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AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2019-08-04T22:41:03Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 large labs (or 6 small ones) per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 large labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

It's better to hire too many troops than to have too few. There will be some days where you need to capture 3 or 4 alien craft, AND assault the place they beamed troops into - AND maybe even the place next door! It's best to assume you'll have 10 guys healing and another few deceased. I've had to hire 'shock troops' off the market and use them as front line newbies...and they survive for some reason! Meanwhile the rookie with stats I absolutely love gets brainsucked, every time.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufacture - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become financially self-sufficient. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, devastator cannons, vortex mines and personal shields follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly, the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, take advantage of the [http://www.ufopaedia.org/index.php?title=Stormdog_(Apocalypse) Stormdog chop shop] "feature". Buy all the Stormdogs available, strip them all of guns and engine, and then sell those parts - AND the Stormdogs - for profit. Then sell your Wolfhound APC. They are ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit before selling!

Take that same approach one step further - say you have all your agents armed with disruptors and armor. But with no downed ships and no aliens recently beamed down, they have nothing to do. You can keep a few base defenders armed, but you can sell literally every other disruptor, devastator, or toxigun to the market, and load up on hovercars, hoverbikes, or even a Hawk if you have enough coin. Take the ships down, bring everyone back to your base, and sell off a few (undamaged!) vehicles, replacing them with your guns, which are at the same exact cost.

**Notes on this: while guns can be bought/sold endlessly during a week, at the end of a week the count will drop, so be prepared - don't leave 40 devastator cannons unowned sunday at 11:59pm, cuz 30+ of them will disappear.
**With vehicles, the game is less forgiving - if you buy 6 hovercars, then sell them back, you can't buy those 6 ever again. They are gone, so be prepared.

Keep doing the Stormdog Chop Shop trick as long as it is profitable - it should always be, although never again as much as the first week.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go '''Toxigun''' as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later if you want (that week). Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to distract or grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:OMGPLZ.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.
*Ammo shortage got you down on Janitor Missles? Buy a hovercar! They come with a full missle launcher. De-equip and sell 'em back!
*Have two Biochem labs at two different bases, and don't want to spring for Alien Containment at both? You don't have to! Leave at least one biochemist at the lab with the Containment. Start any project - alien, autopsy, etc - at that base. Then go to a different project after an hour, and the OTHER bioChem research lab can pick it up.

== Weekly schedule ==
*Monday at 0:00:00: Buy all the Stormdogs you can, and chop them up to sell back at a profit. Recruit any agents or engineers/biochemists/quantum physicists you want.
*Tuesday at 0:00:00: Recruit any agents or engineers/biochemists/quantum physicists you want.
<repeat every day>
*Sunday at 11:59:59: Fire any scientists or agents you no longer want. Build any facilities that you want (and demolish any that are no longer needed). Buy back any equipment that you sold and want to keep, before the game rolls it over and removes it from stock.

[[Category:Apocalypse]]

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2019-08-02T12:32:54Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 large labs (or 6 small ones) per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 large labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufacture - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, devastator cannons, vortex mines and personal shields follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly, the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, take advantage of the [http://www.ufopaedia.org/index.php?title=Stormdog_(Apocalypse) Stormdog chop shop] "feature". Buy all the Stormdogs available, strip them all of guns and engine, and then sell those parts - AND the Stormdogs - for profit. Then sell your Wolfhound APC. They are ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit before selling!

Take that same approach one step further - say you have all your agents armed with disruptors and armor. But with no downed ships and no aliens recently beamed down, they have nothing to do. You can keep a few base defenders armed, but you can sell literally every other disruptor, devastator, or toxigun to the market, and load up on hovercars, hoverbikes, or even a Hawk if you have enough coin. Take the ships down, bring everyone back to your base, and sell off a few (undamaged!) vehicles, replacing them with your guns, which are at the same exact cost.

**Notes on this: while guns can be bought/sold endlessly during a week, at the end of a week the count will drop, so be prepared - don't leave 40 devastator cannons unowned sunday at 11:59pm, cuz 30+ of them will disappear.
**With vehicles, the game is less forgiving - if you buy 6 hovercars, then sell them back, you can't buy those 6 ever again. They are gone, so be prepared.

Keep doing the Stormdog Chop Shop trick as long as it is profitable - it should always be, although never again as much as the first week.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go '''Toxigun''' as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later if you want (that week). Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to distract or grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:OMGPLZ.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.
*Ammo shortage got you down on Janitor Missles? Buy a hovercar! They come with a full missle launcher. De-equip and sell 'em back!
*Have two Biochem labs at two different bases, and don't want to spring for Alien Containment at both? You don't have to! Leave at least one biochemist at the lab with the Containment. Start any project - alien, autopsy, etc - at that base. Then go to a different project after an hour, and the OTHER bioChem research lab can pick it up.

== Weekly schedule ==
*Monday at 0:00:00: Buy all the Stormdogs you can, and chop them up to sell back at a profit. Recruit any agents or engineers/biochemists/quantum physicists you want.
*Tuesday at 0:00:00: Recruit any agents or engineers/biochemists/quantum physicists you want.
<repeat every day>
*Sunday at 11:59:59: Fire any scientists or agents you no longer want. Build any facilities that you want (and demolish any that are no longer needed). Buy back any equipment that you sold and want to keep, before the game rolls it over and removes it from stock.

[[Category:Apocalypse]]

Alien Bomber (Apocalypse)

2016-01-24T00:44:30Z

Alloutwar: /* Battlescape Information */

[[Image:Apoc_bomber_pedia.png|Alien Bomber UFOPedia picture|right|100 px]]

== General Information ==
[[Image:Apoc_ufo7_icon.png|left|50 px|Bomber]]

The '''Alien Bomber''' (UFO Type 7) will be used mainly on [[Cityscape Fighting (Apocalypse)#Retaliation|attacks]] made by the aliens on hostile organizations but from time to time will also perform subversion missions and escort other UFOs. To carry out its primary mission it is equipped with a [[Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher]] capable of dealing immensive damage to X-COM craft and buildings. Its armor/constitution and the use of a [[Large Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Large Disruption Shield]] makes a tough target.

== [[Cityscape (Apocalypse)|Cityscape]] Information ==

== [[Battlescape Overview (Apocalypse)|Battlescape]] Information ==

The bomber has a double door at the south side of the screen, and a single entry with ramp at the north side of the screen. You must have a squad on each side or else poppers and micronoids will flank you and surprise you outside the ship.

==Other Notes==
The Bomber is seen during the opening video, though it does not appear ingame until several weeks after the initial incursions.

==Statistics==
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr {{StdDescTable_Heading}}><th align="left">Statistics</th>
<th>Value</th></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Armor</td><td>84</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Constitution</td><td>700</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Top Speed</td><td>14</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapons</td><td>[[Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher]]/[[Light Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Light Disruptor Beam]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Power</td><td>98/20</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Range</td><td>250/150</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Equipment</td><td>[[Large Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Large Disruption Shield]] [[Cloaking Field (Apocalypse)|Cloaking Field]] [[Teleporter (Apocalypse)|Teleporter]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Score points</td><td>300</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Crew</td><td>3 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 2 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 7 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]], 3 [[Micronoid Aggregate (Apocalypse)|Micronoids]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Infiltration Force</td><td>5 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 3 [[Spitter (Apocalypse)|Spitters]]
</td></tr>
</table><br />

==See Also==
* [[Alien Ships (Apocalypse)|Alien Ships]]
* [[UFO Incursions (Apocalypse)|UFO Incursions]]

<br clear="all">

{{Vehicles (Apocalypse) Navbar}}

[[Category: UFOs (Apocalypse)]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

Alien Mothership (Apocalypse)

2016-01-22T20:18:45Z

Alloutwar: /* Battlescape Information */

[[Image:Apoc_mothership_pedia.png|Alien Mothership UFOPedia picture|right|100 px]]

== General Information ==
[[Image:Apoc_ufo10_icon.png|left|50 px|Mothership]]
The '''Alien Mothership''' (UFO Type 10) is the ultimate alien craft, armed to the teeth with weapons and being the toughest UFO by its capacity to take damage. Motherships will engage on [[Alien Infiltration (Apocalypse)|infiltration and subversion]] missions besides conducting aerial [[Cityscape Fighting (Apocalypse)#Retaliation|attacks]] by targeting organizations or simply dropping an [[Overspawn]] on the city.

== [[Cityscape (Apocalypse)|Cityscape]] Information ==

Motherships are very dangerous UFOs. They carry both a [[Heavy Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Heavy Disruptor Beam]] and a [[Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher]]. They are also equipped with a [[Stasis Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Stasis Bomb Launcher]] to immobilize their targets before killing them with their primary weapons.

== [[Battlescape Overview (Apocalypse)|Battlescape]] Information ==

The mothership is not as tall as the Battleship, being only 7 stories high. Its single entrance opens in the scortched earth to the north of the map.

==Other Notes==

==Statistics==
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr {{StdDescTable_Heading}}><th align="left">Statistics</th>
<th>Value</th></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Armor</td><td>84</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Constitution</td><td>2800</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Top Speed</td><td>8</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapons</td><td>[[Heavy Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Heavy Disruptor Beam]]/[[Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher]]/[[Stasis Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Stasis Bomb Launcher]] </td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Power</td><td>80/98/--</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Range</td><td>600/250/250</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Equipment</td><td>[[Large Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Large Disruption Shield]]/[[Teleporter (Apocalypse)|Teleporter]]
</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Score points</td><td>700</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Crew</td><td>4 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 2 [[Megaspawn (Apocalypse)|Megaspawns]], 5 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 2 [[Psimorph (Apocalypse)|Psimorphs]], 9 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Infiltration Force</td><td>5 [[Multiworm Egg (Apocalypse)|Multiworm Eggs]], 4 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 5 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 6 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]], 4 [[Spitter (Apocalypse)|Spitters]]</td></tr>
</table><br />

==See Also==
* [[Alien Ships (Apocalypse)|Alien Ships]]
* [[UFO Incursions (Apocalypse)|UFO Incursions]]

<br clear="all">

{{Vehicles (Apocalypse) Navbar}}

[[Category: UFOs (Apocalypse)]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

Alien Battleship (Apocalypse)

2016-01-22T01:29:59Z

Alloutwar: /* Battlescape Information */

[[Image:Apoc_battleship_pedia.png|Alien Battleship UFOPedia picture|right|100 px]]

== General Information ==
[[Image:Apoc_ufo9_icon.png|left|50 px|Battleship]]
During the late stages of the game the '''Alien Battleship''' (UFO Type 9) will be the primary alien craft responsible for infiltration, subversion, attack missions, and will act later as an escort for [[Alien Mothership (Apocalypse)|Motherships]].

Capture of a downed Battleship is of paramount important since it is a required [[Research (Apocalypse)|research]] precondition for research of X-COM's ultimate craft, the [[Annihilator]].

== [[Cityscape (Apocalypse)|Cityscape]] Information ==

The Battleship is heavily armed and protected, carrying both a [[Heavy Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Heavy Disruptor Beam]] as its primary weapon and a [[Disruptor Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Bomb Launcher]] to supplement it.

== [[Battlescape Overview (Apocalypse)|Battlescape]] Information ==

The battleship is a full 9 stories high, but instead of having a standard entrance open to view, it instead crashes partway into a canal or sewer. Agents must enter one of the two tunnelways to get to the doors of the ship, which are again at the West (top/left) side of the ship.

