Lethal Company: How To Beat The Kidnapper Fox

As if it wasn't scary enough dealing with the in-your-face threats in Lethal Company, you'll now have to deal with another entity that prefers stalking its prey silently, and this one prefers the outside to the inside. The planet-hopping Vain Shroud plant has reached our available moons, and with it comes the Kidnapper Fox, a predator who uses them for cover.

With their symbiotic relationship, one isn't usually going to be seen without the other, but no matter what, you had better keep watch on big groups of Vain Shrouds. If you don't, it might mean the Kidnapper Fox ruins your quota, and makes you its next meal too.

At the time of this article, the Kidnapper Fox and Vain Shrouds are only accessible through the Steam Beta versions of Lethal Company, and information is subject to change.

Where To Find The Kidnapper Fox

The Kidnapper Fox can be found on most moons, such as Artifice, but its spawning is rather unique compared to other entities – in order for a Kidnapper Fox to spawn, the moon must also have Vain Shrouds spawn. Due to this, their spawning and moon distribution is directly based on the Vain Shroud and how they spawn.

Vain Shrouds appear as large, spiky red bushes and have their own bestiary entry despite being a plant, but are otherwise harmless on their own.

Initially, on the moons they appear, the Vain Shrouds will just appear as a single plant, and it will stay this way during the entirety of your first quota. If you haven't gotten rid of the plants with Weed Killer, they'll continue to grow and more plants will appear as you complete quotas until there are massive groups of them.

Kidnapper Foxes can only spawn if at least five or more Vain Shrouds have spawned in proximity on the moon, and this is because the largest group of the plants will essentially serve as their home base.

Kidnapper Fox Behavior

The Kidnapper Fox is an ambush predator and acts similarly to the Bracken, but is far less lethal overall due to how it works and attacks employees. If there are enough Vain Shrouds, then a single Kidnapper Fox will spawn on the moon, and will stay on the moon until you leave, or it's killed by you or another employee.

Once spawned, Kidnapper Foxes will begin roaming the moon and searching for potential prey, but they'll mostly stay to their home Vain Shrouds and the ship, and sneak between both locations depending on the distance between them.

No matter how many Vain Shrouds there are, only one Kidnapper Fox can spawn per moon , and no more will spawn once it's dead, or you've removed the spawned Vain Shrouds.

For the most part, whether you're solo or in a group, the Kidnapper Fox will initially act very skittish and frequently hide in Vain Shrouds, behind trees, or nearby rocks if you look at it or approach it. It'll also run back to its home base if you get too to it, and attempt to scare you away with the occasional scream.

When the Kidnapper Fox has selected an employee as their prey, or you stay too to one on a hunt, they'll sneak up on them and grab them with their tongue, then attempt to drag them back to their home to actually kill them.

If you or your group can successfully fight the Kidnapper Fox off during its hunt, it will retreat and try again once you've separated, though it occasionally attempts to immediately drag another player back.

You can fight back against the dragging and make it take longer to drag you back by attempting to walk or sprint backwards .

How To Deal With The Kidnapper Fox

You've got a couple of ways to handlethe Kidnapper Fox whether you're solo or in a group: getting rid of the Vain Shrouds on the moon and preventing them from spawning entirely, preventing its kill, or outright killing it with a Shovel or other tool.

How To Prevent Kidnapper Foxes From Spawning

The best method to handle them is to keep them away entirely, but this requires both credits and preparation. It's not always feasible depending on the moon's weather and if anything else has spawned.

To get rid of Vain Shrouds, you'll need some Weed Killer, which are purchaseable from the ship's Terminal for around 40 credits on average, and to bring it along if you've seen there are enough Vain Shrouds to spawn the entity.

The spawn location of Vain Shrouds is determined when the moon loads , and they will be in their randomly generated location as soon as the day begins.

Equip the Weed Killer in your hand, then approach and use it on the Vain Shroud to make it wither away and disappear.

Since their spawn amount is based on how high your quota is, you can use the Weed Killer to end their spread early and keep Kidnapper Foxes from ever spawning on your current run.

Avoiding The Kidnapper Fox

If you're running solo, your best defense is going to be avoiding the Kidnapper Fox or using one of the stunning items to stun it before it can get to you. They're susceptible to being stunned by Homemade Flashbangs or Stun Grenades, as well as the Radar Booster and the Zap Gun.

Both the Zap Gun and Radar Booster can really only be used to their best potential in a group , so if you're solo , you'll want to use one of the stunning grenades instead .

You can also avoid the Kidnapper Fox for the most part by watching or approaching them, as this will make them retreat back to their home base of Shrouds, and get them off your back briefly.

There is a risk with this strategy though – if their home is near your ship, you will end up dealing with them every time you approach, and this can make escaping difficult, especially if other enemies have already spawned.

Similar to Snare Fleas , the Kidnapper Fox will force you to drop all your equipment and scrap if you get grabbed by them.

Killing The Kidnapper Fox

Thankfully, like most entities, it's possible to kill a Kidnapper Fox. Due to their method of killing and insta-kill damage, your best bet for killing them safely is the long-range Shotgun if you've got one, especially if you're solo.

If you're in a group, you've got multiple options to deal with the entity as long as one of you is alive, and you've got some equipment.

You can use one of the various stunning items to stun it then attack it with whatever you've got, or you can intentionally bait the Kidnapper Fox into grabbing someone, whack its tongue to stop the attack, then rush in as a group and attack it before it can retreat fully or while its running.

As Kidnapper Foxes prefer to go after lone employees, staying in a group will also help prevent attacks and allow a quicker response if one of you gets grabbed.