Research Codenames (EU2012)

Each Research project has a specific codename which is based either on the original game or a scientific or sci-fi subject. A list of codenames and their references may be found below.

Project Codename	Codename description
Alien Nav Computer Lighthouse	Building used for ship navigation.
UFO Power Source Waterfall	Natural formation. Could also refer to the allegations that a UFO was behind the 1965 Niagara Falls blackout that affected New York City.
New Fighter Craft Skylance
Plasma Cannon Snapdragon	Possibly related to Marvel Comics's Snapdragon character on the Morituri series who can fire plasma bursts.
EMP Cannon Ion	Possibly related to Ion cannons from George Lucas' Star Wars universe, which, similar to EMP weapons, disable electronics and computer systems.
Fusion Lance Godfinger
Alien Materials Looking Glass	A mirror. Also the name of Lewis Carrol's Through The Looking Glass, the sequel of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
Carapace Armor Thorax	The chest part of an animal.
Skeleton Suit Rictus	A spasm of the facial muscles that causes them to grin caused by tetanus or poison.
Titan Armor Golem	Stone figure from Jewish legend that would turn alive to fulfill its creator's wishes. Possibly a reference to the cut Golem Armor.
Ghost Armor Nightshade	Family of common plants that includes potatoes, tobacco, mandrake, tomatoes and peppers.
Archangel Armor Icarus	Legendary Greek figure who built a pair of wings for himself but fell down to Earth after getting too close to the Sun.
Psi Armor Witchwood	Related to witchcraft? Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. - Arthur C. Clarke
Sectoid Autopsy Roswell	Alleged 1947 UFO crash site where an alien craft and bodies were recovered by the US government.
Thin Man Autopsy Viperus	Reference to the original game's Snakeman (viperus = viper, a snake)
Floater Autopsy Crimson Cape	Reference to the original game where Floaters had red capes.
Muton Autopsy Nero	Roman emperor with a reputation for tyranny [[1]].
Chryssalid Autopsy Ridley	Ridley Scott, director of several sci-fi movies, including Alien and Prometheus.
Drone Autopsy Arachnid	A class of animals such as spiders and scorpions. Also the name of the alien race in Robert Heinlein's Starship Troopers.
Cyberdisc Autopsy Enigma	A mystery or a riddle.
Sectoid Commander Autopsy Rosetta	Rosetta stone - discovered by Napoleon's troops it Egypt, it later allowed for the first translations of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Berserker Autopsy Anaconda	A large South American snake who kills its victims by crushing them.
Heavy Floater Autopsy Montezuma	The last Aztec emperor who was defeated by the Spanish conqueror Herman Cortés.
Muton Elite Autopsy Imperial
Sectopod Autopsy Halcyon	A family of birds [[2]].
Ethereal Autopsy Aether	On Greek mythology, Aether was the personification of the sky. with its name meaning 'light'.
Interrogate Sectoid Roanoke	Roanoke colony - one of the first colonies in North America, where the colonists mysteriously disappeared years after the colony's founding.
Interrogate Sectoid Commander Voynich	Voynich manuscript - a 15th century book written in a undecipherable language containing hundreds of hand made drawings.
Interrogate Thin Man Masquerade	Masquerade = a deception, can also mean dressing up for Carnival.
Interrogate Floater Goalpost
Interrogate Heavy Floater Dreadnaught	Dreadnaught = naval battleship of the early 20th century
Interrogate Berserker Rubicon	"To cross the Rubicon" - Roman saying attributed to Julius Caesar meaning 'no turning back'
Interrogate Muton Tempest
Interrogate Muton Elite Gomorrah	Sodom and Gomorrah, the two biblical cities destroyed by God because of their sins
Interrogate Ethereal Rosetta	Rosetta stone - discovered by Napoleon's troops it Egypt, it later allowed for the first translations ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Arc Thrower Spark	Can be a reference to the legend of the titan Prometheus, who stole a spark of fire from the Greek gods to give it to mankind.
Weapon Fragments Sagaris	Ancient Persian axe weapon.
Beam Weapons Sunray
Precision Lasers Lightwire
Heavy Lasers Penumbra	Dark side
Plasma Pistol Jacamar	Bird
Light Plasma Rifle Corvid	Bird
Plasma Rifle Kestral	Bird
Plasma Sniper Osprey	Bird
Heavy Plasma Kingfisher	Bird
Alloy Cannon Avocet	Bird
Guided Fusion Launcher Tunguska	Located in Siberia, in 1907 there was a massive explosion on the Tunguska area caused by a meteorite, or as some claim, by a UFO exploding upon crashing on Earth.
Xeno-Biology Mobius	Jean Girard (aka Moebius) - French sci-fi artist and creator, contributed to the Alien, Tron and Fifth Element movies [[3]].
Outsider Shard Novato	2K Marin, responsible for the development of The Bureau: XCOM Declassified and the introduction of the Outsiders to the XCOM universe has an office at Novato, California, United States.
Hyperwave Communication Tachyon	Hypothetical physical particles mentioned on the original game.
Ethereal Device Skylight	Roof window that allows for daylight to enter a room.
Experimental Warfare Skunk Works	Skunk Works is the department of Lockheed-Martin's aerospace company responsible for designing advanced top secret planes such as the SR-71 and U-2 reconnaissance planes.
Elerium E-115	Reference to the atomic number of Elerium mentioned on the original game.
Meld Recombination EW DLC Purity	Reference to the X-Files 'Purity Control' top secret government project that used alien tech to create supersoldiers?
Mechtoid Autopsy EW DLC Goliath	Biblical reference to the giant warrior defeated by David.
Seeker Autopsy EW DLC Lovecraft	Reference to H.P. Lovecraft, American horror/sci-fi writer of the 20th century that is a source of inspiration for X-COM: Terror From The Deep.