Matthew Baker
From Brother in Arms Wiki
Contents |
[edit] Matthew Baker
| Matthew Baker | |
|---|---|
| February 22, 1921 - Present | |
| Nickname | Matt |
| Place of birth | Fort Benning,Georgia |
| Allegiance | USA |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Rank | Sergeant; After Normandy Staff Sergeant |
| Unit | 3rd Squad, 3rd Platoon, Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne |
Matthew Baker, voiced by Troy Baker, is the main character in Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 and is a secondary character in Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood. He is again the main character in Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway. The character is based on various actual individuals from the 101st Airborne Division, with Harrison C. Summers being among them.
[edit] Background
Matt Baker is the son of a military family that was broken up by a divorce during his early childhood. Baker grew up with his mother in St. Louis during the Great Depression. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor Baker volunteered for the newly activated airborne divisions of the United States Army. His unit is 3rd Squad, 3rd Platoon, Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 502 PIR (Parachute Infantry Regiment), 101st Airborne Division. Baker, along with the rest of the 101st Airborne Division, was sent to England and began to train for the invasion of Europe. During a training exercise only days before D-Day, the original Squad Leader of 3rd Squad was injured and then Corporal Matt Baker was promoted to Sergeant and given command of the squad. He is sometimes called Bulletproof Matt Baker due to the fact that he faces life threatening battles and always comes out virtually unharmed.
[edit] Road to Hill 30
On June 6 1944, Baker and his squad were to be airdropped over Normandy. However, as his squad was waiting for the green light to begin the jump, the plane was hit by flak, killing Private Muzza (3rd Squad's first casualty) and knocking Baker out of the plane. Baker was able to deploy his parachute and landed safely. Throughout the campaign, Baker leads his squad through various battles that claim the lives of most soldiers in 3rd Squad, including the capture of Objective XYZ and of Vierville, Purple Heart Lane, Cole's Charge, the Battle of Carentan, and the defense of Hill 30 on the outskirts of [[wikipedia:Carentan|Carentan. During the battle on Hill 30 Baker was knocked down by a tank flak and left with a nasty scar on his forehead.
[edit] Earned in Blood
In Earned in Blood, Baker appears as a non-playable character in Story Mode and as a playable character in the co-op Skirmish Mode. Baker and his squad continue their fight in Carentan after the ending of Road to Hill 30 and help Hartsock and his squad push the remaining Germans out of Carentan. Afterwards, Baker only appears at the end when Baker and Hartsock tell their stories to Army historian Col. S.L.A. Marshall. He first appears in the mission "Three Patrol Action"
[edit] Hell's Highway
Baker is one of the main characters of Hell's Highway (along with Hartsock) and leads a Recon unit consisting of the survivors of 3rd Squad (Corrion, McCreary, Courtland, and Zanovich) and a few new additions including a soldier called Dawson who refuses to wear his helmet and a replacement with no combat experince called Frankie along with a soldier equipped with a bazooka (Bazooka Stella) called Jasper. Baker and Hartsock will lead their men through Operation Market Garden. Throughout the game you see the mental state of Baker take a nosedive. He is haunted by the spirit and memory of PFC. Leggett, who was killed in Road To Hill 30. He starts to have hallucinations, which causes Hartsock to question his ability to lead them to safety
[edit] Trivia
- Baker is most often seen during the single player campaign of Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 using the M1 Garand rifle, Thompson submachine gun, and twice the M1903 Springfield rifle.
- Baker's squad is a traditional paratrooper squad consisting of twelve soldiers, jokingly called "Baker's Dozen." Baker's soldiers include Corporal Joe Hartsock, Corporal Sam Corrion, PFC Jack Courtland, PFC Stephan "Obi" Obrieski, Pvt. Larry Allen, Pvt. Michael Garnett, Pvt. Johnny Rivas, Pvt. Michael Desola, Pvt. David Muzza, Pvt. Thomas Zanovich, Pvt. Dale McCreary, and Radio-Op Benjamin Kevin Leggett. Privates Allen and Garnett are both killed during a flanking maneuver against an enemy held farm. Pvt. Rivas was killed by a sniper on Purple Heart Lane. Pvt. Desola was killed by a Stuka dive bomber while trying to squeeze through an obstacle on Purple Heart Lane. Pfc. Obrieski was killed by a sniper during the defense of the cathedral in downtown Carentan. Finally, Pfc. Legget was killed by a tank shell burst during the defense of Hill 30. On top of the deaths in his own squad, Baker's best friend George Risner was killed when his tank was hit by a Panzerfaust anti-tank weapon.
- In Skirmish Mode in Earned in Blood, Baker uses the M1 Carbine (M1A1 variation) and the Thompson submachine gun.
- Judging from screenshots of Hell's Highway, both Baker and Hartsock have been promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeant.
- According to hints on the Ubisoft Brothers in Arms forum it's been said that most of the new additions in Hell's Highway are actually combat veterans and that the squad will only have one soldier without combat experience.
Matt Baker and George Risner attended high school together. Some of Bakers squad are older than him. Dawson bully's baker into telling him what happened between Allen, Garnett and Leggett, and does after he sees the ghosts of the 3 at the crossroads later that night. Baker's father died holding the death pistol, which is why people believe whoever holds the gun will die.
