X-Chronicles Release, v.1.1

[Mathel]

Man, do you even play your own game??? How am I suppose to be faster with such founding:
(Founding)
"Flight glyph"s were around 75% of my income! I am already playing as good as it is possible, because I know the research tree, I know priorities. I won almost every battle or fled (because I already know all enemies (except those pesky elves (RIP no reloading in champagne))), I shoot down almost every craft (that is why I was able to stay above 0 while sky was filled with red crosses). There just no room for mistakes! Right now I have 60 scientists, maybe I can afford additional 20.

I think we are his balance testers.

Too slow for 2023. Maybe i should reconsider geoscape difficulty...

But seriously, scientists are too expensive and research takes too long to be any faster. Especially for someone who doesn't know the tech tree.
My calculations for time expected required to get Atmospheric Sattelite, which is probably that baloon that Vakrug mentioned. Until you get that, you can't defeat more than 1 base per 5 months on average, since you can't find them any faster. And since you won't be able to defeat any adult or old nests, you really won't be doing even that.
Counting with 30 scientists, since that is how many I can barely afford.

Code: [Select]

USA police contract: 5/30=1 day
The police contract is signed: 0
first autopsy (Slug Corpse) 100/30=4 days
Shielded Prison 200/30=7 days
Basics of the invader spoken language (from Goblin Fighter): 100/30=4 days
Contact: Savages: 80/30=3 days
Invaders' spoken language: 210/30=7 days
Weak Artifact: 500/30=17 days
Magic Items (from Marauder boss) 3*130/30=13 days
Arriving spots of the Invaders (from marauder Boss, having Magic Items): 2*130/30=9 days
Shielded Lab: 500/30=17 days
Invader paths (from Outcast Mage, having Invader Transport, AsotI, and Magic Items) 5*150/30=25 days
!Sky under control!: 300/30=10 days
Advanced Radars: 400/30=14 days
Rifts: 250/30=9 days
Rift Stabilization: 450/30=15 days
Contract with the US army: 120/30=4 days
Contract with the army is signed: 0/30=0 days
Contact: Invaders: 100/30=4 days
USA special forces equipment: 100/30=4 days
The special forces equipment contract is signed: 0/30=0 days
Large-caliber weapon: 120/30=4 days
The unusual equipment is needed: 0/30=0 days
Internationalization: 350/30=12 days
!X-contract!: 200/30=7 days
Strong Artifact: 600/30=20 days
Psionic: 500/30=17 days
Mana Crystal: 800/30=27 days
Mana Capacitor: 450/30=15
Detection of Mana Sources: 300/30=10 daysThe sum is 279 days. Assuming average research rate, perfect missions, and always having what you need to research already in your stores, you can expect the player to have the Atmospheric satellite no sooner than 279days into the game, which is 6th of October 2020. If they beeline for it.

If, however, the player gets unlucky on interrogation roulette, they don't manage to catch enough Outcast Magi or Marauder Bosses, or even their stabilized rifts all either lead to hostile environment or don't contain a Strong Artifact, it can take a lot longer.

And since beelining for the Atmospheric Satellite means skipping defensive techs (Chitin&Runewood armors) and useful weapons (Bows and Wands), you can't expect players to beeline for it anyway.

[Vakrug]

Come on, it is not Scientists who are expensive, it is utterly broken founding problem! In <1.0 there were too much founding eventually, good that that was "fixed", but not in such a way.
Nests also spawn like crazy like I showed earlier. This can be beneficial, but realistically not.

Counting with 30 scientists...

Form the day one? This can happen only after "Shielded Lab" and not necessary you can afford all of them after that.

[Mathel]

Form the day one? This can happen only after "Shielded Lab" and not necessary you can afford all of them after that.

Of course not. That is merely a simplification. Realisticaly, you would buy to 20 within the first month and 10 more while building the Shielded Lab.

I also didn't account for the time to build buildings, items and people to arrive, looting to happen, missions to spawn, and possibly more logistical delays I might have forgotten about.
And looting is another roulette, because you need to kill and loot Invader Leaders and Magi for Weak Artifact and just Invader Magi for Mana Crystal

[murkhach@centrum.cz]

I think we are his balance testers.But seriously, scientists are too expensive and research takes too long to be any faster.

Well I am in 2022 (August and able to get detection)
I confirm that research is extra slow with many useless autopsies (however with hidden potential)
  i.e. were wolf  Autopsy + capture  can produce something with armor that can increase mobility
         spike-boar                  can unlock some  upgrade for chitin armor that have better i resistance vs kinetic

RIFTS
 - second stage should be free of civilians
 - in second stage there should be more interesting stuff (MAGIC BOOKS,  AMULETS, ... ]
 - with x-technology  quite easy
    (Later when you  gain strong artifact rifts are annoying and sometimes not worth exploring )
   So I suggest to make more tiers of rifts
     1 . rats ,  scorpions, glass spiders , fiery flies  (weak artifact,  amulets)
         - not spawning after researching camouflage  or  weak artifacts
     2. shooter beetles, floater,  slugs, giants . shai-hulud   (strong artifact or magic crystals ) + weak artifact
         - not spawning  after research strong artifact
     3. spike boar, werewolf (forced darkness)  [rune-wood , crystals ] + [weak,weak , strong artifact]
         - not spawning after  scriptorium is unlocked
     4. spirits
          -  psionic inspiration prerequisite 
          -  as a reward [magic books. library,   e t.c ]   

 - I'd prefer in all rifts some stronger variation  of creatures (similar to  prismatic spider and floating jelly)

INVADERS
 - seems quite OK
 - I'd prefer more guarantee loot [i.e amulets or runes ]

ALIENS (SWARM)
 - there should be some better loot when complete land UFO mission
 - stalkers
  -- should have a bit less shields and be less effective vs strong armor  (chitin or wooden)
 - pincer warm and larva
  -- quite deadly - please reduce range or damage just cause fire, or poison can be enough - player can mitigate  it by extinguishers or  poison cure ) or accuracy
 - brutes are quite OK
  - I like tusk and killing it only with  that special blades with armor nullification

SHIELDS overall
 - sometimes works in weird way  ( some shots drain  none, some 2, some 5, some even 15 points from shield)
 - I recommend to consider some shield as a number of shots  that can block (regeneration - regenerate some shots)
    that makes tactical using some low damage auto-shot weapons to kick down the shield

path to MAGIC
 - in my opinion too difficult  (looting books an translating proper one is too luck depending)