Overwatch: A Story Guide to Reinhardt
Reinhardt Wilhelm has been chasing glory since his earliest days in the German Armed Forces. A self-considered knight, he held the virtues of justice, courage, valor, and honor above all else.
During his time in the Armed Forces, Reinhardt proved himself a skillful soldier, receiving countless medals and becoming a decorated wartime hero.
As a result of this skill and reputation, Reinhardt left the German Army to join The Crusaders.
The Crusaders were an active military order during the omnic crisis. They styled themselves around knighthood and shared many of the same ideals that Reinhardt did. They would often assist the German Military in operations, providing cover for charging infantry.
Reinhardt was stationed at Eichenwalde and served under his mentor, and leader of The Crusaders, Balderich Von Adler.
At some point during the war, Balderich was chosen to join the strike force that eventually became Overwatch.
Before he was due to depart, Balderich spent his final night in the company of Reinhardt and his unit at Braueret Mittagskrug.
Reinhardt was against his mentor leaving, thinking it better to stay with The Crusaders and the glory that came with them, over vanishing off into a secret military organization.
At this time, Eichenwalde came under attack from enemy omnic troops.
Eager to prove himself, Reinhardt jumped headfirst into the battle. He disobeyed orders to stay with his unit, instead rushing on ahead, destroying any omnics that got in his way.
Balderich caught up to him and ordered him to fall back in line. Reinhardt again disobeyed, insisting that the others would just slow him down.
Unbeknownst to both, their unit was coming under extremely heavy fire after the two ran off ahead.
Reinhardt continued his campaign of destruction, and coming upon an OR14 unit, decided to rush it head-on.
This proved to be a mistake, as the omnic swung at Reinhardt with its heat blade, slashing his left eye in the process.
After ordering the unit to retreat, Balderich ran forward to try and save his now helpless student.
He was successful in taking down the OR14 but received fatal wounds in the process. Having lost the battle, the pair and the remaining German forces fell back to Eichenwalde Castle.
After returning to the castle, Balderich ordered Reinhardt to accompany the rest of the unit back to the rally point while he held the line, revealing to Reinhardt the mortal nature of his wounds.
Distraught, Reinhardt attempted to reason with his mentor, but in the end, relented as Balderich reminded him that the rest of the unit needed him to be their shield.
Before leaving, Balderich took Reinhardt’s hand. After breaking the handshake, Reinhardt found that The Crusader’s leader had given him his Overwatch medal, which served to prove membership to the group.
Reinhardt left his hammer and returned to the rest of the troops. Through his unrelenting iron will, the German forces pushed the omnics back, eventually holding out long enough for the rest of the Armed Forces to launch a counterattack.
Reinhardt ended up being the only crusader that survived the attack, and with a heavy conscience, was inducted as part of the original Overwatch strike team.