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Alien Colony Attack Mission

2010-08-19T16:03:05Z

Guido Talbot: /* Possible Tactics */

==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]].

==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.

In Part One expect the follow 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 immediately abort the mission in the second, 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 impervious 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.

== Equipment Loss ==

Like all two-parter missions 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.

Additionally, 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 stats. 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.

XComutil offers a fix for this bug by returning the equipment to the base of origin, but may also be a little overzealous in returning the ammunition being carried by your aquanauts as well.

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

Some of your soldiers will be scattered alone in the second phase.

The base is populated with Tentaculats and Lobstermen. 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.

'''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:Alien Colony Attack Mission

2010-08-18T16:14:15Z

Guido Talbot:

Alien Colony Assault? Evil!

Don't get hurt, don't get mind controlled, do take it thorough, do throw flares like hot potatoes, do take 30!!!! Don't hand-to-hand Tentaculats, do take 14 soldiers (or more). DO NOT go unless you have [[Thermic Lance]] and MC knowledge and Disruptor Pulse Launcher, and do edit this post!

*If you don't have the Thermic Lance and/or DPLs, take Thermal Tazers. Rush the lift, taking out as many aliens as you can (particularly the lift garrison), and be very, very sneaky in the second part - avoid contact as much as possible, stay out of the Lobstermen's line of sight, and whack them from behind with the Thermal Tazers if you can. Also, '''Ion Armour'''. Bare minimum protection, Ion Armour.

Talk:Ship Rescue Mission

2010-08-13T16:06:58Z

Guido Talbot: New page: So, I've spent about sixty turns on the upper-deck part of one of these missions, and I've swept the damn ship from front to back from the bridge on down (and then back up). I've tagged e...

So, I've spent about sixty turns on the upper-deck part of one of these missions, and I've swept the damn ship from front to back from the bridge on down (and then back up).

I've tagged every single alien I've seen, either for a kill or a knockout, and it still won't let me move on to the next part of the mission.

Should I just drag all the dead aliens and their gear back to the Triton and give the mission up as a bad job, or what?

--[[User:Guido Talbot|Guido Talbot]] 12:06, 13 August 2010 (EDT)

User:Guido Talbot

2010-07-16T18:15:19Z

Guido Talbot: New page: Obviously an X-Com fan. I took the name "Guido Talbot" because it was the name of one of the soldiers I hired. (Talbot's now a Colonel, by the way, in charge of raids on alien Supply Ship...

Obviously an X-Com fan.

I took the name "Guido Talbot" because it was the name of one of the soldiers I hired. (Talbot's now a Colonel, by the way, in charge of raids on alien Supply Ships.)

The Mysteries of X-COM

2010-07-16T18:13:25Z

Guido Talbot: /* How deep were X-COM bases located on the seas? */

Discussion page for some less clear aspects of the series

==General issues==

==='''How fast can alien craft travel in space?'''===

Some alien missions (repeated attacks on X-COM bases, for instance) come daily. This seems to imply that alien craft are able to travel the distance from Mars to Earth in a matter of hours.

: Or maybe, as you suggest in your novels, they have a staging area near Earth, such as the dark side of the Moon. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 15:36, 25 February 2009 (CST)

::Really fast. Consider that they don't need to push aside atmosphere, as well as the fact that momentum is conserved in space, so they can achieve very high speeds with gravity slingshots. (Mars DOES have 2 moons, recall.) Also note that they may be operating a bit closer to home(the far side of the moon, perhaps?) it's simply that the command staff are at Cydonia. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:19, 26 February 2009 (CST)

Good article in last month's Scientific American pointing out we only rely on gravity slingshots because we still use chemical rockets with pathetic delta-V. Once 2nd and 3rd generation plasma engines come on line (1st gen are in flight now) the gravity slingshot will become an irrelevance. No doubt UFO drives are at least as good as our (future) 3rd gen plasma drives, probably way better since they warp space.

(Reminds me of the old Guild Navigator joke - I just warped space from Ix, and boy is my mind tired. Oh well, you had to be there)

[[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:24, 27 February 2009 (CST)

==='''What happens to the crashed UFO craft and its crew?'''===

Downed alien craft disappear after a few days have passed. No explanation is given to this whatsoever, so what really happens to them?

Possible answers:
* The UFO and its occupants are recovered by other humans.
* The Aliens manage to repair the craft and fly back to space. (unlikely, in the event that the power plant blew up and they have no Elerium)
* The Aliens self-destruct the craft and kill themselves in the process, ensuring their remains will not be recovered by humans.
* The UFO Powerplant eventually suffers a meltdown and explodes, eliminating any vestiges of alien presence.
* The Aliens blow up the UFO and disappear into the countryside.
* Most likely answer, IMHO: The local government/ funding nations give X-COM a limited time window to launch any operation, similiar to what you see in covert ops movies: "Complete the mission within 36 hours, or we initiate Carpet Bombing of the area". This is very likely considering that each nation actually has jurisdiction, and X-com is operating each military op with permission and cooperation by local authorities. [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 13:42, 25 February 2009 (CST)
*Similiarly, I assume that nations which have signed a pact with the aliens launch a rescue operation and assist their alien friends. [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 13:42, 25 February 2009 (CST)
: In the UFO TV show, it's stated that alien craft and bodies degrade quickly in Earth's atmosphere, disappearing completely in hours or a few days. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 15:36, 25 February 2009 (CST)
:: If that was the case, then one of the gases present in the atmosphere would be very toxic to the aliens. They would be restricted on their activities outside their craft, not to mention they would have to terraform the planet to be able to live here. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:32, 26 February 2009 (CST)

:: As Zombie said, doesn't Alien Containment support this idea? [[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:24, 27 February 2009 (CST)

::Those are excellent suggestions. One of the X-COM books detailed that aliens throw up a force field around crashed UFOs to give them time to repair the craft. This would also explain the limited size of the Battlescape (the area of the force field...the field was thrown up before the crash, thus why the craft wasn't always centered in it) as well as why the Battlescape is devoid of human life(the aliens took care of that up front.) Similarly, large scale bombing works as well, as does the local government going in to clean it up themselves. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:19, 26 February 2009 (CST)
:::If there's a force field around the craft what is it supposed to repel? The atmosphere? Because humans have no problem entering the field and operating inside it. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:32, 26 February 2009 (CST)
::::Of course they do! Have you ever noticed how dumb your units can be? That's because the aliens can't live with too much nitrogen, so they turn some of it in their force field to oxygen, and excessive amounts of oxygen make you act weird. After a while, their power source runs out and the nitrogen returns, dissolving them into E-115. (What did you think it was made of?) AT least, that's what seemes logical to me, ad is a combination of many postulates here. 21:36, 18 March 2010 (EDT)
:::::That would require that the aliens' biochemistry and the alien alloys used in the power sources reacted with nitrogen, which is a mostly inert gas on normal temperature and pressure and a . It's kinda of weird that the aliens didn't bothered with fixing that vulnerability with their craft and bodies during millions of years (what happens if the force field malfunctions while capturing cattle? ooops!) but ok. The increase in the amount of oxygen would probably also turn any kind of fire into large explosions throughtout the force field. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 21:24, 19 March 2010 (EDT)
::The force field was intended to keep humans out so the aliens were undisturbed. The first major hurdle X-COM had was figuring out a way to bypass those fields so they COULD get troops and aircraft inside. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 20:54, 26 February 2009 (CST)

===How do the aliens carry their equipment?===
Like human soldiers, aliens can carry weapons and equipment in locations like legs, belt, shoulders and backpack, regardless of the fact that some of their races even lack those anatomical features.

:Potentially a sticky gel-like area on the limb. Though really, since we were never intended to access alien inventories and the AI does all inventory management internally, this may simply be something that was never considered. Speaking from a slightly different standard, most aliens do not carry excessive amounts of gear; often their equipment would be able to fit in both hands. Also recall that Floaters and Ethereals have capes and robes(which may have inside pockets, or the Floaters could store them in the anti-grav/life support unit or inside surgically created body cavities during the installation, while Ethereals could support their excess gear with telekinesis), Mutons have armor(which may have external straps or adhesive areas), and Snakemen have an armor plate(which could have straps, adhesive, inside pockets, or even a backpack.) [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:19, 26 February 2009 (CST)

:We already know the answer to this one - they cheat! ;) [[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:24, 27 February 2009 (CST)

===Are X-COM transport craft piloted?===

:Almost certainly, since a remotely-piloted craft could be returned to base when the mission was aborted or failed. It's entirely possible that all X-COM soldiers are qualified pilots of the appropriate craft, since it would make no sense for X-COM to waste space on the plane for a noncombatant, or to have a single-point of failure on the mission like that. (The aliens could screw over the entire op by killing the pilot). It also explains why the craft is lost when the mission fails or is aborted with no one inside(lacking a pilot, the aliens are able to easily destroy it.) [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:19, 26 February 2009 (CST)

:: On the other hand, even a tank/hovertank is capable of getting the craft back to base. Perhaps there is an autopilot function. X-com craft are also infamous for choosing strange and bizarre intercept paths, based on latitude lines... almost as if they followed some a few simple lines of code from 1993 programming (bit of 4th wall breakage there...) -[[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]]

:Of course, given the tanks seem to be remotely piloted from an X-COM base, its possible that the tank being in the craft allows the Tank pilot to reroute into the control systems for the dropship and take it over. Limiting this to having the tank inside is a rather good idea. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 12:07, 27 February 2009 (CST)

:I recall that the various cutscenes in the PSX version had a pilot, most notably in the "Mission Failure" scene, where it shows the pilot being killed. --[[User:Mabmoro|Mabmoro]] 16:06, 13 March 2009 (EDT)

===What sort of physical process is used to increase human stats over time?===

The increases in some stats are easy explained by experience gained on missions (firing abiility, reactions, etc.). However, in the cases of physical stats (TUs, stamina, strength) the increase must be augmented by an artificial process, since it isn't easily explainable that humans can significantly increase body mass/speed/endurance just by physical activity/exercise.

:Lifting weights will increase strength. Running and cardio exercise will increase endurance, and performing the same task multiple times will allow you to perform it faster. I see no reason natural increase doesn't work. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 18:33, 26 February 2009 (CST)
::I assume that it is possible to a human to use those methods to double its physical condition, but that being the case why are X-COM recruits so... undeveloped? Maybe this is a more intriguing aspect. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:32, 26 February 2009 (CST)

What I don't get is that when someone gets blasted that they gain a lot of extra health. For crying out loud, the aliens are throwing around plasma and ridicoulously HUGE explosions. Shouldn't they be suffering from third-degree burns? I would expect them to at least have a major sore spot where they got hit. [[User:Tsunamiatunzen1|Tsunamiatunzen1]] September 24

:There's been arguments over whether the soldiers in X-COM are the Green Berets or equivalents of their various militaries, just average soldiers that volunteered for the job, or if the Council of Funding Nations is corrupt and is using this as an excuse to foist off their most useless soldiers onto the X-COM project. If the latter, it would easily explain their rather poor early stats. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 21:06, 26 February 2009 (CST)

::Maybe the stat increases relate to the troops getting more comfortable performing all operations - lifting, running, combat actions - when the aliens no longer scare the cr*p out of them so much. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:24, 27 February 2009 (CST)

:: I know what you mean... if this were Jagged Alliance, it'd be like trying to hire Mike and getting Gumpy instead... ouch! ... IMHO, it looks as if the COFN is being funny about this. Clearly, the troops assigned to X-com have had extensive weapons training... each and every one of them can use just about any standard weapon, including Rocket Launchers, incindieries, auto Cannons, etc. However, NONE of them have any combat experience, coming to you as fresh rookies. And their stats look as if they were selected based on a pot luck basis rather than screening among the elite troops... [[User:Jasonred]]

:Health isn't gained from getting shot. But as for the "ludicrously low stats" issue, maybe they're being selected on some other basis, or there's a real shortage of volunteers. [[User:Magic9mushroom|Magic9mushroom]] 04:56, 25 September 2009 (EDT)

==Enemy Unknown/UFO Defence issues==
==='''Why isn't Earth overrun by Snakeman/Chryssalids?'''===

According to the UFOPaedia, Snakemen's "Reproduction is asexual, with each snakeman carrying up to fifty eggs inside its body at any one time" adding the ominious conclusion: "Left to its own devices this species would be a severe threat to life on earth."
Moreover, this species is usually accompanied by the Chryssalids, which have a capacity to reproduce themselves very quickly using humans. So, any survivors of crash sites or terror attacks could start reproducing themselves hidden, resulting in large areas being overrun by those aliens later on.

