| Canon Alert! | ||
|---|---|---|
| There are conflicting canon sources for this article: In the game, the player has the choice of whether or not to train Ben. The main portion of the article assumes that Marcus does train him. For a summary of what happens if the player chooses not to train Ben, please see the Behind the Scenes section. | ||
- For other uses, see Carmine.
- "I hope you're doing well out there Clay. Not sure where you are but I trust that the COG will get this letter to you safely. I know that you'll be excited for me, but it'd be great to hear from you before I ship out.
I just wish Anthony was still here bro. I really miss him. I take comfort knowing he died a hero, but still... I miss him, as I'm sure you do too. Well, you know I'm not that good at letters, so I'll keep this short... hope you're doing well, big brother, and know that I'll be doing my very best to serve our country and make you and our family proud.
Your little brother [AKA the Squirt], Ben" - —Ben’s letter to his older brother, retrieved by Marcus Fenix
Private Benjamin Carmine (COG tags CSID 83B186-22AO3-SF), or Rook by his squad mates and Squirt by his brothers, was the brother of Anthony and Clayton Carmine, and a Gear soldier in the Coalition of Ordered Governments army like them. He joined Delta Squad, which had been Anthony's former squad, after completing training, and was further trained by Sgt.Marcus Fenix and Cpl.Dominic Santiago. He fought in the opening stages of Operation: Hollow Storm, until his tragic death inside the Riftworm.
Biography
Early life
Benjamin Carmine was one of the four Carmine brothers, and joined the Coalition of Ordered Governments army along with them. His brother Anthony was killed during the Lightmass Offensive, and the Carmine family regarded him as a hero for his role in the Offensive. His other two brothers, Clayton Carmine and an unknown one, were also actively serving the COG.[2][3]
Ben fumbles with his Lancer as he reports for duty.
Joining Delta-One
Training Under Marcus
- "Sergeant Fenix? Are you Sergeant Fenix? Delta squad? I'm your new Trainee!"
- —Ben, when meeting Marcus before starting his training
After Ben finished training at the academy, he was assigned to Delta Squad before Operation: Hollow Storm as Sgt.Marcus Fenix's new trainee. He flew on a King Raven along with several other Gears to Jacinto Med, and was dropped off outside the hospital. As he reported to Marcus outside of Jacinto Med, he dropped his gun on his foot, and Lt.Anya Stroud commented that he was "green as grass". Marcus and Cpl.Dominic Santiago decided to take Ben training, leading him to an alley behind the hospital, where they taught him how to use the Tac-Com, the Golden Rule of the Gears, how to reload and aim, and how to toss a Bolo Grenade correctly. As they trained, Dom offered his sympathy to Ben about his brother Anthony, whom Dom had served with when he was killed. Ben thanked him, and told him he was just glad that his brother had died a hero. They spotted several Wretches during the patrol, and Ben nearly killed the three of them after he failed to throw a grenade high enough over a car lot's fence. After they scouted the building that the Wretches had been in and found nothing, they returned to the hospital to complete their patrol. They spotted several Ravens overhead heading somewhere very quickly, and Marcus ordered Ben to stay at the drop off point until called on his radio while they checked out what was going on.[2]
Ben after getting congratulated by Marcus.
Raid On Jacinto Med
- "Area I was guarding got too hot, Sergeant! These Gears rounded me up to fight, sir!"
- —Ben, to Marcus after he asked him why he was in the hospital
Shortly after Marcus and Dom left, Jacinto Med was attacked by Locust and another squad of Gears rounded up Ben to help them fight to protect the hospital. During the battle, he had trouble reloading, and took cover inside the building's entrance to get his gun working correctly. He was found there by Marcus and Dom, along with Cpl.Tai Kaliso. He explained the situation to Marcus and fixed his gun, and they headed outside, assisting the other Gears who were fighting off the Locust that were attacking the hospital. They forced the Locust back from the entrance and down the street, where the Locust retreated once air support arrived. After the battle, Marcus told Ben that he did a good job. He was happy about being congratulated by Marcus, and tried, unsuccessfully, to get a high-five from Tai. Anya then came over the communication screen of JACK and informed Dom that her lead on his wife had gone cold. Dom lost control, smashing a car with his Lancer, and he asked the rest of Delta Squad to leave him by himself for the time being to collect himself. Ben followed Marcus and Tai away to give Dom the time he needed.[4]
Ben aboard a King Raven while on the way to the staging grounds for Operation: Hollow Storm.
