kander

Don't like the double stress in there. How about 'The extreme mental effort required to navigate in three dimensions, control a system as complex as the Icarus and maintaining combat-capability resulted in severe stress for the human mind' ? Oh, I'd recommend this alteration of the fluff: It's a bird! No, it's a plane!! No, it's.. it's... oh, wait, it is a bird. --K

Hmm.. why is it that when reading this Weapons :: Heavy Plasma entry I get the feeling I am reading Weapon Systems :: Plasma? I guess this goes for all the Weapons, people spend too much on general theory of the weapon system. That kinda sucks because the player should already have read the theory behind plasma/laser technology in the appropriate Weapons System entry. Perhaps it's a good idea to have each weapon entry explain how they adapted the technology to be usable in the field, focusing more on the 'don't tell me how a clock works, tell me what time it is' aspect of things, telling the player how X-Corps SciCorps recommends the weapon is to be deployed, flaws in its design, etc... I do like like the text though, incredible job... --K

X-Net will be stored in an XML file, right? In that case we can simply use the 'type' property of the entries for creating the path to the file. xnet://pegasus/ would be fixed, appended by type and name as taken from the XML file. This makes it easy for developers to see which entry it is, and it stimulates people to use 'decent' names in the XML files, instead of abbreviated letterspaghetti. And we'd no longer need to think up names for the directories, as that's already done. --K

Hmm. I like the idea, but the text itself needs refinement (which is kinda logical, considering it's the first version). Some recommendations: X-Com is a big No-No.. that's the old name. We've got X-Corps where they have X-Com, check the Names list. It should be somewhere around here. I think. For some reason, what you're saying in the second part of the sentence only became clear to me after I quoted it, and typed it over... Definitely not upon first-reading. Perhaps this can be expressed more eloquently. Here's a shot at it: Now, either this is Pun Intended, or my mind is working a bit odd at the moment. I can't help but find it amusing that in an article about reproduction you're talking about privates... Perhaps it would be better to replace this instance with 'troops' or 'field operatives'. Doesn't feel right. I am assuming this research is available only after the Alien Reproduction has been captured, so work with me here for a second: This text looks promising... I think we'll need to watch out for inconsistency/redundancy with regards to the Alien Surgery entry, though. Fluff Idea: (Watch out: Vulgar Language Ahead... Do not read if offended) "Johnson, Granger, take position left of the door. Ulli, Carter, right. Jackson, Meeko, you go in when I give the mark" "Command Acknowledged, Squad Leader, we're moving in..." "All in position, Sir. Ready to proceed." "Green to go, move in" "What the heck is this? Big tanks with.. There's.. bodies here.. Floating. Aliens. Oh sh##, there's one of us in there!" Ground Assault Team Alpha - Mission Log, April 29 2001. AKA "Dark Thursday" --K