Possible answers:
* Both races have a self-destruct mechanism incorporated into their psysiology to prevent this.
* The entire area is purged by large scale bombing. [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 13:42, 25 February 2009 (CST)

::One thing suggested in fan data was that Snakemen have air tablets in their stomach...which may be different from earth's atmosphere, which would limit their lifespan in earth's atmosphere, also making egg-laying pointless, since the offspring wouldn't be able to breathe or survive. It has also been suggested that Chryssalids have a very rapid metabolism. Though Chryssalids are likely just as, if not more useful, as a threat or a bargaining tool. When attempting to get a nation to capitulate to their demands, the aliens could threaten to employ Chryssalids en masse, or offer to remove a mass infestation in exchange for the government's cooperation. Or even further, it's possible that Chryssalids are under Ethereal control and maintaining the control link at that distance is taxing, thus eliminating mass use of the creatures. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:19, 26 February 2009 (CST)

Two words: [[Alien Containment]]. That answers everything except for the UFOPaedia articles for the aliens themselves which contradict it. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 00:42, 26 February 2009 (CST)
: For captured aliens, yes. But what survivors of uninvestigated crash sites? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]]

::Zombie is commenting that based on the need for an Alien Containment unit, the aliens cannot survive in earth's atmosphere for extended periods, needing special atmospheric blends and/or nutrient pools which earth is unable to provide naturally, thus limiting their operations outside of the craft. (If the aliens won the war, it's likely this would be one of the first things that they would 'correct'.) [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 20:54, 26 February 2009 (CST)

===What is the propose of the 'disco balls' found inside some UFOs?===

:Given that they explode, they could be storage reservoirs for coolant for the computers or other systems. They could also be circuit breakers or electrical junction boxes, or even a component of the UFO's particle beam they use to fry X-COM Interception craft. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:19, 26 February 2009 (CST)

Here again, two words: [[Alien Entertainment]]. Even though the spheres are not set to Alien Entertainment in the MCD files, they are almost certainly related to the process somehow. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 00:42, 26 February 2009 (CST)

:Maybe they are for having discos? [[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:24, 27 February 2009 (CST)

:Presumably [[Alien Entertainment]] is psionic in some way, maybe they're Psi-Emitters or something? -[[User:magic9mushroom|magic9mushroom]]

===Who buys those alien bodies/equipment from X-COM?===

:Equipment likely goes to the funding nations or the international black market. No rebel group is going to ask too many questions about being offered guns that can [[Heavy Plasma|slice through the hull of an MBT]] or [[Alien Grenade|grenades that can level a building]] or [[Blaster Launcher|man-portable guided missiles]]; it'd just be cash-and-carry. Similarly, scientists would likely be interested in looking at much of this stuff for their own research. This would also explain the lack of market forces; the funding nations could have a set price for each item, or if X-COM is selling them under the table to rebels and rogue scientists, they can set the price and refuse to budge. The money on corpses could also be an "Alien Bounty" paid by the Funding Nations, as a reward for each alien that X-COM can prove they killed. Or it could be bought by other groups...rumor has it that some fast food restaurants have processes that can make ANY meat, no matter the source, look and taste the same, and a Muton would make a LOT of McBurgers. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:19, 26 February 2009 (CST)
From the USO (Kasey Chang): XARQUID SUSHI.

===How did the aliens got to Mars?===

There are no indications that UFOs are capable of faster than light speed. So how did they get to Mars in the first place?

:The UFOs are mission craft, used for the legwork. The fighters; we never see the carriers. Given the aliens have been proven to be interstellar, they either Clone-A-Crew as needed when coming the long way to keep the UFOs crewed, or its far more likely that the aliens did have or still do have larger "Carrier" ships, which are capable of FTL travel, that were/are further out in the Solar System that store and dispatch UFOs to mission locations. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 18:33, 26 February 2009 (CST)

:: One word: TFTD. The entire city of T'leth was put into cryogenic suspended animation? Or look at X-com Interceptor. X-com and the aliens show the ability to enter hyperspace or whatever it is.
::: T'Leth is another mystery of its own. More to that later on :) [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:32, 26 February 2009 (CST)
::... there are no indications that the UFOs are INcapable of FTL... I don't think you would want to perform FTL travel within Earth's planetary atmosphere!
::: There are no indications that they are capable as well. And X-COM scientists don't seem to detect any FTL capabilities in UFOs during their research. And after the war the Elerium stocks dwindled, and it would make sense to perform some sort of interstellar missions to detect and harvest Elerium, however none are mentioned. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:32, 26 February 2009 (CST)
:::: Unless you count the events of X-com Interceptor? [[User:Jasonred]] [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 21:15, 26 February 2009 (CST)
::::: I am refering to the events between Enemy Unknown and TFTD. There is clearly a big distinction between the alien craft on EU and those of Interceptor. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 09:38, 27 February 2009 (CST)
::::: Enemy Unknown is set in 1999, TFTD in 2040, Interceptor in 2067... looks entirely plausible that they DID begin research into space exploration immediately after the events of Enemy Unknown. These things take time you know. Remember that the universe is a huge place, and Earth had rather limited Elerium Reserves by the end of EU. It takes... what, 30 Elerium just to fly an Avenger halfway across Earth? They could hardly afford to fly around randomly in space HOPING to come across elerium, they had to figure out detections methods, then scan the galaxy sector by sector, possibly partially using non-Elerium based propulsion at times... I can't remember if it's canon or fanfic, but I remember reading that all Elerium on Earth was reserved for space exploration.
As for FTL, Earth does get it for sure sometime between 1999 and 2067. And I'm pretty certain the technology is Elerium based. It's not a huge logic jump to assume that the aliens have access to FTL Elerium based tech.
Though I'm a bit puzzled why all T'leth technology is based on Zrbrite, when the aliens uniformly use Elerium, all the way from Earth to Cydonia to the far reaches of space. -[[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]]

:It takes 12 Elerium to fuel an Avenger, though how much 1 Elerium is is an ongoing debate. As for Elerium, it was reserved for propulsion research when the funding nations divvied up X-COM's resources, and then they blew it all without learning anything more than the original X-COM scientists. And yes, Earth clearly gets FTL after TFTD but before Interceptor. The reason Elerium is not used in TFTD is because Elerium becomes inert and useless upon contact with seawater. Similarly, seawater aggressively corrodes Alien Alloys and eventually completely dissolves them. Zrbite functions similar to Elerium, being gold mixed with alien bio-material. Unfortunately, Zrbite only works when supported by a massive energy grid created by T'leth and becomes inert upon its destruction. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 12:07, 27 February 2009 (CST)

OK... take the UNIT of elerium out of the equation... let's say that Earth had 5000 units of elerium, so 6 units get's an Avenger halfway around the world, and 12 units is sufficient to reach Mars. Hardly enough fuel reserves for intergalactic travel then.
2065 On October the 27th, the probe 'Tombstone 1' returns reports to Earth. It's data show that the globular star cluster where it rests, one hundred light-years from Earth, contains many life-supporting planets. Many of the planet's within the probe's scanning range also apparently possess great mineral wealth, including trace veins of elerium-115.
Hmm... So, mankind discovers FTL technology on their own in those 65 years? ah... come to think of it, if they've got non-Elerium based space travel and FTL, and more powerful weapons too, what's the big deal about Elerium in the Frontier? Does mankind even need it anymore?
As for T'leth, it is meant to be over 65 million years old, and CRASHLANDED on Earth due to a solar flare. Was the Ultimate Alien a prophet, thus chose to base T'leth on aqua plastics and Zrbite when T'lth was first constructed? Or did T'leth crash land, followed by frenzied activity where the entire city was replaced part by part, the alien alloys swapped for Aqua Plastics?
...
Actually, come to think of it, it's obviously a massive plothole due to limited timeframe, no point in discussing too deeply. Sigh... [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 13:50, 27 February 2009 (CST)

:It's implied that despite the loss of ability to use the alien technology from the First and Second alien wars, simply being able to see and examine their designs catapulted earth's technology forward at least a few decades...which really is entirely reasonable. Much of the technology can be replicated on earth, and the principles and designs can be reapplied.

:As for the deal with Elerium, its needed to power stronger weapons and is also wonderful for power generation; its efficiency in power generation is what allows Mega Primus to even exist.

:And was there anywhere that specifically said that T'Leth was made of Aqua Plastics? I don't recall. Yes, the rest of their subs are made of aqua plastics, but I'm wondering if something the size of a medium city might perhaps be made of something a bit more durable. PS: Thanks for signing your post! :D [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 14:17, 27 February 2009 (CST)

It's not a plothole at all. There is no Elerium on Earth, whereas the aliens can manufacture Zrbite on Earth, since there's gold here. Therefore it's obvious why they used Zrbite. Also, there's the fact that it was an Aquatoid colony mission, intended to produce an "aquatic paradise", so using Aqua Plastics instead of Alien Alloys is perfectly justified. [[User:magic9mushroom]]

:I think that the use of Aqua Plastics instead of Alien Alloys is perfectly justified by the fact that T'leth crashed million of years ago while the aliens that came to take a shot or two at earth were two million years ahead technologically. So Aqua plastics was some plastic that was used by aliens before they've got the Alloys. You might argue - it's Aqua Plastics, so Aqua =/= Space. Well, Aliens weren't calling them aqua, and there wasn't anything saying that Aqua Plastics is not suitable for Space Travel. --[[User:Domenique|Domenique]] 11:10, 19 May 2010 (EDT)

... I think Alien Alloys alone would catapult earth's technology forward a decade, and there's no reason humanity can't use those anymore, just not in water. According to timeline, some space pirates manage to make the decommisioned Avengers run on non-Elerium fuel... a large technological step.
By the time of Interceptor, Elerium weapons aren't that powerful. Good point about power generation though.
I would assume that T'leth SHOULD have been constructed out of Alien Alloys, since it was originially an interplanetary vessel? Generally, everything in EU was made of Alien Alloys, everything in TFTD was made out of Aqua plastics. Both of which seemed plenty durable.

::Have you noticed that the UFOs fly however their mission parameters tell them to? The UFOs pretty much IGNORE interceptions by X-com craft... if their mission tells them to make 3 passes, speed up, slow down, speed up... they will follow that pattern exactly, whether X-com craft are firing on them or not.

::Question: How long does it take the Avenger to reach Mars from Earth? [[User:Jasonred]] [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 19:12, 26 February 2009 (CST)
:::No longer than a week, in my opinion. Probably less than 2 days. Since canonically, the design of the Avenger had the Cydonia mission in mind, it would be capable of very high interplanetary speeds. (You could choose to burn 40% of the Elerium in one blast to get to high speed. Or you could burn even more and refuel while it's landed...or it could be a mission with no guaranteed escape for the crew. The lives of the many over those of the few and all that, especially since the war hinges on the mission.) In addition, you can fit a full complement of soldiers on board with no real excess room for supplies, and the longer it takes to get to Mars, the greater the chance the aliens will spot it coming for them and mount a serious defense. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 19:20, 26 February 2009 (CST)
:::If you'd burn that much fuel to accelerate the craft then you'd have to use as much again to decelerate it and attain a planetary orbit, otherwise you'll simply overshoot the planet and head towards outer space. This is also another aspect to take into account when thinking about the speed of UFOs. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:32, 26 February 2009 (CST)

::: UFO drives are non-Newtonian so those sort of rocket equations don't necessarily apply. I think filling up a car with gas is a closer analogy. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:24, 27 February 2009 (CST)

::: Well, they could put a mini mind shield on the Avenger, shoot down a UFO roughly their size, and then fly to Cydonia when the UFO they shot down was supposed to return based on the instructions found by the hyper-wave decoder. Basically taking the place of the UFO. Shouldn't be too hard since the UFO's are pretty common by the time you research Cydonia or Bust. [[User:Tsunamiatunzen1|Tsunamiatunzen1]] 14 February 2010 (MST)

::That would leave 20% of the fuel to take off the Avenger and land it. Not really that unreasonable. While they're landed, they could potentially refuel the Avenger, or the mission might have been planned as a 1-way trip from the get-go. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 21:06, 26 February 2009 (CST)

===What happened to Mars and the alien civilization there?===

According to the Brain, Mars was blooming with life had a alien civilization millions of years ago. However, Mars nowadays is a barren world and the alien civilization seems reduced to the area on Cydonia.

