Strain Ideas/Suggestions

[Cobraman]

New strain for carrier: Infection master. Carrier looses all drone abilities, the ability to carry eggs. And can only carry 4 facehuggers. But, can charge and combat hug.

[prophetb1]

I didn't read all of the posts here (seven pages, whew.) so I hope my ideas aren't identical to others, but here's a couple of suggestions I've been thinking of -

Ravager - Unyielding
Remove Pounce.
Gain permanent medium frenzy pheremones, nearby sisters and the Ravager cannot go into paincrit mode.

"You cannot die. The hive MUST be defended." as flavor text.

Lurker - Trespasser
Lower pounce to 3 tiles.
Can now pop on the other side of walls similarly to how crawling through holes work - aslong as the tile the lurker is standing on, and the tile it is trying to 'pop' into is glass, or open roof.
Tables, window frames don't stop movement.

"Limber muscules, A lithe frame, allows easy traversal."

[reuben owen]

Carrier: "Puppeteer" - Trade the ability to carry facehuggers (can still carry eggs) for controlling facehuggers. When Carrier rests next to a Queen in Ovipositor, the next time Queen would lay an egg, she instead lays a facehugger ready to go. Carrier takes control of said facehugger and can move around as it. Controlled facehugger has 1 health and cannot attack. Controlled facehuggers that walk onto a tile with a Marine infect that Marine. Other Xenos (that can pick up facehuggers) can pick up the controlled facehugger, if they do so Carriers control over the facehugger ends. Carrier can end control of the facehugger prematurely by canceling camera view or something like that.

[That Happy Cat]

Sheperd (Hivelord strain):

• Lose reinforced resin structures. Resin Walker is replaced by "emit Celerity pheromones", a fourth pheromone (that can be emitted at the same time as the normal phermone ability) that gives Resin Walker's effect to all affected xenos (including the Hivelord of course).

Ambusher (Burrower strain):

• Lose the ability to burrow elsewhere and building traps, but burrowing on the spot is much faster and can remain burrowed for much longer. Reappearing is instant (though still has a delay after burrowing before you can reappear) and knocks down all nearby marines.

Guardian (Sentinel strain):

• Lose Neurotoxic Spit, but tackling an impregnated marine is always successful and stuns them for longer. Help intent infuses impregnated marines with inaprovaline (heheheh).

Afflictor (Sentinel strain):

• Neurotoxic spit no longer stuns. Instead it inflicts significant amounts of temporary pain and deals brain and eye damage.

Devourer (Crusher strain):

• Lose Stomp, devouring downed marines is much faster. Having a marine in your belly grants you bonus health and plasma regeneration.

Reaper (Ravager strain):

• Lose Charge, gain "Reap" which attacks all marines around you with a high chance to delimb.

Wyrm (Boiler strain):

• Lose Bombard, Long Range Sight and Spray Acid. Gain "Gaseous Breath" which requires no prep and has a faster cast time than Bombard, releasing billowing clouds of gas in a line that reaches up to a screen's length away.

[Saytkl77]

I like some of these Queen hive-wide mutators. It would be cool for the queens mutators to be things that fundamentally effect how every xeno and the marines play the round, rather than just +10% larva +10% evolve speed etc, keeps the games fresh and exciting.

[Chocolate_bickie]

A mutator that changes up Queen game-play entirely would be great. Not sure what would work though since the current game design is based around the Queen staying in ovi right up until xenos take the drop ship.

[reuben owen]

Crusher: "Kicker" - Trade Stomp for the ability Back Kick. Back Kick hits in the direction opposite of the way you are facing. Knocks Marines away in a 1x3 ( or 2x3?) area behind you. Slight damage. After using Back Kick, Charge is disabled for a duration.

Like how you see horses kick behind them and people go flying.

[Chocolate_bickie]

Lurker: ''Deciever'' - Trade cloak and pounce for the ability to appear as a nearby corpse, looking like that marine. However you can only walk and are basically a xeno in every other respect.

[GelatinMage]

Sniper Sentinels.
Lower fire rate, supernaturally accurate. Cost 6 Mutator Points.

Also grants a boiler-like zoom in ability.

