antlions- asl?

[Gordon-Shepherd]

so where the hell are antlions from? xen? it seems likely, they strike me as a very xenian species. but it could also be the combine accidentaly brought one along?

quote marks around accidentaly are optional.

 

[ríomhaire]

They are from Xen.

 

[Remus]

Well if the antlions are indeed from Xen then it's just damn weird you didn't see any in HL1! I mean they seem to be a very prolific species multiplying at an alarming rate, so where were they in the first game? Oh, I know, they had to fly south for the winter .

 

[Hectic Glenn]

We don't know, really we don't. The combine have designed the thumpers to keep them at bay but they can't control antlions like Gordon, so it's apparent the combine are familar with them only to the degree of keeping them away- nothing more. I think the general consensus was that antlions are not xenians but probably another world we don't know about. (but i've been out this loop for a little while).

 

[Gordon-Shepherd]

thumpers?

 

[Gordon-Shepherd]

oh, those piston things.

 

[Asknoone]

Laidlaw said they were from Xen, but considering nothing is native to Xen, they are technically from another world altogether. The Combine have been on Earth for two decades, it's reasonable to assume that in that time they developed ways to combat the xenian aliens.

 

[Remus]

No one has given an explanation as to why we didn't see any of these antlions in HL1.
I mean an explanation besides: "the developers didn't think of them yet".

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

No one has given an explanation as to why we didn't see any of these antlions in HL1.
I mean an explanation besides: "the developers didn't think of them yet".

We barely saw Xen at all?

 

[Costin]

The Combine is on Earth for about 2 decades-no antlion in HL1...they reproduce in a alarmant rate...the Combine is known to disrupt the DNA of a species...I think that Antlions are a error of the Combine DNA engineers.

 

[ríomhaire]

No one has given an explanation as to why we didn't see any of these antlions in HL1.
I mean an explanation besides: "the developers didn't think of them yet".

Spend half an hour on Earth. What percentage of all of Earth's species are you going to see? Even if you teleport all over the planet in half an hour you'll see far, far less than half a percent of all the species.

 

[Thunderclap]

Antlions did not exist in HL1. Then Marc Laidlaw invented them for HL2. He reverse-engineered them into the series, claiming they were from Xen, and you just didn't see them.

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

The Combine is on Earth for about 2 decades-no antlion in HL1...they reproduce in a alarmant rate...the Combine is known to disrupt the DNA of a species...I think that Antlions are a error of the Combine DNA engineers.

Its a good theory, and one I beleaved myself for a time, but since Laidlaw has in fact, said they are from Xen (or least, the Nihilanths "world"), then its disproven.

 

[Shift]

That theory works fine for me, like its been said, we see very little from Xen, and there could have been loads of other creatures out there in Xen that we didn't see in Half-Life 1 so...

 

[Tollbooth Willie]

Besides they were probably underground. Anyone remember those things on the Xen levels that resembled Thumpers?

 

[Asknoone]

Which were actually more like pistons - resource gathering.

 

[Tollbooth Willie]

You know too much about Half-Life Sammy. You scare me.

 

[AJ Rimmer]

However, Xen hardly seems like a good place for Antlions, it's possible there are soooo many of them because Earth is more like the Antie's homeworld, and thusly they have spawned.

 

[Tollbooth Willie]

Makes sense. Now that I think of it, it would seem rather difficult for them to dig into the ground on Xen. Seems kinda rocky.

 

[ríomhaire]

However, Xen hardly seems like a good place for Antlions

Antartica hardly seems like a good place for cows. We have seen a tiny, tiny portion of Xen.

 

[AJ Rimmer]

Antartica hardly seems like a good place for cows. We have seen a tiny, tiny portion of Xen.

But Antarctica has the basic needs for a cow to live, name air and land to stand on. No food and a bit chilly, but where do one hundred antlions live on those little floating islands? If they burrowed into those they would brake up.

 

[ríomhaire]

But Antarctica has the basic needs for a cow to live, name air and land to stand on. No food and a bit chilly, but where do one hundred antlions live on those little floating islands? If they burrowed into those they would brake up.

There's obviously at least one big enough to hold the foundations for a factory. We don't know that ALL of Xen is small islands. And there mightn't have been as many antlions in one nest as there are in the one on the coast.

 

[Hectic Glenn]

But Antarctica has the basic needs for a cow to live, name air and land to stand on. No food and a bit chilly.