The idea: Category and name as taken from the XML file, for simplicities sake. All in uppercase, spaces replaced with underscores, apostroph's (in UFO's) stripped. WEAPON_HUMAN_PISTOL WEAPON_LIGHT_RIFLE WEAPON_HEAVY_RIFLE WEAPON_AUTO_CANNON WEAPON_ROCKET_LAUNCHER WEAPON_GRENADE WEAPON_PROXIMITY_GRENADE WEAPON_LASER_PISTOL WEAPON_LASER_RIFLE WEAPON_HEAVY_LASER_RIFLE WEAPON_PLASMA_PISTOL WEAPON_PLASMA_RIFLE WEAPON_HEAVY_PLASMA_RIFLE WEAPON_FUSIONBOMB_LAUNCHER WEAPON_ALIEN_GRENADE WEAPON_STUN_LAUNCHER AMMO_PLASMA_RIFLE_CLIP AMMO_HEAVY_PLASMA_RIFLE_CLIP AMMO_STUNBOMB AMMO_FUSION_BOMB AMMO_PISTOL_CLIP AMMO_LIGHT_RIFLE_CLIP AMMO_HEAVY_RIFLE_CLIP EQUIPMENT_HIGH_EXPLOSIVE EQUIPMENT_STUN_BATON EQUIPMENT_MOTION_SENSOR EQUIPMENT_FIELD_MEDICAL_KIT EQUIPMENT_PSIONIC_AMPLIFIER EQUIPMENT_FLASH_POD EQUIPMENT_STANDARD_ISSUE_UNIFORM EQUIPMENT_LIGHT_ARMOR EQUIPMENT_HEAVY_ARMOR EQUIPMENT_FLIGHT_ARMOR EQUIPMENT_PSIONIC_PROBE EQUIPMENT_SMOKE_GRENADE FACILITY_BARRACKS FACILITY_ACCESS_LIFT FACILITY_SMALL_RADAR FACILITY_LARGE_RADAR FACILITY_MISSILE_DEFENSE FACILITY_LASER_DEFENSE FACILITY_PLASMA_DEFENSE FACILITY_FUSION_DEFENSE FACILITY_GENERAL_STORES FACILITY_ALIEN_CONTAINMENT FACILITY_PSIONIC_TRAINING_LAB FACILITY_GRAV_SHIELD FACILITY_MIND_SHIELD FACILITY_HYPERWAVE_DECODER FACILITY_LABORATORY FACILITY_HANGAR FACILITY_WORKSHOP ARMAMENT_SIDEWINDER ARMAMENT_TITAN ARMAMENT_CANNON ARMAMENT_LASER_CANNON ARMAMENT_PLASMA_CANNON ARMAMENT_FUSION_MISSILE_LAUNCHER AUTOPSY_MORLOCK AUTOPSY_SATYRIAN AUTOPSY_VIPER AUTOPSY_SILABRATE AUTOPSY_ARTOPOD AUTOPSY_CLOAK AUTOPSY_GREY AUTOPSY_SPAWN AUTOPSY_RAPTOR AUTOPSY_VENTRICULANT AUTOPSY_TERROR_DISK AIRCRAFT_XC-1 AIRCRAFT_XC-11 AIRCRAFT_XC-2 AIRCRAFT_XC-22 AIRCRAFT_XC-33 RESEARCH_ALIEN_ORIGINS RESEARCH_MARTIAN_SOLUTION RESEARCH_CYDONIA_BUST RESEARCH_ALIEN_RESEARCH RESEARCH_ALIEN_ABDUCTIONS RESEARCH_ALIEN_RETALIATION RESEARCH_ALIEN_SUPPLY COMPONENT_XENIUM_122 COMPONENT_ALIEN_ALLOY COMPONENT_NAVAGATION COMPONENT_XENIUM_REACTOR COMPONENT_UFO_CONSTRUCTION COMPONENT_ALIEN_FOOD COMPONENT_ALIEN_ENTERTAINMENT COMPONENT_ALIEN_SURGERY COMPONENT_ALIEN_REPRODUCTION COMPONENT_ALIEN_EXAMINATION_ROOM UFO_SMALL_SCOUT UFO_MEDIUM_SCOUT UFO_LARGE_SCOUT UFO_BATTLESHIP UFO_INTIMIDATOR UFO_HARVESTER UFO_SUPPLY_SHIP UFO_ABDUCTOR XCAP_CANNON_TANK XCAP_ROCKET_TANK XCAP_LASER_TANK XCAP_PLASMA_HOVERTANK XCAP_LAUNCHER_HOVERTANK WEAPON_SYSTEM_LASER WEAPON_SYSTEM_PLASMA ALIEN_MORLOCK ALIEN_SATYRIAN ALIEN_VIPER ALIEN_SILABRATE ALIEN_ARTOPOD ALIEN_CLOAK ALIEN_GREY ALIEN_SPAWN ALIEN_RAPTOR ALIEN_VENTRICULANT ALIEN_TERROR_DISK INTERROGATION_SOLDIER INTERROGATION_MEDIC INTERROGATION_COMMANDER INTERROGATION_LEADER INTERROGATION_NAVIGATOR

Don't wanna be a pain in the .. neck here, but here's what I think: The X-Com Theme is pretty poor listening... The beginning part is a 'jaws-ish' part (high tones, sinister feel), then some 'screams' from the aliens/civvies. The musicish part only starts when we see the X-Com craft taking off, and the X-Com troops moving in for the kill. That's where the action is. However, when listening to it I still get a good feeling. You know why? Because I listen to it while seeing the movie. The screaming sound thingy suddenly makes sense when you see the Alien Commander throw his fist down and open his mouth. Now, ATeX' theme is Good Stuff, but it lacks that emotional involvement because it's not coupled to a movie of sorts. I think that in this case it's really true that the sum is greater than it's elements together. So basically: Don't say "This is the theme we'll use! Hurray!" yet... wait till Graphics (or whoever is going to do this...) comes up with an intro movie, and choreograph the music to that for maximum effect. Just €0.02, --K

Having read the text, I'd have to support the sentiment expressed here against the emphasis on alien alloys... I think some ruthless scientist might actually concoct a plan of an 'Allien Alloy Farm', with hundreds of Spawn in little underlit rooms... --K

