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__ __ _______ _____ __ _____ ____
-- -- / |__ __| | _| || | / |_ _|
| | | / |_ _| | | || | __ | / | |
| | | / _ | | | | || ||__|| / _ | |
| | | | |_|| | | | | || | _ / | |_|| | |
| | | | | __ | | | | | || | |\ | __ | | |
| | | | | | || | | | | || | | \__ | | || | |
| | | | | || | | | | || | | | | | | || | |___^
| | \__| | | || | | \__// |___ |_| | | || _| |
| | \_/ / |_| ----- \_/ / |_______|
|/
______ ____ __ ____ ____ _______ _____ _____ __ __
/ ____ / _/ | | / _/ / __/ |__ __| /_ _/ / ___ | ||
| | | | | | | |/ | | || | | | | | ||
\___ | |_ | | | |_ || | | || | | | | || ||
\__ | / | | | / || | | || | | | | || ||
^ | | | | | | | | || | | || | | | | || |
|\___| | | |__^ | |_ | |__^ | \__ | | __||__ | |^| | || |
\______/ \____/ |___|\____/ \_ __| |_| /_____/ \_____/ |/ /
Kharaa Perfect Guide version 0.4
============================================================================================================================
============================================================================================================================
by The Draft, Premiere of Clan
Contributions by: ShadowDrgn and Flayra
v 0.1
-Did preliminary Kharaa Overview, and most of Kharaa Unit info. All stats
gleamed from manual, and I have an inkling a bunch of it's been changed in the
game. If so, you'll know in version the next. Did the structures section. Did
most of upgrades section.
v 0.2
-Fixed a couple of minor errors dealing with Lerk availability.
v 0.3
-Added table of contents for lazy people. fixed errors concerning upgrade
unlocking, added notes on number of Gorge affecting resource allocation.
v 0.4
-added in some missing descriptions. removed tasteless editorial content :D
Added table dealing with Gorge resource allocation. Fixed numbers to bring
current with latest patch (1.01). Oh, and I whipped up a purty title graphic.
============================================================================================================================
Table of Contents
============================================================================================================================
1. Kharaa Overview
2. Kharaa Units
3. Kharaa Structurs
4. Upgrades
5. Misc Stuff
============================================================================================================================
Kharaa Overview
============================================================================================================================
Have you seen Aliens? Have you played as the Zerg in Starcraft? If so, you're
already pretty familiar with the setup of the Kharaa. That's not to say they're
derivatives of the above species, just that they follow the typical "infectious
alien" archetype.
According to Natural Selection's (NS) manual, the Kharaa are actually some sort
of bacteria, not a "race" in the traditional sense. Whatever, it's just an
excuse to give them an interesting play mechanic. Namely, the ability to mutate
into different forms designed to fill specific roles, such as builder, fighter,
support unit, etc. It is with the proper use of these units that an effective
Kharaa team can wipe out the pesky human menace and restore harmony to the vast
reaches of space.
In addition to it's armies, the Kharaa also utilize support structures in the
war effort. The most important of these is the Hive. It is from the hive that
all new Kharaa will be "born," and so, it's protection is paramount. To support
it's units, the Kharaa also employ chambers that fulfill certain support roles,
from sensor upgrades to offensive turret functions.
=============================================================================================================================
Kharaa Units
(All vital stats taken from NS manual.)
=============================================================================================================================
-----
SKULK
-----
Vital stats:
------------
HP: 70
Armor: 10 (30% damage absorbed)
Abilities:
Wall running
Can run on any surface, including walls and ceilings
Bite
A close range melee attack. does 75 damage.
Parasite (requires 1 active hive)
Ranged attack that infects opponent. Makes target visible on Kharaa radar.
Leap (requires 2 active hives)
Skulk leaps at target, does 4 damage for each "touch" on opponent.
Xenocide (requires 3 active hives)
A vicious suicide attack. After a few seconds, the Skulk explodes, damaging
everything around it. Does double damage against structures.
Overview:
---------
The Kharaa base unit is actually pretty useful. First, it's ability to walk on
walls is really nice when you've just spawned in and want to get somewhere
fast. also, since you can get into odd little corners, it's fairly easy to
sneak up on unsuspecting marines and take a little bite. unfortunately, the
Skulk is not a bruiser, so expect to get plastered in a heads up assault,
unless you have numbers on your side.
