UFOpaedia - User contributions [en]

Talk:Artefact Site

2012-08-29T19:09:41Z

Deadmeat313: /* THE SHORTCUT - A way to cheat a little. */

==Locked Hallucinoid?==
Hi everybody, I'm new here - and here's my new question.
I have recently completed two Artefact Site missions on Superhuman difficulty. In both of these missions (in second part) there was a Hallucinoid located far outside the map. I was able to find it by using XComUtil (SWP flag).

The question is as follows: can this Hallucinoid present there knowingly (by developers) to ensure that you will manually destroy the Synomium Device instead of just kill all the aliens? Or maybe this is just a bug of the Windows version of the game, or something like alien overflow on higher difficulties?

Thanks.

[[User:Player701|Player701]] 08:05, 29 June 2010 (EDT)

----

XComUtil sometimes generated X-COM units outside the boundaries of the map (I'm not sure if this has been corrected on the latest version), so it is possible that it is simply an XComUtil generated bug. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 08:25, 29 June 2010 (EDT)

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I know that, but I haven't used XComUtil before. I have installed it just to find that last alien, so this bug can't be related to XComUtil. And I have installed it in another game directory, so it couldn't corrupt my save files. [[User:Player701|Player701]] 10:05, 29 June 2010 (EDT)

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If you upload the save file (here for eg: [[Image:Out_of_bounds_Hallucinoid.zip]]), I could take a look at it. I would guess the map ran out of spawn nodes (higher difficulty = more aliens to place on the map). - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 23:24, 29 June 2010 (EDT)

----

There are a few maps in TFTD where large units may end up spawned in odd locations, probably due to what Bomb Bloke mentioned. Actually, in one odd example I helped troubleshoot a while back was a Xarquid that was stuck in the cargo hold shaft at the front of the boat in a shipping lane mission. Since it cannot be breached even by alien weapons, it made the first map impossible to complete without aborting. As for the aliens getting stuck in walls in the colonies, I don't know if that was deliberate or accidental on the part of the mappers.

I had a feeling Zombie had a series of map pack sets that corrected the placement problems, but currently I can only find the ones for the two small subs and the ones for UFO. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 01:56, 30 June 2010 (EDT)

----

Uploaded the save game: [[Image:Out of bounds Hallucinoid.zip]], you can take a look. That's my fourth Artefact Site mission in this campaign, and the third case of a Hallucinoid outside of the map (There is only one alien remaining, and the SWP flag was applied using XComUtil). [[User:Player701|Player701]] 05:53, 1 July 2010 (EDT)

----

Well this is odd.

First off, he's not outside the map - he's actually just within it, albeit embedded in some black wall blocks.

Second - and rather more to the point - he's sitting on spawn node 118 (he hasn't been able to move off it). The problem is that the map module he's in (GRUNGE08) doesn't have a spawn node there (and yes, I'm checking the Windows release, of which there was one version).

In fact, both nodes 117 and 119 are placed miles away, over an entirely different map module (GRUNGE12, that large 20x20 area in the southern-center of the battlescape). That ''certainly'' shouldn't be the case - all nodes should be placed on a per-module basis (so if you suddenly jump from one module to another while placing nodes, it shouldn't be possible to jump back again).

I guess there must be something screwy in the [[ROUTES|GRUNGE12.RMP file]], but I haven't yet looked to see what it might be.

