Keep Off The Sand! | The Antlion Species | FULL Half-Life Deep Dive & Lore

[@Skyrionn]

Did you stay off the sand?

[@froggyproductions5747]

no, poor lazlo

[@Gordon_Freeman484]

​@@froggyproductions5747 :(

[@Ze_eT]

Yes... after I saw it gave me an achievement. Before that, nope.

[@antonites.productions1719]

was too curious

[@poisoncrab]

sometimes

[@Mrkabrat]

"Over the years of their occupation of the planet, many great minds and fighters have lost their lives to them" RIP Laszlo, the finest mind of his generation

[@Epicly-Adamant]

I KNOW! im honestly curious about Laszlo and who he was, thats why im making a movie about him on YT.

[@ddkddk3573]

@@Epicly-Adamant that will be cool

[@samuelantoniocastillomeza5034]

Antlions are fascinating and can be cute as they are dangerous and brutal. Having your own army of them for a couple of chapters was of the best things I have experienced in a game.

[@JJjjJJjjJJ28]

As cute and dangerous as a grizzly bear

[@miro_theburger]

glad im not the only one

[@Duesikazergaming]

The antlions where an important ally to the resistance

[@imnolongerasking5933]

I had to stop naming my antlions cause too many died in the beaches of Nova Prospekt. o7

[@slippedcell3665]

​@@JJjjJJjjJJ28yeah, but more bug-like

[@jasperfox6821]

I think we all tried to save Lazlo at one point, I know I did a few times, he truly was the finest mind of his generation.

[@papahemmy8587]

I wish the game would let you save him instead of just forcing a kill trigger.

[@jasperfox6821]

@@papahemmy8587 yeah that sucks

[@lotus7781]

@@jasperfox6821 i think its there because he either gets stabbed by atleast one of the antlions or if you killed them all at once, you likely had to throw a grenade or something

[@imnolongerasking5933]

First interaction, I launched a grenade straight towards him. It's sad that he later died of natural causes.

[@ROLITO-G-243]

​@@lotus7781Unfortunately it is impossible, if you manage to time a grenade to explode and kill all the antilions that appear, Lazlo will still die from bleeding (there is no friendly fire so the grenade does not kill him) and unlike HL1, it is not so easy to avoid the triggers of events

[@PikkaBird]

I was under the impression that City 17 was overrun with antlions as a result of the Citadel being destroyed rather than the Resistance disabling restrictors throughout the city? Those enormous thumpers at the Citadel's foundations are the only ones we see in the city and I assumed their shockwaves would be powerful enough to repel antlions from entire area (although it's fully possible that there are regular restrictors scattered throughout the parts of the city that are furthest from the Citadel).

[@lois3469]

You are probably right, because in ep1 Alyx said, that explosion in the citadel, caused "defense field" to collapse.

[@retardedidiot1]

@@lois3469 it could mean the citadel being destroyed deactivated the thumper network around city 17

[@5amgames736]

In ep1 the ant lions had tunnels all across the city

[@JudeOhHecc]

This guy never stops making quality videos

[@AlmostYearly]

Quality is a noun, not an adjective.

[@anncotner1861]

@@AlmostYearly your the easiest nerd that ever nerded🤓🤓🤓🤓

[@DontHateMeCausImSexy]

@@AlmostYearly LOSER ALERT

[@AMBATUKAMceo]

​@@AlmostYearly 🤓

[@skraxel]

@@AlmostYearly shut up

[@ShatteredGlassUnicron]

Rest in peace Lazlo. Gone, but never forgotten.

[@Nanamowa]

Especially considering his death was ret-con'd

[@ryguy-qh2qk]

Who was Lazlo

[@lilslav4504]

​@@Nanamowa it was?

[@littleweaselboy2865]

@@Nanamowa yea wat

[@firstnext5482]

@@ryguy-qh2qk You don't know who Lazlo was!? He the finest mind of his generation!

[@iceheart1289]

Gordan, Alyx, Griggs, and Sheckley can take Antlion hits like a champ. But a Combine super solider gets a tickle form an Antlion 💀

[@PillsGod]

Are you talking about Entropy Zero 2?

