if you could buff Xenomorph, how would you?
Hello There! i actually had a question because of the fact that Xeno has been regarded as a killer who is in dear need of a buff. Now i must ask
Does He Need a buff?
If so how would you buff him?
anything add on related to add?
Comments
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I personally think a Acidic Blood rework would be nice
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Just make change that turrets cant be placed togeather like one set turret cant have another one in its range and it will be good.
Only problem why people skip xeno and rather play simular killer are turrets they are obnoxious to deal with like good survivors that know where to set them can take so much time from xeno thats why he is rated very simulary to hag just few turrets and you are powerless killer for 20 like seconds on top super high so ming games are super hard.
Another thing would be basekit change that xeno can detect turrets from tinnels just like survivors it would be fair because they detect him.
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I used to play him a lot, and honestly he's always been a mid-high A-tier killer in regards to power potential. He's got the same if not a better version of the teleport that Sadako or Springtrap has, considering the speed he can teleport and the info he can get from being in his tunnels. His tail attack has a similar design to nemesis's whip but without a held charge before using it, and also no infection requirement to damage survivors. And yet, I understand why you made this post, his pickrate is incredibly low. I've seen only one xenomorph in the past couple months since I've started playing survivor more consistently again. His addons when compared to a lot of other killers in the mid-high A-tier range are actually very good, and give a few different playstyle or build options.
How would I buff him? I have no idea, because there doesn't seem to be any changes to his kit since release that would've made him less appealing, and tank his pickrate like it has. Maybe its because of the pallet changes, he is pretty vulnerable to people faking a pallet drop, getting a tail attack, then getting stunned right after. A xeno player who doesn't expect it can end up losing a game off of one or two decent stuns because of the current amount of pallets around maps. Even then though, he's not an M1 killer, he can work around pallets well enough with a little practice.
Only thing I could think of to buff him that wouldn't literally break his balance is maybe giving a short amount of undetectable after exiting a control station? Maybe 5 or 6 seconds would be enough to catch up to an unsuspecting survivor who couldn't hear the sound of exiting the tunnel. Similar to Springtrap after exiting a security door. Additionally, maybe rework a couple of addons. Examples I can think of would be Kane's helmet, which gives mangled for 70 seconds when hit by a tail attack. Could lower it to maybe 50 or 60, add hemorrhage as apart of it, and make the Multipurpose Hatchet (currently gives permanent hemorrhage until healed) instead extend the undetectable from exiting a control station, maybe by double to 10-12 seconds.
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Only thing I could think of to buff him that wouldn't literally break his balance is maybe giving a short amount of undetectable after exiting a control station? Maybe 5 or 6 seconds would be enough to catch up to an unsuspecting survivor who couldn't hear the sound of exiting the tunnel. Similar to Springtrap after exiting a security door. Additionally, maybe rework a couple of addons. Examples I can think of would be Kane's helmet, which gives mangled for 70 seconds when hit by a tail attack. Could lower it to maybe 50 or 60, add hemorrhage as apart of it, and make the Multipurpose Hatchet (currently gives permanent hemorrhage until healed) instead extend the undetectable from exiting a control station, maybe by double to 10-12 seconds.
While I agree that you cannot do much to his Kit without either making him weaker or too good, I dont think that Undetectable would be really useful. There is an audio cue when he exits one of his tunnels and if there is a Flamethrower nearby, this also beeps like crazy when he is about to come out of it. So I dont think that Undetectable would be really useful here.
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He does sadly have a low pickrate, and my friend has always told me that Xeno needs a buff or fix in a way. so i decided to ask for opinons and ideas from the community.
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Xenomorph does not nee a buff.
The character is basically as perfect as it can be with this design after the last set of balance adjustments it got.
Once mastered it is a high B/low A tier killer.
The problem with it is that the core design is flawed in that the flamer turrets are an enormous turnoff to people who want to try to learn the character. Once you learn how to play around them, they are no longer a big deal.
The only way to fix Xeno's pickrate is to completely rework it so that the flamer turrets are just simply removed from the game. This would also necessitate rebalancing several other aspects of its kit.
For better or worse this is the design we have, and I can't think of a single thing they could adjust about it. It doesn't need nerfs but it also can't really be buffed in any way without making it obnoxious to play against, akin to how it was when it launched and it had basically no punishment for missing a tail attack.
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Idk, for the majority of games I had with xeno undetectable perks were nice. Yes, it makes a sound, but it has a relatively short radius to be heard, especially with walls in the way. And if there isn't line of sight, you can easily catch survivors off guard. If I recall correctly, the xenomorph isn't like nemesis, he's fairly quiet when undetectable. Giving a little bit of basekit undetectable with an addon choice to make it even longer could probably help prevent people from pre-running, allowing him to use addons like acidic blood more often, closing a little distance to use his tail attack more consistently when ambushing generators. Pair it with the addon that adds exhaustion for 30 seconds to survivors who place turrets, and mindbreaker to prevent exhaustion from decreasing while working on a gen, and you could have a pretty nifty jumpscare build for holding down generators in tight areas, like jungle gyms or rooms of indoor maps.
