Combat without huggers

[Renomaki]

You know, last night, I decided to try something different as a xeno. Something that most xenos never really think about all that much, due to how used they are to the current setup of things.

Fighting without huggers

The result was something quite satisfying, really. For ranged castes, fighting without huggers is the norm because of course they are going be too far away to use them. But with melee-castes, most of them tend to abuse huggers all the time to the point that you forget the thrill of pouncing a marine and breaking his arm or nibbling his fingers off, the delight of slamming a marine against the wall and watching him scream in panic, the sheer delight of being a ravager and managing to charge someone's FUCKING LEG OFF.

Instead of relying on huggers to do all your shit, you use your own claws and skills to weaken, mutilate, and demoralize the marines until they are too scared and weak to fight. It makes you think in a totally different way, using different tactics and having to play smarter than you would if you just stuck with hugger combat, which just isn't as satisfying considering how it cheapens a kill.

Anyone else ever try fighting without resorting to huggers? How do you feel on the matter of hand to claw combat over letting huggers settle things for you?

[TheMusician321]

It's much more fun and satisfying to chop someone's leg off and leaving him to hop his way back/bleed out instead of slapping a crab on the face and calling it a day.

[Biolock]

I normally play crusher and only carry a hugger as a distraction if I need to fall back. I like playing the role of a charger more than a shield, I find it fun being the sheer force behind smashing into a soft target travelling full speed.

[Tranquill]

Usually when I play Xeno, I don't use facehuggers too often. Sometimes I throw them at downed marines because it's really satisfying to tear apart a marine while he trys to escape, it isn't the same with a facehugger.

[Toroic]

I adapt my tactics to the need, using more huggers when the situation is dire, and less or none as things are more under control.

But I also intend to contibute as much as I can to a xeno victory.

[Eenkogneeto]

I am 100% about huggers, I have gotten to ancient hunter and never turned harm intent on until sulaco.
I however dont combine lethal and hugging, if Im hugging you the only reason im going to slash you is if your friends show up.

[Fuppy]

As soon as I get a juicy combat caste to around elite or so (typically hunter), I completely ditch the huggers. A lot of times at this point we're assaulting their FOB or something too and have a huge larva stockpile. It's just sooo much more satisfying to pounce into the flank of a couple marines and decimate one of their friends with my tail than it is to drop facehuggers and hope for a latch on before running off like I do pre-elite.

Maybe it's just more immersive? The Aliens with their hit and run, slowly picking apart the enemy force tactics is a whole lot cooler than a scared seven foot tall lizard chucking facehuggers around corners.

[Jackie Estegado]

I use huggers to actually infect marines (and capture), you know the thing most aliens don't do. If I meet multiple marines I will hugger one and brutaly tailstab every single other one to death.

[dylanstrategie]

The use of facehuggers by Xenomorphs in general is highly overestimated, most of the time it only happens in very specific cases. Young Runners (who are going to have trouble getting kills on a conscious because they need 10 full seconds of slashing), older Runners and Hunters getting captures (obviously, sneaking behind the lines gives a lot of opportunities to capture and hug lone Marines), deterrence for higher castes who want to shoo away pursuing rambomarines and longer sieges where castes like Sentinels and Drones use them for attrition

What most Marines will encounter is a mix of the first and second. Runners (sometimes Hunters if they aren't going full massacre mode) grab two huggers and run behind the lines to get captures. If they can't evac the guy in time, they might just kill him on the spot (the odds of a larva bursting on a healthy Marine in the middle of the colony when the Marines control everything is second to none, the guy will be darting for the shuttle and will shoot up Medbay if they don't immediately treat his severe case of I've-got-something-in-my-chest-ness)

[Arachnidnexus]

Huggers are pretty vital for runners and even as a younger hunter I will usually retreat and grab huggers. They're just too useful for what they offer to go without them for most of the round. Some T3s and older T2s have the luxury of not using them, but it's because they are strong enough to not need them. Playing a Ravager is nothing like playing a Runner; hell I played as a Hunter for an extended time for the first time in months and they have it so much easier than runners in terms of surviving random stray bullets. Huggers can be dropped for delaying marines for a few seconds, can be used trap dead xeno bodies, and obviously are great for hugger decap or capture. They can be vital for getting out of a hairy situation or to chip away at marines if requisitions isn't on top of things.

I also disagree that huggers use is overstated. Stunlock is king and hugging a marine basically removes them from combat for the time it takes for other marines to grab them and remove the hugger. For SADAR specs usually huggers will be used to drag-slash them away from fellow marines until the Queen can gib them to deny the SADAR. Combat without huggers is better IMO but right now removing them would require buffing T1s to make them more viable.