[@asdawasda]

@@PillsGodwhy would he be talking about entropy zero 2

[@PillsGod]

@@asdawasda bc if you get hit by a antlion in that game you're guy says. 'Hey that one kinda tickles' And you also play as the combine super solider he talked about.

[@praytogarfield9526]

@@PillsGod he isnt

[@PillsGod]

@@praytogarfield9526 he isn't what?

[@anitabath8315]

Half-Life fans are so insane that they’ll be talking about the bug’s impact in the lore. So depraved. I love it.

[@bobthestinky7369]

A little depraved, very deprived. The trickle of Half-Life content is weak and does strange things to a HL fan.

[@purpleemerald5299]

I mean…they’re incredibly plot relevant on multiple occasions. Nothing about this seems out of the ordinary.

[@ryguy-qh2qk]

Ant lion breeding

[@cjthebeesknees]

We have become Human Vorts.

[@zem302]

I feel like Antlions are Based on the Bugs from "Starship Troopers". Just look at them Side-by-side. They look really similar .

[@aresnir2725]

Yes, they are similar in nature, but their bodies are different.

[@FakeFlemishOfficer]

the only good bug is a dead bug..

[@christiangottsacker6932]

Oh definitely. Theyre just as annoyingly overpowering if not a bit weaker individually

[@adamfoxton6341]

We're all watching this because we would like to know more.

[@isitchillyinahut5921]

I'm doing my part!

[@entropic-decay]

personally, I really hope that if we get a half-life 3 we see something akin to an antlion queen/king at some point in it maybe it could act as a sort of boss, where you have to defend against waves of antlions (including guards and workers and so on) while something is done with the queen/king that's causing it to call out to the others for aid through vibrations and pheromonal signals

[@-aepo-]

Yes. Valve needs to revisit the antlion queen/king concept and make that a big story point. The antlion kings and queens migrating, and the advisor evolved forms too, maybe we can see more of them and their world.

[@EmeraldArchive]

I LOVE ANTLIONS 🐜🦁🐜🦁🐜🦁🐜🦁🐜🦁

[@MaxiSniper]

Truee

[@angelagoode7107]

🐜🦁

[@itokishere]

mr big sweaty❤

[@NonstickSQYD]

Me TOOOO!!!!!

[@tmanthedude500]

I LOVE KILLING ANTLIONS!

[@OtherWorldExplorers]

"Greatest minds of our time have fallen to them." I think he's referring to Lazlo.

[@NewTungsten]

In Half-Life Alyx, the liquids used by the Combine to quarantine Xen infested areas are made from farming Antlions.

[@cookiejoe5564]

I encountered my first Antlion Guard in Gmod (I didn't know Half Life 2 at the time, but I played 1 as a kid) and seeing them destroy every other NPCs I spawned except the Strider made me love them, best enemy in the game hands down.

[@Hyperion-5744]

The antlion king reminds me of the camel spider which may have been a possible inspiration for it's design. Good video skyrionn.

[@AngelofGrace96]

We got a full nature documentary this week! Thank you Skyrionn!

[@codymcgrath2.3bviews3secon7]

Finally someone did a worthwhile antlion video. One of the most exciting videos you've done yet, they're such an interesting species brought the combine to their knees

[@joshuacarter4484]

I find it so crazy that you don't have at least 300k subs. I mean when it comes to lore I've never had someone keep my attention for so long.

[@yoanlul]

Please do an Ichthyosaur lore video 🙏 They have always been my biggest fear, but I’d love to learn more about them.

[@mpcrauzer]

Since there's no more fish in the sea, apart from ichthyosaur and those pests bloody sucking worms, can we eat the Flesh of the ichthyosaur?

[@wujsks2008]

​@@mpcrauzerthe only sealife that can be reminded in HL universe is crabs

[@richielucas6825]

This channel has been a lifesaver for me in 2023. Although I discovered it later than I would have liked, I've been listening to its videos repeatedly like an audio book while I work. It's truly been a game changer for my productivity and morale.

