The value of DARKNESS

[Renomaki]

You know, I'm not sure how many xenos know of this, but I figured I'd make a little topic in the xeno forum discussing it.

Back when I was a newbie xeno, I never understood why anyone would ever want to turn off Darksight. Xenos don't have flashlights, so they'd just end up bumping into things, and being able to see everything around you light a bright summer day is awesome compared to the flare-reliant marines.

Then I discovered the beauty of turning OFF darksight, and from there, you realize just how powerful some castes become when they make use of the darkness.

I'm not saying you have to turn it off ALL the time, but if you are preparing to do some sneaking an ambushing, it is a good idea to toggle it off so you can see LoS (Line of Sight) of marines. If you know your map well, you won't have to rely on darksight to get around very much, and only need to use it briefly, just as squeezing through tight places and for brief awareness. Really, it is best to skirt along the edge of the light for best results, allowing you to hide in plain sight while the marines have no idea you are there.. But you can see them without having to really SEE them.

Because you will have an easier time seeing the edge of a marine's LoS, you can do a number of things that you normally wouldn't be able to do if you relied on darksight all the time, such as:

1: being able to spit from the shadows and watch marines shit through the fresh hole you made in their pants in fear.

2: Be able to scout more effectively and avoid getting killed during your recon trip.

3: generally avoid getting chased down and shot in general, since if they can't see you, they can't hunt you down to kill you... Usually.

4: oh yeah, and you can also see the outlines of cloaked preds as well in the darkness, making it easier to detect if one is sneaking up behind you. Turns out xenos CAN detect cloaked preds after all.. Just need to turn off their darksight and check for outlines in the darkness.

Sure, the downsides are rather clear, being that you can only run around for so long in the dark before bumping into something, so you have to toggle your darksight on every now and then so you don't run into a wall, which might be a tad annoying. There is also the fact that it only really works best for castes like the Spitter and Runner, the bulkier castes not being able to use such tactics (and boilers being unable to at all due to their nightlight nature).

But, if you are willing to control your bloodlust long enough to give the stealthier approach a shot, you'll find yourself scaring marines more and dying less, all because of your exploitation of the shadows to your advantage.

So, next time you go Runner Xeno, don't be afraid of the dark, but rather embrace it.. The darkness may not be your only friend, but it is your bestest friend.

[Sailor Dave]

Alternatively, turn off darksight and turn monitor brightness full blast, allowing you to see clearly in the dark at all times while still being able to see LoS. And also probably give yourself eye damage, but hey.

[EXOTICISME]

Just be carefull with that SADAR spec with smartgunner googles. You don't know how dangerous they are