Makron (Q2)

 

The Makron
Health	3,000
Attack Damage	Light Blaster (15) Rail Gun (50) BFG10k (240+100/sec)
Found in	Quake II
[Source]

The Makron is the codename given by Humans to the supreme leader of the Strogg, chosen from the warlords based on strength, power, and endurance. The Makron resides in the northern area of Cerberon in the Palace City, where it commands the planet. The Makron serves as the link for all the Stroggs and its death would be catastrophic for its forces as they are left confused and in turmoil.

The Strogg are a mixed group of species with cybernetic implants, with the Makron being the most extreme example of this as it's just an organic brain sitting in large robotic battle suit. Assassinating the Makron is Bitterman's final mission in Quake II and it serves as the game's final boss and main antagonist. The Makron will always go into battle piloting the Jorg exo-skeleton before confronting the player one on one.

Befitting its status as the final boss, the Makron only appears in the last level, Final Showdown. However, it unexpectedly (and inexplicably) also serves as the final boss of the expansion pack, Quake II Mission Pack: The Reckoning, apparently appearing in two places at once. In The Reckoning, the Makron battles Joker in the last level of the expansion, Command Center.

Combat Analysis

The player must first destroy the Jorg exo-skeleton before challenging the Makron. Once the Jorg is blown up, the Makron will appear and use three attacks as listed below. The Makron is arguably the most difficult Enemy in the game, with more firepower than any other enemy.

Light Blaster

The Makron will launch about 20 light blaster shots in fast succession across the area in front of it. Each shot does 15 damage (15x20=300) but because the Makron primarily fires in a fanning pattern, sweeping the weapon from left to right and back again, it is very rare to be hit more than twice and it is very easy to avoid any damage, even when standing in front of the Makron.

Rail Gun

The Makron's second attack is its head-mounted rail gun. Similar to the Gladiator's and the player's Rail Gun, except the Makron seems to have more of a pre-shot charge up time but no post-shot charge up, meaning the Makron can launch a Rail Charge and then follow up with another attack almost without delay. Each shot does a solid 50 damage which is enough to do some serious damage if the player isn't armoured.

BFG10k

The most powerful weapon in the game and now in the hands of an enemy. The Makron's BFG acts just like that of the player's except the Makron has no charge up time and can fire multiple blasts within seconds. Any ill prepared player will almost certainly be killed in this situation, but the Makron very rarely fires more than one at a time. The energy ball deals around 240 damage with a direct hit but as it is slow moving, this will hardly happen. The more dangerous part of this attack is the lasers which fire from the ball at nearby players, dealing around 100 damage per second that the laser has contact with the player. If the player dodges the ball but takes a second to get away from the ball, it could still kill them despite dodging the attack. If the player is hit, the laser beam will have contact for around half a second before the ball hits, dealing around 300 damage. The Makron can fire off a BFG blast a lot faster than the player, with no charge up or charge down time, which means the Makron can and will launch multiple BFG blasts in quick succession. The Makron will normally fire up to three blasts at a time and so even if the player dodges all three energy balls, the laser beams could easily do 300 damage in 1 to 2 seconds, easily killing the player if he/she is not completely armored with a lot of health. Although easy to avoid, three direct hits could do around 900 damage.

Final Showdown

Main article: Jorg

The player will confront the Makron in Unit 10 after the Palace. After chasing the Makron through the Palace rooftop and to the Strogg leader's base in the asteroid belt, the player will defeat it and complete the game. The battle is split into two parts, the fight with Jorg and the fight with the Makron.

Once the Jorg is destroyed, the Makron will fight the player one on one. The arena is a large room with two elevators either side leading down to the escape pods and teleporter. In the middle of the arena are two large pillars providing excellent cover. Either side are located two switches which open floor panels leading to the tunnel under the arena floor where ammo and armor lies.

The Makron's first weakness is its slow movement, which is only slightly faster than a Tank's. So use the pillars for cover and take pot shots or if the player is feeling brave, it is possible to fight the Makron in open ground a long as the player knows what to expect. If the Makron does close the gap between the player's pillar then run to the other pillar and the Makron will start walking towards that one. The Makron's BFG is biggest threat. If the player is hiding behind a pillar and the BFG is launched, run away because the laser beam will still hit dealing around 100 damage. When running out of cover, keep an eye on the Makron so that it can't deal a sneaky Rail Gun round whilst the player is worrying about the BFG blast.

The Makron's second weakness is its lengthy pain animation. If hit by a Rocket Launcher or Railgun, the Makron will fall down on its back and take a couple of seconds to jump back up. During these moments, the Makron will say something in clear English such as "Weakling!", "Not good enough!" or "Really?"

This battle can be very quick and easy if the player saved a Quad Damage from the Palace. Use the Chaingun and both Jorg and Makron can be killed within seconds. There are plenty of bullet pick ups in the arena so the player should have enough ammo. Player can force Makron to come out faster by gibbing Jorg's body with a Hand Grenade, once Jorg fell dead. If he/she does run out of bullets, the Hyper Blaster works just as well. The Railgun is also an excellent option, since the Makron is not too fast on its feet. 6 shots from a Quad-enhanced Railgun will destroy the Jorg shell, and 3 more shots will finish the Makron off, making this possibly the shortest boss battle in the game.

id Gallery

Upon defeating the Makron, access to the id Gallery and Pool room is granted. The id Gallery contains pictures of the creators. Each picture does something, such as burn the player, play music, or launch gibs to name a few. At the end of the hall, is a hidden compartment in the floor leading down to the Pool room. The Pool room contains a Tank with two Iron Maidens crawling over him and two human prisoners on either side.

Trivia

As mentioned in Quake II, Makron is a code name applied to the Strogg leader by the humans. It comes from Greek μακρον, meaning literally "big thing", and is in the neuter gender, rather than masculine (which would be "Makros"), hinting at the creature's genderless, cyborg nature. The Greek word is also the origin of the English prefix "macro-".