UFOpaedia - User contributions [en]

Sonic-Blasta Rifle

2009-01-16T23:07:18Z

Covenant:

==General Information==

The sonic Blasta-Rifle is a very minor upgrade to the [[Sonic Pistol]] that provides a small accuracy and damage increase at the cost of speed, clip size, a two handed grip, and a longer barrel. The sonic Blasta-Rifle, like the [[Thermic Lance]], is perhaps one of the least remarkable of its series.

Do not misunderstand, it is a powerful weapon that can do tremendous amounts of damage in the right hands. It outclasses any ballistic human weaponry by its sheer power alone. However, it doesn't particularly excel at anything, and also, being a sonic weapon, it lacks an auto fire mode.

In a twisted way of thinking, one could argue that this was the Blasta Rifle's strength. It builds on minor aspects of the gun above and below it in small ways.

So should you go for that extra shot from the pistol, go the middle ground and use the rifle, or lose a shot but gain brute force and inhuman accuracy? That's a tactical decision best left as a practical exercise.

==Comparison to UFO Mirror: [[Plasma Rifle]]==

Step up in power, step down in versatility. The one thing that made the Plasma Rifle most useful was its insane accuracy, which has been surpassed by other weapons in TFTD. While more powerful than the Plasma Rifle, Snapshot accuracy and time usage is down. Aimed Accuracy is up, while time remains the same. The ammo clip is moderate, but well complemented by the weapon's power.

== Weapon Statistics ==
[[Image:Sonic-BlastaRifle.gif|right]]

'''Sonic Blasta Rifle'''
* Size: 3 high x 1 wide
* Firing Accuracy:
** 75% Snapshot
** 110% Aimed

* Firing Cost:
** 40% Snapshot
** 60% Aimed

* Selling Cost: $126,500
* Build Cost: $88,000 plus:
** Technician Hrs: 820
** Workshop Space: 4
** Aqua Plastics: 1
** Zrbite: 0

== Ammo Statistics ==
[[Image:Sonic-BlastaRifleClip.gif|right]]

'''Sonic Blasta Rifle Clip'''
* Size: 1 high x 1 wide
* Damage: 95 Sonic
* Ammo Capacity: 15
* Selling Cost: $6,290
* Build Cost: $3,000 plus:
** Technician Hrs: 80
** Workshop Space: 4
** Aqua Plastics: 0
** Zrbite: 2

== Sonic Pistol -v- Sonic Rifle Comparison ==

The comparison between Sonic Pistols and Sonic Rifles comes down to a matter of efficency. In a situation where Sonic Rifle clips are in abundance, using the Blasta Rifle as a mainstay weapon is an extremely effective choice even until the endgame, due to the fact that they posess just enough extra firepower over a pistol to bring down tougher aliens in a single round of fire from one soldier, and do so with an extremely high degree of accuracy. Pistols are effective, but not as effective, except when fired far more often, due to a slightly lowered damage and accuracy. Both are excessively strong against Aquatoids, but against Gillmen the Rifle's increased firepower gives it an edge in efficency. The advantage both have over the Sonic Cannon is increased rate of fire. You can rarely expect to get more than a single shot from a Cannon per turn, and on most targets that single shot is either overkill or not quite enough, and multiple shots from the weaker weapons acutally provide more firepower per turn.

In total firepower per turn, with minor movement, you can expect three snapshots from a Pistol, two from a Rifle, and one from a Cannon. In terms of accurate fire, the rifle provides slightly better accuracy while allowing for minor movement, and also offers an extremely accurate Aimed shot. The Blasta sits between the accuracy of the Sonic Cannon and the raw per-turn firepower of the Sonic Pistol. Depending on the accuracy of the soldier in question, either of the two extremes may be preferable, but the Rifle is a dependable and accurate, with enough shots per turn to account for a miss, and enough accuracy at a low TU cost to give the mobility needed to fire from cover.

Rarely does the supply of Blasta clips dry up in the conflict. However, should ammunition stores for the pistol and rifle become low enough that they must be engineered, and it is decided not to replace them with Sonic Cannons, it's a common choice to give up the Rifle and make Sonic Pistol ammo instead. A rifle clip costs 2 Zrbite to create, and yields 15 shots in a rifle, while a pistol clip costs 1 Zrbite and yields 20 shots. For the same amount of Zrbite, you choose between 15 and 40 shots, which makes the decision fairly clear as to which is the most cost effective. Even with the Pistol's lower accuracy and reduction in firepower requiring extra shots be taken, that is more than double the amount of shots of two weapons with nearly identical firepower.



==See Also==
* [[Blasta Power Clip]]
* [[Weapons (TFTD)|Weapons]]
* [[Sonic Pistol]]
* [[Sonic Cannon]]

{{Equipment (TFTD) Navbar}}

User:Covenant

2008-12-12T01:27:28Z

Covenant: New page: I ran a Superhuman Ironman of TFTD on the Penny Arcade forums before they crashed. It was pretty epic. The key to my success, losing less then ten soldiers (most of which on the last, ru...

I ran a Superhuman Ironman of TFTD on the Penny Arcade forums before they crashed. It was pretty epic. The key to my success, losing less then ten soldiers (most of which on the last, rushed mission) was flares, grenades, SWAT-tactics and tanks tanks tanks!

Psionics

2008-12-12T01:26:02Z

Covenant: /* Re-assign. */

== Psionic Aliens ==
[[Sectoid]] Leaders, [[Sectoid]] Commanders, and all [[Ethereal]]s, have Psionic abilities to create Panic (reduce [[Morale]]) or attempt [[Mind Control]]. Be very wary. Murphy's Law says the first soldier to succumb to Mind Control will be in the perfect position to shoot your squad in the back with a [[Rocket Launcher]].

If an alien spots any member of your squad, even the tank, during the alien turn, the squad is at risk of attack. The weak soldiers will be targeted most often, and will likely be nicknamed "psi-puppets" by their teammates, if anyone survives. Any soldiers found to be psi-weak should be taken off the combat roster and given base-defense duty -- or just fired outright.

