Experience

A soldier earns experience during combat. After the mission, the soldier will then earn a random amount of stat increases. What stats are boosted depends on what sort of experience was earned during combat.

The list of experience that a soldier can earn during combat are:

• General Hits
• Melee Hits
• Successful Psionic Hits
• Number of times a unit panicked
• Number of times reaction fire was used
• Number of times objects were thrown

General Hits

General hits take count of how many times you hit an enemy target with any shot or any area effect weapon such as rockets, grenades and stun bombs. The more hits, the better. Therefore the power of your weapon is inversely proportional to how many hits you can earn. To get better accuracy, fight with weaker weapons.

Influences: Time Units, Stamina, Health, Strength and Firing Accuracy.

Melee hits

This covers how many times a melee attack (eg Stun rod)succeeded against an enemy target. For Terror From The Deep, this also includes Vibroblades, Thermic Lances and Heavy Thermic Lances.

Influences: Time Units, Stamina, Health and Strength

Successful Psionic Hits

How many times a psionic attack succeeded against an enemy target. It doesn't matter if it's a panic or a mind control attack, as long as it works. Failed attempts do not get counted.

Influences: Time Units, Stamina, Health, Strength and Psi Skill

Number of times Unit has Panicked

How many times the unit suffered from severe morale loss (i.e. panicking when Morale < 50%).

This positively influences Time Units, Stamina, Health, Strength and Bravery.

Number of times Opportunity fire was used

How many times a soldier performed a reaction shot. This not only influences Time Units, Stamina, Health, Strength and Reactions, the shot, if it hits, is counted as a successful general hit. Basically this stat has the potential to do double the work.

Number of times objects were thrown

This experience counter is the simplest of the lot. It counts how many times the soldier has thrown an object.

Influences: Throwing Accuracy only

Regarding Strength

A soldier CANNOT increase strength by being overly encumbered. It can only increase through the above listed methods.

Regarding Kills

A soldier does not necessarily get more experience from the number of kills that are made. A soldier with 16 one-shot kills will have the potential to earn just as much experience as a soldier who killed one alien with 16 shots. A kill is synonymous with a single hit, however it is not synonymous with the amount of effort that was put in. This is a very good reason for soldiers to hang on to weaker weapons such as Pistols and Laser Pistols- if only for training purposes.

Misc Notes

• With the exception of Psi Skill training in the Psi Lab, all stats can only be trained through combat experience.

• Any combat experience earned will influence promotions. The soldier with the highest amount of experience in total will have the best chance of being promoted to the next rank. Yes, panicking counts towards a promotion as well.
  

More information to follow, and the content to be reorganised apropriately.