Stalker (enemy)

For other uses, see Stalker.

The Stalker is a creature introduced in Borderlands 2. It has the unique ability to vanish from sight, made possible due to a special organ all stalkers have known as the Sach's Organ. This organ, located within the vestigial wings of the creature, stores an electrical charge generated by solar plates on the creature's back that convert sunlight into electrical energy. While hunting or hiding, this organ is used to generate an electrical field, allowing it to blend into its surroundings and disappear (also known as "cloaking"). When the stored energy is depleted, or the electrical field is destroyed, the cloaking effect is lost.

Strategy

Stalkers vanish when they detect prey nearby, then proceed to creep up on their victim. Only when they are close enough to pounce do they reveal themselves, and then they will leap and try to slash at their prey. Their natural shield can be quickly depleted by shock damage, and when this fails they also lose their ability to cloak until the shield regenerates. Different varieties of stalker attack in different ways - Needle Stalkers prefer to hang back and fling spines from their tails, Spring Stalkers jump in and out of melee range, and Ambush Stalkers tend to pounce into melee and stay there until and unless their shields are depleted. Most stalkers become far more cautious once their shields are down; they will let out a distinctive roar, and then back off to recharge.

Variants

Standard

Needle Stalker: Arguably the standard variant of stalker, Needle Stalkers tend to stay at a distance and fling spikes from their tails. If forced into close range, they will claw and bite at their enemy, however these attacks are rather weak. On True Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Nitro Stalkers and their spikes become grenades which explode after a short delay, dealing additional explosive damage. On Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Clash Stalkers.
Spring Stalker: Lacking any ranged attack, Spring stalkers approach invisibly, then leap at enemies. The entire path of their leap is a single melee attack. When close to an enemy, Spring Stalkers always move away to line up another pounce. On True Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Poison Stalkers, and their attacks become corrosive but they do not resist corrosive damage. On Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Pestilent Stalkers.
Ambush Stalker: Ambush Stalkers, like Spring Stalkers, attack at close range rather than use the spikes on their tails. Once within striking distance, Ambush Stalkers repeatedly assault their enemy until their shield is depleted. They have relatively weak attacks, can survive very little damage, and are physically large targets, making them the weakest stalker variant. On True Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Flash Stalkers. On Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Blitz Stalkers.
Cyclone Stalker: Cyclone Stalkers are named for their ability to spin rapidly while moving towards the target, dealing very heavy damage and deflecting incoming projectiles. Cyclone stalkers are also capable of flinging rotating spikes at enemies, dealing arguably the highest amount of damage of any standard stalker's spikes. On True Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Zing Stalkers, and become elementally charged with shock. Oddly, they do not become resistant to shock damage. On Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Typhoon Stalkers.
Slagged Stalker: A slightly larger variant of Needle Stalker elementally charged with slag.
Rabid Stalker: Rabid Stalkers run directly toward their target and attack with rapid, devastating melee attacks. When a path to the target cannot be calculated they will throw spikes. This variant is extremely dangerous, with shield, health and damage capacity well above that of a Super Badass Stalker. One-on-one a Rabid Stalker can take down a Super Badass Pyre Thresher. Rabid Stalkers first appear on True Vault Hunter Mode and are not renamed in Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode.
Tri-Tail Stalker: A variant of Needle Stalker encountered only in the DLC Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate's Booty. This variant behaves identically to a standard Needle Stalker, but flings a volley of three spikes instead of one at a time.

Badass

Chubby Stalker: Chubby Stalkers are an incredibly rare variant of Badass Stalker. They sport far higher health, are much more aggressive and are capable of dealing significantly more damage than any standard variant. As with all Chubby enemies, Chubby Stalkers have a chance to drop one of several Legendary items, such as the Bunny and Bouncing Bonny, and killing a Chubby Stalker unlocks the achievement/trophy Cute Loot.
Badass Stalker: Badass Stalkers behave much like a Needle Stalker with regard to attack patterns, however, Badass Stalkers have stronger shields, significantly higher health and possess a more powerful melee attack. In True Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Super Badass Stalkers, even though they are much less dangerous than most Super Badass enemies. On Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode, they are renamed Ultimate Badass Stalkers.

Notable Stalkers

Notes

While using Zer0's Decepti0n skill, all stalkers are visible.
Cloaked Stalkers emit a purple outline when damaged. When damaged by an elemental weapon, the respective element's colour (incendiary, corrosive, shock, and slag) can be seen in the outline.
While cloaked, stalkers will not take continuous damage from Tesla grenades, but they will take damage from the initial and ending explosions.
Cloaked stalkers cannot be Phaselocked by Maya.

Trivia

Stalker wings are vestigial but still somewhat functional, allowing them to glide.
Stalkers tend to reproduce asexually. Sexual intercourse between two Stalkers is very rare and usually by accident.
In some areas with Stalkers, Bandits have hung signs to warn of 'Invisibl Assholes!'.
The Sach's Organ that allows stalkers to turn invisible shares its name with the organ used by electric eels for their electric discharges.
Stalkers recharge their shields with the use of special plates on their backs that convert solar energy into a shield, as seen in the Borderlands 2 official guide book.
According to Marshall Friedman, Stalker skin is used to make boots.
According to Sir Hammerlock, Stalkers find Echo recorders delicious.

Stalker (enemy)

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