- [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 08:02, 1 July 2010 (EDT)

== Alien garrison ==

I noted down what I killed when I cleared two sites completely playing on superhuman difficulty. I got:
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr><td>1st stage</td><td>first site</td><td>second site</td></tr>
<tr><td>aquatoid</td> <td>4</td><td>3</td></tr>
<tr><td>tasoth</td><td> 10</td><td>7</td></tr>
<tr><td>tentaculat</td> <td>0</td><td>2</td></tr>
<tr><td>halucinoid</td><td> 0</td><td>2</td></tr>
<tr><td>2nd stage</td><td>first site</td><td>second site</td></tr>
<tr><td>aquatoid</td><td> 4</td><td>4</td></tr>
<tr><td>tasoth</td><td> 12</td><td>7</td></tr>
<tr><td>tentaculat</td><td> 6</td><td>8</td></tr>
<tr><td>halucinoid</td><td> 1</td><td>3</td></tr>
</table>
Looking at these numbers I would guess that the total numbers are around 14 for the first and 22-23 for the second. The composition seems to be very variable. I also recall missions with more then 10 tentaculats for the second stage. The map size of the first stage seems to be variable as well if I recall correctly.

== Loot ==

As already mentioned in the article there is a substantial recovery if both stages are completely(or maybe only the second is sufficient).
From the debriefing I got:
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr><td>item</td><td>first site</td><td>second site</td></tr>
<tr><td> magnetic navigation</td><td>1</td><td>1</td></tr>
<tr><td> sub construction</td><td>1</td><td>1</td></tr>
<tr><td> learning arrays</td><td>2</td><td>2</td></tr>
<tr><td> cryogenics</td><td>12</td><td>0</td></tr>
<tr><td> implanter</td><td>2</td><td>0</td></tr>
<tr><td> aqua plastics</td><td>519</td><td>503</td></tr>
<tr><td> reanimation</td><td>3</td><td>3</td></tr>
<tr><td> score</td><td>2132</td><td>2161</td></tr>
</table>
In addition there are also the corpses of the approx. 37-39 aliens and their weapons. Since the maps are not that large it seems quite beneficial to clear them completely for the additional 500-700 score points(compared to demolishing the device and running) and the recovery money. By the time you reach the device most aliens should be dead anyway. If there are aliens in the walls or of the map as it happens sometimes you might be robbed of the fruits of your labor however - saving the game before landing recommended.
--[[User:Tauon|Tauon]] 23:15, 30 October 2010 (BST)

==Appear only after Alien Origins are researched?==

This probably is just a coincidence but on my current game the 1st Artefact Mission appeared some 4/5 months right after I completed research on Alien Origins (who explains them). Just a coincidence or you need to complete research in order for them to appear? Anyone else can check this out? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 16:57, 6 January 2011 (EST)
: I have not had the time to look through the save files of my latest campaigns but that would mean that on should not expect a Artefact Mission before May/June earliest. And if memory serves me right I recall a few occasions where I had to fight such missions with gauss weapons and sonic pulsers which in turn means that it was rather early because I tend to upgrade weapons early and delay the alien origin research until I am about to research my first lobsterman navigator/gillman commander/lobsterman commander for the ultimate threat in order to get both T'Leth and the Leviathan with the second lobster Commander.--[[User:Tauon|Tauon]] 09:01, 11 January 2011 (EST)

== Edits looking good ==

More useful info here, thanks NKF. [[User:4th Cuirassier|4th Cuirassier]] 08:46, 8 February 2011 (EST)

== Equipment recovery ==

Packor's recent update's alerted me to the fact the 2-parter equipment recovery info on this page hasn't been updated to reflect the v1.0 vs. v2.0 item recovery differences.

As mentioned in [[Known Bugs (TFTD)]], v1.0 loses the equipment (including what's in the Triton) except what you're carrying. v2.0 keeps everything from the first part if cleared, not just what you're carrying.

I'll have a crack at that later tonight - looks like the Colony Assault and Shipping Lane pages need some attention too. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 02:19, 21 April 2011 (EDT)

== THE SHORTCUT - A way to cheat a little. ==

I've only just returned to XCOM TFTD after a long break, so my memory on this is a little fuzzy.

What I found you could do was fire a Disruptor Pulse missile at the wall of one (or more) of the starting spawn areas on the top level. You'd have to park your Aquanaut as far as possible from the target point to avoid the blast. 1-2 shots at one wall section might destroy it and create a direct path into the central Synomium chamber. This way you can complete the main objective without having to meet any opposition.

