Xeno Hunting is a combat-related career that involves destroying Thargoid ships and surface craft. The Pilots Federation awards Combat Bond Vouchers to any pilot who destroys Thargoids.
With the conclusion of the Second Thargoid War in 3310, the galaxy has entered a brief period of peace - however, skirmishes between Humans and Thargoids remain common in border areas, and with Colonization on the horizon, the prospect of further conflicts remains high. All Commanders should arm themselves with the special weapons and tactics needed to defeat this implacable foe, and prepare for the conflict to come. This article contains a concise overview of Xeno Combat; for a step-by-step guide to Thargoid Combat, see the Thargoid Combat Guide.
Thargoid Variants[]
Thargoids come in 5 known classes: Titans, Interceptors, Hunters, Scouts, and ground variants.
Thargoid Scouts[]
- Main article: Thargoid Scout
Thargoid Scouts
Thargoid Scouts are a smaller variant of the Thargoid interceptor. They come in four variants: Berserker, Inciter, Marauder, and Regenerator. Each with different special abilities. Scouts are immediately hostile and in groups can deal significant damage to an unprepared pilot. Scouts, unlike interceptors, have 77% resistance to human weapons, rather than 99%. This reduced damage resistance makes it possible to kill Scouts with human weapon systems, however specialized AX weapon systems are still far more effective and efficient than their human counterparts.
Thargoid Interceptor[]
- Main article: Thargoid Interceptor
Thargoid Interceptor Orthrus
Thargoid Interceptors come in five variants: Orthrus, Cyclops, Basilisk, Medusa and Hydra, in ascending level of difficulty. Each next variant has more hearts and is tougher than the last, requiring more damage destroy them. The Orthrus is a special class of interceptor without hearts. Interceptors use very high damage output weapons, crowd-control style special abilities, and deploy Thargon drone swarms to wreak havoc on the battlefield.
Thargoid Hunter[]
- Main article: Thargoid Hunter
Thargoid Hunter Glaive
Thargoid Hunters are the newest class spotted, and come in two variants: Glaives and Scythes. Hunters have very high mobility, fire FSD disruptor and caustic missiles, and deploy an anti-guardian field similar to the Orthrus.
Thargoid Titan[]
- Main article: Thargoid Titan
Thargoid Titan
Thargoid Titans are large capital class Thargoid vessels, and can be found at the center of Maelstroms. Thargoid planetary structures surface sites, and barnacle matrix sites also bear many similarities to the Titans found in space.
Where to find Thargoids[]
Thargoids can be found at systems located within the Coalsack, Pleiades, Witch Head Nebula. Through it has been reported by the community that the Pleiades and Witch Head Nebulas seem to have the most Thargoid activity. There are a few ways to find them while within these Nebulas.
Non-Human Signal Sources[]
- Main article: Non-Human Signal Source
Found in areas with Thargoid activity, these signal sources can usually guarantee an extraterrestrial encounter of some kind given the name. These signal sources can be found in supercruise, and scanning a Nav Beacon when entering a system will reveal all of the Non-Human Signal Sources.
When found, the signal sources will have a threat level attached to them. Many different combinations of Thargoids can be found in groups or solo based on the attached threat level. It should go without saying that the higher the threat level, the more difficult, and the lower the threat level, the least difficult.
Hyperdiction[]
- Main article: Hyperdiction
In a twist of fate, Hyperdictions are not a way for the player to find Thargoids but instead to find the player. A Hyperdiction is the act of pulling a player directly out of Witch Space while in the middle of traveling to a different system. It is a very cinematic and unique experience that every player should have the opportunity to experience for themselves.
When a player is Hyperdicted, they will drop out of Hyperspace somewhere between the star systems they were jumping from. Upon dropping out, the Thargoid will emit an EMP attack shutting the ship’s system down.
Suggested Ships[]
There are four recommended ships for Xeno Hunting.
- Alliance Chieftain
- Classic AX Meta with good armour, cargo space, agility and firepower.
