X-COM #6: General's Orders

Finally time for another report. As always, I'll cast a dark cloud over the overall quality by ranting to you about my real-life struggles and such. Well, maybe not. Let me just say, the other format was cool, but I was thinking of trying a type of hybrid style...which you're about to see. And I'm typing this as it happens, so hopefully that will help me keep up on the action without getting to droll. Though that may be difficult with the hybrid style. Also, writing from first person requires that I think up some extras....

The Skyranger flew fast and low over the trees. It was late at night, but the full moon illuminated the ground below. They were close now, and were just starting their descent. "Landing Zone looks clear. I'm bringing her down." As the Skyranger set down, Tyson gripped his laser rifle. Across the aisle, Zen looked over at him, "You ready for this?" Tyson nodded, and felt the landing gear hit the ground. The hatch popped open, and the tank rolled out.

Across a field it spotted a UFO. It had been shot down, but it was the largest ship Tyson had ever seen. "Whoa, that thing's a beast!" The UFO was at least 2 stories high, it was hard to tell if it was any taller in the dark. Some buildings on both sides also seemed formidable, but there was no resistance. Having the highest rank, Tyson was in charge. "Ok, Zen, you and I are heading for the UFO. Cam, you take a group and head to the left, secure those buildings. Neal, you take the other group and secure the right side. Kevin, you're with us." They hopped off the craft, waiting. Tyson looked around, but couldn't see anything. That did seem to be the norm.

They started across the field, Tyson and Kevin both taking point with Zen behind them. "Ok, let's wait for the others to clear the buildings, last thing we want is a crossfire." They kneeled down, scanning the front of the UFO, its metallic front gleaming in the moonlight. "Cam, how's it going?" Tyson called over. "Looks good, second story is mostly clear, and the roof looks clear as well."
"It's all clear over here," Neal said, "nothing moving." The tank was on the left side of the UFO, and it hadn't reported anything either.

"Ok, let's go," Tyson said. They started for the UFO. The front door was directly in front of them, and they covered the distance shortly. "Allright, we wait for the other two groups to secure the sides, then we'll all move in close to the same time." They crouched by the door, but the whole scene was oddly silent. The tank was rolling around the back of the craft now, and Cam's group was emerging from the buildings. Where were the aliens? "Hmm, maybe nobody's home." Kevin stated. Cam's group was climbing the fence, almost there. But wait, where was Neal?

Suddenly a scream from the houses, then a "I see it! I see it!" Tyson recognized the scream, it was Carly. Horrified he stood up and looked at the houses. A massive beast raced along, hitting one soldier and smashing him into a wall. Two other operatives rushed out, one Neal, one Ajay. They turned and fired at the mechanical looking beast. It ate their bullets, then leapt upon them. "No!" Cam's group turned towards the house. "Open fire!!" he yelled. The squad blew apart the building, and they started hitting the ferocious creature. From above the house it a hail of plasma fire tore Cam's group to shreds, and almost entirely destroyed the house behind them. "No, no! What do we do?" For some reason Tyson was asking these questions. His friends had just been cut to pieces before him! Zen was already moving. He ran to the nearby wall and launched a rocket into the structures, the explosion almost completely leveled them, and the plasma stopped. "Is anyone alive out there?! Anyone, respond!" Tyson's call went unanswered. Then the ground shook, and he looked around, confused. "It's taking off! It's taking off, man!" Kevin shouted. They ran out from under the craft, and Tyson saw the tank sitting on the other side. The tank opened fire, and after 2 rockets a beam of plasma blew it to pieces. The UFO turned, Zen fired a rocket into the plasma cannon as it did. The cannon turned to face them, Tyson's legs stuck to the ground. The cannon was charged.....

And he woke up. It had all been a dream. A dream where his friends had been slashed to pieces. He shook his head, wondering. Why did they have to be here, doing this? What had caused all this. He glanced around, affirming his surroundings. Had the dream been true, everyone in the room would have been dead. He felt that he needed to know why they were here. Why were his friends in such a precarious situation?

After being off for a while I'm still trying to figure out what I was in the process of doing. I start off by deciding who will be on the next adventure. So far it's Cam Ray, Natalie C., Tanner, Zen Halen, NealTheFerrin,Quinn S., Taya A., Courtney F., Spence E., and Carly Rawlins. Yep, I'm stuffing the ship with rookies.

My funds are relatively low, especially for being the first of the month. I see I'm producing alien alloys to help personal armor production. I also realize that my engineers are working every single hour available. I feel for them, considering my recent factory assignment. But I also see their paychecks....which changes the situation considerably

Ok then. Research is UFO Power, which takes me on my way to better armor I think. X-Com USA is doing well, except for the lack of completion. But ads are out and tourism is up. Hopefully I can get those displays ready for the grand opening...

The base was quiet. It was close to 0400 at the base, and Tyson couldn't sleep. Though there isn't much to do in an undetectable underground bunker. They could only go outside once, that is, at 6 o'clock. Jesse sure was amazing. Tyson was still impressed by that. He glanced into the research lab. A large orange object had just been activated. An incredible amount of energy, odd orange waves, it seemed, were spewing from it. Tyson had seen one before, inside of an alien UFO... The system was deactivated now, the scientists beaming, the high ranking audience clapping. But as the dream flashed back to mind, Tyson turned, and walked away.