You could just exit at that point if you want - though you'd be giving up on all that phat lewt!

I'm putting this in the discussion page for now, as I'm not sure you want possible cheats/exploits up on the main page.

: Due to the randomness of the layout, you would have to start quite near the synomium chamber for it to work. However, a small variation of this requires you to find the black chamber first (mouse cursor probing, or actual scouting), then fire a DPL in the area and angle it up towards the synomium device, bypassing the elevator completely. I think standing in one of the passages and firing up with a GC-HE shell or two will work for a more adventurous/low-tech solution. At the very least you won't have to deal with all the tentaculats in there and just hoof it back to the entry points! [[User:NKF|NKF]] 03:59, 29 August 2012 (EDT)

: Aha! But you do always start right next to the synomium chamber. You start randomly in four towers at the corners of the map. All four corners connect with the synomium chamber, which fills the space between the towers on the top level. You just need one chap with a DPL in one of the towers. Having your other Aquanauts spawn in other towers actually helps, because it allows you to orient your DPL guy correctly. If there are aquanauts in towers both West and South of him then the DPL guy is in the Northeast tower. He therefore needs to blast a hole in the Southwest wall to access the synomium chamber.

This used to work for me every time. I even stopped doing it for a while because I felt I wasn't playing the game the way it was meant to be played.

The only random element is the initial placement of the Aquanauts. Unlike the colony missions, all the Aquanauts will start within - or immediately below - one of the towers. If your DPL guy isn't in place at the top of a tower, it is easy to move him there.

Alien Colony Attack Mission

2012-08-28T16:17:13Z

Deadmeat313:

{{REWRITE NEEDED}}

==Overview==

A colony assault is a two part mission:
* The first part takes place on the (dark) sea bed. The centre of the map contains the main colony building and there are several small outlying buildings, including four towers at each corner and a long structure along the west and east edges of the map.
* The second part takes place in a labyrinthine four-level bunker beneath the sea bed.

Colony assaults are one of the few regular missions in which aquanauts are guaranteed to face the dreaded [[Tentaculat]]. This, and some other reasons, make Colony Assaults the regular mission type that is most likely to cause deaths among your aquanauts.

==Part One (Sea Bed)==

The aim of the first part of the mission is to get your team to the lift at the centre of the main building, so they can descend to the base below and complete the second part, or to defeat all aliens. Note that you will always fight in pitch darkness no matter what time of day you launch the mission, a big disadvantage against the aliens who see in the dark.

In Part One expect the following aliens:

* [[Hallucinoid]]s
* [[Aquatoid]]s
* [[Tasoth]]s
* [[Tentaculat]]s

There will be senior ranking Aquatoids and Tasoth — and they will be happy to use [[Molecular Control|M.C.]] and [[Disruptor Pulse Launcher]]s to make short work of your assault team.

The types of aliens will differ between phases - although, Tentaculats are more of a problem in low visibility corridors underground.

You can profitably succeed in the first phase, and in the 2nd phase rush your aquanauts from wherever they ended up back to the exit points before aborting the mission, if you want to repeatedly harvest technology from the alien base. Or if you have specific objectives in mind, just grab what equipment or live specimens that you need, bring it back to the transport and make a dash for it.

