Lucky or unlucky?

[MiniMacker]

Am I just lucky or unlucky here? It's at the end of the first month (January), and I just captured a Sectoid Navigator, Engineer and a Leader.

 

I've also found the Small Launcher w/ stun bomb.

 

 

I'm using Seb76's Extender mod to fix bugs and make the game a lot more time-saving (Display of stats, ranged accuracy, etc.)

 

Am I unlucky or lucky here? I mean... If the aliens had these things, that would mean they've accumulated quite a lot of score, correct?

Are there going to be battleships at my doorstep or was it just pure luck that I managed to stun a Navigator, Engineer and a Leader, all in the same mission?

 

 

Edit: Things has been really, really quiet lately. There is no UFO activity in ANY country and it's been days without any incursions.

 

Edit 2: They sure are pissed about something. They've been snaking around my base for days, luckily never close enough. I've shot down any UFOs that are heading right towards my blip. I even managed to get a supply ship that landed in Siberia, lots of goodies; but a heck of a lot of fodder dying. Even my Captain had low morale. (And I found a base not far away).

 

Things seems almost too easy. Back a few years ago, I couldn't stay alive even if I HEX edited money. I guess I'm just god.

Edited May 12, 2010 by MiniMacker

[[NKF]]

I can't give you a definite answer for your small launcher, but you're lucky with the aliens. Years ago, I had to abort a brand new game when sectoids raided my base (still early Jan). The last alien that was left standing panicked and revealed that it was a sectoid commander. Joy, I thought I could get the Cydonia research done well before I get the Avenger. The problem was that I had completely run out of ammo. Well, actually I only had a pair of smoke grenades, but they did nothing. Since both sides were at an impasse - and aborting would've ended the game anyway, I had to restart.

 

- NKF

[Eledhel]

I can't give you a definite answer for your small launcher, but you're lucky with the aliens. Years ago, I had to abort a brand new game when sectoids raided my base (still early Jan). The last alien that was left standing panicked and revealed that it was a sectoid commander. Joy, I thought I could get the Cydonia research done well before I get the Avenger. The problem was that I had completely run out of ammo. Well, actually I only had a pair of smoke grenades, but they did nothing. Since both sides were at an impasse - and aborting would've ended the game anyway, I had to restart.

 

- NKF

 

Just for future reference, if you would pick up an unresearched alien weapon you would be able to kill the alien by reaction shots right? Assuming of course the alien would stop panicking long enough to move a few spots.

[MiniMacker]

Ach, things has been going so well. I've got both an Alien Commander and Psi-troops. But I have a problem.

When I look at the Graphs, I can't see the alien activity because the 'range' apparently goes up to somewhere of 34 524. When I go to X-com activity, it's the normal 10 to 90 scale. But the Alien graph is from 32 500-something to 34 520-something.

 

So that's why I haven't seen any jumps in the activity. I assumed I was the master of assassinating aliens, but I've been tricked by the game!

 

 

On another note, it seems that the Aliens has completely fallen in love with Siberia. They send harvesters, research and scouts there all day long. I've got two bases with Hyperwave decoder covering Asia and Europe, and another one being constructed in the U.S. But I've only had terror missions in Siberia, alien researchers in Siberia and possible around Eastern Europe.

Perhaps they've become addicted to Vodka?

 

Edit: My fodder just got promoted to Captain! Argh! (He's the only guy with less than 40 Morale.)

Edited May 13, 2010 by MiniMacker

[oldfan]

Am I just lucky or unlucky here? It's at the end of the first month (January), and I just captured a Sectoid Navigator, Engineer and a Leader.

 

I've also found the Small Launcher w/ stun bomb.

 

 

I'm using Seb76's Extender mod to fix bugs and make the game a lot more time-saving (Display of stats, ranged accuracy, etc.)

 

Am I unlucky or lucky here? I mean... If the aliens had these things, that would mean they've accumulated quite a lot of score, correct?

Are there going to be battleships at my doorstep or was it just pure luck that I managed to stun a Navigator, Engineer and a Leader, all in the same mission?

 

 

Edit: Things has been really, really quiet lately. There is no UFO activity in ANY country and it's been days without any incursions.

 

Edit 2: They sure are pissed about something. They've been snaking around my base for days, luckily never close enough. I've shot down any UFOs that are heading right towards my blip. I even managed to get a supply ship that landed in Siberia, lots of goodies; but a heck of a lot of fodder dying. Even my Captain had low morale. (And I found a base not far away).

 

Things seems almost too easy. Back a few years ago, I couldn't stay alive even if I HEX edited money. I guess I'm just god.

 

I think that only if the scout is able to detect the base and get away your base location is actually revealed. I actually like base attacks (they are easy unless they occur early on with cyberdiscs and sectoid psi).

I have the policy of letting UFOs land and then assaulting them. I found out that if after decreasing its speed the UFO isn't landing after 6 hour, it ain't gonna land. I used to give scouts plenty of opportunity to fly around my base and only after 6 hours shoot them down. However, never saw a battleship coming after that.

[MiniMacker]

I've restarted on Experienced and things are taking a much slower pace. I just finished wasting 9 rookies on stunning a Leader (It's April, I think) and is now constructing my first Psi-Lab.

 

There's really a huge difference between beginner and experienced. The aliens seems to hit like elites and their armor is twice as good! Cyberdisks can take nearly 6 shots of the Laser Rifle which is really draining my TUs for others.

