Stuck and unsure what to do next...

[Kereru]

First, just to say, this mod is pretty great and I've been enjoying it a lot. However, if there's one thing where it could do with improvement, it's in explaining what the player is supposed to be doing...

I'm currently in late 1998. I have 3 bases, every building type thus far, 20 mil in the bank, veteran teams flying around in Dragonflies, rocking various BlackOps weapons and wearing Jumpsuits and Armored Vests. Every month, my funding goes up, all countries are happy with my work. I'm basically farming cult bases and waiting for the game to progress. And that's the problem...

1. Where are the aliens? Some research mentioned the invasion is starting in 1999. I've had UFO sightings during the first year, but nothing since. Also, am I supposed to have Interceptors or some other combat aircraft ready? Because nothing's coming up in my research. I have Dragonflies for my 8man teams, but that's as high as I've gotten.

2. There's nothing left to research. I'm on Upgrade II, I've gotten all the "normal" gear, all the licenses, all autopsies. Captured cultists no longer appear as researchable, so I take it that I've gotten all the dossiers. I've had one "Alien Party" mission, which got me a dead Anthropod, which in turn got me some Alien-related research (Biology, etc.), but that's petered out.

3. Some research implied I should be getting special missions, but they are nowhere to be found. For example, I had a MAGMA research that outright stated it would provide me with a special mission. That was several months ago, nothing popped up. Same with Hidden Caves, implying something should be appearing but nothing is. Is this just not implemented yet? I did get the Durathread factory, so I assumed these would be similar, but nothing is showing up.

4. Is there much point to the "covert" missions (ones where you can't bring hardly any gear)? I did a few, got nothing worthwhile out of them, and am currently just ignoring them when they pop up as I don't find them particularly enjoyable. Also, would it be possible to get a breakdown of applicable gear for each one, as digging through the item info pages for corresponding tags is slow and tedious?

5. All the cults are still active (Dagon, Exalt, Lotus, Red Dawn). Am I supposed to shut them down? If yes, how? I've been capturing them alive, but no new research is popping up...

Basically, I feel like I'm missing something here. Or am I doing fine and just have to wait for the game to progress? I don't mind spoilers, if that's an issue, I'd just like some inkling of what I'm supposed to be doing.

[X-Man]

Your main target is to achieve 'Promotion III'. To do this you should destroy at least one of any cult and interrogate any live alien ('deep ones' and 'gillmen' are acceptable). Build alien containment first!

I'd recommend you to begin from The Cult of Dagon (it is the most suitable for your purposes).
To destroy the cult you should interrogate one of it's high-ranked member (Sorcerer of the Dagon from The CoD). You can capture such members on the cults' bases (not outposts!). It will open to you HQ of the cult. While the operation you will face there with their alien allies (deep ones and gillmen). Capture one of them! After that you will know what to do next. 

Some research implied I should be getting special missions, but they are nowhere to be found.

That is unlucky random... Sometimes it takes even more time to get a special mission.

Is there much point to the "covert" missions (ones where you can't bring hardly any gear)? I did a few, got nothing worthwhile out of them, and am currently just ignoring them when they pop up as I don't find them particularly enjoyable. Also, would it be possible to get a breakdown of applicable gear for each one, as digging through the item info pages for corresponding tags is slow and tedious?

Yes! Your main goal is to learn info about Osiron. That could be done by three ways:
1) you can capture Osiron's member on surfing mission;
2) you can learn about Osiron from a secret file, which can be looted during any of covert missions (also there is a small chance to get the files during non-covert missions with any cult);
3) you can interrogate member of so-called 'League' (it works like secret files) (only for version 1.0).
When you will learn about Osiron... Well, I will not spoil all the fun. 

[X-Man]

Oh, and one more tip: if you capturing something unknown, press middle mouse button to check the research dependencies. And do not forget about tech tree (press Q on geoscape screen) - there you can check almost everything you need for the further progress.

[Kereru]

Ah, I see. So, Dart Rifles for everyone, I guess.

With Dagon, I assume I need to capture the guys in robes that look like original Ethereals? What about the other cults?

With Lotus, I got Witches and regular members. I think I'm missing a Ninja. Is that the one I need?

Red Dawn is just a bunch of dudes in camo and tanktops. Nobody stands out. And I have no idea who to capture for Exalt either...

Also, am I on a timer of some kind? As in, I've been spinning my wheels for 6 months now (hence why I managed to exhaust all the research). Did I dig myself into a hole I can't get out of? I know these things could happen in original XCOM.

[Dreams_Of_Cheese]

The only relevant timer is aliens appearing in January 1999. Promotion 3 unlocks interceptors, among other things. If you're on Nov1998 then you're definitely behind schedule, although with your money you're probably going to be alright. One of the paths to Promo 3 is completed by researching Alien Language and by interrogating an alien. This shouldn't be too hard once they start appearing in numbers, and your stashed millions should convert nicely into new equipment.