===Possible Tactics===
* Take along a [[Submersible Weapons Systems|SWS]] and use it for scouting (perhaps with some sniper support). Since it is quite resistant to Tentaculat and Hallucinoid attacks this can usefully reduce the threat to your aquanauts.
* The double doors of the central structure allow you to get your SWS to the central lift area. Do this to get sight of the (many) aliens that will be there, and then use M.C.
* There will be aliens with Disruptor Pulse Launchers on the balcony overlooking the central lift. Use M.C. on them and have a blast fest.
* The central base structure is the destination, and can be entered via holes created by DPL missiles. These are also very handy for clearing the upper level gallery in this structure. If torpedoes are in abundance, use them freely on the DPL gallery.
* The northern T shaped tower of the main facility usually houses Tentaculats. They are a good candidate for shelling with a few DPL torpedoes - however you need to be thorough or else the shelling will provide them with a particle cloud as well as additional exits for any not killed in the blast.
* Tentaculats have a huge number of Time Units. Use M.C. on them if you want an effective temporary scout. Be aware, however, that they have very high M.C. strength. Only aquanauts of exceptional M.C. ability (80+ strength and 70+ skill should be enough) should try this.
* In the Beginning, before having the M.C.-Lab, your Aquanauts are extremely prone to M.C.-Attacks. It can easily happen that half your squad is under alien control before you come near the elevator. One possilbe tactic can be to make a small team of M.C.-resistent aquanauts ( could be as few as 2-3 ) and leave everyone else at home. Take as many Sonic Pulsers and DPL's ( if available ) as possible plus some strong guns ( ie Sonic Cannon ) and melee-weapons ( for the second part ). Now ignore the corridors and blast your way through the wall ( using either sonic pulsers or the DPL ) and just rush for the elevator. Assuming you don't want to completely eradicate the base ( meaning killing all the aliens in the second part of Colony Assault ), using a small tactical team can take care of the alien colony in a matter of a few minutes ( given the fact that you know how to quickly find the synonium device )

== Equipment Recovery ==

Depending on what version your game has been patched to, equipment recovery will differ slightly.

'''TFTD v1.0'''

Only Equipment carried on your aquanauts will be carried over when you move to the second phase. Leaving the first mission by way of the submarine on the other hand will not result in equipment loss.

When you move to the 2nd part, all equipment that is left on the ground is lost. This includes what is on the floor in the troop-transport sub. Though not immediately apparent with alien harvested equipment, it is very noticeable with purchased equipment.

'''TFTD V2.0'''

With the v2.0 patch, the item recovery bug is fixed. Now, as long as you clear the first map, all equipment on the ground will be recovered. This is true even if you abort the second half rather than complete it. This makes it a viable way to harvest equipment by clearing the first map and aborting the second.

Additionally, in all versions, live aliens that you may have picked up will only transfer the body across to the 2nd part, not the stats associated with it. In effect, the alien is killed when the 2nd level starts. If you need to capture any particular alien from the first stage, retreat to the sub and dust off to recover the specimen. You can always re-attempt the colony if you wish to destroy it.

==Part Two (Beneath the Sea Bed)==

Some aquanauts will start scattered deep into the colony at the start of the second phase. This is often deadly, since they can start off surrounded by several tentaculats or lobstermen, the only species which guard this stage. The stage is completely filled with winding corridors, doorways, nooks and crannies, and is pretty much super effective ambush territory for tentaculats. Unlike EU, where the exit areas were only accesible via a 4 tile grav lift, the exit areas here are completely open to incursion from alien forces.

Your target is the Synomium device in the command center on the lowest level. It will be guarded by Lobstermen, including at least one Commander. Bringing multiple thermal shok grenades is recommended for kidnapping one. Destroying the device can easily be accomplished by sending high explosives such as the [[Disrupter Pulse Launcher]] or [[Sonic Pulser]] through the one tile hole above the room containing the device.

Due to the size of the base, it may be more practical to pick up an unconscious Commander and carry him out of the base manually than to find and kill every alien. Keep in mind that corpses and unconscious aliens are quite heavy. Additionally, Stunned aliens can regain consciousness and unarmed Lobstermen can fight back with their powerful melee attacks.