:That may well have been before Mars lost the majority of its atmosphere due to its weak magnetic field. As the atmosphere dissipated, the aliens left or died off. It's also possible that the aliens, shown in the game over to have little respect for planets other than as sites for slaves and resources, they strip-mined the planet dry(and the rust from the machines created the red coloring), and then seeded Earth so that the slave workforce would grow for future extraction of Earth's resources. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 18:33, 26 February 2009 (CST)

===Where are the human-alien hybrids referred to on the UFOPaedia?===

:For the ones on earth, probably in hiding or in laboratories for research. For the ones the aliens have, potentially improving the Sectoid gene pool or being used as food or menial tasks. Cloning is alot easier than making genetic hybrids and there's nothing that says their first-generation experiments would be suitable for combat. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 18:33, 26 February 2009 (CST)

:: They are babies at the time of X-com, and few in number. Their aren't even that many of them by the time of X-com Apocalypse. [[User:Jasonred]] [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 19:12, 26 February 2009 (CST)

:Not to mention the ones in X-COM: Apocalypse are less-than-fit for battle before extensive training. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 21:06, 26 February 2009 (CST)

===Why did the aliens only activate T'Leth after they were defeated?===

On TFTD T'Leth is shown as an entity/city of major power that is capable of conducting a war on its own. But the aliens leave it dormant although they could have used it to speed the process of taking control of Earth.

:Perhaps the Enemy Unknown aliens are legitimately scared of the TFTD aliens and are unsure how long they could trust them. Evil is not monolithic; the TFTD aliens may be more interested in themselves than the alien empire, so they were kept as an ace-in-the-hole. This is the same reason (canonically) that SKYNET did not originally send the T-1000 to assassinate Sarah Connor; SKYNET was scared of what the T-1000 could do and had only a bare minimum of control over it, so it only used it as an option when it had nothing left to lose. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 21:06, 26 February 2009 (CST)

T'Leth is in fact so powerful that all it has to do is surface, in order for X-com to be considered to have lost the war.
In fact, looking at the timelines, it takes 40 years for T'leth to wake up from it's slumber... that's one good reason not to use it. By the time it activated, the war would already be over. [[User:Jasonred]]

Because the whole purpose of the Enemy Unknown aliens was to rescue the TFTD aliens from T'leth, and there was no way of seeing whether the T'leth-based invasion in TFTD would even work - from their perspective it's possible that getting T'leth to bootstrap itself could have caused a catastrophe (they don't know whether or how badly it's damaged). Presumably the aliens planned to mount a proper rescue operation after locking down Earth and readying it for the aquatic paradise that was the entire point of the T'leth expedition in the first place. [[User:magic9mushroom]]

T'Leth was a coleny ship sent by the Sectoid/Aquatoid's millions of years earlier. This is why the Aquatoids use electronics to augment there control over other creatures, while there progeny are genetically modified to gain the same control. In TFTD it's implied that the T'Leth had been partialy active for a long time. Thawing out aliens in small groups but never going in full production. UFO aliens may have not intended to start the full awakening cycle until they had a chance to prepare the planet.
OR, given the Ultimate Alien was aquatoid in origin by his looks and there was no other races from the first game involved. And the fact that Sectoid/Aqutoid's are not the top of the food chain with the Ethereal and Brain being more powerful it's possible the brain had decided that the Ultimate Alien was a threat to it's power. It was not until it's death that they tried send the signal. --[[User:BladeFireLight|BladeFireLight]] 17:19, 22 March 2010 (EDT)

===Why did the aliens use limited force during the First Alien War?===

Imagine Independence Day or War of the Worlds: UFO above the major Earth cities destroying the national leadership and any resistance. Or simply announce to Earth that they are now a part of their empire and resistence is futile. Instead, they go 1 mission each day, allowing humans to capture their craft, research their technology, discover their intentions and mount a successful defense. Don't the aliens watch sci-fi movies to see how it should be done?

:Perhaps they don't have the standing forces to do so, and are in the process of building up the forces needed to do so. Perhaps they don't want to wipe out the entire power structure too fast; they want to leave some pieces in place for when they rebuild. Perhaps they're too condescending to think that humanity ever really has a chance; they've probably conquered thousands of other planets without anyone ever successfully resisting them. Perhaps they consider the X-COM project to be a rearguard action that, while a valiant effort and a credible threat, is ultimately doomed to failure because they simply cannot win in the end, which is why they undermine it. Indeed, the reason you need to launch the Cydonia mission in order to win is because X-COM simply cannot stop the aliens in a ground war; the aliens have an effectively infinite supply line and standing forces(though nothing says they're all waiting to swamp the earth), and the only way to win is to kill the command staff(which the aliens believe X-COM will not be able to do, lacking both knowledge of where the Brain is and any practical means to get there.) [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 21:06, 26 February 2009 (CST)
::The most plausible explanation seems to be the one employed in the Worldwar series, by Harry Turtledove, but that does not seem to mesh with what the Brain says about having been on Mars for a while, since then they could watch the Earthlings perpetually. Of course, what it says is probably a bunch of lies. Thinking about what it says for too long also raises the question of why the aliens attacked when they did, of course... [[User:Vizzydix1|Vizzydix1]] 21:52, 18 March 2010 (EDT)

The aliens are completely lacking in weapons of mass destruction. When you get right down to it, their aircraft are very fast, manuevarable and durable, but they have rotten firepower. Even the battleship is unable to bring down an Interceptor in 1 shot.
The terror missions and X-com Base Defences prove that the Aliens are unable to simply launch orbital bombardments... in fact, they appear to have no Air to Land weapons whatsoever...
When you get right down to it, the aliens are pretty stupid. Also, their scientists seem inferior to Earth's. Seems to me that they only had the advantage of Elerium deposits and thus elerium based research.
X-COM was unable to win in an all-out war with the aliens, but remember that X-com is a small little covert group with several dozen soldiers and a handful of aircraft. Can you imagine the result if the aliens had caused a joint war effort by the UN? You would have Lockheed factories converted to Avenger production, several platoons of soldiers outfitted with Flying Suits, Lasers, Heavy Plasma, thousands upon thousands of Laser Tanks...
I would say that keeping the fight to covert action on both sides was actually beneficial to the aliens, really. [[User:Jasonred]]
* Nope, the aliens could just invoke John's Law and blow up the planet with a kamikaze battleship at .9c. Even failing that, the alien battlefleet could come in numbers sufficent to blot out the sun.--[[User:(name here)|(name here)]] 14:39, 8 November 2009 (EST)
** Lest we forget, X-Com is essentially the Spartans to the aliens' Persian Empire. So they'd just fight in the shade (which would be a blessing in desert missions). --[[User:Guido Talbot|Guido Talbot]] 13:58, 16 July 2010 (EDT)

Aliens first began with smal scouting missions, so maybe all we expirience in X-Com is initial attacks by aliens, maybe the whole base was begining scouting and waiting for the invasion fleet? Aliens problably could be in sense dumber than humans, humans are adaptable and thinking, our technology advances fast, and we are fast and smart enough to stop the invasion before it begins. Aliens problably were not used to it so they thought "oh well, another invasion...". --[[User:Domenique|Domenique]] 11:10, 19 May 2010 (EDT)

==TFTD issues==
===What was the relationship between the aliens from the 1st and 2nd wars?===

Quoting from the UFOPaedia regarding Alien Origins: 'Deep in the oceans there lie ancient
sites used by the Aliens to contact their stellar cousins.' This also has some implications regarding the issue of why T'Leth was only activated when the Sectoids were defeated.

*Gill Men are coopted Terran creatures, Aquatoids are a differently-modified Sectoid breed, Lobstermen are machine soldiers that are manufactured, Tasoths are clone soldiers that are grown.

Aquatoids are the ancestors of the Sectoied's. The colony ship was sent out slowing than light hundreds of millions of years ago. Sectoids are a more genetically advanced race. The rest of UFO aliens were picked up after that point. The Brain and Ethereals probably conquered the Sectoids and dont regard them highly. While the Aquotoids that were thawd over the years created, conquered (gill man) or Manufactured the rest of the allies over time. I picture the Tasoth as probably something they brought with them and have been working on. Since most of the Aquatoids come from suspended animation they have not tinkered with geans much. Instead modifying and using electronics (MC Chip) to control. --[[User:BladeFireLight|BladeFireLight]] 17:28, 22 March 2010 (EDT)

===What kind of materials were 'synomium' and 'adamantium'?===

The first one is mentioned on the name of the alien communication devices and the second one appears at the end when T'Leth is destroyed: 'he twisting hugeness of T'leth begins to rupture.
Flames and smoke spew from its gleaming spires and adamantium halls.'

:Synomium is probably a special material used in the comm. devices, like Stargate's naquadah (universal stuff), naquadria (unstable power source), trinium (hull material) and neutronium (superdense metal). Adamantium is a legendary material in ancient literature that is said to be indestructible, similarly to mithril.--[[User:Amitakartok|amitakartok]] 10:55, 3 November 2009 (EST)

===How deep were X-COM bases located on the seas?===

*Floating bases would be easier to build, repair and supply. However they would have to be tethered to the ocean bed or possess some sort of propulsion to prevent them from drifing with the ocean currents. But it would also allow for easy redeployment of the base.
*Submersible bases could allow for better sonar detection. Same problems regarding ocean currents would apply. In case of hull breaches entire modules would be quickly flooded and any crew present would be crushed by water pressure or drown. Base could be built and then submerged (requires depth control)
*Seabed bases would be the hardest to build and supply. Several other factors could limit their deployment, such as instable areas (underwater volcanos, prone to seaquakes, rock avalanches, etc.) and depths.
*Given that the Alien Retaliation missions in TFTD are called "Floating Base Attack", I'd say floating. Also remember that your starting sonar can't see Very Deep, which rules out seabed bases. [[User:magic9mushroom]]
** Floating doesn't always happen on the surface. The surface has to deal with large waves ad bobbing up and down, submerged only has the currents it could be stabilized easier. --[[User:BladeFireLight|BladeFireLight]] 11:57, 14 January 2010 (EST)
* I was recently researching how far you have to be down to not be effected by surface conditions. You have to be submerged 1/2 of a waves lenght (measured crest to crest) Best I can find is that the average wave is 150 yards accross. To not be effected by the waves you have to be 75 Yards below. This is way below the depth needed to not be effected by the bends when surfaceing. I figure they are probably right at the limit of what can be safe for quick surfacing and well anchored to avoid getting [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwKXfc_a4Ag tossed in a storm]. --[[User:BladeFireLight|BladeFireLight]] 17:37, 22 March 2010 (EDT)
**Something else to consider - these 'floating bases' could be large modular submarines/submersibles. If memory serves, submarines basically maintain sea-level pressure regardless of the depth, so that could explain why they'd be able to be 75+ feet below sea level and not suffer the bends when surfacing.
::(Or, y'know, we could just say "a wizard did it".) --[[User:Guido Talbot|Guido Talbot]] 14:13, 16 July 2010 (EDT)
[[Category: Fiction]]

The Mysteries of X-COM

2010-07-16T17:58:51Z

Guido Talbot: /* Why did the aliens use limited force during the First Alien War? */

Talk:Main Page

2010-06-09T15:29:45Z

Guido Talbot: /* Quick question */

'''Welcome To All Rookies'''

This is the place to talk/ask about general issues concerning the wiki and hopefully someone will answer/reply to them.

Specific game questions should be asked on the game's individual talk pages.

For new users, in order to reduce spam you'll need to register to be able to edit pages.