[Kereru]

The only relevant timer is aliens appearing in January 1999. Promotion 3 unlocks interceptors, among other things. If you're on Nov1998 then you're definitely behind schedule, although with your money you're probably going to be alright. One of the paths to Promo 3 is completed by researching Alien Language and by interrogating an alien. This shouldn't be too hard once they start appearing in numbers, and your stashed millions should convert nicely into new equipment.

Ah, I see! I already have Alien Language, so I just need a live Alien? Great!

[X-Man]

Ah, I see! I already have Alien Language, so I just need a live Alien? Great!

Damn... Whom and what did I write those text first...

[X-Man]

With Dagon, I assume I need to capture the guys in robes that look like original Ethereals?

Yes.

With Lotus, I got Witches

Correct.

Red Dawn is just a bunch of dudes in camo and tanktops. Nobody stands out. And I have no idea who to capture for Exalt either...

Red Dawn Sailor (looks like a sailor) and EXALT Enforcer (dude in a black suit and hat).

Interrogating each of them will grant access to their bases.

[Kereru]

Damn... Whom and what did I write those text first...

Yeah, sorry, my bad, you did post that info as well.

Well, in any case, I got a decent idea of how to preceed. Thanks guys

[Arcalane]

Ah, I see. So, Dart Rifles for everyone, I guess.

My go-to for a long time has been dart pistols in the quickdraw holster. It's worked surprisingly well.

Flashbangs can also help with this as they do some stun damage and reduce the target's available TU/etc. on their next turn.

With Dagon, I assume I need to capture the guys in robes that look like original Ethereals? What about the other cults?

With Lotus, I got Witches and regular members. I think I'm missing a Ninja. Is that the one I need?

Red Dawn is just a bunch of dudes in camo and tanktops. Nobody stands out. And I have no idea who to capture for Exalt either...

Simple rule of thumb; if you haven't seen something before, try to capture it. This is a lot easier with cults and similar groups because their units have unique appearances; with full-blown aliens you'll have to guess ranks based off the weapons they're carrying.

As a plus, live enemies give more points than dead ones, and even if you've exhausted interrogation options they can be sold to the Council for extras cash.

[Kereru]

OK, I seem to have misunderstood something here. Is interrogating Aliens supposed to get me to Promotion 3? Because it isn't doing that.

UFOs have started showing up and I've been jumping on them like crazy. I quickly captured a Sectoid and interrogated it, followed by Alien Origins. However, I'm not getting Summary Report research.

Looking at the Tech Viewer, it would appear that I need "Deep One communities" (haven't had many missions with them, but OK), "Cyberweb portal systems" (no idea what this is supposed to be), and "Into the dark" (which seems to be connected to the Hidden Caves missions. Also, I apparently NEED to destroy at least one Cult.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining. It's my fault I didn't get all my shit done in time. I just want to confirm that I'm not missing something here. Because if I need to get ALL the listed prerequisites, I'll probably restart my campaign. I'm kinda holding my own against the initial waves of Aliens, but my gear is woefully inadequate already, and if I have no hope of getting Prom3 for at least a few more months (as UFOs have replaced a lot of the events I need to get the stuff), it's not looking good...

[X-Man]

OK, I seem to have misunderstood something here. Is interrogating Aliens supposed to get me to Promotion 3? Because it isn't doing that.

UFOs have started showing up and I've been jumping on them like crazy. I quickly captured a Sectoid and interrogated it, followed by Alien Origins. However, I'm not getting Summary Report research.

Looking at the Tech Viewer, it would appear that I need "Deep One communities" (haven't had many missions with them, but OK), "Cyberweb portal systems" (no idea what this is supposed to be), and "Into the dark" (which seems to be connected to the Hidden Caves missions. Also, I apparently NEED to destroy at least one Cult.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining. It's my fault I didn't get all my shit done in time. I just want to confirm that I'm not missing something here. Because if I need to get ALL the listed prerequisites, I'll probably restart my campaign. I'm kinda holding my own against the initial waves of Aliens, but my gear is woefully inadequate already, and if I have no hope of getting Prom3 for at least a few more months (as UFOs have replaced a lot of the events I need to get the stuff), it's not looking good...

Re-read my first post. One interrogated alien and one destroyed cult. That's enough.

[Kereru]

Re-read my first post. One interrogated alien and one destroyed cult. That's enough.

Ah, I see. My bad.

But I'll probably restart anyway, as I'm being flooded by UFOs, and other mission types are hardly appearing anymore. But at least I know for next time.

[Empiro]

Ah, I see. My bad.

But I'll probably restart anyway, as I'm being flooded by UFOs, and other mission types are hardly appearing anymore. But at least I know for next time.

Yeah it's good to do end-of-month saves (I always do mine at 20:00 on the final day of each month), so if something screws up badly, you can go back.

Note that Dagon has a bunch of different guys in robes. There's ones in normal robes that you can find at safe-houses, ones in fancy robes that you can only find at bases, and ones in fancy robes that look like Cthulu you can only find at bases. You need the Cthulu-looking one to advance the research. The bases are all a bit of a headache because of how many enemies with explosives and incendiary grenades there are.