===Possible Tactics===

'''Equip Screen Phase''':

When the equipment screen appears between the two levels, it is a good idea to:

*Bring out close combat weapons on all aquanauts that have them. This is because Lobstermen are all over the place in the lower level, and they are weak to both Thermal Tasers and Drills. [[Vibro Blade]]s are best because they use very little T.U.s and can kill most Lobstermen in one hit.
*Switch to smaller weapons. This is because there are lots of small rooms and narrow passages inside the base, and you will end up using most of your T.U.s just moving between them. Large weapons lose accuracy if you are holding a close combat weapon, use up a lot of T.U.s and leave you vulnerable if you find yourself up against multiple enemies in close quarters. [[Sonic Pistol]]s are best because it is accurate, powerful, small and quick to use. Though not effective against Lobstermen, a few shots will kill a Tentaculat.
*If you want to capture a Lobsterman Commander without clearing the entire base, assault the Control Centre with an aquanaut holding a [[Thermal Shok Launcher]] in one hand and a Sonic Pistol in the other. This is because a single Thermal Shok Bomb might not be enough to stun a healthy Commander, but a Sonic Pistol shot before or after it should guarantee a KO.
** If unsure, you can always wait a turn and send a second shok bomb in before descending into the command centre.
*Note that the Lobstermen in the Control Centre are always unarmed (except for their natural melee attacks, of course).

'''During the mission''':

*Focus your initial efforts on finding and destroying the synomium device, even if you intend to kill/capture all the aliens. This will render the mission successful even if things go pear shaped and you abort. Or worse lose all your troops.
** Tip: Familiarize yourself with the layout of the rooms above the command room. The layout is best described as a theater, with the purple sphere variety of Ion Beam Accelerators filling in for the seat rows in front of a raised stage.
** Tip: A single Magna-Blast Grenade is enough to destroy the Synomium Device. Shoot away part of the barrier around the observation port above it, have an Aquanaut with a primed grenade walk up and drop the grenade on top of the device, then have him walk away. On the Aliens' next turn: KABOOM. KABOOM. "Control Center Destroyed. Make your way to the exit and abort."
*Use M.C. excessively. Lobstermen are usually found in small groups, wielding mostly Thermal Shok Launchers or Disruptor Pulse Launchers. Take control of them and watch the indoor fireworks display.
*Leave your Molecular Controlers at the entrance. As they are your most precious aquanauts and they don't need line of sight to use M.C., it makes no sense to parade them in front of the enemy. This will also mean you can abort at any time without losing the Triton/Hammerhead/Leviathan.
* Because of their effectiveness against Lobstermen, be careful not to stun your own Aquanauts with Thermal Shok Launchers when using them in close quarters. Either make sure you are wearing Ion Armor or better when operating them, or have alternative weaponry available. Reviving from a Shok bomb is often a tedious exercise, even with the assistance of medication.

'''After Disabling the Synonium Device''':

When you've disabled the base and are evacuating your team, it is recommended that:

* If you choose to escape rather than complete the map, gather up what equipment you can to make the trip financially worthwhile as you lose everything in the first part that you aren't carrying.
* Haul an unconscious Lobsterman commander back to the exit, if you have not captured one. You need one to complete the game, and a second for convenience if a Navigator is not forthcoming.
**You can use MC to persuade the Commander to the exit - but make sure that it is physically stunned before you abort. Otherwise you will only recover the equipment it was previously carrying.
* Wake up any stunned Aquanauts. Even if in the exit area, they will be treated as MIA if they are still unconscious at the time you abort the mission.

==See Also==
{{Mission Types Navbar (TFTD)}}
[[Category: TFTD]]

Talk:Artefact Site

2012-08-28T12:02:30Z

Deadmeat313: /* THE SHORTCUT - A way to cheat a little. */ new section

Talk:Artefact Site

2012-08-28T12:01:58Z

Deadmeat313:

Talk:Artefact Site

2012-08-28T11:54:03Z

Deadmeat313:

==Locked Hallucinoid?==
Hi everybody, I'm new here - and here's my new question.
I have recently completed two Artefact Site missions on Superhuman difficulty. In both of these missions (in second part) there was a Hallucinoid located far outside the map. I was able to find it by using XComUtil (SWP flag).

