Character from Half-Life 2 by Valve
Xen's insectoid swarm — territorial, relentless, and controllable by anyone brave enough to hold a pheropod.
Antlions are territorial hive creatures that the Combine hasn't been able to fully control — they resort to thumper devices along the coast to keep antlion swarms from overrunning settlements. The thumpers emit vibrations that antlions avoid, creating safe corridors through infested beach territory. The key to antlions is the pheropod — a scent gland from their Guard that, when carried, causes worker antlions to follow and fight for the bearer. Gordon uses this during the assault on Nova Prospekt, turning the Combine's antlion problem into the resistance's antlion army. In the Vortigaunt caves of Episode Two, antlions reveal a more complex ecology — grubs, nurseries, a guardian that protects larvae. The Vortigaunts harvest antlion extract, a glowing substance with powerful healing properties, for which they must negotiate the hive's defenses.
Large insectoid creatures roughly the size of a large dog, with chitinous exoskeletons in sandy brown and green. Powerful hind legs launch them into leaping attacks. Mandibles click and snap. They burst from the sand in waves when vibration triggers their territorial response. Worker antlions are smaller; the Antlion Guard is a massive, heavily armored bull-like variant that charges and rams. Underground, antlion grubs glow with bioluminescent extract that has powerful healing properties.
Also known as: Antlions, Bugs, Antlion Guard, Antlion Grubs