About The Combine...

[Tamora]

Hmm, I don't know about this but...

People is speculating about wether or not the combine soldiers are human or not. Well, if you look at some scenes, i.e the scene in the traptown movie where that beam swings and kills a couple of soldiers. You don't see any yellow blood do you? It's all red.
Now, If I recall correctly, all aliens in Half-Life has yellow blood right? That would perhaps mean that the combine soldiers are not alien or perhaps at least not totally.

In one of the concept art sketches, you see at the back of the mask on the combine soldier some hair sticking out that looks alot like human hair.

Just some speculation.

Any comments?

 

[Ridic]

i think they could be humans, but at the aliens will none the less

hence gman, they are under gmans will, since he is an alien. ( i think)

 

[Loshadka]

Probably they did their blood and hair normal so it wouldn't be very obvious that the combiners are aliens. Also, the Combine is an alien structure. I remember the presenter sayingt in the big E3 video.

 

[LoneDeranger]

I think they are humans, but slaves of the aliens - in one of the screenshots you see them rounding up people to join join the combine forces, probably. Also there is a whole Nihilath theory to support this, but I don't want to go into it now.

 

[Tamora]

yeah, but it would make more sense in my opinion if they were humans controlled or what not by "The Combine".

 

[Zigrah]

Who says an Alien has to have different physiology than we do... Who says they can't make themselves look human? there's a ton of things you can theorize.

If they are indeed aliens my theory would be that they studied humans well and learned our language and physiology. I mean all that anal probing wasn't for nothing . But Humans are best designed to accomdate our enviroment and if it was possible to alter your physiology the most likely answer would be to make yourself the same shape as a human.

 

[Guest]

I think combine came from a secret experiment by combining the human genome with the alien’s one to produce a universal soldier which can defeat the alien, But it turn out to be the opposite way.

 

[Tamora]

Zigrah: Yes of course you're right about that. But I was thinking since ValvE has had some theme on the aliens through out HL and expansions. Both different alien races had yellow blood and strange physiology. But who knows, perhaps they've changed pattern


Gorgon: Yeah, I think it's a mixture too.

 

[brettt]

That yellow stuff was blood!?!!?! I thought it was piss and had a huge bladder j/k j/k j/k

I personally think are human and machine mix together. Like Darth Vader, except no lightsaber and force powers

 

[Archangel]

actually, the color of the blood is determined by the encym that transports the oxygen. if an alien has the same encym for that purpose, the bloodcolor will be red. (green blood is achieved with another encym, its not like every alien must have green blood.)

 

[brettt]

I thought it had too do with HEMOGLOBIN! god I love that word! LMAO!

 

[Loshadka]

Archangek, maybe you mean enzyme? If so, ezymes don't have anything to do with blood color. Enzyme(ferment) is a protein or a combination of proteins wich serve as chemical reaction catalists.

Now, Brett is right. Hemoglobin is a red pigment. It carys oxygen from the lungs to the tisues, and carbon dixyde from the tisues to lungs.

Of cource if I'm not mistaking.

 

[Archangel]

yeah, enzyme was the word. i only knew the german one (wich is, oh wonder, also enzyme), so i tried to "englize" it.

 

[Bad^Hat]

Yeah but whenever they die they screech like an alien, and one of them in traptown screeches "Man down!" in a really wicked alien voice. They're defenitely human in some way but... not totally.

 

[nw909]

But listen to the guy at the end, he screams like a normal human.

 

[nw909]

Wtf is a Hemoglobin?

 

[brettt]

Hemoglobin: noun. The iron-containing respiratory pigment in red blood cells of vertebrates, consisting of about 6 percent heme and 94 percent globin

 

[Archangel]

basiclly, its responsible for the red color of our blood. so if the alien also uses hemoglobin for that purpose, its blood will be red (asuming that an alien breathes oxygen. I can not think of any other gas that one can breath, but the usage of oxygen by humans/animals on earth depends on the way we produce our bodyenergy, but to explain this would lead to far off)

 

[Zigrah]

Originally posted by Tamora
Zigrah: Yes of course you're right about that. But I was thinking since ValvE has had some theme on the aliens through out HL and expansions. Both different alien races had yellow blood and strange physiology. But who knows, perhaps they've changed pattern


Gorgon: Yeah, I think it's a mixture too.

Ah ok, I'm sticking to the borderworld theory. that the Aliens are from somewhere else. Well some of them at least.

 

[Lupus]

Technically it's not the haemoglobin that gives the blood red colour. When oxygen binds to haemoglobin, forming oxyhaemoglobin, that is red. If you look at your veins and see the blue ones (or strangle someone and see their face turn kinda purple) it is because the blood is not getting as much oxygen as it needs, or becauase the oxygen has been used and the blood is on its way back to the lungs to get more. Without the oxygen the blood looks blue. Also, if I remember correctly, the haemoglobin doesn't transport carbon dioxide, it is the plasma in the blood that transports it. Not entirely sure about that, my memory kinda sucks a lot of the time

 

[Mr.Magnetichead]

Its also because or then iron.

Crabs blood contains copper instead of iron and its blood is green.

 

[el Chi]

In the midst of all this biology revision I'd like to point out that seeing as there were sop VERY many placeholders in the videos, they're not exactly the BEST place to start determining whether the Combine are or are not human.
Although I have to say that The Citadel doesn't look particularly human to me... But then maybe it's some pretentious modern art installation representing the cultural homogenisation caused by globalisation. But maybe not.
I can't wait for the levels inside the Citadel. Oh baby <Rubs hands gleefully>

 

[Sebede]

I think they are humans. Maybe they have the same mision, as the soldiers in hl 1?
Kill all everything !

