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The Shame Boy posted:The last time i played X-Com 2 i was like "hey what happens if the Chosen are still alive when you go to the final mission i'll just leave The Hunter alive to see what happens" I love when people experience the Hunter when he’s not loving around  it’s not common by any means, but he is a genuine monster whenever he decides to end your squad.
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May 15, 2024 12:18
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Jabor posted:If you take a bad loss they're someone you can slot in to fill the gap right away. It helps out if you've somehow managed to reach late game without understanding the value of having a deep bench.
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May 15, 2024 13:21
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Simplex posted:healthy. It's like why timers where put into the game into the first place, to save players from their optimal, un-fun selves. We can't help it!
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May 15, 2024 13:31
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Yeah that's the core problem. The game gives you no reason not to stick them in the oven and only bring them out once they're done (there's no point where you'll go 'oh poo poo I really need a half trained PSI Op' unless you've had lots of casualties). At least with the Covert Ops cell you have the opportunity cost of sticking a soldier on a mission, and in XCOM 1 you had to give up soldiers for the testing period. In the original XCOM psionics was just this mid game stat that appeared that told you that half your soldiers were useless and needed to be replaced, in Firaxis 1 is was a much more interesting 'turns out this specialist has something a little more special about them' that changed up the structure of your squads.
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May 15, 2024 13:43
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Simplex posted:I don't really get this, they are hilariously OP. The Psi Operative is your star player, but someone to fill in from the bench. There are four main skills you want them to have, and once you have any of those, there are basically no downsides to taking them on missions, as long as you can keep them healthy. Yeah but why would I risk bringing them along when I can stick them in a tank until they are max level? Beyond a huge slew of unexpected injuries or casualties and a crucial mission, I mean. Every other soldier is risk/reward of bringing them along for more xp, but fielding anything but a max-level PsiOp is just risk. They're great once their done but their early power doesn't really justify the risk to delaying their tank time.
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May 15, 2024 14:05
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psi ops make more sense if you think about them as a completely separate victory track. yes, you can throw a ton of resources early into new weapons, armor, and facilities and gizmos, or you can dump a ton of resources early into making a couple saiyans. the latter is more awkward since there's that long stretch of time that your saiyans are training in the hypertonic lion tamer and you're holding the line with yamchas, but ultimately it requires less research and less space unearthed in the Avenger so that's a thing you can do if you want i guess. (i prefer SPARKs) e: Ravenfood posted:Yeah but why would I risk bringing them along when I can stick them in a tank until they are max level? eventually your b-team will become Magi and you rotate around. simple as. this usage style is completely, 180 degrees different from the way everything else plays, though, and no hinting exists in game to point out any of this. you just have to try it and then back into "solutions" like this. Coolguye fucked around with this message at 15:47 on May 15, 2024 |
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May 15, 2024 15:37
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Eh, the difference is that you just have to research and build the psi chamber, and then the only resource it needs if for you to feed it recruits. SPARKs are a much larger investment (for a thing that cannot take cover? I was never able to work out how to use SPARKS in a way where they weren't always in incredible risk).
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May 15, 2024 15:46
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Alchenar posted:Eh, the difference is that you just have to research and build the psi chamber, and then the only resource it needs if for you to feed it recruits. SPARKs are a much larger investment (for a thing that cannot take cover? I was never able to work out how to use SPARKS in a way where they weren't always in incredible risk). SPARKs used correctly simply wipe the enemy out and shouldn't be taking fire in the first place. that's the big thing that they are amazing for. get Overdrive, then get Adaptive Aim, get Rainmaker, eventually build into Hunter Protocol. their heavier weapons mean that dorks don't survive with 1-2 HP and need to be cleaned up by someone else. enemies simply die when shot by a SPARK, and that is the real A+ benefit to them. psi-ops are great for being able to use stasis to delay consideration of something, but at the end of the day the only status effect worth inflicting is Dead. they also scale really well. 2 SPARKs with Hunter Protocol active will frequently wipe out entire pods as they arrive on the scene.
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May 15, 2024 15:53
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Tricky Ed posted:There's more and better information in the full interview he gave elsewhere. Been listening to Jake’s interview with Soren on the Designer Notes podcast, and the way he talks about Sid makes this the least surprising hire.
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May 16, 2024 13:55
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Wasn't Sid a big part of helping him get his ideas for developing Newcom, as a mentor? I remember an interview where Sid apparently suggested first developing a board game and then trying to make the principles from that into the prototype.