== Countering psionic attacks and tactics: ==
=== Re-assign. ===
The former doctrine on psionically attacked soldiers also applies to soldiers who have been psionically screened. Namely, soldiers weak in psi-strength or who have become victims of psionic attack should be sacked or re-assigned at the earliest opportunity for the safety of the rest of the squad. If retained on active duty they should never be knowingly sent on missions against psionic capable aliens.
Veteran soldiers who are psionically weak but otherwise worth keeping can be assigned to a secondary craft or interception base, strictly for use on missions against [[Muton]]s and other non-psionic aliens.

''[[User:JellyfishGreen|JellyfishGreen]]: I tried jotting down the names of the puppets as a reminder to fire them later, or use as decoys.''

''[[User:Covenant|Covenant]]: Another good way is to go right from the mission's conclusion to the soldier menu and add a symbol or word to their name so it is instantly recognizable who got mind controlled, and who successfully resisted. Handy for picking subjects for psi-training before you know their strength levels.''

=== Disarm. ===
Some commanders forgo any chance of reaction fire, and have all soldiers drop their weapons at the end of the turn and pick them up on the next turn. Should any soldiers be mind-controlled in the intervening alien turn, at least they'll be unarmed.

=== Decoys. ===
Zombie's experimental results tell us the soldier with the lowest psi-strength is '''always''' chosen as the victim in a psionic attack, even if he's out of line-of-sight of either enemy or ally. The game AI is skipping any LOS requirement. - Psi-puppet soldiers should NOT be used as alien hunters. Disarm them as soon as possible, preferentially '''before the mission'''.

If such soldiers are deployed against psionic capable aliens, they may still have use in limited roles. Do not give them any weapons or grenades. Well, maybe smoke grenades.

# Unarmed medic or equipment operator. If controlled, they cannot injure other soldiers. If panicked, they'll drop the equipment.
# Non-lethal weaponry. [[Stun Rod]]s or stun guns again prevent injury of other soldiers but the risk of control and loss of tactical advantage remains.
# '''Decoy'''. The unarmed soldier lets themself get mind-controlled rather than shot. If they are under mind control, the soldier will often be spared by the alien. Every mind-control attack on the "decoy" is one less attack on the rest of the squad and one more psionic alien kept busy. Note your other soldiers may shoot a controlled decoy on sight, and the aliens will shoot a panicked decoy on sight. An extremely risky tactic for the soldier but survival can be extended by blockading the decoy into a closet with other soldiers or tanks and turning your back to them.
# Launcher Operators. Simply a soldier with a launcher and no ammo. The soldier either stands on a pile of ammunition, or is handed the ammunition on demand in combat. Once the weapon is loaded, the round is immediately spent before the end of the turn. This way, if controlled, the soldier will have an empty weapon and thus be harmless. This allows the weak willed soldier to contribute somewhat to the fight whenever you regain control of them.

If there are two or more psionic aliens, you may need more decoys to keep them all busy.

''[[User:Stubbs|Stubbs]]: According to the Mind Control section of this wiki, XCOM operatives do not reaction fire at mind-controlled friendlies. Which is correct?''

=== Kill the puppetmaster. ===
Find and kill the alien doing the mind control. This will free those who were under its control. The mind controller is frequently the highest-ranking alien you're facing, which means you'll likely need to penetrate the command center of the structure you're facing.

Remember that killing the aliens' ranking officers imposes a major morale penalty to the invaders, another bonus that shouldn't be underestimated. Many commanders have seen a seemingly invincible, mind-controlling attack force reduced to panic in the instant their commander is shot down. Even against Ethereals, all of which have psionic capability, this tactic is useful, since it will often buy you a round or two before other units start using Psionics and can panic even them.

=== Must... Fight... Harder... DIE! ===
If you can force a very successful round of attacks, the morale penalty this imposes on the aliens may bring on panic, or at least enough disarray to bring a temporary stop to their psionic attacks. Such a round also raises the morale of your own troops, which gives them a greater degree of psionic resistance.

=== Roll with it. ===
Kamikaze tactics have also been used but cannot be recommended here.

HWP's can continue to be used in all roles against psionic capable forces as they are immune.

Heavy Support Weaponry ([[Blaster Launcher]]s, [[Rocket Launcher]]s) should only be assigned to soldiers with high psionic strength to prevent its counteruse.

If all forces are equipped with [[Power Suit]], which is proof against light ballistic weaponry, standard rifles and pistols can be freely issued with little risk of lethality even if counterused. Note [[Ethereal]]s are less affected by these weapons than [[Sectoid]]s. For them, we recommend the [[Auto Cannon]]/HE.

''- JFG, with credits to the adventurous NKF-sensei whose field reports I freely draw from. --[[User:JellyfishGreen|JellyfishGreen]] 14:50, 19 Apr 2005 (BST)''

''-Jasonred: In fact, you can safely issue them [[Laser Pistol]]s if you're all armed with Flying Suits, possibly Powered Armor is enough. And as duly noted, Laser Weapons are Not Too Shabby.''

''-[[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]]: In my experience, laser pistols can hurt you in flying suits. Specifically, if you're shot in the back. So they are great for "firing squads" (all your guys facing MC'd aliens), but not when aliens might MC you. (And don't turn your back when doing a firing squad!)''

''-[[User:NKF|NKF]]: " Just to add to this, a laser pistol, with 46 laser, does between 0 - 92 damage (See: [[Damage]]). Therefore, only your front plates will be truly invulnerable to laser pistol damage. On the other hand, you have a chance of being damaged from pretty much ''every other direction'', and you cannot always guarantee that you'll be facing your attacker at all times. The only real consolation is that laser pistols won't kill you outright for each hit, but lots of little hits can indeed build up to a lot of damage. I'd much rather recommend an autocannon/HE or the standard pistols/rifles for this exercise. Direct hits from the ACHE can probably cause a tiny amount of damage, but the ammo will not be unlimited like the laser pistol, and the autocannon is also the slowest burst weapon in the game, despite its name, which gives you time to get away and seek cover. Another bonus is that it works a lot better on superhuman ethereals than the pistol/rifle! " ''

== Psionic Soldiers ==

You won't know exactly what your soldiers' psionic resistance or skills are until you build a [[Psionic Laboratory|Psi Lab]] and run them through a screening process (in batches of 10). Soldiers with a high [[Psi Strength]] (80 or higher) should be trained further and kept in the "rear guard" during combat. Do ''not'' use them as scouts, or front line troops -- they will soon become your most valuable soldiers.

