Re: The X-Com Files - 3.5: Whispers In The Dark

[tarkalak]

You can just delete HitFX-basic.rul to disable the indicator.

Would it make sense to make it a submod? Like Dark Geoscape and Cyrillic names?

I am divided on whether I prefer the information or seeing the bullet animation better. A nice feature otherwise.

[Thunderwing280]

Quick question is there a limit for how many alien embassies can be built, there are about 4 in my playthrough.

Also i cannot find zombie infectors, even in outbreak missions none spawn where do I find them?

[Solarius Scorch]

..why? 

Because they no longer exist.

Would it make sense to make it a submod? Like Dark Geoscape and Cyrillic names?

It would, but I didn't expect this to be a problem. Also, quite easy to remove.

I am divided on whether I prefer the information or seeing the bullet animation better. A nice feature otherwise.

I'd say it is okay, since Ctrl+H exists anyway (and carries more info), and I know you use it

Quick question is there a limit for how many alien embassies can be built, there are about 4 in my playthrough.

Yes, as many as there are countries...

Also i cannot find zombie infectors, even in outbreak missions none spawn where do I find them?

They appear on larger zombie missions.

[stn]

Is it possible to make a base defense mission much earlier than an alien invasion? For example, in the first or second year, let the cult members attack the base with a pistol and knives, or several animals or zombies.

[JustTheDude/CABSHEP]

Is it possible to make a base defense mission much earlier than an alien invasion? For example, in the first or second year, let the cult members attack the base with a pistol and knives, or several animals or zombies.

XCOM in the mod and its bases are supposed to be super classified, super hidden and such. There is no logic that some cult gets the info about of the basically the most secret thing that UN has. This secrecy can be reasonably broken by Aliens, or maybe MiB, with a bit of a stretch maybe even Osiron.

Even if so, why would cults attack it with knives and pistols? How would some animals, or zombies get in?

[krautbernd]

How would some animals, or zombies get in?

Same way things get out and contaminate the environment (see staff input) - through the sewers.

[Solarius Scorch]

Just The Dude said it: early cults have no means to take on X-Com directly. One could argue otherwise, but I had to make some assumptions about it.
Still, this might change in the future, because I like base defences (in moderation). Maybe UAC will be more proactive here.

And anyway, 1.5.1 has been released!
- New terrains: Muddy Rocks, Arboreal Rocks, Chilly Rocks, Sandy Rocks, Sandy Rocks Alternative, Snowy Rocks, Tropical Rocks, Mountainous Rocks, Tundra Plains, Arboreal Plains, Muddy Plains, Chilly Plains, Sandy Plains, Sandy Plains Alternative, Tropical Plains, Wasteland (by Bullet Designer).
- Expanded Urban Low terrain.
- New BlackOps SMG bigob (by Alex D).
- Improved Minimi bigob (by Alex D).
- Better Uzi handob (by Brain_322).
- Some improvements to the globe.
- Promotion I can now be unlocked with a living creature, not just a corpse.
- Webwear is now Concealable.
- Toned down grenades in hybrid clinics.
- Fixed circular dependency between Optronics, UFO Navigation and Alien Optical Processor.
- Minor fixes.

I wasn't planning on such a quick update, but that circular dependency was a big problem and I didn't want to leave it unattended. It's a good thing though, because I already added Bullet Designer's terrains from the C.M.P. community, which will certainly spike things up.

[tarkalak]

Is it possible to make a base defense mission much earlier than an alien invasion? For example, in the first or second year, let the cult members attack the base with a pistol and knives, or several animals or zombies.

There IS, in fact, a human faction, that will come out and attack your base if you piss them off before the aliens.

I would love to see a runaway Black Lotus assassin base defense though.

[Mrvex]

Just The Dude said it: early cults have no means to take on X-Com directly. One could argue otherwise, but I had to make some assumptions about it.
Still, this might change in the future, because I like base defences (in moderation). Maybe UAC will be more proactive here.

Base defences could have variations with different possible factions, i have doubts non-Aliens without dropships could be able to land in XCOM's base quickly enough and it would make sense that Cults would try land attack and XCOM would have to defend the surface entrance.  So XCOM would start in the elevator and have access to the surface fortifications so XCOM would have cover and high ground advantage against masses of cultists.

Or if there is like a guided swarm of monsters being lured by Cultists that XCOM decided to ambush them with full might of the base personal in a forrest before they even get close to the entrance.

[stn]

XCOM in the mod and its bases are supposed to be super classified, super hidden and such. There is no logic that some cult gets the info about of the basically the most secret thing that UN has. This secrecy can be reasonably broken by Aliens, or maybe MiB, with a bit of a stretch maybe even Osiron.

Even if so, why would cults attack it with knives and pistols? How would some animals, or zombies get in?

Knives and pistols - for light defense. The player has not yet prepared for a serious defense, let it be fun. He is not yet ready for serious men with heavy armor and guns. No masses of cultists - only 5-10 lightly armed men. Diversity. It might just be a gang of marauders. They walked through the woods and came across.)

Animals. They just broke the gate. The engineer who built the first base had no experience. And he had a lack of funding. He built a large barn + barbed wire and a watchtower.

Mutants. They broke the cage and ran out.))

[Solarius Scorch]

Base defences could have variations with different possible factions, i have doubts non-Aliens without dropships could be able to land in XCOM's base quickly enough and it would make sense that Cults would try land attack and XCOM would have to defend the surface entrance.  So XCOM would start in the elevator and have access to the surface fortifications so XCOM would have cover and high ground advantage against masses of cultists.

