way to activate the weapon at Pinnacle tower, Marcus and his team are intercepted by Queen Myrrah who has learned of their plans and vows to stop them using her Tempest, a large moth-like creature. Marcus finally defeats the Tempest using the Hammer of Dawn which crashes down, knocking Myrrah off her mount. Moments before the weapon fully activates, Marcus' father reveals to him that he has been extensively exposed to imulsion over the years and once the weapon is fully primed, he will be killed. As Marcus grieves over his father's death, the inured Queen makes her way out of the rubble and is finally stabbed through the heart by Marcus using Dom's commando knife.
The weapon activates soon after and is shown to destroy all locust and lambent on Sera. As everyone celebrates and praises Marcus and his team for what they did, Marcus strips his armour and sits down a rock near the beach, unsure of what to do now that they have finally won. Anya, Marcus' love interest and long-time friend tells him that they look forward to tomorrow.
Interwar Period[]
After the end of the Locust War and Lambent pandemic, Marcus participated in the burial of the Locust bodies, who had become crystalized in cocoons after the countermeasure was used. He then married Anya, who had become the first prime minister of the newly reformed Coalition of Ordered Governments and helped rebuild the world alongside Baird. Marcus would stay at the Stroud estate, as he didn't trust the new government for unknown reasons, but presumably due to his past experiences with the old during his military service. When Anya's protégé, Mina Jinn, started the fertility program that allowed barren women to become pregnant, Anya went through the procedure and became pregnant. She gave birth to a son, and they named James Dominic "JD" Fenix, giving him Dom's name to honor their fallen friend. Marcus also grew crops at the estate, possibly to honor Dom as well, or keep himself preoccupied since he didn't leave the area mostly.
Marcus and Anya sent JD to a boarding school, where he befriended the orphan Del Walker, who was seen as a member of the Fenix family. When Anya decided to go another procedure in the fertility program, she died from unknown reasons, which led to Marcus to suffer from depression. He became distant to his son and friends, which strained his relationship with JD, whom believed he wasn't there for him. Marcus buried Anya at the Stroud estate, and refused to allow Jinn have Anya be buried at the Allfathers. When JD informed his father that him and JD were going to join the COG, Marcus disowned him, and warmed them not to do so. Fenix would later learn that JD was involved with the Settlement 2 massacre, and asked Baird to protect JD and Del as a favor. When JD and Del left the Coalition, Marcus warned them not to, but didn't listen and joined the Outsiders under the leadership of Reyna Diaz.
Gears of War 4[]
JD and Del returned to the Stroud estate after the Outsider population was captured by a new group of creatures, which Del referred to as a "swarm". Marcus reunited with his son, who brought him a piece of crystal from the hand of the Speaker, causing Fenix to start an investigation. Before he could explain, Jinn arrived with DeeBees to apprehend JD, Del and Kait Diaz, but Marcus used a saw to destroy Jinn's DeeBee. Marcus gave the group weaponry and armor to fight against Jinn's DeeBees, who started an assault on the Stroud estate. Fenix managed to bring down a Vulture gunship, and the group escaped on MULE bikes, causing the Coalition to stop chasing them.
Marcus brought JD, Del and Kait to Fort Reval to show them the bodies of the Locust, but he was captured by a snatcher who was stalking them. Before he be consumed by the swarm hivemind, he was rescued by the group, and informed them that he was connected to hive and that all of the Outsiders were killed. However, Marcus reveals to Kait that her mother, Reyna, was still alive but wasn't podded like the other villagers. Seeing that the Locust had evolved into the Swarm, Marcus contacted Baird and his allies to assist them in stopping the creatures. Marcus decided to help Kait rescue her mother, and participated in the skirmish at the Speyer and the assault at the Tollem Dam. After stopping the creatures, Kait mourned the death of her mother, and showed JD and Del Reyna's necklace. The necklace revealed to Marcus that Reyna was tied to the Locust in some way, as the necklace resembled the symbol of the Locust Horde.
Gears 5[]
With the new threat of the Swarm, Marcus, JD, Del and Kait joined the Coalition and formed a new Delta-One, under the leadership of Marcus and JD.
Personality[]
| “ | There were a few times I thought I was a goner, and I would have been, if it wasn't for Marcus Fenix. While I was nearly getting my head blown off, doing my best just to survive, Marcus was handling shit like no one's business. Course we'd all heard the stories about him... The Pendulum Wars. Aspho Fields. Timgad. A living legend, right there in the flesh. But I tell you seriously, the stories didn't do him justice. The guy was unreal. | „ |
| ~ Jace Stratton speaking of Marcus Fenix. |
Marcus is a strictly professional, by the books soldier who isn't afraid to veer off a little to get the job done. Marcus is usually seen as cold, aggressive and distant especially after his father's death and his abandonment of his post after E-day. He rose to Corporal quickly when he joined the COG's and eventually Sergeant after Lt. Kim's death at the hand's of General RAAM during the events of the first Gears of War. Despite his cold and stern personality, he cares deeply for his family and friends, but has lost many allies during the course of the Pendulum, Locust and Lambent wars.
