Enemies

Some enemies in Borderlands, like guns, are procedurally generated. There are also "boss-like" enemies that you will find througout the game.

Bandits

(Source Borderlands.wikia.com)

Bandits are a common foe in Borderlands. They are semi-organized groups that roam the wasteland between settlements.

Bandits are hostile humans that have inhabited Pandora. They will kill anyone and anything in order to obtain equipment, food, and fuel. They are very similar to the Raiders in the Mad Max series, and stereotypical post-apocalypse ruffians. A Bandit appears on the cover of Borderlands.

The majority of the bandits were actually convicts used to mine the planet Pandora for cheap labor. When the planet was found to contain no valuable resources they were simply left behind.

Although not very powerful, Bandits tend to be encountered in groups. They are known to be fond of roaming the game world in vehicles. Bandits sometimes wield quite powerful weaponry, as well as Orb Shields, thus making them potentially very dangerous.

The players should exercise caution when attacking a Bandit Camp, as it is expected to be fatal unless the players have preplanned their actions, or are confident in their armament.

Bandits are commonly found throughout the West and East Rust Commons, along Treacher's Landing, the Dahl Headlands, and the Salt Flats. The different types of bandits are Bandit Killers, Bandit Thugs, and Bandit Raiders.

Psycho

Psycho's are bandits who have gone a little crazy. They exclusively use melee weapons and charge the player, laughing hysterically and screaming for meat.

Sometimes, more frequently when low on health, a psycho will pull out a bomb and charge the player on a suicide mission. The psycho must be shot down at a distance when this occurs, else it is likely the player will be blasted into his last stand. This is often unrecoverable if there are no other enemies around. When fighting psychos from higher ground that is not easily accessed, psychos will occasionally throw their melee weapons at you.

Badass psychos are much larger than the normal varieties and have a severely stunted left arm. They never make suicide attacks and deal more damage as well as have more health, but they move fairly slowly and are easy to avoid as long as you have room to back up. Sometimes the bodies of the dead badass psychos turn into bodies of normal dead psychos for unknown reasons, this does not always occur and may be a glitch.

There is also a much more powerful variant of the Badass Psycho called the "Roid Rage Psycho".  He is extremely large, wears spiked armor, and has grenades strapped to his legs. He uses a normal melee attack as well as a Badass Skag-esque ground pound attack. Occasionally, he will remove a grenade from his leg and throw it at you.  Roid Rage Psycho can be found at the end of the mission Sledge: To The Safe House.

There are also smaller, midget versions of psychos that act exactly like normal psychos, they generally have less health but may be more difficult to hit. The midget versions also have a variation where they wield shotguns.

On the second playthrough, the name Psycho is changed to Maniac.

Brute

Bruisers are physically large bandits that RARELY at all carry shields, but they have a huge amount of health to make up for it. Fire weapons are very effective on them as a result.

They carry heavier weapons, such as shotguns, combat rifles, and even explosives on occasion. They slowly walk around firing their weapons at the player. If you get close, they will strike with their fists. Their slow and often predictable movement makes it easy to score a critical headshot, though it may take several.

Badass bruisers are stronger versions of brusiers that follow the same patterns as normal ones albeit much stronger, they are easily noticeable by their large helmets.

Bruisers change to Brutes during Playthrough 2.

Wildlife

Pandora was settled during the Winter. Now that warmer weather has arrived, the wildlife is starting to wake up, and it isn't friendly. This includes scythids, skags, rakk, and spiderants.

Skags

(Source Borderlands.wikia.com)

Skags are basic mobs. Skags are inherently hostile towards players, bandits and aliens. Most attack by lunging at their target, slashing and spitting corrosive balls of goo.

Skags are well armored along their back and head, but they are not armored on their legs or underside. Their weak point is inside their mouths; a shot into their open mouths will deal critical damage. Skags will occasionally (and randomly, it seems) open their mouths to roar. On large Alpha Skags especially, take advantage of these opportunities if you can to get a critical hit. Skags also open their mouths to roar when leaping, so if you are quick or lucky you can get a shot in that way. Some skags will also spit projectiles at you or breathe a cone of elemental damage. This is another opportunity for a critical hit.

Skags will get into fights with other enemies, especially bandits, so it may make more sense to lure a skag herd (or maybe a very difficult alpha or badass) into a bandit camp. Many times if a bandit is too far for the skag to reach, it will just sit there and watch the bandit even while you are attacking it.

 
Skag Pup

Skag Pups are the first skags you fight. They are relatively weak and are little more than a nuisance to all but the lowest level (1-4) player. They can occasionally flank the player when the player is focusing on other  skags.

Tactics: Point, shoot, repeat.

 
Skag Whelp
 

Skag whelps are very easy to kill, being only one step up from a skag pup. The skag whelp is a weak enemy that tends to appear well into the high levels. It's good to leave a few alive to allow you to get an easy second wind when attacked by other more powerful skags.