To start a new topic simply press the '''edit''' button above. Then place your <nowiki>==Topic Name==</nowiki> like it is written here.
* To add a line you can either type <nowiki>----</nowiki> or use the buttons that appear on the edit screen.
* If replying to an existing topic use colons '''<nowiki>:</nowiki>''' before your answer
* Don't forget to sign your posts in the talk pages by typing '''<nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>''' at the end.
* Finally when creating/editing wiki articles have a look at the [[Guidelines to writing articles|guidelines]] page.

That's it. Happy editing!
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__TOC__

== Quick question ==

Does anyone have/know where I could get the TFTD-era X-Com logo? I need it for a project I'm working on.

(I'm asking here because A: the Google has failed me and B: someone who contributed must have seen it, as evidenced by the TFTD badge he/she/it created. Even if you could just point me in the right direction for, say, extracting it from one of the game files, that would be a great help.)

--[[User:Guido Talbot|Guido Talbot]] 13:26, 8 June 2010 (EDT)

: I'm responsible for the TFTD icon, and had it drawn pixel by pixel. But yes I did have reference that I used. Funnily enough, it's from X-COM Apocalypse. It's a PCX file that can be found among the files in the TACDATA\ directory. Unfortunately I don't have my Apocalypse CD on hand right at this moment to be able to get a copy of it. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 01:59, 9 June 2010 (EDT)

[[:Image:Apoc-tacdata-xcom.jpg|Here it is]]. - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 02:23, 9 June 2010 (EDT)

Thanks!

(I must admit, though, it's kind of odd that they'd put that picture in one of t5he Apocalypse data directories when the ingame logo looked much different . . . [shrug])

--[[User:Guido Talbot|Guido Talbot]] 11:29, 9 June 2010 (EDT)

== Translation? ==
Hi everybody

I just found this ufopaedia and now I'm spending most of my time at work here :-)

In Uruguay there is a very small X-Com community, and AFAIK, I'm the first one to find this site.
I was thinking about translating the articles to spanish (very slowly), since most players around here are not familiar with the advanced "tips and tricks".
I could also post about the rather poor game translation.
Do you think it could be worth it?

[[User:Diegoba|Diegoba]] 06:38, 15 August 2009 (EDT)

: Hi Diegoba. I think those are great ideas. You could even work on an improved [[SPANISH.DAT]]. Hobbes posts here frequently and I believe he did the Spanish translation for [[XcomUtil]]. If you were translating Wiki pages, I wonder which pages should be translated first? We would need to think about how to structure it. Maybe an /en and an /es path, like Wikipedia does it?

:[[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:10, 15 August 2009 (EDT)

Having the /en /es path sounds good. I was thinking about leaving the pages with the most basic info (IE, Geoscape / Base screen description) for the last. I believe that anyone already knows this basics, and are not that hard to understand.

But I really don't know how to get it started. Do I just create an article called "pagina principal" (main page) and then link from there? I guess that page can then be mapped to es.ufopaedia.org

[[User:Diegoba|Diegoba]] 07:04, 16 August 2009 (EDT)

: I see you already started on a home page, cool. It makes sense to start with "Top Tricks & Tips".We probably need that in English too!
:Thinking about the structure, this is a wiki, so maybe name your pages e.g. "Home Page (Espanol)". Then link each Spanish name "{Spanish Name}" as a wiki redirect to each "{English Name} (Espanol)" Spanish page. Or vice-versa.While you only have a small number of Spanish pages, link them from See Also of the English page, as well as from the Spanish Home Page.Just some suggestions. Hopefully Zombie and those other sysop-type guys will express a view.

:[[User:Spike|Spike]] 09:47, 16 August 2009 (EDT)

I have no idea how this would work out to be honest. An /es path would probably be the best idea, but I think we'd need to be running a second copy of the wiki software to make that possible. (Something I always wanted anyway as UFO2000 isn't really a game in the series but a project - we are just hosting their pages). If anyone knows how the Wikipedia handles the languages internally, please let me know. Doing all those redirects just doesn't make much sense to me because it is a huge amount of work and could tax the system if there are too many queries. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 22:30, 18 August 2009 (EDT)

:What about just creating a link for both languages in the left side menu, and a link to the other language in the main page?. That is simple enough, and most people will be visiting one language or the other, not switching around.

:[[User:Diegoba|Diegoba]] 20:18, 24 August 2009 (EDT)

:: That would work for now and it has the benefit of being simple. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 06:31, 25 August 2009 (EDT)

:Ok, I added a link to the Spanish main page in the sidebar. Is that good? --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 23:53, 28 August 2009 (EDT)

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== Site TODOS ==
A general dump of to-dos or maybe not-do's. Add any where appropriate:

* Template navigation toolbars for subsections. (Some tests have started)
* Strategy by terrain notes?
* Mention of bug where unit gets stuck in the corner of the map
* Mention of bug where you reload a battlescape mission only to be on an invalid level and how to recover from it (use OHMap, go back down to legal level, click until you find the map again, save the game). Often happens after editting the game, strangely enough. Is it possible the game stores map camera coordinates as a file checksum or somesuch?
* Categorizing all pages related to the games. I've finished it already with Apocalypse and TFTD shouldn't be too hard because it has the less pages, but it UFO is going to be a long work. I've already started a few categories for UFO and TFTD (<nowiki>Category: Enemy Unknown/UFO Defense</nowiki> and nowiki>Category: TFTD</nowiki>, along with a few specific ones (<nowiki>Research (TFTD</nowiki> and so on). It could also be possible to have some general categories that emcompass the whole of the series (UFOs/USOs, X-COM craft). [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 16:32, 4 November 2009 (EST)

== Discussion/talk page proposed format ==
Ok folks, we all seem to have our own ways of adding comments to a discussion page. The way it stands now, it becomes really difficult to follow a discussion when it is broken apart with different formats. What I suggest is this: when you leave a comment use a horizontal line to separate your post from the one(s) above it. In this manner, everything is left justified and the comments are separated. The reason why I do not support the colon as comment separation is that as the discussion progresses you are going to be adding more and more just to get the indenting correct. It also makes it confusing. Another side effect is that once you have a lot of colons present it pushes the text off the page itself and forces a scroll to the right to view. That isn't good.

I suppose if we really want to use colons as separators, we could alternate the use. If a comment is indented above yours, do nothing. If a comment is not indented, use a colon for your submission. Still, the constant zig-zagging isn't really the best idea either.

My vote is therefore to stick with the horizontal line (four dashes). If the discussion veers way off course, or if you have a couple questions/comments, break it apart into different headings. And always sign your post too as that makes it easier to follow.

Discuss.--[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:46, 9 March 2007 (PST)

Works for me, Zombie. Another problem with indentation is that one isn't necessarily addressing only the previous comment, but it could be about the previous one, and tying together things that are 4, 6, ''and'' 12 entries back. Colons are fine for quick rejoinders, but not as a requirement. A potential alternative is to leave two blank lines, as I just did after your sig. This is a fairly clear delineator for folks scanning quickly. However, the horizontal separator is more clear, in general. So I guess I'd vote for the hor-sep for all except quick comments thrown in, which can use colons. And anything that's a new topic or big break should get a new topic, using = signs. - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 21:10, 9 March 2007 (PST)

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I've reformatted [[Talk:Exploits#Extra_Ammo_Exploit]] to demonstrate how the indentation style ''can'' work, if done consistently. I think it's somewhat better than the line-separator style for very long discussions, making the structure a little clearer. However, if it's sometimes-used and sometimes-not things get messy, as you've noticed.

I'll codify the rules right here (surprisingly, they're not well-codified on Wikipedia itself, despite the fact that it's used quite consistently throughout the site):

*Add an indent for each reply
*Reuse your prior level of indentation if it's a back and forth:

First person's comment

:Second person's comment

::Third person's comment

:Second person again

::Third person again

::Third person's afterthought

:Second person again

::First person jumping back in

:::Third person once more

::First person again

*If you get to 5 or 6 indents, just "reset" (start without indents for the next reply).
*If you have an addendum to your own comments, use the same indent level and re-sign.
*If somebody doesn't know/doesn't use the right indent level, fix it when adding your next reply so the rules become clear during the course of conversation.
*Likewise, if someone adds a new comment to the top or fails to add a heading when starting a new subject, fix it when replying.

The problem we've had lately is the mixing of styles, neither being used correctly. So far it seems that myself, Sf, and NKF have been using indents, you (Zombie) and Mike favoring dashes, and most newcomers failing to use either. No clear winner just yet. ;-)
--[[User:Ethereal Cereal|Ethereal Cereal]] 23:56, 9 March 2007 (PST)

:What if you're addressing several and various issues raised before, not just a comment on the previous statement? (And it runs on for four or six paragraphs?) - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 00:14, 10 March 2007 (PST)

::If you're consolidating a bunch of replies to several earlier points, that's a good time to reset the indent.--[[User:Ethereal Cereal|Ethereal Cereal]] 01:07, 10 March 2007 (PST)

::: Works for me, Eth - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 16:47, 9 November 2007 (PST)

== British vs. American spelling ==

Summary: Use which ever convention you want. It does not matter as long as you do not get into petty spelling convention battles.

== XCOM Box Art ==

Someone (NKF? Danial?) once asked if anybody could scan XCOM's box art, so that they might e.g. put a better graphic on the main page. I just uploaded a 300 dpi scan of all four sides as [[Media:XCOM_UFO_Defense_DOS_US_Box_Art.zip]] (3.2 MB). The box is not in mint condition (see the ReadMe), but a little tweaking by somebody with skillz (Danial) could easily spruce it up. - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 18:05, 19 October 2007 (PDT)

: Was it me? Hmm. Can't remember. I did think to just grab the cover for the PDF version of the X-Com Player's Handbook (US version - with the Mars/Super Avenger cover), but it's black and white. Could've sworn I've seen a copy in colour somewhere. Not that sepia version wouldn't look great though!
: Oh hang on, I don't think it was for the front page graphic in particular, but we did want to get various versions of the box art for the various games. - [[User:NKF|NKF]]

----
NKF - or anybody - can we consider replacing the current main page art, with the XCOM box art? Or a portion of it. I loved the game's intro and in-game "cartoon art", but why not use the game's best image, for our primary Main Page image? (Is there somebody with skills that can clean it up quickly? I'm happy to, but I'm no pics wizard.)

[[image:XcomScExample.png|thumb|100px|One of many possible screencaps]]Related to this, I think it would be a nice touch if anyone put a bunch of selected and/or random screen captures (screencaps) onto a page, with a link just "under" (i.e., indented under the Main Page entry for) [[Info|About X-COM: UFO Defense]]...

:I have a sneaking suspicion that we get a ton of lurkers (someone who is there but never speaks) who once played X-COM and came across our page by chance, and would like to relive it, if even for a few screencaps... yet as it is now, our site is becoming more of an in-depth encyclopedia, instead of a "you were once here" kind of place. All us hard core players gravitate toward the encyclopedia - but even if folks who once played it don't stay, if they say, "wow, I remember doing all that" based on a stack of screenshots, that would be good. I'm thinking of easy sections that are light on text (and no Ufopaedia info), but heavy on thumbnails and click-on screencaps (see the image to the right - I love that financier in the background) like:
:*My first base - Decisions
:*The Globe - Radar alert!
:*First contact! Small farm in Iowa, USA
:*Managing Research
:*Terror in Sydney! ''(include zombies - squad wiped out - see next)''
:*Headline: World Council generally supports X-COM efforts - subheadline - Australia may now be under the control of aliens ''(funding results for a month)''
:*Headline: X-COM squad impacted by "Blaster bomb" - the world cries (before and after pix)
:*The tricky depths of a Battleship
:*Elite squad Mind Controls all aliens
:*Final showdown: Cydonia
:Each of the sections above might have 1-5 images. Something like that.

:If no one objects, can I ask that anyone who is willing to do it, make a bunch of screencaps, using .pngs and thumbnails as shown above. Then lurkers can "remember the days" right up front. And a few more lurkers than currently breeze through, might stay.

:To put this in context, CNN recently had a number of articles admiring Commodore 64s (one of them [http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/ptech/12/07/c64/index.html?iref=newssearch here]). X-COM is like that, to me... it lives past its "life expectancy" to gamers, because of how well put together it was, especially including how much it hit you in the gut.