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May 16, 2024 14:21
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Night10194 posted:Wasn't Sid a big part of helping him get his ideas for developing Newcom, as a mentor? I remember an interview where Sid apparently suggested first developing a board game and then trying to make the principles from that into the prototype. They go into that in the interview - it's actually the other way around; the tactical game was coming together but the strategic game wasn't (Jake was wedded to a real time geoscape) and they had a weekend board game session.
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May 16, 2024 14:26
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Coolguye posted:e:
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May 16, 2024 14:44
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Psi Ops are definitely potent, though implementing them quickly means handicapping your forces in the early stages when they're most vulnerable. It takes a while to work down the facility and technology priorities before I'm willing to invest on something that won't pay off for a while. I'm typically building my second power relay structures, having researched gauss weapons and plated armor, before I start into Psionics.
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May 16, 2024 15:14
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Base game WOTC Psi Ops definitely feel like one of those avenues of power that you really only have the resources for after you've stabilised. But there's plenty of Psi Rework mods on the workshop if you feel like you want it to be something that you use earlier.
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May 16, 2024 21:50
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the real poo poo is that when i say they're an alternate path i mean it, they're an entirely alternate path that requires you to deeply shake up the tech pathways you're used to otherwise you may as well not bother until super late game
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May 16, 2024 23:03
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https://x.com/summergamefest/status/1791201250521825718 It's gonna be like Borderlands 4 or someshit, but I'm a big enough fool to have some hope
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May 18, 2024 00:24
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I think I'm having a miniature "phoenix down" moment over here: Is "five by five" about toes? Like, you tell your XCOMer to go somewhere, and they reply "five by five" because they are moving five toes past five other toes, i.e.. walking? Am I insane for thinking this? "In the pipe" I always figured was referring to some metaphorical cylindrical course plot, but maybe there is some metanym I'm missing there, too...
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May 18, 2024 01:56
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Jamsque posted:I think I'm having a miniature "phoenix down" moment over here: In voice procedure (the techniques used to facilitate spoken communication over two-way radios) a transmitting station may request a report on the subjective quality of signal they are broadcasting. In the military of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries, and other organizations, the signal quality is reported on two scales: the first is for signal strength, and the second for signal clarity or "readability."[citation needed] Both these scales range from one to five, where one is the worst and five is the best. The listening station reports these numbers separated with the word "by". "Five by five" therefore means a signal that has excellent strength and perfect clarity — the most understandable signal possible. "Five by five" (occasionally written "'5 by 5", "five-by-five", "5 × 5", "5-by-5" or even just "Fives"), by extension, has come to mean "I understand you perfectly" in situations other than radio communication. Further shortened forms are "five by", "fivers" and "fifers". Post-World War II, the phrase "loud and clear" entered common usage with a similar meaning. From https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Five_by_five
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May 18, 2024 02:07
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Wow thanks, I was way off. I think I like my answer better though.
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May 18, 2024 02:11
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The movie Aliens probably helped those terms enter sci-fi usage; the dropship pilot famously says "In the pipe, five by five" as she navigates the landing - nevermind she's not actually radioing anyone. "In the pipe" means "it's in the works / on the way", I think I read somewhere it might have originated from the oil industry, but don't trust me on that. edit: Dropship pilots being female originates form Heinlein's Starshoop Troopers novel. Literary or cultural references are turtles all the way down, it's great. Serephina fucked around with this message at 02:22 on May 18, 2024 |
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May 18, 2024 02:19
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Yeah you see the phrase "in the pipe, five by five" as an Aliens reference in sci-fi stuff a lot.
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May 18, 2024 02:21
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my friend has a band called “five x five” and I keep trying to convince him to write a song called “in the pipe”
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May 18, 2024 02:34
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Heinlein was an extremely weird dude in a lot worse ways so his conviction that only women could be good enough at math to fly a spaceship without computer aid, manually altering orbit to match a dropship which was late for its launch window feels very quaint and quirky.
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May 18, 2024 02:41
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When “computer” was a term for a person who did calculations, rather than for a machine that did them, those persons were predominantly women.