Power source is done. I decide to focus all research on the 'Reaper Terrorist' we caught. Just to mix things up. Also, due to an annoying 'spent clip' feature, half my heavy plasmas just lost their clips and likewise their usability. Curse those things I knew but didn't do!

New personal armor is started, and I notice an amazing...lack...of funds, so I sell the empty heavy plasmas for 100,000 each. I'm not sure I should produce so many suits though.

The days went by, Tyson hadn't spoken about the dream. Being with your friends constantly isn't that bad. Though it would likely be maddening if constantly, talking during their other tasks wasn't very bad. They had been assigned tasks by the janitorial crew. Tyson's favorite was cleaning up at the kitchen. They had a hearty supply of food, better than most, and one of the cooks had told him where they kept the good stuff. Working was always an excuse to grab a piece of cake. Their jobs kept them busy, which was good. They had only a little training, and like everything, you learn best from experience.

The reapers in the alien containment were being studied. Poked and prodded when sedated. They seemed like just large, carnivorous beasts, with chip implants to control them. "Just like I noticed at first..." Tyson thought. Funny, they being manipulated to fight....

UFO sighted! I chase it over India. Sensing I-1's intention, it flees to Sri Lanka, and then lands. The Skyranger launches with its crew, as Interecptor-1 flies patrol. The Skyranger puts along at a hurricane pace, almost there, when I-1 runs out of fuel! That UFO has been sitting for a while......go, Skyranger, go!

Ahh, the cursed UFO takes off. It's heading for my base, so I might be able to catch it. It's also rocketing along at double my speed, so luck dictates this conflict. I-2 takes off, as the Skyranger curses its luck and turns around(as the UFO just flew past them in 1/18,000,000 the time it would take the Skyranger to do the same)

I chase it over Africa, but lose it down there, and I doubt I'll ever see it again. Ahh, well, perhaps a battle wasn't in the cards. But in case I get a lucky flip, I-2 scouts about the area...

Then a different UFO shows up. It clips the base-bound Skyranger, and they report laughing and jeering from alien teenagers peeking from the windows. I turn my craft around, but I'm once again being outdistanced. It heads up to Europe, and I lose tracking. But I know how much those aliens love the sound of bagpipes. But they aren't there today, and my disgruntled force returns home.

A UFO was sighted. Tyson hurried off to the command room. No one would be leaving quite yet, but he felt that he really needed to see what was going on. As I-1 approached, he caught a view of the UFO. Medium scout craft, from the looks. Hmm. That could be quite a fight. He intently watched the screen. After the craft landed, the Skyranger roared to life. For the next few hours Tyson decided to wander the halls, feeling nervous for those aboard the Skyranger. Why was it his friends who had been chosen? Why were they the ones fighting what you would think would be a worldwide conflict? It seems like there should be armies massing, not 25 or so soldiers in an underground bunker with three aircraft. And why him and his friends? They weren't soldiers, they weren't even volunteers. There must be a reason, though. And he was sure that General Grey would have some idea. He was in charge of everything that happened down here, most likely the entire operation. Tyson knew he would have to meet with him. He returned to the command center, but late, as the UFO had left and they were still in pursuit. After a few more false alarms, both craft returned home, with nothing to show for the days events.

Ahhh, enough of Tyson's silly sensitivity. We need some killing here! Or at least more than crazy teenage jerks. Power suit progress is going excellent, or so I'm told. (If it was going excellent, I'd be wearing one right now.) But that's a problem for later. For now I continually force the techs to make sure my radar is working the way it should. Then living quarters at X-COM USA finish. A lovely 3 star hotel, rooms with an amazing view of an artificial space atmosphere, double wide bed, and the most modern advances in the ever popular: "Hands Free Toilet!" available. But other than those attractive tourist features, no radar yet.

The graphs show an increase (in relative highs) of alien activity in North America. Precisely the minute the add goes out, power suit research is completed! Yes, time for some alien butt-kicking!

Hmm, I don't know why one eye is so large, or why there are two little knobs by the mouth. Though it might not be the most fashionable armor of the day, it most certainly beats personal armor, more than double in all respects. But five units E-115 per unit? I don't know about that..... Microsoft decides that computer protection is more important than X-COM, and drops me from Firefox. Ahh, those ignorant fools. Weren't those crop circles enough proof? Anyhow, none of my typing was lost, so I finally access the online tech tree. And realize that I could get to flying suits soon. But curses, it's almost March 20, and without any aliens anywhere.... I keep a leery eye on Buenos Aires. But seriously, will I write a thousand reports of "saw a UFO, chased it, lost it." Man.....

Uh oh, large one. Large=terror mission. Lost it over the Indian Ocean, but now I'm just waiting for the red phone to start ringing. But it never does....and I'm at a loss. Then a small one, but clear in Africa. It flies away to the south, and I lose tracking again. Talk about jinxed game. Come on X-COM, who programmed you? (I'm very nervous about jinxing a game to give me a battle....better stop now.)

I wait, and it pops back up. Ahhh, I have you now! I-2 attacks, pummeling the craft with its heavy, and very expensive, large rockets. The UFO flees, then has a change of heart, and takes some missiles to the belly and crashes. The eager crew of the Skyranger await, and away they go! Re-checking the roster, (yes, I forgot who was on call) I see a decent line up of rookies. Shouldn't be too bad, but I've got to remember to be careful.