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The problem with undetectable perks is that the flamer turrets still notify the survivors that you're getting close to them.
This is an aspect many find disappointing about the character. The xenomorph in the movies is famous for being an ambush killer that gets the drop on you. You could try to circumvent it with the build you're talking about here, but I don't know how well it would work.
If I had to think of a way to buff Xenomorph, this is what I would do.
First, make the current effect of Self-Destruct Bolt basekit (increases vaulting speed while in crawler mode). In my opinion, not only is this addon almost mandatory, it also helps realize the fantasy of playing the xenomorph, which is the whole wall crawling aspect. Allowing it to vault faster natively would help.
Then I would make the Self-Destruct Bolt make the Xenomorph immune to the motion trackers while not inside the tunnels, enabling undetectable builds.
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Funny thing is the devs actually considered this, which is why when the xenomorph exits a tunnel the turrets shut off momentarily if within 12 meters or so of the control station. Sure, this also can give away his position, but if you increased the radius to maybe 16 or 18 meters, survivors would have to guess whether or not he's heading toward you. It'd be a 50/50 guessing game, if the xenomorph is heading toward your generator. Plus, the optimal strategy is to place turrets in nearby loops, and not next to the generator.
Maybe making the bolt basekit could help, but the full 30% might be a little much. Maybe 15 or 20% would be fine, considering if diminishing returns affects any perks that would stack on top of it. Having an addon that makes the xenomorph immune to turret trackers would be a decent green or brown rarity addon tbh.
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I have never played Xenomorph so i have no idea how he works naturally. This entire post was encouraged by a friend of mine who told me that Xeno could use a buff. He does seem very fun to play though
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I wouldn't, they seem perfectly balanced.
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I think they are at a decent power level, ideally around where most Killers should fall. the thing about Xeno is that they feel bad to play as; actual or perceived strength doesn't really matter.
nothing feels worse than making this killer auto aim a hit in their own turret. I accidentally did that to a xeno and even I felt bad.
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Basically Xeno can sometimes feel like a 'feast or famine' type killer
If survivors aren't diligent on turrets, chases end quickly because dodging xeno's tail is tricky and good xeno players know how the lingering hitbox works to make the most out of it. Kinda like how Nemesis can tentacle drag, that kind of thing. Pair that with their mobility and that's the 'feast' type
Then you get to face survivors who are diligent on turrets:
- They will daisy chain you from turret to turret
- They will place turrets on hills that can shoot down at you and you can't easily destroy (Yes this is a thing)
- They will place turrets around the corners of tiles meaning you are forced to turn away from things like windows/pallets in order to destroy them
- They will place 2 turrets close together, meaning even if you destroy one the other one removes your power anyway.
Overall people's consensus that Xeno is strong but feels really annoying to play is pretty spot on most of the time.
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Xeno is mid like his antiloop is better nemi without breaking ability but at cost he can be power managed by turrets which shifts him from low a-tier (against not so good survivors) to like mid-low b-tier to even c-tier against strong swfs that can use turrets to maximun potencial with their coordination and shut his power easily and without tali xeno is very bad killer, easy to spot.
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the one thing I'll give xeno these days over my boy nemesis is that I actually like the tail nerfs that make them more reactable as it allows you to commit to a read on a survivor and "queue" your attack, which if you loop survivors around the left side of loops you can get hits that Nemesis and old Xeno could never dream of
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The delay sometimes helps aroun corners but old xeno was bigger beast and turrets were justified because his tail attack speed on release had short reaction time so you could hit same things as today but differently maybe some were harder but basic ones were easier.
All depends which xeno because through years they nerfed a lot like after tail hit movement speed or tail hitbox (you could drag verticaly tail hits over loops). Now even with his buffs I would say he isnt stronger then before like turrets take longer time to kick you out of power true and cooldown after missing tail is shorter (was like 3 seconds and now its 2,5 seconds) but even with these buffs his tail is weaker survivors can react way more and close hits arent dosble as before where he attacked faster.
He can still shread health states if he hits but his skill is higher then before and his power went down by bit so he is weaker then springtrap in my opinion just sitting somewhere in the middle to lower b-tier because of turrets without them he could be like low a-tier but as I said before good survivors hat know how to use them will destroy him with them so nemi is still bit better because tier 2 atleast gives breaking and in tier 3 he can get 3 hits very fast he only has worse start where he just like oni or old mayers must power up asap to tier 2 to have some antiloop, vaccines arent as punishing for him as turrets for xeno plus they take some time from survivor and reveal their location but turrets have just negative effects for xeno while his power isnt even sonthat great comparing it to more simular powers like nemi.
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Hello,
I wouldn't nerf turrets, buff stealth or buff the Tail Attack.
I'd buff the tunnels.
