134 replies to this topic

[PeterDragon]

By base defense is unimportant, I meant that you just leave the names what ever they are for those squads you leave at bases for to defend them incase they are attacked

Don't you like knowing who your letting die out there against those friendly aliens?

[Scipio]

I never named anybody for most of my x-com career. (They really needed a larger name matrix. I don't know how many quentin tarentino's i processed through my meat factory. Also, anybody else notice how they dind't even change any of the names in the name matrix between UFO Defense and TFTD?)

Eventually, I caved and started using stewart's method. That way, I knew who was good for scouting, i.e. sacrificial fodder, and who should hang back and snipe. Also easier to tell how sad I should be when somebody got waxed.

[Broam]

Mine were always:

(Shortened) Name FiringAccuracy (PsiStrength) Strength

Looked a lot like this:

Broam 79!54
Name Broam, Firing Accuracy 79, Psi Strength > 90, Strength 54.

I used ! : ; / , and . to rank soldiers I knew psistrengths of and ? to denote someone witout implants.

I tended to let , and . soldiers die when they started panicking.

[MarshmellowSoldier]

Naming was always sort of a aesthetic thing for me before I read that strategy guide.

Now, anyone with 65 or greater accuracy is a sharp shooter (SS).
Anyone with 40+ strength is heavy weapons (HW).
Anyone with 20ish strength becomes a scout (SC), and by the time they have 80 TU they have about 35 or more strength.
I guess a psi guy would be (PSI), but I haven't put that in yet.
Those with high stats in many things, like accuracy/strength/TUs become Elite (EL).
Good throwers are Explosives (EX).

I also tend to tack on a squad. SQ1 or SQ2, and if they don't have a squad they go solo (Scouts, some snipers)

...

Sometimes I name two girls Rose McGowen and Selma Blair, make them spin next to each other, and pretend they're making out.

[War_Lord]

I just name my soldiers using the method that if they're good with their initial stats, they get a name I like (of a friend or someone cool from a movie or anything else I think is cool) and the guys who's stats suck get names that reflect their abilities (and are generally described as some form of bowel movement).

[Brute]

i have few renaming styles i used in x-com ufo & apocalypse
Firstly by the starting stats in xcom ufo
-----------------------------------------------
Accuracy
if a soldier has 50-60 marks, he is named as SS -sharp shooter-
if a soldier has 60-70 marks, he is named as SNIPER
if a soldier has 70+ marks, he is named as EagleEYE, describing him BETTER

-----------------------------------------------
Reactions
40-50 reac is named CT -counter team, i like it-
50-60 reac is named CQB -close quarters battle-
60-70 reaction soldier is renamed LIGHTNING, which describe his reflexes

----------------------------------------------
Psionics
Psionic soldiers has the name Psi-Reaver -took from the system shock- and his stats "psi-reaver 70/90"

---------------------------------------------
Total
Every soldier gains a * next to his name if he is cross trained
ex: accuracy 80, reaction 45 is EagleEYE*

Marines are the combat units SS+CT=marine
Commando=CQB+SNIPER

And my ultimate SPECIALIST
i name the soldiers Specialist, who has MAX accuracy, 70+ reactions, high psi strength -never controlled or panicked- high trength and speed
i usually have at least 2 specialists in the end of the game

[c4t]

I do kinda what they do. I have there specialty (eg. specialist, nader, sniper etc.) for example Heavy Weapons (sq 1) i usually have 2 squads of 4. and a rocket tank. I know, im not far in the game yet. I might go to squads of 3. Just a side note, a neat stragity that i use in the early part of the game and even now is when im moving my rocket tank up the feild and i know there are aliens on the opposite side of the tank, use the tank as cover. When i want to attack i just go to the side of the tank, or use the tank to kill them. I love the tanks accuracy. Its good because all my heavy weapons people usually only have acc of 50 or so but the like uber strong

[Jumjalum]

I've been giving my best soldiers nicknames such as 'Pistols' Jones, 'Lobber' Day and my amazing head soldier Captain 'Sharp' Koyama, who's just started being pummeled by psi attacks so I had to let him be blown up

[Charlatan]

I name them after old school COBRA characters from GI JOE, then use those abbreviated denotations to say what they are exactly (ex. SS for sharpshooter etc.). If I were more badass I would dig up the character cards on the net and name 'em close to what the specialty of the person is. For example, Cobra Commander would be my highest ranking member, Firefly would be my Demolitions expert, Storm Shadow would probably be my uber character.
The above also works with transformers

[Extralucas]

I rename my soldiers by adding shortcuts to their names:
- HW strong guy to carry Heavy Weapons
- HWS as above but with good accuracy
- SS SharpShooter
- SC guy with high Tu
- add '*' if someone is valuable but have weak bravery
- Change name on "Kamikaze" if totally useless and Im using Kamikaze to open doors, go into UFOs

[Trevelyan]

yea... i do the same!