- The Chieftain is able to cold orbitting around Thargoid Interceptors while firing weapons toward Interceptors
- Its ample hardpoints allow for four Gauss Cannon in addition to a flak launcher and thermal vent beam laser. Its sister ship, the Alliance Challenger, provides more damage and hull at the cost of speed.
- However, it can feel 'jittery' and over-responsive, especially for newer players.
- Krait Mk II
- Favorite ship of maelstrom divers, and the AXI meta for AX Conflict Zones.
- Offers substantial firepower and optional internals, while still maintaining good maneuverability.
- Alliance Challenger
- Sister ship of the Chieftain.
- Slower alternative with higher damage output against an interceptor’s shields.
- Depending on preference, it have more raw hull than a standard Chieftain build.
- Its three medium hardpoints with good convergence make it a better platform for running modified Shard Cannons or Plasma Chargers.
- Python Mk II
- Have two variants as of Pre-built Ship.
- The Stellar variant offer four Multi-cannons and two Pulse Lasers while the Standard variant only offer two Pulse Lasers.
- It is pre-equiped with a Frame Shift Drive (SCO).
- High jump range and good agility.
- A little AX modification make the Python Mk II effective against Thargoids.
- Support ships
- If you're in a team, you can support other Commanders in your team and other Commanders can support you.
- Launch repair limpet to regenerate a ship's hull.
- Launch fuel transfer limpet to refuel Commanders that are running low on fuel while fighing Thargoids.
- Fire Beam Laser with Regeneration Sequence towards a fighting Commanders to regenerate their shield.
- Launch decontamination limpet to remove caustic chemicals from a Commander.
Common Mistakes[]
Without a solid understanding of AX Mechanics it is very easy to make simple mistake when putting together an AX Ship. Here are some common mistakes people have made in the past… so you don’t have to!
Point-Defence Turret[]
Although it may seem like a good idea at first, point defence is ineffective in Thargoid combat. Point Defence will fire upon both caustic and Thargon missiles, but it is incapable of actually damaging them. On top of this, they also have a habit of shooting down friendly Flak Launcher projectiles.
Ship-Launched Fighter[]
A somewhat controversial topic, as there are still some particular uses for these. To many pilots, Ship Launched Fighters (or SLFs) are more of a bother than they are a benefit. Especially due to their extremely lackluster durability, they require a fair amount of skill and experience to get any value from them, and are typically seen as 'niche', and something that is more often fiddled with by experienced players looking for new and entertaining gameplay.
Resistance[]
Thargoid weapons deal primarily caustic damage, mixed with small amounts of Thermal damage. Any explosive or kinetic resistance is therefore useless.
Defeating a Thargoid[]
To destroy a Thargoid, it is important to understand its shield and regeneration capabilities. There are four variants of Thargoid Interceptors: Cyclops, Basilisk, Medusa, and Hydra. Thargoid Interceptors are protected by a shield which deteriorates over time. It takes 1 minute 45 seconds for a Cyclops shield to fall, 3 minutes for a Basilisk, 4 minutes for a Medusa, and 5 minutes for the Hydra. The rule of thumb is 2, 3, 4, 5. The shield will decay on its own; do not waste ammunition on the shields.
Once you drop into the Non-Human Signal source, the Thargoid will approach and scan you. Either let it scan you and turn away (if you wish to scan it), or begin firing just as it closes within 1.5 km while reversing slowly away. Stay within 1.5 km to avoid the damage falloff at range from gauss, deploy a heatsink, and begin firing, using the reload indicator on your hud to ensure you are firing immediately after your cannons reload (1.6 seconds). After you hear the sound of the heatsink eject, fire another.
When you engage a Thargoid, it will deploy a swarm. The Thargoid will also deploy another swarm every time a heart is destroyed. However if a swarm is still active when a heart is destroyed, the Thargoid will bank the swarm, holding onto it until the other swarm is destroyed or depleted to a very low number (which it will then proceed to refill with the new swarm).
Thargoid weapons deal phasing damage, which means they will deal a percentage of damage directly through your shield, ignoring all resistances.