==Other Notes==

==Statistics==
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr {{StdDescTable_Heading}}><th align="left">Statistics</th>
<th>Value</th></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Armor</td><td>102</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Constitution</td><td>1800</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Top Speed</td><td>12</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapons</td><td>[[Heavy Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Heavy Disruptor Beam]]/[[Disruptor Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Bomb Launcher]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Power</td><td>80/94</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Range</td><td>600/450</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Equipment</td><td>[[Large Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Large Disruption Shield]]/[[Teleporter (Apocalypse)|Teleporter]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Score points</td><td>500</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Crew</td><td>8 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 3 [[Megaspawn (Apocalypse)|Megaspawns]], 5 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 5 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]], 5 [[Spitter (Apocalypse)|Spitters]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Infiltration Force</td><td>5 [[Multiworm Egg (Apocalypse)|Multiworm Eggs]], 4 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 2 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 5 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]], 4 [[Spitter (Apocalypse)|Spitters]]</td></tr>
</table><br />

==See Also==
* [[Alien Ships (Apocalypse)|Alien Ships]]
* [[UFO Incursions (Apocalypse)|UFO Incursions]]

<br clear="all">

{{Vehicles (Apocalypse) Navbar}}

[[Category: UFOs (Apocalypse)]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

Alien Escort Ship (Apocalypse)

2016-01-22T01:11:40Z

Alloutwar:

[[Image:Apoc_escort_ship_pedia.png|Escort Ship UFOPedia picture|right|100 px]]

== General Information ==
[[Image:Apoc_ufo8_icon.png|left|50 px|Escort Ship]]
'''Alien Escort Ships''' (UFO Type 8) are used during the middle and late game stages as escort vessels for [[Alien Assault Ship (Apocalypse)| Assault Ships]], [[Alien Bomber (Apocalypse)|Bombers]], [[Alien Battleship (Apocalypse)|Battleships]] and [[Alien Mothership (Apocalypse)|Alien Motherships]]. The appearance of those craft in the city is a forewarning of the appearance of the largest UFOs. Escort Ships also have the best armor of all UFOs (but rank as 3rd in constitution) and are the 2nd fastest alien craft after the [[Alien Fast-Attack Ship (Apocalypse)|Fast-Attack Ship]].

The Alien Escort Ship sports an incredible 20 armor rating on all sides, causing anything with 20 or less damage to be harmlessly absorbed by the armor. This renders it completely ''immune'' to most conventional weapons and even the Small Disruptor Beam. The challenge of bringing down an Escort Ship is further magnified as it also boasts a very high max speed. It is recommended that you only use the heaviest hitting missiles, Elerium weapons, and medium disruptor beams(if you have them) to take this UFO down.

== [[Cityscape (Apocalypse)|Cityscape]] Information ==
By itself the craft isn't a threat since its only weapon is a [[Stasis Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Stasis Bomb Launcher]]. But while operating with other UFOs it will use their weapon with deadly propose, freezing any X-COM craft with it while the Battleships and Motherships pounce on the immobile and helpless craft.

Their speed can make it harder to intercept those UFOs plus their later use of [[Cloaking Field (Apocalypse)|Cloaking Fields]] will also hinder targeting those craft.

== [[Battlescape Overview (Apocalypse)|Battlescape]] Information ==

The Escort Ship has one entrance in the West (left/top) side of the map, the only part of the vessel that is accessible. It is along the cratered path left by the crash.

==Other Notes==

==Statistics==
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr {{StdDescTable_Heading}}><th align="left">Statistics</th>
<th>Value</th></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Armor</td><td>120</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Constitution</td><td>500</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Top Speed</td><td>16</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon</td><td>[[Stasis Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Stasis Bomb Launcher]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Power</td><td>--</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Range</td><td>250</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Equipment</td><td>[[Large Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Large Disruption Shield]]/[[Cloaking Field (Apocalypse)|Cloaking Field]]/[[Teleporter (Apocalypse)|Teleporter]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Score points</td><td>250</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Crew</td><td>3 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 1 [[Megaspawn (Apocalypse)|Megaspawn]], 2 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 7 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Infiltration Force</td><td>4 [[Multiworm Egg (Apocalypse)|Multiworm Eggs]], 4 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 3 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]], 2 [[Spitter (Apocalypse)|Spitters]]
</td></tr>
</table><br />

==See Also==
* [[Alien Ships (Apocalypse)|Alien Ships]]
* [[UFO Incursions (Apocalypse)|UFO Incursions]]

<br clear="all">

{{Vehicles (Apocalypse) Navbar}}

[[Category: UFOs (Apocalypse)]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

Alien Fast-Attack Ship (Apocalypse)

2016-01-14T20:33:24Z

Alloutwar: /* Battlescape Information */

[[Image:Apoc_fast_attack_ship_pedia.png|Alien Fast-Attack Ship UFOPedia picture|right|100 px]]

== General Information ==
[[Image:Apoc_ufo4_icon.png|left|50 px|Fast-Attack Ship]]
The appearance of '''Alien Fast-Attack Ships''' (UFO Type 4) over the city will escalate the aerial war as these craft can aggressive and dangerous during the first weeks. The aliens will deploy these craft as escorts of [[Alien Transporter (Apocalypse)|Transporters]], [[Alien Destroyer (Apocalypse)|Destroyers]], [[Alien Assault Ship (Apocalypse)|Assault Ships]] and [[Alien Bomber (Apocalypse)|Bombers]]. Fast-Attack Ships will may also conduct [[Alien Infiltration (Apocalypse)|Subversion]] missions to try to immediately switch an [[Organizations|Organization]] to their side. Finally these craft will also conduct [[Cityscape Fighting (Apocalypse)#Relaliation|attacks]] against any organization they perceive as a threat to their plans.

== [[Cityscape (Apocalypse)|Cityscape]] Information ==

Fast attack ships are the first UFO you encounter that can destroy [[Hoverbike_(Apocalypse)|Hoverbikes]] in one hit. Fortunately they will rarely hit any Hoverbike and your losses can be kept minimal if you keep them at a decent distance. They are also the first UFO with an armor rating that seriously hampers the power of conventional weapons. The [[40mm_Auto_Cannon_(Apocalypse)|40mm Auto Cannon]] will harmlessly bounce off of most armor facings, and [[Bolter_4000_Laser_Gun_(Apocalypse)|Bolter Lasers]] will struggle to scratch the UFO. Despite the ship's incredibly fast speed you can still hit it with missiles, and a combination of stronger terran weapons will take it down with little trouble.

== [[Battlescape Overview (Apocalypse)|Battlescape]] Information ==

The Fast Attack ship has a single entrance on the southern side of the ship, where the ship's crash has left a large depression and flames in the dirt. Aliens will often be outside of the ship when you approach. Poppers and brainsuckers will run at your troops while the others cluster and throw grenades.

==Other Notes==

==Statistics==
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr {{StdDescTable_Heading}}><th align="left">Statistics</th>
<th>Value</th></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Armor</td><td>57</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Constitution</td><td>80</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Top Speed</td><td>20</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon</td><td>[[Medium Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Medium Disruptor Beam]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Power</td><td>40</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Range</td><td>300</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Equipment</td><td>[[Small Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Small Disruption Shield]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Score points</td><td>200</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Crew</td><td>6 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 2 [[Brainsucker (Apocalypse)|Brainsuckers]], 1 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Popper]], 2 [[Spitter (Apocalypse)|Spitters]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Infiltration Force</td><td>3 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 1 [[Multiworm (Apocalypse)|Multiworm]], 3 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 3 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]]
</td></tr>
</table><br />

==See Also==
* [[Alien Ships (Apocalypse)|Alien Ships]]
* [[UFO Incursions (Apocalypse)|UFO Incursions]]

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{{Vehicles (Apocalypse) Navbar}}

[[Category: UFOs (Apocalypse)]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2016-01-14T15:54:31Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 large labs (or 6 small ones) per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 large labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, devastator cannons, vortex mines and personal shields follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly, the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, take advantage of the [http://www.ufopaedia.org/index.php?title=Stormdog_(Apocalypse) Stormdog chop shop] "feature". Buy all the Stormdogs available, strip them all of guns and engine, and then sell those parts - AND the Stormdogs - for profit. Then sell your Wolfhound APC. They are ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit before selling!

Take that same approach one step further - say you have all your agents armed with disruptors and armor. But with no downed ships and no aliens recently beamed down, they have nothing to do. You can keep a few base defenders armed, but you can sell literally every other disruptor, devastator, or toxigun to the market, and load up on hovercars, hoverbikes, or even a Hawk if you have enough coin. Take the ships down, bring everyone back to your base, and sell off a few (undamaged!) vehicles, replacing them with your guns, which are at the same exact cost.

**Notes on this: while guns can be bought/sold endlessly during a week, at the end of a week the count will drop, so be prepared - don't leave 40 devastator cannons unowned sunday at 11:59pm, cuz 30+ of them will disappear.
**With vehicles, the game is less forgiving - if you buy 6 hovercars, then sell them back, you can't buy those 6 ever again. They are gone, so be prepared.

Keep doing the Stormdog Chop Shop trick as long as it is profitable - it should always be, although never again as much as the first week.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go '''Toxigun''' as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later if you want (that week). Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to distract or grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:OMGPLZ.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.
*Ammo shortage got you down on Janitor Missles? Buy a hovercar! They come with a full missle launcher. De-equip and sell 'em back!
*Have two Biochem labs at two different bases, and don't want to spring for Alien Containment at both? You don't have to! Leave at least one biochemist at the lab with the Containment. Start any project - alien, autopsy, etc - at that base. Then go to a different project after an hour, and the OTHER bioChem research lab can pick it up.

== Weekly schedule ==
*Monday at 0:00:00: Buy all the Stormdogs you can, and chop them up to sell back at a profit. Recruit any agents or engineers/biochemists/quantum physicists you want.
*Tuesday at 0:00:00: Recruit any agents or engineers/biochemists/quantum physicists you want.
<repeat every day>
*Sunday at 11:59:59: Fire any scientists or agents you no longer want. Build any facilities that you want (and demolish any that are no longer needed). Buy back any equipment that you sold and want to keep, before the game rolls it over and removes it from stock.

[[Category:Apocalypse]]

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2016-01-12T22:05:04Z

Alloutwar: /* Tips/Tricks */

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 large labs (or 6 small ones) per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 large labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, take advantage of the [http://www.ufopaedia.org/index.php?title=Stormdog_(Apocalypse) Stormdog chop shop] "feature". Buy all the Stormdogs available, strip them all of guns and engine, and then sell those parts - AND the Stormdogs - for profit. Then sell your Wolfhound APC. They are ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit.

Keep doing the Stormdog Chop Shop trick as long as it is profitable - it should always be, although never again as much as the first week.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go Toxigun as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later. Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:OMGPLZ.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.
*Ammo shortage got you down on Janitor Missles? Buy a hovercar! They come with a full missle launcher. De-equip and sell 'em back!
*Have two Biochem labs at two different bases, and don't want to spring for Alien Containment at both? You don't! Start any project - alien, autopsy, etc - where the alien containment is. Then go to a different project, and the OTHER bioChem research lab can pick it up.

[[Category:Apocalypse]]

Talk:Apocalypse

2016-01-12T21:25:58Z

Alloutwar: /* Requesting pages to be linked here */

==Categories==

Apocalypse is now the first game that has all its pages categorized on the UFOPaedia (all 200 of them). And on the process it got rid of all the links to non-existant pages (so now we have plenty of links to stub pages with no content other than some links).

From now on if you add a new page to this section, simply add at the bottom:

<nowiki>[[Category: Apocalypse]]</nowiki>

You can check the other existing categories for Apoc on [[Special:Categories]].[[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 16:12, 4 November 2009 (EST)

== Where do i put this? ==

iwhere should i go about placing the fact that there are limited amounts of goods available for purchase per week, and the vale of the goods fluctuates with the supply demand factor?

: We've never really formalized all the sections that need to go under the Apocalypse section, and in fact a few of the current sections should never have been turned into real articles. However, that can be fixed as we go along. So far we're just jamming stuff in here and there with wild abandon.

: [[Trade (Apocalypse)| Trade]] might be a start, but perhaps moving it under the base heading or changing it to Marketplace or some other more appropriate title would be a lot better. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 22:38, 11 June 2008 (PDT)

:: I'm at the process of adding images to the existing pages and I think a few new pages could be created. Apoc might not be as popular as UFO but there's plenty of possibilities to expand this section. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 14:04, 30 October 2009 (EDT)

==How to make the game harder section?==
You could possibly add a section [[Making the Game Harder (Apocalypse)|about making the game harder]] like not using Toxin Guns which make the game ridiculously easy, especially in Real Time. Also maybe no Stun Raiding or limit yourself to either turn based missions (Brainsuckers become horrible) or Real Time if your are used to only playing on Turn Based (adds in a player reaction time rather than relying on your men's Reactions).
:I have created the page. Happy writing :) [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 09:13, 17 August 2013 (EDT)

== Engineering ==

Anyone who has some understanding of the Engineering in Apocalypse should probably make the page for it.

