Strategies for Troops (Apocalypse)
Battlescape Fighting Strategies and Tactics against the Aliens.
Battlescape General
- The battlescape will be identical for the type of crashed UFO, but the aliens will be placed randomly at the start. eg: it is possible to have eggs spawn outside.
- The terrain in which the UFO rests is not owned by anyone and its destruction does not influence the 'Damage to City' score.
- Craft armaments are visible on the hull and may explode from further damage.
UFO Crash Landscape
Alien crash-recovery battlescapes typically have a basic layout of:
- Access somewhere at ground level and always via a door (with only one single exception).
- External armaments visible on the perimeter and on the roof.
- Sections of the outer skin and roof coloured differently to the general colour of the whole UFO to resemble 'windows' (some are translucent).
- Roof typically has large circular darker skin sections which are more resistant to damage.
- Grav lift access to higher levels inside the UFO.
- Armaments visible inside the craft near the perimeter, typically near 'windows'.
- A UFO that is also eqipped with missile weapons, the weapon's ammunition is stored in exposed areas inside the craft.
- Craft devices located in small rooms in the upper sections.
- Multiple engines, fuel stores, and control systems.
- A trench in the terrain usually with spot fires and smoke.
- Transparent windows allow looking inside the UFO. If an enemy is located, X-Com agents may fire on the target and in doing so, waste ammunition. A psionic agent may safely manipulate any spotted target since window sections are very resistant to damage.
- Devices which are visible inside a UFO does not indicate what will be recovered.
Destruction
Everything but the grav-lifts inside a UFO can be destroyed resulting in collapse, small fires, explosions, gas clouds etc. Fuel stores, missiles, engines etc. are especially dangerous due to massive explosions when hit from even the lightest weaponry, often resulting in complete destruction of the immediate area including breeches of the hull ...which can be an alternative entry point into the UFO.
Skin Breech
- Unconventional access is prefered if faced with difficult or deadly lifeforms.
- External weapons (perimeter or roof) can be destroyed to create a hole.
- Roof access from a breech in the (exact) center is usually directly above the main grav-lift which may allow bypassing an ambush or allow dropping stun grenades or heavy explosives into the hole.
- The 'windows' at the perimeter can allow direct access to the floorplan if breeched (instead of cutting through multiple layers of thick hull at randoms area).
- Detonation of the craft's internal engines/fuel store (caution falling debris) which are close to the external wall may produce large holes and may collapse internal platforms, walkways, etc.
Starting An Assault
Note: real-time discription
There are two main scenarios for battlescape crash recovery: the aliens are already outside, or the aliens are still inside!
Develop tactics that work for you! ...depending on loadout, agent quantity or type etc. This is only a basic suggestion.
Outside
The UFO crash site is always in terrain which contains alot of trees. Agents walking and cautious will fire on anything hostile and use cover, unless flying. Sweep the battlescape (including the roof when skeletoids are present) to kill off any surprises. Locate the doors...
Inside
...at first opportunity, throw a primed proximity mine near each door. Poppers love proximity mines! One door is commonly in a trench, so position your agents on the ridge on both sides of the door, however if not in a trench, position your agents in a large semi-circle facing the door and wait for the mine to go off. When the commotion starts, throw a stun grenade where the door was and kill any that try to escape the cloud. Keep refreshing the stun gas cloud to diminish any smoke grenade effect. When it the initial rush of aliens slows, kill the stunned via forced fire which are not needed for research (with agents that need experience) or stand on the alien body to 'save it' for live recovery. Careful of wounded Poppers! If no more aliens are willing to get killed exit the craft, use Cautious Attitude (green) and Walk then enter the UFO. A motion scanner is useful. Find the chrysalids and you should find the rest of them. Usually when there are no coccoons or eggs, all aliens will exit their craft.
UFO Crash Recovery
Tactics specific for each UFO, check each page for:
Buildings In Mega-Primus
- When fighting inside any building, conservative use of explosives is recommended, unless the building is owned by a hostile organisation.
- Small X-Com cleanup crew = Small battlescape (if not heavily infested).
- Time is not an issue. Don't rush.
- Motion scanner is essential. No surprises = no ambush.
- Civilians are good target practice!
More information on fighting and features of every style of Mega-Primus' buildings.