Another UFO. Without a combat mission the soldiers on call stayed the same. After a bit of a chase around Africa,(and I-2's very happy trigger finger) the Skyranger departed. Tyson's plan from a week ago came fresh to his mind, and he set off towards the Generals quarters. The area was large, but eventually he found the office he was searching for. Supposing that the general would know everything, he knocked, then bravely entered. The room was a spacious entry, with a desk at the far end. General Grey looked up, slightly suprised, but at the same time expecting, so it seemed. "Tyson! What are you doing here? Your comrades are about to make landfall."
"I know, sir. But I've got something to speak with you about...."
A communicator on the general's desk activated. "Sir, the Skyranger-1 is nearing the target destination. Would you like me to patch through the feeds?"
He leaned forward, pressing a button and responded, "Yes, Julie, that would be great." The wall split, revealing a television and a variety of other displays beneath it. "You can talk to me as we watch..." the general said. Uneasy, Tyson looked at the screen.

I go into the equipment phase. Zen gets the rocket, Cam and Carly have the 2 heavy plasmas, the rest with lasers, so OK. And then I realize something. Taya doesn't have armor! What happened?! I swear, I checked, everyone had armor! Ahh, she's always so forgetful... Oh well, nothing I can do about that now. She's at the back of the ship anyways. Time to see if the jinxing will bring X-COM vengeance upon me...

"Coming in, gears out...we're down! Hatch opening in 3...2....1" The Skyranger was down. The tactical geographic map disappeared, to be replaced with a Skyranger interior view. Tyson couldn't see much off the ramp, but then the viewscreen was replaced by that of the tank. But the patching didn't have the highest quality, Tyson supposed that the views were better from the pilot's view. "Two houses, whoa, a couple more behind us. There's the saucer...I can't see over the hedgerows, but it looks all clear, over."

The general started, "So, what was it you came to speak to me about?" Tearing his eyes from the screen, where the others were disembarking, he turned to the general. Suddenly it felt really hot. "Well, sir, I was, um...." The General seemed impatient. "I was meaning to ask you, why am I here? Why are we here?" His answer was quick. "To fight off the alien invaders, of course!"

That wasn't his answer, but the general seemed satisfied, and both turned back to the screen.Cam was talking.
"I'm heading for the UFO, looks like the orchard's clear!" Then Neal:
"Affirmative. Zen, Tanner, and Taya, you move in with Cam. Natalie and Courtney, we've got to secure those nearby sheds. Quinn, Carly and Spence, once the sheds are clear advance towards the house!" Neal had an excellent plan, and he seemed a natural leader. The view screen changed slightly, a small popup indicating the ground forces. Tyson decided to start again. "I know what we're doing here, but wh--" He stopped short, and caught his breath. Why wasn't Taya wearing armor? What was she thinking. He had noticed Tanner not wearing it...and he did feel slightly guilty for not worrying about that. But this was his sister here! Armor could save your life, as Jesse had proven. Then the screen switched to full tactical as the last of the soldiers left the Skyranger.

Hmmm, I think I'll go all Tyson until the end of the mission after this. Alien turn, I hear the UFO door, and one alien rushes out of the above house, and then runs for the door of the nearby one. I'm assuming it was a dare, as he didn't shoot but made an obvious path for the door. Too bad he stopped in plain view... Quinn holds down the auto trigger and incinerates everything except the alien. Let me say I haven't seen accuracy like that for..... Well, Spence fires from the landing ramp. Also holding down the auto trigger, he burns any grass stub high enough to be burnt, and then hits the Sectoid with the last of 6 shots. Tanner secures the side of the UFO, and I move my soldiers in, being careful to keep Taya in cover. I don't see anything else this turn.

"What was that?" the general interrupted his worries. "Errmm..." he stammered. Over the speakers came a scream, "Alien, alien! Heading for the house!" followed by a series of laser fire. That was good, considering aliens shoot plasma. "I got him." Spencer casually called over the comm. "Yeah, and just about everything else." Courtney F. remarked. Courtney. Courtney was Neal's sister. But she was wearing armor.


"Tanner, flank around those hedges, I'm heading in!" Cams voice came out clear. "All clear over here, setting up covering fire!" was Tanner's response.
"Natalie, move around the far side of the house, Courtney, you back me up. Everyone stay in cover!" Neal seemed calm under pressure. Though he had done this a lot.

Tyson looked to the general, to see him eying him oddly. Suddenly confidence burst upon him. It was now or never. "Why did you bring us here? If you want to kill aliens, use the air force, not just a small group! And why me, why my friends? The one thing everyone here has in common, they all know me. So why, why us?" The general appeared taken aback by this question, and he slowly swiveled in his chair, obviously deliberating. Tyson waited. He needed an answer. The general had his back towards him now. "Why such a small force? Sure, we could attack the aliens on all fronts, but what would that do? Cause a state of panic world wide, which would leave an opening for an invasion. And while the alien attacks have been increasing in very hazardous ways, there hasn't been the insane reaction that globalization would produce. But even more important is that the aliens know humans hunt them, but they don't know that we've made it a supreme goal. The aliens could surely wipe us out, but with a small, highly specialized force, we can hopefully take the alien technology and use it against them! Hopefully finding a way to hit them where it hurts without them finding us first. Global action would demonstrate our intentions clearly, and that would probably cause a fleet to end up on our doorstep. We have to be secretive, it's our only option."