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May 18, 2024 02:51
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LonsomeSon posted:Heinlein was an extremely weird dude in a lot worse ways so his conviction that only women could be good enough at math to fly a spaceship without computer aid, manually altering orbit to match a dropship which was late for its launch window feels very quaint and quirky. You're forgetting the most important part- their radio communications were the last thing an MI heard before combat, which helped boost their morale because as we all know- all men are super horny at all times for all women, and will gladly fight and die thinking of them (also only men have the physical and moral fortitude for combat, so MI is no girls allowed)
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May 18, 2024 02:56
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I think both are mangled versions of other phrases (or a phrase used in a different context that keeps a similar understanding). Pretty sure "we're in the pipe" part of it is just an announcement that they're on the correct landing approach, and I dont know if it's from "in the pipeline" or a word changed from "in the groove" which iirc (may be totally off) is part of the naval approach communication path for landing on a carrier, or just both mashed together. 5x5 is the communication sign mentioned above, but she isn't on the radio with anyone or receiving any communications to even confirming, so they just took the "everything is good" meaning and just applied it to...whatever numbers her approach callout references. It's cool jargon for a movie because it sounds cool, isnt forced but also is really easy to catch the meaning. Xcom keep the communication reference since the soldiers are acknowledging your orders, but it's also doubling as an Aliens reference.
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May 18, 2024 03:03
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Oh yea, Heinlein never wrote a good book in his life, they where just soapboxes for his really creepy opinions on stuff. WH40K and the 1997 film are the best thing to come out of his works, and the less people who read his schlock the better.
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May 18, 2024 03:07
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Serephina posted:Oh yea, Heinlein never wrote a good book in his life, they where just soapboxes for his really creepy opinions on stuff. WH40K and the 1997 film are the best thing to come out of his works, and the less people who read his schlock the better. They're kind of cool in a "oh poo poo that's where this reference came from" way at this point. They're full of creepy horrible poo poo but can be fun going back sometimes. Them being short helps.
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May 18, 2024 03:11
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Serephina posted:Oh yea, Heinlein never wrote a good book in his life, they where just soapboxes for his really creepy opinions on stuff. WH40K and the 1997 film are the best thing to come out of his works, and the less people who read his schlock the better. Bit of a digression, but https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jAkplrZci0 whenever I think about Heinlein, I think about this
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May 18, 2024 03:31
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Subjunctive posted:When “computer” was a term for a person who did calculations, rather than for a machine that did them, those persons were predominantly women. Oh for sure, but it’s Heinlein so it’s also dripping with hornieness in a way talking about how some people are good at math really shouldn’t be. This was a man who didn’t wind up with his own private paramilitary force of dedicated fans like Hubbard only because he was a lazy sex creep instead of whatever kind of sex creep has their own stolen navy.
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May 18, 2024 04:07
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I'm pretty sure the usage in XCOM is an exact rip of the usage from Aliens, which has its own history as discussed)
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May 18, 2024 04:15
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Nordick posted:https://x.com/summergamefest/status/1791201250521825718 My money is on Civ 7.
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May 18, 2024 04:54
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My understanding is that "in the pipe" comes from naval aviation, meaning a plane is on approach to land. "Five by five" is NATO radio jargon as above, and they were wedded for coolness by Aliens, also as above and then subsequently imitated many other places.
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May 18, 2024 05:04
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Serephina posted:Oh yea, Heinlein never wrote a good book in his life, they where just soapboxes for his really creepy opinions on stuff. WH40K and the 1997 film are the best thing to come out of his works, and the less people who read his schlock the better. I read Starship Troopers, didn't super like it but decided to give him another try. The book was Friday which might be a strong reason a lot of people give the side eye to the concept of polycules.