Operation: Hollow Storm
Assault on Landown
- "Heard there's a shitload of Grubs there Sergeant!"
- —Ben, referring to Landown, the first target of Operation: Hollow Storm
Soon after the attack on Jacinto Med, the COG began Operation: Hollow Storm. Ben went with Marcus and Dom aboard a King Raven to the COG Staging Grounds, asking them on the flight why they were heading to Landown for the assault, and why they couldn't dig through the ground in Jacinto. Marcus explained to him that the ground was the one place the Locust couldn't dig through, and that Landown was the perfect spot to hit them on their own turf. Once they arrived at the staging grounds, they were assigned to the Assault Derrick "Betty", driven by Pvt.Dizzy Wallin. They defended the rig from multiple attacks from Nemacyst, Brumaks, and Locust foot soldiers on the long road to Landown.[5] After they arrived at Landown, Ben and the rest of Delta, joined by Tai, whose Rig had been destroyed by Tickers, escorted Dizzy and Betty through the city streets. Ben saw several Tickers crawling through the street, and asked what they were, and Tai informed him that the Locust used them as landmines. After taking out a Locust base at a gas station, Delta reached a long dark tunnel. Ben wondered why they were not given flashlights for situations like this, and Tai told him "might versus light". Ben asked him what that meant, and Tai told him that he preferred having an extra gun over a flashlight any day. After escorting Betty through the tunnel and killing the tickers infesting it, the rig was pinned by mortar fire at the exit. Ben went with Marcus to secure one side of a street while Dom and Tai took the other, taking out the Locust mortar positions and a Brumak.[6] They arrived at the drill zone, a cemetery honoring those who fought in the Pendulum Wars, without further incident. Ben and the others defended the Rig while Dizzy prepared their Grindlifts for dispatch, but just when they were about to dig into the Hollow, Skorge attacked. Ben, Marcus, and Dom were already secured in their lifts, but Tai jumped out of his and Ben's lift to help Dizzy hold off Skorge. The pods then revved up, with Ben, Marcus, and Dom unable to unlock their lifts to help Dizzy and Tai, and the three Gears descended into the Hollow, leaving them behind.[7]
Ben freaking out over seeing the Rift Worm.
Fighting through the Hollow
- "Uh, Sarge... Do you really think we're gonna see the surface again?""
- —Ben, asking Marcus if he thought Delta would make it out of the Hollow
Upon landing, Ben discovered his pod had gone off-course. He linked up with Echo-Five, and managed to contact Marcus and Dom, who told him to stay put, and that they were coming to get him. However, Ben and Echo-Five were attacked by a large group of Locust, and all of Echo-Five was killed, leaving Benjamin to fend for himself and hold off the attacking Locust. Ben was saved when Marcus and Dom showed up and helped him kill the attacking Locust. They then defended JACK from more Locust as he worked on fixing a nearby Grindlift to make their escape. After successfully eradicating the Locust, they fired up the Grindlift to dig a tunnel through a wall. When Dom complained about all of the dust, Ben suggested he wear a helmet so he wouldn't have to breathe it in. Dom, annoyed, pointed out that he wouldn't be able to see snipers so well then, discreetly referring to how Ben's brother was killed during the Lightmass Offensive. Ben, unaware of what Dom was implying, did not catch on and Marcus told Dom to cool down before he said anything else. They then proceeded through the tunnel, and assisted Omega-One in fighting off a Locust attack.[8] After leaving Omega, they continued through the Hollow, soon encountering a Rock Worm, and were informed by Anya that the creatures were immune to standard weapon-fire because of their rock-hard skin. Ben tested this out by firing on it a few times, and saw it didn't even pay any attention to him. Soon after, they destroyed a Locust staging area and a Locust Forward base. Shortly after assisting Alpha-Two,[9] Ben had a brief conversation with the others on where they thought the Locust came from, and offered different theories. He soon got some hints to his questions when they found a carved doorway, guarded by a Kantus monk several Drones and Tickers. After fighting through another Locust position, they came across a large cavern, where Skorge, mounted on his Hydra, appeared and began chanting. Skorge and his Hydra then flew off, followed by the gigantic Rift Worm, the source of the mysterious seismic activity. Ben was visibly horrified by the sight of this gigantic worm, exclaiming "Holy shit!" numerous times while Marcus was informing Anya of what they just saw. Anya then informed Marcus that the city of Ilima had just been sunk right at their position.[10]
Ben fighting in the Ilima sinkhole.