==Requesting pages to be linked here==

I think these are important enough to be linked on the main page:
*[[Alien_Stats_(Apocalypse)]]
*[[Population_(Apocalypse)]]
*[[Damage_Modifiers_(Apocalypse)]] (I believe this stuff hasn't been written yet - if so, I can make a new page)
--[[User:Darkpast|Darkpast]] ([[User talk:Darkpast|talk]]) 17:02, 15 June 2014 (EDT)

I also don't see this page here:
[[Agent_Ranks_(Apocalypse)]]

--[[User:Alloutwar|Alloutwar]] ([[User talk:Alloutwar|talk]]) 16:25, 12 January 2016 (EST)

==Apoc'd==
[http://www.strategycore.co.uk/files/apocd/ Apoc'd] is a tool made by j'ordos that allows to edit several aspects of the game. It is also a very nice source of information regarding actual game values, stats, etc. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] ([[User talk:Hobbes|talk]]) 23:37, 11 December 2014 (EST)

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2016-01-12T01:30:46Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 large labs (or 6 small ones) per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 large labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, take advantage of the [http://www.ufopaedia.org/index.php?title=Stormdog_(Apocalypse) Stormdog chop shop] "feature". Buy all the Stormdogs available, strip them all of guns and engine, and then sell those parts - AND the Stormdogs - for profit. Then sell your Wolfhound APC. They are ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit.

Keep doing the Stormdog Chop Shop trick as long as it is profitable - it should always be, although never again as much as the first week.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go Toxigun as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later. Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:OMGPLZ.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.
*Ammo shortage got you down on Janitor Missles? Buy a hovercar! They come with a full missle launcher. De-equip and sell 'em back!

[[Category:Apocalypse]]

Talk:Biochemistry

2016-01-09T18:43:53Z

Alloutwar:

it seems to me that the values under "cost" are WAY off. First off, I am making the assumption that by cost we mean "skill hours" and not financial cost. Some of them could be simply mistakes, such as the multiworm being listed as 90k and 15k, which is (according to Apoc'd) 9k and 15k; yet others are so different that it cannot have been a simple typo. Is there something I am missing? [[User:Talon81|Talon81]] 23:30, 18 November 2009 (EST)
: Looking at it the Hyperworm, Multiworm Egg and the Multiworm seem to have all typos. The original poster that added the skill hours was Blaimjos but he doesn't mentioned his source. Either he got it from one of the forums or from the Official Strategy Guide. Can you check with Apoc'd all of the values that don't match? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 05:57, 19 November 2009 (EST)
:: Yeah, I noticed those ones seem to be typos. I have only been around this wiki for at most a year, and only on Apoc wiki for a couple months. I didn't want to be presumptuous in making major edits, but I have fixed a few things here and there. Anyway, I am going to edit all of them to match Apoc'd now, and you can review my changes and undo anything you know to be wrong... but I am pretty certain Apoc'd is correct.[[User:Talon81|Talon81]] 14:00, 19 November 2009 (EST)
::: Modesty is a virtue but don't let it restrain you from doing edits if the information is incorrect or outdated. No one here holds the truth... perhaps someone will come in a year and tell us that Apoc'd values are all wrong :) [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 14:42, 19 November 2009 (EST)
:::: BLASPHEMY!!! :-) [[User:J'ordos|J'ordos]] 07:02, 20 November 2009 (EST)
::::: Thus speaks the god J'ordos... we will all feel his wrath and anger now! ;) [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 11:32, 20 November 2009 (EST)
::Sorry I'm not a regular contributor. My interest is usually tied to when I'm playing the game. My reference source was my now yellowing strategy guide. I've found some mistakes over 12+ years but didn't know about Apoc'd and figured more was better than less. I'll try to include my reference in the future. Thanks for seeing enough value to correct rather than revert!![[User:Blaimjos|Blaimjos]] 20:59, 6 December 2009 (EST)
::: No need to feel bad. There is so much conflicting information coming from different sources, and as it turns out just because its official doesnt make it correct. In any case, I wouldn't have corrected something that wasn't there to begin with, so your help is appreciated. ;-) [[User:Talon81|Talon81]] 18:21, 7 December 2009 (EST)
:::: Yup, what Talon says about the official not being correct already happens with the UFO Defense Official Strategy Guide where some of the info contained there didn't match what people found when looking around in the code of the game. It is nice to have someone with the Apocalypse OSG since most of the info will be correct but that's why it is good to have different sources in order to confirm it. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:51, 7 December 2009 (EST)

Playing through again after all these years after buying on Steam. Noticed that I can research The Alien Genetic Structure, even though I've only researched live Multiworm Egg, Live & Autopsy Multiworm, and BS launcher. It's also researchable in Standard labs, not just Advanced. --[[User:KayDat|KayDat]] 10:58, 2 March 2010 (EST)
: I am seeing the same on steam - I researched brainsucker launcher, Hyperworm autopsy, multiworm and multiworm autopsy, and poof there it is. I think it may just be a requirement of "4 alien biochem" or "3 live alien or autopsy projects" that triggers it, instead of the specific ones we've been told here. --[[User:Alloutwar|Alloutwar]] ([[User talk:Alloutwar|talk]]) 13:43, 9 January 2016 (EST)

Talk:Biochemistry

2016-01-09T18:43:37Z

Alloutwar:

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2016-01-03T04:33:05Z

Alloutwar: stormdog chop shop reference

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 large labs (or 6 small ones) per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 large labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, take advantage of the [http://www.ufopaedia.org/index.php?title=Stormdog_(Apocalypse) Stormdog chop shop] "feature". Buy all the Stormdogs available, strip them all of guns and engine, and then sell those parts - AND the Stormdogs - for profit. Then sell your Wolfhound APC. They are ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit.

Keep doing the Stormdog Chop Shop trick as long as it is profitable - it should always be, although never again as much as the first week.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go Toxigun as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later. Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:OMGPLZ.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.

[[Category:Apocalypse]]

Talk:Survival Guide (EU2012)

2013-04-03T18:42:20Z

Alloutwar:

== Events' timings ==
I suggest to collect information about days of events and edit the next list:
(this will help a lot on planing strategy)

March (1 month) - 32 days long
* 4-8d - Abduction
* 7-10d - UFO (small scout)
* 17-19d - Abduction
* 24-x - Council Mission

April (2 month) - 28d
*
*
* X-Xd - Terror
*
*

Why does the guide specify that you should order sats one by one rather than in bulk? --[[User:Arkander|Arkander]] 15:37, 22 November 2012 (EST)
:To hazard a guess, it's to take advantage of the engineer discount as you get more of them. Also so you don't buy more than you can launch. [[User:NKF|NKF]] 13:34, 2 December 2012 (EST)
::You get the same discount if you order them piecemeal or in bulk. I do order them individually for a matter of financial liquidity and flexibility. Imagine it's the 27th day of the month, I got 2 satellites in production, and an Terror Mission pops up. I have just build the OTS but I got no credits left for Squad Size I (or Carapace armor or some very important item). I'll cancel 1 of the satellites to get back the credits to buy Squad Size I, and the monetary gain (200§) is enough to reorder afterwards the 2nd satellite and to make up for the funding that you won't be receiving in the next month from the 2nd country. The difference is that you were able to take that Terror mission better prepared (and the following ones). [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 14:24, 2 December 2012 (EST)

Hey there - your guide mentions that you should hire lots of new troops after Iron Will/New Guy, and that the player should consider screening them for Psi abilities before deciding to keep them. Everything I have read indicates that Will, which grows with rank and experience, is a major factor in determining Psi capability. Shouldn't players wait to test recruits until after they have gained a few ranks and an appreciable will score (like 80), or even better, once they are maxed out? --[[User:Alloutwar|Alloutwar]] 14:42, 3 April 2013 (EDT)

Talk:Survival Guide (EU2012)

2013-04-03T18:41:59Z

Alloutwar: question on rank/will/psi strategy

Talk:Vehicles (Apocalypse)

2013-04-03T18:31:40Z

Alloutwar: new questions/section on resale costs

Don't mind me, just dabbling with a Navbar for the Vehicles section, similar to the one used on the UFO Equipment section. I hope to populate most of the main sections of this wiki with similar navbars for ease of jumping around the main subsections.

'''Main vehicle article'''

Probably won't use this one, but using it as a template to base the other sections.

{| width = "100%" align = "center" {{stdTable}}
|- {{stdTable Sub_Heading}}
|colspan = "2" | {{Apoc Icon}} '''[[Apoc_Table|X-COM Apocalypse]]''': [[Vehicles (Apocalypse)|Vehicles]]
|-
|'''[[Roadcars and Tanks (Apocalypse)|Ground Vehicles]]''': Filler • Filler • Filler • More Filler
|-
|'''[[Air Vehicles (Apocalypse)|Air Vehicles]]''': Filler • Filler • Filler • More Filler
|-
|'''[[X-COM Hybrid Aircraft (Apocalypse)|X-Com Hybrid Aircraft]]''': : Filler • Filler • Filler • More Filler
|-
|'''[[Civilian Vehicles (Apocalypse)|Civilian Vehicles]]''': : Filler • Filler • Filler • More Filler
|-
|'''Unused Vehicle Equipment''': : Filler • Filler • Filler • More Filler
|}

I'll just copy and paste stuff...

'''Ground Vehicles'''

{| width = "100%" align = "center" {{stdTable}}
|- {{stdTable Sub_Heading}}
|colspan = "2" | {{Apoc Icon}} '''[[Apoc_Table|X-COM Apocalypse]]''': [[Vehicles (Apocalypse)|Vehicles]] | [[Roadcars and Tanks (Apocalypse)|Ground Vehicles]]
|-
|'''Vehicles''': [[Blazer Turbo Bike (Apocalypse)|Blazer Turbo Bike]] • [[Stormdog (Apocalypse)|Stormdog]] • [[Wolfhound APC (Apocalypse)|Wolfhound APC]] • [[Griffon AFV (Apocalypse)|Griffon AFV]]
|-
|'''Weapons''': [[40mm Auto Cannon Turret (Apocalypse)|40mm Auto Cannon Turret]] • [[Airguard Anti-Air Cannon (Apocalypse)|Airguard Anti-Air Cannon]] • [[Ground Launched Missile Array (GLM Array) (Apocalypse)|Ground Launched Missile Array (GLM Array)]] • [[Rumble Cannon (Apocalypse)|Rumble Cannon]] • [[Ground Launched Missile Air Defense (GLM Air Defense (Apocalypse)|Ground Launched Missile Air Defense (GLM Air Defense)]] • [[Plasma Turret Cannon (Apocalypse)|Plasma Turret Cannon]] • [[Elerium (Apocalypse)|Elerium]]
|-
|'''Engines''': [[Metro Roadhog (Apocalypse)|Metro Roadhog]] • [[Metro Roadgrav (Apocalypse)|Metro Roadgrav]] • [[Metro Turbograv (Apocalypse)|Metro Turbograv]] • [[Metro Powergrav (Apocalypse)|Metro Powergrav]] • [[Metro Multipower Plus (Apocalypse)|Metro Multipower Plus]] • [[Fusion Powerfuel (Apocalypse)|Powerfuel]]
|-
|'''Options''': [[Light Weapons Control (Apocalypse)|Light Weapons Control]] • [[Medium Weapons Control (Apocalypse)|Medium Weapons Control]] • [[Heavy Weapons Control (Apocalypse)|Heavy Weapons Control]] • [[Advanced Control System (Apocalypse)|Advanced Control System]] • [[Cargo Module (Apocalypse)|Cargo Module]] • [[Passenger Module (Apocalypse)|Passenger Module]] • [[Bio-Transport Module (Apocalypse)|Bio-Transport Module]] • [[Missile Evasion Matrix (Apocalypse)|Missile Evasion Matrix]] • [[Small Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Small Disruption Shield]] • [[Large Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Large Disruption Shield]] • [[Cloaking Field (Apocalypse)|Cloaking Field]] • [[Teleporter (Apocalypse)|Teleporter]]
|}

Need to double check on the proper names for the power fuel first. Also I think all the options are universal for vehicles, but don't think I've ever tried using the teleporter with roadcars. Probably get blown up by the collapsing road before it gets a chance to activate, I guess.

