Jungle Hunter Clan

The Jungle Hunter Clan is probably the best-known group of Yautja. The most famous recorded human encounter with this clan was when an individual known as the Jungle Hunter tracked down and slowly picked off Alan "Dutch" Schaefer's mercenary squad in Val Verde.

History[]

Blood Feud[]

"The larger ones hunt the smaller ones. It's some kinda' blood feud, I guess, been going on for a long time."

―Ronald Noland (from Predators)

At an unknown point in time, a particularly intense feud developed between the Jungle Hunter Clan and the Bad Blood Super Predator Clans. The clans were in a constant state of war, with the Super Predators even capturing Jungle Hunters to be used as game in hunts.^[1]

Central American Hunts[]

"When I was little, we found a man. He looked like - like, butchered. The old women in the village crossed themselves, and whispered crazy things, such strange things."

―Anna Gonsalves (from Predator)

During the 20th century, the Jungle Hunter Clan partook in several hunts in the Central American jungles during the hottest summers of the region. While it is unknown whether only a single hunter partook in these events or if it was multiple Jungle Hunters, their presence had become something of a local legend, being nicknamed "El Diablo que hace trofeos de los hombres" (The devil who makes trophies of men) and various other monikers.^[2] ^[3]

Val Verde Incident[]

"I'm scared, Poncho."
"Bullshit! You ain't afraid of no man."
"There's something out there waiting for us. And it ain't no man."

―Billy Sole and Jorge Ramirez (from Predator)

In the summer^[2] of 1987, one particular individual conducted a hunt during a communist insurgency in Val Verde and began hunting American special forces that were operating in the region on a CIA-backed rescue mission. This Jungle Hunter notably stalked and killed the entirety of Alan "Dutch" Schaefer's team, save for Dutch himself.

Having proved himself as worthy prey, the Jungle Hunter engaged Dutch in hand-to-hand combat and while initially having the upper hand, he was defeated by Dutch's traps and ingenuity. The hunter then committed honorable suicide with his self-destruct device.^[3] The events of his hunt were relayed back to the clan via his Bio-mask's recordings stored on his ship, which automatically returned to Yautja Prime following the hunter's demise.^[4]

Game Preserve Planet Incident[]

"It looks like we're not the only things being hunted."

―Royce (from Predators)

In 2010, a several Jungle Hunters were captured by the Super Predator Clan of the Berserker known as "Mr. Black" and taken to their Game Preserve Planet where they were hunted alongside a myriad of other captured prey. The Super Predators killed most of them but recaptured one particular Jungle Hunter alive and tied him to a totem back at their camp where he was left to hang.^[5]^[1]

The weakened hunter was stumbled upon by a group of humans who had also been captured by the Super Predators, including Isabelle Nissenbaum, an IDF sniper who was investigating the 1987 Val Verde Incident. Royce, a member of this group, later returned to the camp and struck a deal with the captive hunter. He would free them if they could get him home to Earth. The hunter agreed and prepped a ship for the human to leave in before the Berserker returned to the camp and spotted his escaped prey. The Jungle Hunter stepped in front of the human and engaged the Super Predator in a fierce brawl. However, the Berserker managed to gain the upper hand and defeated the Jungle Hunter, decapitating him.^[1]

An unknown time later, another Jungle Hunter journeyed to the planet and found the Super Predator camp, taking his slain clan brother's damaged Bio-mask and wearing it himself.^[6]

Conflict on LV-412[]

"You've cleansed the sacred ground and made your way to the Alien Hive. Prove you're a worthy hunter. Kill the Queen."

―Jungle Hunter Clan Leader (from AVP: Evolution)

Hundreds of years later on the planet LV-412, a different member of the Jungle Hunter Clan was captured by a Super Predator Clan operating on the planet to be used as a guinea pig on which they could test their new modified Xenomorph army. After the hunter managed to dispatch all the Xenomorphs pitted against him, the Super Predator Clan's leader jumped into the arena to finish the Jungle Hunter off himself. Just before the Berserker decapitated him, the Jungle Hunter sent out a warning back to his Clan Leader.

A Young Blood Warrior was dispatched to the planet, tasked with putting a stop to the Super Predators' plans. However, their ship was shot down in orbit by the Super Predators, causing the Warrior to flee in an escape pod. After landing on the planet's surface, the Warrior found themselves coming into conflict with human forces on the planet working for Weyland-Yutani. Briefly crossing paths with a Drone free from Super Predator control, unaware that they both had similar goals, the Warrior continued deeper into the Marine facility in order to retrieve the Plasmacaster and armor of his ancestors that had been stolen by the humans.

In the lower levels of the facility, the young Warrior eventually encountered the Super Predator-controlled Xenomorphs, including a Praetorian which he defeated outside the facility. Battling his way through the hostile forces on the planet, the Warrior crossed through the wreckage of his ship, where he killed several Super Predators that had come to investigate the crash site. After securing a holographic map of the temple where the Queen was being held, the young Warrior set what was left of the ship to self-destruct and fled the scene.

He then fought through the temple, slaying gangs of Xenomorphs and their Super Predator masters, making his way down into the hive. At the bottom of the hive, the newly Blooded Warrior came face to face with the Xenomorph Queen. Using the environment to his advantage, he managed to slay the serpent mother and took her head as a trophy, putting an end to the Super Predator's ability to breed their army.^[7]

Culture[]

"They were always armed: a rifle, a pistol, a knife in the boot. He wasn't taking kids or random villagers. He wanted a challenge. Whatever it was, it was a hunter. When it killed, it killed for sport."

―Dutch (from Predator: Hunting Grounds)

Jungle Hunter culture is seemingly routed in tradition and strict adherence to the Yautja Honor Code, which puts them at immense odds with the various Super Predator Clans. As such, Super Predators are viewed and treated with considerable disdain amongst clan members. The stigma is so great that even honorable Yautja with Super Predator ancestry are looked down upon and mistrusted.^[8]^[9]

The Super Predator Elder, Nightstorm is considered to be a sort of devil figure in Jungle Hunter culture due to his involvement in the origin of the Super Predators' feud with other Yautja.^[9]

Trivia[]

Most Jungle Hunters wear the same mask design, whereas most other clans' masks vary greatly from individual to individual.
A myriad of Predators throughout the franchise are based on or are entirely identical to the Jungle Hunter design, regardless of membership.
In AVP: Evolution, the clan is shown to use a ship with a virtually identical interior to that used by the Los Angeles hunting party in Predator 2.