Mina Jinn

Mina Jinn
Biographical information
Date of birth	c. 5 B.E.
Physical description and appearance
Species	Human
Gender	Female
Hair color	Black
Chronological and personal information
Rank(s)	First Minister Minister of Procreation (Formerly)
Era(s)	Pendulum Wars Locust War Lambent Pandemic Interwar Period Outsider Movement Swarm Invasion
Notable Facts	Former protégé of Anya Stroud Created the COG's Fertility Program Made the birth of JD Fenix possible
Family	(Unnamed) - Son
Affiliation	COG Ministry of Procreation (Formerly) Stranded (Formerly)

"What's obvious is that my efforts to keep society united is the only chance we have against whatever's out here!"

—First Minister Mina Jinn's belief of order being the only defense the humans have against the Swarm.

First Minister Mina Jinn is the 3rd First Minister of the COG during the Interwar Period, Outsider Movement, and Swarm Invasion. Formerly a Stranded during the Locust War, she was taken in by First Minister Anya Stroud to become her protégé and appointed her Minister of Procreation. Minister Jinn devised a fertility program for barren women to help repopulate humanity, to which First Minister Stroud volunteered to be the first candidate and was successful in birthing her first child, but later died when trying to conceive a second child. Minister Jinn became First Minister following Dyer and continued the policy of utilizing automated DeeBees to perform construction work and handle high-risk security details.

First Minister Jinn's administration was marked by the Outsider Movement, in which Outsiders, groups of people rejecting and living outside COG jurisdiction, continued to raid Settlements and other COG facilities for supplies. Due to Dyer and Jinn implementing an authoritarian rule following Stroud's death, many began protesting the COG - which was met with lethal force. In 42 A.E., many of Jinn's Gears and civilians went missing, believing that the Outsiders were responsible. It was later discovered that the Locust Horde had survived the war and evolved into the Swarm and were using humans to rebuild their army. First Minister Jinn offered the Outsiders protection from within their walled cities as she led humanity into war against the Swarm.

Biography

Early Life

Mina Jinn was born during several years before Emergence Day. As a child, Jinn saw the Pendulum Wars come to an end.

Locust War

Emergence Day

Six weeks after the end of the Pendulum Wars, a race of subterranean humanoids known as the Locust Horde attacked on the surface on what would be known as Emergence Day, as 25% of the human race was killed in the first 26 hours. Mina Jinn was still only a child and knew that the human's victory against the Locust was not assured.

Hammer of Dawn Strikes

Within a year after Emergence Day, the Locust continued to advance across Sera. Each city they overran meant occupation of land and technology, gaining footing until they arrived at Ephyra, the capitol of the Coalition of Ordered Governments. Ephyra, as well as other cities located on the Jacinto Plateau, were spared due to the impenetrable granite bedrock of the plateau.

Shortly after the death of Chairman Tomas Dalyell, Deputy Chairman Richard Prescott was appointed the leader. In order to deny Locust control over human ruins and halt their progress towards Ephyra, Chairman Prescott announced to the human population that he would commence a counterattack, using the Hammer of Dawn to scorch 90% of Sera's surface. Chairman Prescott urged survivors to relocate to the Jacinto Plateau to avoid being killed by the blast and protected from the Locust, but the remaining human population was only given three days notice.

Mina Jinn and her family were outside of the Jacinto Plateau when Prescott launched the counterattack, killing millions more humans. Among those killed were many of Mina Jinn's family. Mina and the remainder of her family would later become known as Stranded, survivors of the Hammer Strikes who resided out of COG jurisdiction and resented the COG for killing their own people.

Life as Stranded

For the following years until 17 A.E., Mina Jinn and her family remained resentful of the Coalition and survived as Stranded. Eventually, the Jinn family set up camp in the ruins of Ephyra after 10 A.E., during which the Locust finally managed to breach and occupy the city.

During the Locust War, the Coalition was successful in the campaigns of the Lightmass Offensive and Operation: Hollow Storm - with the Locust being killed in the bombing, assault, and flooding of the Hollow. Despite the Lambent Pandemic that followed, Mina Jinn and her family survived, as did the Coalition when they finally activated the Imulsion Countermeasure Weapon, killing the Lambent and neutralizing the Locust Horde.