Again, don't mind me. Work in progress.

-[[User:NKF|NKF]] 00:28, 4 September 2008 (PDT)

: Nice work. I only noticed about the content of these pages today and I'm comparing them with what I did so far. Any ideas of what do add/change next to the navbars? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:29, 12 November 2009 (EST)

:: I do wish I wouldn't tuck works-in-progress away in obscure parts of the wiki like this. I think adding the mini icons of the vehicles to replace the bullets as you've done with the other sections is the way to go. The visual component helps and polishes it up a little. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 23:40, 12 November 2009 (EST)

::: It is possible to add the mini icons to the Vehicle Weapons (they're already uploaded) but regarding the Engines and Equipment there are no mini icons in the game to represent those. Unless we create them ourselves. Anymore works-in-progress tucked in obscure parts of the wiki? ;) [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 06:55, 13 November 2009 (EST)

:::: Do we have a collection of any of the inventory screen equipment and engine icons anywhere? I could GIMP them down to size after a bit of a cleanup. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 13:13, 13 November 2009 (EST)

== Vehicle breakdown/resale profit ==

I was watching a 'Let's Play' on YouTube and was reminded of the game flaw, where you can buy a vehicle for $9000, and then sell the equipment and ammo back for $3000, and then the vehicle itself for $7500 or so - basically the profit margin for stripping down a vehicle.

Would it be acceptable to add a column to this vehicle table, indicating total resale value in parts? Or should that go elsewhere? I'm not sure that it's cheating any more than stun raids and such...

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2012-05-17T17:22:02Z

Alloutwar: /* Bases */

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 large labs (or 6 small ones) per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 large labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, sell all your spare vehicles. The ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go Toxigun as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later. Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:OMGPLZ.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2012-05-09T18:14:01Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 labs per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, sell all your spare vehicles. The ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go Toxigun as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later. Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:OMGPLZ.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.

File:OMGPLZ.PNG

2012-05-09T18:13:30Z

Alloutwar:

File:X-com research visio.PNG

2012-05-09T18:11:17Z

Alloutwar: uploaded a new version of "File:X-com research visio.PNG"

research map

File:X-com research visio.PNG

2012-05-09T18:10:10Z

Alloutwar: uploaded a new version of "File:X-com research visio.PNG"

research map

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2012-05-09T18:08:34Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 labs per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, sell all your spare vehicles. The ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go Toxigun as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later. Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:X-com_research_visio.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.

File:X-com research visio.PNG

2012-05-09T18:07:17Z

Alloutwar: research map

research map

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2012-05-08T17:28:11Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 labs per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, sell all your spare vehicles. The ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
*don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
*If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
*every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go Toxigun as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later. Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:X-com_research_complete.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2012-05-08T17:08:39Z

Alloutwar: added super-cheap section

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week (unless playing Hard or Superhuman). There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

*Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 labs per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. What do the drug companies do? What is more dangerous in a large workshop than 4 alien containment structures? :(

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

I prefer to go raid-free - I only attack the Cultists when the aliens beam into one of their 4 temples, which is more than often enough. Usually before the toxigun/biotrans phase, I can barely spare the staff/time - and afterwards, what's the point, when you're on the way to financial domination. Overall in my opinion it's a cheap exploit, and using it over a handful of times ruins a game.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, sell all your spare vehicles. The ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

=== Super-Cheap Financial Management ===

If you're really hurting, you may find yourself in a situation where aliens are invading and you can't take them on with your vehicles. One approach is to just let them run through the city for a turn or two, and take them out at the drop sites. You miss out on the UFO goodies and points from downing them, but if you run exceptional missions you can make up for it.

Or, you can think outside the box. The instant sell/buy ability of this game is a great asset - on the harder difficulties I have taken to selling my Valkyrie before a tough battle, stocking up on hoverbikes/hovercars, and then reselling the undamaged ones to buy a valkyrie back. Make sure to de-equip that bio-transport unit.

Have your engineers produce SOMEthing. Sure the bio-transport unit is barely a moneymaker at all - let alone after you've sold a few in week 1. But as long as it is worth more than in costs to make it ($700) your engineers are turning a profit. That helps go towards what they are costing as employees each week - to have engineers sitting around, making money, and not producing anything is only justifiable if items cost more to make than they can be sold for.

Speaking of scientists - on the lower difficulty levels I hire willy-nilly. If I have a 91-rated guy as my worst, and a 95 guy is on the market, i will hire one and fire the other. But each hire costs money ($800) AND the agent gets paid at the end of every week. So on higher difficulties
1) don't hire willy-nilly! Have space and a reason to hire the guy (or gal)
2) If you can help it, try not hiring until its a new week
3) every Sunday before finances are tallied, fire off some dead weight. If you fire an 85 sunday at 11:59, and hire a 99 at 12:01 monday, its kinda free!

Base structures also require maintenance. You can't avoid most of this, but it will help to not go crazy filling up your base with unnecessary structures. The initial cost is one thing, but over 10 weeks you pay that cost in maintenance.

If you are really hurting and need guns, ammo, etc - sell off some other hidden gems. You know you have 1000 fuel units to start the game - if you leave your vehicles parked most of the time you should rarely ever need to refuel. Sell the first 800 units, and if you're in trouble sell the rest. The game will tell you if you need more.

To truly maximize the alien contributions, use stun grapples as often as possible, and go Toxigun as soon as you can. Personal Shields are one of the most valuable assets in the game, and destroying them all with explosions doesn't help you at all. Take down aliens while leaving their gear intact - sell the grenades, extra disruptors and devastators, everything else - right away. Buy it back later. Even the smoke grenades can help in bulk. Once you can make the BioTrans, and can sell devastators, you should be good for the rest of the game - it's surviving to that point that can take some micromanagement of funds.

Hybrids can help with this - Skeletoids aren't easy to control, but Arthropods are. I like to control them, get them to drop their shields (and weapons), and then send them to grenade the other aliens to distract them while I pick up the shields. It can be tough, but with a crack squad and some luck its doable.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:X-com_research_complete.PNG]]

== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.

Alien Escort Ship (Apocalypse)

2012-05-02T13:33:39Z

Alloutwar: removed duplicate nav bar,categories

[[Image:Apoc_escort_ship_pedia.png|Escort Ship UFOPedia picture|right|100 px]]

== General Information ==
[[Image:Apoc_ufo8_icon.png|left|50 px|Escort Ship]]
'''Alien Escort Ships''' (UFO Type 8) are used during the middle and late game stages as escort vessels for [[Alien Assault Ship (Apocalypse)| Assault Ships]], [[Alien Bomber (Apocalypse)|Bombers]], [[Alien Battleship (Apocalypse)|Battleships]] and [[Alien Mothership (Apocalypse)|Alien Motherships]]. The appearance of those craft in the city is a forewarning of the appearance of the largest UFOs. Escort Ships also have the best armor of all UFOs (but rank as 3rd in constitution) and are the 2nd fastest alien craft after the [[Alien Fast-Attack Ship (Apocalypse)|Fast-Attack Ship]].

== [[Cityscape (Apocalypse)|Cityscape]] Information ==
By itself the craft isn't a threat since its only weapon is a [[Stasis Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Stasis Bomb Launcher]]. But while operating with other UFOs it will use their weapon with deadly propose, freezing any X-COM craft with it while the Battleships and Motherships pounce on the immobile and helpless craft.

Their speed can make it harder to intercept those UFOs plus their later use of [[Cloaking Field (Apocalypse)|Cloaking Fields]] will also hinder targeting those craft.

== [[Battlescape Overview (Apocalypse)|Battlescape]] Information ==

==Other Notes==

==Statistics==
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr {{StdDescTable_Heading}}><th align="left">Statistics</th>
<th>Value</th></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Armor</td><td>120</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Constitution</td><td>500</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Top Speed</td><td>16</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon</td><td>[[Stasis Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Stasis Bomb Launcher]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Power</td><td>--</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Weapon Range</td><td>250</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Equipment</td><td>[[Large Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Large Disruption Shield]]/[[Cloaking Field (Apocalypse)|Cloaking Field]]/[[Teleporter (Apocalypse)|Teleporter]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Score points</td><td>250</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Crew</td><td>3 [[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropods]], 1 [[Megaspawn (Apocalypse)|Megaspawn]], 2 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 7 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]]</td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">Infiltration Force</td><td>4 [[Multiworm Egg (Apocalypse)|Multiworm Eggs]], 4 [[Popper (Apocalypse)|Poppers]], 3 [[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoids]], 2 [[Spitter (Apocalypse)|Spitters]]
</td></tr>
</table><br />

==See Also==
* [[Alien Ships (Apocalypse)|Alien Ships]]
* [[UFO Incursions (Apocalypse)|UFO Incursions]]

<br clear="all">

{{Vehicles (Apocalypse) Navbar}}

[[Category: UFOs (Apocalypse)]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

Armour

2010-12-14T00:34:28Z

Alloutwar: Undo spam revision 32157 by Timothy932444 (talk)

'''Armour''' is one of the more important technological improvements you can start [[research]]ing after first contact with the aliens. Even the first technological breakthrough in this area makes your [[soldiers]] much more likely to survive a direct hit on the battlefield, and decreases the amount of time your soldiers will spend recovering from wounds. It will help you build your agents [[experience]] much faster, and make the [[Battlescape]] somewhat more forgiving of mistakes and bad luck.

==Armour Types==

[[Coveralls]] - Light Kevlar protection that your agents will always have at minimum on the battlefield, although its not likely to help them much against anything other than friendly fire from the rifle or pistol.

[[Personal Armour]] - Incorporating [[Alien Alloys|Alien Alloy]] plates to make for a moderate level of protection. This is the Armor used during the Intro Movie.

[[Power Suit]] - Heavy plates with Elerium-powered muscle assist and air-filtering system, this will make your soldiers into veritable walking tanks, although still not invulnerable.

[[Flying Suit]] - Power Suit with Anti-grav harness allowing your soldiers to move more rapidly about the battlefield and negating the danger of some threats.

==Quick Comparison==

<table {{StdCenterTable}} class="sortable">
<tr {{StdDescTable_Heading}}><th width="200">Armour</th><th width="80">Front</th><th width="80">Left</th><th width="80">Right</th><th width="80">Rear</th><th width="80">Under</th></tr>
<tr><td>Coveralls</td><td>12</td><td>8</td><td>8</td><td>5</td><td>2</td></tr>
<tr><td>Personal Armour*</td><td>50</td><td>40</td><td>40</td><td>40</td><td>30</td></tr>
<tr><td>Power Suit**</td><td>100</td><td>80</td><td>80</td><td>70</td><td>60</td></tr>
<tr><td>Flying Suit**</td><td>110</td><td>90</td><td>90</td><td>80</td><td>70</td></tr>
</table>
<nowiki>*</nowiki> Protects the wearer against all [[Incendiary]]/Fire damage, and 10% resistance to Stun damage. <br>
<nowiki>**</nowiki> Protects the wearer against all Incendiary/Fire damage and the [[Stun]] damage caused by [[Smoke]] inhalation, as well as 20% resistance to all other Stun damage <br>

==Note==

Just like your soldiers, when one wearing armour dies, the armour's gone for good. So the only way to keep from losing armour is to keep your soldiers alive.

In addition, if you're unhappy with the performance of your soldiers and decide to have them sacked, be sure to remove the armour before doing so. If you do not then the disgruntled soldier will take the suit home with them and you will not see it again.

