The Rakk Hive is a gigantic alien quadruped with four pearl-like eyes and multiple holes spread across its back. These holes are home to flights of Rakk, which themselves will swarm to attack anything that gets near the Hive. The Rakk Hive is a Boss encountered during the mission Another Piece Of The Puzzle.
Background
The hibernation cycle of a Rakk Hive lasts much longer than that of the other species on Pandora. They are visible in their dormant state by their exposed backs protruding above the ground while most of their body remains submerged. Unlike the Trash Coast Rakk Hive, they will not awaken, however rakk will still fly out of their exposed backs.
Involvement
Rakk Hive Corpse
Patricia Tannis has detected evidence of a piece of the Vault Key in the Trash Coast and sends the Vault hunters to retrieve it. Barring their way is a surprise encounter when the Rakk Hive heaves itself free from the earth and attacks.
Strategy
- Main article: Another Piece Of The Puzzle
Rakk-Trap Hive
Rakk-Trap Hive
The Rakk Hive killed in the mission Another Piece Of The Puzzle is resurrected in Claptrap's New Robot Revolution as the Rakk-Trap Hive. It has patched together metal plating across its back where it sustained fatal damage previously. The Rakk-Trap Hive is found in the bottom of an open pit mine in Scorched Snake Canyon. The mission Old Spicy tasks the vault hunter with killing the Rakk-Trap Hive and retrieving Rakk Hive ambergris.
Notes
- Unlike other creatures, the Rakk Hive will leave a solid corpse behind when it is killed. This has been known to trap any Vault hunter under it should they be within the area when it collapses, the only option left being to save and exit without being able to scrounge for loot. The Rakk Hive can also fall on top of chests in this location, blocking off access to that source of post-battle resupply.
- The Rakk Hive will continue to breathe after being defeated and its organs can be seen still moving through the gaping hole that appears in its side.
- The Rakk Hive will occasionally drop the Leviathan or an Eridian Artifact upon death.
- The Rakk Hive has a concealed attack to the rear, liquid feces on nearby targets.[1]
- Like most enemies, the Rakk Hive's name is different on different playthroughs: Rakk Hive on Playthrough 1, Awesome Rakk Hive on Playthrough 2, and Ultimate Rakk Hive on Playthrough 2.5.
- Since Patch 1.4.1, the Rakk Hive has lost its ability to send out Rakk from its back during playthrough 2.5. The animation still plays, though no Rakk will emerge.
- Due to the ability to obtain the Rider sniper rifle only during this mission (see hidden basement) the Rider's flavor text is a direct and overt clue to the Hive's weak spots, as shooting each of its eyes until they are put out does yield critical hit damage.
- Shoot out its eyes during the battle and they will be back once the Rakk Hive has been defeated and can be seen on the corpse, instead of the blown out red sockets.
Trivia
- The Rakk Hive was the first boss to be publicly revealed for Borderlands, appearing in certain promotional videos before the game's release.
- Hibernating Rakk Hives can be found in:
- Skag Gully: two can be found, both just outside of the playable area.
- Arid Badlands: one is near Zephyr Substation, and another near the wind turbine in Howling Defile.
- Arid Hills: one near the branch in the path to Sledge's Safe House, another on a ledge across a stone bridge near the area where Moe and Marley are found, and a third far outside the playing area near the entrance to the Safe House.
- Walking over a hibernating Rakk Hive yields a slushy sound not unlike that heard when walking through a swamp.
- In the original development of the Rakk Hive boss fight, there were geysers in the ground that could be used to damage it. The Rakk that were spawned from the Hive's back were also intended to be much stronger than those encountered in the current build of the game.
- A Rakk Hive appears in the Claptrap Web Series, shown to be kicking a Psycho through a field goal post used in American Football.
- A poster in T-Bone Junction advertises Rakk Hive rides for the whole family.
- In Scorched Snake Canyon, in the first open pit mine encountered, lies a huge skeleton from what appears to be a Rakk Hive. The skeleton has the remains of a drilling rig still attached to its back and head suggesting that Rakk Hives were domesticated or enslaved and used to facilitate mining operations on Pandora.
- On the Rakk-Trap Hive's plating over its tail can be read the phrase "I Break For No One." (sic)