Randomized starting item: Early Gauss rifle

[hairybert]

I just started a game of XCom Files. And I got a Gauss rifle in the first day (or second). I got pretty excited, but now I don't know what to do with it. I guess I cannot use it (lack of ammunition). Also, the game does not allow me to select it for research nor manufacture. Should I just sell it and take the 135.000$?

Also, I guess it's a randomized item. What are generally the best items you could get at this point?

[Stone Lake]

https://xcf.trigramreactor.net/master/article/STR_CHIEF_ACCOUNTANT_INTRODUCTION

I guess moneybag for free $500k is the best, cash-wise and overall. None of weapons are usable without ammo, but you may get ammo from e.g. osiron crate sometimes - I remember getting magneto-gun and using it at some point.
It's also instantly researchable, getting you Cool Gadget research (usually get this from psiclone). But mainly these are unusable and better sell them.
Alien Alloy Welder/Alien Multitool are hard to get and are possible roadblocks to getting Improved Lab later in the game, so are kinda cool.

[psavola]

It seems you need Science Lab (i.e. Promo II) to research Gauss Rifle, and you can't use it without researching it first. It can be useful to unlock Mass Driver Weapons, but that is only possible only after you've interrogated a non-underwater alien, so it's usually something to do for 1998. The biggest early/mid-game benefits of gauss weapons are Mass Driver/Gauss Cannon (a great craft weapon) and possibly the same for tanks. Later on gauss weapons can be useful for one-hit killing heavily armored enemies like heavy MIBs (if you don't have anything better) or sectopods, but this is really feasible only after you have obtained heavy armors.

Depending on the playstyle and RNG you could get those elsewhere as well. If you become tight on money, you could sell it, but at least now on, I'd try to keep it.

[hairybert]

Thanks for your answers and the pointer to the database entry!

So well, I could keep it for sentimental reasons. But nothing worse in XCom than falling for sentimentality. Therefore, just sell the Gauss rifle which strategically makes most sense.

Design-wise, I really like the idea of the chief accountant pulling out some dusty item, which you cannot obtain regularly in the nearer future and thereby giving the early game some randomized extra flavor. But to make this work, there should be some (near-)immediate distinctive advantage of the item.