Let’s Play D&D With a Xenomorph… In Space… Where Nobody Can Hear You Scream
Unless you’re playing in space, you’ll definitely hear all of your players scream (at you) when you make them fight a Xenomorph.
The Alien franchise has been one of the biggest and most recognizable pieces of cinema since it first premiered in 1979. Whether you’ve seen all of the movies or none of them, you’d probably recognize a Xenomorph and are familiar with that chest-burster scene. Even if it’s mostly through the Spaceballs spoof. The aliens are perfectly designed and truly terrifying… and that means we of course have to subject our D&D characters to their horrors. So this week we’re playing D&D in the Alien universe starting with the…
Facehugger
Before we get too into this, I know that D&D isn’t the optimal system for a Xenomorph. That would probably be the Free League Publishing Alien RPG…. Which is great. I’ve played it, I’ve GM’d it, I’ve terrorized my family with it. But D&D is the shtick. So here’s an Alien to subject your D&D characters to.
Today I just made a facehugger and the run-of-the-mill Xenomorph you think of when you hear “Xenomorph.” The facehugger has one goal and one goal only—and that’s to find your face and put an alien embryo in there.
As such, they don’t really have any real attacks. They’re very fast and can climb and leap, ideally surprising their victim. And once they’re there removing them is difficult but not impossible. Facehuggers also have a lot of the same base abilities as the Xenomorph, like the acid blood and electroreception sight. Just on a smaller scale because they’re sort of the pre-babies of the Xenomorph life cycle.
Xenomorph
via 20th Century Studios
The Xenomorph is probably a little closer to a standard D&D monster you wouldn’t want to run into in a dark dungeon. They also have a singular goal, but it’s to eat you, which is much more common in the realm of monster attacks.
With an exoskeleton, the Xenomorph has a very high natural AC, but it’s not entirely invincible. But getting up close to fight it will put you in reach of its sharp tail, its grasping claws, and of course, its two jaws for twice the biting.
The acidic blood also makes them a hazard to fight even when you’re doing well. Getting close enough to inflict real damage could very well splash you with acid, and worse, start melting your favorite weapon. But it could also create a hole in the floor for the Xenomorph to escape through.
And then with their Electroreception, they’ll have no problem keeping track of your party, even when you have no idea where it may be. This form of tracking isn’t dissimilar from echolocation, but without the need to make their own sounds to bounce around, your party will have no clue which direction the attack will be coming from.
How would you make an Xenomorph for a D&D setting? Are you excited for the upcoming Alien show? Should we make more varieties of Xenomorph in the future? What book, show, movie, comic, or game should we make sheets from next time? Let us know in the comments!
Happy adventuring!