Tactics: Similar to the strategy for Skag Pups. If you are having trouble, try walking backwards while shooting at them, dodging to one side or the other to avoid their leaping attacks.

Upon beginning a second playthrough, Skag Whelps will be replaced by the more powerful Angry Skag Whelps

Adult Skag

Adult skags are essentially a bigger skag whelp with more health, armor and attack. They are not much of a threat to higher level players, but can be encountered early in the game and are a serious threat to new characters.

Tactics: Adult skags are amongst the first skags that begin to get dangerous enough to kill you. To kill them, you should run circles while attacking them, as they will leap at you, dealing a large amount of damage and sending you flying.

Upon beginning a second playthrough, Adult Skags will be replaced with the more powerful Feral Skags.

Spitter Skag
 

Spitter skags are a strange, small form of skag that have a darker green coloring and an annoying tendency to hang back and spit globs of corrosive goo at enemies.

Tactics: Either run towards it and beat it down with melee or shoot it. Either works due to their low health.

Upon beginning a second playthrough, Spitter Skags will be replaced by the more powerful Hawking Skags.

Elder Skag

Elder skags are the last stage in the skag growth cycle. They are some of the strongest skags in a colony and are a threat to the unprepared.

Tactics: In their normal form, they are just like a slightly larger, stronger adult skag, and should be treated similarly. Be careful as they spit acid like a spitting or hawking skag at range. They tend to run towards you and either spit a glob of acid or leap at you. To combat this, run in circles, avoiding other skags and shooting at the elder. If you have a decent gun and/or build, elder skags tend to go down quickly.

Note: Similarly to the alpha skag, elder skags have armor plating on their upper body. Although it doesn't reduce damage by much, if given the chance, aim for their lower body and legs.

Upon beginning a second playthrough, Elder Skags will be replaced by the more powerful Hulking Elder Skags.

Alpha Skag

Alpha Skags are some of the largest skags that can be found. They are the strongest form of skag (excluding badasses, badmuthas, elementals and skagzilla) having a large amount of health and an armored upper body. Their armored upper body reduces bullet damage to almost nothing, so shooting anywhere on the front of the alpha skag (excluding the mouth) is a complete waste of ammo and should only be attempted if going for a second wind.

Tactics: The best strategy for fighting alpha skags is either going after their unarmored lower body and legs with a rapid fire weapon (SMG, combat rifle, etc.) or attempting a mouth shot during a roar with a high damage weapon such as a revolver or sniper. The key to fighting skags is running in circles, but this especially important for alpha skags, as they have relatively fast, high powered attacks.

Late in playthrough 1 with co-op partners and in playthrough 2, elemental alpha skags may be seen. Do not bother shooting at them with an elemental weapon of the same type, especially in their armored sections. These skag have an additional area of affect attack where they stand on their hind legs and then stomp their front limbs down and send an elemental blast wave outwards. The Shock Hardened Alpha Skags of playthrough 2 are particularly effective at removing shields with this if you get too close.

Upon beginning a second playthrough, Alpha Skags will be replaced by the more powerful Hardened Alpha Skags.

Badass Skag
 

Badass Skags are some of the largest (apart from the boss skags such as Marley, Skagzilla or Scar) and most deadly skags. They can be easily spotted due to their large size and glowing blue eyes. They are very well armored and usually have a elemental twist to them. They can be a huge problem for lower level players, but as you approach their level and/or utilize strategic teamwork, they can become easier to manage.  Remember that elemental creatures always have extreme resistance (or even immunity) to elemental attacks of their alignment.

  Elemental variants include:

 

    * Fire - Large, flaming skags with a fire-based projectile attack.
    * Corrosive - Shoots globs of corrosive material.
    * Static - Attacks with a shocking ranged attack


Tactics: Badass Skags are much like a larger, stronger version of an Alpha Skag. Circling and aiming for the back and mouth are important things to remember when fighting Badass Skags. Being careful to avoid it's elemental attacks and focusing your fire on its weak spots can make the difference between success and failure.

Scythids

Scythids are large, insect-like creatures that dig from the ground and attack in groups. They have wings that allow them to fly short distances. They come in a large array of sizes and types, from the small and annoying Scythid Crawler to the grotesquely large Giant Scythids. They will often attack vehicles and can pose a danger when massed.

Scythid Crawlers
 

Scythid Crawlers are very small scythids. They will emit a high-pitched noise (akin to a kitten mewing) and leap at the player, and can be difficult to spot due to their size and constant leaping. Close-ranged weapons are effective for dealing with them and they have very little health, so they often die in one shot. Melee attacks are also very good to use against them. Melee attacks should always kill them in one hit, saving loads of ammo.

Tactics: Usually about 1-2 Shots can finish these off, but the most effective way is to Melee them, watch out for when they launch at you, if your precise you can hit them in mid-air without them touching you.