Well, that was a good answer. And likely the real one. For some reason the general didn't seem like the most trustworthy person he had met....even though he'd only just been in the room with him. A comment over the comm caught his attention: "We're at the UFO entrance now. Getting ready to board." "Roger that, southern houses are clear." "All clear up here!" Tyson turned to the view screen.

Tanner was in front, and he burst through the door, and finished the lone alien with a burst of laser fire. Whew, another mission done.

He turned to the General. And now for the final question. "Why us then?" It was all he needed to ask. But, unexpectedly, the general smiled. "Why, isn't this what you've always wanted?" What? What he wanted? No...
"What are you talking about?"
"Fighing, combat, heroics. Isn't it something you've dreamed of?" Well, yes, he did, but real combat wasn't what he'd meant. The intense competition, sure. Heroics, well yeah. Adventure, victory....
The General continued. "Yes, you've always had a bit of a love for a military game. Well, now you're living the dream." He paused, then continued. "But no, that wasn't the whole dream. You've always been standing mightily alongside your friends, glorious in battle with them by your sides."
"Wait, so you've chosen these people because I think that combat is fascinating? Some of them aren't even really close friends....and why would I want to put them in harm's way?"
"Well, your friends have been chosen as the opportunity arrives. Sure, they might not all be your closest friends, but they are still those you know." Tyson shook his head. Had he been the one to bring his friends into this. Though unwittingly, still... "Why--wha--.....are you serious?!"
"Now look, you and your friends are the ones who will be doing this fighting. Don't ask me why we chose you, why your friends over professional soldiers. I really am not sure. There are some things I want to tell you though. First, you are being duly compensated for your service. And after this is over, you will have so many doors opened to you..."
"Duly compensated? By death? What, 'oh, sorry you're dead, here's a nice check and a fancy banner' What sort of compensation is that?!"
"Now look! Since you haven't realized yet, this is all about you! You caused all of this. This situation you're in, you're friends who are with you, all of that is because of you. Believe me, I asked the same questions when I was told who I would be commanding. And guess what they said? "He chose this. That's how it must be." All I can figure is that you've done something to land yourself here. There's nothing you can do about it now, you and your friends are the ones who have to stop this invasion. No one else will be able too, another program will likely have started to late. It's not just about us anymore. You and your friends have to fight for the survival of humanity. Now if you'll excuse me...." He was obviously flustered. But Tyson didn't really notice, just slowly turned and left. It was his fault? But how...

Well, good mission. Forgot to take a snapshot, but only 2 aliens anyway. And some more heavy plasmas. It's getting late, and unfortunately I have work in 7 hours. So, until tomorrow....

X-COM #5: X-COM Live

After reading over my last posts I'm going to try something different. The other posts are ok, but they seem to have a bit of a slowness in the middle. Usually during the battles. I think this is mostly because I take notes on the battles, and then I transfer to the laptop to write out the actual post from the notes I have taken. And so the last posts have started to appear as though they are notes as well, which isn't very entertaining. So, I want to try a couple new things with these posts, firstly relating to playing the game on one computer and writing about it on the other. So, we'll see how this goes.

I think I'm going to try out another way of writing this post. Hopefully it will work out, but it really is somewhat an experiment. Well, here goes:

Tyson woke up early in the morning, to the sound of the Skyranger-1 returning from the latest mission. Apparently it was a terror mission. Tyson had fought in one before. This one took place in the same city. Which was odd to him. Perhaps the aliens had something going on down in South America. As he rubbed the sleep from his eyes he wondered how Jesse was doing. The mission had taken place about 3 hours ago, and he'd overheard some of the status reports, especially the last one as the Skyranger left the site. There were two casualties: one KIA and one wounded.

He wondered about Brad. Brad was one of the first X-COM operatives promoted Sergeant. Tyson had just been promoted to Sergeant, for whatever reason. He checked the clock. It was around 1:00 the first of March. Apparently there was a budget cut from the sponsors. He had heard that it didn't matter much though. They were setting up another base in the United States. After missing every UFO last month they decided that something needed to be changed. Maybe he would be transfered.

After a few more hours sleep, he got up and decided he would go and check on Jesse. He started for the medical wing, when orange alarm lights started flashing. He was on the roster for the next mission, and he quickly headed for the hanger where the Skyranger was stationed. From the far part of the base he could hear the Interceptor-1's engines roaring. He arrived at the Hanger along with Quinn S., a new recruit, though Tyson had known him for some time. "Where is it?," he asked. "Central Asia,"Quinn responded. "I don't think they'll catch it though." Tyson checked the monitor. The UFO was heading north, from India to China. They continued to watch as the rest of the team arrived: Zen Halen; Mijo; Courtney J.; Britt P.; Chelsea W.; Kamille L.; Maria P.; and Bree G. After about fifteen minutes contact was lost, and Interceptor-1 was sent to investigate. It would take the interceptor at least an hour and a half to get to the location; the UFO could be halfway to Mars by then. Or where ever the aliens were from. The team still needed to stay on alert though.

