Who's preordering X-COM?

[Sureshot324]

Yeah, gotta say I am pretty underwhelmed by that article and the news about the DLC. Seems pretty much like a money grab to me. No new aliens. No new weapons or tech. Simply three new missions? What's that, like 2.5 hours of game play? Even if it is 3X that much, that is pretty small to be charging for (IMHO).

I love the game and am very much enjoying it. But it does feel like it suffers from consolitise a bit. And if they start dribbling out DLC like that, I am not going to sign up to be someone's monkey.

This game needs a full expansion, not DLC.

 

[Daverino]

So it is possible to get five total satellites up in the first month in Classic Ironman. Here's what you do:

1. Under no circumstances use explosives during the first three missions. You'll want every piece of scrap possible.
2. Build your initial base in Europe which gives you a 50% cost reduction in workshops.
3. Immediately excavate the block to the right of your lift. Choose either weapon fragments or alien materials as your first research project. Do not choose Xeno-biology.
4. Don't buy anything, including medkits.
5. The first alien abduction mission must come before the 8th of the month. Choose the mission that gives you engineers. This will also unlock workshops. Build a workshop in the newly excavated cavern. This will give you the 10 engineers needed by the 17th to build a satellite uplink before the end of the month.
6. The first alien shootdown must come before the 11th of the month. You should have 90 bucks in the bank. You need 308 to build 4 satellites and another 150 to build the uplink. Therefore the magic number is 368. Sell off loot on the gray market to get to 368. That's why you don't research Xeno-biology. It costs you 20 bucks in corpses.
7. IF you have between 218 and 368 on the 11th, you can TRY to build the four satellites and hope that you get the council mission by the 17th. Then you can also hope that you get enough money out of that to build your uplink. This is really rolling the dice, but it can happen. There's usually only 40 bucks or so of loot on this mission. However, sometimes the reward is cash itself.

If you can manage all this, you can get America, Russia and two 100 buck countries starting on the second month.

Now mind you that this is not quite as awesome as it sounds. First, you've still got to build three more sats and an uplink in the second month. Second, you've skipped over building a power supply and an officer training school. This means your going to be well into your second month before you unlock your fifth squad member. You will be at zero surplus energy after building your uplink, so you'll have no choice to build a power supply and it will have to be right next to your workshop or uplink. You won't even be able to build a lift. Third, sats are useful to manage high panic countries. The sooner you cover a country, the harder it will be to manage their panic in the long run. If something goes amiss in the US or Russia in month two or three, you're not going to have an option of launching a satellite to make them happier.

Still, I think it's a good start if you can make it happen. I've been able to get it to work twice now, including the game I'm playing now. Unfortunately, I have the worst steam setup possible, so I'm trying to figure out how to get my thermos up. But at least I've got cash.

 

[QuantumPion]

Getting 5 in month 1 seems like overkill for classic. That may be the only way to go for impossible where the panic increases faster but I think you gimp your research and equipment more than you need to.

 

[thespyder]

I have to agree it seems like an awful lot of work and sacrifice for a very little gain and significant disadvantages (both short run and long run).

I would think a more measured and balanced approach would keep your soldiers alive and progressing, your base developing and your technology advancing such that you don't end up hurting for anything. Just my opinion.

This game needs a full expansion, not DLC.

I whole heartedly agree. Plus, at minimum a patch to solve the problem with all of the bugs related to being on the second level of a ship or building.

 

[SMOGZINN]

I whole heartedly agree. Plus, at minimum a patch to solve the problem with all of the bugs related to being on the second level of a ship or building.

I haven't started playing yet, but it sounds like this bug occurs later in the game so the figured it would not effect initial sales and they would have the time to patch it before it started to effect sales. (You can't tell me they never noticed it) If so, that would be a good sign that it will get patched out.

 

[Clinkster]

This game needs more bug/UI fixes more than any more downloadables.

 

[thespyder]

I haven't started playing yet, but it sounds like this bug occurs later in the game so the figured it would not effect initial sales and they would have the time to patch it before it started to effect sales. (You can't tell me they never noticed it) If so, that would be a good sign that it will get patched out.