The question is as follows: can this Hallucinoid present there knowingly (by developers) to ensure that you will manually destroy the Synomium Device instead of just kill all the aliens? Or maybe this is just a bug of the Windows version of the game, or something like alien overflow on higher difficulties?

Thanks.

[[User:Player701|Player701]] 08:05, 29 June 2010 (EDT)

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XComUtil sometimes generated X-COM units outside the boundaries of the map (I'm not sure if this has been corrected on the latest version), so it is possible that it is simply an XComUtil generated bug. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 08:25, 29 June 2010 (EDT)

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I know that, but I haven't used XComUtil before. I have installed it just to find that last alien, so this bug can't be related to XComUtil. And I have installed it in another game directory, so it couldn't corrupt my save files. [[User:Player701|Player701]] 10:05, 29 June 2010 (EDT)

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If you upload the save file (here for eg: [[Image:Out_of_bounds_Hallucinoid.zip]]), I could take a look at it. I would guess the map ran out of spawn nodes (higher difficulty = more aliens to place on the map). - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 23:24, 29 June 2010 (EDT)

----

There are a few maps in TFTD where large units may end up spawned in odd locations, probably due to what Bomb Bloke mentioned. Actually, in one odd example I helped troubleshoot a while back was a Xarquid that was stuck in the cargo hold shaft at the front of the boat in a shipping lane mission. Since it cannot be breached even by alien weapons, it made the first map impossible to complete without aborting. As for the aliens getting stuck in walls in the colonies, I don't know if that was deliberate or accidental on the part of the mappers.

I had a feeling Zombie had a series of map pack sets that corrected the placement problems, but currently I can only find the ones for the two small subs and the ones for UFO. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 01:56, 30 June 2010 (EDT)

----

Uploaded the save game: [[Image:Out of bounds Hallucinoid.zip]], you can take a look. That's my fourth Artefact Site mission in this campaign, and the third case of a Hallucinoid outside of the map (There is only one alien remaining, and the SWP flag was applied using XComUtil). [[User:Player701|Player701]] 05:53, 1 July 2010 (EDT)

----

Well this is odd.

First off, he's not outside the map - he's actually just within it, albeit embedded in some black wall blocks.

Second - and rather more to the point - he's sitting on spawn node 118 (he hasn't been able to move off it). The problem is that the map module he's in (GRUNGE08) doesn't have a spawn node there (and yes, I'm checking the Windows release, of which there was one version).

In fact, both nodes 117 and 119 are placed miles away, over an entirely different map module (GRUNGE12, that large 20x20 area in the southern-center of the battlescape). That ''certainly'' shouldn't be the case - all nodes should be placed on a per-module basis (so if you suddenly jump from one module to another while placing nodes, it shouldn't be possible to jump back again).

I guess there must be something screwy in the [[ROUTES|GRUNGE12.RMP file]], but I haven't yet looked to see what it might be.

- [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 08:02, 1 July 2010 (EDT)

== Alien garrison ==

I noted down what I killed when I cleared two sites completely playing on superhuman difficulty. I got:
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr><td>1st stage</td><td>first site</td><td>second site</td></tr>
<tr><td>aquatoid</td> <td>4</td><td>3</td></tr>
<tr><td>tasoth</td><td> 10</td><td>7</td></tr>
<tr><td>tentaculat</td> <td>0</td><td>2</td></tr>
<tr><td>halucinoid</td><td> 0</td><td>2</td></tr>
<tr><td>2nd stage</td><td>first site</td><td>second site</td></tr>
<tr><td>aquatoid</td><td> 4</td><td>4</td></tr>
<tr><td>tasoth</td><td> 12</td><td>7</td></tr>
<tr><td>tentaculat</td><td> 6</td><td>8</td></tr>
<tr><td>halucinoid</td><td> 1</td><td>3</td></tr>
</table>
Looking at these numbers I would guess that the total numbers are around 14 for the first and 22-23 for the second. The composition seems to be very variable. I also recall missions with more then 10 tentaculats for the second stage. The map size of the first stage seems to be variable as well if I recall correctly.

