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Meet the Family  by Dr.Gibbs March 14, 2003

One of the best things about Quake 1's single player mode is its unique set of freakish monsters. In this guide, you'll get to meet every last member of the classic Quake family - whether you want to or not.

	Rotfish Best Weapons: Double-Barreled Shotgun Worst Weapons: Grenade Launcher, Rocket Launcher This is hands-down the absolute worst enemy in the game. They're really easy to kill, and they hardly deal out any damage at all. A couple of good hits with the double-barreled shotgun will be plenty good enough, and you can find one of those weapons on the first level of the game - a good couple of episodes before you'll even see a Rotfish. In fact, the only problem you may have is running into too many of them at once. Rotfish often attack in swarms, so watch your back - where there's one, there's many. If you know there are some fish around, never just jump into the middle of the water. If you stay next to a wall or back yourself into a corner, you don't have to worry about being surrounded. Back away from them as they swim toward you, and it will minimize the amount of damage you take. Remember, they're underwater - and while these cute little critters are happy swimming around indefinitely, you aren't quite so aqueous. Don't spend too much time fighting them without coming up for some air.
	Rottweiler Best Weapons: Shotgun Worst Weapons: Rocket Launcher These adorable little puppies aren't so cute when they start to cause a commotion. Always watch out for the dogs around bases - they won't be anywhere else. They aren't too difficult to fight since they can't shoot at you, so they're an annoyance more than anything else. A couple of shotgun blasts is more than enough to shut them up. All that growling, slobbering, and barking shouldn't be taken too seriously - since they only bite, they can't attack you from a distance. Just don't let them get to close, because once they latch on, they can deal a whole lot of damage. Kill them while they're far away, or just trust that they'll get caught in some crossfire from a Grunt or two. If they get a little too close for comfort, remember that they will fall back and roll around when they're hit with something - this gives you more time to hit them again before they can reach you.
	Grunt Best Weapons: Shotgun, Nailgun Worst Weapons: Rocket Laucher Isn't that just the most adorable thing you've ever seen? There's really nothing more annoying (or amusing) than the grunting, growling, slobbering masses that we lovingly call Grunts. Clearly one of the most common enemies in Quake, you'll see these soldiers running around quite a few different maps. They're most common on bases, of course. Unfortunately, they like to attack in groups. A Grunt or two isn't much of a threat, but when you start seeing five or six of them you know you're in a bit of trouble. Luckily they're so brainless that, if left to their own device, they will do a pretty quick job of killing themselves. If you find that you have to do some of the work, however, just remember to keep your distance - they don't aim as well from far away. Kill them one at a time rather than firing random shots into the herd.
	Zombie Best Weapons: Grenade Launcher, Rocket Launcher Worst Weapons: Anything that can't gib 'em. These are the kind of guys that make you wish you hadn't just eaten lunch. Zombies have a very unique offensive technique: they tear bloody chunks of rotting flesh off their bodies and throw them at you. Anyone hungry? Catch! You'll usually find them working their pitching arm in swampy areas. Luckily, they aren't all that tough to beat. Unfortunately, the only way to take care of these nasty little wanna-be plastic surgeons is to blow them to pieces. You can shoot them with everything you have all you like, but if they never gib, they never die. Lucky for you, grenades travel farther than rotting chunks of Zombie flesh - so when the gut-wrenching Zombie Bombs start flying, keep yourself just a little bit out of their range. Rockets are very effective, although not nearly as entertaining.
	Knight Best Weapons: Nailgun, Super Nailgun, Rocket Launcher Worst Weapons: Grenades, Shotgun These grunting little cans of joy hurt quite a bit when they get close, but from far away they're harmless. Knights are usually seen hanging around castles, and they make quite a racket when they see you. They're not too hard to kill, but they do run pretty fast. Back away from them as they come running at you so you don't get hit by their swords. They're pretty fast, so be careful if you're using something like the rocket launcher. You'll find that they're really nothing more than moving targets - in fact, the greatest threat they pose to you is being a distraction from a real monster.
	Scrag Best Weapons: Super Nailgun, Rocket Launcher Worst Weapons: Shotgun, Grenades These ugly wizards aren't going to win a beauty contest anytime soon. They're usually flying around in swampy areas, and they attack you by spitting nasty, acidic slime at you. Obviously, no one taught these guys any manners. Use an auto-fire weapon if possible, because you're going to want to strafe a lot to avoid their attacks. Nails can take care of them pretty quickly - your only problem is when you run into a group of them. They fly, of course, so it's very hard to run away. They're pretty mean and they will fight with just about any monster they run into, so if you can get them mad at something else they'll forget all about you. Rockets work well from a distance, but grenades never will.