I agree that it was probably one of those 80/20 things that they figured would get fixed post launch. But really it is the most annoying thing to encounter. And while it may not impact initial sales, it is absolutely impacting confidence in the product which will impact future sales of this and other products.

I went to their forum site and saw that they have a whole host of bugs of various severity that have been revealed by consumers. It is my hope that they include this one as one of the major first efforts. It is extremely annoying.

And no, it is not necessarily "Later in the game". I encountered it mission 4 or 5.

 

[SMOGZINN]

I agree that it was probably one of those 80/20 things that they figured would get fixed post launch. But really it is the most annoying thing to encounter. And while it may not impact initial sales, it is absolutely impacting confidence in the product which will impact future sales of this and other products.

I went to their forum site and saw that they have a whole host of bugs of various severity that have been revealed by consumers. It is my hope that they include this one as one of the major first efforts. It is extremely annoying.

And no, it is not necessarily "Later in the game". I encountered it mission 4 or 5.

Then I stand (partially) corrected.

 

[Howard]

The problem is it is hard to get out of range of their allies, and it seems like Mind Control behaves as if Squadsight were enabled.

For some reason, the Mutons that were with the SCs decided to charge me, so I wiped them out first and then I was able to R&G the SCs with impunity.

Need to get non-damaged power sources and flight computers...

 

[thespyder]

Has anyone encountered a problem with Squad Site?

My Sniper has it, yet I rarely see it having any effect. There are still significant times when there is an enemy in line of site of a squad member, yet my sniper can't see them. Even if they are in range and have a relatively unobstructed view.

I do have to say that "In the Zone" is a FABULOUS ability. I had my Sniper actually take out two aliens in one round using it. Add to that the higher ground bonus and she was just knocking em dead.

 

[kevinsbane]

Has anyone encountered a problem with Squad Site?

My Sniper has it, yet I rarely see it having any effect. There are still significant times when there is an enemy in line of site of a squad member, yet my sniper can't see them. Even if they are in range and have a relatively unobstructed view.

I do have to say that "In the Zone" is a FABULOUS ability. I had my Sniper actually take out two aliens in one round using it. Add to that the higher ground bonus and she was just knocking em dead.

Not having used a snap shot sniper since my first playthrough, I must say I've never encountered a situation where if a squad sight sniper had an unobstructed shot, he could not take it. Every instance I could remember where I could not take a shot, there was something in the way; a tree, or the enemy was below the plane of sight (behind a rise in ground), behind a wall, etc.

 

[Martimus]

Has anyone encountered a problem with Squad Site?

My Sniper has it, yet I rarely see it having any effect. There are still significant times when there is an enemy in line of site of a squad member, yet my sniper can't see them. Even if they are in range and have a relatively unobstructed view.

I do have to say that "In the Zone" is a FABULOUS ability. I had my Sniper actually take out two aliens in one round using it. Add to that the higher ground bonus and she was just knocking em dead.

I found that if I can damage all of the enemies to the point where they have around 6 hitpoints left, my sniper can finish all of them off in one turn. Knowing that, I spend grenades or damage to all enemies from the rest of my squad, and let the sniper finish them off. She killed 5 chrisilids in one turn yesterday using this method.

 

[PowerYoga]

My Sniper has it, yet I rarely see it having any effect. There are still significant times when there is an enemy in line of site of a squad member, yet my sniper can't see them. Even if they are in range and have a relatively unobstructed view.

Elevation can obstruct, and so can a single tree or pole in the way. This is why I give my snipers archangel armor.

 

[irishScott]

Has anyone encountered a problem with Squad Site?

My Sniper has it, yet I rarely see it having any effect. There are still significant times when there is an enemy in line of site of a squad member, yet my sniper can't see them. Even if they are in range and have a relatively unobstructed view.

I do have to say that "In the Zone" is a FABULOUS ability. I had my Sniper actually take out two aliens in one round using it. Add to that the higher ground bonus and she was just knocking em dead.

