Skaarj Warriors are the first caste of Skaarj the player encounters. They typically wear light armor which facilitates their brutal, agile, martial-art style fighting techniques. Their primary weapon is a device which later in the series became known as a Razik: a wrist-mounted weapon bearing, in this case, two long, jagged, retractable blades and a projectile energy blaster. Up close, Warrior caste Skaarj will stab and slice with these blades, executing either a swift one-two jabbing attack or a more dangerous spinning slash attack. At range, they will either fire energy bolts from their Razik, two at a time (since they wear a Razik on each wrist) or lunge through the air with their claws extended, ready to shred the player to bits. This attack not only does severe damage, but allows the Skaarj to suddenly be within melee range, where it can use its more deadly attacks. A Skaarj can execute several leap attacks in a row if so desired. All Skaarj are intelligent, but the two castes have different methods of dealing with incoming fire. Warriors are extremely agile and will somersault and dive to avoid incoming fire, or even to move out of the line of fire of a hitscan weapon such as the ASMD or Rifle. They will adjust their tactics depending on the weapon that is being used against them. They also can play dead.
Skaarj Warriors come in several variations, each delivering a slightly different experience:
Contents
Skaarj Scout
Skaarj Scout | |
| Health | 180 |
| Projectile Damage | 10 |
| Melee Damage | 14-30 |
| Abilities: | Feign Death, Roll |
| Main Appearances: | |
The weakest of the Warrior caste, the Scout has dark yellowish-green skin with a dull red armor vest. Its armor consists of dark gray greaves, anklets, a belt with a crotch plate and thigh pads, and a Razik on each wrist. Moderately aggressive and decently quick, these are good beginner Skaarj that should be used to learn the basic Skaarj patterns. Scouts, like most Skaarj, are not above running away if they become too injured. Most of the time, a Flak cannon shot or two will kill a Skaarj Scout. But if you are low on Flak Cannon ammo or don't have the Flak Cannon yet, an Automag or ASMD will do fine. Dodge the Scout's Razik shots, and be sure to aim for the head.
Skaarj Warrior
Skaarj Warrior | |
| Health | 210 |
| Projectile Damage | 15 |
| Melee Damage | 14-30 |
| Abilities: | Feign Death, Roll |
| Main Appearances: | |
Bearing the same name as his caste, this is the most common Skaarj the player will encounter. Colored a light green with a gray chest and no apparent armor, this class is stronger than a Scout, and tends to be a little more aggressive. The absence of even the typical Razik on this class suggests that the claws and energy bolts may also be part of the Skaarj's natural physiology, a trait that is partly supported, and modified, by the Unreal Championship 2 incarnation of the Skaarj. The Flak Cannon is most effective weapon to use against them, although if you face a large number of Warriors, the ASMD or Eightball Gun will be a better choice. They appear to be about 7'10" tall at the top of the head, not counting the trademark dreadlocks. From the Mothership Core onwards, Warriors are obsolete. There are also two larger individuals that can be seen imprisoned in the Mothership Lab.
Skaarj Berserker
- Health: 320
- Melee damage: 20-40
These terrifying Skaarj stand as the tallest and largest of all standard Skaarj classes. They are similar in color to a Scout, but more pronounced, bearing a deeper red-brown chest and darker scales, as well as the same armor loadout, but the similarities effectively end there. While most Skaarj will fight with a degree of tactical care, Skaarj Berserkers will attack pretty much anything on-sight, and will close with their target as swiftly as possible. Their large size allows them to take and dish out significantly more damage than regular Skaarj, and allows them greater speed, making them extremely hard to evade. The Berserker's extreme aggressiveness can be used against it, as two Berserkers will almost automatically engage each other, which can allow the player to either slip away, wait it out and pick off the victor, or ambush the two with heavy firepower while they're distracted. Other than Berserkers, these can attack any type of enemies around, with the sole exception of Pupae, unless these ones are bothered. Berserkers are semi-rare and are usually presented as specific encounters, as opposed to regular enemies. The best way to deal with a Berserker is at range. The Rifle can decapitate a Berserker, although they can take more hits before dying, as can a few well-placed Razorjack rounds. If a Skaarj Berserker manages to break past a ranged attack, switch to the Flak Cannon. The explosive secondary fire can be used to weaken the Berserker before using primary fire to finish them. Additionally, they can be used as living weapons as they will attack most anything that moves. In The Darkening, Prisoner 849 will fight a very large, blue-hued Skaarj warrior that effectively behaves like a Berserker. It appears to be a Skaarj that has undergone some kind of cryogenic treatment, and is among the strongest and most aggressive Skaarj the player will meet. Like many enemies, Berserkers have significantly more health in The Darkening than in other levels, and are less likely to attack one another. This is obviously bad news for the player. They come in a number of appearences, including Scout-like, Warrior-like, Lord-like, and Ice Skaarj-like.