Or if there is like a guided swarm of monsters being lured by Cultists that XCOM decided to ambush them with full might of the base personal in a forrest before they even get close to the entrance.

Yeah sure, let's make a new game while we're at it.

All that you've described are features I thought of and requested like 5 years ago... Which doesn't change anything. (Now we're closer to something like this, but it's still not possible.)

[JustTheDude/CABSHEP]

Knives and pistols - for light defense. The player has not yet prepared for a serious defense, let it be fun. He is not yet ready for serious men with heavy armor and guns. No masses of cultists - only 5-10 lightly armed men. Diversity. It might just be a gang of marauders. They walked through the woods and came across.)

Animals. They just broke the gate. The engineer who built the first base had no experience. And he had a lack of funding. He built a large barn + barbed wire and a watchtower.

Mutants. They broke the cage and ran out.))

This makes gameplay sense, but not "story" sense. Why would they attack with only knives and pistols when they somehow got the info about X-Com base? Leader of one just said: "Hey! Lets make it fair for them, am I right, guys?".

1998 and 1999 aren't some post-apocaliptic times even in X-COM world, its still very much civilised, why would there be some roaming gangs of maruders walking trough remote areas just to "stumble across" X-COM base? Base that is super secret, not Area-51 style, with wire fence and signs that "you are entering territory of X-COM, or things like that".

How could animals just "broke the gate" to underground super secret paramilitary base backed by the UN?

How could mutants just "broke the cage" when you might not even have one during the event? What stops this "base attack" happening to a base where there isn't even a cell building present?

Overall, you all have literall Mod creator posting things above about those concepts and he is the one to decide what fits the narrative and what doesn't. At best you could point out inconsistencies, like I probably would in a case where mod would contain such early raids on X-COM bases that are so super secret, that the red tape required to buy flashlight winds its price from dollar, or two to two hundred.

I guess nothing stops you from trying to make a mod that adds it, probably.

[tarkalak]

This makes gameplay sense, but not "story" sense. Why would they attack with only knives and pistols when they somehow got the info about X-Com base? Leader of one just said: "Hey! Lets make it fair for them, am I right, guys?".

1998 and 1999 aren't some post-apocaliptic times even in X-COM world, its still very much civilised, why would there be some roaming gangs of maruders walking trough remote areas just to "stumble across" X-COM base? Base that is super secret, not Area-51 style, with wire fence and signs that "you are entering territory of X-COM, or things like that".

How could animals just "broke the gate" to underground super secret paramilitary base backed by the UN?

How could mutants just "broke the cage" when you might not even have one during the event? What stops this "base attack" happening to a base where there isn't even a cell building present?

Overall, you all have literall Mod creator posting things above about those concepts and he is the one to decide what fits the narrative and what doesn't. At best you could point out inconsistencies, like I probably would in a case where mod would contain such early raids on X-COM bases that are so super secret, that the red tape required to buy flashlight winds its price from dollar, or two to two hundred.

I guess nothing stops you from trying to make a mod that adds it, probably.

Another interesting question is:
Why does X-Com get a super secret base at the start of this mod?

The UN has very little faith in X-Com, gives it a small budget, almost no weapons and everyone expects it to fail miserably. X-Com files should start in some old unconditioned administrative building and get the super secret base later.

Yes, I am fully aware that it is not possible to do the above due to the engine and etc. It is just random musings.

[anothrgamer1234]

There IS, in fact, a human faction, that will come out and attack your base if you piss them off before the aliens.

I would love to see a runaway Black Lotus assassin base defense though.

That brings back some unpleasant memories. Especially since my A-team was out at the time and the Syndies decided to bring in a few dozen rocket launchers and Minotaurs just for the occasion.

[JustTheDude/CABSHEP]

Every secret agency gets a secret base. The agency wouldn't be secret if it didn't had a secret base and even some old unconditioned administrative building is a secret base if nobody knows what happens there, there is a lot cover around it and such. It just so happens that it is an underground facility. Not the biggest one to be honest. Hangar is something about the size to fit an Osprey (which is one of the biggest "ships" in terms of a lenght in any direction that X-COM can get, probably), while rest of the facillities aren't too big either.

The best thing we have now is to think around those limitations by doing something fun (atleast for me), which is "plotting the story".

Its not like UN has that little faith in X-COM, even from the start. At the point where we take command over the organisation and forward, Council has basically only two plans for dealing with alien threat. One is X-COM and other MiB. Both with very different approach. X-COM had many predecessors who showed some progress, like Xenonauts and "Kira-kuy" (something like that with the name, I didn't recently play the mod).
All they require are proofs and to gain those proofs, X-COM had to have good enough conditions to start. One, fairly small underground base, few engineers and scientists aren't much, really. Every country in UN (and basically every country in the world, since X-COM can get base in every part of the world which might not be "cannonicaly" up to player's choice, but a predefined, while player gets to choose, or the player's character, the "Commander" might himself look forward to create such organisations and intentionally influence and "nudge" the things to create first base in a place he choosed) could realistically have such underground base, X-COM don't get much from the start, really.

Lack of weaponry on the start is already explained with cross-border tentions that not many goverments would like forgein agents bringing up (depending on each country politics) strictly non-civilian weaponry. Trough time, evidence gathered and such, the Council agrees to give X-COM bigger freedom, with explosives and machinegun licenses.
Seems reasonable. How one could think that a president/dictator/whatever of some country would react to being forced to allow several armed to the teeth agents to operate on his territory, killing and arresting "suspects" as they please? Then basically kidnapping those arrested and transporting them to the other part of the world of course.

I wouldn't really call the budget that small, since X-COM in the beginning is very small itself, two field agents, bunch of scientists and engineers, not much really.