Tentaculat
General Information
The Tentaculat is the most fearsome alien yet encountered by X-Com. Not even the depths of a Lovecraftian nightmare could spawn such as this indescribable creature. No comparison to any Earth animal exists, the environment that could produce such as this is beyond imagination. Short of that, they're best described as floating brains.
Tentaculats are armed with powerful beaks that can pierce many inches of thick armour, regardless of the material. With their spine-line appendages, a Tentaculat paralyses its victims and bites them to transmute them into mindless things by injecting a fast acting agent. In addition to the mind destroying effects, the Tentaculat's transmutation process accelerates rigor mortis and bloats the victim until it rips through and destroys any suit of armour being worn. The victim will wander mindlessly in a shuffle and try to strangle or strike any X-Com target it comes across with inhuman strength.
Even if one of the zombified victims is killed, somehow, a new Tentaculat bursts from the corpse - unless the killing blow is done with a phosphorous round. This appears to cause the incubating Tentaculat's growth process to fail.
The Tentaculat is nearly always spotted in underwater alien dwellings. They are also known to act as watchdogs for some of the larger USOs that have touched down on the sea bed, such as the Dreadnaught.
Basically a flying Chryssalid with an unusual distribution of armour.
The one saving grace is that Tentaculats are water-bound and are never found on land. X-Com Aquanauts do not have to suffer the same mass infestations as their predecessors had to whenever a Chryssalid was dropped into an urban area.
Autopsy
The autopsy reveals small cybernetic implants are lodged in the creature's large brain. The vision system is a complex combination of visible light and thermal imaging acquisition. Even in the inky depths of the ocean this monster can navigate with unerring accuracy. There are vestigial organs that seem to be the bare minimum for survival. Each creature has a small stomach with an external connector, it is logical to assume the being is fed by direct nutrient input by its masters.