[Damarik]

I had some ideas for this, after seeing some of the 40k base strains, so here's what I've got so far.

The first one is more for memery than anything...but there are times when I can actually see it being semi-useful.


Xenomorph Strains:

Larva Strain: Praetorian Burster
Loses: The Ability to Hide and Click/Crawl through Doors. Slows maturation to almost double time required for normal larva. Cannot self-mutate further during subsequent maturation phases except for the Revert Mutator. Can only be purchased once for the entire hive, E.G. There will never be a round with more than 1 Praetorian Burster, ever.
Gains: The Ability to evolve straight to Queen after its maturation period. Also gains increased health/regen (10-15% so it can't be curbstomped so easily) which it retains into Queen Phase, faster speed and a bite attack that can actually damage for self-defense purposes. Queen Phase cannot Screech or plant resin/weeds and has a -15% penalty to all attacks. Queen Phase loses additional speed and reverts to normal speed.
Requirements: Established Hive Mutator (see below). No present Queens and/or Drones on the map.
Uses: I see this as a mid/end game fix for Hives that have bald Queens/Drones and end up without a leader for a good portion of the fight. Xenos should not be forced to board without a Queen, nor does a scattered hive even stand a chance of putting up a fight without one for longer than fifteen/twenty minutes of concentrated Marine fire. Could be an EOR Game Changer, or a RoundStart safety net for Xenos with bald or new players.
Unlocks: Revert Mutator

Drone Strain: Radar
Loses: Pheromones and Corrosive Acid. Cannot act as Pheromone Conduit when Overwatched with this Mutator.
Gains: Overwatch (Does not waste leader spot when chosen by the Queen). Gains Boiler-Range vision.

Xeno Strain: Efficient Worker
Xenos Affected: Drone/Hivelord
Loses: If taken as a drone, all evolution is blocked except to Queen. If taken as a Hivelord, further mutations cannot be taken. Loses basic nest structure.
Gains: The ability to plant resin nests on facing wall tiles (Gain Structure - Wall Nest). The ability to make existing furniture/structures into nests (beds/cabinets/lockers) without dismantling them (Gain Ability - Convert Nest).
Uses: The ability to stack two nests on one tile, provided there is a supporting wall. The ability to plant a nest and an egg or door on the same tile. Lore Friendly nesting. (I have never seen a Xeno Nest on the floor in any movie or book)
Uses: Cramped areas where secure nesting makes movement difficult (Dropship, Prison Cells with grate floors, Almayer Hallways)

Lurker Strain: Deathleaper
Loses: Stalking Stealth
Gains: Perfect Motionless Stealth, Abduct ability
Lurkers trade in their moving stealth for stationary camouflage. If a target walks within 5 tiles, the Lurker, in perfect stealth, may pounce and swallow them, before auto-returning to their original position. Once in the original position, the Lurker's stealth is broken. Movement during the swallowing phase will cancel the ability. The pounce will stun a target for up to 15 seconds, so even if the Lurker has to abandon, the target is still downed for that time period. Has a 5% chance to delimb/decap if targeting anything but the chest. Abduction has a 1 minute cool down before it can be used again.

Boiler Strain: MLRS
Loses: Bombard
Gains: Strike - Boiler may exchange gas cloud bombard for long-range strong-acid strikes. Each 'Dig In' can be used up to 5 times in a row before skill recharge. Launches a single, strong acid attack per click, 100% accurate. Leaves strong-acid pool on contact and spreads a 3x3 Regular Acid cross on the target's location. Knocks down any target hit by the direct strike, causes moderate burn damage and has a 2% chance to instantly paincrit. Knocks down any target hit by the 3x3 additional range and cause minor burn damage. Recharge of skill takes 1 minute after the final shot is fired. Movement cancels the attack and sets a 30 second cooldown timer. Skill is not affected by "Wider Gas", but is affected by "Lingering Gas" mutator.

Praetorian Strain: Royal Guard
Loses: Leadership Capability. Cannot be Overwatched. Reduces speed to Queen Speed. Reduces health by 20%. Loses Neurotoxin Spit.
Gains: 10% armor deflection chance. Increased Spit recharge speed. Increased tackle chance by 10%. Warding Pheromones decrease incoming damage by 5%.