Skaarj Assassin
- Health: 220
- Melee damage: 14-30
A more disciplined Skaarj Warrior, Assassins are yellow in color, and wear a full-body armor suit that has a slight blueish hue. They are smarter and have faster reactions than a typical warrior. They remain fairly rare until late in the game, and can be hard to distinguish from Lords. Their armor allows them to take more damage than a typical Warrior. Tough foes, Assassins are commonly mistaken for Lords. If the player assumes a Skaarj Lord to be an Assassin, he or she will be in trouble as Assassins are a bit more aggressive (and as a direct result easier to attack) than the rather more tactical Skaarj Lords. This is especially true in the Core Generator of the Mothership, in which about 20-30 (depending on difficulty) Skaarj Assassins are led by 5-7 (again depending on difficulty) Skaarj Lords.
Skaarj Lord
- Health: 320
- Melee damage: 20-35
At first glance the Skaarj Lord looks like an Assassin, but larger, bolder, and darker. A Lord's armor loses the Assassin's blue hue in favor of a more black look, but their slightly larger size and more tactical attack strategies,as well as their increased health, will be the primary distinguishing factors. They are similar in power to the Berserkers, except are more intelligent and won't kill everything that they see. The Skaarj Lords are one of the highest classes of the Skaarj's forces, and while most other Skaarj were sent out to claim/defend towns and facilities on Na Pali's surface, the Skaarj Lords were used to guard the Mothership itself. In the course of Unreal, Prisoner 849 meets only 1 Skaarj Lord before reaching the Mothership, in the Cellars at Dasa Pass. In Return to Na Pali, a few more Skaarj Lords are found and fought, including a special, large Skaarj Lord at the end of Foundry (see Giant Skaarj below)
Ice Skaarj
- Health: 210
- Melee damage: 14-30
A very rare type of Skaarj. They are alternate versions of normal Skaarj Warriors, possessing a blue skin and wearing a grey armor suit. The final Skaarj of The Darkening is technically a Skaarj Berserker that uses the Ice Skaarj texture. Ice Skaarj have an immunity to the Frozen damage type (in Unreal, this is caused only by Nitrogen pools.) They are found in Watcher of the Skies and Gala's Peak only on Easy difficulty.
Luminescent Skaarj
- Health: from 340 to 500
- Melee damage: 14-30
These are experiments that the player will fight while exploring the Skaarj Mothership after destroying the main Generator and plunging the ship into inky blackness. They are translucent, and glow either blue or green, which makes them visible in the blackness of the ship. They are strong and aggressive, but ultimately not too much different from regular Skaarj in terms of tactics. Blue ones are more rare, and tend to be the weakest from this group. The green ones are like these latter, but with higher durability. There is also a larger, red/orange one that the player will meet while exploring the Skaarj Mothership Labs. Luminescent Skaarj also appear from the Trooper caste.
Giant Skaarj
- Health: 650
- Melee damage: 20-35
For lack of a better term, this enormous Skaarj Lord appears only once at the end of the Return to Na Pali level Bounds of Foundry as a surprise boss fight. The Skaarj have a history of genetic experiments, ranging from the Luminescent Skaarj to the Brutes and possibly beyond, which makes it reasonable to suppose that this beast is the work of Skaarj experimentation. The Giant Skaarj behaves like a typical Skaarj Lord, except that it is about 15 feet tall (1.5 times as tall as a normal Skaarj Lord) and fills half the room. Its health is also more than twice as much as a normal Skaarj Lord has. Strangely enough, the damage it deals with its Raziks and projectiles are not enhanced. It is a memorable, if bizarre encounter.
Social structure
With the exception of Berserkers, Skaarj Warriors tend to move about in small groups. Higher-ranking Warriors are often flanked by lower-ranked castes. For example, it is not uncommon to see a Skaarj Assassin being protected by a couple of Warriors or Scouts. Small gatherings of members of the same caste are also common, especially in Warriors and Scouts (and Assassins later in the game). In Return to Na Pali, on Easy difficulty, Ice Skaarj can be found alongside a single Skaarj Lord in the level Gala's Peak. In Unreal, however, the single Ice Skaarj in the game seems to be solitary or perhaps even mutinous, as the corpse of a Skaarj Lord can be found not far from it.