Is lost Sanity regained after Transformations?

[rkagerer]

I have a number of agents whose Sanity stat has petered out at or just above 120.  They have some transformations available which impose a relatively big hit to this stat, at least compared to other stats those transformations increase - e.g. Gun Kata, which only boosts Accuracy by 5 on these agents, but decreases their Sanity by 10.  I've been holding off on such transformations until I understand whether and how quickly that lost Sanity can be regained by going on new missions.

I tried training one on Gun Kata as an experiment, and it looks like he regained his 120 sanity max in fairly short order.  But I wasn't paying much attention, and am not sure if there were any other factors.

Could someone confirm how this works?  It seems to me that over the long term, there's no disadvantage to "spending" sanity on these transformations.

Will other stats that are no longer receiving bonuses from mission experience (except through Commendations) similarly regain their previous max cap after I apply transformations that degrade them?  (e.g. Blood Boosting which reduces Bravery, Sanity, and Psi Skill).

Is there any reason not to complete the remaining transformations on soldiers that have reached their skill caps?  I realize Blood Boosting is a special case as it prevents other training, but seems like it could make sense for agents with low Psi attributes?

Thanks!

[Stone Lake]

You can't regain lost sanity. You simply gain more sanity (up to a cap, like any other stat, and bonuses).

[rkagerer]

>> You can't regain lost sanity. You simply gain more sanity (up to a cap, like any other stat, and bonuses).
Thanks, that's what I meant by "regain".

So if I understand correctly, it's better to apply stat-eating transformations before (or just as) an agent reaches the cap for the skills the transformation reduces.  Once they hit the cap, any subsequent missions they go on are a 'wasted' opportunity where they could otherwise have gained experience had they had any runway left in those stats.

[Stone Lake]

Thanks, that's what I meant by "regain".

I'm not sure. What I meant is, if you didn't have -10 SAN bonus, you'd have 10 more SAN by now.

So if I understand correctly, it's better to apply stat-eating transformations before (or just as) an agent reaches the cap for the skills the transformation reduces.

No.

Mostly, transformations apply bonuses to stats that stack independently. For bonus stats it doesn't matter when you apply them.

There are exceptions when transformations "trains" stats, such as gun-kata: it trains 5 REA / 10 ACC, that modify base stats up to a cap, and also grants bonus of 5 ACC/-10 SAN.
Stat trains (listed as "flat stat change" in the wiki) are basically same as stats gained routinely in battle via exp. Better to have early, as they do nothing once you hit a cap.
Commendations gained in battle grant bonuses.

[psavola]

Stone Lake's last comments contain the gold nuggets. I have always been very confused about this. The crucial difference is to note how stats are changed directly and how with bonuses. Bonuses ignore caps while direct changes don't.

A recent example here is that in recently published XCF 3.5, where installing TNI reduces your current sanity by 20 %, but as it changes the stat directly, it can be regained through training. (Earlier similar proportional losses happened with protean revival, at least.)

Most transformations are mostly or entirely based on bonuses, so the order in which they are applied is not so important.

However, one transformation might open up a path for another more quickly. As a specific example, you should usually install TNI (which gives among other bonuses +5 to MELEE) to agents with 60 melee or slightly less, so that after installation, they would directly be eligible to get martial arts training. Because getting those last points to get your MELEE up to 65, this can fast track the progress quite a bit. And spartanism applied to a rookie is another story, allowing access to martial arts without any training at all (though with the veteran agents and all I doubt many will need that shortcut anymore).

[Stone Lake]

so that after installation, they would directly be eligible to get martial arts training

This is also something to keep a note of: only transformations with `includeBonusesForMinStats: true` allow bonuses to affect required stats. That usually applies to basic transforms (martial arts, bio-ex), and doesn't to soldier-type changes (kyberism).