[Crazy Photon]

Usually I do the same as Extralucas but I let XComUtil do it for me (I configure the specialist tags in xcomutil.cfg)

[LeFire]

I use xcomutil too...

Sharpshooter Grades (the door-watchers, highest reactions/accuracy)
tSh: Trainee Shooter (Base Preq: Reactions 60+)
Sh: Shooter
Ssh: Sharpshooter
sSsh: Strong Sharpshooter
3Ssh: Sharpshooter 3rd Class (followed by 2Ssh, then 1Ssh)
Ssm: Sharpshooter Master
3Ssm: Sharpshooter Master 3rd Class (all the way to 1Ssm)
Snp: Sniper
3Snp: Sniper 3rd Class (all the way to 1Snp)
XSNP: Elite Sniper

Assaulter Grades (the general-purpose troops, avg-high reactions/strength/accuracy)
Tpr: Trooper (Base Preq: Reactions 50+)
Asl: Assaulter
sAsl: Strong Assaulter
3Asl: Assaulter 3rd Class (to 1Asl)
Cdo: Commando
3Cdo: Commando 3rd Class (to 1Cdo)
Rng: Ranger
3Rng: Ranger 3rd Class (to 1Rng)
XSTM: Elite Stormtrooper

Close-assaulter Grades (UFO and close-range clearers, high reactions, avg accuracy)
rTpr: Trooper (Reactions 55+)
AslX: Assaulter
sAslX: Strong Assaulter
3AslX: Assaulter 3rd Class (to 1Asl)
CdoX: Commando
3CdoX: Commando 3rd Class (to 1Cdo)
RngX: Ranger
3RngX: Ranger 3rd Class (to 1Rng)
XSHK: Elite Shocktrooper

Pioneer Grades (Heavy weapons personnel. High Psi-strength/strength/accuracy. Low reactions)
tPnr: Trainee Pioneer (Reactions 48+, Strength 30+)
Pnr: Pioneer
sPnr: Strong Pioneer
3Pnr: Pioneer 3rd Class (to 1Pnr)
Ors: Ordnance Specialist
3Ors: Ordnance Specialist 3rd Class (to 1Ors)
Hws: Heavy Weapons Specialist
3Hws: Heavy Weapons Specialist 3rd Class (to 1Hws)
XWEP: Elite Weapons Master

:uzzi:

[Radoteur]

I give the soldiers a nickname followed by what they are pretty good at.
I usually train them based on their initial stats or I kill 'em.
If they are paticularly good, I follow their rank by a *, and if they barely make the grade, which changes as my troops get better, I follow it by a ?

(X) = Marked to die or named "Fodder" or DIE

SS = Sharpshooter
RE = Reaction
SC = Scout
HW = Heavy Weapons

[Xracer]

I follow almost the same idea of naming , and i do it manually, but if a rookie is bad i just sack him. no need to waste energy on him.

[Raven Squad]

I have usually three squads, so i just add Alpha, Beta or Gamma in front of their names. Alpha squad is the Elite troops, Beta usually normal troops and Gamma for rookies. Alpha squads leader is always named after me. Some how he always has most kills per mission

[Jecrell]

I change their names to "nicknames" that usually work like this.

"Jones"
"Sanchez"
"Billy Bob" (For comical purposes)
"Teshiguwara"
"Peaches" (Yes, I said peaches!)

Random names from random cultures.

Yes, I'm the only one who refers to their soldiers with actual names for non-strategic reasons I suppose. I want to scream, "Noooo! Damn it! Not Jones! Nooooo~" :: abandon game, load game ::. I feel better with a sort of "personal link" to my soldiers. They're doing their job protecting the world from alien scum, and I'm not going to give them strategic names like "Sniper" or "Grenader." I feel better with real names. It's just more realistic. So I'll just remember their stats. Thats my problem.



-Jecrell

[Fred the Goat]

I like that description idea Drewid!

As for head to head, I don't know about PS, but you can't do it on a computer. Unless you're playing that e-mail X-com game they made, but as far as I can tell, that sucks. Because you have to play over e-mail.

As for my guys, I've gone back and forth. I originally named the badasses, then I thought I was all smart by developing a naming system - Sniper Level 3, Assault Level 2, Soldier Level 5, Tank, Etc. Obviously I'm not the only person this has occured to. Eventually I went back to naming them Stinky, Rex, Tracey, Dr. Evil, Ox, Rover, etc. It's just more fun. Anybody that kills anything, I rename. Maybe I remember to give the weak guys pistols and the accurate guys cannons. Meh.

