on capturing aliens

[carldivine]

I never liked the small stun launcher in the original, I always liked that real terrible moment of ‘get in there with the stun rod’ and that’s basically what we have, we call it the Arc Thrower but it’s basically ‘get in there and pray to God when you pull this thing out that the alien falls over’.

- xcom eu lead designer as per RPS interview

so basically if you want to capture a live alien for the people at the science labs, the only way to do that now is get up close and personal.

its either...

arc thrower + prayer = live specimen

or

arc thrower + prayer = one extremely pissed extra terrestrial.

is it too much to ask for a grenade launcher with stun rounds or something to that effect.

[MrJet]

Clearly it is.

[LeftyRighty]

that's the point, it's risky... or you can turn on the health bars and wing it a few times and then run someone in...

[TheFinn]

It might be too much to ask for...

Or it could just be they're trying to keep mum on the tech tree.

[carldivine]

hmmm... gotta do things the hard way eh...

smoke grenade + arc thrower might work. (just hope BLIND FIRING/INDISCRIMINATE FIRING does not cross the aliens mind)

[TheFinn]

Maybe it's time the aliens started using stun grenades.. just as the chrysalids show up. lol

[Inkidu]

- xcom eu lead designer as per RPS interview

so basically if you want to capture a live alien for the people at the science labs, the only way to do that now is get up close and personal.

its either...

arc thrower + prayer = live specimen

or

arc thrower + prayer = one extremely pissed extra terrestrial.

is it too much to ask for a grenade launcher with stun rounds or something to that effect.

Well, it would be a cakewalk to get live aliens and fully intact tech then. We haven't even seen the arc-thrower in action.

[Gazz]

Oh, I'm sure even a muton will go down if you throw the Arc de Triomphe at it.

[DazzD]

Oh, I'm sure even a muton will go down if you throw the Arc de Triomphe at it.

LOL, it will at least slow it down a little.

I agree with him on the get in there with the stun rod. It will add that old school xcom fear to the game. Part of the original xcom most rememberable moments were those were you didn’t want to click end turn... but had no more TUs left for that last alien with the launcher.

Have I hurt that Muton enough for the last soldier to stun rod him??
Only one very costly way to find out... CHARGE!! ZAP...
Oh, bugga this isn't going to end well...
So long rookie!

[carldivine]

sarge: hey rookie! yeah you, the one with the guile haircut. wanna earn your stripes? get your arse over there and stun that muton silly.

[Inkidu]

sarge: hey rookie! yeah you, the one with the guile haircut. wanna earn your stripes? get your arse over there and stun that muton silly.

Do I get bonus points for imagining the rookie pointing to himself when he was being called?

[Clayton Cross]

I feel sorry for the 400 soldiers who had to die to get the 1 live chryssalid capture. My they rest in ... well pecies because i had to blow them apart after the chryssalid got them. ...What does a live chryssalid get you anyway just kill it.

[DazzD]

Do I get bonus points for imagining the rookie pointing to himself when he was being called?

And then one more point for imagining the sarge disappearing behind the cover of a car when the stun rod doesn't finish the job...

Those Chryssalids are going to be some fun... with only 4-6 in a squad it might take a several missions and several more posthumous bravery medals...

[carldivine]

Do I get bonus points for imagining the rookie pointing to himself when he was being called?

rookie: who? me?

[TheFinn]

I feel sorry for the 400 soldiers who had to die to get the 1 live chryssalid capture. My they rest in ... well pecies because i had to blow them apart after the chryssalid got them. ...What does a live chryssalid get you anyway just kill it.

This would be the one thing that might make me accept wound counts/life bars. If they were somehow tied to researching the corpse and living alien.

A live chryssalid might not tell you anything. But studying the uhh... transition from life to death.. might tell you a lot.

[Running Wild]

Those Chryssalids are going to be some fun... with only 4-6 in a squad it might take a several missions and several more posthumous bravery medals...

Send it the Cannon Fodder, the rookie that successfully captures a Chryssalid will "grow" a beard overnight lol

[MrJet]

Send it the Cannon Fodder, the rookie that successfully captures a Chryssalid will "grow" a beard overnight lol

Don't you see? This is what Americans are for!
They're not bright enough to understand how dangerous it is and you can just say "god will protect you" and most of them will believe you. You save the ones who refuse and use them to repopulate the USA after the alien war.

[2sly4u]

I can see it now. 2 soldiers behind suspect cover, one shoots at the berserker while the other has a stun rod set for reaction fire. If it works great you've just caught a berserker, if it doesn't you've just caught hell!

[carldivine]

the only thing that would stop me from putting bullet/plasma holes into highly dangerous aliens(e.g. berserker,chrysallids) or blowing it to kingdom come is the thought of gaining an important tech./upgrade by capturing a live one.

since we dont really know what each live alien research will ultimately give us, the benefit outweighs the risk as of the moment.

[Inkidu]

Don't you see? This is what Americans are for!
They're not bright enough to understand how dangerous it is and you can just say "god will protect you" and most of them will believe you. You save the ones who refuse and use them to repopulate the USA after the alien war.

Analyst: Sir, the casualty reports are in. The American squaddies haven't lost a man and we're running out of room to put the live chryssalids they keep bringing back. All other casualties are on the rise because they keep trying to run to cover and get eaten up by alien overwatch.