Once the shield is down, you must damage the hull of the interceptor to “exert” the heart. At this point one of the “petals” will glow red (or become smokey in the case of the hydra). You must hit the glowing part of the petal to damage the heart. You will know when you have destroyed it.
Continue firing until the heart is exerted (glows red and is listed as exerted if you have a xeno scanner equipped). At this point aim at the heart and fire. It should only take 3 direct gauss impacts for a Cyclops, 4 for a Basilisk, 5 for a Medusa, and 12.5 for a Hydra with regular ammunition.
Once the heart has been destroyed, transfer pips 2-4-0. Boost past the Thargoid if within 1 km, and away from the Thargoid if outside of 1 km. The Thargoid will charge yellow and begin chasing you, if it gets within range you will be hit by the lightning which will disrupt your systems, kill your momentum (Regardless of FA-OFF), and drain your shields.
Prior to attacking the next heart, you have a set time period during which the Thargoid is protected by a shield (2, 3, 4, 5 minutes for the respective Thargoid variant). In this time period you have three objectives, destroy the swarm, re-arm, and recharge your shields. After this time period and before the 6 minute mark (7 for Basilisk and Medusa, 8 for Hydra), you must exert and destroy the next heart. Otherwise the Thargoid will become enraged.
From this point on, fights are divided into two phases: swarm and heart destruction. Each Thargoid has a set number of “hearts” (4 on a Cyclops, 5 on a Basilisk, 6 on a Medusa, 8 on a Hydra). After the opening, you have destroyed one heart and have ~7 minutes until the Thargoid becomes “enraged”. An enraged Thargoid will launch a new swarm, and keep replacing it as soon as it is destroyed. The entire swarm will also turn into missiles at once, destroying less armoured ships outright. Enrage means you have likely lost.
Alternative way: Cold Orbitting[]
Cold orbiting is a technique used mainly with small and medium ships to avoid damage from the Interceptor’s main cannon. Cold Orbiting relies upon using heatsinks to stay cold while moving in an orbiting motion around the interceptor, a Thargoid cannot hit you with their main gun when: You are moving perpendicular to the Thargoid’s facing direction with sufficient speed and your ship’s effective heat is below 20% (Heatsinks, Thermal Vent or Silent Running). Cold orbiting can be used in different phases of the fight, while waiting for a shield to drop, cold orbiting can be maintained with a Thermal Vent Beam. During a Gauss attack run you will require constant heatsinks to avoid going above 20% heat.
Destroying a Titan[]
To destroy a Thargoid Titan, make sure to keep your ship cold to avoid various heat sources found in the Maelstroms. Open your Galaxy Map to locate a Thargoid Titan, you will see a red tornado icon on systems with Thargoid Maelstroms. Then plot a route to a system with Thargoid Maelstroms. Once arrived, as you proceed to the system, you will receive an Interdiction from Thargoids. The further you proceed, the more Interdiction you will receive.
Once you arrived at the Maelstrom, your team beacon will be disrupted by the Maelstrom and your FSD will fail as soon as you arrived in approximately 100 kilometers range. The destination marker will be disrupted, making the marker shows from place to place. You will receive caustic damage when you enter the Maelstrom, so the use of Caustic Sink Launcher is advised.
Set your throttle to maximum if essential and start your journey from the start to the centre of the Maelstroms. Make sure to use a Caustic Sink Launcher as you proceed and a Repair or Decontamination Limpet if your ship take enough damage. If your ship is above 20% heat, it is ill-advised to approach the Thargoid-like object named Thargoid Caustic Generator, as it will explode when your ship being close to it. When you see a shutdown-like field, activate the Thargoid Pulse Neutraliser and - remember to deploy a Heatsink Launcher if you see your heat is raising.
If you see a giant Thargoid ship, it mean you has arrived. Find and target Titan's heat vent then use your Guardian Torpedo Pylon to attack it until it is exposed. When it is exposed, attack it until it is retracted again. Then fly to a nearby asteroid and hide your ship behind the asteroid, then wait until a blue wave is generated. When the wave is ended, get out of the asteroid, locate another heat vent and repeat the process until a 24 hours countdown in the info panel show.