[@-aepo-]

I know for a fact, Valve can do so much more with the antlion and vort dynamic. We can see the farming operations of the hunter gatherer vorts and the combine and even the resistance network- using the antlion colonies to their own advantage and breeding them as an army or resource as well. What happens when two distinct colonies fight? What do the king and queen look like? There's much more here to be told.

[@shreksnow1918]

It would be awesome if for the Blue Shift remake the team were to reimagine the chapter with the Xen caves as an Antlion nest and use it to show how Vortigaunts used Antlion Husbandry. You could add in those thumpers/pistons from HL1 as a way to keep the Antlions in line and turn them off to cause chaos. That would be really cool. Sadly they probably won’t do that. It would be an amazing way to provide environmental storytelling and a shakeup in gameplay. I really like how dangerous the Antlions are. The caves were probably my favorite part of Episode 2 because it was a unique change of pace. It will be interesting to see how the Beta mods recreate the Antlion King.

[@thegoldenbucketstudios9896]

i believe antilions are not xen lifeforms

[@Futo_no_mononobe]

They're the worst kind of monsters since they destroyed lazlow, the finest mind of his generation

[@ShinigamiSamaH]

Usually, it is either you fight the swarm, you play as the swarm, or the bad guys using the swarm. So it was a very unique concept of the good guys using the "swarm faction" as ally in combat (albeit without the Antlions being aware of it).

[@worrior3008]

The combine is more dangerous than said, and I love it's story, thanks for the lore because it's scary and interesting. Gives me the runnings, thanks man. 👍👌

[@Skyrionn]

There's so much more to cover too. The beta had much darker concept that I cannot wait to explore and share.

[@HellishSpoon]

Antlions are fierce creatures... that get merced by barnacles that don't even move around and probably one of the least dangerous creatures that came from xen

[@BenjamminFranklin.]

A 30 minute documentary about antlions is something I didn’t know I needed until right now.

[@SapphiR3_]

Theres also the blue antlion frim HLA. While it may look like a "worker" re-design. I'd like to think they are a new version. Like a "scout" perhaps.

[@117slight]

Love watching these half life videos, half life is one of my favorite series along with portal. Your channel keeps excited about the half life universe

[@SinAster_19]

In my Theory, I think the Combine killed other species like the Houndeye and the Bullsquid due to them being very hard to control and possibly killing Combine soldiers in the process. The only reason Antlions Aren't extinct is because they were very hard to control and grew their populations fast in caves and other places the Combine couldn't get to; or would be too dangerous. My second thought is that they found out that the Antlions Larva contain Liquids inside them that can Heal Internal Wounds so that's they why they haven't killed them all

[@arekrekas213]

it's confirmed that the bullsquid are still out there, though maybe they left those because they're just that awesome?

[@an-average-box]

@@arekrekas213 that and probably because bullsquids are expensive relatively to handle compared to how aggressive they are, there also confirmed to be horny as fuck in canon and reproduce constantly, so there extremely hard to wipe out aswell

[@praytogarfield9526]

I doubt they would have exterminated houndeyes. There is so much wasteland out there, no way to exterminate all of them

[@razzz00]

this channel is AWESOMENESS!!

[@Skyrionn]

Wow, thanks!

[@BlackCatRedScarf]

I was just playing HL2 recently and it's possible to rescue the guy who warns you to do not touch the sand, but his partner seems to be not possible. After rescuing his from the antlions, he checks the situation with a terrible sorrow about the loss of his partner telling Gordon to keep moving while he will stay there for a while taking care of some other stuff. He finalizes his own monologue saying that he is not even sure if it's worthy to finish what he is doing now that he lost "the mind of a generation" or something like that.

[@axonek8682]

There are a lot of your videos that I watched, but most of them are when I watch them I sleep and watch them again and then sleep again 😂 relaxing video ❤

[@Skyrionn]

I'm happy to help in some way!

[@axonek8682]

@@Skyrionn thanks for your efforts

[@SerpentNight]

There are Antlions in real life too. There not as large or dangerous to humans like those in HL but there tough customers all the same and they also lay traps by burrowing in the sand. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antlion

[@criminal7592]

"Not as large or dangerous to humans" YET

[@Gator159]

The background music you use in these videos often get stuck in my head long after I watch the video lol

[@Skyrionn]

You're welcome? I think

[@Moron_g]

basicaly how antlions overwelmed combine soldiers is a soviet saying(hope i translated it correctly): there is no fight against a crowbar, exxpept, if you have another crowbar.