MINOR CORRECTION Common Name: Viper Scientific Name: Xenocrotalus Sapiens Species Name: Sshi'ygha The Vipers are one of the more unsettling of the various invading alien species. Their eerie similarity to terrestrial rattlesnakes evokes a common fear among X-Corps personnel. Indeed, early field reports suggested that this might have been a creature genetically engineered from Earthly fauna, grown to enormous size and grafted with arms. However, these creatures are a completely Alien species; sentient beings with the remnants of what must have been an amazing culture. Our initial interrogations have given us the name of the Viper home world, Sshi-yii, and a general idea of its location. From the subject's description, we suspect that this world is actually a moon of one of the earliest extra solar planets that had been discovered. It is known to astronomers as HD-70642 b, orbiting a type G5IV-V star, approximately 29 parsecs from Earth. More detailed information of this world is unknown to us at this point. The Vipers are a carnivorous race, able to eat only freshly killed meat. They appear to be comfortable on land, but prefer shallow water, suggesting a swamp-based origin. In keeping with their generally reptilian appearance, a Viper's body is covered in thousands of pentagonal scales, except for the head. Eleven large plates of bone-reinforced scale protect the head itself. These scales provide excellent natural armouring of vital areas, and allow these aliens to function in a wide variety of conditions. Also similar to their terrestrial counterparts, the Viper jaw is capable of dislocating from the skull, allowing the mouth to open to prodigious widths in order to ingest large prey. The lower jaw also contains vestigial venom sacs that feed into the lower fangs. The venom produced is soporific in nature, but of insufficient amount to cause alarm. A bite from a Viper might make a child seriously disoriented, but is likely to result in no more than momentary dizziness in an adult, therefore, it represents no real threat to our operatives on the field. While sentient in their own right, the subject refers constantly to “the Master”, from whom all its' kin take orders. From the context of these statements, we are sure that the subject does not merely refer to its own leaders, but a completely separate species that seems to be directing the Vipers' incursions on our planet. The Viper species reproduces asexually, laying between thirty and fifty softball-sized eggs at a time in a frenzy of ovulation. The eggs are released into a common, water filled gestational pit, where the soft jelly-like mucus that protects each egg can come in contact with another individual’s ovum. This contact allows for a transfer of genetic material between the different eggs, resulting in fertilization. Eggs cannot be fertilized by sibling ova. The soft covering requires that the eggs must remain immersed in water in their natural state. However, according to our current subject, the Vipers have developed a symbiotic relationship with the creatures they call Achidnas, specifically their defensive secretions. When in contact with these venomous secretions, the vulnerable covering of the Viper egg hardens, forming a tough leathery shell. The substance also apparently affects the foetuses to a genetic level, providing them with immunity to the Achidna venom. After an extended period of time (unfortunately, we are unable to accurately translate time measurement), all viable eggs within a birthing pit hatch within brief period and a feeding frenzy begins amongst the newborns. Out of several hundred fertilized eggs, only a dozen or so will survive the hatching. Once the hatching is complete, the birthing pit is opened to the Achidnas, who devour the shells, along with any unhatched eggs. The amniotic fluid clinging to the inner portion of the shell fragments contains a number of enzymes required by an Achidna's body to produce its venom. The Vipers we see today are the remnants of a once great race. Their civilization developed in the swampy temperate zones of Ssth-Kr'th When reading this the first time it did not become clear that Ssth-Kr'th is a part of Sshi-yii.. perhaps find a way to explain this more clearly?, and spread across the entire planet. With their innate resistance to adverse conditions they built cities in every climate, from the blazing heat of their tropics, to the frozen poles. Theirs was a great world, just developing space flight when the Master came. Of all the Alien species we have encountered so far, the Vipers are the most similar to our own, both in thought and temperament. If our two species had met before they had fallen under the thrall of the Master, who knows what we could have done together? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> (Correct me if wrong on the caps of Alien/alien. I think that alien means 'not native to our planet' in this context, and therefor should be non-cap. But I'm pretty new around here.. also, was it intended that the text was no longer separated according to which research produces which part, and the Engineer section has gone AWOL? What does 'snapback' 100355 do?) --K

Try reading this sentence out loud... Here's a rework that may or may not work: Targets I tried to accomplish with this text: 1. Breaking the sentence up. 2. Remove reference to Grey's 3. Amplify the idea that it's still going on, by switching to present continous... make player pissed off at the aliens. (This is my first attempt at contributing to the CT department.. comments welcome!) --K

Doesn't the entire alien propulsion system work around principles of manipulating gravity? Think Star Trek -> Dampening Field. Even when the Enterprise/Voyager is pummeled with torpedos, all we see is the bridge crew shaking a little bit because the dampening field can't compensate rapidly enough... Without that, they'd probably be gooified. If we assume that the engine failing results in a crashlanding, and engine blowing up results in destruction, we can safely assume that the G-forces are compensated. It'd be stupid to think that aliens can make a large craft levitate by bending gravity, but can not keep themselves safe from sudden deceleration by inverting that technology. Just my €0,02 --K

Hey, I see some discussion here about jumping and stuff like that. Would it be workable to have people slip when traversing steep terrain, stumble when they are heavily loaded, etc? This would result in not being able to accurately predict the amount of TU's it takes to move through a certain tile --K

/me raises hand... I'd love to help out... as I indicated in my 'What can I do?' thread, writing is one of the few skills I do possess. Are you still in need of reinforcements for CTD and if so, could you Recruit me? Thank you, Kander