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

[Solarius Scorch]

What are other ways to get durathread besides killing Red Dawn mambers?

Osiron sometimes has it for sale.

And now: Version 0.8.2 has been released!

- Updated to newest OXCE+ version.
- Updated the Russian version.
- New mission: Dimension X Outpost Defense.
- Cyber Armor more resistant to laser (and more expensive).
- Overhauled loot from cult locations.
- Psionic aliens no longer have extra armor, now they get force shields instead.
- Buffed Snakemen defense.
- Improved routes for several terrains (collab with Dioxine).
- Launched the X-Com's Friends on The Council article, listing Patreon donators.
- Fixed the Asuka 4000 gun again (Asuka no baka!).
- Fixed BlackOps Pistol display in Ufopaedia.

EDIT:
If you are interested in translating X-Com Files to your language, now is a good time to start! With SupSuper's help, I placed X-Com Files on Transifex: https://www.transifex.com/openxcom/openxcom-mods/

[hvnlysoldr]

I was considering to put this into the Bugs topic but this oversight makes for a more fun suggestion into the mod. Basically the updated engine adds another tag to items for explosions. Beforehand fuseTimer was set to -1 to prevent items from exploding including un-primed grenades and set to like 0 to explode on end turn; but now there's a new tag fuseEnabled that when set to false disables the timer. I discovered it when I threw a dynamite to soften up a Muton and it didn't blow up. This tag only fails to generate on Battlescape saves generated in a previous version or continued on from such save. Going in the Equip screen in base or on mission prep properly enables the fuse and of course priming during battle does so. It even has a gray dot indicating its "armed" status versus red. It even shows a red mini-map coordinate showing an armed grenade.

Spoiler:

    - id: 81
      type: STR_DYNAMITE
      owner: 106
      previousOwner: 106
      unit: -1
      inventoryslot: STR_LEFT_SHOULDER
      inventoryX: 0
      inventoryY: 0
      position:
        - -1
        - -1
        - -1
      ammoqty: 0
      ammoItem: -1
      ammoItemSlots:
        - -1
        - -1
        - -1
        - -1
      painKiller: 0
      heal: 0
      stimulant: 0
      fuseTimer: 0
      fuseEnabed: false
      tags: ~

Anyway it would be funny to intentionally make an enemy grenadier that needs to first un-prime and then re-prime their grenade and still leave enough TUs for throwing. Or a Kamikaze armed explosive suit with ticking bombs that may or may not explode.
Minesweeper could be made. Spawn dud landmines on the ground on the map sprinkled with live ones. Your mini-map would be a literal mine-field and have some crazy snipers on the other side. It would make it a risk your life to cross the minefield, to even picking up the mines to slowly re-prime them, or to trade sniper pot-shots.

[Solarius Scorch]

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll think about it when I get there.

For now, version 0.8.3 has been released.

- Updated to newest OXCE+ version.
- New unit: Horror.
- New mission: Dimension X Wreck.
- Going to Cydonia now requires completing the Dimension X arc.
- Rebalanced Heavy Cannon and Auto Cannon.
- Syndicate CEO got a bit more health.
- Proximity Grenades are a little heavier.
- New Flamethrower animation, by SideQuests.
- Alien Alloys can be found on Osiron and Cyberweb.
- Fixes to Forest, Black Base and White Base terrains.
- Fixed Atlantis Temple mission.
- Minor language fixes.

Also, since X-Com Files are now on Transifex, I will include translations automatically. For now it's still only Russian, since the next most complete language, Japanese, is only 36% finished, and that's definitely too little for release.

[Marrik]

I'm sorry, where do we download the latest version again?

[Lohland]

On the first page of this forum

[Martin]

I was thinking... why are there those three hardcoded UFOs in the first month?

Getting your hands on a real alien corpse should be an accomplishment and a milestone, not something you do with some  some skill (or savescumming) in the first month.

[Solarius Scorch]

I was thinking... why are there those three hardcoded UFOs in the first month?

Getting your hands on a real alien corpse should be an accomplishment and a milestone, not something you do with some  some skill (or savescumming) in the first month.

It's mostly a tradition. Also, getting these does not really help you for a long while... I don't have strong feelings about this, so I'm open for ideas and arguments both ways.

[HT]

I think it's okay to keep them, since you barely have a chance to get them with the vans and even if you do, it is likely you'll be shot to death by the enemy's superior weaponry.

Having sectoids have psi-shields sounds hax though, since it turns them to extremely deadly threats, especially if the shield keeps regenerating even when they have been wounded. I fear what have the Ethereals become with this modification.

Either way, I'm still waiting for the zombie plotline to be resolved to play this.

[Martin]

Alien alloys can help quite early.

[mumble]

I've gotten a ufo with promotion 0/1 guns myself, but it was a suicide mission, and this was well before the shields, so frankly I'm scared shit less to try now.

I suppose it might be possible with heavy shotgun / Magnum use, and serious luck, but its certainly not as simple as pumping a single slug into the sectoid now. Shame because the income increase alone from a ufo early was a huge boon

[Solarius Scorch]

Version 0.8.4 is released.

