Using Psionics

[Megaspawn]

I wanted to post on why psionics can be your friend.

 

Yes, it's true that mind powers are not as good as in the first two games (which means that they won't automatically win the game for you). However, I typically hire all the high-talent mutants I can, and by the alien dimension missions, I have an all-mutant squad.

 

1) If you give each mutant several weeks of both psionic and combat training, they start to rock. Let them practice scanning enemies early too for practice.

 

2) Psionic attacks take 0 time in real time. You can pause, let all of your agents try a psionic attack, put away their mind blasters, and start time up again.

 

3) Psionic attacks can reach anywhere the agent can see. Across maps, up balconies, etc.

 

4) I stick to mind control (make the alien drop all weapons and shields, set it to "run", then run straight towards my agents until the mind control wears off) or stun.

 

5) Once your agents develop good psi defense scores, you don't need androids - your whole squad is immune to psionic attacks!

 

6) Mind control is great for mid-game fights against Organizations or brainsucked agents. Once the enemies throw their shields at you and drop all their other gear, they are a lot easier to fight . . .

 

7) Mind control gave me a great war story in my current game:

 

Samuel 0 psi, my best psi agent, had fallen behind the rest of squad 2.  He came up an elevator into a 4x4 room, and suddenly realized he was in a room with 4 anthropods.  He tried to get to the doorway to take cover with the rest of his squad, but they started hammering his shield with explosives and disruptor cannons.  Before he made it halfway, his shield and half his health was gone. 

 

Thinking quickly (thanks to the pause button), he primed and threw a stun grenade, then used the same hand to ready his mind bender.  He controlled the nearest anthropod, forcing it to throw him its shield and drop its other gear.  While the other anthros were shooting their former buddy, he picked up the shield, readied twin toxiguns on autofire, and gunned down all the anthros before finally passing out from the gas himself.  The rest of squad 2 burst into the room to see Sam unconscious but fully shielded, surrounded by dead anthros.

[BurnThemALL]

Cool war story Megaspawn!

 

But I can't bring myself to use psionics, I don't know... Maybe because the aliens don't burn when I use it?!? :crazy:

[Extralucas]

Psionics? Well they probably very usefull but there isn't much to control .

Much of aliens seems to dont have brains, heads, have under-developed

brains and such. These ones wchich have brains are usually psi masters

and hard to control... Im only in 3rd or 4th week of the game but I havent

meet much worth controlling units...

(But Im still sure that mind controlling all those running around Anthros and

skeletoids would make game far easier)

[Maverick]

I beat the game and got all equipment that you can get without ever successfully completing a psionic attack. I only attempted 2 attacks, and that was just to see what they were like. When i learned they were not like X-com 1 and had the "line of sight" limitation, they became relics of a game past and were dropped from my arsenal to make room for more teleporters and toxigun clips. If you choose to use them it may add some exciting battle stories, but IMO will add more heartache with their shortcomings and headache when they don't work. I do agree that hybrids are the way to go with soldiers though. (their phys stats don't have limitations on growth and the higher psi-defense makes them ideal as opposed to their human counterparts -- should they be succeptible to psionic control after adequate training they either deserve to die or keep to the back and out of sight while androids take care of business.)

[Extralucas]

:birthday: I found use for Psi! I use it raiding other organizations. Mind controll their soldiers and drop their disuptor shields. It seems to be only good & possible way . Stun Gas - they're escaping from it. Toxigun - I don't want kill f'cker -> I want take his shield and don't mess with organization. Other guns - destroy shield.

 

For me it's only good use of Psi. Oh yeah, androids... Aw come on they're useless. Their 99 or 90 psi defence doesn't mean anything. It's easy to mind controll android on raid. And they can be sucked by brainsucker... Why for sake!?

[BurnThemALL]

Hahaha Extralucas! I am with you... That's a great use of psi - and the only one in my view. Androids are useless. My soldiers got only 3 times mind-controlled and this was no problem at all because I used toxi guns. I set the target of my remaining soldiers to the mindbender alien and in seconds he died and all was nice. So there is no use for androids exept one thing, I have one squad of 5 androids for retaliation visits if I get raided. Then they go and hire taxis, drive to the organisation which raided me and destroy as much as they can until they get destroyed or get finished with the bad boys.

 

Another thing could be to mind-control sirius cult members and steer them over a bunch of proximity mines. :crazy:

 

I made a funny test. I stunned a sirius cultie and took all his weapons in a passageway. Then I blocked him with my soldiers, when he woke up I set the place where he stood (about 4x4 squares) on fire. BOY can they run fast! :crazy: Then I threw him his rifle to the ground where he stood and "accidently" a vertex mine. It killed him and sent 4 of my soldiers into sick bay!

[Brute]

Hahaha Extralucas!  I am with you... That's a great use of psi - and the only one in my view. Androids are useless

Android are not targets of the brainsuckers by default

also they are immune to phsical attacks

Their primary role in apoc is to shield your weak humans in the very beginning of the game

[BurnThemALL]

Brute: nice tip. And now I also use androids to shield my unmanned factory and research base - and they are doing well. :uzzi: :crying: :crazy:

[Brute]

i also read that androids could show some minusculer increments

but i have never seen

[Extralucas]

Hahaha Extralucas!  I am with you... That's a great use of psi - and the only one in my view. Androids are useless

Android are not targets of the brainsuckers by default

also they are immune to phsical attacks

Their primary role in apoc is to shield your weak humans in the very beginning of the game

Well, maybe I said too much, that androids are useless. They're best at the beggining, that's right, but when I easy Mind Controlled one during raid, and lost few brainsucked on ufo's recovery (I got only 2 androids on mission, and they were my only soldiers there) they appeared as no "PSI-proof" as they were suposed to be.

[Brute]

it seem like a bug of the game. Note that their FACES were android faces, but maybe they were surgically enhanced human -rumor - combat units. Unlike them, your androids are surely immune to psi attacks -tested-

[Extralucas]

it seem like a bug of the game. Note that their FACES were android faces, but maybe they were surgically enhanced human -rumor - combat units. Unlike them, your androids are surely immune to psi attacks -tested-

Maybe you're right... Maybe I will belive in android's powers once again some day

[Arjuna]

Androids are excellent in the beginning of the game because when you start all of your guys have accuracy that reeks of donkey. But androids tend to have around 50 or 60 accuracy, making them good snipers. You can't train them, but their stats can go up after enough missions. My one android, Scott Queen, is my heavy weapons specialist since he has such a high strength rating and good enough accuracy to avoid friendly fire. I still haven't seen any usable alien weapons other than the boomeroid and the disruptor gun, so I'm using ToxiGuns which by the way KICK donkey.

 

But I've always found it handy to move in with Scott's sidearm (ToxiGun) against Skeletoids or Anthropods equipped with brainsucker launchers. The brainsuckers for some reason just kinda sat there for a few turns (I always do turn-based) so I ignored them in favor of bringing up my power swordsmen. Then when Scott turned around they all attacked him in the same turn, all ineffectual. So droids can be handy, and I use Scott as a commando.