Queen Strain: Immortal Empress
Loses: 1/4 of its health pool, 1/2 of its bullet deflect percentage. Cannot Overwatch. May only Ovi Once after mutated. Recovery Phero's don't work on it, and it loses its own Recov. Pheros.
Gains: 2x Health Regen with Auto-OffWeeds. Gains 10% chance to decap/delimb with strikes. 5% Speed boost.
Requirements: Cannot be taken unless Xeno count drops below specific percentage.
Uses: For more combat oriented Queens when Marines are outnumbering 3x to 5x the normal amount. Gives a frontline Queen a fighting chance against insurmountable odds.
Example of Use: Prison Station, 3/20/19, est 0120-0300: There was no RoundStart Queen. First Queen to pop nests in Panopticon, in an unsecure location, with half the hive spread far and wide after no comms for the first 10 to 20 minutes of the round. Marines land and Delta Squad charges up the middle, locating the hive and utterly decimating it. Survivors scatter, but are swiftly hunted down at each and every spot they try to renest, even killing a second Queen and multiple T3's. Round is over in under an hour and a half (roughly?). Xenos had absolutely no chance of fighting back once Delta found them and merc'd the Queen.

Xeno Mutators:

Mutator: Revert [Keystone]
Requirements: Praetorian Burster Queen, Player Round time of at least 30 minutes.
Gains: Normal Queen Abilities
Loses: Additional Bonuses from Praetorian Burster stage. Cannot self-mutate. May only purchase hive mutators.

Mutator: Hardened Carapace
Loses - 5% movement speed and 5% melee damage
Gains - 5% armor and 5% damage deflection

Mutator: Scything Talons
Loses: 5% Armor and 5% Movement Speed
Gains: 5% Melee damage and 5% delimb/decap chance

Mutator: Crushing Claws
Loses: 5% Delimb/Decap Chance and 5% Movement Speed
Gains: 10% Melee Damage

Mutator: Acid Scorpion
Loses: 10% Health
Gains: Tail attacks now spray Corrosive Acid and do burn damage on successful hit

Mutator: Adrenal Glands
Loses: 10% Armor
Gains: 10% Movement Speed

Hive Strains:

Strain: Xenofire Hive
Xenos Affected: Drone, Hivelord, Sentinel, Defender, Burrower, Spitter, Boiler, Praetorian, Carrier, Ravager, Crusher, Queen
Abilities Affected: Acid Melt, Neuro Spit, Acid Spit, Charge, Dig Trap, Bombard, Spit Resin, Charge

All acid become combustible liquid that bursts into Xenofire when it comes in contact with a natural terrain piece (Won't auto-catch Marines on fire if they're hit, but provides debuff of "Flammable" and accuracy penalty. Gives "clouded screen" debuff for 15 seconds. Also does minor toxin damage of 0.4 every second for 10 seconds.). Neurospit emits clouds of neurogas smokescreens (3x3). Acid/Gas Traps become Fire Traps. Charges leave trails of Xenofire over natural terrain and weeds (weeds are immune to it). Sticky Resin (planted or spit) becomes Xenofire Trap. Xenofire does no damage to Xenos (obviously), but acts as normal fire. Xenofire melts any items dropped in it (save for immune items like spec gear). Any bodies left in it will become unrecoverable.

Gives Ravagers and Praetorians the ability to spray a cone of fire 3 tiles away on a 30 second cool-down. (Converts Praetorian Acid Spray to Xenofire Spray)

Xenofire burns like standard Flamer ammo on natural terrain. On weeds and traps, it burns like SpecFlames. On manmade surfaces, it does not burn, but terrain acts as 'flammable', and will catch fire if set aflame by an incendiary or explosive weapon, at which point it burns like standard Flamer rounds.

Hive Mutators:

Mutator: Established Hive
Required for: Praetorian Larva

Hive gains the ability to instantly produce a single Queen in times of emergency. The Queen, having to mature so rapidly, is underdeveloped, but has all of its vital abilities ready to go. This handicap will be able to be negated after a certain time period has passed.




More To Come soon