==See Also==
*[[Damage]]
*[[X-COM Survival Rates]]
*[[Armour (TFTD)]]
*[[Agents Armor (Apocalypse)|Armour (Apocalypse]]

{{Equipment (UFO Defense) Navbar}}
[[Category:Armour]]

Talk:Megaspawn (Apocalypse)

2010-12-13T20:35:24Z

Alloutwar: Created page with "FYI - Alien Escort - the Megaspawn can, and does, leave that room. In the 3 Alien Escorts I've downed and investigated, in 2 of them the megaspawn appears, somewhat surprisingly..."

FYI - Alien Escort - the Megaspawn can, and does, leave that room. In the 3 Alien Escorts I've downed and investigated, in 2 of them the megaspawn appears, somewhat surprisingly, coming down the grav-lift and right over my agents heads. In both casesI've managed to down him with Toxigun shots before he got a shot off. Point is - on lower difficulty, he stays secluded. Higher difficulty, he comes out after you. --[[User:Alloutwar|Alloutwar]] 15:35, 13 December 2010 (EST)

Talk:Alien Bomber (Apocalypse)

2010-12-13T18:32:47Z

Alloutwar: Created page with "I just noticed this craft is listed as having '''3 Micronoids''' as crew compliment. I definitely haven't seen these as of week 7/week 8, in Medium difficulty. The Roger Wong F..."

I just noticed this craft is listed as having '''3 Micronoids''' as crew compliment. I definitely haven't seen these as of week 7/week 8, in Medium difficulty. The Roger Wong FAQ shows only the battleship/mothership as having micronoid aggregates on board (although, neither of those have showed micronoids thus far in my game either). Can anyone weigh in? --[[User:Alloutwar|Alloutwar]] 13:32, 13 December 2010 (EST)

Talk:AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2010-12-10T17:39:10Z

Alloutwar:

== Explorer ==

I'm probably one of a few that absolutely enjoy the Explorer, here are some points I've noted:

* Explorers are basically the interdimensional equivalent of the Hawk Air Warriors in function, just with less cargo space for 2 shields. Yes having 400 less shield points than the Hawk or Retaliator does sound like trouble, but as long as you manage your shield levels and know when to back off or flee to a nearby launch tube, then they'll do fine. Then again you're not going to have them attack enemy ships on their own.

* Explorers, Are the 3rd fastest aircraft in the game. The Annihilator's the 2nd, and the Dim. Probe is the fastest.

* Explorers have 8 agent slots, but obviously the Biotrans does this job a lot better.

* The Medium Disruptor beam is key to this vehicle's ability to attack the type 9 and 10. The sides are ideal for Lancer lasers, but the Lineage Plasma cannons provide the best firepower.

* Explorers can be built faster than the more advanced ships.

* It's not necessarily easy, but a fleet of 5 or 6 of these are capable of flawlessly wiping out the the alien dimension fleet by themselves IF you take a slow approach and tackle the alien dimension UFOs a few at a time and use the left edge of the AD map to give the Explorers are chance to recharge their shields.

As always, it's easy enough to take a less aggressive approach to air combat in Mega Primus and skip this aircraft and the Retaliator and concentrate all your resources on the Annihilators. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 10:58, 10 December 2010 (EST)

Very good info - thanks! After creating one and seeing it zip around (and be a little more pleasing visually than the slow-turning, oddly-winged Retaliator) I grew to appreciate it's Hawk-like armaments. I have only built one - ever - in my current game, but it is med. disrupter in the middle and lineage plasma cannons on the side. It helped bring down my first battleship, so I won't scoff at it again. --[[User:Alloutwar|Alloutwar]] 12:39, 10 December 2010 (EST)

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2010-12-10T14:49:29Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as large weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans. With space for only a few shields, and 1x4 weapon slots on the side that don't accomodate alien technology, the Explorer is a hybrid craft - the weapon slots of the Hawk, slightly less space, but infinite fuel and the ability to travel to the alien dimension.

It won't pack anywhere near the punch of the Retaliator's 3 Medium Disruptors, but it can provide Hawk-ish support, with additional benefits, for much less cost. If you are too cheap to build another Retaliator, or can't build them yet, it's a decent option.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and 3 medium disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall. This craft can take down a Battleship with sufficient support craft. The only downfall is the lack of missle space - but 3 medium disruptors, unlimited ammo, unlimited fuel, and shielding space?

It's surprisingly strong, and can be a top craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding and more (cloaking, teleport, weapon control, missle evasion). Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean on easier difficulties. The fact that you can sell a Hawk and build two of these instead is pretty sweet.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week. There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

**Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 labs per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. Weird!

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, sell all your spare vehicles. The ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:X-com_research_complete.PNG]]
== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2010-12-10T13:51:48Z

Alloutwar:

X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hiring/firing, human/hybrid/android unit types, skills and improvement, political relations, expansion well beyond your needs, gang warfare, research, manufacturing, base defense and setup...it goes on and on. And this is before you even get into combat and experience the thrill of real-time.

So many games like this are turn-based, which - although satisfying to some - are just a time sink for those busier with life (work, school, bands, wedding plans, etc). The game is actually short - it can be completed in just 2-3 months game time, which can be just 40 hours or so of actual effort. The real-time option lets you speed through a battle, and really experience squad-based tactical command. Move your guys in teams - groups of 6, or simply two partners checking a room at a time. Run at full speed, or crawl slowly and cautiously. So much variety, and the ability to learn from your mistakes (at the cost of lives, unfortunately). Real-time is a more realistic model, and helps Apoc survive the test of time much better (in my opinion). Of course, it's a departure from the other two games (which I find slow and unplayable).

The game has drawbacks, of course - it's out of date by now, and the graphics (and sound effects) leave something to be desired. There are minor bugs and glitches - from Widgets filling up inventory, to bases suddenly getting an extra lab superimposed on other structures, to brainsuckers not being able to attack units that are prone. There's the ground combat, where your ultra-protected tank blows up because the road has 1 hit point. There are all kinds of questions left unanswered - why are the aliens invading, if they can't survive in our dimension? Why do they slowly build up forces, tech and ships over time to match you, instead of coming all at once? How do you have a meter of alien infiltration level - who the heck is providing that?? Why do Disruptor Shields survive when you shoot down their craft, but they destruct if exhausted on your ships? Why don't Marsec - or other organizations - give you things, or discounts, or help? How can you destroy a Cult of Sirius building, kill everyone inside, and then come back 1 minute later and have it be full of people again?

Surviving this game is really just a question of getting through the UFO incursions successfully - shooting enough down to get what you need, and attacking the aliens right when they drop. Depending on difficulty, aliens may spread to neighboring buildings immediately - and while they can die off in a day or so, that's experience and combat you miss out on.

Here is my list of ticks, trips, facts and findings to help you enjoy this game and circumvent the issues many face. Big nod to Roger Wong for doing most of the legwork over a decade ago. His notes made this game the awesome experience that it is!

==Vehicles==

Right away you start with a nice selection of vehicles. The Valkryie will serve a dual-purpose as your flagship and your troop transport. Hoverbikes and Hovercars will be your main air attack fleets. Like every guide states - sell off ground vehicles. The Wolfhound APC is the most useful, since it has better troop/cargo capacity than the Valkryie - but it a) can't reach alien UFO crash sites, and b) can't get past destroyed road. I can't count how often a bug chunk of road is destroyed right where a UFO deposited aliens - the APC just goes in circles trying to find a route. It's also slow!

The Hawk I would dismiss earlier as an expensive, slow waste - but when UFO type 7 and 8 come around, you need one or more in your arsenal. Nothing outpaces your custom aircraft, like the Retaliator - but keeping a few Hawks at home is always a good move.

Once you start building your own craft, things are significantly in your favor and the game starts losing it's appeal (for me). Here's the breakdown:

===Dimension Probe===

The urge is to build this - but don't. No reason to. Not much profit margin, and the Bio-Trans or any other craft can do what it does. In most games, by the time you are able to build the Probe, you are already at least researching the Bio-Trans.

===Bio Trans===

The coolest troop transport you'll ever need is also the game's #2 money-making item to manufacture. I like to keep one advanced workshop churning these out constantly to make money. You only need one, after all - unless you're stuck on this ship type and are making a fleet. They come out suprisingly fast, especially with 10 engineers at 90+ skill levels.

It can equip the small disruptor, and with slots for 8 small shields it can tank like few others - plus it can stay in the sky indefinitely. These might be underrated as attack/defense vessels, actually.

===Explorer===

Roger Wong: "The bio-trans does it better."

By the time I can create the Explorer, I typically am researching Retaliator. Since these come in relatively short order, I've honestly never needed to build an Explorer, so I'm a bit unfamiliar. Not as many weapon slots as the Retaliator, not as useful for cargo and troops as the Bio-Trans.

This play-through I am creating at least one Explorer for pure fun, to see what it can do. I'll have more data shortly.

===Retaliator===

The main attack ship you can create, at least until the Annihilator comes around. Once you can create it, focus all your resources on it. The more you have flying high above Mega-Primus with shields and disruptors, the faster alien invasions will fall.

It's decent, and can be a good support craft once Annihilators are out - or you can send Annihilators to the Alien Dimension and keep Retaliators around Mega-Primus.

===Annihilator===

Say goodbye to the UFO fleets. Disruptors, missles, and everything else - plus tons of room for shielding. Just 2 or 3 Annihilators can wipe the alien dimension clean.

== Bases ==

I like to buy a second base right away, usually the first week. There isn't much else to spend money on, and having a second base lets me launch aircraft from a second spot, as well as start planning a manufacturing/research center. The main base becomes a garrison mainly, with training/medical facilities and smaller labs.

I buy the base with the most space, at the least cost. Hades block on Medium difficulty is a great example. Give some weight to the warehouse vs. slum argument, and the general defensibility of the base from assault. But honestly I am rarely if ever attacked, so it's almost a non-issue.

**Seriously the DAY I posted this, I went home, fired up a game, and a Battleship appeared and beamed aliens into my 2nd base - a lab base with one android defender. No security stations too. A popper got 2 of my scientists, but I was killing everything with my Rambo android when the game froze up and died. Oh well.

An odd limit I noticed was a max of 4 labs per base. Crazy! Other structures are fine - but 4 labs is the max. The message is that the architects refuse to create more than 4 labs underground due to some city ordinance. Weird!

== Raids ==

Some people espouse raiding organizations, for stat boosts, goodies, or simply to punish an organization like the Cult of Sirius. This never seemed effective to me - stun raids exploit a weakness in the design, and otherwise battling the CoS means you'll get a rocket in the face more often than you anticipate. It also boosts your score, boosting alien technologies faster.

== Agents ==

Like other labor pools, new potential hirees come into being at midnight. Scan the pool for guys and gals you like. Roger Wong describes all the details, but flavor it however you like. And in the early, EARLY game, realize that any human, even with terrible ratings, can turn into your top unit, even if they just sit around working out for a month.

'''Androids''' are really the top unit in early game stages. Complete with good accuracy and a ton of health, these guys are strong, effective, and replaceable. They also don't get brainsucked or mind-controlled, making them useful into mid-game. These will start as your shock troops, and later become your brainsucker/psimorph/micronoid specialists, before finally settling in as base defense troops.

'''Humans''' have incredible abilities to improve. Even a shoddy prospect at the beginning can train to supremacy in just 3-4 weeks. These guys should be about 60% of your troops - let them train, use them for missions, but be aware they are semi-squishy.

'''Hybrids''' are weak in health, but like humans can train to stellar levels. They also have better psi defense and some (minor) psi attack. I usually train these guys in psi only for weeks, but that leaves their accuracy and health low. Be sure to switch them between training facilities to really make these guys super warriors - otherwise they'll be about 10-15% of your force, and just a one-hit kill for devastator cannons.

== Scientists ==

Throughout the entire game, keep an eye out for top level talent - every day that advances, right at 0 o'clock, look at all labor pools. Hire any scientists with 92-100 skill levels as long as you have space. For Engineers, make space. In the 10 days leading up to your Advanced Workshop, try to get it fully staffed. If you plan to build two simultaneously (like I usually do), you better be stocking up talented guys ahead of time.