Heh i'm having trouble seeing how that meets its basic needs, cows couldn't live there! Riomhaire's point is very good, i expect Xen has large expanses and sediment deposits from space or running water somewhere allowing birth of burrows underground for the antlions.Where the antlion king could fit in is another story. eek.

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

That theory works fine for me, like its been said, we see very little from Xen, and there could have been loads of other creatures out there in Xen that we didn't see in Half-Life 1 so...

Kingpin, Floating flocker, and mr. freindly were in the SDK so...

However, Xen hardly seems like a good place for Antlions, it's possible there are soooo many of them because Earth is more like the Antie's homeworld, and thusly they have spawned.

They are from Xen. Laidlaw said so, he's the boss.

 

[AJ Rimmer]

They are from Xen. Laidlaw said so, he's the boss.

I never said they weren't.

 

[Remus]

They are from Xen. Laidlaw said so, he's the boss.

Laidlaw is making up the story as it goes so he said that the antlions were from Xen not because it made sense, but because it was convenient.

 

[A True Canadian]

The first level on Xen was the series of floating platforms around two large pillars on a giant rock island. Antlions couldn't survive there because it was too small for their numbers. That section was also populated with Houndeyes and a security system of purple cones that zaps intruders. Very difficult for Antlions to live here.

The next section was big enough for a colony of Antlions to inhabit, except there was already a giant pest partolling that section, the Gonarch. Considering how quickly a Gonarch can reproduce headcrabs it makes it a formidable foe that can take on pretty much anything. Nothing else except Headcrabs are seen here, so it's not out of the question that Antlions (like the Vorts, Alien Grunts, etc.) didn't bother inhabiting that section.

The next section was crawling with Vortiguants and Controllers, but it is the pillars constantly ascending and retracting from the ground that would work like the Combine thumpers. This would have driven the Antlions mad if they decided to live in this area.

The next section was full of Vortiguants, Alien Grunts, Tentacles and a Gargantua. This section also contained some Controllers and the appearance of those mining devices. The resource gathering machines might work similar to the thumpers in that it keeps Antlions at bay. If that didn't do it, the Gonarch would.

The factory was interesting in that there were many sections that appeared "bottomless." Nothing but blackness and dark pits indicated that whoever built the place wanted it high above the ground to keep out any unwanted visitors (i.e. Antlions). The walls also looked like they were made out of something other than rock. Either way, it is another barrier to keep Antlions out.

The pathway to Nihilanth's chamber was made up of tiny disks that were too small to support any life. And no Antlion is going to survive in Nihilanth's lair.

In conclusion, it's not entirely unreasonable to think that the sections that Gordon visited on Xen were simply not populated with Antlions. Similar to the fact that we didn't encounter any Ichthyosaurs on Xen, there just weren't any in the sections that Gordon travelled. We all know that Ichthyosaurs were on Xen, so why not Antlions?

 

[susko]

But that still dosent explain the whole of Xen. I have to agree with the explanation that we see a small part of Xen, so u can show as many pics of the game you want, you still wont be able to prove, that there isnt a part of Xen perfect for antlions.

 

[WingsofJecka]

I always thought, cant be postive now for sure, that one of Nilhanths portals that he shoots at you sends you to a lair with a Itchy. Anyone confirm?

On topic, we only saw a tiny bit of Xen. The Xen we explored in HL1 is only about a few acres, if that. And just because we didnt see antlions in that little section, doesnt mean they werent there to begin with. We dont see wild tigers or lions in the states here, but they still exist.

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

I always thought, cant be postive now for sure, that one of Nilhanths portals that he shoots at you sends you to a lair with a Itchy. Anyone confirm?

On topic, we only saw a tiny bit of Xen. The Xen we explored in HL1 is only about a few acres, if that. And just because we didnt see antlions in that little section, doesnt mean they werent there to begin with. We dont see wild tigers or lions in the states here, but they still exist.

Yeah, he does, I just checked. It's the room wiht the scientist on the rock, and the Garg (the 2nd time he sends you there).

 

[Darkside55]

Similar to the fact that we didn't encounter any Ichthyosaurs on Xen...

We did actually. One of the areas Nihilanth teleports you to is an underground cavern with a large body of water forming under the rock floor. If you hop into one of those ponds, there's an ichthy waiting for you there.