Interwar Period

Joining the COG

Sometime after the activation of the Imulsion Countermeasure, the Coalition returned to Ephyra in order to rebuild. The new leader of the Coalition, First Minister Anya Stroud, met Mina Jinn and her family. While initially rude to Anya, the two became good friends due to Anya's kind and diplomatic nature. However, not all Stranded were open to the reestablishment of the Coalition, and remained outside of COG jurisdiction. Those who remained Stranded or expatriate COG citizens who were disillusioned by the government were then known as Outsiders, who took to raiding COG cities, settlements, and facilities for supplies.

In spite of her upbringing, she embraced the new Coalition of Ordered Governments and its altruism. The COG's first decade allowed talented young people to take advantage of its fluid, meritocratic society, and Jinn impressed many with her intelligence, ambition, and devotion to the COG's ideals. By her early twenties, she was a skilled bureaucrat, and in her mid-twenties was selected to head the Ministry of Procreation, one of the most powerful ministries within the new COG. Minister Mina Jinn's methods made it possible for the once infertile First Minster Stroud to conceive a child, James Dominic Fenix, with her husband, Sgt. Marcus Fenix. While First Minister Stroud continued to lead the COG, she appointed Minister Jinn as her protégé.

Elected as First Minister

In 27 A.E., First Minister Stroud once again applied for fertility treatment from Minister Jinn to have a second child. However, First Minister Stroud died due to birthing complications. After Stroud died, Jinn wanted to have her buried with the Allfathers in New Ephyra, but Marcus instead had her buried within the lands of her family's estate, much to Jinn's dismay as she wanted Stroud to be a symbol to inspire the next generation. The interim-First Minister, Dyer, was appointed to replace Stroud. Sometime after, Minister Jinn was eventually elected by her fellow ministers to become First Minister, making her one of the youngest COG leaders in history. Like all previous First Ministers, Jinn viewed the Outsiders as a grave problem; unlike her predecessors, however, she was prepared to do something about it.

At some point, Jinn re-purposed a number of DeeBees from simple construction and civil workers into a mechanized police force, a function that the creator of the DeeBees and CEO of DB Industries, Damon Baird, never intended. The decision was a point of contention between the two. This was one of the many uses of power during First Minister Jinn's administration that caused more COG citizens to protest and abandon the COG, as Jinn was transforming the once altruistic government into a totalitarian one after the death of First Minister Stroud.

Settlement 2 Protest Massacre

In 39 A.E., First Minister Jinn came to notice JD Fenix and Delmont Walker, new entries to the COG Officer Corps, and selected them to lead a unit of security DeeBees in Settlement 2. In 41 A.E., citizens of Settlement 2 became more infuriated with First Minister Jinn's leadership and led a protest to allow Settlement 2 autonomy from New Ephyra. Gears and DeeBees were sent to quell the protests, but once the protesters became violent, First Minister Jinn ordered Lt. Fenix to eliminate the protesters. Lt. Fenix then ordered the DeeBees to open fire on the citizens, known as the Settlement 2 Protest Massacre. Jinn later claimed that she ordered Lt. Fenix to do it, but it was unclear if she was actually telling the truth or not.

In the aftermath of the massacre, Settlement 2 became the most compliant Settlement within the Coalition, but out of fear. This incident was well classified, but the truth spread about among the Settlements, prompting more citizens to become disillusioned with the COG. The White Xiphium published a manifesto claiming an end of New Ephyra's power of the Settlements. Meanwhile, Lt. Fenix and Lt. Walker abandoned the COG due to witnessing and taking part in the massacre. The two became Outsiders and joined Fort Umson, led by Reyna Diaz, one of the most prominent leaders of the Outsiders. First Minister Jinn then branded Lt. Fenix and Lt. Walker as enemies of the state for treason and sedition.

Following the massacre, Jinn used her own fertility program to conceive her son. However, more issues arose in the Coalition as Gears and citizens were inexplicably reported missing. While unknown to the true cause, Jinn blamed the Outsiders - specifically Fort Umson - for kidnapping her people. Jinn then increased her security measures, causing the Outsiders to stop performing their typical raids and pull back, fearing all out war.