In summary, then. I have one question for us XCOM hardcore (can we change the Main Page image) and one for everybody (want to post a lot of screencaps?). I have made a stub page for the screencaps page. I'll retract it if the hardcore object or there's no response in a couple of months' time. - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 21:44, 14 December 2007 (PST)
----

I'm perfectly fine with getting the main title changed. Get a few more ayes and we'll make it so.

A screencap section would be nice. I'm quite partial to creating screencap mini-comics (no, not real comics. Just sequential before/during/after images), although I never use them and they just get deleted in the end.

One benefit is that some of the shots can also be recycled throughout the rest of the site to illustrate certain things. Or for an article that's no more than a solid block of text, something to break up the monotony. I'm also always for a few well placed humorous shots.

-[[User:NKF|NKF]] 01:02, 15 December 2007 (PST)

:Sounds good, NKF. There could easily be a "comics" page link several ways:
::1) The new Main Page entry indented under [[Info|About X-COM: UFO Defense]] could also have a link to a comics page, but on the screenshot page itself,
::2) That same new entry on the Main Page could read something like "[[Screenshots]] - and [[Comics]]!" The concept of the screenshots page is to help folks relive the past. And something just as good as screenshots - or better - is screenshots with humor.
::3) Or, make a link for it, all by itself, somewhere obvious on the Main Page.
:I think it's a great idea!
:As for the other idea - you said you're fine re: changing the main title. But it's the graphic at the top of the Main Page that I'm talking about. Just to make sure we're clear on that. - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 17:21, 21 December 2007 (PST)

== Request ==

I have noticed that there is no pictures of TFTD, Apoc, or Int on the main welcome page. Any ordinary joe browsing to here from the four wiki (which I just added the links to point to here in "External links" on each page) is going to leave if they see just the first game picture (and not scroll down to see the other games covered).

SO, my request: have a collage of all four (five incl. email? ) on the front page which easily shows each game box-front. If copywrite issue, then someone could get creative with their own personal artiste skills.

: Further up this page there actually has been discussion of using the box art for the various games. Real life, as is often the case, intervenes. But it's not a bad idea mind you. A change is as good as a vacation. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 18:20, 18 September 2009 (EDT)

I was just thinking about this the other day in fact. Anyway, there is a nice collage of all the game boxes on the side of the X-COM Collection box. I could probably scan that and stick it up here for you guys to check out if you want. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 23:30, 18 September 2009 (EDT)

:: Zombie, have you had a chance to scan the collage? Just spotted this as I was responding to a different matter. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 22:05, 28 February 2010 (EST)

== Favicon ==

Does the UFOpaedia have a favicon? -- [[User:NinthRank|NinthRank]] 17:51, 6 November 2007 (PST)

:We did have it at one time but I think it disappeared after an upgrade to the wiki software. If you have an idea for a favicon, submit it here. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 18:21, 6 November 2007 (PST)

Okay, I don't know where that logo in the upper left came from, but after a quick GIMP edit, I came up with this: [[Media:favicon.zip]]. I'm not quite sure how The GIMP works with icons, so I also included the .png's. What do you think? -- [[User:NinthRank|NinthRank]] 18:51, 6 November 2007 (PST)

:Not too shabby. Next time I talk to GazChap, I'll run it past him. Any more ideas for a favicon? I'd like to get a few (at least 3) and run it through a vote here. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:28, 6 November 2007 (PST)

::[[image:FavIcon-Crude1.png|thumb|16px]][[image:FavIcon-Crude2.png|thumb|16px]]NinthRank and Z, my two cents are something like this. My pics are incredibly crude - I'm a total graphics n00b - and would need somebody like you, Ninth, to turn it into the "burnished gold and navy" (or is that black?), like you did with yours. I couldn't even get my damn background to change for me using simple MS Word art ... what do you use? (See how n00b I am?)

::I think you have some great ideas there, but my favicons show as 16x16 pixels. (Is this because I use small icons? I had never heard the the word until you said it, Ninth, at which point I read the wiki entry, and it made immediate sense.) At 162, you have to keep it incredibly simply... having the COM on a big X does that, because it doesn't "waste a repetitive 'X-' across the center", if that makes sense. Another idea is be careful with the X ... I didn't like the X in your 16x16 and 32x32 because it was "narrow" (more vertical than horizontal). I definitely like your 48x48. (I can't tell what's going on with your animated 16x16 .ico, my friend - a 16x16 pic on a 1280x1024 screen (or higher) needs to be real simple. It looks like a tiny pulsing thing, with an X sort of there, overall.) I think the X should be, if not symmetric, then, more wide than high - to me, this implies something "ominous". A true X would have to be "cut off" at the corners to be "wide and fat" at 16x16. This shows more in my second try than the first.

::You can make things bigger than 162, a real plus and you get much more flexibility, but for me, only 16x16 exists.

::My two cents. I love your overall idea, and using navy (or black?) with gold trim. Thanks for signing in and helping out, NinthRank! -[[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 19:40, 14 December 2007 (PST)

==Technical Commentaries==

I just thought of adding a specific section concerning commentaries regarding the game, i.e., trying to explain how the weapons/diplomacy/funding/etc. would work in real life. The idea here is not to expand on the canon X-COM material but to describe/explain in a rational way.
I've come with this idea after reading Spike's section (on his [[User talk:Spike]] page) explaining the economics of X-COM and starting my own section regarding the Council of Funding Nations.
I think there is plenty of material available on the Data canisters that could be used/adapted to this. Also, the discussion regarding Elerium (with all those formulas) on the Talk Page is exactly the sort of thing I was thinking of.

- [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 22:59, 10 March 2008 (PDT)

: I don't see any problem with it. Go for it. We've started with a magnificent wealth of knowledge about the game itself (and a bit beyond, with the binary file diving). Theories and explanations of the X-Com world wouldn't be out of place. They'd certainly add a bit of literary colour and interest for those that wish to look beyond the game. There are lots of interesting bits and pieces scattered throughout the articles (like real world equivalents of weapon or tanks, just to name one example) that would probably fit better in a section like that than in the articles. Perhaps a an expanded data-canister like section would be in order. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 01:13, 11 March 2008 (PDT)

== Game Editors ==

I was going to add a link off the Main Page to the [[Game editors]] section that I wrote, under Misc. I still have a nagging feeling there is another list of them somewhere, but I can't find it. Any comments?

Also, any additions to the Game editors section are welcome.

[[User:Spike|Spike]] 03:40, 15 March 2008 (PDT)

: I don't think we've ever had a particular listing of editors.

: Tell you what, I'll throw these changes in, and we'll see how this works out.

:# I'll put the new game editor section onto the UFO main table (I've also renamed the page to stick to the first capital letter naming convention the other articles use).
:# I removed XComutil off the main table, since it'll be under the game file section.
:# Removed the UBK - it's just a tool for wiki editors and not something that would interest players of the game.

: I might also add the [[Command Prompt]] to the game editor section for its notes on using MS-Edit as a binary file editor.

:- [[User:NKF|NKF]] 04:46, 15 March 2008 (PDT)

:: While I see the validity of adding XComUtil to a page regarding editors won't it make sense to keep a sublink to the page which deals on how to use it, together with MSEdit? I mean, the other editors only have links to them on that page and I think that at least XComUtil deserves main page status because of its notoriosity and complexity. What do you guys think? - [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 14:08, 15 March 2008 (PDT)

----
a good idea to include the Command Prompt help. How about broadly dividing it into 2 sections: X-COM-specific tools and general purpose tools?
[[User:Spike|Spike]] 07:08, 17 March 2008 (PDT)

== Newb questions ==

Hello good sirs. Sorry for my bad non-native english. While in total noob in wiki, im relatively for long playd this great games. Great thanks for you for this great site, it really helped me with some ideas, especially with Funding Nation, even dont know how i played it before without it. Now more close to point, i realized what TFTD section here are, say, unperfect, if not somewhat wrong. As i readed somewhere not all play TFTD much, UFO1 instead, so it maybe be the point. Id edit something on it, but im totally dunno how to do it, and my language will have too many mistakes to be proudly presented to people. So id be glade to hear what you may propose for me to do. Again big thanks. Ill wait for answer.

PS Or im searched too badly, or its differ in TFTD (i play only it now) from UFO1, but i cant find here about stunned persons behaviour. Cant find what they awake only if theyr stun is lower then HP's and if only they have awaken person in theyr tile during end of turn. IMHO its important thing to know off, at least for me.

PPS. My friend made great tiny changes to one tiny file, what make FundingNations game way more easy and elegant then described in issue. I can upload it if you need this, tho its for TFTD im sure he can do UFO1 also if its needed. Anyway this game too easy even on FN to play it without it :).

Eh PPPS. Dunno how to properly log on :(.

: Do not worry about the language barrier - sometimes it's harder to understand people who speak English natively! ;) In any case, There'll be other editors who will be able to help fix the article for you if you can get the idea across.

: To get started editing pages, check the Community Portal on the left sidebar. That has links to articles that can help you get started - more or less. One good way to find out how some text is formatted (or anything else you'd like to duplicate) is to edit the page and see how it's done in the source.

: If in doubt, or if you're unsure about editing the article, feel free put your ideas or suggestions in the article's Discussion page.

: Because TFTD and UFO share a lot of the same mechanics, there would be a lot of unnecessary duplication if we were to write up articles for it that are already available in the UFO articles. Therefore we mainly include articles that cover topics that are unique to TFTD, like the weapons, door opening, aliens, etc. General mechanics like how damage works or how experience is earned is identical to UFO's, so there's no need to duplicate them. What sections do you think need improving or what sections do we need to add? The more input the better.

: Regarding consciousness, have you checked the [[Unconscious]] article? I think we might need to redo that article bit and perhaps add a few illustrations. One note about the difference between UFO and TFTD with the visual appearance of a unit recovered with a medikit needs to go in there too if it hasn't already. Oh well. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 22:54, 22 May 2008 (PDT)

: PS, to sign your messages in the discussion pages, put four tilde's <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki> anywhere you want to insert your name and the timestamp.

== same questions ==

Thank you for answer. I been somwhat incorrect in my english. I didnt mean what TFTD pages are bad or what they lose reduntand UFO1 information. All they lack are only slightly wrongly described alien's dangers levels (one of most dangerous creatures cant be low treat, and least dangerous one medium) and lack of mission types what only TFTD have. Also i readed "Unconscious@ article few times, stiil cant find only how to use medkit and no word about what generally need for stunned person to rise. From that follow advices to grenade stunned chryssalids and so on.

PS. Oh, yes, and whats wrong with door openings?
[[User:Derrida|Derrida]] 08:59, 23 May 2008 (PDT)

: A unit falls unconscious when the stun bar is equal or greater than the unit's remaining health points. If it's under that, the unit will be awake.

: To wake a soldier up, you have to reduce the stun level by either waiting for the stun to wear off, 1 point per turn, or use stimulants on a medikit. Looks like the TFTD section doesn't have its own medikit page, but UFO's [[Medi-Kit]] section explains how to use it, as they are identical. Basically, if the unit is unconscious, the medic must stand on top of the unconscious unit and use stimulants (the second choice) until the unconscious soldier wakes up. When the unconscious unit wakes up, they'll appear to the north of the medic.

: TFTD's stun weapons are much more powerful than in TFTD, so you often have to use a lot of stimulants to wake a person up.

: TFTD's unique because it allows you to open doors by right clicking them - and it's a free action so you won't spend any TUs to do it. UFO cannot do this (except the Playstation version).

: As for the threat levels of the aliens - I agree, some should be reclassified. Personally I'd move the Gill-Men and Calcinite up to medium threat - all the current medium level threats look just about right though. What are your suggestions?