"I heard they are recruiting 6 more soldiers," Tyson heard Zen say. "Think they're more people we know?" For some reason every soldier in the place were people Tyson had known in High School. He remembers how he got here: a few men in suits arrived at his door one day, and the next thing he remembers he was on a bumpy ride to an underground base in Africa. Four of his old Cross Country team mates were there with him. He didn't understand how they had been chosen. But at least it was for a good cause. "I've heard they've hired a few more engineers too. Not many options considering the low budget though..." Courtney was responding.

Around 10:00 GMT, Interceptor 1 crackled over the comm system.
"I'm picking up the UFO. Probably just took off."
"Affirmative I-1, keep within following distance." Eyes turned back to the screen. The UFO had appeared near Interceptor-1's position, and it was now being pursued west. After flying over most of Asia, it started outdistancing the Interceptor.
"I'm losing it, it's outrunning me!"
"Keep on him, Interceptor-1. We're dispatching Interceptor-2"
"Hopefully early enough this time," Kamille murmured, which brought a smile to Tyson's face.

The UFO turned to the south, and Interceptor-1 caught it and shot it down in the Middle East. "Alright, everyone! We've got to move! Get your equipment checked and let's get out there!" the hangar staff commanded.
The Skyranger took off, headed for Turkey....

I've just realized that I'm probably going to sound fairly impersonal if my friends die. One consequence of writing this way, I guess. Oh well, it's just a game...

The Skyranger took some time to get to the crashed UFO. It was mid-day...and as usual Tyson hoped for the best. "We're about to put down, everyone hold on!" the pilot called back. Tyson glanced around the cabin. There wasn't enough armor to go around, and Bree G. and Mijo were left without. Well, they did the first mission fine without armor. Bree did get one of four Heavy Plasmas. Tyson grabbed one along with Courtney and Chelsea. Zen grabbed the rocket launcher, glad to be back. The Skyranger set down and the ramp swung open.

A small Sectoid was standing in plain view, and Tyson was glad there was 10,000 pounds of steel resting in front of him. The tank chugged it down the ramp, and the alien opened fire. Tyson and Zen were both at the front of the craft. They ducked, expecting some fire. Though the shots all missed, Tyson heard one of the rookies behind him, "Whoa...."

Glancing at his new Sergeant badge, Tyson stood and shot the Sectoid. "Alright, everyone!" he shouted, "wait for the tank to clear the area, then we'll get off! Make sure to keep your headsets ready, and remember: shoot first, ask later!" So much for good advice from their Sergeant, Tyson thought. "Shoot first, ask later?" The tank rolled off to the west..."I've got a visual of the UFO out here. And there's a Sectoid guarding the door," the voice came over the comm. Zen climbed down onto the ramp. "Can't get a decent shot..." he muttered. Tyson and him both climbed off to the sides and crouched. Mijo was off the craft next. "I've got you, you little brown..." His sentence was drowned out by his laser rifle. Tyson saw one of them hit the Sectoid, but it appeared fine. "What the?" Mijo started muttering. Courtney was off next, she hit the Sectoid from the ramp.

"Alright, let's go!" Tyson commanded. With the UFO so close by this may be a dangerous landing. There were likely aliens inside, if they came out... They'd need to keep their sites on the door all the time.

Britt P. jumped alongside Tyson and Mijo near the end of the ramp. Chelsea and Kamille both moved further out, and the remaining two rookies waited on the top of the ramp. Tyson glanced around...so far so good.

The tank kept moving forward. "I've got another one, over the hegdes!" he called back. Chelsea could see it, and she opened fire. Her three shots each went in a straight line, the first cutting down the hedge, the second cutting down the alien, and the third flying over the alien's body. Tyson blinked twice at the spectacle, turned and gave Chelsea a thumbs up. The tank kept moving. It rolled past the UFO and didn't report anything. But a large orchard with tall hedges posed a problem. Either way, they had to get in that UFO.

Mijo ran ahead, Tyson and Britt following. Chelsea and Kamille ran to a wall, keeping an eye on the UFO door. "Courtney, you, Zen and Quinn head down and secure that orchard," he said into the headset. "Oh sure, Tyson. Think you're top sergeant now?" she replied. They started towards the orchard.

The mission ended here, so no drama. Or deaths.

The area was secure. Whew. Tyson breathed a sigh of relief. The UFO was in tact, but better by far there were no deaths. He lay back on the Skyranger-1, feeling suddenly tired.

When they got back to EuroCom, Willam Grey, the top general, came out to meet them. "Well done, my boy! You've certainly proven you're command material!" With that he gave him a slap on the shoulder, and called Courtney over as well. Apparently they were both becoming captains. Tyson was very gracious for this promotion, and wondered what he had done to deserve it.


After grabbing a Snickers from the dispenser, he headed for the medical wing. Jesse wasn't conscious. He had been hit twice on his last mission. Once in the back, and once on his right side in his ribs. Luckily the armor had absorbed most of the damage. But he had severe burns on both his sides. The coolant nozzle on the medi-packs worked wonders, apparently. "How long before he is better?" he asked the doctor. "He won't be back in for another month. He's got some horrible internal damage. Luckily, cloning body parts isn't much trouble here. I mean, we are in Africa." The doctor winked and Tyson chuckled. He walked into the radar room. There was something mesmerizing about watching those circles spin about. That, combined with about 50 views of earth by satellite. The information seemed too much. Not that they were seeing much. He wondered how many UFOs really were soaring the skies. Maybe some in east Asia, or America. They were half a world away! Surely any UFO flying by Europe would be instantly detected. Maybe not caught, but at least detected. He hoped so anyway.