When a countdown is show, it mean the Titan is in a meltdown system, in which Titan will not send any attack anymore. A large explosion will occurr each destroyed Titan, and will disrupt the FSD. An inbox message will be send to the terminator of the Titan.
Experimental Fighters[]
These are experimental, guardian-tech fighter frames with unique weapons. They have similar manuverability and protection like Gu-97 (that is to say, highly manuverable and lightly protected). Most of the weapons employed by the XG series makes them more effective against Thagroid ships then human craft.
XG-7 "Trident"[]
All-rounder. Equipped with fixed plasma autocannons. These individually have low damage, but deal absolute damage which ignores damage resistances on shields and hull, making it equally effective against both. The cannons have a unique charge-up period before firing, which requires you to hold the trigger for a moment before seeing results. This can make it kind of akward to use.
XG-8 "Javelin"[]
Close-range brawler. Equipped with a Shard Launcher projectile weapon that fires a spread of plasma bolts similar to a shotgun blast. Each bolt individually has low damage, but if used at close range where every projectile can hit, can deal sizable damage to shields and hull. Uniquely, this weapon has limited ammo which requires the pilot to regularly restock with the mothership by docking, which severely hampers this ship's effectiveness in prolonged engagements. This is in addition to the weapon requiring reloads between groups of shots and close-range requirement. AI pilots will also routinely require ammo and do not typically try to fire this weapon at as close of a range as they should.
XG-9 "Lance"[]
Long-range support. Equipped with a Gauss Focus Cannon with high damage-per-shot and good range, but reduced effectiveness against shields and limited ammunition. This weapon makes it more suited to AX combat
Thargoid Special Abilities[]
Thargoid possesses different abilities and attacks:
Caustic Missile[]
Thargoid possesses a caustic missile. This may quite slow, but once it hit a target, that target not only will takes heavy damage, they will receive a caustic damage effect which they will loss one percent of their hull health every one second (regardless of shield). This effect will prolong indefinitely, and can only clear from special equipments or dock within a station.
Lightning Attack[]
After the destruction of the first heart, Interceptors will begin to use their lightning when approaching within 800 m which will heavily damage your shields(~50x more to shields than hulls), render you immobile, and knock out your systems. Although your engines may still somewhat function, for a small period of time after the attack, you will struggle to build up speed as your ship will be under a braking effect, FA-OFF does not cancel out this effect. Glaives also possesses a lightning attack, which will recharge Glaive's shield when connect to a ship.
EMP Wave[]
On the second-to-last heart, the interceptor will use EMP (shut-down field), which will render your ship inoperable for 30 seconds or so (your wing beacon will also turn off because of this). You can avoid triggering the EMP field by being outside of 3 km before it attempts to initiate the attack, or by keeping a low temperature (below 20%). You cannot avoid the EMP once the attack has been queued unless you are beyond 10 kilometers.
Thargon Swarm[]
A Thargoid Interceptor will deploy Thargon drones, the amount of drone is depending on the variant of the Thargon sender. Thargoid will only deploy them once you have attracted them, which will open fire after then. Thargon drones are not passive, they will attack who attracted Thargoids. They can penetrate a ship's shield when hit, dealing direct hull damage. Point Defence Turret will fire upon these drones, but with zero damage. Only the Flak Launcher can destroy these drones. Once a Thargoid's heart is destroyed, Thargoid takes time to commence an "enraged" status, which Hydra take a longest time. Thargoid in "enraged" status will replace a destroyed drone, which every drone destroyed will be replaced. Thargons will also activate a sucidal bombing run. If a secondary heart is destroyed while in enraged status, Thargon will return to normal status and the timer will be reset. If a secondary heart is destroyed while not in enraged status, the timer will reset.