The parasite is also a nice trick, and once you have your second hive working
don't neglect it. It may not seem that great, but it really sucks to be that
marine that all the aliens can see from across the map.
Xenocide, being the final Skulk ability, is of course the most useful. As of
the time of this writing, common consensus is that marine turrets are
ridiculously powerful. Of course, there's room for debate, but for the time
being, we just need a way to blow the things up. That's where Xenocide comes in
handy. Don't be afraid to take on for the team, it's all about Unity...
Unity... Unity! (oops, sorry, had a little Fallout Flashback there :)
-----
GORGE
-----
Vital Stats:
------------
HP: 100
Armor: 50 (30% damage absorbed)
Abilities:
Spit
Weak missile attack, does about 20 damage.
Build
Ahh, the real meat and potatoes of the gorge. More on that in the overview.
Healing spray (requires 1 active hive)
Short ranged spread that heals nearby units and structures.
Web (requires 2 active hives)
Used to "blockade" doors and other entrances.
Something that spawns other Skulks (requires 3 active hives)
I dunno, haven't ever used it. expect an in-depth analysis next version.
Overview:
---------
Gorges are the backbone of any Kharaa hive. They are responsible for the
construction of all chambers and hives that the Kharaa use. Needless to say,
they're super critical to the success of any war effort.
When a match begins, at least half the team should mutate to Gorges (unless
you're rushing.) Immediately begin building resource chambers at steam pipes,
offensive chambers around your beginning hive and if possible expanding to
another hive.
Aside from building, Gorge have decent support abilities. Obviously, their
healing is useful for maintaining offensive chambers and recharging battle
weary Kharaa. Don't be stingy with it, just spray whatever teammates happen to
walk by you.
Web can also be an effective hindrance to your opponents. Almost translucent,
most marines will be covered in the muck by the time they see it. Severely
slowed down and with out access to weapons or jumping, they make easy prey for
other Kharaa.
Oh yeah, the spit. Don't spit at the marines, it'll just make them mad.
Seriously, Gorge are not offensive units. If you see something clad in heavy
armor holding a grenade launcher, just run.
One final note on Gorge's. While I'm not positive, research has lead me to
believe that the more Gorge your team has, the slower resources will trickle
in. Therefore, try to keep the number of Gorge at two or below. You really
don't need more than that anyway. While lerking (sic) the NS forums, I came
upon this post which does a pretty good job of explaining the resource
breakdown. I'm going to reprint it here. Thanks to ShadowDrgn, the poster, and
Flayra, the apparent source of the information.
------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------- |
your resource modifier = gorge? / (non-gorges + 3 * gorges) | |
gorge? is 1 if you're not a gorge, 3 if you are. | |
| |
10 players on team: | |
10 Skulks, 00 Gorges: Skulks 10%, Gorges 00% each | |
09 Skulks, 01 Gorges: Skulks 8.3%, Gorges 25% each (25% total) | |
08 Skulks, 02 Gorges: Skulks 7.1%, Gorges 21% each (42% total) | |
07 Skulks, 03 Gorges: Skulks 6.3%, Gorges 19% each (57% total) | |
06 Skulks, 04 Gorges: Skulks 5.5%, Gorges 17% each (68% total) | |
05 Skulks, 05 Gorges: Skulks 5.0%, Gorges 15% each (75% total) | |
... | |
00 Skulks, 10 Gorges: Skulks 0.0%, Gorges 10% each | |
---------------------------------------------------------------- |
------------------------------------------------------------------
----
LERK
----
Vital Stats:
------------
HP: 60
Armor: 50 (30% damage absorbed)
Abilities:
Flight
Does what it sounds like. drains energy.
Bite
Close range melee attack. does about 50 damage.
spike (requires 1 active hive)
Long range missile. pretty good rate of fire, about 16 damage a piece.
Umbra (requires 2 active hives)
Sort of a bullet proof vest in airborne form.
Sporecloud (requires 3 active hives)
Releases a corrosive cloud into the area. Doesn't damage enemy structures.
