Combine Creation 101

[Jintor]

So... let's get this straight.

Metro-Police are volunteers from what remains of the human population, for basic (crappy) guard duty. Generally only packing MP7's, pistols and stun batons, the Metro-Police bear the burden of being Combine Oppressors in return for good food. General Consesnsus says they're not mind-controlled or mind-wiped (Barney...), but who knows?

Combine Soldiers are, i assume, the assimilated remmnants of human armies, and anyone captured by the combine and deemed fit for shooting things. Most people think they're mechanically, or biologically, altered from regular human beings because of Nova Prospekt. Brainwashing is assumed here. Generally using shotguns, grenades, MP7's and Pulse Rifles, the Overwatch Soldiers will try and kick your ass as hard as is possible.

Combine Elites are probably the ultra-super 133+ h4x0r h34d5h0t soldiers of the Combine Military. They are freakishly hard to beat (On hard mode, at least) and i think they're simply uber Overwatch Soldiers.

Stalkers are nullified human slaves (probably protesters or rebels against the combine, or possibly just people picked up in the street) that have had most of thier bodies removed and then used as slave labour. Originally had a laser attack. Crashes game when killed.

So... the combine must have come to earth first to create the combine soldiers. The only combine there are that you ever see are either machines, synths, trans-humans or the Advisor. So the original combine must have come to earth with their synths to kick ass and brainwash, OR the synths themselves are the combine. What do you think? What other options are there?

 

[Naudian]

Most people think they're mechanically, or biologically, altered from regular human beings because of Nova Prospekt. Brainwashing is assumed here.

I think this kinda prooves that they are def. altered in teh head(or were supposed to be, maybe valve will change things a bit):

 

[Great Grizzly]

yep, thats pretty much it

 

[Asknoone]

The synths are not the combine, theyre a race of self replicating machiens conquered by the combine, much like the humans now.

There are no actual combine on earth, at all, the only combine we see is the advisor in the citdel, who we can see has been completley consumed by the combine technology.

 

[ríomhaire]

Humans are the only race that the Combine enslaved. They asimilated the rest. Gabe (or some one from Valve at least) said that in an interview.

 

[bltsponge]

^^
*looks at vortigaunts*

 

[Jintor]

But where there combine who CAME with the citadels to convert the humans? They sure as hell didn't hand out "Combine Creation Kits 101" to everybody in the street. Who builds the machinery? What starts the proecess?

 

[sfc_hoot]

But where there combine who CAME with the citadels to convert the humans? They sure as hell didn't hand out "Combine Creation Kits 101" to everybody in the street. Who builds the machinery? What starts the proecess?

The Citadels were "teleported" to Earth. Whole chunks of cities disappeared, and the next thing you know: BAM! Citadel. People are turned into Combine soldiers/stalkers at Nova Prospekt, by Combine Scientists. Nova Prospekt used to be a high-security prison, but when the Combine took over, they turned it into a twisted research facility.

 

[Pai-Mei]

People are turned into Combine soldiers/stalkers at Nova Prospekt, by Combine Scientists.

Exactly. And where are these scientists? Did they just leave?

He makes a good point... the only Combine we ever really see on Earth are enslaved humans. How were they enslaved without original Combine to enslave them?

 

[CREMATOR666]

Well, the original combine probably put some chips on them and go back to their places a long while ago, controlling them with a remote or something like that. Actually, Breen is probably acting like a babysitter for the combine.

 

[Asknoone]

Well we know that know actual Combine came to earth, they invade with the Synth army, Breen calls the surrender, and then Breen goes about setting up establishments such as Nova Prospekt with help from the Advisor, and the combine technology.

I would very much like to see a Combine scientist...perhaps they were aided by some of Breens former colleuges from Black Mesa? I am sure all weren't like Eli and Kliener...

 

[bboymatty]

yeh, i think the citadels started from only something very small, and they took resources from their surroundings such as rocks and building materials eg wood and steel and built themselves in a freakish way.

its illustrated by the citadels massive hole in the ground which it is standing in and stomping the ground as if breaking up new materials to use.

maybe we will see in half life 3 just how the combine started up shop in earth, hopefully more detail than a couple of headlines on a cork board.

 

[bboymatty]

lol
how wierd would it be seeing rosenberg as the combine scientist, that would kill me

 

[Asknoone]

The citadels appeared during the portal storms, its stated in Raising the bar. They just shot out from the portal storms and landed on earth. They were the source of the combine invasion.