After a month or two of Psi training, your best soldiers will be able to mind-control weaker aliens, such as [[Muton]]s. Your soldiers' Psi Skill can be increased very quickly by equipping them with [[Psi-Amp]]s, leaving them in the [[Skyranger]], and having them attempt to panic units every chance they get. See [[Experience Training#Psionic Skill training]] for more details.

===My New Pet Alien===
Some skilled psionic operators have had success with simply attempting control of every alien encountered and disarming them, then using the controlled alien as a scout to find more aliens, then controlling the newly discovered alien as a new scout and leaving the old one for a mop-up squad, repeat process as TU's permit. Once you start taking control of aliens that are psionic ''themselves'', this has a certain '''avalanche effect''' as you can spend the alien's TU's on mind control as well. As noted in [[ExploitsB#Exponential_Mind_Control|Exploits]] you '''do''' have to throw them a spare Psi-Amp to take advantage of this.

Easiest actions with a controlled unit are movement and firing or dropping the held weapon. It is possible but tricky to do more (see [[Known Bugs#Alien Inventory Trick|Alien Inventory Trick]].) Disarmed aliens make for excellent [[Experience Training]] fodder.

Remember aliens will revert to alien control unless re-aquired on the next turn.

Oddities: [[Large units]]; [[Gaining permanent control of a Chryssalid/Tentaculat]]

== Psionic Formulas ==

The equations governing psionics are as follows:

'''Attack Strength (AS)''' = INT( Psi Strength * Psi Skill / 50 ) ''Attacker stats
'''Defense Strength (DS)''' = INT( Psi Strength + ( Psi Skill / 5 ) ) ''Defender stats

'''Attack Success (A%)''' = 100/56 * ( Constant + AS - DS - Distance )

''where''
Constant = '''25''' for Mind Control
'''45''' for Panic

Attack Chance (A%) is a number (0 to 100), not an actual percent (0.00 to 1.00). Values less than 0 mean guaranteed failure, and greater than 100 mean guaranteed success.

These formulas differ slightly from the ones that appear in the [[Links#X-COM:_General|Official Strategy Guide]], but have been discovered through testing and are believed to be correct.

The further away a target is from its attacker, the lower the chance an attack will succeed. Distance follows the "walking TUs" method, where a distance 10 tiles directly lateral equals 10 in the equation, but diagonal distances are more. For example, 10 tiles away on a pure diagonal is considered to be 15 tiles away; see [[Explosions#Distance_From_Ground_Zero|this]] for more on Walking TUs distance. The distance factor means that beyond a certain point, aliens can only panic certain units, not mind-control them.

Overall, it's clear that [[Psi Strength]] plays the greatest factor in defense, and that Panic Attacks are more likely to succeed. But Mind Control is much more... useful.

For an in-depth exploration of the psionic equations, including minimally and maximally effective soldier psi values versus the various aliens in the game, see [[Psionic Equations]].

== Walk-through for a Psi Attack ==

A number of factors affect the results you might see, especially for panic attacks. Here's a walk-through to make everything clear.

For the '''Psi Attack itself''', only these factors matter:
* The Psi Attack Strength of the attacker; both Psi Strength and Psi Skill matter here (see equation)
* The Psi Defense Strength of the target; mainly Psi Strength matters here, but high Psi Skill helps a little
* The distance to target
Nothing else matters - the target's current [[Morale]] or [[Bravery]], etc., do not affect the chance of a successful psi attack. The Psionic Formula alone determines the chance. It is described briefly above, and in much greater depth [[Psionic_Equations|here]].

If the attack is successful, the soldier gets 3 [[Experience]] points added to the counter that determines how much Psi Skill might [[Psi_Skill#Improvement|improve]] when the mission ends. If the attack fails, they only get 1 point added to the counter. This is the only result of failed attempts; the target is not affected in any way by a failed attempt (but the attacker just ate some TUs, of course).

Past the fact that different soldiers are likely to have different attack skills and distances to a target, it does not matter if one soldier performs a number of attacks, or many soldiers perform one attack. Each attack is simply one attack, and each attack gives experience even if the target is already panicked to 0 Morale.

If you performed a successful ''mind control'' attack, the target is immediately MCed - and you can '''stop reading the walk-through here'''. But if you want to understand more about successful ''panic'' attacks, '''continue reading'''.

A '''successful panic attack''' has the result that the target loses [[Morale]] points equal to 110 - their [[Bravery]] (but it can't go lower than 0, of course). Some related info:
* All soldiers and aliens start battle with a [[Morale]] of 100.
* [[Raw_recruit_statistical_likelihood|Recruits]] have [[Bravery]] from 10 to 60. The maximum possible value is 100.
* Thus, a successful panic attack can cause a soldier to lose from 10 to 100 Morale: 10 if they were a superman at 100 Bravery, and 100 if they were a wimp with 10 Bravery.
* '''All''' non-terrorist aliens have a Bravery of 80 [http://www.strategycore.co.uk/xcom/pg/ufoalienstats regardless of game difficulty level], which means they lose 30 Morale with each successful attack. Terrorists have values as follows:
** 90: Celatid, Reaper
** 100: Cryssalid, Silacoid
** 110: Cyberdisc, Sectopod ''(although you can "successfully" panic attack an alien robot, as shown by the experience counter, it can't actually affect them!)''
* While 30 Morale may not seem like a lot (and 80 Bravery may seem high), remember that the chance of a successful attack is based mainly on the target's [[Psi Strength]]; Bravery is not involved at all. And, as the psionic formula shows, it is easier to panic a target than to MC it... panic has a 20% higher chance, due to the difference in the formula's constants.
* The amount subtracted from Morale is not subject to chance or variability, for a given target. It is always exactly 110 - Bravery. The variability comes from whether the attack was successful (above), and whether the demoralized target misses its panic roll (below).

