Chris StarShade

Just what the topic says! In this thread, I seek to get opinions on the best actions you can take when you first get your game started! So what is it? What do YOU do first? I'll start this off, by giving you my personal starting sequence... I first build a living quarters, general stores, and alien containment to get things rolling. Then I check out my troops, sack everyone with a firing accuracy under 40 and get revved up to recruit replacements. Usually I recruit enough to have 10 troops total, but lately I've been experimenting with a 6-troops + 2 tanks loadout, so I've been arranging to have 12 troops. (the extras are for an off-team who alternates with the on-team for use of the skyranger... I got base assaulted when the skyranger was out once, and lost the game cheaply. Not letting that happen again.) Next up, I switch out Interceptor-1 to have a stingray + avalanche. I recruit about 10 extra scientists and get started on my first research project. Usually laser weapons, but I have been experimenting with other possibilities for starter research lately. I also try to get a rocket tank + ammo on its way. Rarely enough general quarters space to buy two at once though, so getting my optimal number of tanks can take a while. Well, I'd say that is about it for my start-up sequence. So what do you guys do when you start the game initially?

I think I will try your restrictions on my next game. I want to finish beating the game on Superhuman without any artificial restrictions first though, to prove to myself I still got the touch. Truth be told though, I am quite ace this run through the game, though that might just be because the aliens have only seen fit to throw floaters at me. The small launchers first rule will probably make capturing the aliens you need easier than you think though. Get small launcher researched, manufacture a zillion of 'em and BLAM. Every alien in the universe captured. ... maybe. Lately I have been playing my games with an "mmo" mechanic in my head. Dividing my team into squads of 4 consisting of a tank, a "single-target damage dealer", an "Area of Effect nuker" and a medic. The medic typically gets the stun weapons, in immitation of how the aliens do things. Due to the equipment restrictions on the nuker, I am still using auto-cannons long after I have developed laser rifles and such simply because they have high explosive ammo. (also because it is cheaper on the item limit to unload incendiaries galore on a night mission rather than electro-flares). So yeah, I think I'll try your research restriction method next round. To make it even better I would require motion scanners to be researched first. Motion scanners and miracle medical technology, followed by the laser weapons and such. Should keep you stuck with conventional weaps for a while anyway.

Forgot to mention I am using the version of the game I got off steam. I had thought the difficulty bug would not be in this version, guess I was wrong. And on further investigation I find I cannot locate xcomutil on the site it used to be on to fix it. Anyone else got an idea on what to do? I just want to have the badass experience of surviving a serious attack, not the 'tards you fight on beginner mode.

In spite of setting UFO Defense to Superhuman difficulty level, the game seems to have reverted it to beginner mode. I figured this was the case when a properly landed medium scout demonstrated that it had the bare minimum crew that a medium scout is allowed to have. I don't want the game this easy. It has reached the point where I feel like I am toying with my opponent rather than being challenged. Anyone know how to keep the game at the difficulty initially set at?

I have not yet figured out these save editors, but here is a concept I remember hearing about long ago: New game. No base. No "Council of Funding Nations" starting with 10 times the money (which you'll probably need since you'll have no outside funding). The ultimate challenge?

Yeah, let's give the aliens ungodly good weapons but the weapons we are going to trick the player into developing on the theory they are this game's "laser weapons equivalent" will be weaker than weak. In the end, even these improved gauss weapons are supposed to be made obsolete to the sonic weapons, but they at least give you a fighting chance. I am not sure I would bother with the old-style gauss weapons, might as well just give everyone gas cannons until you can get your hands on the aliens' sonics and only research the gauss weapons for gauss cannon sales.

I have, in spite of knowing about this game for over a decade, yet to play the final game of the X-COM trilogy. I understand it is vastly different from the first two, so... what should I expect? Any suggestions for how to get started?

The Steam version of TFTD works with my vista. Dunno what problem the earlier guy had.

Ages ago I posted an obdata file containing my personally modified upgraded gauss weapons. Reading the UFOpedia from TFTD, it claimed gauss weapons were a terran adaptation of plasma weapons to make them waterproof and eleriumless. However, the gauss weapons in-game had only the strength of laser weapons from previous games while the aliens' sonic weapons were vastly more powerful. To the point that the heavy gauss gun was a good 5 points less damage than the sonic pistol. I believed this to be unacceptable and so modded the weapons accordingly. This is the only "hack" I ever use in TFTD, and considering the game text I half-consider this a bug fix. Someone else, I believe the editor of XCOMUTIL did something similar, but made his gauss guns clipless. I disagree with THAT idea... Nevertheless, what do you think? Should gauss weapons be stronger than they are in the unmodified game, or are they just as strong as they are supposed to be?

Confirmed, the STEAM version runs in windows vista. Not only that, they solved the timing problem, the game runs as if you were playing it on a 386 or 486 now. And also, to the best of my understanding, it is possible to use all your fun little game editing utilities with the STEAM version. Incidentally the way they solved the problem was to use dosbox, but they already did the dosbox config for you so those of us with less patience to stop and try to understand the infernal contraption don't have to bash our heads against the wall as much. Oh yes, and once you buy a game with steam you can download it forever as long as you remember your steam login. A good deal.

I was about the ripe old age of 10 when X-COM came out. Played it at a friend's place. Ahh the alien deathscreams...

Of course none of them are totally useless. I built a lightning once to test it out. Being able to blast a Large Scout and immediately land was appealing, though I am perfectly content to shoot it down with the firestorm and have the skyranger deal with it. Inability to transport HWPs is my main grievance. If I were to run a one-ship base and didn't have the money for an avenger, though, I'd go with a lightning. It is my opinion that the Firestorm so outstrips the Interceptor that once you've got firestorms, the only reason to continue using interceptors is if your elerium supply is terrible. Every UFO can outrun an interceptor, and they are useless against terror ships and battleships. To be entirely frank the way I play my Avengers is kinda like big skyrangers. I just trail larger UFOs, and pull a ground assault. Want my elerium dammit. Only ships I'd be inclined to shoot down this way are terror ships, since I hate terror missions with a passion. Though, there was one terror ship that landed without starting a terror site... what was up with that? *shrugs*

I had my worst landing just yesterday. Sectoid terror mission... playing on "beginner" because I've been away from the game for too damn long and like the "never reload" style. (if you're a save-a-holic, the game is too easy no matter what difficulty you set it for.) Skyranger lands... 2 cyberdiscs and a sectoid at the bottom of the ramp. My troops in the front shoot... they miss... next turn sectoid chucks an alien grenade in the Skyranger. Surprisingly 4 people survived. I lost 10 though, including everybody who wasn't a rookie. At that point, I just hit the Dust Off button.... Somehow I recovered from that event to still break even that month. *shrugs* Gotta love Laser Cannon sales. New team all ready and raring to go... but DAMMIT. I lost some GOOD MEN to that fluke! One of 'em was getting close to "ultrasniper" status (40+ strength, 80+ firing accuracy). Bah. Nothing but rookies once again.

The Avenger takes longer to build, is more expensive, and consumes more elerium. The only advanced craft that truly deserves the epithet of "useless" is the Lightning. No HWPs, smaller crew capacity than a Skyranger, and only capable of carrying 1 weapon. The Firestorm is the hotrod. The Lightning is the clunker. The Avenger is the SUV. ...the Interceptor is the motorcycle and the Skyranger is a minivan.

To be quite frank, I like the Avenger design in the game. Smooth... bah! Sleek... bah! It looks rugged! Like the battle-hardened elite troops it carries. Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!