At the beginning, you need a small Biochem lab (default) and an Advanced one. The Advanced one will be used to research Toxiguns and Toxin B (possibly C) only. '''Build the Advanced BioChem lab as soon as you can''', meaning when it becomes available and when you have the finances/space.

Focus will soon change to Physicists as your main scientific resource - will all the UFO types, alien tech, and much more to research, they will be busy for over a month. Make UFO type 3 a priority for recovery, and figure out the 3 techs that come along with it ASAP. As soon as you get any one of the three, you can build an advanced Quantum lab, probably in your second base. Make this the biggest priority, because you'll need that lab.

Once you have a fair amount of tech that you can manufactur - shields, toxigun, and a ship type - it's time to change to Engineers as the primary focus. Engineering will let you profit hugely from items like toxiguns and ships - you can become self-sufficient if you wanted. Depending on how long you want the game to go, you can create as many workshops as you want - I usually have two large and two small. Big ones create vehicles, small ones create toxin and armor. At least one should be doing high-profit sales only - BioTrans or Toxiguns, etc - to pay for the rest of your manufacturing. This helps in case you need to become self-sufficient or get hostile with Marsec, etc.

== UFO Combat ==

Roger Wong really nailed this one. With all the ground vehicles and big ships Marsec and Megapol make, it turns out the most useful vehicle, by far, is the Hoverbike. So rarely are these things struck by UFOs that the lifespan of a Hoverbike is about 3 weeks on average - 6-8 alien incursions. Hoverbikes don't pack much space, so it's best to use lasers (if you're really cheap), elerium-based weapons (if you have coin), or Janitor missles (nice medium). Don't get attached - you will lose 2 or 3 a battle, depending on UFO count and lucky shots - but these guys should be your main force. 10 or so, strategically placed around the city.

Hovercars pack twice the punch, and are also useful - maneuverable, some armor - but make a slower, easier target. Hovercars should be maybe 1/4th of your hoverbike count.

Valkyrie is the big gun until you can afford the Hawk, so use it - and protect it - wisely. It can take damage, but if it gets low send it home. It packs no more punch than a hovercar, after all - and by the time the enemy has stasis missles, Valkryies are pretty weak. Your Valkyrie should last at least 8 weeks if possible.

The Hawk, as mentioned earlier, reigns supreme in terms of buy-able craft. Three weapon slots, and the middle one can hold a small OR medium disruptor. By the time you can buy a second one, you're already building your own craft anyway. The Hawk is usable with shields and disruptors, but before that it can be a big bulky target.

The only reason vehicles need to be at your base is to rearm and repair. Once those are done, send the ships out - I leave one craft at each base, but send the rest around the map near where dimension gates typically spawn. If you use the swarm tactics, put 1/3rd to 1/2 your craft at the Transtellar Spaceport so that they can immediately launch. Sprinkle the rest around the city strategically.

Once you get to your own ship building, those suckers can stay in the sky forever. I put them in the likely Dimension Gate spots - once you have 4 or more craft, just put them around the city corners. Continue sprinkling support craft like hoverbikes and hovercars around the city.

Once you are battling UFO types 8/9/10, your hoverbike/hovercars are going to be squashed. You can either run them out there as cannon fodder, equip the hovercars with shields (if you consider the shields disposable - they cost as much as the car), or sell them off to fund Hawks and manufacturing. I tend to get emotionally attached (HoverBike 4 has been with me since week one!!!), but eventually all you will have left are larger, shielded craft.

== Alien Ground Combat ==

For missions, the priority is on survival, but there's also weight that should be given towards getting aliens for research - alive, dead, and their gear. At the beginning when all they have is brainsuckers, you can use the AutoCannon or missles on everything with no harm done. Soon, however, they have disruptor guns, which are $2500 a pop and should be saved. Boomeroids, cannons, vortex mines and more follow - all having significant cost, especially for the starving X-Com organization. More on that later.

You'll get most dead aliens without much effort - except maybe the popper (use lasers). Live ones are more of an issue - ESPECIALLY poppers. You have to use the babysit trick - stun a popper, and immediately sit on it with a spare agent. Same for psimorphs, micronoids, megaspawn and skeletoids. But honestly - the goal is to get toxin B, toxin C isn't even imperative to winning the game.

== Finances ==

One great part about this game is, even with the financial limits and (relatively) low amount you get from the government to combat UFOs, the game always gives you ways to make tons of additional money. Be crafty, be cheap, and you'll be rewarded.

Right at the outset, sell all your spare vehicles. The ground vehicles - get rid of them. Get rid of their ammo too. That's enough to buy the vehicles you do need, with some cushion for that 2nd base.

When you buy hoverbikes, and remove their auto-cannons for lasers or missles - sell back those auto cannons and ammo! They come with 300 rounds - that makes back some of the hoverbike cost right there.

When you start interacting with aliens - stun, lasers, and machine guns as MUCH as possible, as soon as they get boomeroid/disruptors. Disruptors are $2500, boomeroids $900 or so. I've had some times where I'm clamoring for money, and then I finished researching boomeroids - and poof, unloaded 99 of them to the market. Hawk right there! Prices only come down, so if you want them back - buy them back next week!

Soon you have devastator cannons - if you're shooting down UFOs, AND making raids when they beam aliens down, that's a ton of equipment your netting. Mines, boomeroids, cannons, personal shields - these are expensive. Alien UFOs also give you disruptor beams - how many ships you going to equip with light disruptors? Bio-Trans. That's it. So sell all those suckers, as soon as they're researched, in one fell swoop. Buy one back for the bio-trans later.

When you have full-scale manufacturing, have one large workshop just making profitable items - toxiguns, bio-trans. One Bio-Trans can be sold and pay for 3 more to be built...which pays for 9 more...which pays for anything else you could want. Build toxiguns if you need to raise capital for a Bio-Trans. Once you start the dominoes, don't let them stop.

== Quantum Physics research tree: ==

The goal here is to shoot down UFO type 3, and then let the games begin. One alien tech -> Advanced Quantum Lab -> Other two alien techs -> Dimension Probe. Don't delay!

Also don't forget the disruptor is necessary before the ship shields can be researched - I kept getting confused as to why I had tons of shields but couldn't research them.

[[File:X-com_research_complete.PNG]]
== Game Balance Issues ==

X-Com Apocalypse does a fantastic job of micro-management, and presenting so many different pieces all in one congruent format. However, many players love the thrill of the early to mid-game. Once the UFOs are wiped out and you begin assaulting the alien buildings, the thrill is gone.

Despite 10 or so playthroughts in my life, I have never made it past the 3rd alien building. By that time my guys have disruptor armor, the UFOs are all destroyed, everyone's an ace combat veteran and I'm rich beyond belief. There's nothing left to research. There are no inbound UFO incursions or alien sightings to combat.

Other players note this same issue - once the alien dimension is safe for travel, and you've bested the UFOs, the aliens are really harmless. You could fast forward for months, just popping into the alien dimension to kill everything every few weeks. By the time your agents are armored, shielded, and weilding two-shot-kill toxins, there's not much scary left in the game system.

The game does an excellent job of pushing you a bit more, incrementally, but the threat level just drops off in a very unsatisfying way - the end is just cleanup, instead of a climax. The true climax of Apoc is somewhere between your first Battleship visit and when you wipe out UFOs in the alien dimension. Having 9 or 10 missions after that, with no UFOs or serious threats, is just too much.

== Tips/Tricks ==

*Need to get an item to your other base fast, like Toxiguns, but you can't transport them for some reason? Just sell at one base and buy at the other. No net cost.

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2010-12-08T16:53:31Z

Alloutwar:

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2010-12-08T14:19:55Z

Alloutwar: /* Bases */

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2010-12-07T22:00:48Z

Alloutwar:

AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide

2010-12-07T16:55:27Z

Alloutwar: Created page with "X-Com Apocalypse is a classic. More than that - for 1997, this game has as much depth as some of the finest sims, while incorporating so much - from managing an organization, hi..."

User Guides (Apocalypse)

2010-12-07T16:36:28Z

Alloutwar:

= The X-Com Apocalypse User Submitted Guide Compendium =

This page is for collecting custom user guides for X-Com Apocalypse.

The names of the following sections are just filler for the time being.

== Starting Guides ==

* [[Defending Mega Primus from Evil Space Aliens, a Beginner's Guide]]

== Walkthroughs ==

== Miscellaneous Guides ==
* [[AllOutWar's X-Com Apocalypse Guide]]

== See Also ==
* [http://www.xcomufo.com/apocsg.txt The X-COM Apocalypse Internet FAQ v0.99, last updated September 27, 1997 by Roger Wong]
* [http://www.gamespot.com/features/xcom/ A more concise version of Roger Wong's guide with added graphics]

[[Category: Apocalypse]]
[[Category: Tactics]]

User:Alloutwar

2010-12-07T16:34:46Z

Alloutwar:

Longtime fan of X-Com: Apoc

Bought it in a bargain bin in 98 or 99, for $4.99 at Electronics Boutique. I tried to play it turn-based and it was just terrible - brainsuckers and monsters everywhere. The micromanagement was really promising, but it was just unplayable.

Some years later I discovered the real-time option, and every few years since I have this overwhelming urge to play it. I found Roger Wong's FAQ, which led me to arming agents correctly and buying hoverbikes instead of valkries. I never get past the first three alien buildings - by then the threat is gone and the game loses all play value. Then a few years later I want to restart, for the thrill of shooting down invading craft before they deposit aliens, and researching everything from scratch.

My last game (still have saves in the alien dimension) was 2007 - and here I am in November 2010 firing up a fresh game on Medium difficulty (I think I've been too wussy to try anything above Easy). And I'm enjoying my best game yet, although my agents are always injured and my finances always tight.

I'm a bit abnormal in the X-Com fan world, because the first two games seem slow and unplayable to me. Turn-based isn't my thing - when I was in my late teens maybe, but now I just don't have the time anymore. Anxious for the X-Com experience, a few years ago I purchased '''''UFO: Extraterrestrials''''', and was just disappointed beyond belief. With the micromanagement available in Apoc, the detail of ship types and crews and invasions and commerce and politics, there was so much to focus on outside of combat that it was mind-blowing. To take an additional 10 years, just to move things back with less depth, was mind-boggling. I wish any game that came out today had as much depth as Apoc.

I am a data analyst in the healthcare industry. In my spare time I play video games, perform as a musician, edit Wikipedia and Wiki pages for certain games I hold near and dear.

My stab at an X-Com Apoc Quantum Physics research tree:

[[File:X-com_research_complete.PNG]]

File:X-com research complete.PNG

2010-12-07T16:29:36Z

Alloutwar: my attempt at defining quantum physics research tree

my attempt at defining quantum physics research tree

Biochemistry

2010-12-03T14:07:59Z

Alloutwar: /* Projects */ Adding links to tech, corrected spelling

==Description==

Biochemistry is the study of all biological and chemical aspects regarding the [[Alien Life Forms (Apocalypse)|Apocalypse]]. It will not only focus on the alien entities but also in their organic equipment and environment.

Ultimately, Biochemistry will provide X-COM with the answer to defeat the aliens but it will also require advances on [[Quantum Physics (Apocalypse)|Quantum Physics]] to be able to acomplish this goal.