- Updated to newest OXCE+ version.
- New units: Croc Cadet, Giant Beetle Bombardier.
- New missions: Reptoid Fringe Settlement, Reptoid Assassination Squad, Croc Raid, X-Com Slander (Shared Alloy Ammo).
- New items: Skulljack (same as Psiclone, but with Mind Control), Shogg Blade, Storm Rose.
- New facilities: Improved Laboratory, Advanced Laboratory.
- Completely rebuilt Gauss (now called Mass Drivers) and Railgun (now called Gauss) weapons' tech trees, since now they are derived from Reptoids.
- Removed Mind Control option from the Psiclone.
- Rebalanced Psi-Amps and other standard psionic items.
- Decreased Multilauncher's damage.
- Units should now respect weapon range better.
- Dogs drown a little slower.
- Increased Flame Glove accuracy.
- Decreased Precision Plasma accuracy and increased TU costs.
- Added some dodge to vests.
- Buffed accuracy on Floaters and Mutons.
- Increased fire rate on all UFOs.
- Added some alternative ways to find a Durathread Manufacturing.
- A little less chance for Crop Circles and Cattle Mutilation missions.
- Cyberweb Manufacturing Plant mission is more common.
- Constant animation on Shadowbats (by Ivan Dogovich).
- Fixed chaotic access to alien tech.
- Fixed armor transformation mess (thanks to Dioxine).
- Fixed some problems with corpse recovery.
- Fixed a crash on Cyberweb Centurion recovery.
- Fixed crashes related to the Cyberdreadnaught.
- Fixed missions not despawning.
- Minor fixes.

[mumble]

No weakening sectoid soldier shields?

I almost wonder if it might be better to segregate sectoid soldiers from sectoid security guards, and have much weaker shields on security guards.

Just capturing one is a huge task, and almost everyone I've talked to sees them as a pretty big hurtle because of how tanky they are.

All in all it really radically changes old balance, where taking a small sectoid ufo was a challenge, but nothing big... Now it feels comparable to a chrysalid / snake ship.

If this stays the case, perhaps chronites should instead be the primary first wave, possibly even ships with mix races, like a bunch of chronite soldiers, sectoid staff, and sectoid leader. After all, seems like sectoid soldiers would be FAR more valuable now than some mass produced chronites / blue dudes ( i forget their name) and I'd figure if sectoid soldiers were more dangerous than chronites, they would save them for raids, terror missions, defense of high value ships / missions, or something of more importance than mutilation of cows... Just a suggestion, because I'm pretty sure sectoids are tougher than mutons now.

.... I really wish there was a way to test this, testing ai mutons vs ai sectoids, seeing who wins

[yizow]

.... I really wish there was a way to test this, testing ai mutons vs ai sectoids, seeing who wins

I could imagine creating a terror mission, fill it with muton terror units and sectoid civilians.
Admittedly, i know next to nothing about the game engine; would that work?

[HT]

Version 0.8.4 is released.

- New items: Skulljack (same as Psiclone, but with Mind Control), Shogg Blade, Storm Rose.
- Removed Mind Control option from the Psiclone.

Wow, you're working fast these days, while oddly enough Piratez's next update is taking their time. Still, from what I remember Psiclone was extremely situational, making them unable to mind-control renders them outright useless. Besides, didn't the plot entries from EXALT imply that the drugs they took were a way to induce mental commands from the aliens? Hence why it made sense to allow mind-control of sorts.
No idea about the rest since I'm still waiting for the zombie plot arc to be completed.

[Solarius Scorch]

No weakening sectoid soldier shields?

I almost wonder if it might be better to segregate sectoid soldiers from sectoid security guards, and have much weaker shields on security guards.

Just capturing one is a huge task, and almost everyone I've talked to sees them as a pretty big hurtle because of how tanky they are.

All in all it really radically changes old balance, where taking a small sectoid ufo was a challenge, but nothing big... Now it feels comparable to a chrysalid / snake ship.

Yeah, I lowered the shields, but honestly I can't remember if it was in this release or the previous one.
I admit I'm still considering these values. I need to do more testing.

.... I really wish there was a way to test this, testing ai mutons vs ai sectoids, seeing who wins

I could imagine creating a terror mission, fill it with muton terror units and sectoid civilians.
Admittedly, i know next to nothing about the game engine; would that work?

Yeah, sure it would work!
If you want to code it in, you'd have to make new units for "civilian" Mutons (or Sectoids), give them appropriate weapons, and then add them to a terror mission.

Wow, you're working fast these days, while oddly enough Piratez's next update is taking their time. Still, from what I remember Psiclone was extremely situational, making them unable to mind-control renders them outright useless.

Yeah, I've seen enough "situations" to know how broken it was.

Besides, didn't the plot entries from EXALT imply that the drugs they took were a way to induce mental commands from the aliens? Hence why it made sense to allow mind-control of sorts.

Not really. I mean, sure, there is some mental effect, but how would a Psiclone "know" what the victim should be doing? It would require active input from an X-Com soldier, and Psiclone only interacts with one person, not two at the same time. And it doesn't have the hardware to convert thoughts into commands. (But Skulljack does.)

No idea about the rest since I'm still waiting for the zombie plot arc to be completed.

Ugh, I should do that as soon as I can... If I were to do it cheaply, it wouldn't be hard, but I'm not sure what I can afford. I need to sit down and discuss it.