<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Natural Selection Manual</TITLE>
<META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<script language="JavaScript">
<!--
function MM_swapImgRestore() { //v3.0
var i,x,a=document.MM_sr; for(i=0;a&&i<a.length&&(x=a[i])&&x.oSrc;i++) x.src=x.oSrc;
}
function MM_preloadImages() { //v3.0
var d=document; if(d.images){ if(!d.MM_p) d.MM_p=new Array();
var i,j=d.MM_p.length,a=MM_preloadImages.arguments; for(i=0; i<a.length; i++)
if (a[i].indexOf("#")!=0){ d.MM_p[j]=new Image; d.MM_p[j++].src=a[i];}}
}
function MM_findObj(n, d) { //v4.0
var p,i,x; if(!d) d=document; if((p=n.indexOf("?"))>0&&parent.frames.length) {
d=parent.frames[n.substring(p+1)].document; n=n.substring(0,p);}
if(!(x=d[n])&&d.all) x=d.all[n]; for (i=0;!x&&i<d.forms.length;i++) x=d.forms[i][n];
for(i=0;!x&&d.layers&&i<d.layers.length;i++) x=MM_findObj(n,d.layers[i].document);
if(!x && document.getElementById) x=document.getElementById(n); return x;
}
function MM_swapImage() { //v3.0
var i,j=0,x,a=MM_swapImage.arguments; document.MM_sr=new Array; for(i=0;i<(a.length-2);i+=3)
if ((x=MM_findObj(a[i]))!=null){document.MM_sr[j++]=x; if(!x.oSrc) x.oSrc=x.src; x.src=a[i+2];}
}
//-->
</script>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="css/alien.css" type="text/css">
</HEAD>
<BODY BGCOLOR=#000000 leftmargin="0" topmargin="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" onLoad="MM_preloadImages('images/design/buttons_nav_on.gif','images/design/buttons_gen_on.gif','images/design/buttons_front_on.gif','images/design/buttons_alien_on.gif','images/images/alien_bacterium_s.gif','images/images/alien_hive_s.gif','images/images/alien_chambers_s.gif','images/images/alien_species_s.gif')" background="images/design/page_background.gif" text="#FFFFFF" link="#0099FF">
<table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 width="704" height="512" align="center">
<tr>
<td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=40 height=1></td>
<td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=33 height=1></td>
<td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=24 height=1></td>
<td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=375 height=1></td>
<td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=82 height=1></td>
<td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=175 height=1></td>
<td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=39 height=1></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan=2> <img src="images/design/surround_ne1.gif" width=73 height=34></td>
<td> <img src="images/design/surround_power.gif" width=24 height=34></td>
<td colspan=4> <img src="images/design/surround_n.gif" width=671 height=34></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td height="103" valign="top"><img src="images/design/red/surround_title_w.gif" width="40" height="103"></td>
<td colspan=3 height="103" valign="top">
<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" height="103">
<tr>
<td height="57"><img src="images/design/red/surround_title_animated.gif" width="432" height="57"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" background="images/design/red/surround_title_s.gif"><span class="sectiontext"><font color="#FF6600"><a href="alien.html" class="sectionlink">Kharaa
Data</a> :: <a href="alien_species.html" class="sectionlink">Species</a>
:: <a href="alien_lerk.html" class="sectionlink">Lerk</a>: Hive-Learned
Abilities </font></span></td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
<td height="103" valign="top"><img src="images/design/red/surround_title_c.gif" width="82" height="103"></td>
<td height="103" valign="top">
<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" height="103">
<tr>
<td><a href="introduction.html" onMouseOut="MM_swapImgRestore()" onMouseOver="MM_swapImage('button_nav','','images/design/buttons_nav_on.gif',1)"><img name="button_nav" border="0" src="images/design/buttons_nav_off.gif" width="175" height="25"></a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="general.html" onMouseOut="MM_swapImgRestore()" onMouseOver="MM_swapImage('button_general','','images/design/buttons_gen_on.gif',1)"><img name="button_general" border="0" src="images/design/buttons_gen_off.gif" width="175" height="23"></a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="frontiersmen.html" onMouseOut="MM_swapImgRestore()" onMouseOver="MM_swapImage('button_tsa','','images/design/buttons_front_on.gif',1)"><img name="button_tsa" border="0" src="images/design/buttons_front_off.gif" width="175" height="28"></a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td height="2"><a href="alien.html" onMouseOut="MM_swapImgRestore()" onMouseOver="MM_swapImage('button_alien','','images/design/buttons_alien_on.gif',1)"><img name="button_alien" border="0" src="images/design/buttons_alien_off.gif" width="175" height="27"></a></td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