	Enforcer Best Weapons: Double-Barreled Shotgun, Nailgun Worst Weapons: Shotgun, Rocket Launcher These guys are a lot prettier than Grunts, mostly because they're kind enough to plaster an armored plate over their frighteningly ugly face. Rather than using shotguns, these higher-ranked soldiers sport blasters. They're more powerful and harder to kill, but thanks to their weapons you get some cells when you kill them. They're also a little easier to avoid. You'll only see them in bases. You should fight these guys pretty much the same way you fight Grunts - just remember that they're a little stronger. Use the double-barreled shotgun, and get close to them if possible. Since their blasters have moving weapons fire, you can see the shots coming and jump or strafe to avoid them. As with the Grunts, kill them one at a time rather than trying to hit all of them at once.
	Ogre Best Weapons: Rocket Launcher, Nailgun Worst Weapons: Shotgun Anyone hungry for pineapples? Yum. An Ogre will either bury you in grenades or cut you down like a tree. Considering their enormous size, these creepy bundles of death actually aren't very hard to kill. You'll see them throughout most of the game, and luckily, they're always happy to give you a few rockets once they're dead. In single player, these become an invaluable resource. If you can devote enough energy to defense, you can avoid being hurt in a fight. If you don't have a rocket launcher to take them down with, it will probably take awhile. While you're shooting, run backwards and forwards as much as possible. If you're close they'll use their chainsaw, but if you're far enough away they'll start hurling grenades at you. You don't want this. Keep running up to them to encourage them to use the chainsaw, but always back away quickly to avoid being cut by it. By successfully executing this tactic, you could go face-to-face with an Ogre for hours without being hit once.
	Deathknight Best Weapons: Rocket Launcher, Super Nailgun Worst Weapons: Shotgun, Double-Barreled Shotgun These knights have always had a taste for meat - especially when it's yours. Their meat is a lot better, though - after all, it comes pre-canned. They hurt a lot when they're spitting fire, and they hurt a lot when they're not. On top of all that, they're pretty hard to kill. Always look out for them in the castles of the later episodes. You can jump over the fire, but you can't strafe away from it - it spreads out over quite a wide area. Stay far enough away to avoid the sword, and just keep shooting until they're dead. You're probably not going to get away without being hurt, but that's okay - health packs are strewn around for a reason.
	Fiend Best Weapons: Nailgun, Super Nailgun Worst Weapons: Shotgun, Rocket Launcher These are some of the nastiest creatures you'll ever run into. They're basically living scissors, chopping apart anything in their way - including you. Whatever you do, don't let these guys jump on you. It hurts. A lot. If you're dumb enough to run, don't forget to watch your back, because they won't forget you that easily. They get hungry at night. Don't ever let one of these guys out of your sight. Unload everything you've got on them, because they're quick, and they hardly respond to being hit. Back up and strafe as much as possible to avoid being pounced on. If you see some of these in a room with other monsters, kill these guys first. If one of them manages to latch onto you, it won't be long before you're dead. Fortunately, they're easily distracted by other monsters, and will sometimes leave you alone to go and fight one of them. If that happens, don't shoot - take a break and watch the fun.
	Spawn Best Weapons: Double-Barreled Shotgun, Super Nailgun Worst Weapons: Just about anything else is a waste. Yucky. Giant, sticky slime balls that hurt like crazy and explode when you kill them. You'll only see these creepy-crawlies on some of the last maps in Episode 4. They're very weak, so be careful. The more distance, the merrier - trust me. They don't take long to kill, so don't fire at them unless you're at a safe distance. When they die, they explode like a rocket - and hurt just as badly. They will come after you pretty quickly, so back up as fast as you can and fire once you know you're safe. Don't bother strafing, as they have to be near you to hurt you.
	Vore Best Weapons: Rocket Launcher, Super Nailgun Worst Weapons: Shotgun, Super Shotgun This is one guy who is always happy to show you his balls - the explosive, purple ones with spines. They hurt a lot, and they follow you, too. Fourtunately, this little arachnid isn't too smart - give him enough time, and he'll shoot them into a corner so many times he kills himself. Great for mid-mission laughs. There is no doubt that Vores have a temper. If you get anywhere near one of them, you'll hear plenty of shrieking. When you do, you had better run - fast. The big, purple rockets hurled by these guys will follow you through rooms and around large corners. Your best bet is to either kill them as quickly as possible or get them in a position where they will kill themselves. Don't get too close to walls, or you'll get caught in the blast radius of the explosives.
	Shambler Best Weapons: Nailgun, Super Nailgun Worst Weapons: Grenade Launcher, Rocket Launcher The monster of all monsters. If he doesn't crush you to death, he'll launch a gigantic electric shaft up your butt. Sadly, you'll likely see your first on the third map of the game. They're usually hanging out in closed-in rooms, and often they will spawn out of nowhere (they LOVE doing this on higher skill levels). Shamblers laugh off explosions, so you definitely want to go for the hard stuff like shells and nails. It will take quite a bit to kill them, and their attacks are really painful. Luckily they don't move around much, and they can't fit into smaller halls. If you see the bolt of lighting starting to form between his hands, make sure you get out of the way as quickly as possible. Don't get too close, or he'll crush you like a bug.

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