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Helena Pierce is the administrator of the town of New Haven. Her office is just in from the south-east corner, next to the open staging ground by Scooter's Catch-A-Ride and the local New-U Station.

Background

Helena Pierce has been on Pandora for a while and is committed to protecting the people of New Haven. She is not happy with Dahl's actions of abandoning Pandora and releasing all of the convict labor. She is opposed to the Crimson Lance's goal to convert the town into one of their own, and does not get along with Commandant Steele.

Her approach to life can best be described as "If you broke it, you fix it" evidenced by the numerous missions that have players cleaning up their own messes.

Helena has been seriously injured some time in her past, which was revealed, in Borderlands 2, to be the fault of her, now dead, husband giving her a ring containing a skag pearl - the pearl released pheromones that induced hunger in skags. Her mechanical arm was stolen temporarily by Patricia Tannis, in order to convince her to allow the Vault Hunters access over the Rust Commons East drawbridges.

Involvement

Borderlands 1

Helena Pierce is one of the main mission providers in the town of New Haven. She is not friendly when first met, and tasks the player with restoring the power supply to the town in Power to the People. Her demeanour improves after this is done, and she then offers more work towards protecting the citizens of New Haven. She directs the Vault hunters to Tannis, once Power to the People is completed.

Borderlands 2

Pierce's ECHO logs indicate that she had commandeered a train and was leading a group of people to Sanctuary. The train was intercepted by Handsome Jack and Wilhelm, whom had been notified of the 'stolen' train. The former then interrogated her briefly, seeming particularly interested in why she '[looked] like she headbutted a belt sander' before killing her and commanding Wilhelm to kill the rest of the passengers on the train.

Missions

Name Location Level Reward
Power To The People New Haven 20 2376XP, $2411
Seek Out Tannis Rust Commons West 21 2760XP, $2700
Jack's Other Eye Rust Commons West 23 6000XP, $10164, Combat Rifle
Middle Of Nowhere No More: Investigate Rust Commons East 24 4680XP, $3794, class mod
Relight The Beacons Rust Commons East 27 10440XP, $15993, Sniper Rifle
Smoke Signals: Investigate Old Haven Old Haven 28 6120XP, $11941
Smoke Signals: Shut Them Down Old Haven 28 6480XP, $29854, class mod
Jaynistown: Cleaning Up Your Mess Rust Commons East 29 13391XP, $20062

Appearances

Quotes

ECHO Messages

  • "I'm transmitting to inform you that I've made a decision I think you won't like. As administrator of New Haven, I am responsible for the well being of its citizens, and in that capacity, I must keep the road to Sanctuary closed for now. Baron Flynt's tribe and that infernal contraption of theirs are out on the Salt Flats, and I don't want citizens getting hurt trying to get past them." - Upon arriving in New Haven.
  • "What the hell is going on? Has Steele gone insane?! They're shutting down the ECHO system, and now we're getting reports of weapon fire all around Sanctuary! It's a war zone! Sanctuary is getting pounded out there. They are sending distress signals to anyone who'll listen! But if they shut down ECHO, I'll be unable to-" - Upon escaping Thor during Get Some Answers.