Desert Scythids

Desert Scythids look like scarab beetles. They have a dark shell and can hover around for a few seconds. It is easiest to kill them with a burst of automatic fire, a shotgun blast, or a well-placed melee attack.

Tactics: When floating, you can take these guys down with ease. Most scythids are vunerable to Melee attacks, so its an easy way to finish them off when they land.

Bursting Scythids

Bursting Scythids are big and bloated scythids that prefer to get close to the player and attack. They have very little health and explode when killed, damaging the player if they are too close. These are also a hazard when driving, since their explosion will deal damage to a vehicle if they are run over.

Tactics: Shooting these guys when you have a swarm of Scythids behind you can be helpful. Couple of shots them bang, damage anything around them.

Giant Scythids

Giant Scythids act like most other scythids but are larger and stronger. The easiest way to kill them is with a vehicle but gunfire and grenades will also work just as well.

Tactics: Because these guys dont have a Critical Shot point, you may waste alot of ammo on these guys unless you have a powerful weapon.

Burning Crawlers

Burning Scythid Crawlers are similar in colour to the Bursting Scythids and use the same attack pattern as the normal Scythid Crawlers but are significantly larger. The best way to dispatch them is with gunfire, but bear in mind they are resistant to incendiary damage.
 

Spiderant

Spiderants are vicious, insect-like creatures. They like to burrow under the ground and pop up, catching victims unaware. There are several different varieties of spiderants, with varying abilities and properties, but some things are constant.

All spiderants are covered in an armored carapace which protects their body. All but their abdomen, located just behind their head. Shots there will deal critical damage. Shooting a spiderant in the head will disorient them for a moment though, giving you the opportunity to step around them and deal the critical blow.

Some spiderants can spit projectiles at you, and others can roll up into a ball to get around quickly. Most will try to claw and bite at you.

Spiderantling

They smallest and least of the Spiderant creatures. They are most likely baby or freshly hatched Spiderants. They have the same tan coloring as Worker Spiderants and attack by leaping. Due to their small size and low health they can often be dispatched without aiming for their vulnerable abdomen.

Worker Spiderant

Like all Spiderants, are only vulnerable on their backside, with the head completely armor plated. They can be distinguished by their tan armor. They are a little bigger than Spiderantlings. Worker Spiderants attack by aggressively leaping at the player, and striking with their large talons when close.

Gyro Spiderant

Like all Spiderants, are only vulnerable on their backside, with the head completely armor plated. They can be distinguished by their black/purple-ish armor, which is darker than the Soldier Spiderant and can roll up into a ball. Hitting its enemies in this state will cause even the largest bruiser to be knocked back, but if they miss they are facing away from the player after spinning, leaving their abdomen open for shots.

Soldier Spiderant

Like all Spiderants, are only vulnerable on their backside, with the head completely armor plated. They can be distinguished by their black/purple-ish armor and moderate size. While they can go up to you and strike you with their claws, they tend to favor hanging back and launching whitish volleys from their abdomen.

Queen Spiderant

Are very large Spiderants. Like all Spiderants, they are covered in a thick exoskeleton and are vulnerable on their abdomen. They can be distinguished by their large size and bluish coloring. While they will slash with their large, scything talons at times, they prefer to hang back and shoot volleys of whitish goo, unlike the more aggressive King Spiderants.

King Spiderant

Are huge Spiderants with a pale green coloring. Like all Spiderants, they are covered with a thick exoskeleton and vulnerable on their abdomen. While similar in size to Queen Spiderants, they will instead charge at the player and attack with their scything fore-talons.

Rakk

A Rakk is a flying creature with a razor-sharp beak and talons and a stinger on its tail. They usually attack in swarms.

You can always tell when rakks are about due to their distinctive scream. If you ever see something flying about the sky that isn't a hunter's bloodwing, it is a rakk. After being alerted, the rakk swarm will begin making runs to divebomb you. A rakk swarm will usually have at least one bloated or feeder rakk. These rakks are swollen from recently eating, and will drop guns, ammo, and money when they die, since it has not digested yet.

Like all creatures, badass variants have elemental properties and will often try to bomb you with their elemental attacks as well as dive.

Larva Crab Worm

Larva Crab Worms are large purple crab like creatures found in Pandora. They are very distinctive because of their dark purple color. Larva Crab Worms have two large pincers at the front, and a bright purple eye in the center of their head. They have the ability to do a long-ranged corrosive attack that fires purple acid at you. They can also burrow themselves into the ground and reappear somewhere else.  Nonetheless, Larva Crab Worm s should not be challenging opponents due to their low amount of armor and health.

 

Elite enemies

There are also variations of the above enemies that are tougher to kill. These are prefaced with the adjective "Badass". And in the 2nd Playthrough are called "Badmutha".

Bosses

There are bosses in the game but most haven't been announced yet. The only one revealed so far is a bandit named Nine Toes that appears early in the game.