"The deep dig teams were some of our brightest archeologists and soldiers. What happend to them down here... has served as a cautionary tale to us all. What drove them to such extreme behavior? To such depravity and violence?"
—Dr. Earl Serrano about the "witnesses" who would later transform into the Hunters.
From various logs and clues, it is implied that these Hunters are what became of the members of the SCAF Deep Dig Team on Tau Volantis following their close contact with the Markers and their subsequent deaths.
Concept art of the Hunters, showing their resemblance to the Ubermorph.
In basic body shape, these Hunters resemble the Hunter encountered on the USG Ishimura. They also have the same smooth skin as the Ubermorph encountered on Titan Station, although they possess large gashes on their abdomens and prominently have Marker Symbols inscribed on their bodies.
The Marker Symbols on the Hunters' bodies strongly imply that they are former members of the SCAF Deep Dig Team, with text logs stating that when they had no surface to scrawl Marker script on, the crazed team members would use their own flesh.[1][2] The Witness Suit is confirmed to be the suit worn by the Deep Dig Team, and is covered with the same symbols.
The Tau Volantis Hunters also possess the same five yellow "eyes" seen on other Necromorph forms such as the Ubermorph, the Hive Mind, and the Brethren Moons, but glowing in a less prominent manner.
The Hunters were created during the Sovereign Colonies Armed Forces expedition to Tau Volantis, when the members of the Deep Dig Team dug into the surface of the planet. They eventually went insane due to close contact with the Markers and claimed to be "witnesses of the truth", scrawling Marker Symbols on their own flesh when no other surface was present. They eventually died and mutated into Hunters, before being contained in small transfer boxes and delivered to the CMS Terra Nova and some warehouses on Tau Volantis. However, the Scenario Five order was initiated and the captured Hunters were left undisturbed.
Two hundred years later, Isaac Clarke and Sgt. John Carver were forced to clear the cargo on the CMS Terra Nova Tram tracks, incidentally letting the Hunters loose on the ship. Upon returning to the Cargo Hold, the first Hunter escaped its case by purposefully dismembering itself before giving chase. Isaac and Carver called the Tram, and a second Hunter emerged from a vent. They fought off both Hunters alongside some Leapers and Fodders until the Tram arrived. The duo then embarked for the Aft Station; however, upon exiting the Tram and calling the elevator, the Hunters still gave chase, additionally appearing after Ellie Langford accidentally began the launch procedure of the CMS Crozier, being unable to stop it. As the Crozier proceeded with the launch sequence, hordes of Fodder Necromorphs and Hunters appeared and attacked Isaac and Carver. They reached the Engine Room and found explosive ordnance jammed in the gears, forcing them to make use of the auto-cannons set in place to free the gears. Many more Hunters along with Slashers as backup made their final attempt at killing them before meeting their end at the hands of the auto-cannons.
On Tau Volantis, more Hunters were encountered by Isaac and Carver during the Artifact Storage optional mission, initially appearing to be successfully contained within their cases. When Isaac and Carver reached the small room containing the Suit Kiosk, Bench, and an elevator, several Hunters appeared and chased the duo until they both escaped via the elevator, proceeding towards the Alien Machine.
Combat Strategy[]
Due to their regenerative capabilities, killing Hunters with regular weapons is impossible. Temporarily slowing them down or running are the only options.
The Line Gun, Shotgun, or automatic weapons are most effective non-DLC/milestone weaponry available. Much like the Hunter and the Ubermorph, the best thing to do is completely dismember one before putting it into Stasis.
If out of Stasis and/or low on ammunition, attempt to dismember at least one leg and remain close, but just outside of melee range. This forces it to crawl towards Isaac without attempting to regenerate for awhile. If there are multiple Hunters present, additionally attempt to keep both of them within view as much as possible.
Weapons with the Stasis Coating Attachment are very useful. Automatic weapons in particular benefit from this Weapon Attachment the most, as each successful hit will sustain the effect.
This Weapon Attachment is not available until Chapter 8, and thus will only apply to Hunters encountered in Artifact Storage or New Game+ outside of co-op play.
A Weapon Blueprint, the Pitch Black 392, is very suitable for this purpose: a fully automatic rivet chaingun possessing Stasis Coating and Stasis Amplifier Weapon Attachments, while possessing a Force Gun for the Lower Tool also being able to knock them down.
The only known way to destroy Tau Volantis Hunters for good is by using powerful stationary turrets, such as the auto-cannons in the room where Isaac and Carver must clear the gears of ordnance to open the Shuttle Bay doors.
Interestingly, the Tau Volantis Hunters can withstand and are ultimately unaffected by the fires created from the CMS Crozier engines, unlike the Hunter encountered on the USG Ishimura.
Death Scenes[]
Dead Space 3 I Brutal Regenerator death I
The Tau Volantis Hunters possess the same death sequences as the original Hunter and Ubermorph. A Hunter will rear its blades back, if Isaac or Carver is hit by this attack while low on health, the Tau Volantis Hunter will sink both of its blades through his torso, lift him up, then violently stab him two times. It then bisects him at the waist and cuts off his left arm, and lowers the victim. Isaac or Carver will struggle to hold up his right arm, almost as if pleading to it. The Hunter then cuts his head off and finally slices him in half.
If Isaac or Carver are slashed with the Tau Volantis Hunter's blade while on moderately low health, whatever part is hit will be torn off as he dies.
Trivia[]
The first Tau Volantis Hunter is first encountered in Chapter 5 of Dead Space 3, much like the Hunter who appears in Chapter 5 of Dead Space.
Dead Space 3 is the first game to feature more than one regenerating Necromorph in combat once.
Specifically during Chapter 5, two Hunters will chase Isaac and Carver until boarding the Tram at Fore Station. They will never appear at Mid Station, allowing the completion of the Conning Tower optional mission without their presence. They will only re-appear when disembarking at Aft Station, and during the launch sequence of the CMS Crozier.
What look like human thumbs can be made out on the creature's blade.
If looking carefully while remove the cargo obstructing the Tram, one of the Hunters is seen a pod being lifted away by the crane clearing the cargo. Isaac later meets the aforementioned Hunter on the Cargo Deck.
If Isaac steps inside the Tram once it is opened and turns around with the door still open, the Hunter(s) will begin walking around idly, a behavior shown by Necromorphs unable to identify any hostile targets in the area. Should he quickly step back out and in the Tram, the Hunter(s) will face the player and sharpen their blades, but never engage.
Oddly, whenever the death scene plays out, it is cut short with the screen running red with blood just as the Tau Volantis Hunter cuts Isaac's or Carver's head off and the player can faintly see the creature proceeding to dismember his legs. It is unknown if this is an oversight, and however many death scenes it has affected.
The regenerative capabilities of the Tau Volantis Hunters makes them very helpful in obtaining the "Then We Doubled It!" achievement/trophy. Simply cut their limbs off, then let them regenerate and repeat the process, though this takes a lot of time and usually results in tremendous ammo wastage.
This is best performed near the end of the Artifact Storage optional mission with all Hunters pursuing Isaac.
Gallery[]
A side-view of a Tau Volantis Hunter.
A Hunter attacking Isaac.
A pair of Hunters attacking Isaac.
A Tau Volantis Hunter stuck inside a container while Isaac clears up the tram system of the Terra Nova.
One of the four Hunters stored in a case in Artifact Storage during Chapter 17.