Some days went past. Tyson spent time talking to his fellow soldiers, checking out the new production and research. The alien alloys they had recovered were being put into 3 new armor suits, enough for everyone on the Skyranger to have one. The scientists were attempting to understand the properties of the alien power source, Elerium-115. Every once in a while he'd glance into the alien containment, but only the large Reapers were in there. He wasn't sure what they could find out about them.

He checked the roster for the next mission, but it wasn't ready as they were expecting new soldiers at any moment. Likely he wouldn't be on it though...

The next day am excited scientist ran down the hallway. "We've cracked it!" he was muttering, "we've figured it out!" Tyson wondered what this all was for, and decided to ask Kevin. He was up to date on these things. "Elerium-115, 155 protons. Apparently it uses anti-matter to create a gravity hole and force the ship forward. Truly fascinating. Too bad we can't reproduce it. I don't even think it's in our galaxy." Kevin was always a genius on these things.
"Huh, anti-matter. Seems like an oxymoron."
"I know, but the aliens know how to use it. Hey, at least I can get my college education out here with these Scientists. I was only at Weber for a couple semesters when they brought me here. I miss the running team, but this is pretty nice otherwise."
Tyson didn't point out getting shot at wasn't that great, but it was unnecessary. Rather than bring up that possibility, he carried on.
"Oh yeah, where are you getting all your miles? I run around the Hangar every once in a while, but it's just so....circular."
" Oh, yeah, you hate tracks, huh? I run up by the coast. It's right at the bottom of the cliff this base is built into. It's nice, you can get some fresh air."
"How'd you pull that off?! I thought this place was all about secrecy."
"Well, you know how Jesse's a Colonel now? We were talking about that right before the last mission, trying to find some other place to run. I guess he woke up just long enough to tell the General to let us run up there. Apparently it isn't a problem."
"Sweet. I've been wanting to go on a real run. Hangars and treadmills aren't cutting it for me."
"So true, man. Hey, I'll see yah at 6, tomorrow morning, by the access lift."
"I'll be there."
Just then they heard the Hangar doors open. "You think it's the new soldiers?" Tyson asked.
"I bet. What do you think the odds are that we know them?" He left that unanswered as they headed for the hangar.

The General was waiting for them. "Ahh, good. The rest of you should be arriving soon. Except Jesse, of course, but that goes without question." There were six new recruits, Tyson wondered who they'd be.

Natalie C. was the first one off. "Hey, she was in music 1010." "Yeah, we went to that concert with her." She was followed by Courtney F.; then Melissa W.; Spence E.; Carly Rawlins; and Jacque A.

The General called them all over and told them he was pleased with their work. Then he re-graded them based on their performance so far...though they didn't change much. A few more scientists arrived later in the week, and it became apparent that there was enough armor for every crewmember of the Skyranger.


The week ended quietly, with no other alien sightings. Tyson wondered what the whole point was behind the alien excursion, and why he and his friends had been chosen to combat them...


Well, that was fun, wasn't it? I think it took longer than the usual reports, but it was a taste of variety, at least. Hard to do when you're fighting alongside you're friends. I mean, I'm glad no one died. More glad than usual. Anyhow, here's the new troops stats:
Natalie C. B+,R:54,56,40,40,53,57,64,23--Good with accuracy and reactions. But reactions wins out.
Courtney F. C-,G:56,64,25,20,30,50,66,28--Well, accuracy is average with strength and reactions below.
Melissa W. B,R:53,63,30,50,55,57,59,21--Fairly high reactions, accuracy is above average.
Spence E. B,S:55,46,38,30,54,62,50,25--High accuracy, reactions are up there too.
Carly Rawlins B-,G:57,58,38,20,4,57,54,38--Accuracy is fairly high, strength is up there as well.
Jacque A. C,G:60,64,31,50,49,49,61,31--TUs and strength are high, decent elsewhere.

Well, that concludes this report. I've had enough writing for a time. Sorry it wasn't very exciting, it would have been much nicer to talk through a battle scene, at least on the excitement scale. Well, maybe next time I try this.

X-COM #4: The Shortest Month

Welcome back to the X-COM Files. We left off at the end of January, with a comfortable increase in funding and the expected arrival of 11 new soldiers.

These reports are really time consuming. Don't get me wrong, I like writing them, but they do take quite a while. Just changing over the snapshots takes at least 20 minutes. Add that to taking notes while playing the game, which increases play time, and then writing all of it down, and it takes quite a while. This report has about 2 and a half written pages of notes. So it should be nice.

I also felt somewhat bad about the loss of Kyle. Even though he isn't really my friend, thinking of his real life person made me slightly sad. But, it can't be said that I killed him because he was a meatshield. I gave him a rifle. Most meatshields only get grenades. Russia in WWII sent their meatshields at the front with grenades, and if they survived to throw them the oncoming Russian infantry would shoot them. And I'm giving these meatsheilds the best that we've got.