Overview:
---------
The true support unit of the Kharaa armies. Well, perhaps that does the Lerk a
disservice, since it's flight abilities make it an excellent recon gatherer as
well. This guy, much like the Gorge and Skulk, is ill suited to direct combat.
Instead, he's much more useful supporting the two alien heavy hitters
(discussed below.) That doesn't mean you can't fight with a Lerk, it's just
kind of hard.
Bite and Spike are pretty much all you need to know about those two attacks.
Both are OK, but represented better in the more specialized version of the
Kharaa.
Umbra is insanely useful, at least until your enemies research grenades. Wait
for a Fade or Onos to make their attack, then spread that crap all over the
place. It's at this point that your direct attacks can actually help, but don't
forget to spread more Umbra if it thins out.
Sporecloud is a devestating, powerful, deadly ability. Unfortunately, by the
time you have it Onos are available, which are more devastating, more powerful
and more deadly. Plus, SporeCloud doesn't damage buildings. In short, a
terrific ability that just doesn't hang with the other level 4 attacks.
----
FADE
----
Vital Stats:
------------
HP: 200
Armor: 125 (30% damage absorbed)
Abilities:
Swipe
Close range melee attack. Does 80 damage, and it's fast, like a horse with
steroids up it's butt (does that violate TOS?)
Acid Rocket (requires 1 active hive)
Projectile attack, with splash damage. Does 50 damage on impact, less for the
splash.
Blink (requires 2 active hives)
Short range teleportation technique, just point and shoot. You go where
crosshair is, to use caveman language.
Bilebomb (requires 3 active hives)
Arcing projectile attack that does more damage than Acid Rocket. Does double
damage against structures.
Overview:
---------
Primary Kharaa strike force. Given a serious boost with the 1.01 patch, Fade
are one of the two units you should be attacking with most of the time. The
swipe is a fantastic melee attack and can reduce a hulking, power armored
marine to giblets in a few seconds. Still, Fade's aren't indestructible, so
stealth is the order of the day. Try to get the drop on all your unsuspecting
victims (though, I suppose if you don't get the drop, they're not really
unsuspecting anymore, but I digress.)
Acid Rocket and Bilebomb are mildly useful projectile attacks. Frankly, no
Kharaa projectile goes above "mildly useful." But, for taking out turrets,
Bilebomb is a fine weapon. Probably shouldn't be tier 3, but again, I digress.
Acid rockets aren't going to win any one on one's with a HMG. However, they can
be ultra effective at pinning marines down. Just duck around a corner, pop a
few acid rockets at your enemy, and hide. Repeat ad nauseum. This strategy is
really effective thanks to the splash damage from acid rockets.
Blink is cool. Nothing quite like hiding in a dark corner, watching a marine
walk by and warping right onto his backside, claws a-swipin. Very effective
when paired with the cloaking upgrade.
----
ONOS
----
Vital Stats:
------------
HP: 500
Armor: 150
Abilities:
Gore
Close range melee attack that dishes out 120(!) damage a hit. In a word:
brutal.
Paralyze (requires 1 active hive)
Yet another close range move, only instead of hurting the target, it renders
them immobile.
Charge (requires 2 active hives)
Similar to the Skulk Leap, a forward charge that multiplies damage by the
number of touches. Does 10 damage for each hit.
Primal Scream (requires 3 active hives)
Pumps up the stats of all Kharaa in the area, including the Onos it originates
from.
Overview:
---------
Now you're cooking with gas, baby. This thing is a friggin' tank with legs
instead of treads. Requires a ton of resources to mutate, but well worth it.
Take one headlong rush into a turret filled encampment, flinging marines to and
fro with deadly abandon and try to go back to a *snicker* skulk. Now, this
doesn't mean be reckless. The Onos is as vulnerable as any other Kharaa, and
foolish play will get you fragged PDQ. But, with a few Fades or Lerks to run
interference, one Onos can put a serious hurting on any enemies of the Horde
(Horde property of Blizzard Entertainment.)
Gore really requires no explanation. Paralyze is... eh, paralyze is OK. But,
come on, you don't morph into a thousand pound siege engine to put people to
sleep. You do it to annihilate them. Charge is currently pretty underpowered.