[Mark0]

i name my soldiers in a different way.
mine are ww2 german soldiers or tank officers who busted 16 tanks all alone..

im a ww2 fan, i go with these names;)

[Yablo]

I am in the minority about naming too - I never paid enough attention to stats because I suck, I would just name them whatever popped into my head and everytime I got new soldiers the first thing I did was rename them. In time, I remember who is what, it is better than having 5 guys named Anotolyn Buzmbghtlngd or whatever.

Some of my names:
Johnny Fever
Ronnie Millsap
Ronnie Jamed Dio
Andy Griffith

etc, etc, etc....

[HaPPHaZZaRD]

When I first get a soldier I put his/her firing accuracy right after the name. I can normally remember the strong PSI guys, so I don't bother naming them. But once I have a soldier surpass 5 kills or so, or a PSI unit that becomes adept, I give them a callsign, normally something that plays off their original name. ex. Ivan Torbald--Ivan The Terrible, Jaque Revenue---Raven, anybody named Boris becomes Boris the Blade, Matthias Smith--The Messiah, Storm Crow, Cold Shoulder, Angel, and stuff like that..

[JWH]

For serious Xcom players who like to minimise losses, and maximise successes, I think it s a neccessity to rename your soldiers according to their stats

I have a somewhat elaborate naming scheme based on the stats of each soldier. I've found that it enables me to know just who I can use for a specific task at a glance.

It helps me quite a bit especially when I'm in a tight situation when I require a soldier with the best reactioins , markmanship or psionics.


I'll probably give the details in a later post

[General Lexic]

I name all of my soldiers "Shellsuit Bob".

I have issues.

[Breunor]

While I never renamed soldiers when I first played, it does seem to make life easier during the arming screen. I tended to hire/fire people to weed out those with low accuracy or morale, so maybe that's why I didn't bother with names.

[Kenshiro]

Hopefully I'm not stating the obvious too badly here, but I think this thread goes to show the original X-Com was in desperate need of a better way to access your troop's stats from various places in the game. Hopefully the new X-Net Operatives Database will solve alot of that, but we clearly need to link it from a ton more places, especially right from the loadout screen, right from the battlescape, and anywhere else you are making decisions on what to do with your soldiers.

We should probably come up with (in the X-Net Operatives thread) a mini-box that shows the major stats in abbreviated format that will drop into places where you are picking your troop out of a list or in places like the battlescape to the degree that such stats aren't already shown.

This way, your men can go on with the names their mommas game 'em and don't have to be named using a code the IRS accounting department would be proud of.

[Freelanc3r]

i just name them so i remember what to equip them during the mission. so add a PSI if their a psi person or a BB for blaster bombs

also for veterans who actually do the grubby work they get a A up and comings get a B, rookies with high psi skill get a C.

everyone else is plasma fodder. i suppose if you take the effort to rename a soldier, you do tend to treat them better and be careful with sending them through doors and the like

[j'ordos]

I rename every single soldier in my army.
I give each one a nickname instead of the original one (at first I tended to leave the original name and insert the nick between first and last name, but name spaces were too short for that )
Soldiers that were good at something got an extra tag behind their nick:
ss for accuracy 70+, SS for acc 85+
hw for strength 50+, HW for strength 60+
r for reactions 60+, R for reactions 70+
sc for TU's 70+, SC for TU's 85+
So you'd get something like: Wyvern sc/r, or Corsair hw

[mikker]

After a few missions, i give the soldier with higest promotions my name. That is ussualy that.

when, however, i get PSI, i give a - (0-30), nothing (30-50), + (50-70) or an up arrow, (70-100) according to the psi stats. I sack -'s.

And when i find out that "my" soldier has 27 psi strength, i hack the soldier.dat! hahaha! now he has 100!

[miceless]

I do a similar thing with the names, and call my best one after myself. However, when i discover he has low psi str ieither send him on a suicide mission or have him fired, depending on how i feel.

Then i just rename someone else to me.

[Cmdr. Luke]

I normally only name my commander to my name, but the game is 200% more fun when you name everyone on your bases. You then have an emotional atachment to each soldier. It's fun being in a nervous reck when your at an alien base and your BEST FRIEND SHOOTS YOU IN THE BACK (Under alien control)!!!! Curses!!!!

[Jenny]

I personalize very much with my soldiers. But they have to earn it. What does that mean? Well, simply put, I don't name rookies. Once they become squaddies, I give them a name. I name them all after friends, relatives, etc.

As a result I don't mind losing rookies, but I try very hard not to lose any of the others (a lot of reloading sometimes).

But yeah, that's how I play

[insie]

Only 4 of'em, Cause that's all i use and it makes it easier to know which one i can send ahead if my base gets attacked

And ^^ Also naming them after friends!

[Ahriman]

I tend to rename my psionic specialists after roman senators and biblical figures(Ezekiel, Agrippa etc)

Other than that I only ever take one renamed soldier into battle - The Black Cobra.