The Tail Attack is already strong and doesn't need help. Survivors already complain about it enough and I don't think making Xenomorph an even stronger anti-loop killer would improve the character.
Likewise, I don't think stealth is the answer. Any killer can receive Undetectable effects or a smaller Terror Radius. That doesn't make them feel more like Alien, it just makes them feel more like another stealth killer.
As for turrets, I know many Xeno players dislike them, but I don't think they're a design problem. Motion Trackers and Flamethrowers are straight out of Alien: Isolation and create a dynamic no other killer has. Humans preparing defenses against an overwhelming threat is one of the most thematic aspects of the chapter.
To me, the real issue is that the most unique part of the kit often feels less influential than the visible part of the kit.
Xenomorph is the only killer in the game with an underground network that lets it gather information, track survivors, intercept rotations and choose its targets. That's what makes the killer special. Yet many matches end up revolving around the Tail Attack while the tunnels are mostly used to recharge Crawler Mode a few times per game, or once at the very start.
That's where I'd put the buffs.
More Control Stations, faster tunnel traversal, faster entry and exit speeds and slightly stronger tracking while underground.
The fantasy of Alien is never knowing where the creature is until it suddenly appears. Better tunnels would naturally make Xenomorph stealthier, less predictable, better at acting upon the information it gathers, a stronger ambusher and reduce the impact of Flamethrowers without directly nerfing them.
It would also complete the Alien: Isolation fantasy. In that game, vents are everywhere. The Alien is never far away. You never feel safe because the creature can emerge from almost anywhere at any moment.
To me, the solution is making the tunnels, the most unique and iconic part of its power, more central to its gameplay.
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In anticipation, i would like to adress this
"More control stations means more turrets"
My idea was to keep the current 7 primary Control Stations and their turret economy unchanged, while adding secondary tunnel entrances without turret interaction (no case on the rock entrance).
The goal isn't to increase the number of turrets on the map. It's to improve tunnel coverage and make the underground network feel more accessible and rewarding to use.
Even if additional stations did provide turrets, more tunnel access would also mean faster Crawler Mode recovery, more repositioning opportunities and less downtime after being knocked out of power.
In other words, more stations don't automatically mean a survivor buff. It depends entirely on how they're implemented.
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I personally don't think Xenomorph can be significantly buffed in a healthy way. Eg. Removing the motion detectors from Turrets is a common suggestion to make it stealthier, but it's such an iconic part of Alien I can't really imagine removing it. Xeno would need a rework on some level.
My dream rework would be adding Facehuggers, but I appreciate that would probably be way too much art work for a rework, so I have two quick alternatives:
- Rework Crawler/Standing mode into a proper stance swap system where there are some reasons for Xeno to enter standing mode, not sure exactly what but I think it would be more fun to play with and add a small amount of versatility.
- Modify Tail Attack to lean into "curving" it, eg. giving it a larger delay, but there's a better visual for it being curved in the air, it has a longer reach and better curving ability so it feels a bit more like a Pinhead projectile and allows skilled Xenos to hit around corners to some extent.
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Exit speed from tunnels?? They tried it in ptb where were his last changes and it didnt worked like you always had your camera pounted to the sky every time you exit tunnel and i was buggy.
For tunnel detection if they increased detection oc survivors because tunnels are still not covering whole map and add some detection of turrets into basekit from tunnel this would work.
He will aleays be left behind due to turrets being his annoying counter and because there are killers with more fun power like nemi,springtrap or upcoming jason unless devs dont screw him on release.
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You're right, but I don't think the PTB exit speed is the whole picture.
The PTB reduced the exit time from 2.25s to 1.5s, which was a massive change. It felt amazing to use, but it also broke animations and made ambushes extremely difficult to react to. I don't think Xeno needs anything that extreme.
The main change I'd make isn't even the exit speed, it's more tunnel access points.
Something like:
7 main stations with the flame turrets (unchanged)
7 secondary tunnel entrances without the flame turrets
Footstep detection increased to 24m (from 16m)
Tunnel speed increased to 20 m/s (from 18m/s)
Exit speed reduced slightly to 2s (from 2.25s)
Add-on pass
The tunnels are the most unique part of the kit, yet many games end up being mostly about the Tail Attack. More access points would create more opportunities for tracking, ambushing, intercepting rotations and acting upon the information you gather underground.
To me, the solution isn't reinventing the killer. The foundation is already there. The tunnels just don't feel quite central enough to the gameplay loop.
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get rid of his turrets and just let pallet stuns knock it out of crawler
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Last time I played I felt so frustrated tbh. he is in a desperate need for a buff and here's my idea for it:
when he hits a torret by his tail, he should recover from the hit animation significantly faster and shouldn't suffer any movement speed penalty at all. because as of right now, a survivor can lead you to a torret and it will put you in a lose-lose situation. You hit the torret? survivor will gain distance and most likely will lead you to another torret since they can see them map-wide. you ignore the torret? enjoy being an m1 killer.
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