# Aliens - so what were the Colonial Marines actually prepared for (tactically)? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [January 29, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens-so-what-were-the-colonial-marines-actually-prepared-for-tactically/711260 "2015-01-29T19:36:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2022, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens-so-what-were-the-colonial-marines-actually-prepared-for-tactically/711260/201 "2022-12-06T21:21:02Z")
Is it reasonable to assume that a synthetic like Ash or Bishop wouldn’t trigger an attack by a drone? I assumed the Queen could tell he was “human-ish.” ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2022, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens-so-what-were-the-colonial-marines-actually-prepared-for-tactically/711260/202 "2022-12-07T01:21:53Z")
I’d assume that drones would attack anything that moved that wasn’t another xenomorph. They may be able to tell that synthetics aren’t human, but I don’t see why they’d care, except possibly for the purposes of implanting chest bursters. There was a comic where Weyland-Yutani had managed to establish a hive that they could safely monitor from a distance. (That last part didn’t work out, of course.) When they needed to retrieve physical samples, they had an android that had been modified to look like a xenomorph drone, but could still speak and had human intelligence. The marines give him cigars because it looks funny. It’s been years since I’ve read it, so I don’t recall if it was any good. [![](https://static.displate.com/280x392/displate/2021-06-09/72bb139b66c04e181663385e9b6369d0_6867c63cf82287df64d3e94ea0bd5e86.jpg) ](https://static.displate.com/280x392/displate/2021-06-09/72bb139b66c04e181663385e9b6369d0_6867c63cf82287df64d3e94ea0bd5e86.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2022, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens-so-what-were-the-colonial-marines-actually-prepared-for-tactically/711260/203 "2022-12-07T22:23:19Z")
Interesting idea, but I’d assume the eyeless xenomorphs could easily tell he (it) wasn’t one of them. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2022, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens-so-what-were-the-colonial-marines-actually-prepared-for-tactically/711260/204 "2022-12-07T22:45:04Z")
My first thought would be, does the robo-xeno smell like a xeno? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2022, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens-so-what-were-the-colonial-marines-actually-prepared-for-tactically/711260/205 "2022-12-07T23:02:23Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Interesting idea, but I’d assume the eyeless xenomorphs could easily tell he (it) wasn’t one of them. Well, it worked in the comic, so… Anyway, xenomorphs aren’t sightless. They don’t have eyes like we do, but they can still see. On the other hand, if we’re taking lack of recognizable eyes as evidence that they’re blind… > [@Chronos](#): > > My first thought would be, does the robo-xeno smell like a xeno? With what nose? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2022, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens-so-what-were-the-colonial-marines-actually-prepared-for-tactically/711260/206 "2022-12-08T04:14:10Z")
I don’t think it was ever established as canon, but I always assumed they used echolocation or some sense(s) unknown to us today. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2022, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aliens-so-what-were-the-colonial-marines-actually-prepared-for-tactically/711260/207 "2022-12-27T14:47:57Z")
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