That aside, let's get on to the report. If the pictures don't work out, I'll try to fix it as soon as I get some time to study my html. We start off in February. A short while later, 11 new soldiers arrive. I jump on Facebook to find out who are new draftees are. Facebook has a useful feature for this. Once I log on six friends appear in a little box on the side. I write down their names, and as the new recruits pop up I insert the name on the list. As I went through, I also updated the grades of the current soldiers.

Here are our top two. According to my standards, anyway. Kevin and Courtney are both excellent soldiers, and they've certaintly done their part. Kevin has great accuracy, amazing reactions and great strength. Courtney has awesome accuracy, and great on both strength and TUs. Ultimately my two favorite soldiers.

Here's our new recruits:
Cam Ray B+,G 59,58,33,10,43,62,70,38--Good TUs, high accuracy and strength.
Devyn E. D,G 55,66,36,10,32,48,63,23--Eh, highs are TUs and stamina, but not too good else wise...
Britt P. D+,G 57,46,26,50,36,53,63,22--Accuracy is decent, TUs are up there, but fairly low as well.
Quinn S. D+,G 57,63,38,60,40,45,67,36--TUs and stamina, high strength, but another low one.
Ajay D-,G 60,65,37,50,31,47,67,31--TUs and strength, but crimany, these stats are low!
Mary A. C+,S 60,46,39,30,47,66,52,34--Accuracy is great, strength is high as well.
Chelsea W. C,G 60,49,28,30,37,55,79,30--Not really outstanding, TUs but the rest is average.
Kamille L. D,G 55,57,40,30,30,50,77,21--Low averages....
Taya A. B+,S 58,58,38,20,52,63,52,35--Hmm, better accuracy and strength than me, darn sisters...
Maria P. B,G 59,62,39,40,49,51,80,31--Pretty good, strength and reactions, TUs are decent.
Bree G. B-,S 53,59,33,59,38,65,77,20--Accuracy is good, but low elsewhere.

Hmm, well, we have some fairly good troops, and some fairly bad ones. I had chosen the names before and put them in in the order that Facebook chose them. Well, stats really aren't that important.

Oh well. I decide that Cam Ray, NealTheFerrin, Brad, Kevin D., Tanner, Devyn E., Ajay, Mary A., Taya A., and Britt P.

Well enough. I also ordered 25 more scientists and 5 more engineers. That fills up the new living space so I build another one. Shortly afterward Personal Armor finishes and I hope to build 25 armor suits. It will take a while, but that's ok. Then research starts on Medi-Kits. Once those are finished I expect to go with heavy plasma.


On the 10th I spy a tiny UFO heading west. Interceptor 1 follows in pursuit. I cross the ocean, and loose tracking along the US east coast. Interceptor-1 goes on a sightseeing mission, checking out the local sights. Then UFO-3 pops back up. I-1 follows, but as it flies over water I wait for it to cross land before engaging. Over Cuba I-1 hits the UFO with a missile...and then the UFO ditches me. And I lose contact again. I continue flying around...and I spy the UFO again. It starts heading east. I start chasing it, thinking it will turn around, and then decide to send out Interceptor-2 to get it from the front.


But I sent it out too late, and as Interceptor-1 returns to base the UFO ditches Interceptor-2. Wow, ditched by the same UFO 3 times. The video is now circulating on ETtube and has a million hits with comments like: "lolz, those humans are so lame!"

I wait for more action, but nothing. I run out of alien-alloys, supplies that you steal from UFOs and use to build armor. I got 8 suits out of the alloys that I had, and then I start producing Medi-Kits. Everyone on the Skyranger who isn't an MS class gets a suit.


Large UFO spotted. I send Interceptor-1 out to follow it, but it doesn't get close. I send I-1 over to follow it, but it doesn't even get close. I patrol around the major city it looks like it was heading for. I'm waiting for a terror mission, but nothing shows up. Well enough. Right as UFO-4 disappears, another small UFO pops up over Europe. Interceptor-2 can't catch it, and I go outside and kick a cat.

Time goes by, I check the graphs and see that South America still has a lot of alien problems. I start doing the occasional fly-by, but the continent is so far away that I can't do it very often. The Living quarters finish on the 17th, and I hire 5 more scientists and 5 more engineers. Heavy Plasma research finishes, and I take a peek at the finished product.

Heavy plasma does almost double the damage of laser rifles. They do use ammo, but each clip has 35 bullets, so a reload isn't likely. And they are picked up after missions, so not much to worry about. Which is great for me. I throw the 3 we have on the skyranger. And just in time.....

Right before the month is out, another terror mission. In the same place as the last one. I guess the aliens must really hate those Argentineans. I check the roster, and swap Britt P. for Jesse P., just to add some experience, as terror missions are hard.
That makes 5 rookies and 2MS. I leave with my fingers crossed.


The soldiers suit up, I give Cam Ray, NealTheFerrin, and Jesse P. the heavy plasmas, and Kevin D. gets the rocket launcher, fully equiped with large rockets. Everyone else has laser rifles.

