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1096

The X-Com Files / Re: The X-Com Files - 0.6.9 alpha: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

« on: September 11, 2017, 12:20:24 am »

Given that in the setting outer UFO walls can be penetrated by man-portable munitions that are orders of magnitude below smallest nuclear warheads in existence (otherwise the squad and the map would just be obliterated every time), it makes no sense to use THAAD-style guidance packages, when the same effect can be achieved by just detonating ~10kt at ~50 meters distance, which is pretty much solved problem since 60s.

I was going to post something similar, the gist of it being that constructing a nuclear shaped charge is technically not possible. Yes, you can focus the blast (see Orion Nuclear Pulse Units), but seeing how you need to compress the warhead to reach criticality, you cannot use it to form a shaped charge (i.e. something that results in a coherent jet of fluid metal). Shaped charges only work over small distances before the metal jet begins to brake up, so even if something like this was possible, you'd still need the missile to actually hit the target, instead of exploding it somewhere in the vincinity. Add to that that the warhead alone (sans shaped charge) would be about 100 kg (taking the W25 as an example here), i don't see this happening, at least not if the target is a UFO that can vastly outperform traditional aircraft. That was the reason i proposed this for a missile employing alien alloys, making it lighter and more manouverable.

Also i don't really see how adding a bunch of uranium in a shaped charge would make a difference if you detonate a 1 kiloton nuclear warhead in close proximity to the target. My guess would be that the added effect would be minimal at best. Just to remind you, a kiloton of TNT can be visualized as a cube of TNT 8.46 metres (27.8 ft) on a side (taken straight from wikipedia).

All of that aside, that still leaves us with the problem that x-com would have unlimited access to nuclear weapons and apparently detonates those at it's discretion, even over populated areas. You can't PR something like that away. I can see how the MIBs would be working against X-COM here if they are the ones running around having to neuralyz people

If the Stingray uses a conventional warhead that does about half the damage of the Avalanche, can the Avalanche really have a 1-2 kT nuclear warhead? Would it need to? Or could it not just be a regular missile which simply has a bigger warhead?

1097

The X-Com Files / Re: Re: The X-Com Files - 0.6.9 alpha: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

« on: September 06, 2017, 09:26:46 pm »

But as far as I know, anti-air missiles do not rely on hitting the target, they explode in its general vicinity. I'm not sure how an alien alloy core would help here. Making an actually ramming missile would probably drastically decrease accuracy (in game terms), especially against supposedly highly maneuverable UFOs.

Yes, that's what i meant by "new (lore-wise)" - because it would be near impossible with todays tech. The missile can be lighter and more manouverable, which would enable it to reliable hit such a target. If it hits, the alloy core would have much more kinetic energy than an expanding rod  or fragmentation warhead. Just theorycrafting here.

I think Avalanche is not exactly a nuclear missile, more like a plasma warhead (as portrayed in many settings, for example Fallout). It's pure sci-fi, but I think acceptable in X-Com setting.

Yeah, but everything else Plasma is locked behind alien research. As far as i can tell the Avalanche mostly resembles the AIM-54 Phoenix (the F-14 carried those), which would explain their range. The added damage would be due to the bigger warhead in comparison to other missiles.

BTW, i just noticed that the muton_armor0 only has twelve damage modifiers. Is this intended?

1098

The X-Com Files / Re: Re: The X-Com Files - 0.6.9 alpha: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

« on: September 06, 2017, 04:05:33 pm »

I'm not saying no to an alloy missile, but how would it work? Why exactly would it be better than something made with Earth materials?

That mostly depends on what you want it to be. Should it be based on existing missiles or should it be something entirely new? Given how in the beginning you're essentially trying to catch up, upgrading existing technology seems like the most logical choice.
Alien alloys are described as being light and durable, so it would make sense that a missile constructed using alloys can either carry the same load further or a bigger warhead the same distance as existing missiles. Additionally the missile would likely be able to endure higher aerodynamic forces and could use more powerful propellant, making it more manouverable (i.e. more accurate).

If you want something new (lore wise), that bonus in manouverability could enable x-com to construct a penetration-type warhead (current missiles use blast, fragmentation or continous-rod warheads with proximity fuses) that uses a solid core of alien alloys or something like a shaped charge alien alloy warhead to pierce outer UFO hulls. Nothing akin to an elerium warhead, but a definite step-up from the damage that the Stingray does.

As a sidenote, is the Avalanche really supposed to have a nuclear warhead? Wouldn't that cause all kinds of PR-shennanigans? X-COM can probably downplay crashed UFOs, but a growing number of aerial nuclear detonations over (possibly) inhabited areas is something entirly different. Also, if the sidewinder (which looks like conventional missile) is able to damage UFOs, would a nuclear warhead (and the associated problems) be absolutely necessary? I mean it's one thing to give a paramilitary organisation access to military hardware, but to give them unlimited access to nuclear weapons?