Better off sticking to good, decent, old-fashioned goring.
Primal Scream is another matter altogether. Even if you're attacking all by
your lonesome, always let out a primal scream just before assaulting an enemy
stronghold. If there's friendly units around you, even better. Useful just for
the increased recharge rate on your attack energy, not to mention the increased
damage, defense and speed.
============================================================================================================================
Kharaa Structures
============================================================================================================================
These are the resources of the Kharaa war machine. Without them, you'll quickly
be shouting "game over, man. game over." heh. Seriously, you will not win the
game without a proper mix of hives, offensive, defensive and support
structures. That's why the aforementioned Gorge is so important.
Structures can be divided into two rough categories: The Hive, and everything
else. While "everything else" is important, and you want to be sure to
continually support protect them, it's the Hive that wins or loses the game.
--------
THE HIVE
--------
Center of any Kharaa colony is the hive. It serves two purposes in the game.
The first, and most important, is to spawn in reinforcements. Without an active
hive (and yes, there are inactive hives, as well discuss below) no more Kharaa
can be created, which isn't good. For that reason alone, Hives are crucial, but
they fulfill other roles as well, and understanding those roles will be key to
achieving victory.
Take a look at the upper right hand corner of your screen. See those three hive
icons? Good. The first thing you should check is if any of them are clear. If
so, it means no one has built a hive yet at that location. Every map has 3
spots that will support a hive, and the Kharaa start with one of them. Like any
good ravenous alien monster, expansion is the order of the day. Go get those
other hives! Just look for the white circles in your HUD marked "hive." Of
course, only Gorge can build them, but don't mutate till you've reached the
prospective area. It's much easier to get there in Skulk form.
When you've reached the phantom hive mutate to a Gorge. Then, well, hurry up
and wait. It takes 80 resources to build a hive, so you could be sitting there
for a while, especially if it's your first expansion. Once you have enough,
build the hive. Notice that the hive doesn't appear fully functional, and has
to "grow" first. Unfortunately, there's no way to increase the growth rate, so
you're pretty much stuck waiting for it to pop in. I like to use that time to
set up offensive chambers around the newborn hive.
Once it finally pops in (which takes about 2 minutes,) it's time to make a
descision. For each active hive your team owns, you can choose one upgrade path
to unlock. You can choose to get them in any order your team sees fit, and it's
a pretty good idea to ask what your team wants before you start building. The
most common build order I've run into is defense, sensory, movement. However,
that's not the definative way to go. Use your best discretion, and don't forget
to ask your team (with teamsay, for god's sake.) These upgrades are crucial to
advancing your personal Kharaa up the evolutionary ladder, but we'll talk more
about them later. Also notice the amount of resources you can now collect. With
one hive, it's 33, two hives makes 66 and with with 3 a whopping 99. This only
applies to non-Gorge, who always have 100 max resources.
In addition to all the above loveliness, Hives also dictate what forms you can
and cannot mutate to. Skulk, Lerk and Gorge are always available. Fade open up
on Hive numero two. The mighty Onos is only available to 3 Hive communities.
Finally, being in proximity to a hive will heal units and structures.
To summarize:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| 1 Hive: 33 Resources / Skulk Gorge Lerk / One Upgrade Path | |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| 2 Hives: 66 Resources / Skulk Gorge Lerk Fade / Two Upgrades Paths | |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| 3 Hives: 99 Resources / Skulk Gorge Lerk Fade Onos / Three Upgrades Paths | |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------
EVERYTHING ELSE
---------------
Heh, pretty all encompassing, eh? Well, everything else includes all the
chambers that Kharaa construct in order to protect themselves and procure
upgrades. You know that the marines are upgrading themselves, so don't fall
behind in the arms race.
Upgrades are dependent upon not only what chambers your army possesses, but how
many. For example, we'll look at defensive chambers. One defensive chamber will
unlock the first level of all 3 defensive upgrades. Two will unlock the second
level, and if you've already got the first level, upgrade it for free. Having 3
does the same exact thing, just for the third level of upgrades. So, it's in
your best bet to build 3 of each as soon as possible. Oh, and once you hit 3,
there are no more upgrades for the Kharaa evolutions. That doesn't mean you
shouldn't build more, just that there will be no more evolution bonuses. Still,
it's not rare to see a good number of defensive or sensory chambers dotting a
map for their alternate benefits.
