The War for Haven City was a year-long conflict that took place during Jak 3. The three main factions were the Freedom League, KG Robots and Metal Heads.
Why did it happen?
The causes of the War for Haven City originated in the final years of the Metal Head Wars. In 297 HE, Baron Praxis overthrew the House of Mar under King Damas and took control of Haven City. After military defeats at the Metal Head Nest and Dead Town, Praxis expanded his military program and created two experimental projects: the Dark Warrior Program and the KG Robots. In 298 HE, Praxis arrested Jak and subjected him to two years of Dark Eco experiments. The following year, Praxis began the construction of the KG Robots in the Fortress and Weapons Factory, developing prototypes for the Blast Bot, Death Bot, and Spy Bot. By the time he had abandoned the Dark Warrior Program, Praxis had even constructed a KG War Factory, which was set to automatically produce robots before he died. Upon escaping the Fortress in 300 HE, Jak subsequently joined the Underground, which was committed to overthrowing Baron Praxis and restoring the House of Mar.
While working for the Underground, Jak befriended Kor, who was secretly the Metal Head leader, and Krew, a crime lord based at the Hip Hog Heaven Saloon. However, in his desire to gain revenge against Baron Praxis, Jak unwittingly became a pawn in Kor’s plan to undermine the city for an eventual invasion. To make matters worse, Krew betrayed Haven City by using the Ruby Key to open the Underport and let the Metal Head army invade the city. After Jak killed Kor at the Metal Head Nest, Haven City was saved, and Ashelin became the new city governor. However, many Haven Citizens grew to distrust Jak’s dark powers and his friendship with Krew and Kor. In addition, they were unaware that, after Erol’s apparent demise at the Class 1 Race in Mar Memorial Stadium, his loyal guards had taken his crushed body to the KG War Factory and reconstructed him using various robot mechanical and cyborg systems. Reborn as Cyber Errol, he sought revenge against all living things and aimed to take back Haven City using the KG Robot army set to automatic production at the War Factory.
Who was involved?
Freedom League: The military force of Haven City under the command of Governor Ashelin Praxis and Commander Torn. Founded in 300 HE, it was born as a reformation of the New Krimzon Guard, which comprised both former Krimzon Guards and members of the Underground. The preferred tactic in battle was close-combat infantry assaults backed by overwhelming firepower. The Freedom League controlled New Haven, Slums and Port.
Strength: 24,000 Soldiers.
KG Robots: Originally established in 299 HE as a prototype robotic department of the Krimzon Guard, these robots came under the command of Cyber Errol. They were shaped into an elite fighting force, with thousands of them being created at the KG War Factory floating above Haven City. The preferred tactic in battle was to methodically crush, kill and destroy their enemies without mercy. The KG Robots controlled the Industrial Zone and KG War Factory.
Strength: 62,000 Robots.
Metal Heads: Founded in 3000 BHE as a techno-organic alien race originally trying to take Haven City to get the Precursor Stone, but fought in revenge for the death of their leader, Metal Kor, during the War for Haven City. Due to their leader’s death, only the strongest Metal Heads have survived. The preferred tactic in battle was to overwhelm their enemies through their superior numbers and brute strength. The Metal Heads controlled the Metal Head City and Palace Ruins.
Strength: 137,000 Metal Heads.
What happened?
The war technically began in late 300 HE after the end of the Metal Head Wars when Krimzon Guard captain Erol was resurrected as Cyber Errol and took command of the KG Robots. His Death Bots quickly took a vital section of the Industrial Section, and in response, the New Krimzon Guard reformed into the Freedom League, declaring war against the KG. At the same time, a large group of surviving Metal Heads concentrated in the western part of the city, capturing the Southern Garden and West Bazaar. The Freedom League, whose forces were depleted during Metal Kor's invasion of the city, proved unable to fight both the Metal Heads and KG.
As 301 HE started, the Metal Heads laid siege to Haven Palace. Count Veger made a surprise attack on it with rocket-propelled artillery, knocking it over and destroying Mar Memorial Stadium, Main Town, and the Northern Garden. By this time the KG had complete control of the Industrial Section and had also annexed the Port. The Grand Council of Haven City went into an emergency session, in which Veger, not thought to be guilty at the time and with a majority influence, determined that Jak was guilty because of his association with the late crime lord Krew, who was responsible for letting the Metal Heads into the city the previous year. Ashelin Praxis objected to the verdict as governor, but due to the Council's power which existed during this point in the reformation period, her protest was overruled and Jak was banished to the Wasteland.