: Hang on, why are there so many references to vibroblades in the overview article? That can't be right. I'll have to update that later on. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 15:05, 23 May 2008 (PDT)

Nonono. I mean what if unit's stun damage falled below it's HP, and no one stand in tile it lying, it will never rise. Medkits not the point. No stunned aliens or soldiers will rise if no one will end turn on it, or take it to inventory/hand. I tried to say this. Maybe it been different in UFO1 (as with doors, i thought what doors always open by right click, and in UFO1 too (btw cant find about door opening anywere in wiki)), but in TFTD it means what you dont have to bother with stunned tentaculats etc to rise after stun if you do not stand on it, or try to move it in backpack/hand. Same with soldiers, you can click zillion turns, but they will never rise until someone stand on it. Without this game must be horrible with all this undying lobsters awake afer you pass them.
With danger level id suggest this: Harmless: hallucinoid; deep one; Low: gillmen; aquatoid; Meduim: zombie; calcinite; bio-drone; lobsterman; xarquid; high: tasoth; triscene; What really matters: tentaculat. In line of growing dangerness. [[User:Derrida|Derrida]] 16:30, 23 May 2008 (PDT)

== Regarding image file formats ==

I'd really like to add a note somewhere obvious about using GIFs for screenshots in the wiki, rather than JPGs. For 256-color images like X-COM uses, GIFs are no larger than JPGs and generally look much better. For example, see the nasty compression artifacts on the terrain maps in the [[Terror ship|Terror Ship]] article. PNGs might work just as well, I'm not sure, but we should really avoid JPGs.

Where would be the best place to mention this? I'm thinking near the top of the main page for visibility, but that might be more clutter than people want. [[User:Phasma Felis|Phasma Felis]] 23:59, 11 June 2008 (PDT)

:It's been dealt with [[User_talk:Zombie#Image_Types|here]] that PNG is the preferred file format of the wiki; however, where to note this...I honestly don't know. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:37, 12 June 2008 (PDT)

:: PNG's reduced to 256 or less colours can be quite the space saver for X-Com screenshots. You can go the extra step and run them through PNG compression programs and somesuch - but they're pretty good as-is. Jpgs should be reserved for images with a broader range of colours. One place the note could go is in [[Guidelines to writing articles]]. In fact, that section could do with a few extra additions in any case to expand is to that it's not just covering the composition of the language of the articles, but to cover the creation of the articles. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 03:04, 12 June 2008 (PDT)

== Hosting move. ==

Hi guys. It appears I'm still hosting the UFOpaedia - I did discuss moving it to StrategyCore with both Zombie and Pete a while ago and I think I gave them copies of what would be required.

Anyway, I'm moving hosting servers so the UFOpaedia is going to move too. I'm aiming to carry out the transfer on Sunday September 28th at about 8pm GMT+1. Any changes made between this time and the time that the transfer completes may be lost, but hopefully not. Just thought I'd give you guys a bit of notice.

I should point out that I still have no objection to hosting the UFOpaedia on my servers, it's a great project and you guys have done a bang-up job with it, it's far surpassed my original intentions :) However, if StrategyCore want to take over hosting to remove the potential "failure point" (i.e. me) then that's fine and we can give it another shot?

GazChap, 25th September 2008 12:50 GMT+1

:Thanks for the heads-up Gaz-Chap! Sure, StrategyCore is still willing to host the UFOpaedia. Sorry things didn't quite work out the last time we talked. Pete needs to be constantly reminded to do things as he's easily distracted. I'll try and start a fire under his bum to get the ball rolling again. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 07:14, 25 September 2008 (PDT)

::Hosting has now been moved to StrategyCore. Cheers to Pete and Zombie for sorting it out. GazChap, 11:28, 1 October 2008 (GMT+1)

::: There may be a slight problem with caching of the temporary holding page ("coming back soon". On some browsers I'm using (not all), the temporary page is still up and you can't see the UFOPaedia site. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 17:48, 1 October 2008 (CDT)

::The new website address is quite likely still propagating out through DNS, since we moved hosts. So that's just the nature of the internet and should be gone in a day or two. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 19:06, 1 October 2008 (CDT)

:Most browsers seem to allow a full page refresh via Ctrl + F5. There's also an option re caching under the Misc section of your Preferances - I had to disable it ages ago 'cause it was always failing to show me page changes... - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 21:54, 1 October 2008 (CDT)

Sorry about the downtime everyone. The bandwidth limit wasn't set high enough after the recent change in hosting and basically didn't allow access. I contacted Pete and he fixed the issue. Good to catch these issues earlier rather than later. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 15:11, 15 October 2008 (CDT)

=== 14 March 2009 ===

Zombie mentioned that Pete may be moving the server this weekend. I'm getting lots of errors and more or less unable to make updates to the site. Probably this is to do with the server move. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 19:14, 14 March 2009 (EDT)

:Apparently the move has been complete most of the day. So if you guys continue to have problems, please contact me and I'll relay it over to Pete. I'm not experiencing any problems though. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 21:34, 14 March 2009 (EDT)

== 500 Internal error ==

This seems to occur whenever I edit a subsection on a page, and I click the edit button on the TOP of the page instead of the edit button next to the subsection title. So, if you wanna avoid this error, try using the button which only edits that subsection... [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 05:40, 21 March 2009 (EDT)

:Already been tried. Doesn't work any better. UFOpaedia admin is on it, I've been told. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 12:05, 21 March 2009 (EDT)

:: Pete's finished his latest round of changes. Give it another go. - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 22:12, 21 March 2009 (EDT)

== Proposed top level links ==

I've written some pages which I'd like to be proposed be linked to the main page, unless anyone can suggest where to put them (careful now!).

I'd like to link [[Fictional Equivalents]] to the main page.

I'd like to link [[Wish List (TFTD)]] to the TFTD page. It would also be good to start a [[Known Bugs (TFTD)]] page, for TFTD-specific bugs.

However as some tricky template work is involved, I'd rather not make these links myself for fear of screwing up the main page(s). Thoughts? [[User:Spike|Spike]] 11:20, 14 November 2008 (CST)

: Feel free to edit the templates - as long as the tables look okay when you preview them, they shouldn't break the page. The templates are standard pages but with a fancy prefix to their file name to categorize them as templates. This was needed so that any updates to them would show up on the main page right away without forcing the viewers to force-refresh the page. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 12:46, 14 November 2008 (CST)

::It should be noted that the [[TRTBAG]] more or less covers the "Known Bugs for TFTD" segment. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 16:08, 14 November 2008 (CST)

:Well it covers the Research Tree bugs but not any of the other TFTD-specific bugs as far as I can see. Still that's a good starting point, thanks AQ! And thanks Zombie for adding the links. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 17:34, 14 November 2008 (CST)

::Maybe TRTBAG should just BECOME the "Known Bugs(TFTD)" page. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 17:36, 14 November 2008 (CST)

:Because TRTBAG is such an excellent self contained guide, and well written, and quite long, I think it should be separate. I will link to it under the Known Bugs (TFTD) page. I suggest the main page link to TRTBAG be remained "''Research'' Bug Avoidance Guide". Probably the TFTD Alien Glitches page can be gotten rid of. It only mentions one bug, which is not a bug at all. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 06:16, 15 November 2008 (CST)

==Terminology==

===X-COM/XCOM/XCom/Etc.===

I remember reading about this discussion before and if something concrete comes out I think it should be added to the [[Guidelines to writing articles]].
Do we have set a proper spelling to refer to the organization? IIRC the game uses X-COM/XCOM/X-Com/etc. Should we set a standard for the Wiki? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 07:52, 21 November 2008 (CST)
:It's a good idea to agree on a single standard spelling for the Wiki, if only to keep links consistent and prdictable. But it's a shame if there is no clear canonical spelling though. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 12:28, 21 November 2008 (CST)
::From what I recall there isn't a standard followed on UFO Defense, where you have X-COM/XCOM/XCom/etc. Apocalypse might be more consistent and I have no idea for the other games. I try to use X-COM and I've done some edits to follow this standard spelling but I'd like to read more opinions [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 17:43, 22 November 2008 (CST)
:I've had a check through the in-game strings and most if not all of them say "Xcom", which is my least favourite spelling. :( I think X-COM has the best flavour. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 19:41, 22 November 2008 (CST)
If any of you folks here have been following what I've been up to lately at the StrategyCore forums, you'll see I have been amassing a collection of most of the game versions in the series. Checking my [http://www.strategycore.co.uk/xcom/pg/ufogameversions UFO Game Versions] site page, you'll see that the original European release used XCom while the budget releases used X-Com. Other than that, those spellings quickly fell by the wayside as MicroProse decided on X-COM which quickly gained approval and remained the standard spelling throughout the series. (You can't really go by in-game text as those were not checked for consistency). Anyhow, I'd opt for the same route MicroProse took: X-COM. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:33, 22 November 2008 (CST)

===Capitalization guidelines/rules for the wiki===

Another thing that crossed my mind are guidelines/rules tossed in to prevent overcapitalization.

Specific ingame terms/names should be always capitalized:
*Weapons (Boomeroid, Elerium, Entropy Launcher
*Alien Races (Sectoid, Lobsterman, Skeletoid, etc.)
*Organizations (MarSec, General Dynamics, Council of Funding Nations)
*X-COM Crafts (Skyranger, Manta, Dimension Probe)

Generic ingame terms/names (that already exist in English) should be capitalized the first time they are mentioned on a wiki entry. Some examples:
*Weapons (Plasma Rifle, Torpedo Launcher, Vortex Mine, etc.)
*UFO types (Large Scout, Dreadnaught, Alien Mothership, etc.)
*Soldier Attributes/Agent Stats (Stamina, Psi-defense, etc.)
*Base Facilities

Wiki terms should be capitalized the first time they are mentioned on a wiki entry:
*Tactics
*Economics
*Game Mechanics
*Etc.

A few other rules to prevent overcapitalization and make a smooth reading:
*After the 1st mention, generic ingame terms are not required to be capitalized. As an example, after the first mention of a Laser Pistol, any additional mention(s) to them can simply use the term pistol(s).
*When refering to similar names/terms, it is advisable to capitalize both when they are mentioned. Eg. "Auto Cannon, unlike Heavy Cannon, allows for automatic fire" "Large Scouts are more dangerous than Medium Scouts".
*The same applies to wiki terms.

[[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 16:54, 23 November 2008 (CST)

== Humor and Flavour Text ==

GEH!!! This whole issue is taking on a life of it's own. On one hand, yes, I can see the allure of ufopedia being a serious informative site. On the other hand, there's the "fun" factor... When you get right down to it, Xcom is actually a rather simplistic game in terms of storyline, and storyline interactivity, so we REALLY have to make up our own, otherwise the game degenerates into "capture this technology, research research, shoot shoot. MC = win game". The ingame UFOpedia is great, but it's limited to several paragraphs to describe an entire race of creatures, and 2-3 lines to describe the horror of Blaster Bombs and such. ... I vote that this online UFOpedia becomes everything that the ufopedia in-game was missing... let's have something that ENTERTAINS as well as giving good accurate information!

I'll wait for the votes to come in before touching anything else. I agree with you guys, the Lobstermen and other aquatic aliens getting eaten is something that is VERY much a part of the X-com community's culture... it should go into the UFOpedia. [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 04:00, 13 March 2009 (CDT)

: I've nothing against humour. All for it. In fact I'd very much like to see more of that so that definitely gets my vote. A few light hearted moments in between all the seriousness does wonders. Perhaps not when you're getting into the particulars, but the descriptions or opening paragraphs that don't get into deep detail could be livened up a little. In moderation, of course!

: However, the hard part is deciding on the line between being humorous within the confines of what's available (yes, funny discussions amongst the troops about eating lobstermen after battle instead of selling it could count towards that), and then there's making stuff up. Apologies to Morken for borrowing an example from his on-going graphic novel: explaining the alien's general idiocy/sportsmanship through their strong belief in the tenets of Amgoth. Highly amusing, but not part of the story. Granted, I don't think we've got anything like that on the wiki, but you never know.

: In any case, a good mental exercise for the writers. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 05:14, 13 March 2009 (CDT)

My two cents then: I like the humour, anecdotes, flavour and fan fiction but I think the main purpose of UFOPaedia is informational and that should not be compromised. I like the little touches of humour, and I've been known to attempt them myself. But humour and anecdotes should be kept brief and supplementary - e.g. one-liners and wry observations at the end of a section. Non-canonical flavour text and fan fiction (especially) should be kept clearly separate and distinguishable. Someone reading the site with no prior knowledge of XCOM should be able to tell right away what is factual vs what is humour or speculation/imagination. Not quite sure how to do that - maybe by using sidebars, the Humour category... ok ran out of ideas there already. Maybe we need an "official" font for reproducing canonical, in-game flavour text, so it stands out. Not sure.