Offensive Chambers
------------------
These chambers crack devastating "your mama" jokes at advancing marines,
rendering them inconsolable and unable to defend themselves. Haha, no, they're
not that kind of offensive. Instead, they're the kind that lob tiny balls of
corrosive mess at any intruder foolish enough to get close. Set them up around
any structure you feel is worth protecting, usually resource chambers or
precious, precious hives. According to the manual, they do 50 damage with each
shot, but I doubt it. They seem kind of weak, so always construct at least 3 or
4 in clusters to maximize their firepower.
Of course, no amount of maximization is going to help against grenades. That's
why it's always advisable to place them in such a way that marines have to
round a corner and stare them face to face to get a clean shot. Never put
offense chambers at one end of a long corridor, cause if you do they'll just
get sniped without ever firing a single shot. Try to place them just to the
left or right of doors and vents, out of advancing enemies views. Most
important, don't place chambers one behind the other. For some reason, they
can't shoot through each other.
Defensive Chambers
------------------
The defensive chamber serves a dual role. Primarily, it unlocks an upgrade path
for the Kharaa troops. Once you have one built, all Kharaa will be able to
evolve one of the 3 defensive upgrades. It's other function is similar to the
Gorge Health Spray, though less effective. Any unit or structure within range
will heal faster. Up to 3 defense towers can "stack" they're healing effects in
one area, so any more than that in close proxemity is a waste. A good place to
dump them is behind offensive towers to speed up their recovery from marine
attacks.
Movement Chambers
-----------------
Like it's defensive brethren, the movement chamber also has two purposes.
First, it unlocks the movement upgrade path for all Kharaa troops. Second, when
a Kharaa walks up and uses one, it will transport the unit to the farthest
active hive. Don't underestimate the usefullness of jumping from hive to hive.
Not only will it save your but more than a couple times, it makes defense that
much easier. Otherwise, it just sits there and looks pretty.
Sensory Chambers
----------------
Continuing the Kharaa trend of versatility, the sensory chamber too serves many
roles. Of course, it unlocks the movement upgrades for all Kharaa blah, blah,
blah. More interesting are it's secondary functions. The sensory chamber
functions as a sort of watchtower for the Kharaa. Any marine in the view range
of a sensory chamber will be visible to all Kharaa (like it was parasited.)
Also, any enemy unit that touches a sensory chamber WILL be parasited,
permanently.
Resource Chambers
-----------------
They collect and process resources for the Kharaa. Simply find one of the
resource nodes on the map (they look like geysers spitting out white smoke) and
drop a resource chamber on top. It will increase the resource allocation for
all Kharaa. Unfortunately, the marines also want those resource points, and
aren't above splatting your proudly built resource chambers. It's sound advice
to plop a few offensive chambers around any resource point to discourage claim
jumpers.
============================================================================================================================
Upgrades
============================================================================================================================
Do you want to be all you can be? Then upgrades are just the ticket. These
helpful little bonuses will make eradicating the human menace all that much
easier. However, careful consideration of what upgrades to use is paramount and
can make the difference between life and death.
Upgrades are based on a series of three's. There are three upgrade paths, each
with three separate upgrades to choose from, and each of those has three levels
of effectiveness. Each unit can only use one upgrade from each of the three
paths, so it's important to know what each one does. Remember, the three levels
are determined by the number of the respective chambers built (see chambers
section for more info.)
------------------
DEFENSIVE UPGRADES
------------------
Carapace:
---------
An armor upgrade. Depending on the level, will add additional armor and
increase armor effectiveness. Since it's easier, here's the graph straight from
the manual:
(First number is armor amount, second is % of damage absorbed.)