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May 18, 2024 13:14
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Dorstein posted:My understanding is that "in the pipe" comes from naval aviation, meaning a plane is on approach to land. Carrier landings, at least, use 'the ball' (ie. 'Call the Ball') in reference to the 'meatball' landing lights that guide a plane in. Did some reading, and it apparently was specifically 'I am lined up on an enemy target'. Still works for using a computer generated re-entry path. On the flipside of '5 by 5' you have this from World in Conflict- https://youtube.com/clip/Ugkxa1MDXsgOWCo31EUhLMLS29tb6rb52QGp?si=UkIR4g5KkpWbh-D5
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May 18, 2024 14:24
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Man I just started playing LWOTC and I am gettin bopped when I get a few months into the game, around when snakemen show up Are there any big tactical adjustments I should be making from vanilla to this? Items that weren't good or tactics that weren't good that are now? Specifically I'm wondering if maybe smoke is usable now that alpha striking everything doesn't really seem as viable. Cover is very hard to remove, making it hard to kill things quick (and I guess nerfing sharpshooters even more in the early game in the process) so it makes me wonder if stuff like smoke and flashbangs are good just for stalling out for a turn or two while you attempt to get damage down. I feel like maybe also overwatch traps are a lot better than they were in normal WOTC, because it used to be that it was a waste of time since you had the overwatch penalty and you could use grenades to destroy the enemy cover and then just shoot them, but now if you let them scatter they're going to be behind cover and you get a worse penalty than the overwatch penalty, so now early on it seems like doing overwatch traps is reasonable again if you can't destroy the aliens' cover? Stefan Prodan fucked around with this message at 16:43 on May 23, 2024 |
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May 23, 2024 14:32
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XCOM2 is on sale on the PS store for 3 bucks. I couldn't help myself. Never played it before, only played a little bit of XCOM1, but played a crap ton of the original XCOM back in the 90's. I still have the instruction manual with the copy protection stuff buried in a box somewhere. I've played a little bit - I have the Proving Grounds built, and have both the Skulljack and Black Site mission to complete. The Dark Archive(?) counter in on 4. This game is a helluva a lot of fun! I haven't upgraded any weapons or armor yet, and I'm worried about going to the black site without any new armor or weapons. But I suppose this is the kind of game where unless I go in, I won't know. And that dark archive counter continues to loom over me like a sword of damocles. I've glanced at the before I play wiki for this, but any other general tips for someone who's just starting out? I know the War of the Chosen DLC is highly recommended (and only another 4 bucks on the store), but I wanted to play the base game for a while before determining whether I wanted to drop a few more dollars on the expansions.
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May 24, 2024 18:11
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Lucas Archer posted:XCOM2 is on sale on the PS store for 3 bucks. I couldn't help myself. Never played it before, only played a little bit of XCOM1, but played a crap ton of the original XCOM back in the 90's. I still have the instruction manual with the copy protection stuff buried in a box somewhere. WoTC is definitely a fun time, and it layers right atop the base game so it's a good addition regardless of whether it's your first or fifth playthrough. The Black Site can certainly be a bit tricky, and there's often some back and forth about whether it's better to tackle it quickly or wait a bit for you to develop some equipment to deal with it. Both it and the Skulljack mission can help with the Avatar Project counter, which is always good to keep in mind. My general suggestions would be to train plenty of rangers and grenadiers, build your squad size, and focus your research on getting Magnetic & Gauss Weapons / Plated Armor / Mimic Beacons. Keep an eye on the Avatar Project and make sure that you are regularly pushing back on it.
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May 24, 2024 18:26
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The biggest piece of advice I could give, and something that trips up people I watch play on twitch and youtube, is try hard not to let your soldiers get flanked. Getting flanked leads to easy shots that frequently crit - doing extra damage and killing soldiers.
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May 24, 2024 18:56
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Kaal posted:WoTC is definitely a fun time, and it layers right atop the base game so it's a good addition regardless of whether it's your first or fifth playthrough. The Black Site can certainly be a bit tricky, and there's often some back and forth about whether it's better to tackle it quickly or wait a bit for you to develop some equipment to deal with it. Both it and the Skulljack mission can help with the Avatar Project counter, which is always good to keep in mind. My general suggestions would be to train plenty of rangers and grenadiers, build your squad size, and focus your research on getting Magnetic & Gauss Weapons / Plated Armor / Mimic Beacons. Keep an eye on the Avatar Project and make sure that you are regularly pushing back on it. That's good info, thanks. I've already researched/built a Mimic Beacon (that's the device you can throw that will distract enemies for a turn, yeah?). I just haven't used it yet. The mission I was on where one of those ugly fuckers popped up was terrifying - I had a ranger run up to extract a civilian which morphed into the alien. The alien almost killed my ranger in one hit and I thought for sure I had another soldier going down. But I was able to pull him away for a shot (which missed of course), and the alien came up and swung again - and *missed* his melee attack. Gave me just enough time to have one of my snipers dome him with a critical hit. Sunday Morning posted:The biggest piece of advice I could give, and something that trips up people I watch play on twitch and youtube, is try hard not to let your soldiers get flanked. Getting flanked leads to easy shots that frequently crit - doing extra damage and killing soldiers. Oh yeah, that lesson was drilled into me in the first XCOM reboot. I love the concealment gimmick this time around, allowing me to set up really cool ambushes from their blindsides.
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May 24, 2024 19:42
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