But as to everything else you said, quite correct. We simply didn't see them. In fact those mining devices Samon mentioned have likely been retconned into thumpers, were we to ask Valve about them now. And Xen is a world...we didn't see all of it. I'd imagine antlions only live in certain of the larger landmasses, being culled or killed off on areas inhabited by the intelligent Xenians.

Antlions seem very well suited to Xen. They are a ravenous pack animal that dwells underground, burrowing through Xen's [apparently] only terrain, filling a very specific niche. They have an exoskeletal carapace that seems common to many fauna on Xen (in fact, exoskeletons like that can't form on Earth because our gravity would crush the creature...but that's been excepted as it's just a game and we'd have no antlions to fight =p). They cannot fly, but instead leap using their wings to augment the jump, a perfect way of getting from island to island on Xen. And although it was changed in the final game, antlions originally were a dull red color with black markings that were reminiscent of bullsquids. Most Xenian fauna have warning marks and bright colorations when they're predatory.

Antlions are from Xen, we simply did not see them. That's the best in-universe explanation there is.

 

[Gordon-Shepherd]

I thought xen was more of a dimension than a world, though it is often referred to as the "borderworld", I thought it was more of a dimension in between teleports. I mean, apparently it was a safe haven for nihilanth and the xenians cos the combine couldn't get them, but if it was just a world, drifting about in space, I'm sure the combine could find em after a while, unelss they had some sort of force field or something. another dimension, on the other hand, would be much safer. plus, what kind of world would have a serious lack of solid ground, floating platforms (yet still some semblance of gravity), etc?

 

[Remus]

what kind of world would have a serious lack of solid ground, floating platforms (yet still some semblance of gravity), etc?

Well actually I think there is a planet! If you take a look at that area of xen where the mining devices (thumpers:upstare: ) are you should carefully inspect the "skybox". On the skybox you can clearly see a weird greenish sky with clouds, a pale sun, most importantly a horizon and beneath something that appears to be watter!. So my theory is that Xen indeed is a full scale world just like Earth, the only difference is that somehow it has those weird islands floating somewhere up in orbit. However besides the islands there still is a full size planet with atmosphere, gravity, watter etc.

 

[Darkside55]

Extremely dense core that provides gravity for the floating platforms. It would be a planet of sorts then, with islands stationed around the core. That's one theory.

Or it could just be an expanse...like you said, a dimension. Xen doesn't have to follow any normal rules, I always say. It could just go on and on and on, and not circular, just horizontally...

 

[Eejit]

Antlions seem very well suited to Xen. They are a ravenous pack animal that dwells underground, burrowing through Xen's [apparently] only terrain, filling a very specific niche. They have an exoskeletal carapace that seems common to many fauna on Xen (in fact, exoskeletons like that can't form on Earth because our gravity would crush the creature...but that's been excepted as it's just a game and we'd have no antlions to fight =p)

What's to say the Antlion's exoskeleton isn't made of a material stronger than chitin?

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

Very random but something thats bothered me is how the G-Gun can blast headcrabs and antlions when its "non-super". The offcial guide makes no mention of why, and wikipedia has failed to offer any thearys.
So how is it done?

 

[Costin]

When you finish HL1 there area where G-man speaks to you-is a desert and there are some grunts,a tank,and a aircraft...is a desert and the sky is a XENIAN sky,so desert-is a nice place to antlions to live...but in HL2 we saw them around coastal shore...i think that the antlions that we fight in HL2 are the descends of the xenian antlion...and with some modifications from the Combine.

 

[Tagaziel]

Logical error: If the antlions are supposed to be modified by the Combine, then what does the Union need thumpers for?

 

[A True Canadian]

Very random but something thats bothered me is how the G-Gun can blast headcrabs and antlions when its "non-super". The offcial guide makes no mention of why, and wikipedia has failed to offer any thearys.
So how is it done?

I assume you mean the Gravity Gun?

Antlions are very light, which makes them easy to knock over with the Gravity Gun. They don't seem to be damaged by this.

Headcrabs are about the size of a small turkey and don't have much in the way of protection. A burst from the Zero-Point Energy Field Manipulator would be like giving it a shock from a defibrillator.

One of the areas Nihilanth teleports you to is an underground cavern with a large body of water forming under the rock floor. If you hop into one of those ponds, there's an ichthy waiting for you there.

Hmm...must have missed that area.

 

[XIII]

.but they can't control antlions like Gordon.

they can if they have the bug bait like gordon