Also, humour, anecdote and flavour are much more subjective than fact. What one person thinks is funny, others may not. So non-factual content may just get edited out unless a lot of people agree that it's funny/cool/interesting etc - in fact that's probably already happening. Maybe a good idea is to make the jokes on the Talk pages, and if they are found to be universally funny, move them on to the main articles later - pretty much the same as factual content in fact? [[User:Spike|Spike]] 05:19, 13 March 2009 (CDT)

: I'm certain that we would all agree that the wiki is first and foremost an informative site. We needn't go so far as to point out to the readers what is or isn't. That would be overdoing it. A dash of humour anywhere we can get away with it without compromising the message, facts or turn it into fan fiction is really all that's required and can be more effective. Like spices, the right amount can add to the flavour of a dish. Too much and it just ruins it.

:Now a little creative writing to make the articles (with or without the humour) more captivating to the reader and less like text-books will certainly go a long way. But then again, I believe that we've always attempted to do this. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 06:04, 13 March 2009 (CDT)

:: I agree with NKF's point here regarding humor. But, concerning fanfic, to make up and add things that aren't on the original UFOPaedias or the History distributed with Interceptor is to take too much liberty with the original material (in regards with fan fiction). Just because it gets discussed in the forums at strategycore or xcomufo or that it is mentioned in someone's fanfic doesn't mean that it should be taken as a fact, regardless of the argument that the game story belongs to its fans/players. The game belongs to all of them and quite frankly we are quite a minority (although a very loyal one) regarding that. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 21:58, 2 April 2009 (EDT)

I personally hate the in-game perspective of some articles. I come to this page mainly to get information, not cheesy stories somebody made up. How about splitting it into two wikis? A serious one in the style of a guide book and a fan-fic one full of funny stories and made up background information? [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 07:55, 10 May 2009 (EDT)

: That's why we've got the Field Manual, which is all fiction. The rest should be as fan-fiction free as possible, and any light hearted bits in the non-essential text shouldn't affect the game mechanics explanations (which I feel is the wiki's star aspect). Much of what fiction there (all the non-canon stuff) is a throwback to when we first started and were populating the wiki before we started developing article standards. If you think there's anything that can be done better, we can easily sort that out. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 08:53, 10 May 2009 (EDT)

==XML dumps available?==
Hello guys! Kudos for creating this amazing wiki!

I have some ideas and I'd like to test them on an XML dump of ufopaedia, since it's a small but interesting wiki. Do you offer the dumps for download somewhere (like wikipedia does)? That would be absolutely fantastic. :) [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 10:23, 2 May 2009 (EDT)

:Do you mean [[Special:Export]]? --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:31, 2 May 2009 (EDT)

::I'm not sure if that export page does the job. It seems that it only allows downloading a list of articles I have to type in. What I want is ALL articles of Ufopaedia in XML, be it one file per article or one file for all articles(which I would prefer, since that is what Wikipedia provides and I'd like my software to work with all wikis). You can see what Wikipedia offers here [[http://download.wikimedia.org/]] and here [[http://download.wikimedia.org/enwiki/20090501/]]. Thanks! [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 23:19, 2 May 2009 (EDT)
::Never mind, I just entered all the relevant categories into the export page and got the XML file I was looking for (Downloading only the files relevant to playing X-COM 1 results in 1.5MB of XML). Thanks! [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 11:21, 4 May 2009 (EDT)

More problems! Since "Special:Export" seems to only allow categories it is impossible to download articles that have no category (e.g. "civilian"). I see two ways how you could fix this: Add an option "Include all uncategorized articles to export" to the export page or put every article in categories. Or run a script that puts every article without category in a "Other" category. [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 07:26, 10 May 2009 (EDT)

== Stats & Purchasing Options ==

Two wildly different subjects here, but worth mentioning:

1) Are any of the Wiki overlords interested in gathering Wiki usage statistics using something like Google Analytics? I just fished about in the server logs and it may interest you to know that the Wiki gets 6,000-8,000 unique visitors a month with anywhere from 13,000-25,000 visits a month from those visitors. With Analytics plugged in (which would take about five minutes from me) then interested parties could keep an eye on what's getting the most attention and, possibly, what people are searching for most (as in things that they're looking for that may not be covered). I'm new to MediaWiki though so I have no idea whether it's got some level of reporting built in?

2) Is it worth putting a link in the menu to the left to a page with more details on buying options and what's in the "complete" collections (as they're not totally complete technically, and people may not be aware that they can buy just one of the games if they want)? I would imagine it's something that quite a few people would be looking for, though admittedly without the detailed stats it's hard to say. Just pretend I don't have an interest in affiliate linking with this question too - I'd thought about it before putting my business hat on, honest!
--[[User:Pete|Pete]] 17:58, 23 June 2009 (EDT)

:1 - MediaWiki doesn't have much in terms of stats so it would be great if you could install that for us. Would be a handy tool for all sorts of things.

:2 - Good idea. If someone creates such a page I'll add it to the left menu. :) --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:11, 23 June 2009 (EDT)

::I like both ideas as well [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:30, 23 June 2009 (EDT)

: That is a decent number of UVs and well worth monetising just to defray the costs a bit, which is all it would do. I guess you are talking about some Adwords and affiliate links to Steam? Fair enough. I don't pay for the site and it has to be paid for somehow.

Interesting stats though. So there are 6 to 8,000 people viewing and what, at most 10-20 people posting regularly? That's a pretty high "lurker ratio". :) [[User:Spike|Spike]] 21:18, 23 June 2009 (EDT)

== Copyrighted Materials from Official Sources ==

I've read a post concerning this and I suddenly couldn't remember if there's any guidelines regarding this, so I decided to ask your opinion about it. I've been transcribing quite a few descriptions from game manuals and game UFOPaedia's for the articles about Apocalypse that I've been adding because I worked under the assumption that this site is basically an online resource for players and it already uses a lot of copyrighted materials, especially images (and also to save some work in creating articles for the pages I've been adding).
Another thing that I've been putting into practice is some special editing to differenciate canon material from official sources, I can't remember how to describe but just check any the page of any organization from Apocalypse. Likely there's a better way to it but the most important would be to add something regarding this matter to the UFOPaedia's guidelines [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]]

: I've been thinking that official quotes of in-game text should be clearly defined as such and left unmodified. Perhaps a formatted table with a note at the end stating its source (or title/author/publisher/ISBN if it's from official printed material). Perhaps even have the quotation in italics.

:(Example removed)

: Would something like the above, or along similar lines work? Could be done by way of two templates (open and close), and you just sandwich the text in between them. The open/close templates could take one parameter each, the title/source. Leaving it out will obviously leave a blank. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 21:56, 28 February 2010 (EST)
:: Something like this would do rather nicely. I think the important part is for the source of the copyrighted material to be clear. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 12:36, 6 March 2010 (EST)

:::These could use some adjustments if anyone has any feedback to offer, but I've converted the previous example into a pair of templates. We now have <nowiki>{{Ref Open}} and {Ref Close | }}</nowiki> to wrap around quotations.

{{Ref Open}}

'''Celatid Autopsy Official Entry'''
''"The core contains a small bio-mechanical device which appears to be a naturally evolved anti-gravity propulsion system. The sac of venom is the largest organ and there does not appear to be a separate brain structure. There is no discernible digestive or reproductive system. A small organ contains embryos which can grow rapidly into a new being."''

{{Ref Close| Source: Enemy Unknown/UFO Defense Ufopaedia}}

::: The pipe symbol is very important for Ref Close - you put the list of references right after it. Check the source for the above example. The text is set to display one size smaller than the current font and is right aligned, but you can also use links and simple text formatting in the reference list. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 22:15, 6 March 2010 (EST)

:::: Awesome stuff - thanks for the great work NKF. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 4:57, 7 March 2010 (EST)

==UFO Classes==

Hi all!

I recently finished a mod for X-COM UFO: Enemy Unknown that automatically assigns class and level to soldiers based solely on their stats, called "UFO Classes". It would have been nearly impossible if not for all the reseach into game mechanics i gleaned off this site.

In hope that my work improves the best game of all time, for all the people who made this possible, I proudly present: [[User:Necuno|UFO Classes]]

--[[User:Necuno|Necuno]] 15:20, 9 December 2009 (EST)

==Deleting trash files==

I haven't been able to find an option for deleting trash files, these files are not in use:

If anyone could instruct me or perform the deletions I’d appreciate it.

: Deleted as requested. You need to be an admin to delete files, so just ask like you did :) [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 21:42, 19 December 2009 (EST)

Note that you can overwrite old files. Might be better off sticking to a more generic filename, then mentioning stuff like version numbers in the file comment section. One file name constantly being overwritten would be better then many files and many delete requests. - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 21:45, 19 December 2009 (EST)

== "Spin-Off in progress" edit ==
I don't think the last edit to Main Page (adding a "Spin-Off in progress" section) is appropriate. It implies official sanction (by Microprose, Mythos or whomever has the X-COM licence now) where there isn't any AFAIK. I would have reverted, but I guess it's best to discuss this first. [[User:Cesium|Cesium]] 19:57, 26 February 2010 (EST)
: I share the concern. This is effectively an ad for an in-development product. It is not a sanctioned product like the others in this section. It's of interest to XCom fans, but should be grouped with UFO2000, Pocket UFO, etc. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 22:04, 26 February 2010 (EST)
:: I also agree that calling it a spin-off is incorrect since it implies continuing some element of the original series and developing it, which would require permission from the owner of the trademark/copyright (on this case Take-Two). There are precedents for having projects related to X-COM on the Main Page (UFO2000 and Project Xenocide) but those are/were open-source and intended to recreate the original game, replicating or drawing heavily from it. It might be debatable if UFO2000 should have a place on this wiki, though.
:: For time being I will keep the change on the page until more opinions are heard, from the other administrators and hopefully from the author. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 19:45, 28 February 2010 (EST)
::: Almost a week has passed without any more comments on this issue. Unless there is further discussion I shall remove the section next Monday. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 12:35, 6 March 2010 (EST)

::::I've often wondered if UFO2000 should be a part of the wiki as well. I'm not saying that it (and all the other projects) don't deserve a place, but just having it here sets a precedent. If one fan made game can be on the wiki, why not all all the others as well? Removing any one could be seen as favouritism. But letting them all in has the danger of muddying the purpose of the wiki.

::::I don't know what should be done with UFO2000 now that is has been established, but for the others: how about setting up a page that links to and advertise the various active fan X-COM-influenced projects? -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 03:31, 8 March 2010 (EST)

::::: Isn't the case that UFO2000 has some special relationship, e.g. this is the "official" Wiki site for UFO2000 or something like that? So it's a special case. In the general case, fan made games and remakes should have less prominence, IMO. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:55, 8 March 2010 (EST)

:::::: I'm biased towards UFO2000 since I was a member of the developer team, but I'll state what I think about it. UFO2000 is a playable game, but still in progress, which aimed to be a remake of the original game, although only the tactical game is implemented and the remake aim had to be dropped to prevent copyright issues. I can't remember who asked for it to be included in the wiki list of games but it clearly has content of its own (new weaponsets, tactics, etc., all expanding upon the original game). I agree with having a page to list all active projects. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 15:16, 8 March 2010 (EST)

: Since there's a consensus the previous edit was inappropriate, and the Monday deadline came and passed, I've reverted the edit. [[User:Cesium|Cesium]] 08:34, 15 March 2010 (EDT)
:: The deadline applied if there was no further discussion after it was set. Since people contributed to the discussion afterwards, the deadline became void. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 12:05, 15 March 2010 (EDT)

: Is there a consent in moving the section on the Main Page moved to a new Spin-Offs and Projects page? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 21:40, 13 March 2010 (EST)
:: I would agree to create a fan/tribute/etc projects page. The term Spin Offs should be reserved for "official" sequels and spin offs, if only because that's how it has been used. UFO 2000 could move to the tribute projects page, or keep its current special position. I don't mind which. It's more logical to have it all on one page, unless there are objections. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 14:47, 15 March 2010 (EDT)
:: I don't mind moving, as long as the current distinction re: spin-offs is kept, and the current wiki pages regarding these spin offs are also kept (e.g. timeline info). UFO 2000 can keep its special position, as this is also the official UFO2000 wiki and there's a lot of wiki pages for it. However, I wouldn't mind if it were moved. [[User:Cesium|Cesium]] 15:48, 15 March 2010 (EDT)

== NPOV-ing of TFTD Equipment ==

After Spike used the new reference templates on the Dart Gun section, I got to reading most of general descriptions for the equipment articles. I feel they are due for rewrite to set them in line with the NPOV stance we've adopted. That and some reorganization of the content, such as the UFO/TFTD weapon comparisons need to be shifted to the analysis page.