Units have a chance of [[Morale#Panicking_and_Berserking|panicking]] (or [[berserk]]ing) if their morale drops below 50. There is a 100% (guaranteed) chance if at 0 Morale, up to a 0% chance at 50. Equation: Chance = 100 - (2 x Morale)
* Panic attacks do not give any success or failure message. Here are some ways to see their Morale:
** Use a [[Mind Probe]]. It is not psi dependent, so psi-locked soldiers (not trained in the [[Psi Lab]] yet) can check the success of soldiers with low Psi Skill (and thus a low chance of inducing panic) when you first get Psi capability. But remember, the Mind Probe does not give psi experience.
** You can MC the alien and look at his stats. But this would freeze him for the current turn, and, of course, if you are able to MC, many won't bother with panic.
** If really determined, you can look at [[UNITREF.DAT]] offset [80] for the alien. Mainly only [[HackerTools|hackers]] or testers would do this, though.
* Also, working through the Psionic Formula for a few cases can give you a feel for how likely success is - i.e., how likely it is that you caused the alien to lose 30 Morale points. Even in the best case, though, a target must be attacked at least twice to have any chance at all of panicking, and at least 4 times to have a possibility of being at 0 Morale.
* If a unit panics or berserks, it always regains 15 Morale when done.
* Also bear in mind that [[Morale#Events_which_Affect_Morale|a number of other events]] can also cause units to lose, or even gain, morale.
* For the record, units go [[berserk]] about a third of the time that they panic/berserk.
* Anyone interested in more details on the chance of being successfully psi attacked by aliens should see [[Psionic_Equations#Aliens_Vs._X-COM]].

== Summary of Alien Psionic Resistance ==

'''Figures are for (any rank)/Leader/Commander, Beginner level - Superhuman level'''

Fractional portion (if any) is rounded off.

'''Floater:''' 35/40/45 - 40/46/52
'''Snakeman:''' 40/45/50 - 46/52/58
'''Sectoid:''' 40/60/62 - 46/70/72
'''Ethereal:''' 58/69/75 - 67/79/89
'''Muton:''' 25 - 29
'''Reaper:''' 35 - 40
'''Chryssalid:''' 50 - 58
'''Celatid:''' 60 - 69
'''Silacoid:''' 80 - 92
'''Zombie:''' 80 (all Zombies have Beginner-level stats)
'''Cyberdisc:''' 100 - 116
'''Sectopod:''' 100 - 116

A soldier with 80 Psi Strength & Skill can Mind Control even a Superhuman Sectopod 20 squares distant about 30% of the time; a soldier with 90 Str and 100 Skill will succeed 100% of the time at that distance. Each unit of distance between the target and attacker will increase the difficulty by about 1.8% (or, if nearer, decrease it).

== Summary of Alien Psionic Attack Strength ==

'''Figures are for Beginner level - Superhuman level'''

Fractional portion (if any) is rounded off.

'''Sectoid Leader:''' 50 - 67
'''Sectoid Commander:''' 60 - 80
'''Ethereal Soldier:''' 40 - 53
'''Ethereal Leader:''' 54 - 71
'''Ethereal Commander:''' 65 - 87

Given the formulas above, this means your soldiers need a psionic Defense Strength of 131 to be completely immune to a psi panic attack from a Superhuman Ethereal Commander, and a Defense of 111 to be immune to Mind Control attacks. A Defense Strength of 131 can only be achieved with very high Psi Strength ''and'' Skill (100 PStr + 155 PSk; 90 PStr + 205 PSk; etc.). However, aliens are typically going to be 10 or more squares distant from your troops, and if you give your troops extensive [[Bravery#Improvement|Bravery training]], panic attacks become far less effective. Therefore, a Defense Strength of 100 plus Bravery at 80+ is generally sufficient to shrug off nearly all psionic attacks; this can be achieved by soldiers with a Psi Strength of 80 + Skill of 100, or even soldiers with 95-100 Psi Strength and little to no psi training.

The best defense is a good offense, however; by the time you have such high-level Psi troops, you will probably be able to mind-control nearly any unit on the map long before they can even spot you (see [[ExploitsB#Exponential_Mind_Control|Exponential Mind Control]]).

== Alien Psionics Targeting ==

If any of your squad members, even a [[HWP]], is visible to any alien during the Alien Turn, every member of your squad is at risk of attack from any psionic aliens, regardless of whether the spotter is psionic. It should be noted that once you pass Turn 20, all of your squad members and their locations are revealed to the AI. This means you can expect a steady stream of psionic attacks after that turn. Your soldiers are also revealed to the AI if there are only two or less units under permanent Alien control.

==See Also==

*[[Field Manual: Psionics]]
*[[Psionic Laboratory|Psi-Lab]]
*[[Psi-Amp]]
*[[Mind Shield]]
*[[Mind Probe]]
*[[Experience]]
*[[Experience Training]]
*[[Molecular Control]]

[[Category:Soldiers]]

Psionics

2008-12-12T01:24:51Z

Covenant: /* Re-assign. */

== Psionic Aliens ==
[[Sectoid]] Leaders, [[Sectoid]] Commanders, and all [[Ethereal]]s, have Psionic abilities to create Panic (reduce [[Morale]]) or attempt [[Mind Control]]. Be very wary. Murphy's Law says the first soldier to succumb to Mind Control will be in the perfect position to shoot your squad in the back with a [[Rocket Launcher]].