 

Anyway, in this save I've discovered a Sectoid base and I can't engage it. I'm using Xcomutil this time so when the Psi-Lab is finished, I can see what their Psi-Strength stats are. I'm not planning on getting shot in the back by a psi-weak rookie.

 

Anyway, this topic could die on it's own, I guess. Since the main thread is closed.

[Warface]

Anyway, in this save I've discovered a Sectoid base and I can't engage it. I'm using Xcomutil this time so when the Psi-Lab is finished, I can see what their Psi-Strength stats are. I'm not planning on getting shot in the back by a psi-weak rookie.

 

Use the base as a supply farm and training/screening ground. Carefully read this post. Trust me on this. It's a strategy formulated from years of trial and error.

[Doomblade403x]

As a genral rule I don't even think about taking prisoners until I get the small launcher and research it. Stun rods arent that effective in my adventures and I prefer using a scoot and shoot strategy. I move in teams of two or three coving the map until we have contact. When that happens I usally have at least three guys on one alien. If they are inside a building looking out a window I have two guys blast away trying to hit the sniper...which worls occasionally...and if it doesn't we've cleared a few chunks of wall allowing for the use of explosives or grenades.

 

I'm in May in my game and I have several live captures and the small launcher is on the pending list. Grenades and HE have provided me with a few prisoners I didn't expect.

[Eledhel]

I usually end up sacrificing a few recruits in order to nab a navigator as soon as the alien containment is ready. And if I am lucky enough to down the first terror ship with my twin interceptors with dual avalanches I will loose a substantial part of my crew in order to stun the leader (provided the first terror ship is a sectoid one). Somehow I am very unlucky with stunning leaders in terror sites. I can't seem to find them.

[oldfan]

I usually end up sacrificing a few recruits in order to nab a navigator as soon as the alien containment is ready. And if I am lucky enough to down the first terror ship with my twin interceptors with dual avalanches I will loose a substantial part of my crew in order to stun the leader (provided the first terror ship is a sectoid one). Somehow I am very unlucky with stunning leaders in terror sites. I can't seem to find them.

It is just interesting how some modding can affect you game style. I play with council funding only. Therefore, capturing aliens is not a priority for me in the first 4-6 months as my top priority is to build lots of power armors and man three bases around the globe before spending 1.6 million on a hyper wave decoder.

 

Though knowing early psi capabilities is uber important. Nothing more annoying than to train somebody and have his/her accuracy go up 20-30 points only to learn he'll be an excellent sniper against your own troops under psi influence.

[Eledhel]

It is just interesting how some modding can affect you game style. I play with council funding only. Therefore, capturing aliens is not a priority for me in the first 4-6 months as my top priority is to build lots of power armors and man three bases around the globe before spending 1.6 million on a hyper wave decoder.

 

Though knowing early psi capabilities is uber important. Nothing more annoying than to train somebody and have his/her accuracy go up 20-30 points only to learn he'll be an excellent sniper against your own troops under psi influence.

 

That makes quite a lot of sense. In "normal" games you can buy the expansion bases at the same time as the hyper wave decoder is researched. I am doing a TFTD run now, when that is done I will try some restrictions on a new UFO game. Any other restrictions that are particularly nice to play? I might try a pistol & grenade only game since I really like the laser pistol. And I want to know if it is as fun as NKF says it is.

 

And just for fun I will try an all out HE weapons only game. Rocket launchers for those who can carry them and auto cannons for the rest of them! Just because it satisfies some primal instinct in me to see a completely levelled map.

Edited July 6, 2010 by Eledhel

[[NKF]]

Capturing aliens isn't a terribly high priority in the early game (unless you're using XComutil's alien capture research help feature).

 

The three key things they provide, beyond the interesting literary game background information, would be the psi labs, hyperwave decoder and the end-game research. Of those, the first two are Very Nice Things™ to have early but aren't necessarily critical to success. The end-game research on the other hand can be done at any time.

 

TFTD on the other hand is a little different because of the ridiculously strict research tree. In that game, you only have a small window of opportunity to capture the Deep One or recover a Calcinite corpse. Once they no longer appear, it's next to impossible to get them again. Therefore, in this game, capturing a live Deep One (and getting a calcinite corpse if you want the drills) is paramount.

 

- NKF

[oldfan]

It is just interesting how some modding can affect you game style. I play with council funding only. Therefore, capturing aliens is not a priority for me in the first 4-6 months as my top priority is to build lots of power armors and man three bases around the globe before spending 1.6 million on a hyper wave decoder.

 

Though knowing early psi capabilities is uber important. Nothing more annoying than to train somebody and have his/her accuracy go up 20-30 points only to learn he'll be an excellent sniper against your own troops under psi influence.

 

That makes quite a lot of sense. In "normal" games you can buy the expansion bases at the same time as the hyper wave decoder is researched. I am doing a TFTD run now, when that is done I will try some restrictions on a new UFO game. Any other restrictions that are particularly nice to play? I might try a pistol & grenade only game since I really like the laser pistol. And I want to know if it is as fun as NKF says it is.

 

And just for fun I will try an all out HE weapons only game. Rocket launchers for those who can carry them and auto cannons for the rest of them! Just because it satisfies some primal instinct in me to see a completely levelled map.

 

I use council funding only and ranged based accuracy. On superhuman, I find it quite challenging. Once you go with ranged based accuracy, you'll only use auto shot and snapshot at VERY closed range which makes dealing damage to foes much more difficult.