[@mr.philosoraptor5814]

Keep in mind that the citadel in City 17 is literally a giant thumper. Its why antlions show up in episode 1 since the citadel is no longer keeping them away.

[@-aepo-]

Which begs the question, are the advisors the antlion king/ queen brood?

[@CornBreadDetective]

You should do barnacles next I’ve always wondered how they form and where they come from

[@Skyrionn]

They're on the long list :)

[@Ric_Vicious]

@@Skyrionn Yes please! I've always wondered if Barnacles spore into existence like a fungus or something, lol.

[@nannesoar]

17:17 god damn that citizen took a wrong turn

[@mlgmagichoodini3590]

There's also the new antlion seen in HL:A the blue ones that can shoot it from a distance, feels like the workers, but with the body of the soldiers?

[@kokowoch]

Skyrionn: "What if.. i offer you something, you.. dont.. know....... you wanted.." *uploads antlion lore video*

[@CatLikeSleep]

keep the lore coming dude :D

[@Skyrionn]

There's always more to come

[@AMBATUKAMceo]

"Stay off the sand itll make the antlions crazy." -Few moments before laszlo death

[@RileyJohnson4321]

Been waiting for this to come thanks so much for this lore video

[@Dual-Lances]

This guy needs an oscar award for the best introduction voice

[@cappyking_3]

I get so happy every time you upload keep it up!

[@darrell840]

Wow that's a super cool video. Thanks mate!

[@Skyrionn]

Glad you liked it!

[@shapeswitch_mood7221]

Isn't there a part where they milked Antlion for Xen Pest control in HL Alyx? I thought you would cover that.

[@pixleplays305]

RIP lazlo. he was the greatest mind of his generation o7

[@Claymann71]

David Attenborough Jr. talks about Half-Life: My Brain: _Fascinating_

[@jamiesheather8699]

Excellent video, mate. Now, how about that beer?

[@killeing]

The antlion section is the absolute best once you get the Queen Egg Sac thing- summoning hordes of antlions is so much fun to mess with ^^!!!

[@Im_Data]

Great video my dude. Now, about that beer you owe me :)

[@pustka_1792]

Great video!

[@akashsuresh1369]

Remember that Antlions seem to remember Gordon. Specially the Guardian who stalks Gordon and rushes out with a Antlion Guard and we had to fight both of them in broad daylight.

[@angelsandautobots]

There's nothing quite like taking out entire squads of Combine soldiers with an army of loyal Antlions. 😀👍

[@realdoctortenenbaum]

Even though they are blind, the Antlion grubs have quite big eyes (or a big holoptic compound eye).

[@ReekyCoyote]

You should do a video about the G-Man, there’s so many mysteries about him.

[@CrabGamingTF2]

The Antlion nest is probably the most disgusting area in the Half-Life series

[@ShaktiChaturvedi]

Agreed but why is squishing larvae to gain health so satisfying ?

[@coryclark7706]

Excellent content... i always wondered what part they really played

[@cocanecaulk]

Great video, but you used the word subspecies incorrectly throughout the video. A subspecies refers to a semi-isolated breeding group within a species, such as dingoes, dogs, and gray wolves all being subspecies of Canis lupus. The different forms of Antlions seen in HL2+Alyx are instead castes; except the grub, which is not a caste or a subspecies, but just a life stage of the species.

[@BadVoodo0]

I don't think antlions eat humans, there's no way there's enough humans to sustain that many ant you fight in hl2. I believe the ant lions are are maybe eating a sort of fungus that grows off corpses from zen and earth.