 

[Tamora]

El_Chi: Yeah, you're right. But I wanted this thread to be a place where to discuss it a little, though.


Zigrah: Yeah, umm, aliens usually comes from some place else, right?

Anyways, what I mean is that, since aliens are previously visualized to be pretty odd in terms of physiology. For example: three or more arms, yellow blood, strange organic weapons somewhat attached to their bodies etc etc.

Of course, aliens can take any kinds of forms. Be it having yellow, red or any other kind of colorization of their blood due to different minerals or what have you in the blood. I know there are species on this planet having green and blue blood too. We have blue or somewhat purple blood when it's not exposed to oxygen (if I'm not totally out of line here).

I was just discussing that the theme of aliens in Half-Life with expansions have been pretty similar compared to how they would be if the combine trooper is alien. That could also be compared to how all the other aliens look in Half-Life 2.

I believe though, that it might be a mixture of both.

 

[el Chi]

Originally posted by Tamora
El_Chi: Yeah, you're right. But I wanted this thread to be a place where to discuss it a little, though.

Yeah, sorry if I came off sounding like a smart-arse. I wasn't meaning to take pot-shots at this thread. The Combine certainly are a puzzler, I was just pointing out... Well you know.

 

[subs]

i have seen 2 combine soldier types. One with black helmet who sound more human and ones with white helmets who sound more alien.

 

[Tamora]

El_Chi: hehe, no problem dude
I know what you're saying.

 

[el Chi]

Yeah well I wouldn't wanna get myself a reputation as some self-important troll...

 

[Tamora]

hehe. Yeah I know what you mean?

Anyways, you wouldn't happen to be a coder of C++, would you?

 

[el Chi]

Buh?
Qu'est-ce que c'est C++?

 

[Loshadka]

BWT, look at the sizes of their gas-masks. Notice how prolonged they are. Don't seem like human gas-masks to me...

 

[DOOManiac]

lots of people are using the fact that the combine speaks as a basis that they're human, but remember that the xen aliens from Hl1 also spoke english (somewhat). Slaves said "die human", big babyhead nihilith went on and on about gordon & the gman & how his people are slaves, I think even the alien grunts had a few words.

 

[Axyon]

Originally posted by Loshadka
BWT, look at the sizes of their gas-masks. Notice how prolonged they are. Don't seem like human gas-masks to me...

Those gas masks are actually real. Russian design, if I recall correctly.

Originally posted by DOOManiac
lots of people are using the fact that the combine speaks as a basis that they're human, but remember that the xen aliens from Hl1 also spoke english (somewhat). Slaves said "die human", big babyhead nihilith went on and on about gordon & the gman & how his people are slaves, I think even the alien grunts had a few words.

But would they speak in a British accent á la the Tunnels video?

 

[Stingey]

I had a well tought up theory but i forgot it so heres what i remember of it
The combine are a human force that controls\has allied with certain aliens to eradicate the whoel alien event. Because maybe the world doesnt know about City17 being under alien atack and the black mesa incident.
I think they are sent by a big very big orginazation to cover the mess up like the marines in Opposing force.
ANd i think the strider is a robot, with bio implants

 

[Flyingdebris]

or it could be organic with robot implants, same with that creepy ass airship

 

[Loshadka]

Originally posted by Abom|nation
Those gas masks are actually real. Russian design, if I recall correctly.

This was a joke. All russian forums know about this.

When I lived in Ukraine, every "civilian defence day" they used to give us gas-masks home so we could practice on how to wear it fast. So I clearly remember how they look, and they were a lot shorter. See attach.

 

[Wilf]

In one of the emails to Gabe it was asking about the alien technology in the game. He said it was a combination of Human and Alien technology, Hence the Combine. So the Combine looks like a mix. SO perhaps Humans and Aliens that have allied together or aliens that are using humans and there technology. If you look at a lot of the screenshots with the soldiers searching the civilions you will notice they all have jackets on that have information tags on the back of them. Probably a way of identification.
So the aliens come in and they are trying to take control, but also allowing humans to join there force, or they are controling the humans and using there technology, because after all that would be the most efficiant resource is to use there own wepons and people against themselfs instead of using up so much resources to import there own wepons and soldiers to take over.

Blood color is determined by what metal base is in the blood. Horseshoe Crabs have blue blood because there blood is copper based.

 

[Prince of China]

The Combine are doing what they(Or City 17's government) think is the right thing. And if they think playing God is right what wth all the striders and that airship, well, it's not going to be my fault if Gordon kicks their butt.

 

[Axyon]

Originally posted by Loshadka
This was a joke. All russian forums know about this.

When I lived in Ukraine, every "civilian defence day" they used to give us gas-masks home so we could practice on how to wear it fast. So I clearly remember how they look, and they were a lot shorter. See attach.

Don't think you could try and make it a bit more obvious next time, could you?

 

[LoneDeranger]

Originally posted by Loshadka

When I lived in Ukraine, every "civilian defence day" they used to give us gas-masks home so we could practice on how to wear it fast. So I clearly remember how they look, and they were a lot shorter. See attach.

Oh yeah, that was fun. I remember in my school we had a whole course devoted to civilian defence - it would start with the teacher running into the classroom screaming "GAS!!!" everytime, and you had to put the gas mask on in 10 seconds or something. That was a long time ago