After losing Carolos at the end of the Pendulum Wars, Marcus made it his goal to watch over Carlos' brother, Dom, and two gained a brother-like friendship. After Dom's death in Gears of War 3, Marcus became deeply saddened, and lashed out at Aaron Griffin, telling him he lost his "brother", showing how much Dom meant to him. In Gears of War 2 and Gears of War 4, he shows himself to be sympathetic to Dom and Kait. For Dom, he allowed him to mercy kill Maria peacefully, giving him to time to do so. For Kait, he sympathizes with her because both lost their mothers, and were deeply affected by it. Marcus also shows great determination and willpower, believing that he can make Sera beautiful again by defeating the Locust Horde.
Though dedicated to his duties to the COG, he has shown a great distrust towards the COG's politics and agendas, something he clashed with Kim in Gears of War. After the Locust War, First Minister Jinn declared martial law on Sera, but allowed Marcus to live outside the COG due to him being a legendary hero. Despite this, Marcus still had distrust with the new COG, and encouraged his son not to enlist in the army.
After the death of his wife and JD joining the army, Marcus became disgruntled and possibly embittered. He allowed the family estate to turn to ruin, and doesn't show up twenty-fifth anniversary memorial of the end of the Locust War. However, this was so he could take care of his family, and honorary Dom's hobby of growing vegetables. His relationship with JD became strained, but they slowly repair during the course of Gears of War 4.
Quotes[]
| “ | I got to admit, It's tough to keep going. Everyone I loved is dead. Some call them the lucky ones.. the ones that died on E-day, they never lived to see how much we've lost and how many principles we've compromised. But whenever I doubt what we're fighting for I just look to my squad. I mean maybe it's a good thing we lost everything. It's like a clean slate. We can make the world we always wanted to. Without repeating the same mistakes. I look at guys like Jace and Dom and realize we'll inherit this world. We're the ones who will make Sera beautiful again. That's a world worth fighting for. | „ |
| ~ Marcus Fenix. |
| “ | We're riding a Brumak. We're gonna use it to clear the area faster. | „ |
| ~ Marcus to Anya. |
| “ | Dom! No!! | „ |
| ~ Marcus to Dom before his death. |
| “ | Are you kidding me!?! | „ |
| ~ Marcus defeating the Golden Chicken easter egg. |
| “ | I just lost my f***ing brother! You hear that?! My brother!!! You, your tower and all this f***ing imulsion can go to hell!!! | „ |
| ~ Marcus to Aaron Griffin. |
| “ | What's left, Anya? What have we got left now? | „ |
| ~ Marcus to Anya after the Locust's defeat. |
| “ | I knew you'd be back. Probably with your ass on fire. | „ |
| ~ Marcus to JD and Del, showing them his armory. |
| “ | This morning. And the morning before that. Sorry about the leaves, James. We've got a little wind problem these days. Maybe you've noticed. | „ |
| ~ Marcus to JD on visiting Anya's grave. |
| “ | Ah s**t. They're gonna mess up my f***ing tomatoes! | „ |
| ~ Marcus angered about his tomatoes being destroyed. |
| “ | If he can't help—we'll be right beside you. | „ |
| ~ Marcus to Kait. |
| “ | Trust me, I've been there. | „ |
| ~ Marcus comforting Kait. |
| “ | War is Brutal. War is messy. War is s**t. And this kid deserved better. | „ |
| ~ Marcus lamenting on Anthony Carmine. |
Gallery[]
Images[]
Trivia[]
- Voted "19th top video game character of all time" in the 2011 Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition.
- Voted 10th best character of the decade by Game Informer.
- Marcus was named Fenix because Cliff Bleszinski lost everything from his first failed marriage and was rising from his own ashes.
- Before the game's release, Marcus' face looked a lot thinner and closer to normal proportions and scarless.
- The game's designers said that they gave Marcus his scars as a way to give him a "used" look, a way of showing that he's seen combat and war before.
- Marcus, along with Dom, appear in the multiplayer of the Capcom game Lost Planet 2.
- In Gears of War: Judgment multiplayer, Young Marcus can be unlocked through a pre-order code from Gamestop/Game, among other retailers.
- In Gears of War 4, five Marcus multiplayer skins are available: Armored Marcus, Biker Marcus, Old Man Marcus, V-Day Marcus and Vintage Marcus. His Old Man skin can only be unlocked via the Brothers to the End Elite Gear Pack players receive for pre-ordering the game, his Biker and V-Day skins are only available in the Marcus Fenix Gear Pack, and his Vintage skin is only available by crafting scrap.
- He appears as a playable skin in the battle royale Fortnite.