[@fuzzy9429]

Theory: Pheropods wouldn't work on Antlion Spitters because they can stare right into your soul with their very own eyes

[@WolfyStudio115]

Im surprised you didn't talk about the hla variant of antlions since they are different than there hl2 counterparts I think that they are different because of the way these creatures evolve and adapt to different environments, in hla they are in the quarantine zone and not in the sandy parts so they adapted to having heavier appearances and armor making them slower and dangerous to fight, we see that they even built gigantic nests below the vault which means the combine probably did that intentionally to prevent resistance members from getting to it, the combine used them for making xen foam for civil workers to cover up xen growth as we can see in some chapters of the game, and I think that we don't see them in hl2 because the city was finally finished and all quarantine zones were patched up during that time. But personally i think theres versions of the antlion we haven't seen around the world in the half life universe, but who knows

[@Freemelon07]

Poor Lazlo, he finest mind of his generation...come to such an end.

[@ionescuandrei1245]

The Antlion guard also appears in another game called "Alien swarm" , made by VALVe

[@quaiacka]

Once again you've made a fantastic video mate! I watch all your content from start to finish so I'll let you know the next time I visit wales(?) so you can buy me that beer🍻 have you done one on the G-man yet? it's possible I've missed it but I can't seem to find a video on him from you. keep up the greatness!

[@pleasantdashi7112]

They’re my favorite! They’re even real animals (Antlions) and based off of trap jaw insect but I can’t remember the name 😅

[@reeceemms1643]

I always have this wonder about some of the establishing shots in these videos, do you use Garry's mod for them? if so, what maps

[@HungryCracker]

You get the maps by getting those specific half-life games an connecting the files to garry's mod

[@reeceemms1643]

@@HungryCracker oh so they are the normal Half-life 2 maps, then I have them because I downloaded Half-Life 2 plus episode 1 and 2 because I needed the for a mod

[@HungryCracker]

@@reeceemms1643 yeah it's very simple

[@bobjim245]

Ii just finished a(nother) playthrough of half life 2 and have honestly never considered the lore of these guys, I just hop past that whole part as fast as possible lol

[@Carnivore301]

Somebody needs to create a mod where the zerg theme from starcraft 2 plays when you storm Nova prospect! That would be awesome as hell!

[@Mehmetyldrm_]

The classification sounded wrong. They are not subspecies but more like different castes or stages. Antlions are , despite the name, quite similar to ants in their life style and behavior

[@aresnir2725]

Only after watching this video I've noticed that Antlion Guardian has small claws in the middle of its torso.

[@robuxyyyyyyyyyy4708]

I feel like the combine would have a much easier time if they started removing sand from earth

[@Skyrionn]

Just imagine how long that would take though

[@robuxyyyyyyyyyy4708]

@@Skyrionn They have technology we probably can't even imagine of

[@yourmother-ei7qg]

Still a ton of sand though.

[@thesin5970]

There is many technology that combine can't build even teleporter. Remove sand on earth is impossible tho

[@Thinker77]

No humans or vortigaunts were harmed filming the underground video footage......

[@LukeRion-nt6cu]

I would sleep in there with those Grubbs to be honest. Hearing they’re little chirps. The silky glowing walls like a hammock. It just looks comfortable 10:10

[@elizabethcarvalhocoutinho6117]

Combine soldier on nova prospekt:why are the stompers stoping?

[@flammablegoodness1168]

Bro got that Night Mind level built-in ASMR voice

[@Alffraido]

It would be very interesting to see the aftermath of nova prospekt, would it be converted just like their caves? spores and egg sacks and all kinds of webs and wax covering the walls. Like azure sheep and the Materials lab covered in Xen flora. And eventually after all the combine in sibera/ukraine/russia (near city 17) were killed, the resistance would have to fight the antlions instead wouldnt they?

[@anzac407]

18:54 that is one shiny vort

[@Skyrionn]

Special vort

[@kkjohmn043]

antlion grubs look like a good pet imo

[@okiedokie144]

Cool video bro

[@kex0]

how do you know bro

[@okiedokie144]

@@kex0 because I do

[@parnesj5121]

I would love for you to do a lore video on the Ichthyosaur

[@96Darkfire]

Thank you! I really wanted to know more about my favorite enemy!

[@MonsterEnergyQueen]

It would be cool to see you do one of these for the mod Entropy Zero. Well i say "mod" its more of an entirely new game. You play as the combine, Entropy Zero 1 And ESPECIALLY Entropy Zero 2 is great!

