Tasoth

General Information

Tasoth

These agile and fast enemies are a mainstay of the alien army. Hundreds are birthed in massive breeding vats deep in the heart of the Alien colonies. Vastly more powerful than a man, the Tasoth is a true alien and its behaviour and carnivorous nature unmatched on the planet. The Tasoth often forms the spearhead of an alien attack and never seems to shrink from the fight even in the face of overwhelming odds.

Source: Terror From The Deep Ufopaedia

Tasoth Autopsy

Dissection revealed a cybernetic organism possessed of strange power. Inside the body cavity is a small power unit, but no identifiable organs. The power is transmitted throughout the body by a Bio-electric transmission system. The whole body lacks bones or any other supporting structure. Once dead the power stops and the creature becomes a lifeless rag doll of oozing alien flesh and fluids. The only other internal construction is a pair of ceramic cells, which if energised briefly revive the creature.

Source: Terror From The Deep Ufopaedia

Tasoth
Time Units		56 - 97
Health		125 - 135
Energy		100 - 148
Reactions		80 - 108
Strength		70 - 86
Bravery		60 - 80
Firing Accuracy		21 - 105
Throwing Accuracy		62
MC Skill		0 - 49
MC Strength		30 - 62
Front Armour		8 - 24
Left Armour		8 - 24
Right Armour		8 - 24
Back Armour		8 - 24
Under Armour		4 - 12
Hidden Attributes
Melee Accuracy		78 - 115
Energy Recharge		35
Victory Points		18 - 22
Standing Height		?
Kneeling Height		?
Intelligence		4 - 8
Aggression		2
Other information
Armour category		Tasoth
Possible Ranks		Soldier, Squad Leader
Unique Attributes		Squad Leader has Molecular Control attack

Another of the terrors that lurk in the deep, the Tasoth are a species of engineered super-soldiers. While not as tough as Lobster Men, they combine high health with high defensive bonuses against human weaponry to create a durable and dangerous alien footsoldier. To make it worse, Tasoth Squad Leaders employ molecular control to provide additional mayhem on the battlefield. Tasoth only employ Soldiers and Squad Leaders.

The Tasoth's associated terrorists are very dangerous indeed: Triscenes, Tentaculats, and Bio-Drones may be found accompanying Tasoth on Terror Missions and during attacks on X-Com bases, or guarding their larger subs.

Tasoth are particularly resistant to Gauss damage. Their primary weaknesses are Sonic and freezing damage (though their high Health will often allow them to survive one hit from even a Sonic Cannon).

As mentioned above, Tasoth Squad Leaders have Molecular Control ability, and they appear in great numbers. They also have very high Firing Accuracy and Reactions ratings, making them one of the most dangerous opponents in the game. Thankfully, unlike the Ethereal Soldiers of the first war, Tasoth Soldiers do not possess Molecular Control nor are they as powerful as the Ethereals.

Tasoth will start appearing on regular alien sub missions from June onwards. You may meet them early on a Shipping Route assault in early April or May^[Verify?] or when assaulting an Alien Colony. This can prove challenging in the early game due to their resistances to Gauss and Armor Piercing weapons.

Aside from running their own missions, Tasoth will man the upper level of Alien Colonies and both levels of an Artefact Site, and will also appear as the mainstay of some Mixed Crew missions.

Capturing a live Tasoth of any rank will allow you to research the M.C. Disruptor, which is necessary if you want your Aquanauts to make M.C. attacks. Note, however, that you need an M.C. Lab in order to train your Aquanauts to use the M.C. Disruptors.

A Tasoth is comparable to an Ethereal from Enemy Unknown, though with weaker M.C. abilities and lacking the power of flight. They are, however, significantly more durable than Ethereals.

Tasoth Commander bug

Some players have reported the existence of a Tasoth Commander appearing on their research list. It is claimed that researching it before completing the end-game research will prevent you from being able to complete the game.

This bug is unfortunately very hard to verify, as it is next to impossible to replicate so is best treated as a rumour. If you have the most recent version of the game, either with the TFTD v2 patch (with or without the Geoscape.exe beta) or windows Collectors Edition, you should not have to worry about this.

If you do so happen to get it on your research list, ignore it and do not research it until you are ready to launch the T'leth mission. Also, most importantly, make a backup of your save, take a screen-shot and try to get in touch with one of the regular authors on this wiki.

Notes

• There are no Tasoth Navigators, Technicians or Medics. Tasoth Soldiers or Squad Leaders will be used in their place.
• There should be no Tasoth Commanders (if one is scheduled to appear, the game is supposed to replace it with a Squad Leader).
• In contrast to what the in-game UFOPaedia seems to suggest, Tasoth Soldiers have a considerably lower Bravery rating than most Aliens (60, whereas most Aliens have 80 or 90).
• Trivia: Tasoth are very likely inspired by the Lovecraftian Deep Ones. Not to be confused with the TFTD Deep One.

Tasoth Concept

Originally the Tasoth had a very different concept, though this was changed later in development for reasons unknown, likely to accommodate the idea behind the Deep One which shares some flavor text. They were originally designed and intended to be surgically / genetically modified humans who had been captured and MC controlled.

See Also

• Alien Life Forms
• Overviews of Aliens
• Triscene
• Bio-Drone
• Tentaculat