Grunt

Grunt was a genetically engineered krogan warrior, bred and educated within a tank to embody the finest traits of his species and intended to help reinvigorate a people crippled by the genophage. Released aboard the Normandy, he joined Commander Shepard's campaign against the Collectors, satisfying his natural appetite for battle, and later rose to command an elite krogan unit during the war against the Reapers.

Creation#

Grunt was created on the junkyard world of Korlus by the krogan warlord Okeer. Okeer had originally sought a cure for the genophage, the bioweapon that had collapsed krogan birth rates, but he became disillusioned, coming to believe the genophage had reduced krogan identity to mere survival and rewarded endurance over strength or vision. Determined to restore the krogan to greatness, he abandoned the cure and instead pursued the creation of a genetically perfect warrior. With assistance from the Collectors, he experimented extensively, rejecting thousands of flawed specimens, and his finished prototype incorporated traits drawn from renowned krogan of history, making the warrior a living archive of his species' strength.

Okeer produced his perfect specimen just before he died from toxins released by a Blue Suns mercenary. Commander Shepard, who had come to Korlus hoping to recruit Okeer, instead recovered the warrior's tank and took it aboard the Normandy.

Awakening#

When Shepard released the warrior from his tank, the newly awakened krogan pinned the Commander to a wall and declared his intent to kill, though he wished a name before doing so. Hearing one of the last words in Okeer's final message, he chose to call himself Grunt, declaring that it had no meaning but would do. Depending on how the confrontation unfolded, Grunt could be persuaded to join the campaign against the Collectors as a worthy fight, or subdued by force before agreeing.

Lacking a proper krogan upbringing, Grunt was violent and highly unpredictable, prone to charging recklessly into the enemy without orders. He often appeared naive, enthusiastic about combat, and uncertain of his place in the galaxy, having been educated only by the imprints fed to him in the tank. He also harbored personal doubt, considering himself weak for having been given his strength while the thousands of rejected specimens had at least tried to become strong on their own. Despite this, his physical power and fighting skill made him a great asset, and he came to respect Shepard's leadership.

Rite of Passage#

After some time free of his tank, Grunt became anxious and erratic, suffering what he described as something like a krogan blood frenzy. Brought to the krogan homeworld of Tuchanka and to Clan Urdnot for guidance, he learned that he was undergoing the krogan equivalent of adolescence. To prove himself a worthy krogan and earn a place in a clan, Grunt had to undertake the Rite of Passage, with Shepard at his side as his krantt, or die in the attempt.

The Reaper War#

Should he have survived the campaign against the Collectors, Grunt returned during the Reaper War having earned command of Aralakh Company, regarded as Clan Urdnot's finest unit. Though he still felt to a lesser degree the stigma of being tank-bred, his undeniable prowess had secured his standing. He helped Shepard investigate the disappearance of squads in the tunnels of Utukku, where they discovered a new brood of rachni twisted by Reaper technology.

In the depths of Utukku, Shepard faced a choice over the fate of the rachni queen found there, and that choice shaped what became of Grunt and his company. Should the queen be spared, Aralakh Company was left to cover her escape and was overrun holding off the swarming rachni, with Grunt's own survival depending on whether his loyalty had been secured. Should the queen be abandoned, Grunt ordered the retreat and survived regardless, limping bloodied from the nest. Either way, he personally held off the closing Reaper-twisted rachni to cover Shepard's escape from the caverns.

Where Grunt survived, he contributed to the war effort after recovering from his wounds and spoke with Shepard before the final push, thanking the Commander for freeing him from the tank in the first place. Should the genophage have been cured and the war won in a manner that left organic life intact, he could be seen welcomed home to Tuchanka as a hero among cheering krogan. Where he did not survive, his role in the war was filled by another krogan of Clan Urdnot.