Was anyone else put in mind of Gonarch's Lair? *oh so minor spoilers*

[ríomhaire]

The caves, and especially the antlion workers really made me think of Gonarch's Lair. No, not that I had to spend all of my ammunition and then a half-hour with the hive-hand to pass it, or how suggestive the creature was...although the acid lions' heads are shaped kinda like...anyway, what I mean is the webbing and especially the workers' acid spray.

The white, arching acid blobs are very similar to those used by the Gonarch. The HEV suit even gives similar warning about them being toxic chemicals. Could they be spraying the same substance? I'm sure a nice acid would help a Gonarch dig out her layer as much as it would the antlions. They also both exlode upon death, even if the Gonarch's is tad more violent.

The webbing used is also similar, though the Gonarch's seems a little more tough and solid, but that was probably just down to technical limitations. I'm not saying that the Gonarch is a type of antlion, because that would make headcrabs antlions, which makes no sense at all, but they could be related; both from the Vortigaunt home-world, or they just evolved through the eons on Xen. Vortigaunts seem a prime target for headcrabs, and we know that antlion husbandry was widly practiced by the Vortigaunts.

 

[morgs]

It's very possible VALVe didn't even think of the Gonarch when they designed the Antlion worker, when asked why it was poisonous they stated there was no real reason, it's just one of those things they 'make up' explanations for. The webs are probably similar.

 

[Max_Fall]

They may be tied,since theyre all from Xen,and the antlion cave reminds me of that dreaded level in HL1 in Xen

 

[LandStander]

I think the fight with the two guards outside is very similar to the fight with the Gonarch. The way they hurl the vehicles at you is very comparable to the Gonarch's toxic spew, and they also gallop at equal speeds. Also both creatures' offspring are assisting them in battle.

 

[ríomhaire]

But fighting the guards is so much more fun.

 

[Asknoone]

Mentioning 'fun' and 'Gonarch' in the same sentence is something of an oxymoron.

 

[Adabiviak]

Pure coincidence, if you ask me.

 

[dogboy73]

Mentioning 'fun' and 'Gonarch' in the same sentence is something of an oxymoron.

I liked that battle once I'd worked out a decent strategy. I think I used the alien homing weapon to take out all the little spidery things. Then inbetween that I'd let Gonarch have it with whatever I could throw at it! The Magnum seemed to do a lot of damage.

 

[delusional]

I remember spending an hour underground below the gonarch shooting my hivehand at it, only to figure out it doesn't do damage from there for some reason.

 

[Nitre]

I remember spending an hour underground below the gonarch shooting my hivehand at it, only to figure out it doesn't do damage from there for some reason.

When i got the hivehand i thought that it would be a really good weapon. Oh, was i wrong...

 

[Darkside55]

Another possibility is that the gonarch took over an antlion cave and made it its home on Xen.

Or, a headcrab zombified a worker antlion and became a gonarch.

Or, creatures on Xen have all adapted similar abilities and preferences for shelter to survive the conditions of their homeworld. They all seem to have an affinity for toxic radiation and dark caves.

 

[ríomhaire]

Mentioning 'fun' and 'Gonarch' in the same sentence is something of an oxymoron.

Everbody's a critic

 

[Hydra]

Gonarch wouldn't have such lair. Gonarch is a headcrab in the last stage of its life. Although I played Half-Life 1 in this year's summer, I didn't have anything popping up about Gonarch's lair. I was too excited in EP2.