If an alien spots any member of your squad, even the tank, during the alien turn, the squad is at risk of attack. The weak soldiers will be targeted most often, and will likely be nicknamed "psi-puppets" by their teammates, if anyone survives. Any soldiers found to be psi-weak should be taken off the combat roster and given base-defense duty -- or just fired outright.

== Countering psionic attacks and tactics: ==
=== Re-assign. ===
The former doctrine on psionically attacked soldiers also applies to soldiers who have been psionically screened. Namely, soldiers weak in psi-strength or who have become victims of psionic attack should be sacked or re-assigned at the earliest opportunity for the safety of the rest of the squad. If retained on active duty they should never be knowingly sent on missions against psionic capable aliens.
Veteran soldiers who are psionically weak but otherwise worth keeping can be assigned to a secondary craft or interception base, strictly for use on missions against [[Muton]]s and other non-psionic aliens.

''[[User:JellyfishGreen|JellyfishGreen]]: I tried jotting down the names of the puppets as a reminder to fire them later, or use as decoys.''

''[[User:Covenant|Covenant]] 19:24, 11 December 2008 (CST): Another good way is to go right from the mission's conclusion to the soldier menu and add a symbol or word to their name so it is instantly recognizable who got mind controlled, and who successfully resisted. Handy for picking subjects for psi-training before you know their strength levels.''

=== Disarm. ===
Some commanders forgo any chance of reaction fire, and have all soldiers drop their weapons at the end of the turn and pick them up on the next turn. Should any soldiers be mind-controlled in the intervening alien turn, at least they'll be unarmed.

=== Decoys. ===
Zombie's experimental results tell us the soldier with the lowest psi-strength is '''always''' chosen as the victim in a psionic attack, even if he's out of line-of-sight of either enemy or ally. The game AI is skipping any LOS requirement. - Psi-puppet soldiers should NOT be used as alien hunters. Disarm them as soon as possible, preferentially '''before the mission'''.

If such soldiers are deployed against psionic capable aliens, they may still have use in limited roles. Do not give them any weapons or grenades. Well, maybe smoke grenades.

# Unarmed medic or equipment operator. If controlled, they cannot injure other soldiers. If panicked, they'll drop the equipment.
# Non-lethal weaponry. [[Stun Rod]]s or stun guns again prevent injury of other soldiers but the risk of control and loss of tactical advantage remains.
# '''Decoy'''. The unarmed soldier lets themself get mind-controlled rather than shot. If they are under mind control, the soldier will often be spared by the alien. Every mind-control attack on the "decoy" is one less attack on the rest of the squad and one more psionic alien kept busy. Note your other soldiers may shoot a controlled decoy on sight, and the aliens will shoot a panicked decoy on sight. An extremely risky tactic for the soldier but survival can be extended by blockading the decoy into a closet with other soldiers or tanks and turning your back to them.
# Launcher Operators. Simply a soldier with a launcher and no ammo. The soldier either stands on a pile of ammunition, or is handed the ammunition on demand in combat. Once the weapon is loaded, the round is immediately spent before the end of the turn. This way, if controlled, the soldier will have an empty weapon and thus be harmless. This allows the weak willed soldier to contribute somewhat to the fight whenever you regain control of them.

If there are two or more psionic aliens, you may need more decoys to keep them all busy.

''[[User:Stubbs|Stubbs]]: According to the Mind Control section of this wiki, XCOM operatives do not reaction fire at mind-controlled friendlies. Which is correct?''

=== Kill the puppetmaster. ===
Find and kill the alien doing the mind control. This will free those who were under its control. The mind controller is frequently the highest-ranking alien you're facing, which means you'll likely need to penetrate the command center of the structure you're facing.

Remember that killing the aliens' ranking officers imposes a major morale penalty to the invaders, another bonus that shouldn't be underestimated. Many commanders have seen a seemingly invincible, mind-controlling attack force reduced to panic in the instant their commander is shot down. Even against Ethereals, all of which have psionic capability, this tactic is useful, since it will often buy you a round or two before other units start using Psionics and can panic even them.

=== Must... Fight... Harder... DIE! ===
If you can force a very successful round of attacks, the morale penalty this imposes on the aliens may bring on panic, or at least enough disarray to bring a temporary stop to their psionic attacks. Such a round also raises the morale of your own troops, which gives them a greater degree of psionic resistance.

=== Roll with it. ===
Kamikaze tactics have also been used but cannot be recommended here.

HWP's can continue to be used in all roles against psionic capable forces as they are immune.

Heavy Support Weaponry ([[Blaster Launcher]]s, [[Rocket Launcher]]s) should only be assigned to soldiers with high psionic strength to prevent its counteruse.

If all forces are equipped with [[Power Suit]], which is proof against light ballistic weaponry, standard rifles and pistols can be freely issued with little risk of lethality even if counterused. Note [[Ethereal]]s are less affected by these weapons than [[Sectoid]]s. For them, we recommend the [[Auto Cannon]]/HE.

''- JFG, with credits to the adventurous NKF-sensei whose field reports I freely draw from. --[[User:JellyfishGreen|JellyfishGreen]] 14:50, 19 Apr 2005 (BST)''

''-Jasonred: In fact, you can safely issue them [[Laser Pistol]]s if you're all armed with Flying Suits, possibly Powered Armor is enough. And as duly noted, Laser Weapons are Not Too Shabby.''

''-[[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]]: In my experience, laser pistols can hurt you in flying suits. Specifically, if you're shot in the back. So they are great for "firing squads" (all your guys facing MC'd aliens), but not when aliens might MC you. (And don't turn your back when doing a firing squad!)''