Battle in the Ilima Sinkhole
- "I can't believe they did that to Tai... he survives everything, doesn't he?"
- —Ben, horrified after Tai commits suicide
After fighting through the sunken city, and encountering some Stranded survivors, they were ambushed at the crash site of KR Five-Four and Charlie-Nine. When the Locust came close to overwhelming them, Pvt.Augustus Cole arrived and rescued them, and joined the squad. They then worked their way toward Cole's two remaining squadmates', Cpl.Damon Baird and Tanner, last known location.[11] They found Tanner dead, and Baird trapped in a Locust holding pod. They released him and learned that the Locust were capturing and torturing their prisoners on Torture Barges. The five Gears then boarded a Torture Barge to free any COG prisoners. When they reached the holding center, they found Tai in a holding cell, badly tortured and wounded. They let him out, but he committed suicide with a Gnasher Shotgun that Marcus handed him, being unable to stand the torture that had been inflicted upon him. Benjamin stared in shock at Tai's body, and couldn't believe what the Locust had done to drive Tai to such a point. After collecting Tai's COG Tags, the five of them then fought their way to the extraction point on top of a decaying building deeper in the Ilima sinkhole. As Delta Squad waited for the King Raven, they were attacked by many Locust soldiers. When the chopper arrived, Ben covered Delta's retreat and was shot in the shoulder. He fell against the chopper and was pulled in by the rest of the squad. As Ben lay on the chopper's floor, he revealed that the bullet that hit him did not pierce his COG armor. As he cheered that they had made it, the helicopter was hit by flying rubble from the approaching Riftworm, and the King Raven began spinning out of control. Ben, unable to grab ahold of something, plummeted into the creature's mouth, screaming in terror. The Raven and the rest of Delta Squad was also pulled inside the monster's mouth and was now also trapped inside the beast. The rest of Delta then began searching for Ben and a way out.[12]
Ben's death inside the Rift Worm.
Death in the Riftworm
- "Sarge?... I... I hurt Sarge... I... tell my brothers... my ma... tell 'em I love 'em, and...and.."
- —Ben's last words
Ben survived his fall, but was attacked by Nemacytes, which overwhelmed him and knocked him to the ground. They began dragging him across the stomach of the Riftworm and badly wounded him as he tried to fight them off. The rest of Delta arrived and chased off the parasites, but Ben's chest was burned to the bone with by the nemacytes acid. Before succumbing to his wounds, he spoke to Marcus, asking him to tell his brothers and his mom that he loved them, as well as something else, but Ben died from his horrific wounds, unable to finish his final words. Marcus collected his COG Tags, and a letter that he had written to his brother Clay, to deliver both to Carmine's family. Delta was forced to abandon Ben's body as a debris wall inside the Riftworm began to close in on them.[13]
Ben's COG Tag's and letter to his older brother Clay.
Legacy
- "Did you ever meet Benjamin Carmine? He's gone, too."