ECHO Logs

  • "The Skag is a kind of nasty, scavenging pack animal. They're all over this region. When not hunting, they mostly stay safely hidden in their dens with one or two sentries wandering around outside. Skags are tough, but we quickly discovered that the insides of their mouths are quite tender, and they do open their mouths very wide. Admittedly, that's usually while eating you, but you take what you can get."
  • "The Alpha is the big brute of the Skags. They are the pack leaders and are very, very dangerous. The entire front half of the body is covered with a thick, armored carapace, and they rarely expose the weak spot in their mouths. They are the deadliest of the Skags."
  • "There's something new out there - we call them Rakk. When they first showed up, flying in packs overhead, we thought they were migrating and would move on. But they aren't. Every day there are more. Every day they get closer, and every day they get more aggressive. These things aren't migrating... they're moving in."
  • "With thirty thousand prisoners on Pandora, you may wonder what Dahl's security plan was. The answer is just as cheap and short-sighted as the plan to have thirty thousand criminals do your work for you. Dahl's security plan consisted of 600 armed men, and over forty six hundred unmanned sentry turrets. Predictably, when the prisoners took over the mines and prisons, they took over the sentry turrets as well."
  • "The Spiderant is a quick, insect-like creature. They are aggressive, fearless, and they live underground in burrows with entrances that are almost completely invisible. If you see one, there are likely many more beneath you, and possibly even behind you. Their armor-like exoskeleton covers the front of their bodies almost entirely, but there is a large area on the back where they are completely defenseless."
  • "The Scythid Crawler is often found hunting alongside Spiderants. We're not sure if they are part of the same species, or if it's simply a symbiotic relationship. Either way, they make for a vicious combination. The Crawler is slow, but it is capable of quickly burrowing underground, and it attacks with a poisonous spit at long ranges. They have a very tender weak spot on their sides near the ground, so aim low."
  • "Bandits have been a problem for a long time now, but they were generally too stupid to be much of a threat. Now someone new is in charge, and he's no fool. They're becoming organized. What was once dozens of small gangs, is now turning into an army. A thousand murderous assholes with guns."
  • "Some of the prisoners found... something. It changed them. I don't know what or how, but some of them have done something to themselves. Others have been mutated, changed into grotesque, oversized brutes. What they've become is disgusting, disturbing, and dangerous."
  • "The Crimson Lance - Atlas' private army. Elite, highly trained, and merciless. The bandits are criminals with guns, but the Crimson Lance are real soldiers."
  • "Fyrestone. It was going to be the friendly town. Open. Inviting. The residents weren't afraid of the Skags. They weren't afraid of the Bandits. They weren't afraid of Pandora. But fear... fear is your body's way of telling you that you are going to die. By the end, they put up hasty walls of scrap and debris, but it was too late... far too late."
  • "Skag Gully, is the name residents of Fyrestone gave the Skag breeding grounds just outside of town. The few who came to Pandora to research the wildlife found this location quite interesting. Being a breeding ground, the Skags in this area are young and more timid than most. If you keep your distance, they usually don't attack. Usually."
  • "Nearly every mine was run by criminals, so next to each mine was a Bunker. The Bunker was utilitarian structure. Guardhouse, prison, work camp, storage facility... They served many purposes. In the end, though, the Bunkers were where the rebellion began, and the Bunkers are where most of the bandits live now."
  • "When the Dahl Corporation opened their mining operations here on Pandora, they decided to use the cheapest labor possible.So they shipped thirty thousand irredeemable criminals from their prison system to man their mining operations here on Pandora, a move best described as staggeringly idiotic. When the prisoners inevitably rebelled, the mines quickly became a dangerous place to be."
  • "Pandora is a remote planet. Supply and trade are inconsistent at best the closest we get to regular shipments are the one way junk ships that dump unwanted salvage from the Core. The founders of New Haven took a bold stance on this supply and demand problem, they placed their town in the middle of the largest scrapyard in the Frontier. Residents of the nicer settlements, like Sanctuary and Fyrestone, scoffed at this, but amongst the scrap and broken equipment of far wealthier planets, New Haven survives. That is more than can be said for Fyrestone."
  • "At last count, there is six and a half million tons of junk in the Scrapyard. Entire decommissioned ships have been towed and dumped here. Many of the junk ships were war vessels, making weapons and ammunition plentiful as well. For scavengers who aren't afraid of the risks involved in looting through junked weaponry and cracked reactor cores, there is an almost infinite supply of salvageable materials. The husks and debris of this landscape provide shelter and supplies to others as well."
  • "The face of Pandora is scarred and cracked. Across the continent, tens of thousands of vast canyons run deep, each filled with unknowable dangers. Fortune hunters searching for alien wealth or the mythic Vault often venture into the shadows of the earth... many never return. The ones who do, come out empty handed... but alive."
  • "Refuse Point is, frankly, an embarrassment. The industrial waste and debris has polluted the water, rendering it corrosive and poisonous to us and the wildlife alike. This our legacy, I suppose. We contaminate every world we settle."
  • "Sanctuary reminds us all what it takes to be successful on Pandora... lots of money and a complete disregard for others. When Fyrestone fell apart, some of the survivors made it to New Haven, while others tried to reach Sanctuary. Those who made it here found a place with us, provided they were willing to pull their weight. The rest found out the hard way that the managers of Sanctuary do not believe in sharing."
  • "One of the mines was shut down a while ago. The official word was that there had been an accident and an investigation was called for. I wonder if they really expected anyone to believe the company would shut down a mining operation because some criminals got hurt? Most people think they found something, some Eridian trinket of value, perhaps, and were afraid the other corporations would get wind of it, so they shut the mine down."
  • "The Vault is a myth, a fairy story told by Eridian creatures to Eridian children, and passed on to humanity through some scrawled markings on otherwise non-descript ruins. Fortune hunters come time after time to die on this planet, searching for a Vault that doesn't exist."
  • "For six thousand kilometers, there is nothing. The Salt Flats are a great expanse of cracked earth and dust. Along the southern edge lie the Spires of Heaven. We had a successful strip mine there, once. A source of wealth, a source of hope. It belongs to them now."

When approached

  • "Hmm, what can I do for you?"
  • "Hello, again."
  • "I hope you're avoiding the negative element around here."
  • "Yes? Did you need something?"
  • "Well, well - looks like you fit right in."

While leaving

  • "See you soon."
  • "Watch your back out there."
  • "That's all for the time being."

Before Seek Out Tannis

  • "The Vault is a story to give hope to the hopeless - nothing more."
  • "There are more important things to do here than chase after some fairy tale. The Vault is not real."
  • "The Vault is no more real than any fable you heard in grade school. It's nothing more than a tall-tale, some wild exaggeration."

After Seek Out Tannis

  • "This vault discovery could be the very thing we need to revitalize this settlement."
  • "I hope whatever is in the vault can be traded for supplies."
  • "I guess Pandora is the perfect place to hide the Vault - remote, harsh, and no one would have believed it - not even me."

After Middle of Nowhere series of missions

  • "I can't' trust that Tannis woman. Don't get more involved with her than you have to; we have enough troubles."
  • "Dr. Tannis has always been very interested in isolating herself - she makes it difficult for me to trust her."
  • "Happenings outside of New Haven are not my concern. I don't know who sent Tannis or why she's here, but it strikes me as strange."

After Smoke Signals: Shut Them Down

  • "No one brings this many soldiers if they don't think they'll need them. What could the Crimson Lance want here?"
  • "The Crimson Lance, another group of outsiders - this doesn't bode well."
  • "We cannot trust these Lance soldiers until we know their intentions."

After The Final Piece

  • "Will the Crimson Lance stop at nothing to get at the Vault? They are killing the very people they should be protecting."
  • "Something must be done to stop those Lance barbarians from hurting innocent people."
  • "I'm receiving reports from all over Pandora of the Crimson Lance committing acts of violence and destruction!"
  • "How dare the Crimson Lance intrude on our lives and threaten our survival!"

Trivia

  • At one point in Borderlands' development, Helena Pierce had several ECHO logs describing the history of Pandora's settlement. These were ultimately cut from the final product.
  • Helena speaks with a middle class southern English accent.
  • Helena Pierce is featured in the original trailer for the game.[1]
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