Typhon

"People are quick to project human features onto things they don't understand. The Typhon kill us without hesitation. But it's not because they're evil. It's because they can't do otherwise."

– Alex Yu talking about Typhon.^[src]

Typhon are hostile aliens encountered on Talos I during Prey (2017) and on Pytheas during Prey: Mooncrash.

Overview

Typhon are hostile aliens, that were being kept on Talos I space station for study. The goal of the study was to give the powers that Typhon have to humans by mapping their Neural patterns onto Humans through Neuromods.

Characteristics

All Typhon are formed from a shiny, shimmering grey-black substance that seems to display the characteristics of solids, fluids and gasses at once, and the Typhon can with ease change the structure and solidity of this to change shape, and use their appendages as weapons. This semi-solid form is also most likely the source of their high durability. Almost nothing is explained or revealed about their anatomy or biological makeup - indeed, their physiology is incomprehensibly alien. Their sizes and shapes vary greatly, ranging from small arachnid-like creatures to large humanoids and floating orbs.

Each Typhon species possesses different abilities such as mimicking matter, teleportation (i.e. phasing), generating fire and electricity or even mind control. They also lack mirror neurons, preventing them from empathizing with the suffering of other beings or even recognizing they are alive at all. It is for this reason that Alex Yu advises against calling them "evil", as they are not intentionally malevolent or cruel, simply pursuing what they see as a food source. Typhon species are able to replicate or spawn more of themselves in strange processes, as evidenced by the abilities of Mimics and Weavers.

Despite lacking mirror neurons which prevent them to feel empathy, Typhons are able to sense whether the life forms surrounding them are Typhon or not. As such, they will not attack other Typhons near them, but will instantly and relentlessly attack any other form of organic life, especially Humans. The only exceptions to this are Tentacle Nests and Cystoids, whose response to their environment is solely based on motion detection.

Typhon Types

Cystoid
Mimic
- Greater Mimic
- Voltaic Mimic
- Etheric Mimic
- Thermal Mimic
Moon Shark
Nightmare
Phantom
- Etheric Phantom
- Thermal Phantom
- Voltaic Phantom
Poltergeist
Telepath
Technopath
Tentacle Nest
Weaver
Apex

History

Early History

The Typhon were discovered on the Vorona-1 satellite, which was launched by the Soviets in 1958. The satellite was orbiting the moon until the Soviets lost communication with it. They then sent a manned mission to investigate. The repair team didn't find any external issues so the Soviet leadership ordered the cosmonauts to breach the satellite. In the moments that followed, the cosmonauts encountered a non-terrestrial life form, which killed all members of the mission.

After two years of silence, the Soviets contacted the United States and pleaded for help with containing the threat. President John F. Kennedy agreed, and in 1963, the US-Soviet collaboration resulted in the Kletka program. A permanent installation was built to contain the non-terrestrials. After a failed assassination attempt on Kennedy, the US seized control of the program and started to study the non-terrestrials, but were unable to harness their enigmatic abilities for military or commercial applications. After a containment failure lead to the death of the entire research team, the US abandoned the station. Eventually, the TranStar corporation secured the derelict station and transformed it into Talos I, a cutting edge innovation center. In just five short years, the team aboard Talos-1 achieved a great understanding of the Typhon organisms and started to apply their research to humans.

Modern Day

In 2035, the Typhon managed to breach containment and overrun Talos I, killing most of the crew in the process. A similar outbreak also occurred on the TranStar Moon base of Pytheas.

Some Typhon managed to stow themselves aboard a shuttle leaving the station before it malfunctioned, and entered orbit around Talos I.

Some reports suggest the military have Typhon organisms in their possession or similar alien assets located in unlisted military black sites in orbit.

By the end of the game, it's revealed that the Typhon have completely overrun Earth and nearly wiped out humanity.

Trivia

Typhon is the name of a monster from Greek mythology and is considered the father of monsters.
- According to the myth, Typhon battled Zeus for control of the universe, which mirrors Morgan's fight against the hostile alien race.
In reality, the function of mirror neurons in humans is the subject of much speculation, with one theory arguing that they are the neural basis for emotions like empathy.