[@Barakon]

Ant lions sound like gigantic blindass eu-social antlions.

[@skittlesmoo5881]

I really got an ant trap advertisement before this video

[@Skyrionn]

I had no idea they existed.

[@skittlesmoo5881]

@@Skyrionn well at least they're real unlike microwave commercials

[@TheMandagusis]

Im owed a beer? cool, cant wait to get one :)

[@shayan235]

Quality content ♥

[@tommysalami420]

Wow what an amazing analysis. The idea of the antlions just being an invasive super species that one side was beginning to utilize didn't actually hit me fully on my playthrough. As I had come from half life 1 to too so I thought the turning point was almost all gordan just being an absolute 1 man army. It actually makes so much more sense why the invasion of nova prospect wasn't an immediate suicide mission for gordan. As he was using the force of nature that is the ant lions to cause mass hysteria. It also makes such an amazing hostile enemy. As they are extremely deadly and persistent yet predictable. Its also why the combine can't turn them into soldiers as their minds are insect minds they are far too simple to genetically manipulate into anything useful as seen when they are introduced to a world they very quickly get out of hand and spread everywhere not useful for the combine as they want to be able to access the resources of the world they are using. And the resistance is just now learning to use the pheromones' on their end. It also shows beautifully humanities adaptability to changing environments. And that is the combines greatest weakness in itself they only seek to bend creatures and planets to their will. They aren't looking for a symbiotic relationship they see the healing properties of the grubs and thats the end of the use antlions have to the combine. While humanity and the resistance are figuring out how to coexist alongside the antlions using them the pheromones' to abasically just become invisible to this deadly foe while scorch earthing the combines tech that prevents the expansion of the antlions. The resistance chooses to allow the antlions to expand at an unprecedented rate to get rid of the bigger evil that is the combine. It makes the resistance story of half life 2 a choice between two very bad scenarios with one clear winner still. sacrifice all the available land to the antlions endless expansion with the benefit of them being able to kick the combine out. Or be enslaved and genetically engineered by the combine but relative safety from antlions.

[@Baggytrousers27]

The antlions always reminds me of the Araknids from Unreal II. Come to think of it a lot of the things in Unreal II are very Half Lifey. The Kai and Vortigaunts, the Drakk and the Combine, the Skaarj and the Alien Grunts and of course the [REDACTED] and the Gargantua.

[@bunnythehutt2148]

I have a feeling the main reason the antlion king was cut was cuz of time restraints. Half life 2 was already behind schedule and delayed, so it makes sense something as big as an antlion king would get cut for other, easier, projects.

[@MalcolmCooks]

actual antlions: they are like lions to ants half life antlions: what if ants were like lions to us

[@Pendleton115]

You can actually save Lazlo’s friend. And there’s special dialogue if you do so.

[@nicktheplayer213]

Were antlions based off the actual antlion? Considering how an actual antlion feeds is by digging a small pit in some sand, and then throwing sand at ants that fall inside so they can’t escape antlions in hl2 aren’t exactly the same, but they do “feed” in a similar way They burrow into the ground, and when prey steps onto their claimed land, they jump out and swarm them.

[@Robotgrandma]

Was a bit disappointed you didn't discuss much of the lore added by Half-Life: Alyx. Fantastic video though

[@Skyrionn]

Thanks for watching :) I added what I could but I didn't find that HLA added too much lore to the Antlion. Their design was a little different but other than that, I feel like I alluded to The Combine's "pest control" problem. Lemme know what I missed and I'll be sure to add it if similar topics come up! I'm always happy to improve and fix any mistakes!

[@zerrierslizer1]

i find it interesting that they chose the same color for the Larval Extract as the glow that the G-Man's eyes have. i personally do not think it is a coinsidence, not even in the slightest. if the Vortigaunts can manipulate time by utilizing the Larval Extract, imagine what a human with endless amounts of it could do.

[@Glitchmouse2]

For me. I call the antlions in HL:A ‘’armored antlions’’ because they have a shell

[@Scoobis925]

If you know how to tame an ant lion guard you could ride on top of them for transport and even train them (adding my own custom lore/backstory even if it’s not official)