Commander Mr. Jet: SON OF A ☺☺☺☺☺!

[DazzD]

I am still very interested to see how the new engine will work with the stun rod. Does the move-action mean move and then change from primary to stunrod? Does the stunrod count as the secondary weapon? Can we move-change weapon and attack, especially with a rookie?

Can imagine the first rookie going down...
Sarge dissappears behind car... OK next rookie...
Second rookie moves to Muton... changes to stunrod...
Sarge "WELL ZAP THE BUGGER"
Rookie "Sorry sarge that was my move-action!"
Sarge = Plamface

[carldivine]

cattle prod, err... i mean arc thrower can be treated as a secondary weapon. you can choose to equip either a pistol or an arc thrower since they both do basically the same thing... piss aliens off

[TheFinn]

I am still very interested to see how the new engine will work with the stun rod. Does the move-action mean move and then change from primary to stunrod? Does the stunrod count as the secondary weapon? Can we move-change weapon and attack, especially with a rookie?

Can imagine the first rookie going down...
Sarge dissappears behind car... OK next rookie...
Second rookie moves to Muton... changes to stunrod...
Sarge "WELL ZAP THE BUGGER"
Rookie "Sorry sarge that was my move-action!"
Sarge = Plamface

Since they've gotten rid of the tactical game inventory, I expect it'll be an equipment action. I doubt you'll arm it - I think it'll work like the rocket launcher, so it might appear as carried and you'll just pull it out when you select that action.

Maybe it'll be a skill you can learn - CHARGE use your move action to move and then attack (with a bonus maybe).. and then you still have your "action" to attack a second time.

Of course, if they do something like this... it might be a skill the Chrysalids start with.

[LeftyRighty]

yeah under the new move/action no-TU system picking what weapon or ability you want to attack with is a choice, not an action.

I would be curious as to whether a stunrod is considered a weapon, or a piece of equipment though. If it's a weapon, and you can only give your guys a single primary weapon... does he get a pistol/sidearm too?

Which brings up another question... when you setup overwatch, can you specify whether it's with the primary weapon or with a sidearm?

[carldivine]

does he get a pistol/sidearm too?

i saw a pistol equipped on one of the screen shots released, could'nt exactly remember the specific one.

[LeftyRighty]

yeah that's what I was referring to... mostly wondering if taking a stunrod is "all or nothing"...

[SectoidSquisher]

It appears that 'bag a bug' missions are confirmed - that's a good thing. But I'm wondering: since we can no longer stuff ol' Sectoid Commander in our backpack, how do we get aliens back to base - do you still have to kill all the other aliens first? That would just turn it into a bughunt again - which is surely what missions like this are designed to avoid. Maybe there's a way to carry aliens now?

[LeftyRighty]

in the aftermath/shock/light games the "bag a bug" missions were completed by stunning/KOing one alien and killing/stunning/KOing all the others... as long as one of the right type was asleep at the end of the mission you won.

The pig was when the stunned alien got up and you have to try to not kill it, and stun it again.

can't remember if that series allowed you to pickup aliens or not... but some of them were 4 'squares' big so you couldn't (like the cyberdiscs and reapers)

might be the same idea of at least one of the right type asleep at the end.

[SectoidSquisher]

in the aftermath/shock/light games the "bag a bug" missions were completed by stunning/KOing one alien and killing/stunning/KOing all the others... as long as one of the right type was asleep at the end of the mission you won.

The pig was when the stunned alien got up and you have to try to not kill it, and stun it again.

can't remember if that series allowed you to pickup aliens or not... but some of them were 4 'squares' big so you couldn't (like the cyberdiscs and reapers)

might be the same idea of at least one of the right type asleep at the end.

If that's the case, then it still comes down to a bughunt doesn't it? How would this go down in real life - surely it would be complete primary objective and then fight your way back to the extraction zone? I just hope there are some mission types that don't devolve into the bughunt every time.

[TheFinn]

It appears that 'bag a bug' missions are confirmed - that's a good thing. But I'm wondering: since we can no longer stuff ol' Sectoid Commander in our backpack, how do we get aliens back to base - do you still have to kill all the other aliens first? That would just turn it into a bughunt again - which is surely what missions like this are designed to avoid. Maybe there's a way to carry aliens now?

Good question about carrying them.

It might still just be a bughunt.. but with the additional challenge of capturing one and not just killing them all.

I never even though of the arc thrower being your primary weapon on a mission.. that would definitely ramp up the difficulty of capturing.

[SectoidSquisher]

Obviously, you'd have a job carrying a Beserker. But for something like a Sectoid, surely one of the stronger lads can stick him over his shoulders and take him away that way? Might be a bit... icky. Give him some extra pizza or something when he gets home.

[carldivine]

Maybe there's a way to carry aliens now?

maybe stunned/dead aliens are already considered as recovered, so all objects(including the corpse itself) pertaining to those are automatically counted as loot even if you dont finish the mission.

can't remember if that series allowed you to pickup aliens or not... but some of them were 4 'squares' big so you couldn't (like the cyberdiscs and reapers)

from what i've read, pickup is not possible as there is no inventory available when a mission starts. inventory is available only in the pre-mission stage allowing you to customize individual soldier load out.