With Jak gone, Veger took command of the Freedom League forces. First, he activated a white defence shield between New Haven and the Main Town ruins to stop the Metal Heads from attacking from the west. He then ordered Torn to lead a contingency of soldiers to launch a suicide attack to reclaim the Port. While the Port became Freedom League territory, the KG activated barrier force fields and other defences which stopped Torn and his forces from linking up with the Northern Front.
With their forces divided and much of the city in ruins or under enemy control, Ashelin journeyed to the Wasteland where he offered Jak a reinstatement invitation. Although reluctant at first, he eventually returned to Haven City where he was able to reach Torn in the Port, who had been using the Naughty Ottsel as a southern HQ and the sign above the bar as target practice for his soldiers. Shortly afterwards, the Port came under attack by three Blast Blots sent to destroy Torn and the Naughty Ottsel. In the ensuing First Battle of the Port, Jak was able to destroy the robots before they reached the bar.
After the battle, Torn and Jak agreed that an assault on the KG front was necessary to reunite the Freedom League forces. Torn then got Daxter to charge up and guide a missile to the first KG force field between the Port and the Industrial Section. This allowed the Freedom League forces in the Port to engage the KG Robots. At the time Tess was active in the Gun Course making new weapons for the war effort – notably the Gyro Burster and Plasmite RPG. But as the Freedom League advanced into KG territory, they quickly became pinned down by KG Sniper Cannons that lined the walkways of the Industrial Section. Jak soon destroyed the five Sniper Cannons, allowing the Freedom League to manoeuvre better.
The Metal Heads were also active during this time. Torn ordered Jak to travel into the Sewers to the Metal Head City to destroy Dark Eco bioweapons the Metal Heads were creating to infect the city. After doing this Jak destroyed the barrier between the Metal Head City and the Port, allowing the Freedom League to engage the Metal Heads. Samos then ordered Jak via communicator to go to Haven Forest where there were reports of plants infected with Dark Eco. After destroying the infected plants, Jak then protected Jinx from Metal Head and KG Robot attack's while he destroyed four power junctures which destroyed the second KG force field.
Ashelin then informed Jak via a communicator that a shipment of Eco was being delivered somewhere in the Industrial Section and told him to go steal it. However, a KG Missile Launcher guarding the Eco Vehicle released seven heat-seeking missiles after Jak. Once reaching the Port, Jak used decoy beacons laid out by Torn to destroy six of the missiles with the last missile being destroyed by lighting up the Naughty Ottsel sign, thus attracting the missiles' intention.
Despite these gains, the Freedom League were still losing the war. The KG Robots had formed an alliance with the Metal Heads with the intention to destroy the Freedom League in the Southern Front and reclaim the Port. The Second Battle of the Port was fought in four major areas. In front of the Naughty Ottsel Jak faced a small force of KG Spy Bots and Death bots while by the West Tower faced, he and two soldiers faced a swarm of Metal Head Grunts and Stingers. In the middle of the battle, three civilians got caught in the fighting but Jak was able to protect them against the onslaught. Finally, on the east side of the Port, Jak faced two Blast Bots. Jak was nearly overwhelmed, but with the help of the Freedom League’s soldiers, he was able to achieve victory.
After a brief return to the Wasteland, Jak was able to acquire Precursor artifacts that allowed him to activate the Astro-Viewer in Haven Forest. Once activated he was able to discover the truth about the “Day Star.” The Day Star is the Dark Maker Ship piloted by corrupt Precursors known as Dark Makers.
Meanwhile, Jinx was able to capture a Blast Bot in the aftermath of the Second Battle of the Port. He was able to change its electronics so that it could run by remote control and had double the number of explosives, making it capable of destroying the last KG force field. Jak, using the remote control, directed the Blast Bot to the barrier between KG and Freedom League territory, blowing it up and allowing Torn to link up with Ashelin in Freedom HQ. New Haven quickly fell under attack by three KG armoured transports, but Jak and the Freedom League were able to destroy them in the subsequent Battle of New Haven.
After the battle, Veger entered a Freedom League meeting to denounce Jak's qualifications to lead them in a venture to find the catacombs and stop the Dark Makers. The representatives there sided with Jak after the revelation that Veger was the one who bombed the Palace. Ashelin subsequently dissolved the Grand Council and, with stronger prerogatives, sacked the Count, ending his manipulation of Haven's forces to his advantage.