== Loot ==

As already mentioned in the article there is a substantial recovery if both stages are completely(or maybe only the second is sufficient).
From the debriefing I got:
<table {{StdCenterTable}}>
<tr><td>item</td><td>first site</td><td>second site</td></tr>
<tr><td> magnetic navigation</td><td>1</td><td>1</td></tr>
<tr><td> sub construction</td><td>1</td><td>1</td></tr>
<tr><td> learning arrays</td><td>2</td><td>2</td></tr>
<tr><td> cryogenics</td><td>12</td><td>0</td></tr>
<tr><td> implanter</td><td>2</td><td>0</td></tr>
<tr><td> aqua plastics</td><td>519</td><td>503</td></tr>
<tr><td> reanimation</td><td>3</td><td>3</td></tr>
<tr><td> score</td><td>2132</td><td>2161</td></tr>
</table>
In addition there are also the corpses of the approx. 37-39 aliens and their weapons. Since the maps are not that large it seems quite beneficial to clear them completely for the additional 500-700 score points(compared to demolishing the device and running) and the recovery money. By the time you reach the device most aliens should be dead anyway. If there are aliens in the walls or of the map as it happens sometimes you might be robbed of the fruits of your labor however - saving the game before landing recommended.
--[[User:Tauon|Tauon]] 23:15, 30 October 2010 (BST)

==Appear only after Alien Origins are researched?==

This probably is just a coincidence but on my current game the 1st Artefact Mission appeared some 4/5 months right after I completed research on Alien Origins (who explains them). Just a coincidence or you need to complete research in order for them to appear? Anyone else can check this out? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 16:57, 6 January 2011 (EST)
: I have not had the time to look through the save files of my latest campaigns but that would mean that on should not expect a Artefact Mission before May/June earliest. And if memory serves me right I recall a few occasions where I had to fight such missions with gauss weapons and sonic pulsers which in turn means that it was rather early because I tend to upgrade weapons early and delay the alien origin research until I am about to research my first lobsterman navigator/gillman commander/lobsterman commander for the ultimate threat in order to get both T'Leth and the Leviathan with the second lobster Commander.--[[User:Tauon|Tauon]] 09:01, 11 January 2011 (EST)

== Edits looking good ==

More useful info here, thanks NKF. [[User:4th Cuirassier|4th Cuirassier]] 08:46, 8 February 2011 (EST)

== Equipment recovery ==

Packor's recent update's alerted me to the fact the 2-parter equipment recovery info on this page hasn't been updated to reflect the v1.0 vs. v2.0 item recovery differences.

As mentioned in [[Known Bugs (TFTD)]], v1.0 loses the equipment (including what's in the Triton) except what you're carrying. v2.0 keeps everything from the first part if cleared, not just what you're carrying.

I'll have a crack at that later tonight - looks like the Colony Assault and Shipping Lane pages need some attention too. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 02:19, 21 April 2011 (EDT)

THE SHORTCUT - A way to cheat a little.
I've only just returned to XCOM TFTD after a long break, so my memory on this is a little fuzzy. What I found you could do was fire a Disruptor Pulse missile at the wall of one (or more) of the starting spawn areas on the top level. You'd have to park your Aquanaut as far as possible from the target point to avoid the blast. 1-2 shots at one wall section might destroy it and create a direct path into the central Synomium chamber. This way you can complete the main objective without having to meet any opposition.

You could just exit at that point if you want - though you'd be giving up on all that phat lewt!

I'm putting this in the discussion page for now, as I'm not sure you want possible cheats/exploits up on the main page.