''-[[User:NKF|NKF]]: " Just to add to this, a laser pistol, with 46 laser, does between 0 - 92 damage (See: [[Damage]]). Therefore, only your front plates will be truly invulnerable to laser pistol damage. On the other hand, you have a chance of being damaged from pretty much ''every other direction'', and you cannot always guarantee that you'll be facing your attacker at all times. The only real consolation is that laser pistols won't kill you outright for each hit, but lots of little hits can indeed build up to a lot of damage. I'd much rather recommend an autocannon/HE or the standard pistols/rifles for this exercise. Direct hits from the ACHE can probably cause a tiny amount of damage, but the ammo will not be unlimited like the laser pistol, and the autocannon is also the slowest burst weapon in the game, despite its name, which gives you time to get away and seek cover. Another bonus is that it works a lot better on superhuman ethereals than the pistol/rifle! " ''

== Psionic Soldiers ==

You won't know exactly what your soldiers' psionic resistance or skills are until you build a [[Psionic Laboratory|Psi Lab]] and run them through a screening process (in batches of 10). Soldiers with a high [[Psi Strength]] (80 or higher) should be trained further and kept in the "rear guard" during combat. Do ''not'' use them as scouts, or front line troops -- they will soon become your most valuable soldiers.

After a month or two of Psi training, your best soldiers will be able to mind-control weaker aliens, such as [[Muton]]s. Your soldiers' Psi Skill can be increased very quickly by equipping them with [[Psi-Amp]]s, leaving them in the [[Skyranger]], and having them attempt to panic units every chance they get. See [[Experience Training#Psionic Skill training]] for more details.

===My New Pet Alien===
Some skilled psionic operators have had success with simply attempting control of every alien encountered and disarming them, then using the controlled alien as a scout to find more aliens, then controlling the newly discovered alien as a new scout and leaving the old one for a mop-up squad, repeat process as TU's permit. Once you start taking control of aliens that are psionic ''themselves'', this has a certain '''avalanche effect''' as you can spend the alien's TU's on mind control as well. As noted in [[ExploitsB#Exponential_Mind_Control|Exploits]] you '''do''' have to throw them a spare Psi-Amp to take advantage of this.

Easiest actions with a controlled unit are movement and firing or dropping the held weapon. It is possible but tricky to do more (see [[Known Bugs#Alien Inventory Trick|Alien Inventory Trick]].) Disarmed aliens make for excellent [[Experience Training]] fodder.

Remember aliens will revert to alien control unless re-aquired on the next turn.

Oddities: [[Large units]]; [[Gaining permanent control of a Chryssalid/Tentaculat]]

== Psionic Formulas ==

The equations governing psionics are as follows:

'''Attack Strength (AS)''' = INT( Psi Strength * Psi Skill / 50 ) ''Attacker stats
'''Defense Strength (DS)''' = INT( Psi Strength + ( Psi Skill / 5 ) ) ''Defender stats

'''Attack Success (A%)''' = 100/56 * ( Constant + AS - DS - Distance )

''where''
Constant = '''25''' for Mind Control
'''45''' for Panic

Attack Chance (A%) is a number (0 to 100), not an actual percent (0.00 to 1.00). Values less than 0 mean guaranteed failure, and greater than 100 mean guaranteed success.

These formulas differ slightly from the ones that appear in the [[Links#X-COM:_General|Official Strategy Guide]], but have been discovered through testing and are believed to be correct.

The further away a target is from its attacker, the lower the chance an attack will succeed. Distance follows the "walking TUs" method, where a distance 10 tiles directly lateral equals 10 in the equation, but diagonal distances are more. For example, 10 tiles away on a pure diagonal is considered to be 15 tiles away; see [[Explosions#Distance_From_Ground_Zero|this]] for more on Walking TUs distance. The distance factor means that beyond a certain point, aliens can only panic certain units, not mind-control them.

Overall, it's clear that [[Psi Strength]] plays the greatest factor in defense, and that Panic Attacks are more likely to succeed. But Mind Control is much more... useful.

For an in-depth exploration of the psionic equations, including minimally and maximally effective soldier psi values versus the various aliens in the game, see [[Psionic Equations]].

== Walk-through for a Psi Attack ==

A number of factors affect the results you might see, especially for panic attacks. Here's a walk-through to make everything clear.

For the '''Psi Attack itself''', only these factors matter:
* The Psi Attack Strength of the attacker; both Psi Strength and Psi Skill matter here (see equation)
* The Psi Defense Strength of the target; mainly Psi Strength matters here, but high Psi Skill helps a little
* The distance to target
Nothing else matters - the target's current [[Morale]] or [[Bravery]], etc., do not affect the chance of a successful psi attack. The Psionic Formula alone determines the chance. It is described briefly above, and in much greater depth [[Psionic_Equations|here]].

If the attack is successful, the soldier gets 3 [[Experience]] points added to the counter that determines how much Psi Skill might [[Psi_Skill#Improvement|improve]] when the mission ends. If the attack fails, they only get 1 point added to the counter. This is the only result of failed attempts; the target is not affected in any way by a failed attempt (but the attacker just ate some TUs, of course).

Past the fact that different soldiers are likely to have different attack skills and distances to a target, it does not matter if one soldier performs a number of attacks, or many soldiers perform one attack. Each attack is simply one attack, and each attack gives experience even if the target is already panicked to 0 Morale.

If you performed a successful ''mind control'' attack, the target is immediately MCed - and you can '''stop reading the walk-through here'''. But if you want to understand more about successful ''panic'' attacks, '''continue reading'''.

A '''successful panic attack''' has the result that the target loses [[Morale]] points equal to 110 - their [[Bravery]] (but it can't go lower than 0, of course). Some related info:
* All soldiers and aliens start battle with a [[Morale]] of 100.
* [[Raw_recruit_statistical_likelihood|Recruits]] have [[Bravery]] from 10 to 60. The maximum possible value is 100.
* Thus, a successful panic attack can cause a soldier to lose from 10 to 100 Morale: 10 if they were a superman at 100 Bravery, and 100 if they were a wimp with 10 Bravery.
* '''All''' non-terrorist aliens have a Bravery of 80 [http://www.strategycore.co.uk/xcom/pg/ufoalienstats regardless of game difficulty level], which means they lose 30 Morale with each successful attack. Terrorists have values as follows:
** 90: Celatid, Reaper
** 100: Cryssalid, Silacoid
** 110: Cyberdisc, Sectopod ''(although you can "successfully" panic attack an alien robot, as shown by the experience counter, it can't actually affect them!)''
* While 30 Morale may not seem like a lot (and 80 Bravery may seem high), remember that the chance of a successful attack is based mainly on the target's [[Psi Strength]]; Bravery is not involved at all. And, as the psionic formula shows, it is easier to panic a target than to MC it... panic has a 20% higher chance, due to the difference in the formula's constants.
* The amount subtracted from Morale is not subject to chance or variability, for a given target. It is always exactly 110 - Bravery. The variability comes from whether the attack was successful (above), and whether the demoralized target misses its panic roll (below).