25th Anniversary of Victory Day

"Today, we are humbled by the presence of two generations of men and women who braved every danger. Who fought the battles that made us what we are. Including the most pivotal encounter in the Pendulum Wars: Aspho Fields. When valiant COG forces captured the UIR’s plans for the Hammer of Dawn, we ensured our survival in the worst conflict our world had yet known. But only two years later, a new horror. A new enemy. A new war. By nightfall, hundreds of thousands were dead. “Emergence Day” had earned its name. Like many of you, I was only a child then. It was a dark, difficult time – and our victory was in no way assured. But against all odds, a brave group of soldiers, led by Marcus Fenix, finally ended our Locust nightmare. How dearly I wish Sergeant Fenix could be with us here today. Stop and think about the men and women whose sacrifices guaranteed our survival. Thanks to them, we fought through the long twilight. We built a new prosperity. The world the new COG has ensured knows no war, no suffering. It’s a world of safety. Of family. A world finally, at peace."

—First Minister Jinn's speech commemorating the 25th Anniversary of Victory Day.

In 42 A.E., Jinn presented a memorial service commemorating the twenty-fifth anniversary of Victory Day, also known as the end of Locust War. While she had invited Sgt. Marcus Fenix, he declined her offer. However, along with her on stage was former Colonel, Victor Hoffman, and former Privates Augustus Cole and Samantha Byrne, and gave tribute to the men and women who died during the Pendulum and Locust Wars, specifically the Battle of Aspho Fields, Emergence Day, and the Battle of Anvil Gate.

Shortly after the speech, she was alerted of a security breach in the construction of Settlement 5, revealed to be Outsiders JD Fenix and Delmont Walker, along with Reyna's daughter, Kait Diaz, and brother-in-law, Oscar Diaz attempting to raid Settlement 5 for its Fabricator. While JD, Kait, and Del were extracting the Fabricator from the Construction Hub, Jinn dropped in a convoy of security DeeBees, including her own Command Bot, to communicate and arrest Oscar Diaz, who was left outside. Upon emerging, Jinn attempted to arrest JD, Del, and Kait not for raiding, but for kidnapping her people. However, a bot-transport cart ran over Jinn's Command Bot and security force controlled by an unknown benefactor. The group then fled Settlement 5 as Jinn released an onslaught of DeeBee forces.

Battle of Fort Umson

Immediately following the group's return to Fort Umson, First Minister Jinn arrived via another Command Bot to personally accuse Chief Reyna Diaz of abducting COG citizens and demanded their return, to which Reyna denied as the Outsiders were not responsible for the disappearances and decapitated Jinn's Command Bot. Following the breakdown in communications, Jinn ordered a full assault on Fort Umson, consisting of multiple waves of DeeBee units including Guardians and DR-1s. While the invasion was repulsed, the village sustained heavy damage. Jinn then pulled her forces back to regroup.

Assault on the Stroud Estate

Later, Jinn, still suspecting the Outsiders of being responsible for the disappearances, tracks JD, Kait and Delmont to the Stroud family estate, and interrupts a tense meeting between JD and his father Marcus Fenix by ripping the front door of Marcus's house apart in her Command Bot, wryly apologizing to the former sergeant before warning him not to help his son. However, JD had reached him first and showed him a Locust crystal which he recognized, prompting Marcus to help his son and chainsaw her Command Bot in half. Jinn orders another full assault on the estate, destroying most of it in the attempt to capture the fugitives during a running gunfight across the estate grounds. During the pursuit, she loses most of the DeeBee units, including several Kestrels and a Vulture.

Swarm Invasion

Discovery of the Swarm

At some point in the following hours, Jinn becomes aware of the Swarm and realizes that her initial suspicions may have been wrong. She tracks JD's group to the abandoned town of Speyer, where she attempts to peacefully meet with the group. She insists on having them return to New Ephyra to discuss the threat of the Swarm, but her Command Bot is attacked by a Pouncer and promptly turned into a Reject before she could act.

Following the destruction of Jinn's remaining DeeBee forces within Speyer, she apparently decides to withdraw from the conflict, allowing JD and his group to assault the major Swarm Hive beneath Tollen Dam.