The tank rolls off the ramp and spots a Cyberdisk by some stores. Cam hops out and demonstrates domination by killing the Cyberdisk after 1 auto shot. The tank spots a Sectoid standing in a park. Tanner misses his shots, Jesse moves out, shoots past Tanner's head but misses the alien. Neal tries as well but can't hit, and then Brad, who was already on the ground, turns and kills the alien. The last 3 troops stay on the ramp waiting for reaction shots. The tank finds an alien hiding behind a nearby building. I'm unable to hit it, so I leave 3 troops on the Skyranger. I'm worried a grenade could waste the team. I hope not, but you have such small maneuverability at the beginning of the level it's hard to spread out. That's why terror missions can be tough.

I hear a civilian scream, and a Sectoid peeks from behind a building and shoots Jesse in the side, but luckily he survives. The nearby Sectiod is killed by Neal, and Kevin spots another Sectoid by the previous Cyberdisk explosion. Kevin lines up his sights on the Sectiod, planning on teaching him a lesson about shooting his friends.


Or, that's what I thought he was doing. But the rocket flies straight into the local convenience store, knocking it flat and spreading produce across the marketplace. I hear a couple civilian screams as well, and wonder why I gave Kevin the rocket launcher. Cam complements Kevin on his destructiveness and autoshots the Sectoid. Apparently Kevin is so sick of terror missions in Buenos Aires he figures if the city is flat the aliens will leave it alone.

Tanner takes aim at an alien in the park, but persistently nails the fence. Brad runs up and kills the alien, as Tanner stares at his feet. The Jesse-shooting Sectiod is behind the building, and Ajay fires from downrange. He takes the alien down, a nice shot. So much for bad accuracy.

A backup Sectoid is seen in the park. But the pesky fence is blocking us from the actual target, and no one can hit it. Mary and Cam are unable to get a shot, as the tank as well as Neal and Tanner are standing in the way. If only they hadn't wasted their TUs on the fences.....The tank is positioned in front of them as Brad moves closer to the house. And what about Jesse? He only has 1 fatal wound, meaning he will lose 1 health each turn, until he's dead or we win. But with the advancement of Medi-Kits he is quickly healed and ready to carry on. One group moves north, the rest head to the house in the south.


At the end turn an alien kills a civilian in the close house. Neal kills the park-alien, and Brad moves into the house to find the alien. But he can't see anything. As he passes the open door, a plasma burst hits him in the back. The cowering Sectoid is behind the door. Tanner tosses a grenade in the doorway, and we wait for Brad's vengeance.


But I forgot that grenades don't kill aliens, as the Sectoid survives and takes a chunk out of my tank. I start converging troops on the house. The alien is behind the door, and it seems to be a laser-proof door. Mary tries to shoot through the window, but can't get the angle. The other group has moved behind the nearby house, and Jesse may be able to hit the alien through the window. As he runs past the corner of the house, another Sectoid shoots him in the gut. 'Fight through the pain. Be a man!' As Jesse limps behind the house he talks some more trash about wimpy alien weapons. Devyn goes around the fence and kills the offending Sectoid. Taya runs up to heal Jesse for the 2nd time. (this time he has 3 fatal wounds)


And I realize we are in a predicament. With no more ability to shoot, at least 3 and maybe 5 soldiers, as well as the tank, are exposed to the Sectoid. And he has his choice of who he's going to kill. I hold my breath as I push the end turn button....

The Sectoid chooses the nearby civilian as a target. However, after 3 shots he succeeds in blowing open the wall. Mary takes some more shots at him, and hits the door on the side, which happens to blow it off. That leaves Tanner to finish him off. While we were waiting for the alien to blast some heads, Kevin and Ajay have been moving to the other side of the large house. Ajay has shot his way though, Kevin and his rocket have moved along the fence. I hear some more Civvie screams, and assume there is another Sectoid in the house. Then I notice a Cyber disk behind the fence. Ajay blasts open a hole in the fence, and Kevin eyes it with his rocket....

But I decide not to let Kevin shoot. For one, there is a civilian who was running towards Kevin for safety...and we've already seen what Kevin does to civilians when he has a rocket launcher(there were actually two killed in the first blast.) That, and the large rocket might just blow Kevin up as well. Add the resulting Cyberdisk explosion....well, yeah. Ajay takes it down, and that ends the mission.


Back on the Skyranger, there's high-fives all around. Still had one loss, Brad, and I was disappointed with his loss. (can't be sad, I've never met him) MVP goes to Cam Ray for 3 kills and ultimate rookie domination. Jesse receives the 'buffest man' award, for taking two bullets and still being standing. Unfortunately, he's out for a month. I guess that's the spoils of bing a captain. Another small UFO flies past, but vanishes as soon as it comes. With only one mission I'm expecting some trouble.

It looks like a slight budget cut. Those whiny Americans, they're the ones who have Area 51! Either way, having my Interceptors miss everything that flew by was annoying. I put a base in southern Texas, and name it X-COM USA, for tourist purposes. Hopefully it will help me spot more aliens, at least. With that, I end this report.

As always, add some comments. Tell me if I'm writing very well, and if these are entertaining at all. Or if you have an idea of how I should write one of these, something creative so we don't get the same thing all the time. If you think up something I'd like to try it. :)

X-COM Hall Of Champions

Let's take a moment of silence for the brave soldiers who have died in the service of X-COM. Ok, that was long enough.