Units have a chance of [[Morale#Panicking_and_Berserking|panicking]] (or [[berserk]]ing) if their morale drops below 50. There is a 100% (guaranteed) chance if at 0 Morale, up to a 0% chance at 50. Equation: Chance = 100 - (2 x Morale)
* Panic attacks do not give any success or failure message. Here are some ways to see their Morale:
** Use a [[Mind Probe]]. It is not psi dependent, so psi-locked soldiers (not trained in the [[Psi Lab]] yet) can check the success of soldiers with low Psi Skill (and thus a low chance of inducing panic) when you first get Psi capability. But remember, the Mind Probe does not give psi experience.
** You can MC the alien and look at his stats. But this would freeze him for the current turn, and, of course, if you are able to MC, many won't bother with panic.
** If really determined, you can look at [[UNITREF.DAT]] offset [80] for the alien. Mainly only [[HackerTools|hackers]] or testers would do this, though.
* Also, working through the Psionic Formula for a few cases can give you a feel for how likely success is - i.e., how likely it is that you caused the alien to lose 30 Morale points. Even in the best case, though, a target must be attacked at least twice to have any chance at all of panicking, and at least 4 times to have a possibility of being at 0 Morale.
* If a unit panics or berserks, it always regains 15 Morale when done.
* Also bear in mind that [[Morale#Events_which_Affect_Morale|a number of other events]] can also cause units to lose, or even gain, morale.
* For the record, units go [[berserk]] about a third of the time that they panic/berserk.
* Anyone interested in more details on the chance of being successfully psi attacked by aliens should see [[Psionic_Equations#Aliens_Vs._X-COM]].

== Summary of Alien Psionic Resistance ==

'''Figures are for (any rank)/Leader/Commander, Beginner level - Superhuman level'''

Fractional portion (if any) is rounded off.

'''Floater:''' 35/40/45 - 40/46/52
'''Snakeman:''' 40/45/50 - 46/52/58
'''Sectoid:''' 40/60/62 - 46/70/72
'''Ethereal:''' 58/69/75 - 67/79/89
'''Muton:''' 25 - 29
'''Reaper:''' 35 - 40
'''Chryssalid:''' 50 - 58
'''Celatid:''' 60 - 69
'''Silacoid:''' 80 - 92
'''Zombie:''' 80 (all Zombies have Beginner-level stats)
'''Cyberdisc:''' 100 - 116
'''Sectopod:''' 100 - 116

A soldier with 80 Psi Strength & Skill can Mind Control even a Superhuman Sectopod 20 squares distant about 30% of the time; a soldier with 90 Str and 100 Skill will succeed 100% of the time at that distance. Each unit of distance between the target and attacker will increase the difficulty by about 1.8% (or, if nearer, decrease it).

== Summary of Alien Psionic Attack Strength ==

'''Figures are for Beginner level - Superhuman level'''

Fractional portion (if any) is rounded off.

'''Sectoid Leader:''' 50 - 67
'''Sectoid Commander:''' 60 - 80
'''Ethereal Soldier:''' 40 - 53
'''Ethereal Leader:''' 54 - 71
'''Ethereal Commander:''' 65 - 87

Given the formulas above, this means your soldiers need a psionic Defense Strength of 131 to be completely immune to a psi panic attack from a Superhuman Ethereal Commander, and a Defense of 111 to be immune to Mind Control attacks. A Defense Strength of 131 can only be achieved with very high Psi Strength ''and'' Skill (100 PStr + 155 PSk; 90 PStr + 205 PSk; etc.). However, aliens are typically going to be 10 or more squares distant from your troops, and if you give your troops extensive [[Bravery#Improvement|Bravery training]], panic attacks become far less effective. Therefore, a Defense Strength of 100 plus Bravery at 80+ is generally sufficient to shrug off nearly all psionic attacks; this can be achieved by soldiers with a Psi Strength of 80 + Skill of 100, or even soldiers with 95-100 Psi Strength and little to no psi training.

The best defense is a good offense, however; by the time you have such high-level Psi troops, you will probably be able to mind-control nearly any unit on the map long before they can even spot you (see [[ExploitsB#Exponential_Mind_Control|Exponential Mind Control]]).

== Alien Psionics Targeting ==

If any of your squad members, even a [[HWP]], is visible to any alien during the Alien Turn, every member of your squad is at risk of attack from any psionic aliens, regardless of whether the spotter is psionic. It should be noted that once you pass Turn 20, all of your squad members and their locations are revealed to the AI. This means you can expect a steady stream of psionic attacks after that turn. Your soldiers are also revealed to the AI if there are only two or less units under permanent Alien control.

==See Also==

*[[Field Manual: Psionics]]
*[[Psionic Laboratory|Psi-Lab]]
*[[Psi-Amp]]
*[[Mind Shield]]
*[[Mind Probe]]
*[[Experience]]
*[[Experience Training]]
*[[Molecular Control]]

[[Category:Soldiers]]

Sectopod

2008-12-12T01:13:09Z

Covenant: /* Autopsy */

[[Image:sectopod.png|right|Sectopod]]
The '''Sectopod''' "Walker" is one of the most dangerous terror units X-COM has come up against. Their armour is nearly impervious to all weapons fire, but they appear to be vulnerable to [[Weapons#Laser Technology|lasers]].

