Gears of War 4 is set almost 25 years after the events of Gears of War 3, which means that players will be introduced to a largely new cast. Thankfully, developer The Coalition has assembled a capable cast of voice actors whose resumes include an impressive list of video game and television work. Come meet the three new vocal leads for Gears of War 4.

JD Fenix

JD Fenix is the primary protagonist in Gears of War 4, and the son of legendary war hero Marcus Fenix. JD is an idealist who ran away from home at a young age to join the the COG militia only to go AWOL after a classified incident that players will learn more about during the game.

Played by: Liam McIntyre who is best known for his work as the male lead in the Starz series Spartacus. He also recently played the Weather Wizard on the The CW show The Flash.

McIntyre on JD: "It's kind of terrifying, because I get to be the lead in a new era of Gears, which is unbelievable, amazing, and exciting. I'm the legacy, because my dad is Marcus Fenix. JD's a soldier and a bit of a freedom fighter, and in his heart he's a bit of a renegade. He's different from Marcus, but he's still that heroic archetype.

Kait Diaz

Kait Diaz was born and raised outside of the walled city-states protecting most of humanity. Her parents were leaders of this group of Outsiders, but her father died tragically years ago. Kait isn't familiar with how the COG works, but she is a capable survivalist who forms a quick friendship with JD.

Played by: Laura Bailey, who is an accomplished voice actor, with roles as Kid Trunks in Dragon Ball Z, Spartan Olympia Vale in Halo 5: Guardians, and Jaina Proudmoore in World of Warcraft, among others.

Bailey on Kait: "What's interesting about her is that she grew up as an Outsider, so she's been away from this military environment that the boys grew up in. It's fun to do her dialogue because she approaches it from a different place. She has a less technical approach to everything she does because she's never experienced anything like this. She's a great entry point into this world, because she doesn't know everything about it either."

Delmont "Del" Walker

Delmont "Del" Walker is another ex-COG soldier. Del was an orphan who became friends with JD at boarding school. When JD ran off to join the Army, Del followed his lead. Unfortunately, Del was also involved with the classified incident that sent both of them running out into the wilds of Sera, seeking refuge among the Outsiders. Still, Del remains deeply loyal to JD.

Played by: Eugene Byrd, who recently played Marcus "Boomer" Boone in last year's shooter Battlefield Hardline. He also appears as a recurring cast member on television shows like Arrow and Bones.

Byrd on Del: "Del is cool. I had to play up the nuance because the friendship between him and JD meant a lot, so getting to know [Liam McIntyre] and actually becoming friends with him helped us play together. I think Del wasn't a clean slate, so I had to give him a bit of a backstory, but then we were able to evolve it. We're actually building it while we're doing it."

Our Gears of War 4 coverage doesn't end with our sizeable, 14-page cover story. Return to our hub throughout the month for more information on the new weapons and enemies, the history of The Coalition, and a roundtable with the game’s voice actors. You can access the hub by clicking on the banner below.