COG-Outsider Summit

After the battle at Tollen Dam, Jinn reinstated JD and Del into the military at their previous rank of lieutenant, and inducted Kait Diaz as a corporal which she rejected. Although Jinn opted for a defensive strategy that involved evacuating all humans to the safety of New Ephyra while using the DeeBees to eradicate the Swarm, Damon Baird feared that this would not be enough and began looking for ways to rebuild the Hammer of Dawn array despite Jinn warning him not to. It was also revealed that Jinn was several months pregnant, although the father of her child was not identified.

Additional, she came to blow with Victor Hoffman over his idea of Hivebuster Operation as she insisted using Deebees to minimize human casualties and forced him into retirement.

Reactivation of the Hammer of Dawn

Despite Jinn's orders, Baird discovered via Adam Fenix's data disk that there was still a working COG Rocket in the Abandoned Research Facility on Azura with a prototype Hammer of Dawn satellite. Delta Squad embarked upon a mission to the facility and launched the satellite, sparking Jinn's fury. Upon Delta's return, Jinn argued with Marcus Fenix privately, earning his ire when Jinn tried to use Anya Stroud's opposition to reactivating the Hammer of Dawn as an argument. By the time JD and the rest of Delta arrived, Jinn's ire had not cooled and she forbade using the weapon.

Evacuation of Settlement 2

Jinn's meeting with Delta was cut short by the news that Settlement 2, which was being evacuated due to a nearby Locust burial site becoming active, was under heavy attack. Jinn made contact with Clayton Carmine who requested reinforcements and JD offered to lead them which Jinn accepted.

COG-Outsider Armistice

A few weeks after the battle in which JD was severely injured by the Hammer of Dawn, Jinn encountered Kait in JD's hospital room where Jinn continued to call Kait Corporal Diaz despite Kait's rejection of the rank. Kait, having learned the truth about the Settlement 2 Protest Massacre, demanded to know if the First Minister knew that JD fired the first shot. After Kait kept pressing her, Jinn claimed that she was the one who had actually given JD the order to do so, though Kait was unsure if Jinn was telling the truth or was lying in an attempt to mend the rift that had formed after JD's friends learned what he had done. Both Jinn and Kait were upset by the news of JD's condition, but she refused to consider taking JD off of life support as it was Marcus' decision, not hers. In a more vulnerable moment, Jinn admitted that she envied JD sometimes as he had the soldier's life where he followed orders instead of making decisions as she had to. When Jinn started going on about feeling responsible in some way for JD due to her role in his birth, Kait took her leave.

Still in JD's hospital room, Jinn met with Baird who tried to justify his actions before he realized that Jinn was just letting him ramble. Jinn stated that they were well past apologies, but then surprised Baird by suggesting that they were well past everything. Jinn pointed out that Baird had made the choice to deploy the Hammer of Dawn while JD made the choice of asking him to do it. Jinn recounted how badly their choices of arming the DeeBees and using the Hammer of Dawn had turned out and while they were running out of a lot of supplies, Jinn feared most running out of choices. As a result, despite everything that had happened,, she sought Baird's opinion as she still valued it. Jinn outlined the two choices she felt that they had: bring everyone to New Ephyra or scatter as far and wide as they could and hope that the Swarm couldn't track them all down.

Baird pointed out that the rest of the planet was not faring well against the Swarm and even if they could survive like that, there wouldn't be much of civilization left. On the other hand, bringing everyone to New Ephyra would be setting up for a last stand that they both knew they were unlikely to win. However, it might buy them time to find some kind of solution to the Swarm problem. Baird stated that if they did go with that option and couldn't use DeeBees or the Hammer of Dawn, they would need to use Gears instead which would also mean bringing in any Outsiders who arrived and giving them weapons to help defend the city. Jinn was reluctant as she saw this as surrounding the seat of the government with armed Outsiders, forcing Baird to remind her that they weren't the enemy. Though the Outsiders would be untrained, Baird believed that the training regimen he and Del developed for the DeeBees could be adapted for the Outsiders. The two discussed how Kait would make the perfect ambassador for the Outsiders but Jinn noted that no matter how many times she kept calling Kait Corporal, the honorary rank slipped off of her like a bad smell. Baird joked that she needed some deodorant which caused Jinn to apparently get an idea that Baird thought that he was going to end up regretting.

Hivebuster Offensive

When Colonel Victor Hoffman suggested an offensive to destroy Swarm Hives using Venom Bombs created by Doctor Hana Cole, Jinn rejected the plan, confident that the DeeBees could handle the Swarm despite the fact that the Swarm had been proven to be able to corrupt DeeBees. The disagreement between Jinn and Hoffman led to Jinn forcing Hoffman into retirement.