Skulk Gorge Lerk Fade Onos
----------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------- |
Start | 10 30 50 30 50 30 125 30 150 30 | |
| |
Level 1 | 30 40 75 40 75 40 150 40 200 40 | |
| |
Level 2 | 30 50 75 50 75 50 150 50 200 50 | |
| |
Level 3 | 30 60 75 60 75 60 150 60 200 60 | |
--------------------------------------------------- |
----------------------------------------------------
Regeneration:
-------------
Regenerates hit points, duh. The higher the level, the quicker the HP will be
regained. at level one, you get 1 HP every 2 seconds. At level two, 2 HP every
2 seconds, and 3 HP every 2 seconds at level three.
Redemption:
-----------
This one's pretty interesting. It's basically a get-out-of-dying-free card.
Once your HP drops below a certain level, you'll be warped back to the nearest
hive to narrowly avoid death. The chance of being saved increases with each
level of this evolutions upgrade.
-----------------
MOVEMENT UPGRADES
-----------------
Adrenaline:
-----------
Every attack a Kharaa performs requires energy. Naturally, running out of
energy while attacking any sort of foe is a bad, bad thing. To combat that, the
Kharaa developed the adrenaline evolution. Think of it as a sort of
regeneration for your energy meter. At level one, you regenerate 8% a second,
level two, 12% a second, level three, 16% a second.
Celerity:
---------
An alien garnish? No, it's in fact a serious speed increase. Very useful for
some of the bigger species, especially the Fade, which I could outrun, and
that's saying a lot. For choosing this path, you'll receive a 10% bonus for
each level of the upgrade available, maxing out at a blistering 30% speed
boost.
Silence:
--------
Gee, I wonder what this one does. Naturally, being a scary alien requires a
certain amount of stealth, and silence is just the ticket. For every level,
your attack and movement noise drops by a third (of the total 100%.) So, at
level 1 you make about 60% of your total noise, level 2 drops it to 30% and
level 3 makes you totally silent, giving you real ultimate power.
-----------------
SENSORY UPGRADES:
-----------------
Cloaking:
---------
Hey, you got your Predator in my Aliens! No, you got your Aliens in my
Predator! Well, whatever, as long as I can turn invisible. Sure, stalking dog
faces through dark corridors is fun. But, having one walk up to you, stare
right into your eyes and calmly walk away, only to be eviscerated seconds
later? That's bloody brilliant. One of the funnest and most useful upgrades,
recommended without reservation. Like all other evolutions, it gets more
effective with more chambers. This one you'll definitely want 3 for, since the
first two aren't really "invisible." More like Wonder Woman's plane, or Dotted
Line Girl from Rug Rats.
Advanced Hive Sight:
--------------------
First off, make sure you use your flashlight key. That's what kept me from
enjoying the benefits of this nice upgrade (yes, I are teh dumb.) Anyway, I'm
sure most of you are familiar with the Kharaa hive sight ability, which makes
friendly units and structures stand out. Advanced hive sight does just that,
except to enemies. Very useful for dark maps where marines try to hide in the
shadows.
Scent of Fear:
--------------
Everyone knows the three different Kharaa "rings." White for allies, red for
hot spots and yellow for marines. Scent of Fear adds one more: the dreaded
orange. You see, once you develop SoF, orange rings will form around injured
marines, weeding them from their hiding spots. The more advanced the upgrade,
the further the effective range.
============================================================================================================================
MISC.
============================================================================================================================
Why'd I write this? Well, two reasons really. One, while the manual that comes
with NS is cool, it's not really all that great at explaining stuff. Seems to
me they were concerned more with making it seem like a field report than
actually describing how the game works. Two, I want to force CJayC to make a NS
board ;)
Anyways, usual ownership stuff. Everything here is copyright 2002, property of
me, The Draft, also known as Keith in some corners. Well, everything except the
stuff I took from the manual, which I assume belongs to the NS team. The only
place authorized to display this FAQ is good old GameFaqs. Like Vic Mackey
says, "You steal from me, you die!" (BTW, if you're not watching The Shield,
you're missing the best dang show on TV.
Problems with the FAQ? You spot any glaring mistakes? Just think I'm a total
buffoon? Or, by some small chance, you like it? Drop me a line at
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. If you suggest a correction or have a strategy and I put it
in, you'll get credited. Don't be shy now, the only way people will notice you
is if you hang your butt out.
