XCOM Headquarters (EU2012)

XCOM Headquarters view

In Enemy Unknown (2012), the Headquarters is the single base from which you fight an alien invasion. Nicknamed the Ant Farm by the design team, the base is presented with a side view cross-section that allows the player to access the main game options.

Basic Facilities

The HQ view displays the Time and Date, the number of Credits(§), Monthly Funding, Alien Alloys & Elerium (if any) and an Event List. It also allows the Commander to quickly access XCOMs six main areas of operations and their options through the following buttons.

Facilities

Image	Facility	Descriton
	Mission Control	Contains the Geoscape where you can advance game time forward, choose missions to respond, view global coverage, and watch aircraft on their way to a mission.
	Hangar	Houses the base's Skyranger troop transport and its Interceptors. Allows to equip, check the status of repairs and transfer Interceptors throughout Earth's continents.
	Barracks	View your list of soldiers and their individual characteristics, customize their appearance, and equip them for missions. You can also hire new soldiers, access the Officer Training School & Psi Lab, and visit the Memorial to fallen troopers. Capacity: 99 soldiers.
	Research	Manage Research projects to obtain advanced technology using your scientists, review earned Research Credits, and completed Research Projects.
	Engineering	Build Aircraft, Weapons, Armor and other equipment. Receives bonuses from Workshops and Foundries. * Build additional facilities, excavate lower levels and build Access Lifts.
	Situation Room	Provides a global view of the funding countries and their panic level, satellite coverage with additional interdiction aircraft, financials including a menu with links to pending requests and the Gray Market, where it's possible to raise credits by selling advanced technology to Earth's nations. Finally it contains a list of strategic Objectives to help XCOM progress through the alien invasion.

Base Expansion

In Engineering you may Build facilities to expand your base. The base has 24 expansion slots available underneath the starting facilities. The position of some facilities in relation to one another will provide bonus to their output. Most slots must be excavated (5 days, §10-§80 depending on the depth) in order to build a new facility. Facilities may also be dismantled for §5. The lower base level ground bonuses are randomized for each game. Excavating them may reveal Steam Vents (visible on easy, normal and classic difficulty), which provide extra energy required to deploy Thermal Power Generators.

Additional Facilities

Non-unique facilities require more manpower as more of the same are built. This increase does not apply to the power facilities. After researching Advanced Construction in the Foundry it is possible to build facilities in rush mode. It requires twice as much of money, Elerium and Alloys but shortens time by 50%. Unlike everything else that can be produced in Engineering, the price and item requirements do not lower based on how many Engineers you have.

Facilities

Image	Facility	Descriton
	Access Lift	Access and power to lower levels.
	Alien Containment	Interrogate live captured Aliens
	The Foundry	Large manufacturing projects, improving manufacturable item attributes.
	Laboratories	Boosts Research.
	Officer Training School	Acquire additional Squad abilities.
	Satellite Uplink	Allows new satellites over other countries
	Satellite Nexus	An alternative to Uplinks allowing more satellites but at an increased cost.
	Power Generator	For additional power required to power new base facilities.
	Thermal Power Generator	More power. Can only be placed in base slots with steam vents.
	Elerium Power Generator	Additional power. Requires UFO Power Source research.
	Workshop	Boosts Engineering, resource rebates on projects.
	Hyperwave Relay	Required to win the game.
	Psionic Lab	Required to win the game.
	Gollop Chamber	Required to win the game.

Base Design

Be considerate of the available expansions slots you leave in the long-term. As an example, building several Satellite Uplinks for an overall lower monetary and resource cost than a Satellite Nexus. However, the Nexus takes up less physical space. As you near the end of the game you may run out of space and have to remove facilities, so utilize your space as best possible. Depending on factors like Steam Vents, Research, Satellites and so on, you will have to decide what to cut back on. Also note that you do not have to build facilities sequentially out from the Access Lift; you need only excavate out to the slot in which you want to build a facility (i.e., all the slots between it and the Access Lift are excavated but may be empty).

Adjacency Bonuses

The position of the facilities in relation to one another will provide bonuses to their output. For example, building Labs next to each other provide an adjacency bonus that increases the speed of research. Note that a facility next to two other facilities generates two adjacency bonuses. For example, four Satellite Uplinks in a 2x2 square would allow 12 satellites (8 regular + 4 bonus). A green plus symbol on the dashed border between two facilities in the Build Facilities screen indicates an adjacency is in effect.

Steam Vents

Steam Vents can be present on the 3 lower levels of the base and their location will be random for each game. Building Thermo Power Generators on them will provide additional power for new base facilities.

See Also

• Building Optimization - Information on how to maximize the HQ's potential
• Build Facilities - For a list of base expansion projects and cost/requirements