 

[sfc_hoot]

Exactly. And where are these scientists? Did they just leave?

That question's been bugging me as well. But nonetheless, I didn't make the "combine scientist" characters up. They're mentioned in Raising the Bar (on the Stalker pages, I beleive). I was kind of hoping to see some weird, Cremator-looking guys operating on a Stalker during the Nova Prospekt levels, or at least on the surveillance tapes.

 

[Wilsonator]

I think Combine technology is ported in from the Combine worlds where it is made using the knowledge of the races enslaved by the Combine.

 

[Spartacus]

Whats this raising the bar you guys are talking about?

 

[FireCrack]

^ It's a book on the develompent of HL1, the story, etc...

 

[Spartacus]

Ah, damn. Hopeing it was some article I could read, not something I would have to pay for.

 

[Asknoone]

Its well worth the money if you ask me.

 

[sfc_hoot]

Its well worth the money if you ask me.

He's absolutely right, and I think only 30, 000 copies have been printed off, so you better get one soon.

 

[Asknoone]

Originally posted by sfc_hoot
He's absolutely right, and I think only 30, 000 copies have been printed off, so you better get one soon.

He too, is absolutley right, so you might as well get one while you can

 

[$kelet0r]

raising the bar leaves a huge amount to the imagination and threads like this though

 

[PILMAN]

Well I heard the combine exploited the earths weakness because they had open portals when they went to XEN and then when the residence cascade happened at black mesa the combine learned about earth therefore they either

A) invaded with their own soldiers which caused earth to surrender

or

B) they teleported the citadels in which they had a "base" and were able to send out those big walking things and the ships which caused earth to surrender, dunno really.

 

[Scotsman]

Doesn't everyone here know about the "unmasked" transhuman (overwatch) you see in Nova Prospekt on a video screen, or in the model viewer. Creepy looking...

 

[serpent561]

hey, maybe the gunships and striders ARE real Combine. I mean they sure as hell aren't human, and they look as though they're creatures with augmentations

 

[TheAmazingRando]

The Striders and gunships are synth. Self-replicating robots enslaved by the Combine during wars. They are now integrated into the Combine ranks.

 

[sfc_hoot]

hey, maybe the gunships and striders ARE real Combine. I mean they sure as hell aren't human, and they look as though they're creatures with augmentations

TheAmazingRando said it. Synth also include Dropships, Shield Scanners, Mortar Synths and Crab Synths. The only "real/original Combine" we see is the Combine Advisor (the thing on Breen's monitors).

 

[FireCrack]

Or rather not original synths, but synths modified and adapted for the combines purposes.

IIRC the raisning the bar says somthing like that but less obvoius and more ambiguous.

 

[CREMATOR666]

It should all be clear in the course of......well, I'm not really at liberty to say ....

 

[sfc_hoot]

Or rather not original synths, but synths modified and adapted for the combines purposes.

Yeah, the original synths might have been different, but the Combine made them what they are now through forceful evolution.

It should all be clear in the course of......well, I'm not really at liberty to say ....

Yes, and I know exactly what happens in HL3, but I'm really not... at liberty to say.

 

[Blakeb155]

I think a mod about Synths, like how the Combine took them over or something is a much better sounding idea then an Alyx and/or Dog mod.

 

[sfc_hoot]

I think a mod about Synths, like how the Combine took them over or something is a much better sounding idea then an Alyx and/or Dog mod.

Anything beats an Alyx/Dog mod... :hmph:

 

[CREMATOR666]

Heh, I, for one wouldn't mind a Dog mod....or a Lamarr mod for that matter

 

[Reginald]

I think the Synth are a more interesting race than the Vortigaunts or any life from Xen. I would love an expansion where someone (Adrian Shepard? I don't know much about him so I may be wrong) goes to liberate the Synth world.

 

[FireCrack]

^Heh, if i can figure out all the coding and mapping intracacies of this engine that's exactly what i plan to do

(except not with shepard, i'l leave him alone incase valve ever uses him)

 

[Asknoone]

Originally posted by Reginald
I think the Synth are a more interesting race than the Vortigaunts or any life from Xen. I would love an expansion where someone (Adrian Shepard? I don't know much about him so I may be wrong) goes to liberate the Synth world.

Don't worry, Shepard sucsk, you don't need to know anything about him

*Grabs flame jacket.

Anywho. As good as that would be, i don't think there is much to liberate on the synth world. The combine have already taken the entire species, and converted them into striders and so on, thus theres no longer a race to liberate.