1099

The X-Com Files / Re: Re: The X-Com Files - 0.6.9 alpha: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

« on: September 05, 2017, 05:39:54 pm »

On a totally unrelated note, do you plan on adding any additional craft weapons, especially missles? IIRC Area 51 had something akin to the Stormlance, but with alien alloys instead of Elerium. Seeing how we already have alloy ammunition for pretty much everything else, an alien alloy fragmentation warhead on an air-to-air missile doesn't seem too far off, especially as a stop-gap measure for light missile hardpoints.

1100

The X-Com Files / Re: Syndicate CEO

« on: June 22, 2017, 10:09:16 pm »

Hi Solarius, thanks for the quick fix for the bug.

1101

The X-Com Files / Re: Syndicate CEO

« on: June 21, 2017, 12:27:38 am »

Like i said, i have no idea why only civilians (unarmed, no bodyguards) spawn. The first mission was normal as far as i can tell, but i used debug mode to finish it and never recovered the council member.

1102

The X-Com Files / Re: Syndicate CEO

« on: June 20, 2017, 07:48:59 pm »

Thanks for the quick reply. I seem to have run into a strange bug where only civilians are spawned during council defense missions. I never an into a council member in the first place. Do you want me to upload the save file?

EDIT: just realized this might have been due to me using debug mode. Fixed it by adding the council member to my storage.

1103

The X-Com Files / Syndicate CEO

« on: June 20, 2017, 04:40:14 pm »

Just a quick question - what are the prerequisites for this mission? I seem to get data seizure and lab missions by the dozens, but never got the CEO arrest. Am i missing something?

1104

The X-Com Files / Re: Bugs, crashes, typos & bad taste

« on: June 20, 2017, 03:48:36 pm »

Because someone mentioned the zrbite tank earlier. Has the ufopaedia entry been fixed? I always get a crash when i select it.

1105

The X-Com Files / Re: Making money

« on: June 20, 2017, 03:37:23 pm »

Just something i noticed as far as money making is concerned. You might want to take a look at the economics of ammunition production. I get around  60M/month with ~200 engineers producing and selling HWP rockets. Then again it might not be that far fetched, looking at real life military-industrial companies.

1106

The X-Com Files / Re: The X-Com Files - 0.6.5b alpha: Keep Your Enemies Closer

« on: June 20, 2017, 03:30:32 pm »

I ran some tests, but came up with nothing unusual. I'm not saying you're wrong, I just need that screenshot (or save) to understand the problem.

Sorry, took some time to get back to it, screenshots are attached. Tell me if you need the save file.

Nothing is terminated at the borders of a level on this map.

Just making sure, it's supposed to look like this?

Okay, this one was indeed a bug! But it wasn't 50.509, it was actually 17/83.

Yeah, figured as much. Granted, my sample group wasn't especially big

WAT.
Okay, this sounds like a chore... It used to work, though! I'll fix it.

Sorry...

Also, i still get EXALT outposts months (6+) after it's termination. Is this intended? Do cults pop up again occasionally (maybe in case the player missed some research topics)?

BTW, i hope it's alright to upload screenshots like this, spoilers and all.

1107

The X-Com Files / Re: The X-Com Files - 0.6.5b alpha: Keep Your Enemies Closer

« on: June 18, 2017, 11:12:23 pm »

Which ones? Can't find anything wrong, but it ain't easy.

Rooms connecting to the long hallway/hallways - mostly on the upper left and the lower right. The inner doors always spawn, but the outer ones don't, i.e. they are blocked by walls.

Meaning?

It's just a grid of one-space wide hallways. Might be intended, but i found it strange that they aren't even terminated at the borders of the level.

Hmmm... Weird. Probably like MFive said, you have destroyed it somehow.

No, i have a save i can replicate this with. The factory doesn't spawn, neither does the resarch topic item - only 3-4 durathreads. The level is just normal hills without any buildings. Granted, it doesn't always happen, i'd say the chance of it is 50/50.

Also something i noticed, when you down and ground-assault the big syndicate aircraft the spawn points don't work as intended - i had my guys spawn inside the syndicate plane, including the items.

1108

The X-Com Files / Re: The X-Com Files - 0.6.5b alpha: Keep Your Enemies Closer

« on: June 17, 2017, 11:47:57 pm »

Hi Solarius, i've been playing your mod the last few days. It's a hell of a lot of content you've put into this 

Some minor things that i stumbled upon while playing:

- Megaworm (terrorist) ufopaedia entry isn't linked correctly (i.e. not at all)
- EXALT outposts keep on popping up even though the arc is finished (i.e. EXALT is destroyed)
- doors in Cyberweb lairs sometimes don't link correctly
- stored items are scattered on hangar floors during base defense missions - is this intended?
- council member defense missions start with your agents neatly lined up on the rooftop and enemies inside the house and the lower balcony, meaning your soldiers instantly draw reaction fire - is this intended?
- the second level (counted from the top) of the archive defense mission is kind of messed up
- Durathread factory missions sometimes don't contain said factory (i.e. no reasearch topic)

As i have no idea what you are working on right now most of these might already be fixed on your side. BTW, do you plan on including the TFTD ufopaedia entries/images? Because the Ion Beam Accelerator/engine and the Aquatoid entry look very...preliminary.