Secondary Weapons[]
Thargoids have different variants. Therefore, different weapons. These are:
Anti-Guardian Field[]
Thargoid Hunter and Thargoid Interceptor Orthrus will employ an Anti-Guardian Field. When a nearby ship is affected, their Guardian modules will decay over time, requires repair from various sources.
FSD Disruption Missile[]
Used by Thargoid Hunters, they have a missile that not only deal damage, it is capable of disrupt and reboot your FSD for an extended period, like how Containment Missile Powerplay weapon does.
Shield Breach Weapon[]
Thargoid Scout and Interceptor can capable of penetrate a target's shield. Interceptor will fire a high damage weapon and fire three ammo per fire. It takes half a seconds to reload. Scout have a rapid-fire energy weapons that also penetrate their target.
Tips to hunt Thargoids[]
Here are some tips you may need:
- If caustic damage is active and you do not have any modules to clear them, simply firing weapons, turn on Silent Running or whatever you do to overheat your ship. This can clear caustic damage.
- Drawback: Clear a caustic damage using this method will require you to overheat your ship to 180% or 220%, this will cause damage to your ship and modules
- Guardian weapons can deal more damage than AX weapons, and it can be unlocked through Technology Brokers
- When an EMP wave is imminent and you do not bring modules to counter it, turn your ship to FA-OFF (Flight Assist off) to drift your ship when your ship has shutdown.
- When use this method, KEEP THIS IN MIND!!! When your ship shutdown, your ship will continue to drift, meaning your ship will likely collide with something and will deal severe damage to ship, which can destroy your ship in one note.
Recommended Builds[]
These modules can be bought from military, high-tech and industrial Planetary Ports, while some modules can be purchased at Rescue Megaships and Guardian variant at Technology Broker. Here are the recommended builds for your ship:
- AX Multi-cannon
- Rapidly fires small calibre ammunition that is designed to damage Thargoid ships.
- Ineffective aganist human ships.
- The enhanced variant of this weapon deals more damage, and the Azimuth variant of the enhanced one is armed with an Auto Loader, which auto reload, deals more damage at the cost of higher power draw and thermal load.
- AX Missile Rack
- Launch medium-calibre dumbfire missiles capable of damaging Thargoid ships.
- Compared to the AX multi-cannon, it is capable of exposing Thargoid hearts faster than the multi-cannon.
- Ineffective against human ships.
- The Sirius pre-engineered variant offers a +100% ammo clip size and maximum ammo, +42.9% fire rate, -45% reload time, -20% distributor draw, High Capacity, and Rapid Fire in an exchange of -3% damage, +70% mass, +20% power draw, and -0.5 degree jitter.
- The enhanced variant of this weapon offers increased damage and projectile speed. No drawbacks. Still ineffective against human ships.
- Remote Release Flak Launcher
- Launch flak ordances that are designed to destroy Thargon Swarms from Thargoid Interceptors.
- Ineffective against other targets.
- Shutdown Field Neutraliser
- Countermeasure against Interceptor's EMP attack.
- Hold the trigger to activate it. Have two seconds to activate and automatically deactivate once SYS capacity is depleted or the trigger has been released.
- Reload after deactivation.
- AX Xeno Scanner
- Type of scanner that used to analyse Thargoids.
- This scanner is only way to higlight Thargoid hearts.
- Random materials will be collected after scan.
- Guardian Gauss Cannon
- High-energy weapon that deals more damage and penetrates armor effectively compared to the normal Railgun.
- Effective against Thargoids and human ships, but generate more heat.
- Modified variant of this weapon are engineered with High Capacity.
- Guardian Plasma Charger
- Plasma-based weapon. Hold the trigger to charge it, release the trigger will make the charger fire a plasma trail similar to the Plasma Accelerator.
- Effective against Thargoids and human ships, but it is greater against Interceptors and Scouts.
- Modified variant of this weapon are engineered with Focused and Overcharged.
- Guardian Shard Cannon
- Fire projectiles similar to the Fragment Cannon
- Effective against Thargoids and human ships.
- Modified variant of this weapon are engineered with Focused, Long Range and Penetrator Munitions.
Videos[]
See also[]
References[]
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