<td height="103" valign="top"><img src="images/design/surround_title_e.gif" width="39" height="103"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td height="103" valign="top" colspan="7">
<table width="768" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" height="424" align="left">
<tr>
<td background="images/design/red/surround_w.gif"><img src="images/design/red/surround_w.gif" width="40" height="482"></td>
<td width="472" background="images/design/red/background.gif" valign="top">
<p><img src="images/design/red/background_n.gif" width="689" height="16"></p>
<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" width="100%" height="63">
<tr>
<td align="center" valign="top">
<table width="100" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tr>
<td><img src="images/titles/alien_lerk.gif" width="628" height="25" hspace="25"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<table width="628" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" bgcolor="#330000" align="center" bordercolor="#CC0000">
<tr>
<td>
<p><b>Summary</b>: Wiry fast and fierce, Lerks excel
at attacking from a distance, but also have a
vicious bite. They are small and light - making
them difficult targets, but less resistant to
damage. If Skulks are hit and run artists, then
Lerks are guerrilla fighters without peer, using
their speed, mobility, and range to harass marine
squads with impunity. [<a href="alien_lerk_name.html">Name</a>]</p>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<div align="center"><br>
<img src="images/titles/alien_hivelearned.gif" width="628" height="25">
</div>
<table width="628" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="3" align="center" bordercolor="#CC0000">
<tr valign="top">
<td colspan="2">
<p class="sectiontext"><a href="alien_skulk.html"><img src="images/tech_10/alien_back.gif" width="15" height="15" border="0"></a>
<a href="alien_lerk.html">Lerk</a></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr valign="top">
<td>
<table width="406" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="left">
<tr>
<td height="23">
<p><b>Two/Three Hive Abilities</b><br>
<br>
<b>Two Hives</b>: <span class="sectiontext">Umbra</span><br>
<br>
A variation on the sporecloud, this remarkable
ability is used for defense, not attack.
The umbra is an orange cloud that lasts
for ten seconds, and protects all friendly
creatures and chambers inside it. The particles
in the cloud seem to have disruptive kinetic
properties. Incoming bullets and shrapnel
are robbed of momentum, and are likely to
bounce harmlessly off their target. A small
percentage of projectiles in any given attack
will slip through unaffected. <a href="weapons_knife.html">Knives</a>
and <a href="weapons_grenadelauncher.html">grenades</a>
are also not affected: the mass of the marine
is behind a knife slash, and a grenade's
blast particles are so small and fast they
slip through. However, <a href="weapons_lmg.html">LMG</a>'s,
<a href="weapons_shotgun.html">shotguns</a>,
<a href="weapons_hmg.html">HMG</a>'s and
<a href="weapons_pistol.html">pistols</a>
all do a fraction of their normal damage.
Alien weapons, puzzlingly enough, can pass
out of the cloud normally. Besides personal
defense, Lerks often use umbra to protect
<a href="alien_chambers.html">chambers</a>,
<a href="alien_hive.html">hives</a> and
other aliens during coordinated actions.</p>
<p>We would very much like to learn the composition
of this cloud – various experiments
have been proposed by TSA scientific personnel,
all quickly rejected by field commanders.<br>
</p>
<p><b>Three Hives</b>: <span class="sectiontext">Sporecloud</span><br>
<br>
This insidious attack appears to come from
nowhere, filling a volume of around 12 cubit
feet with a corrosive cloud of spores. These
spores appear to rot any foreign organic
matter – thankfully, marine structures
and turrets are unaffected. </p>
<p>Our best theory is that the Lerk fills
its lung guns and fires a burst of transparent,
utterly silent, bullet-shaped bubbles that
impact the target area and react violently
with the air. Lerks can fill a large area
with these attacks, often while remaining
hidden on some shadowed perch, or dodging
wildly through the air. None but the heaviest
armored marines can afford to stand within
a sporecloud for more than a few seconds.</p>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
<p><br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<a href="alien_skulk_observation.html"><br>
</a></p>
</td>
<td><img src="images/images/lerk.gif" width="200" height="200"></td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" width="100%">
<tr>
<td align="center" valign="top">
<div align="center"> </div>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
<td background="images/design/red/surround_e.gif"><img src="images/design/red/surround_e.gif" width="37" height="482"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="3" height="2"><img src="images/design/red/surround_s.gif" width="768" height="81"></td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</BODY>
</HTML>