The isometric view sometimes makes it hard to see what's obscuring what. I'd say squadsight works for me 90% of the time, and I'd be willing to put the 10% that it doesn't up to obstructions that I couldn't see.

 

[Martimus]

Not having used a snap shot sniper since my first playthrough, I must say I've never encountered a situation where if a squad sight sniper had an unobstructed shot, he could not take it. Every instance I could remember where I could not take a shot, there was something in the way; a tree, or the enemy was below the plane of sight (behind a rise in ground), behind a wall, etc.

That said, I just got a captain sniper as a reward, and decided to try the move and shoot options this time. The guy is almost completely useless now. He can't hit anything that isn't next to him, and the reduction to accuracy makes him as inaccurate as anyone else on the team. I won't take that bonus ever again.

 

[QuantumPion]

Has anyone encountered a problem with Squad Site?

My Sniper has it, yet I rarely see it having any effect. There are still significant times when there is an enemy in line of site of a squad member, yet my sniper can't see them. Even if they are in range and have a relatively unobstructed view.

I do have to say that "In the Zone" is a FABULOUS ability. I had my Sniper actually take out two aliens in one round using it. Add to that the higher ground bonus and she was just knocking em dead.

The alien icons with a yellow crosshair on them are aliens being seen by squad sight. Without squad sight, your sniper has to move every other turn to keep up with your squad otherwise will be out of range to shoot anything. With squad sight, you can leave your sniper behind a tree by the skyranger for UFO missions and he can hit anything outside the UFO once spotted.

I haven't picked ITZ yet but it seems to me it would rarely be more useful than DT. DT is reliable and you can use it every other turn to get 2 kills or kill an ethereal or sectopod in 1 turn. ITZ seems too situational where you have to specifically set it up to get use out of it, where as you could just kill the aliens normally just as easily.

 

[PowerYoga]

Double tap is much more useful. It's guaranteed 2 shots every other turn, and if you kill just one thing because that's the only thing in range, it doesn't trigger.

ITZ requires you to have pretty much all your ducks lined up in a row. Sure it's useful once or twice when all the aliens are there and you can pop them because they all have low hp, but i found situations like those few and far in between.

 

[Martimus]

Double tap is much more useful. It's guaranteed 2 shots every other turn, and if you kill just one thing because that's the only thing in range, it doesn't trigger.

ITZ requires you to have pretty much all your ducks lined up in a row. Sure it's useful once or twice when all the aliens are there and you can pop them because they all have low hp, but i found situations like those few and far in between.

I find in the zone useful with a rocket or grenade when the aliens first show up. They are usually lumped together and a single grenade or rocket will often make all of them killable in a single shot, meaning you can take them all out at once.

 

[thespyder]

I find in the zone useful with a rocket or grenade when the aliens first show up. They are usually lumped together and a single grenade or rocket will often make all of them killable in a single shot, meaning you can take them all out at once.

I kind of agree. I will usually leave my sniper to the last and make sure that the rest of my squad damages all potential targets before her turn comes up. That variably ensures that she will be able to take down a large number of targets. Then I have her start with the targets with the fewest hit points.

Not sure how double tap works (because I haven't tried it) but I have taken out consistently 3-5 opponents with my sniper in one turn with ITZ. My team sets them up and she knocks them down.

Ok, another question for you guys.

When faced with a Zerker and a cyberdisk on the battlefield at the same time, which do you tackle first? Which has the highest priority for the kill?

 

[QuantumPion]

Hmm I hadn't thought of using ITZ with a shredder rocket. Oh well maybe next game.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

I kind of agree. I will usually leave my sniper to the last and make sure that the rest of my squad damages all potential targets before her turn comes up. That variably ensures that she will be able to take down a large number of targets. Then I have her start with the targets with the fewest hit points.

Not sure how double tap works (because I haven't tried it) but I have taken out consistently 3-5 opponents with my sniper in one turn with ITZ. My team sets them up and she knocks them down.

Ok, another question for you guys.

When faced with a Zerker and a cyberdisk on the battlefield at the same time, which do you tackle first? Which has the highest priority for the kill?

