Antlion Guardian

"Ah, the ancient guardian! Retrieving the extract may not be unchallenging."

- Vortigaunt

The Antlion Guardian (referred to as "Ancient Guardians" by Vortigaunts) is a variant of the Antlion Guard encountered in Half-Life 2: Episode Two.

Appearance
Antlion Guardians appear physically identical to Antlion Guards but have a different coloration and are capable of bioluminescence.

Apparently, each Antlion hive has one Guardian that lurks near the larval clusters. The Guardian patrols the "Nectarium" (center of the nest), keeping watch for nest raiders. Guardians are extremely protective of Antlion Grubs, the extract of which is used by Vortigaunts to manipulate the Vortessence, and will ferociously attack intruders in order to protect them.

Should someone enter the Nectarium for larval extract, the Guardian will attack and may pursue the thieves for some distance.

Capabilities
Guardians have basically the same capabilities as an Antlion Guard, but with the added effect of a deadly neurotoxin somewhat like that of the Poison Headcrab. When fought on the surface in Freeman Pontifex, the Guardian doesn't have its neurotoxin effect.

Tactics
When fighting the Guardian be sure to keep a good distance away from it. Its headbutt attack is quite powerful, and can send the player flying quite a distance &mdash; or result in instant death if they should happen to be pinned against a wall. These attacks also have a poisonous side effect, which reduces the player's health, regardless of the current amount, to 12 &mdash; but the Guardian, unlike the poison headcrab, can actually kill the player if additional damage is caused.

When the Guardian chases the player through the hive tunnels, one should not attempt to fight it as it is invincible. The narrow tunnels don't offer much room to dodge around the guard and avoid its charge, so it is advisable to take cover in the 'grub tunnels' instead.

Be aware that the guard is able to move much faster than the player, even while sprinting. If necessary, the player can try to use the SMG's secondary grenade to stun the creature for a few seconds if it is hit it in the midsection. When hiding in grub tunnels, one should make sure said tunnel goes somewhere, or the player will be hopelessly stuck with an angry Guardian outside.

Behind the scenes

 * The Antlion Guardian is a recycled and completed version of the Antlion King, originally intended to appear in Half-Life 2.
 * In the first Episode Two teaser trailer released in 2006, the Guardian has a blue skin. Also just an alternate skin for the Antlion Guard like in Episode Two, it can be found in the Episode One games files, implying it was probably to appear originally in Mossman's message, along with the Hunter and the Antlion Grub.

Trivia

 * The Antlion Guardian is essentially the same enemy as the Antlion Guard with another skin and a poison attack.
 * The Orange Box Prima Guide states that Antlion Guardians are Antlion Guards that have been mutated. This is likely incorrect, since the game was not fully completed when the guide was written and the purpose of the Guard - protecting the Grubs - is natural.
 * The Guardian's running speed has been decreased since the game release, giving players an easier chance to run away from it. However, because it has more hit points than a normal Antlion Guard (so that players would not kill it as easily), and its attack is higher, it is technically the strongest Antlion out of the species.
 * The Antlion Guardian is completely immune to damage in the tunnel sequence - no weapon can kill it. A shot will stun it temporarily, but, even with full magazines and infinite ammunition, it is impossible to kill the guardian in the tunnel.
 * Guardians appear to be the hive 'queens' (although it is unknown if Antlions have genders) that produce the larvae, Vortigaunts have learned to keep them alive when raiding the nest as once they are killed, they emit an odor that affects the larvae in some unspecified way rendering them useless for extracting.

List of appearances

 * Half-Life 2: Episode One
 * Half-Life 2: Episode Two