Alien Submarines
The USOs used by the aliens are big, blocky, shapes which resemble sea creatures and lack most forms of aerodynamics. They are able to dive and fly at breakneck speeds through the power of Zrbite and the resiliency of Aqua Plastics. USOs come in a variety of forms ranging from the tiny Survey Ships right up to the massive Dreadnoughts.
USOs are the aliens' sole method to move around Earth, and collect resources, so in theory, it would be possible to halt the alien advance if X-COM could maintain absolute naval superiority. Earth's forces do not initially have the resources required for such a task, and even if it becomes possible, the aliens have an vast resource supply and will not be set back by a war of attrition. In addition, alien undercover agents will continue to erode Earth's defenses from the inside.
Despite this, commanders should still down as many USOs as possible. At the very least, it may slow the aliens down some.
USO Overview
Craft | Size | Max Speed | Accel. | Weap. Power | Weap. Range* | Damage Cap. | Crashed | Destroyed |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Survey Ship | Very Small | 2,000 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 60 | 50 | 100 |
Escort | Small | 2,800 | 9 | 30 | 13 | 300 | 75 | 150 |
Cruiser | Small | 2,600 | 9 | 25 | 35 | 300 | 125 | 250 |
Heavy Cruiser | Medium | 3,800 | 8 | 60 | 20 | 450 | 250 | 500 |
Hunter | Medium | 4,500 | 8 | 50 | 18 | 500 | 250 | 500 |
Battleship | Large | 4,200 | 6 | 120 | 50 | 1,400 | 500 | 1,000 |
Dreadnought | Very Large | 4,800 | 6 | 140 | 60 | 3,400 | 700 | 1,400 |
Fleet Supply Cruiser | Large | 3,400 | 6 | 70 | 38 | 2,000 | 400 | 800 |
Comments:
- Weapon Range: figures given in the in-game UFOpaedia are a factor of 8 too high. The values in this table have been corrected so they are comparable to Sub Armament ranges.
Weapons vs. USOs
Craft | Vmax |
---|---|
Barracuda | 2400 |
Manta | 4600 |
Hammerhead | 4030 |
Leviathan | 5800 |
Armament | Damage | Range (km) | Accuracy | Reload Time (s) | Shots |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Craft Gas Cannon | 15 | 8 | 25% | 3 | 200 |
AJAX | 60 | 32 | 70% | 17 | 6 |
D.U.P. Head | 110 | 50 | 80% | 21 | 3 |
Gauss Cannon | 90 | 20 | 35% | 4 | 50 |
Sonic Oscillator | 150 | 55 | 50% | 5 | 100 |
P.W.T. Cannon | 200 | 60 | 100% | 28 | 2 |
If your craft is faster, the USO cannot escape; if your weapons have a higher range than the USO, you'll be entirely safe from return fire.
- Sonic Oscillators can safely be used (even by Barracudas) against any USOs except Dreadnoughts. Even against Dreadnoughts, Sonic Oscillators are better than P.W.T. Launchers because a minimum of four P.W.T.-armed craft are required to down a Dreadnought.
- Single craft with DUPs are sufficient to bring down any Medium or smaller USOs. 3 craft with DUPs needed vs Fleet Supply Cruisers. DUPs cannot be safely used against Battleships, unlike Xcom's Avalanche vs Terror Ships.
Subs vs. USOs
- The Barracuda can always catch Survey Ships for the Barracuda is faster, but it often cannot dive deep enough to engage its target.
- The Manta is faster than all USOs EXCEPT the Dreadnought.
- The Hammerhead can intercept all USOs except the Hunter, the Battleship, and the Dreadnought, which must slow down in order for the Hammerhead to catch up.
- The Leviathan is 1000 speed units faster than even the mighty Dreadnought and can intercept all alien USOs.
Quirks
- The floor maps & schematic pictures of the Survey Ship and Escort are swapped with each other in the Battlescape, the Interception window and the UFOPaedia.
- The schematic pictures of the Battle Ship and the Fleet Supply Cruiser are also swapped in the UFOPaedia and Intercept window. The floorplan maps on the Battlescape are not affected.