With their forces reunited the Freedom League launched counterattacks against both enemy factions. Ashelin realized that the KG forces were becoming more powerful and that they couldn't hold out against large assaults forever. She sent Jak on a mission down into the Sewers to deactivate the energy field in front of the Power Station. At the Power Station, Jak and Daxter met Vin, but due to an attack the previous year found out that he had dumped his brain into the Eco Grid so that the Metal Heads could not get him, effectively becoming a hologram. Vin told Jak that the cypher to unlock the KG War Factory doors is in the Eco Grid and can only be accessed at a certain time. Daxter was then jacked into a Pac-Man style system and retrieved the cypher while avoiding the Eco Grid's defences and deactivating the shield around the KG War Factory.
While this was happening, the Freedom League launched an offensive to reclaim the Industrial Section from the KG. The KG retaliated by calling on their Metal Head allies for assistance in that area of Haven City and launching a counter-invasion of the Slums and New Haven. Fierce fighting continued for the duration of the war. Jak then took one of the few surviving Hellcat Cruisers, flew to the KG War Factory and destroyed the remaining defences. After infiltrating the factory and fighting his way into the interior of the facility he found Cyber Errol, who had forged an alliance with the Dark Makers. This alliance allowed Errol to get the supplies and the Eco to construct more robots through the Warp Gate. In the resulting fight, Jak defeated Errol and shut down the War Factory, stopping the construction of more robots. Errol fled through the Warp Gate, followed shortly after by Jak.
Despite the loss of the War Factory, Errol still had the Metal Heads for assistance, having a second Warp Gate in the massive Metal Head Tower. Jak, Sig, Torn and Jinx reached the Tower Door, blowing it open with the Eco Vehicle Jak stole earlier in the war. But now Jak had to fight his way into the now Dark Maker defended tower. Once at the top he found Errol, but rather than fight again Errol fled into the Warp Gate, intending to unleash the Dark Maker Ship's cargo of Terraformers. Sig then rescued Jak in the Hellcat Cruiser used to get there and the top of the tower self-destructed, severely weakening the Metal Heads.
Although fighting against the KG and Metal Heads continued, the Freedom League now had to destroy the Dark Maker ship before it reached the planet. Jak subsequently navigated his way through the Palace Ruins, which were infested by Metal Heads and Dark Makers. He then raced Veger to the catacombs and a Precursor weapon was activated. However, in case the weapon did not charge in time, the Precursors present sent Jak to the ship to fight Errol. Errol subsequently escaped in a large Dark Maker Terraformer, with Jak escaping the destruction of the Dark Maker ship by going through a Warp Gate. Jak managed to defeat and destroy Errol and his Terraformer after a long pursuit and battle in the Wasteland. With their leader gone, the Metal Heads and KG Death Bots were either scattered or wiped out, and the Freedom League declared victory, thereby ending the war.
What changed as a result?
The War for Haven City was a decisive Freedom League victory. The war left Haven City in an extremely crippled condition. Most of the city was destroyed, remnants of enemy forces were still being fought, and tens of thousands had died. However, by 302 HE, the city was rebuilt larger and in peak condition and was a scene for the emerging sport of Combat Racing that originated in Kras City. Casualties were massive on all sides, and several city sections were destroyed, killing an estimated 112,000 Haven Civilians. Except for UR-86, the KG Robots and many Metal Head species were wiped out, although some Metal Heads were seen during the Kras Grand City Championship as part of the “sport hunt” competition where Combat Racers hunted them for points. Overall, despite the devastation the war caused, the Freedom League victory led to unprecedented peace across the planet for the first time in three hundred years, with cities being rebuilt, people flourishing, and sports reemerging to fill the void.
Bibliography
Jak and Daxter Wiki. “Haven City.” Last revised September 16, 2021. https://jakanddaxter.fandom.com/wiki/Haven_City
Naughty Dog. Jak 3. Sony Computer Entertainment. PlayStation 2. 2004.
Schrader, Nathali. Jak 3: The Official Guide. London, Piggyback, 2004.
Shah, Reuben. Jak 3 Design Bible. Raleigh, Naughty Dog, 2003.
Shah, Reuben. Jak X: Combat Racing Design Bible. Raleigh, Naughty Dog, 2004.
Thatawesomecat. “Intro Movie 3.” Jak and Daxter Wiki. Accessed October 30, 2021. https://jakanddaxter.fandom.com/wiki/Haven_City?file=Intro_Movie_3.jpg
Thatawesomecat. “Soldiers in battle.” Jak and Daxter Wiki. Accessed October 30, 2021. https://jakanddaxter.fandom.com/wiki/Grunt?file=Soldiers_in_battle.png
Tim H. “Haven City map from Jak 3.” Jak and Daxter Wiki. Accessed October 30, 2021. https://jakanddaxter.fandom.com/wiki/Haven_City?file=Haven_City_map_from_Jak_3.png
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