==Projects==

Note that aliens must each be researched twice, once each for their living and dead states.
{| class="wikitable sortable" border="1"
! Topic !! Research Cost !! Required Bio-lab !! Type !! Direct Prerequisites !! Research Directly Requiring
|-
|[[Anthropod (Apocalypse)|Anthropod]] || 8,000/12,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat
|-
|[[Brainsucker]] || 7,000/9,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat
|-
|[[Multiworm (Apocalypse)|Multiworm]] || 9,000/15,000 || Standard ||Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat; The Alien Genetic Structure; The Alien Life Cycle
|-
|[[Multiworm Egg (Apocalypse)|Multiworm Egg]] || 8,000/12,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat; The Alien Genetic Structure
|-
|[[Hyperworm (Apocalypse)|Hyperworm]] || 6,000/9,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat; The Alien Genetic Structure; The Alien Life Cycle
|-
|[[Chrysalis (Apocalypse)|Chrysalis]] || 8,000/12,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat; The Alien Life Cycle
|-
|[[Skeletoid (Apocalypse)|Skeletoid]] || 10,000/15,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat
|-
|[[Micronoid Aggregate (Apocalypse)|Micronoid Aggregate]] || 20,000/26,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat
|-
|[[Popper (Apocalypse)|Popper]] || 6,000/9,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat
|-
|[[Spitter (Apocalypse)|Spitter]] || 6,000/9,000 || Standard || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat
|-
|[[Megaspawn (Apocalypse)|Megaspawn]] || 12,000/20,000 || Advanced || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat
|-
|[[Psimorph (Apocalypse)|Psimorph]] || 12,000/20,000 || Advanced || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; The Real Alien Threat
|-
|[[Queenspawn (Apocalypse)|Queenspawn]] || 15,000/25,000 || Advanced || Autopsy/Creature || Recovered Corpse/Creature || Advanced Biochemistry Lab; Alien Gas
|-
|[[Overspawn (Apocalypse)|Overspawn]] || 20,000 || Advanced || Autopsy || Recovered Corpse || None
|-
|[[The Alien Genetic Structure (Apocalypse)|The Alien Genetic Structure]] || 25,000 || Advanced || Concept || Multiworm Egg Autopsy; Multiworm Autopsy; Hyperworm Autopsy || Biological Warfare
|-
|[[The Alien Life Cycle (Apocalypse)|The Alien Life Cycle]] || 30,000 || Standard || Concept || Multiworm; Multiworm Autopsy; Hyperworm; Hyperworm Autopsy; Chrysalis; Chrysalis Autopsy || Toxin Type B
|-
|[[The Real Alien Threat (Apocalypse)|The Real Alien Threat]] || 35,000 || Standard || Concept || All aliens and autopsies except for Queenspawn, Queenspawn Autopsy and Overspawn Autopsy || Toxin Type C
|-
|[[Biological Warfare (Apocalypse)|Biological Warfare]] || 26,000 || Advanced || Agent Equipment || [[The Alien Genetic Structure (Apocalypse)|The Alien Genetic Structure]] || Toxin Type B
|-
|[[Toxin B (Apocalypse)|Toxin B]] || 15,000 || Advanced || Agent Equipment || [[The Alien Life Cycle (Apocalypse)|The Alien Life Cycle]]; [[Biological Warfare (Apocalypse)|Biological Warfare]] || Toxin Type C
|-
|[[Toxin C (Apocalypse)|Toxin C]] || 15,000 || Advanced || Agent Equipment || [[The Real Alien Threat (Apocalypse)|The Real Alien Threat]]; Toxin Type B || Alien Gas
|-
|[[Alien Gas (Apocalypse)|Alien Gas]] || 28,000 || Advanced || Agent Equipment || [[Queenspawn (Apocalypse)|Queenspawn]]; [[Queenspawn (Apocalypse)|Queenspawn]] Autopsy; Toxin Type C || None
|-
|[[Brainsucker Launcher]] || 9,000 || Standard || Agent Equipment || Recovered Equipment || None
|-
|[[Brainsucker Pod]] || 6,000 || Standard || Agent Equipment || Recovered Equipment || None
|-
|[[Entropy Launcher]] || 9,000 || Standard || Agent Equipment || Recovered Equipment || None
|-
|[[Entropy Pod]] || 7,000 || Standard || Agent Equipment || Recovered Equipment || None
|-
|[[Sleeping Chamber|Alien Building 1]] || 38,000 || Standard || Mission Type || The Alien Dimension || None
|-
|[[Food Chamber|Alien Building 2]] || 42,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Sleeping Chamber Mission || None
|-
|[[Alien Farm|Alien Building 3]] || 32,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Food Chamber Mission || None
|-
|[[Maintenance Factory|Alien Building 4]] || 46,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Alien Farm Mission || None
|-
|[[Incubator Chamber|Alien Building 5]] || 30,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Maintenance Factory Mission || None
|-
|[[Control Chamber|Alien Building 6]] || 44,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Incubator Chamber Mission || None
|-
|[[Spawning Chamber|Alien Building 7]] || 34,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Control Chamber Mission || None
|-
|[[Organic Factory|Alien Building 8]] || 40,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Spawning Chamber Mission || None
|-
|[[Megapod Chamber|Alien Building 9]] || 36,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Organic Factory Mission || None
|-
|[[Dimension Gate Generator|Alien Building 10]] || 48,000 || Standard || Mission Type || Completed Megapod Chamber Mission || None
|-
|[[Bio-Transport Module (Apocalypse)|Bio-Transport Module]] || 9,000 || Standard || Vehicle Equipment || None || None
|-
|[[Advanced Biochemistry Lab (Apocalypse)|Advanced Biochemistry Lab]] || 16,000 || Standard || Base Facility || Any Live Alien Or Autopsy Except for Overspawn Autopsy || None
|}

==Suggested Research Path==
Biochemistry research is extremely important in the early part of the game. After your Bio-Transport Module is researched and manufactured, you should be bringing bunches of live aliens back from missions. (You <i>are</i> using lots of [[Megapol Stun Grenade |Stun Grenades]], right?) Your immediate goal is [[Toxigun |Toxiguns]] and Toxin-B, which can kill most aliens in two or three shots, have a high rate of fire, and ignore shields. Your ultimate goal is Toxin-C.

Your research should ideally follow roughly this order:

* Multiworm (or Autopsy)
* Advanced Biochemistry Lab. Begin construction (ideally at your second base) as soon as research completes.
* Multiworm Autopsy (or Live)
* Hyperworm
* Hyperworm Autopsy
* Chrysalis
* Chrysalis Autopsy
* Multiworm Egg
* Multiworm Egg Autopsy

By the time your Advanced Lab is complete, your biochemists should be finished with the above projects, unless they are horrible. After the above are complete, research the following in order:

* The Alien Genetic Structure
* Biological Warfare (Upon completion, begin building Toxiguns, but NOT Toxin A clips)
* The Alien Life Cycle
* Toxin B

From here, you ideally capture and research an example of every alien in the game alive and dead. They can be researched in any order, at which point you may research The Real Alien Threat, prerequisite to Toxin C - which makes Toxiguns the best general-purpose weapon in the game if you have the resources to keep up with producing the clips.

==See Also==
* [[Apocalypse]]
* [[Alien Life Forms (Apocalypse)|Alien Life Forms]]
* [[Toxigun]]
* [[The Real Alien Threat]]

[[Category: Apocalypse]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

[[Category: Bases (Apocalypse)]]

Biological Warfare (Apocalypse)

2010-12-03T14:05:08Z

Alloutwar: /* Ammunition */ adding prereq's, linked

Biological Warfare can be considered the ultimate human-designed weapon to fight the aliens. Either this or the Devastator Cannon can be considered your "standard issue" alien-slaying weapon in the mid-to-late game.

== Stats ==
[[Image:Toxigun (UFOpaedia).png|frame|X-COM Toxigun]]
=== Toxigun ===
The Toxigun is one of the most powerful weapons in the game, available upon the completion of Biological Warfare research. Not only do the toxins specifically target alien biologies, but Toxigun shots can pass through [[Personal Disruptor Shield]]s without destroying them, allowing them to be recovered as a side benefit.

The Toxigun has a very high rate of fire, but is coupled with a small ammunition capacity and moderate accuracy. This means that agents armed with the Toxigun can empty the gun very quickly without doing much damage if they are not careful. To conserve ammunition, make careful use of the gun by aiming or getting close to the target, carry a generous amount of ammunition or use them in tandem with rechargeable weapons to conserve their ammunition.

Note that as the toxin is designed to target aliens, the Toxigun will do damage comparable to the M4000 against human adversaries.

<table><tr><td>[[Image:Toxigun.png|left]]</td><td>
* Size: 1 × 2
* Weight: 5
* ROF: 4.50 r/s
* Accuracy: 40%
* Manufacturer: X-COM
* Manufacturing Price: $1,200
* Base Sale Price: $2,780
* Maximum Weekly Stock: 8
* Battlescape Score: 4</td></tr></table>

"An X-COM weapon designed to shoot high powered projectiles containing anti-Alien toxic fluids. It is designed to cause minimal harm to other targets and is not very good at penetrating armor."

== Ammunition ==
[[Image:Toxin A (UFOpaedia).png|frame|Toxin A]]
=== Toxigun A-Clip ===
Toxin A is available the moment the Toxigun is researched and is the weakest of the three toxins.

<table><tr><td>[[Image:Toxin A.png|left]]</td><td>
* Size: 1 × 1
* Weight: 1
* Power: 50
* Damage Type: Toxin A
* Ammo: 16
* Range: 50m
* Manufacturer: X-COM
* Manufacturing Price: $200
* Base Sale Price: $500
* Maximum Weekly Stock: 16
* Battlescape Score: 2</td></tr></table>

"Ammunition for Toxigun. It contains a lethal fast acting poison designed to target Alien life forms. It is not so effective against the more advanced bipedal Alien types."
----
[[Image:Toxin B (UFOpaedia).png|frame|Toxin B]]
=== Toxigun B-Clip ===
Toxin B offers an improvement of damage over Toxin A.

====Prerequisites:====
[[The Alien Life Cycle (Apocalypse)|The Alien Life Cycle]]; [[Biological Warfare (Apocalypse)|Biological Warfare]]

<table><tr><td>[[Image:Toxin B.png|left]]</td><td>
* Size: 1 × 1
* Weight: 1
* Power: 65
* Damage Type: Toxin B
* Ammo: 16
* Range: 50m
* Manufacturer: X-COM
* Manufacturing Price: $300
* Base Sale Price: $700
* Maximum Weekly Stock: 16
* Battlescape Score: 2</td></tr></table>

"Ammunition for Toxigun. It contains a lethal fast acting poison designed to target Alien lifeforms. It effectively renders the earlier A-type toxin obsolete because it is more powerful and more effective against the higher Alien life forms."
----
[[Image:Toxin C (UFOpaedia).png|frame|Toxin C]]
=== Toxigun C-Clip ===

Toxin C is the most powerful of the Toxigun ammunition.

====Prerequisites:====
[[The Real Alien Threat (Apocalypse)|The Real Alien Threat]]; '''Toxin Type B'''

<table><tr><td>[[Image:Toxin C.png|left]]</td><td>
* Size: 1 × 1
* Weight: 1
* Power: 85
* Damage Type: Toxin C
* Ammo: 16
* Range: 50m
* Manufacturer: X-COM
* Manufacturing Price: $400
* Base Sale Price: $900
* Maximum Weekly Stock: 16
* Battlescape Score: 2</td></tr></table>

"Ammunition for Toxigun. A fast acting poison which targets all Alien life forms with equally devastating effects. This toxin effectively supersedes the A or B types."

== See Also ==

* [[Toxigun vs Devastator Cannon]]
* [[Biochemistry]]

{{Equipment (Apocalypse) Navbar}}

[[Category: Apocalypse]]
[[Category: Agents Equipment (Apocalypse)]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

Advanced Workshop (Apocalypse)

2010-12-02T20:22:10Z

Alloutwar: added partial listing of all items requiring advanced workshop

[[Image:Apoc_advancedworkshop.png|left|62 px]]
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
Atomic replicators and conventional tools for replicating various materials and equipment.

A large workshop can accomodate ten technicians at one time.

Workshops can produce various items, but basic items like Megapol grenades and ammunition are by city regulations available only from official manufacturers.

You will need to research alien weapons before you can produce them or other alien technology in workshops.

Some projects are so large-scale or complex that they can only be undertaken at Advanced Workshops, such as vehicles and large weaponry.

== Prerequisite ==

While the small workshop is included in your starting base, the advanced lab must be unlocked via the research tree. In order to make the Advanced Workshop available, you must complete research for [[Dimension Probe]].