[Toroic]

Huggers are pretty vital for runners and even as a younger hunter I will usually retreat and grab huggers. They're just too useful for what they offer to go without them for most of the round. Some T3s and older T2s have the luxury of not using them, but it's because they are strong enough to not need them. Playing a Ravager is nothing like playing a Runner; hell I played as a Hunter for an extended time for the first time in months and they have it so much easier than runners in terms of surviving random stray bullets. Huggers can be dropped for delaying marines for a few seconds, can be used trap dead xeno bodies, and obviously are great for hugger decap or capture. They can be vital for getting out of a hairy situation or to chip away at marines if requisitions isn't on top of things.

I also disagree that huggers use is overstated. Stunlock is king and hugging a marine basically removes them from combat for the time it takes for other marines to grab them and remove the hugger. For SADAR specs usually huggers will be used to drag-slash them away from fellow marines until the Queen can gib them to deny the SADAR. Combat without huggers is better IMO but right now removing them would require buffing T1s to make them more viable.

There will probably be a number of buffs that happen. I personally would like to see pros/cons for every xeno tier, similar to hunter vs ravager.

[Reuben Owen]

As a Runner I've tried fighting without using huggers at certain times and there are times where I don't actually "attack" but just distract and demoralize. Trying to intentionally cause FF is a great way to do damage as a Runner. Circling marines or putting on help intent and running/pouncing straight through them fucks up shots. And there's always just normally pouncing one while hide is on, and then they click that marine and they go flying after getting hit with a shotgun. Go roam and look for likely places where there'll be Marines but not many, and not defended. Since you don't have hugs their big bald head isn't exposed so target hands, it has a chance for them to drop their weapon and neuters them if you slash it off. In a 1v1 situation Runners can still disarm immediately after their pounce to keep a Marine on the ground and slash them up just like big sis Hunter, or disarm while hiding under something and slash them that way. Alternatively if a group passes you while you're hiding, pop out and tail slash one of them and run. Bring huggers with you while doing anything.

Drone, the good thing is going behind enemy lines and weeding everything while the marines aren't looking. Aciding every wall, girder and flare at all the forgettable blocked areas where theres usually few/no marines (engineering, west of lz2, etc). Smash every light. And toggling Frenzy to run away if anyone comes close. Drop a hugger as you escape. Putting on Guard pheromone and running into mines (as mature+ only) to save a Runner from dying a cruel death later on. Basically slowing the rate at which Marines move around the map, and making it easier for Xenos to move around. Also frenzy tackle + immediate nesting followed by slashing to death while telling them to git gud LOOC.

Sentinels do the same things as Drones, without the weeding. But really should still just be chilling with the infected. If you really want to and someone is watching the hosts, tag along with a random Runner/Hunter and help them out. They'll love you, and you'll do way better then anything you could do yourself. Evolve to Spitter.

Hunter. Look for a lone host. Rape them with repeated pounce and slashes. If anyone comes along and notices pounce them instead while the first guy lays there dying. Turn invisible in the grass and pounce right next to a marine to tail attack or slash, then run. Pounce and rape loners. Why not bring a hugger along?

Spitter. Damage spit everything. If anyone tries to approach you, switch to stunspit and knock them down. Hit them with another damage spit as you run away and they lay there like a lump. Alternatively go up to them and slash, stun as they get up, repeat. Also use damaging spit to break useful walls if you're Elite/Ancient. Much faster than acid, at the cost of a lot of plasma. Cornerspit. Grab a hugger while recovering plasma.

edit: all things above only take precedence assuming you want to hunt alone. You should always spam hivechat until you find a buddy to kill/infect shit with. Not a T3 though, because they're all too slow/important to be goofing off.

[Arachnidnexus]

There will probably be a number of buffs that happen. I personally would like to see pros/cons for every xeno tier, similar to hunter vs ravager.

That would be a good way to rebalance lower tiers since IMO they depend on huggers way more. I find the most rewarding gameplay moments during xeno play to be when I cover for weaknesses in other castes, especially lower tier ones. Having some pros/cons so that T1s have more unique niches would also be really nice. combat drone buffs when

[Bawws]

I play a lot of the sentinel/spitter/praetorian, so rarely I use facehuggers. Stunning people usually allows for other aliens to run up quickly and apply face huggers. It'd make sense since, in my opinion, that sentinels/spitters/praetorians is a must. Otherwise you don't have much of a counter to the marines.