Sectopods are seen in the company of [[Ethereal]]s in base defenses and terror missions. Beware, their weapon is a powerful laser with autofire capability, which can make short work of any enemy of the Sectopod in seconds.

== General Information ==
Every Sectopod is nearly completely identical and is built not only for self-sufficient commands and operation, but also psychic/psionic manipulation -- an Ethereal could potentially control a Sectopod as if it were it's own body, from millions of miles away.

If X-COM ground forces encounter Sectopods on Earth, it will usually be during a [[Base Defense]], [[Alien Base Assault]], or [[Terror Mission]]. Terror attacks by [[Ethereal]]s are the most dangerous for both [[Civilian]]s and X-COM units - apart from having to deal with their psionic abilities, we also have to fight against Sectopods.

==Statistics==
'''TUs:''' 62-71
'''Health:''' 96
'''Energy:''' 90-104
'''Reactions:''' 64-79
'''Strength:''' 90-97
'''Bravery:''' 110
'''Firing Accuracy:''' 30-70
'''Psi Skill:''' N/A
'''Psi Strength:''' 100-116

'''Damage:''' 100 Laser
'''Accuracy-'''
'''Snap:''' 75%
'''Auto:''' 50%
'''Aimed:''' 110%
'''TUs-'''
'''Snap:''' 30%
'''Auto:''' 35%
'''Aimed:''' 60%

== Autopsy ==
[[Image:sectopodautopsy.png|right|Sectopod, Disassembled]]
The Sectopod appears to be capable of self-sustained propulsion and attack. Its "brain", whilst small compared to modern electronics, is incredibly powerful. It is anywhere from 5 to 10, to even 20 times as powerful as standard Earth processors. This may be a machine, but it is a machine with near sentience although its intelligence is supressed so that it does not start thinking of its own accord.

There are signs of specialised biomechanical components, which may be used to psionically remotely control the Sectopod. Unlike the Sectoid's Cyberdisks, the Sectopod's power module is far more robust and as such, despite our best attempts, the module cannot and will not explode, except where immense amounts of energy are involved.

Whilst it is nearly impervious to most damage types, its "screen" has the "unfortunate" effect of amplifying lasers that strike, making them do considerable amounts of damage to the circuitry and mechanical "brain". The Sectopod is elerium powered.

[Jasonred] : The game explains that its "Sensing circuitry is particularly vulnerable to laser fire".

[--[[User:X-COM:Turcocalypse|X-COM:Turcocalypse]] 14:26, 15 April 2006 (PDT)] : Bad sci-fi idea,I laughed when I saw it first.Laser is after all,radiation stimulated super-dense light.If it's vulnerable to this,how can PLASMA,matter with 15000 Grad Celsius shrugged off?
:I guess that it's armor is thick enough that neither plasma's nor laser's heat would effect it. But spark from laser make it's sensor circuit mess-up and since it's quite powerful, Ethereal program it to shutdown the system once sensor damaged to prevent friendly-fire.
:[[User:Covenant|Covenant]] 19:13, 11 December 2008 (CST): Actually, lasers were planned for use in anti-ICBM space weapons platforms not because of the heat damage from a laser blowing up the missile, but because of the effect it has on sensing equipment. That makes this based in reality, though it should have also applied to all other sensing apparati as well. We have less of a clue how the alien weapons work since they are most certainly not a literal 'plasma' gun, so it's very possible the sensing circuts are shielded to common alien weapons but not to relatively rare lasers. Only other sectopods use lasers, afterall.

==Notes==

* Sectopods take 80% damage from high explosives and plasma, and 150% from laser. Combined with their strong armour, even the [[Heavy Plasma]] will have a very difficult time taking down a Sectopod - expect to expend many clips. Ideally the rear should be targeted, since it has a sizable 45 points less armour than the front. If you anticipate fighting Sectopods, dust off your old Heavy Lasers and bring as many as you can.

* Some commanders keep [[Tank/Laser Cannon]]s on hand to deal with Sectopods. The turret laser's high power, combined with the Sectopods vulnerability to lasers, encourages troops to keep Laser tanks on hand when they would otherwise be scrapped in favour of hovertanks.

* The extremely impressive under armor of the Sectopod(45 on Beginner, 90 at all other difficulties) combined with the resistance to explosives means that a Sectopod is immune to standard grenades, and has a fairly decent chance of shrugging off an Alien Grenade or High-Explosive pack even at ground zero. In fact, the only explosive weapon that has a chance of killing a non-beginner Sectopod in one hit is the mighty Blaster Bomb, and sometimes not even then.

* As a robot, a Sectopod has incredibly high Psi Strength, making it almost impossible to effectively use Psionics against it. However, if you do have a soldier strong enough to Mind-Control a Sectopod, by all means do so; it's basically like adding a tank to your troop roster for the turn. As an added bonus, because the Sectopod fires lasers, the fastest way to destroy a Sectopod is to partially MC it, and then have the MC'ed portions fire upon the non MC'ed portions.

* The Sectopod's turret, although masquerading as a plasma weapon, is really a laser weapon. This explains how the Sectopods can self-kill themselves so easily during partial mind control. A quickly-made-up excuse would be that they are 'green' lasers. Green lasers that fire thick globs of light.

* The only infantry weapons that are effective against the front and side armour of a Sectopod (or under armour, for explosives) are (in order of effectiveness) the Blaster Bomb, Stun Bomb, Heavy Laser, HE Pack, Heavy Plasma, Laser Rifle and Large Rocket. (Laser Pistols have a theoretical chance but it's almost nil.) On average a Heavy Laser will take down a Sectopod in about 3-5 hits, more at higher difficulty levels. A Blaster Bomb ought to take out the Sectopod in one direct hit (usually). A Stun Bomb is about fifty percent more effective, per hit, than a turn of fire from a Heavy Laser.And even the HE Pack, Heavy Plasma and Laser Rifle (about as good as each other) will only nibble away at it - the Rocket's nibbles are even smaller.

==See Also==
*[[Ethereal]]

[[Category:Alien life forms]]