== Items that Require Advanced Workshop for Manufacture ==
[[Image:Apoc_dimension_probe_icon.png|left]] [[Dimension Probe]] <br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_biotrans_icon.png|left]] [[Bio-Trans]]<br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_explorer_icon.png|left]] [[Explorer]] <br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_retaliator_icon.png|left]] [[Retaliator]] <br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_annihilator_icon.png|left]] [[Annihilator]] <br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_light_disruptor_beam.png|left]] [[Light Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Light Disruptor Beam]]<br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_medium_disruptor_beam.png|left]] [[Medium Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Medium Disruptor Beam]]<br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_heavy_disruptor_beam.png|left]] [[Heavy Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Heavy Disruptor Beam]]<br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_disruptor_bomb_launcher.png|left]] [[Disruptor Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Bomb Launcher]]<br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_stasis_bomb_launcher.png|left]] [[Stasis Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Stasis Bomb Launcher]]<br><br>
[[Image:Apoc_disruptor_multi_bomb_launcher.png|left]] [[Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Multi-Bomb Launcher]]<br><br>
[[Small Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Small Disruption Shield]]<br><br>
[[Large Disruption Shield (Apocalypse)|Large Disruption Shield]]<br><br>
[[Cloaking Field (Apocalypse)|Cloaking Field]]<br><br>
[[Teleporter (Apocalypse)|Teleporter]]<br><br>

== See Also ==
* [[Bases (Apocalypse)|Bases]]
* [[Facilities (Apocalypse)|Facilities]]
* [[Manufacturing (Apocalypse)|Manufacturing]]

[[Category: Apocalypse]]
[[Category: Bases (Apocalypse)]]

Base Locations (Apocalypse)

2010-12-01T13:06:54Z

Alloutwar: /* Medium Level */ notes on Hades, some corrections on warehouse 6

The number of bases and their characteristics varies according to the difficulty level. You can read information about all the possible base sites below.

On the city maps, Yellow buildings are [[Warehouse (Apocalypse)|Warehouses]] while Red denotes [[Slums (Apocalypse)|Slums]]. Area costs are rounded up to the nearest integer where there are fractions.

==Novice Level==

[[Image:Apoc_1_bases.png|right|thumb|200px|Cityscape Novice level]]

{| {{StdDescTable}} border = "1"
|- {{StdDescTable_Heading}}
!Layout!!Name!!Cost!!Area!!Map Location!!Cost/Area
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base3.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Three || $30,000 || 36 || East || $834
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base4.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Four || $48,000 || 29 || North || $1,656
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base2.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Seven || $40,000 || 24 || Northeast || $1,667
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base5.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Nine || $50,000 || 32 || Northeast || $1,563
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base1.png|left|50px]]|| Dickens Estate || $112,000 || 32 || North || $3,500
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base2.png|left|50px]]|| Heavenly Towers || $96,000 || 24 || East || $4,000
|}

<br clear="all"/>

===Notes===
Warehouse Four is the best building available because of cost, space, base defense and hit resistance, with Warehouse Seven as a second choice.

==Easy Level==

[[File:Apoc_2_bases.png|right|thumb|200px|Cityscape Easy level]]

{| {{StdDescTable}} border = "1"
|- {{StdDescTable_Heading}}
!Layout!!Name!!Cost!!Area!!Map Location!!Cost/Area
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base8.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse One || $70,000 || 22 || Northeast || $3,182
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base1.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Two || $30,000 || 32 || Northeast || $938
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base9.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Six || $30,000 || 24 || East || $1,250
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base10.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Nine || $30,000 || 24 || North || $1,250
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base6.png|left|50px]]|| Bakunin Block || $80,000 || 24 || Center || $3,333
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base7.png|left|50px]]|| Heavenly Towers || $84,000 || 28 || Center || $3,000
|}

<br clear="all"/>

===Notes===
Warehouses Two and Six are the best buys for their cost, space, base defense and hit resistance. Slum space is expensive for its price.

==Medium Level==

[[Image:Apoc_3_bases.png|right|thumb|200px|Cityscape Medium level]]

{| {{StdDescTable}} border = "1"
|- {{StdDescTable_Heading}}
!Layout!!Name!!Cost!!Area!!Map Location!!Cost/Area
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base5.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse One || $70,000 || 32 || Southwest || $2,188
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base11.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Three || $40,000 || 20 || South || $2,000
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base4.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Six || $96,000 || 29 || Southeast || $3,310
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base12.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Seven || $70,000 || 32 || East || $2,188
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base9.png|left|50px]]|| Campesino Apartments || $50,000 || 24 || Center || $2,083
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base3.png|left|50px]]|| Hades Block || $48,000 || 36 || Northeast || $1,333
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base10.png|left|50px]]|| Oliver Twist Block || $70,000 || 24 || South || $2,917
|}

<br clear="all"/>

===Notes===
Hades Block is an ideal choice for a second base, as it has the most space, the second-lowest price tag, and while located in a slum, tends to be close to dimension gates and UFO spawning. 35 units of available space mean all the advanced labs you could want to build.

Warehouse Six is the best available real estate for defense and hit resistance, if you can spare the money for its price tag.

The Campesino Apartments might be interesting if you don't mind the possibility of a unlucky stray shot hitting the wrong spot of the building and killing all personnel.

Warehouse Three is the cheapest and has good space for several large facilities, but has the least space for expansion, limiting the scope of functions that this base can contain at any given time.

==Hard Level==

[[Image:Apoc_4_bases.png|right|thumb|200px|Cityscape Hard level]]

{| {{StdDescTable}} border = "1"
|- {{StdDescTable_Heading}}
!Layout!!Name!!Cost!!Area!!Map Location!!Cost/Area
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base8.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse One || $72,000 || 22 || Northeast || $3,273
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base7.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Five || $84,000 || 28 || Southeast || $3,000
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base12.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Six || $48,000 || 32 || Southeast || $1,500
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base14.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Eight || $72,000 || 27 || South || $2,667
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base13.png|left|50px]]|| Campesino Apartments || 50,000 || 32 || Northwest || $1,563
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base8.png|left|50px]]|| Chronos Block || $72,000 || 22 || Northwest || $3,273
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base5.png|left|50px]]|| Hades Block || $112,000 || 32 || Center || $3,500
|}

<br clear="all"/>

===Notes===
Warehouse Eight is a very interesting option because of its defense chokepoints. Warehouse Six has the biggest area and the smallest price but will require more [[Security Station (Apocalypse)|Security Stations]] to protect it from raids.

==Superhuman Level==

[[Image:Apoc_5_bases.png||right|thumb|200px|Cityscape Superhuman level]]

{| {{StdDescTable}} border = "1"
|- {{StdDescTable_Heading}}
!Layout!!Name!!Cost!!Area!!Map Location!!Cost/Area
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base12.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse One || $56,000 || 32 || Northwest || $1,750
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base16.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Two || $98,000 || 22 || West || $4,455
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base4.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Eight || $20,000 || 29 || Southwast || $690
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base9.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Ten || $20,000 || 24 || East || $833
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base8.png|left|50px]]|| Warehouse Eleven || $32,000 || 22 || East || $1,455
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base5.png|left|50px]]|| Lovecraft Block || $32,000 || 32 || South || $1,000
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base13.png|left|50px]]|| Thomas Moore Tower || $80,000 || 32 || Center || $2,500
|-
|[[Image:Apoc_base15.png|left|50px]]|| Grimoire Block || $80,000 || 28 || Southeast || $2,857
|}

<br clear="all"/>

===Notes===
When starting a new Superhuman campaign, Warehouse Two is one of the most common of the possible starting points.

Warehouses Eight and Ten are the best options.

Warehouses Ten and Eleven are adjacent to one another.

==See Also==

* [[Bases (Apocalypse)|Bases]]
* [[Base Layouts (Apocalypse)|Base Layouts]]

[[Category: Apocalypse]]
[[Category: Bases (Apocalypse)]]

Talk:Base Locations (Apocalypse)

2010-11-30T14:44:46Z

Alloutwar:

It's nice to see the base layouts laid out like this. Turns out there are a lot of really useful layouts to choose from that can easily be defended, despite requiring the base to be very specialized. It's just the large blocks (usually under slums) that don't work very well. Easy level in particular has a lot of small but really nice choices, even the Heavenly Towers slum block looks like it can be split in half down the middle and leave the top half for a repair bay. Wouldn't want to protect it from an air skirmish though!

One thing we can add later is to note which layouts are randomly selected for your starting base. Not sure how random the base selection is, as I can only remember getting 3 - 4 common selections on each restart (like Warehouse Two for the superhuman map is almost the default base), but not some others. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 00:46, 17 November 2009 (EST)

: Yeah, with 1 or 2 exceptions, the Slums are not worth buying. They are usually more expensive and the extra space isn't that much. I had already thought about adding which are the most probable bases but i'm only aware in Superhuman. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 05:14, 17 November 2009 (EST)

----
Are these base calculations for area correct? On Medium, Warehouse Seven looks to me like 32 units of space (4x8) minus one for the gravlift - but this shows 36. Hades Block is the largest by my calculations, with 6x6 = 36 units of space for building (minus one for lift) - yet Area is listed as 25. Would this make all the area cost calculations incorrect as well? --[[User:Alloutwar|Alloutwar]] 14:44, 30 November 2010 (UTC)

User:Alloutwar

2010-11-30T13:38:01Z

Alloutwar:

User:Alloutwar

2010-11-30T13:33:13Z

Alloutwar: Created page with "Longtime fan of X-Com: Apoc Bought it in a bargain bin in 98 or 99, for $4.99 at Electronics Boutique. I tried to play it turn-based and it was just terrible - brainsuckers and..."

Advanced Security Station (Apocalypse)

2010-11-30T13:26:43Z

Alloutwar: added prerequisite

[[Image:Apoc_advancedstation.png|left|62 px]]
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
A security station is equipped with a set of four light disruptor turrets. It has a raised platform that they are attached to.

The guns only fire in real-time mode, but can destroy an attack on the base. Each turret is very resistant to damage, and requires a lot of damage to destroy, so even if the turrets are not operational in either real-time or turn based mode, they will still act as excellent decoys for the raiders to focus and waste their ammunition on.

Only three modules worth of turrets can operate at any given time. At present it is unconfirmed, but each operational module requires two agent slots.

== Prerequisite ==

While the security station is available from the beginning of the game, the Advanced Security Station must be unlocked via the research tree. In order to make the Advanced Security Station available, you must complete research on '''both''' of the following:
* [[Disruptor Bomb Launcher (Apocalypse)|Disruptor Bomb Launcher]]
* [[Medium Disruptor Beam (Apocalypse)|Medium Disruptor Beam]]

== See Also ==
* [[Bases (Apocalypse)|Bases]]
* [[Facilities (Apocalypse)|Facilities]]
* [[Base Defense (Apocalypse)|Base Defense]]

[[Category: Apocalypse]]
[[Category: Bases (Apocalypse)]]

Advanced Biochemistry Lab (Apocalypse)

2010-11-30T13:21:07Z

Alloutwar: added prerequisite

[[Image:Apoc_advancedbio.png|left|62 px]]
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
A large laboratory for researching alien life forms and perfoming biological and chemical tests.
Large bio labs have far better equipment (like psionic devices for communication/interrogation of aliens) and conditions compared to small labs.

Any captured or dead aliens can only be researched at bio labs. Each large lab can accomodate ten biochemists at one time.

Some biochemistry projects can only be researched at this advanced facility.

== Prerequisite ==

While the small lab is included in your starting base, the advanced lab must be unlocked via the research tree. In order to make the Advanced Biochemistry lab available, you must complete research on any alien specimen (live or autopsy).

== See Also ==
* [[Bases (Apocalypse)|Bases]]
* [[Facilities (Apocalypse)|Facilities]]
* [[Biochemistry]]

[[Category: Apocalypse]]
[[Category: Bases (Apocalypse)]]
[[Category: Research (Apocalypse)]]

Advanced Workshop (Apocalypse)

2010-11-30T13:19:44Z

Alloutwar: added prerequisite