Hello there.
I once was searching trough “xenopedia” fandom wiki in “Xenomorph variants” category.
I was looking trough it to see anything “lore accurate” with can be interesting, i saw there are different “facehuggers”, like royal facehugger with make empress xenos, prae facehugger with makes prae (you see patern here).
Then i discovered “Queen Face Hugger”, i was like "oh its some sort of red facehuggers with make red queen right? well… i discovered its description, there was link to comic summary about “Queen Face Hugger” and inside it was quote: “The Space Marines set down on the lunar base above Terraform 3 and find the entire installation has been turned into a Hive by Queen Face Huggers”
What i am heading to
Then i got “genious” idea with would (maybe) solve salt directed at lesser drones:
I present you “Kenners” (i took this name from xenopedia)
Kenner - Alternative Replacement for lesser drones
Kenner is Giant Facehugger with will be broken down to 3 special “Specializations”:
Kenner - Support
Supportive Kenner, Help with captures.
Visual: Similar to facehugger, but Bigger in size with way longer tail than its other forms, it will have bright orange color with some darker tones on it.
Skills:
Strong Leap - its similar to facehugger pounce, when jump from close proximity, they will hug marine “chest” to prevent them from using weapons, after 3 seconds of getting coiled facehugger tail will tangle marines legs, reducing their movement speed by 70%, after another 7 seconds marine legs will be fully tangled by strong tail, making them collapse on ground, unable to move or escape.
Jumping from long distances give same result as normal facehugger pounce. (you can make marines knocked down for 0.5 seconds longer because they are “bigger”)
Hide - Its just normal hide, they are smaller than runner (and runners can hide).
Tail stab - have strong enough Tail to stab talls, it deal similar damage to lesser drones Tail stab. (optional)
Summary:
- Strong Leap need around 10 seconds to immobilize marine, they can be damaged if marine is on fire (because you know, they hug ther chest and arms, then tail coil legs with strong tail making them immobile)
- When you are attached to marine, you will get “buckled” icon, when you press on it, you can detach from marine, setting them free.
- Hugging marine chest does not prevent huggers hugging, but if they hug, you get automaticly knocked off marine. (you cannot “immobilize” hugged hosts to prevent easy transport)
- You cannot get swallowed with host you “immobilized”, you need “free” them so xenos can swallow capture.
- They cannot use hivemind, but if they hug someone, they get alert and you can be “spectated” by xenos to know where to find you.
- They have 200 health*
- They do not have plasma
- When they are off weeds, their movement speed is reduced. (on weeds they are fast as normal facehuggers)
- Cannot Attack Enemies
- Cannot “swallow” hosts for transport
- Cannot use Hivemind but they can speak 1minute after they get “born”
Objective?
Help with captures, simple as that.
Kenner - Drone
Builder type of kenner, its main propuse is help build and expand hive.
Visual: Big Facehugger, Their color is similar to drones , it will help them blend with weeds making them have less chance to be spotted, their tail is scorpion-like position, but instead of sting at end they have tube-like tail (hollow inside), they use this tube-like tail for resin stuff.
Skills:
Choose Resin - It would contain: resin wall, resin door, resin membrane, fast resin and sticky resin, but it is on cooldown. (like 5 seconds (?))
Resin Node - Can place resin nodes everywhere but placing them consume 30 health and have cooldown.
Spore Fruit - Can place Spore Resin Fruit but it consumes 50 health (the one with emit weak phermones) max 3. (as replacement for “emit phermones”)
Resin Disolving - Allow to destroy resin wall, resin door, resin membrane, fast resin and sticky resin (because they cannot attack they need way to destroy) ability on cooldown.
Hide - Can hide under objects.
Summary:
- Do not have plasma. (but can have strain with give plasma instead of cooldowns)
- Lose health when outside weeds.
- They have 200 health.*
- Their abilities are cooldown based, some of them remove health when used.
- Cannot Attack Enemies.
- Cannot “swallow” hosts for transport.
- Cannot use Hivemind but they can speak 1minute after they get “born”
Objective?
Help Expand Hive.
Kenner - Guardian
Defender type of Kenner, its main propuse is to defend hive.
Visual:
Big Facehugger, Color similar to warriors, their tail is scorpion-like position, but instead of sting at end they have tube-like tail (hollow inside), they use this tube-like tail for shooting slowing spits.
Skills:
Slowing Spit - Similar spit what sentiels have, but duration of slowness is 2 seconds. (they can spit 10 times on full plasma before they run out if not on weeds)
Acid - Can create acid to melt objects, but it consumes 50% of max plasma they have (2 usages, but can be increased to 3-4)
Transfer Plasma - Can transfer plasma to other xenos.
Hide - Can hide under objects.
Summary:
- Can Attack enemies, but only deal 10 damage (sharp front legs(?))
- Only Kenner with plasma
- Have 200 health*
- Cannot “swallow” hosts for transport.
- Cannot use Hivemind but they can speak 1minute after they get “born”
Objective?
Help defend hive from enemy attack.
So my idea is to split universal lesser drone to sub-categories specialized in different areas, to reduce issues with comes with them (this would mean that hive need to “support” more “kenners” than drones, considering they are not universal but specialized).
There is chance i forgot something, and remember this is “Alternative replacement suggestion”
photo of Queen Face Hugger (Kenner) used for inspiration in this topic