A friend of mine suggested it (Along with the catchphrase "He bites... in the night!) after one of my soldiers managed to tag a harvesters worth of snakemen on a forest night mission after all but one of his friends got killed in a blaster bomb explosion.

And so the tradition was born. The Black Cobra emerges at the beginning of the invasion to lead his or her fellows and when they fall another rises to take their place, and the accompanying lack of life-expectancy that goes with the title.

He/She leads every assault and tends to rack up the bulk of the kills. But funnily enough tends to die in the most ridiculous manner possible(I've lost three to reaction fire that wasn't even aimed at them and one when he was psi-paniced and dropped a primed grenade, but couldn't run far enough to escape the blast)

[Jenny]

wow, it sucks to lose your favorite soldier like that.

[SupSuper]

i never knw you could change your soldiers' names -_-
still, i wouldn't bother. i still get emotionally attached to the most amazing soldiers without editing their names. like Commander Gengi which led her entire squad through 4 Very Large landed UFOs without anyone getting killed (she took most of the shots, shielding the TUless, but still survived).

of course, naming my suicide rookies with my teachers' names should really calm my nerves

Edited by SupSuper, 07 November 2003 - 06:06 PM.

[Jenny]

It's funny how you always seem to have at least one soldier with superhuman powers.. ie can withstand several plasma blasts without dying. I wonder if that's a design feature or just simply coincidence..

[Ahriman]

I'd say design feature. Soldiers who last longer tend to develop into wild killing machines and get remembered accordingly against the run of the mill scrubbers who get whacked on their first mission.

[X-Clu-Zif]

It's funny how you always seem to have at least one soldier with superhuman powers.. ie can withstand several plasma blasts without dying. I wonder if that's a design feature or just simply coincidence..

Tommy...

Yeah actually after reading the tommy stories I've called my one invincible soldier Tommy, but other than that I don't really rename them...

[imperialus]

My own system is rather mathematical.

it goes

@, first name, designation, #

The first @ represents the base they are attached to. It co-incides with my base numbering system, Alpha, Beta, Charlie, Delta, Epsilon, Gamma, Hector, Ivan being my base names.

First name is their orriginal first name. Mark, Fred, Thelma, whatever.

Designation is well their designation.

RFL Rifleman, basic designation if there are no praticularly high stats.
SN Sniper
CC Close Combat
HW Heavy Weapon
GRN Grenadier
SC Scout
PSI Psionics

the final # is their rank. 1 represents rookie, 2 Squaddie, 3 Sargent ect.

Therefore a sargent from Delta base who has a really high thrown weapons would be.

D-Mark-GRN-3

If their first name is too long to fit everything in. I just make up one of my own.

As for my base nameing. It's simmilar to Stewarts except I call my bases, Alpha Beta ect. followed by their location For example my first base is Alpha EURO though I may have to steal his idea about putting the base designation after it.

[Jenny]

Wow you must spend a lot of time renaming soldiers? Like if you recruit new ones, or if they get promoted?

[imperialus]

Sorry, I forgot about the soldiers I don't like. If at a glance I don't like their stats I just add an X at the end of their name and either kamakazi them or sack them if I'm approching the end of the month. I generally don't name rookies unless it's been a slow month and I'm bored anyhow.

[slavafetisov]

When I get a new recruit, I rate them quickly (by stats) and assign them +/-.
+++ for top-grade soldiers (high bravery, reaction time, accuracy, strength)
++ for good soldiers
+ for above-average rookies who need a little seasoning
= for solid future team members (with hard work in the field)
- for poor recruits who may not make it & require a lot of luck
-- and --- for recruits who should be grenade fodder or sacked at the earliest opportunity

This roughly identifies who will do what kind of work in the field. Sometimes, I will send +++ agents into tough situations to become "hard"... but usually, it's the = or + agents who are first through a door (unless I have a - agent on hand). I'll set up the +++ for less dangerous kills, and the + and = agents get the most dangerous duty. Sometimes, you just have to send in a +++ soldier because the average guys cannot get the job done.

Once they're proven in the field, I give them "soldier-ly nicknames" since the international names just don't cut it. Joker, Eightball, Cowboy, Animal, Iceman... crap like that from the movies. The initial +/- tag doesn't go away, as I find it funny/satisfying to see a = or - rated soldier at end-game. They must have worked their butt off to survive that long for me.

[Mustang]

I rename my soldiers things like:
J'ordos
stewart
Micah
Jenny
UnknownWarrior
Mustang
BurnThemAll
and so on...
the funniest thing that happend was when stewart shot micah 6 times with a heavy plasma and micah wasn't hurt

[j'ordos]

Uhh, just WHO are you using to scout UFO's and such?

I can guess BTA's use though :flame:

Edited by j'ordos, 16 December 2003 - 03:13 PM.