Undaunted by Jinn's refusal to listen to reason, Hoffman returned to his estate on Galangi and began planning a rogue operation behind the First Minister's back, aided by Hana -- who was unaware of the truth -- Tak and Major Donneld Mathieson. Hoffman recruited Team Scorpio without telling them that he was acting behind Jinn's back. Although Scorpio and Hana eventually deduced the truth, they ultimately decided to carry on anyways. Scorpio succeeded in destroying Swarm Hives in Pahanu and Bravelle.

Personality and Traits

Jinn is a very politically motivated woman. She appears to be very charismatic, giving a touching, emotional speech during the twenty-fifth anniversary of the end of the Locust War, yet immediately afterward showing a ruthless, stubborn streak as she accuses the Outsiders of being behind the kidnapping of COG citizens without proof.

Jinn also appears to have a ruthless streak using her position of power as First Minister to force CEO of DB Industries, Damon Baird, into giving her command of the DeeBee units, which she uses as a police and military force which she personally favors over COG soldiers. Her heavy reliance of Deebee’s have made her generally unpopular with veteran Gears who fought during the previous war, especially after it was revealed that most DeeBee models were susceptible to fall under the control of Flocks. Even after the Deebee's vulnerabilities against the Swarm became apparent, Jinn stubbornly refused to phase them out of the COG's forces.

Jinn seems to have an obsessive streak, as she sent a Vulture after JD, Kait, Del and Marcus, which Del addresses as "Jinn's overreaction". However, Jinn does have some redeeming qualities, as she does appear to care for her constituency. She goes through great lengths in the attempt that she will retrieve her citizens, and shows that she is capable of admitting fault and showing reason when the Swarm threat is finally revealed. Further, during the course of the Swarm War, she had any settlement evacuated to save lives and authorized the plan to get the Outsider villages to ally with the COG to combat the Swarm.

These traits may be because that, unlike former leaders of the COG, Jinn was born and grew up during the destructive war with the Locust and knows full well the mistakes of the past. She has successfully instituted the rebuilding of civilization across Sera through the mass-produced Settlements and seems eager to replace Gears entirely with a mass-produced mech force (although this could also be contributed to her desire to control more than to protect). Despite this, Jinn has taken measures as First Minister that are much more authoritarian and is not prone to being argued or disobeyed. She attempted to used Kait's connection with the Locust Hivemind to give the COG an advantage and was willing to arrest her when she refused on the basis of a lack of trust but is mollified when her squad mates and friends defend her, leaving Jinn frustrated.

Jinn had a close relationship with the previous First Minister Anya Stroud, often trying to follow her example and live up to her legacy. However, many have observed Jinn has diverged from such a path, since her actions are more oppressive than Anya would have ever done. Like Anya, Jinn hated the Hammer of Dawn. But unlike the former Jinn refused to use it under any circumstance, even when Baird insisted that they needed to use it against the Swarm, having witnessed firsthand the destruction left in its wake. While she was close to Anya, Jinn has a less than friendly relationship with Anya's husband Marcus Fenix as he partially blamed her for Anya's death due to her involvement in the new COG's fertility program. Their dislike for each other further intensified after Jinn had destroyed much of the Stroud Estate in an attempt to capture JD and his friends. However Jinn later expressed deep regret for what she had done and repeatedly apologized to Marcus for destroying his late wife's estate, although he silently disregarded her.

Jinn appears to have a genuine fondness for JD Fenix despite hunting him down when he abandoned the COG and her often stern attitude with him after he rejoined the COG. Jinn rejects suggestions of taking JD off of life support due to low medical supplies and told Kait that she felt responsible for JD in a way due to her role in his conception and birth. Jinn subsequently told Damon Baird that JD was like a son to her and took time to be at his bedside when he was severely injured. Jinn privately admitted that she sometimes envied JD who lived a soldier's life and thus wasn't in charge and didn't have to make the hard decisions as she did.

Behind the scenes

• Jinn is voiced by Angel Desai.

Appearances

• Gears of War 4 (First appearance)
• Ascendance
• Gears 5
• Bloodlines