In a perfect universe, whichever is doing more damage.

In term of tactical tradeoff, you kill whichever one is closer to killing your d00dz, or closer to killing the more important d00dz.

If the Cyberdisk is shooting an Alloy SHIV with full health, and the Berserker is attacking my cowering but high-ranking support medic with low health, I'm tasking my sniper to the Berserker to save the medic. If it's the other way around, well, sorry R2-D2. Kill the Cyber.

But if that medic has full health and the other target is my Captain rank Squad Site, Double Tap Sniper w/ Psi powers... the medic is going to have to just take the hit for the team.

 

[thespyder]

In a perfect universe, whichever is doing more damage.

In term of tactical tradeoff, you kill whichever one is closer to killing your d00dz, or closer to killing the more important d00dz.

If the Cyberdisk is shooting an Alloy SHIV with full health, and the Berserker is attacking my cowering but high-ranking support medic with low health, I'm tasking my sniper to the Berserker to save the medic. If it's the other way around, well, sorry R2-D2. Kill the Cyber.

But if that medic has full health and the other target is my Captain rank Squad Site, Double Tap Sniper w/ Psi powers... the medic is going to have to just take the hit for the team.

I guess, more than situationally, which is perceived as the greater threat "In General".

Clearly, in a situation where someone is under threat, you assess the value of that threat and the damage based on not responding. However, in a perfect scenario where both show up on the same turn in different quadrants and aren't bearing down on anyone in particular. So in essence, in a vaccuum, which would you consider the greater threat.

For me, it is a tough call, because you can make the Zerker dance back and forth between whoever is damaging them. On the other hand, the Zerker seems to actually do more damage per hit (gaged on the times that I actually let them land a blow at all). The Disk can be tough as well, and sometimes throws grenades. So I am having a quandary as to which is the greater threat.

 

[alphasigmookie]

I guess, more than situationally, which is perceived as the greater threat "In General".

Clearly, in a situation where someone is under threat, you assess the value of that threat and the damage based on not responding. However, in a perfect scenario where both show up on the same turn in different quadrants and aren't bearing down on anyone in particular. So in essence, in a vaccuum, which would you consider the greater threat.

For me, it is a tough call, because you can make the Zerker dance back and forth between whoever is damaging them. On the other hand, the Zerker seems to actually do more damage per hit (gaged on the times that I actually let them land a blow at all). The Disk can be tough as well, and sometimes throws grenades. So I am having a quandary as to which is the greater threat.

In general I find anything with ranged attacks to be the bigger threat as long as the zerker isn't at close range. Usually you will get at least 2 turns to take shots at a zerker before he gets in a shot as long as you retreat your guys away from him and use your attacks to distract him. Depends on what weapons you've got at the time though. Once you've got an assault with the auto overwatch though they're pretty easy, especially if they're armed with a scatterlaser/autocannon. Best situation is if they go after the assault first. When it closes it triggers the auto overwatch. Then you can shoot him with someone else to move him away, then double tap him with the shotgun (well worth it at close range with shotgun) making him charge the assault again and then trigger a 2nd overwatch. 4 shots close range with a shotgun plus whatever else you shot him with. Your other 3-4 guys can then concentrate on the auto disk unless you got really unlucky.

 

[PowerYoga]

You can headshot zerkers a lot easier because they tend to be out in the open. But I'd shoot whatever is hitting your weakest team members or kite the zerker, cyberdisks are generally more dangerous for me but AP rounds take them down fairly quickly.

 

[thespyder]

Got another question. Is anyone else finding that in Terror missions that all of the aliens tend to congregate around your landing site? I did a mission last night that was supposed to be 'difficult'. Only all of the aliens were in the quarter quadrant that my soldiers landed in and came out of the woodwork almost all at once.

I remember that in the original (particular TFTD) that you had to scour the entire board sometimes to find all of the hiding aliens. Now they just seem to appear as soon as you land and come rushing at you.

Might have something to do with me only playing on Normal. Been thinking about kicking it up to Classic but not sure if that would help things out at all.