- —Marcus, telling Bernadette Mataki the list of casualties
When Sgt. Bernadette Mataki was rescued from the Sinking of Jacinto, Marcus gave her a head count of the casualties. Ben was among those he mentioned. Like his brother, Anthony, he would be viewed as a hero for his sacrifice for the COG.[14] Marcus also seemed affected by his death, as he had promised Ben that they would see the surface again while they were inside the Hollow just before entering Ilima City. His brother Clay immortalized Ben, along with Anthony, in the form of tattoos on his right arm.[15] Two years later, Marcus had a nightmare about the Battle of Ephyra and his dad's death. Ben and Anthony were both in his dream fighting alongside him and Dom.[16]
Personality and Traits
Benjamin (like his brother Anthony) was "green as grass," but was able to survive most of the first day of Operation: Hollow Storm, whereas his brother was killed only hours into the Lightmass Offensive. Like his brother, he held the veterans of Delta in high regard and believed it was an honor to serve in the same unit that his brother "heroically" died in. However, Benjamin is unique from Anthony in that he is a polite and kind-hearted sort of soldier and will disregard the Golden Rule of the Gears if he sees a teammate down. However, perhaps thanks to frequent prompting from Marcus and Dom, this is the only time he will rush out of cover but he still has a better understanding of staying in cover than Anthony did. To the end of his life, Ben remained unaware of how Anthony Carmine really died. Ever since Benjamin was a kid he had a love of fire.[17] This was also later stated by Dominic Santiago after finding the Scorcher Flamethrower at the New Hope facility.[18]
Notable Quotes
- "Over there! That's the monkey dog thing I saw!"
- —Ben, describing a Wretch
- "Oh no! They're dead! They're all dead, Sarge! It's just me!"
- —Ben's reaction to the loss of Echo-Five during the opening shots of Operation Hollow Storm
- "This one guy in basic, he thought that they came from Risea or one of the moons and that they feed on Imulsion.""
- —Ben, discussing Marcus and Dom about where the Locust came from.
- "I got your back Sarge!!!"
- —Ben, while covering Delta's escape to the Raven right before he's shot
Behind the Scenes
- In Gears of War: The Quickening, Ben wears the same helmet as his brother.[19]
- Ben Carmine's face is indeed the head of Minh Young Kim, as we are not supposed to see his "real" face.
Ben Carmine is Lt. Minh with a helmet on
- Anthony and Benjamin Carmine both share some audio files for their voices in multiplayer for Gears of War 2.
- Benjamin is voiced by Michael Gough, who also voiced Anthony and Clayton Carmine.
- After Ben's death when you find the Scorcher at the New Hope facility Marcus and Dom talk about how Ben would have liked the weapon because of his love of fire, even though through out the whole game Ben never once mentions his love of fire. The reason for this is because some of his lines of dialogue got cut out of the Tutorial level. Originally after blowing up the garage with a frag grenade, Carmine was supposed to go on and on about playing with fire as a kid.[20]
Alternative Path
Should the player chose not to train Ben at the beginning of Gears of War 2, the following will happen:
Marcus, in light of the recent Locust attacks, realized that he did not have time to train Ben, and ordered him to stand guard outside of the hospital. Ben was confused, telling him there is nothing to guard, but Marcus told him that it sounded like a good first assignment to him. As they left, Ben remained there to guard the area as he was told.[2]
Merchandise
- A Ben Carmine/"COG soldier" action figure for the NECA Gears of War series 3, was released in early 2009. The figure is considered to be a rather rare figure and comes with a Mk 2 Lancer Assault Rifle and a Longshot Sniper Rifle.
Multiplayer
- Benjamin Carmine is a playable character for the COG team in Gears of War 2 and Gears of War 3, where he is unlocked at level 34.
Appearances
- Gears of War 2 (First appearance)
- The Quickening
- Jacinto's Remnant (Mentioned only)
- Gears of War 3 (Dream only)
References
|