If everyone doesn't mind, I'll try my hand at a few pages this week. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 08:03, 15 March 2010 (EDT)

: I very much agree that the TFTD pages are generally weaker than the UFO pages, in their less neutral POV, more chatty style, and also in overall completeness. I think any effort to improve them would be most welcome. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 14:49, 15 March 2010 (EDT)

:: Started on the [[Dart Gun]]. Not sure if there's too much else to elaborate on, but at least now it's not openly saying it's the worst weapon in the game.

:: Need to fiddle with the layout a bit as I'm not too keen on just one big block of text. I thought it would be a good idea to move the official entry to the top of the section for a start. Still needs a bit more zing to it. Maybe a screenshot of an in-action picture of aquanaut armed with a dart-gun would break up the monotony a bit?

::One other idea I've been toying with is an executive summary of sorts. A split pro/con table that highlights the key features and flaws of the weapon for readers to quickly glance over. Would that work, or would that just add more clutter to the page? -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 03:07, 16 March 2010 (EDT)

::: Those all sound like excellent ideas. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 15:12, 16 March 2010 (EDT)

Talk:Main Page

2010-06-08T17:26:53Z

Guido Talbot:

'''Welcome To All Rookies'''

This is the place to talk/ask about general issues concerning the wiki and hopefully someone will answer/reply to them.

Specific game questions should be asked on the game's individual talk pages.

For new users, in order to reduce spam you'll need to register to be able to edit pages.

To start a new topic simply press the '''edit''' button above. Then place your <nowiki>==Topic Name==</nowiki> like it is written here.
* To add a line you can either type <nowiki>----</nowiki> or use the buttons that appear on the edit screen.
* If replying to an existing topic use colons '''<nowiki>:</nowiki>''' before your answer
* Don't forget to sign your posts in the talk pages by typing '''<nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>''' at the end.
* Finally when creating/editing wiki articles have a look at the [[Guidelines to writing articles|guidelines]] page.

That's it. Happy editing!
----

__TOC__

== Quick question ==

Does anyone have/know where I could get the TFTD-era X-Com logo? I need it for a project I'm working on.

(I'm asking here because A: the Google has failed me and B: someone who contributed must have seen it, as evidenced by the TFTD badge he/she/it created. Even if you could just point me in the right direction for, say, extracting it from one of the game files, that would be a great help.)

--[[User:Guido Talbot|Guido Talbot]] 13:26, 8 June 2010 (EDT)

== Translation? ==
Hi everybody

I just found this ufopaedia and now I'm spending most of my time at work here :-)

In Uruguay there is a very small X-Com community, and AFAIK, I'm the first one to find this site.
I was thinking about translating the articles to spanish (very slowly), since most players around here are not familiar with the advanced "tips and tricks".
I could also post about the rather poor game translation.
Do you think it could be worth it?

[[User:Diegoba|Diegoba]] 06:38, 15 August 2009 (EDT)

: Hi Diegoba. I think those are great ideas. You could even work on an improved [[SPANISH.DAT]]. Hobbes posts here frequently and I believe he did the Spanish translation for [[XcomUtil]]. If you were translating Wiki pages, I wonder which pages should be translated first? We would need to think about how to structure it. Maybe an /en and an /es path, like Wikipedia does it?

:[[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:10, 15 August 2009 (EDT)

Having the /en /es path sounds good. I was thinking about leaving the pages with the most basic info (IE, Geoscape / Base screen description) for the last. I believe that anyone already knows this basics, and are not that hard to understand.

But I really don't know how to get it started. Do I just create an article called "pagina principal" (main page) and then link from there? I guess that page can then be mapped to es.ufopaedia.org

[[User:Diegoba|Diegoba]] 07:04, 16 August 2009 (EDT)

: I see you already started on a home page, cool. It makes sense to start with "Top Tricks & Tips".We probably need that in English too!
:Thinking about the structure, this is a wiki, so maybe name your pages e.g. "Home Page (Espanol)". Then link each Spanish name "{Spanish Name}" as a wiki redirect to each "{English Name} (Espanol)" Spanish page. Or vice-versa.While you only have a small number of Spanish pages, link them from See Also of the English page, as well as from the Spanish Home Page.Just some suggestions. Hopefully Zombie and those other sysop-type guys will express a view.

:[[User:Spike|Spike]] 09:47, 16 August 2009 (EDT)

I have no idea how this would work out to be honest. An /es path would probably be the best idea, but I think we'd need to be running a second copy of the wiki software to make that possible. (Something I always wanted anyway as UFO2000 isn't really a game in the series but a project - we are just hosting their pages). If anyone knows how the Wikipedia handles the languages internally, please let me know. Doing all those redirects just doesn't make much sense to me because it is a huge amount of work and could tax the system if there are too many queries. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 22:30, 18 August 2009 (EDT)

:What about just creating a link for both languages in the left side menu, and a link to the other language in the main page?. That is simple enough, and most people will be visiting one language or the other, not switching around.

:[[User:Diegoba|Diegoba]] 20:18, 24 August 2009 (EDT)

:: That would work for now and it has the benefit of being simple. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 06:31, 25 August 2009 (EDT)

:Ok, I added a link to the Spanish main page in the sidebar. Is that good? --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 23:53, 28 August 2009 (EDT)

----

== Site TODOS ==
A general dump of to-dos or maybe not-do's. Add any where appropriate:

* Template navigation toolbars for subsections. (Some tests have started)
* Strategy by terrain notes?
* Mention of bug where unit gets stuck in the corner of the map
* Mention of bug where you reload a battlescape mission only to be on an invalid level and how to recover from it (use OHMap, go back down to legal level, click until you find the map again, save the game). Often happens after editting the game, strangely enough. Is it possible the game stores map camera coordinates as a file checksum or somesuch?
* Categorizing all pages related to the games. I've finished it already with Apocalypse and TFTD shouldn't be too hard because it has the less pages, but it UFO is going to be a long work. I've already started a few categories for UFO and TFTD (<nowiki>Category: Enemy Unknown/UFO Defense</nowiki> and nowiki>Category: TFTD</nowiki>, along with a few specific ones (<nowiki>Research (TFTD</nowiki> and so on). It could also be possible to have some general categories that emcompass the whole of the series (UFOs/USOs, X-COM craft). [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 16:32, 4 November 2009 (EST)

== Discussion/talk page proposed format ==
Ok folks, we all seem to have our own ways of adding comments to a discussion page. The way it stands now, it becomes really difficult to follow a discussion when it is broken apart with different formats. What I suggest is this: when you leave a comment use a horizontal line to separate your post from the one(s) above it. In this manner, everything is left justified and the comments are separated. The reason why I do not support the colon as comment separation is that as the discussion progresses you are going to be adding more and more just to get the indenting correct. It also makes it confusing. Another side effect is that once you have a lot of colons present it pushes the text off the page itself and forces a scroll to the right to view. That isn't good.

I suppose if we really want to use colons as separators, we could alternate the use. If a comment is indented above yours, do nothing. If a comment is not indented, use a colon for your submission. Still, the constant zig-zagging isn't really the best idea either.

My vote is therefore to stick with the horizontal line (four dashes). If the discussion veers way off course, or if you have a couple questions/comments, break it apart into different headings. And always sign your post too as that makes it easier to follow.

Discuss.--[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:46, 9 March 2007 (PST)

Works for me, Zombie. Another problem with indentation is that one isn't necessarily addressing only the previous comment, but it could be about the previous one, and tying together things that are 4, 6, ''and'' 12 entries back. Colons are fine for quick rejoinders, but not as a requirement. A potential alternative is to leave two blank lines, as I just did after your sig. This is a fairly clear delineator for folks scanning quickly. However, the horizontal separator is more clear, in general. So I guess I'd vote for the hor-sep for all except quick comments thrown in, which can use colons. And anything that's a new topic or big break should get a new topic, using = signs. - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 21:10, 9 March 2007 (PST)

----

I've reformatted [[Talk:Exploits#Extra_Ammo_Exploit]] to demonstrate how the indentation style ''can'' work, if done consistently. I think it's somewhat better than the line-separator style for very long discussions, making the structure a little clearer. However, if it's sometimes-used and sometimes-not things get messy, as you've noticed.

I'll codify the rules right here (surprisingly, they're not well-codified on Wikipedia itself, despite the fact that it's used quite consistently throughout the site):

*Add an indent for each reply
*Reuse your prior level of indentation if it's a back and forth:

First person's comment

:Second person's comment

::Third person's comment

:Second person again

::Third person again

::Third person's afterthought

:Second person again

::First person jumping back in

:::Third person once more

::First person again

*If you get to 5 or 6 indents, just "reset" (start without indents for the next reply).
*If you have an addendum to your own comments, use the same indent level and re-sign.
*If somebody doesn't know/doesn't use the right indent level, fix it when adding your next reply so the rules become clear during the course of conversation.
*Likewise, if someone adds a new comment to the top or fails to add a heading when starting a new subject, fix it when replying.

The problem we've had lately is the mixing of styles, neither being used correctly. So far it seems that myself, Sf, and NKF have been using indents, you (Zombie) and Mike favoring dashes, and most newcomers failing to use either. No clear winner just yet. ;-)
--[[User:Ethereal Cereal|Ethereal Cereal]] 23:56, 9 March 2007 (PST)

:What if you're addressing several and various issues raised before, not just a comment on the previous statement? (And it runs on for four or six paragraphs?) - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 00:14, 10 March 2007 (PST)

::If you're consolidating a bunch of replies to several earlier points, that's a good time to reset the indent.--[[User:Ethereal Cereal|Ethereal Cereal]] 01:07, 10 March 2007 (PST)

::: Works for me, Eth - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 16:47, 9 November 2007 (PST)

== British vs. American spelling ==

Summary: Use which ever convention you want. It does not matter as long as you do not get into petty spelling convention battles.

== XCOM Box Art ==

Someone (NKF? Danial?) once asked if anybody could scan XCOM's box art, so that they might e.g. put a better graphic on the main page. I just uploaded a 300 dpi scan of all four sides as [[Media:XCOM_UFO_Defense_DOS_US_Box_Art.zip]] (3.2 MB). The box is not in mint condition (see the ReadMe), but a little tweaking by somebody with skillz (Danial) could easily spruce it up. - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 18:05, 19 October 2007 (PDT)

: Was it me? Hmm. Can't remember. I did think to just grab the cover for the PDF version of the X-Com Player's Handbook (US version - with the Mars/Super Avenger cover), but it's black and white. Could've sworn I've seen a copy in colour somewhere. Not that sepia version wouldn't look great though!
: Oh hang on, I don't think it was for the front page graphic in particular, but we did want to get various versions of the box art for the various games. - [[User:NKF|NKF]]

----
NKF - or anybody - can we consider replacing the current main page art, with the XCOM box art? Or a portion of it. I loved the game's intro and in-game "cartoon art", but why not use the game's best image, for our primary Main Page image? (Is there somebody with skills that can clean it up quickly? I'm happy to, but I'm no pics wizard.)

[[image:XcomScExample.png|thumb|100px|One of many possible screencaps]]Related to this, I think it would be a nice touch if anyone put a bunch of selected and/or random screen captures (screencaps) onto a page, with a link just "under" (i.e., indented under the Main Page entry for) [[Info|About X-COM: UFO Defense]]...

:I have a sneaking suspicion that we get a ton of lurkers (someone who is there but never speaks) who once played X-COM and came across our page by chance, and would like to relive it, if even for a few screencaps... yet as it is now, our site is becoming more of an in-depth encyclopedia, instead of a "you were once here" kind of place. All us hard core players gravitate toward the encyclopedia - but even if folks who once played it don't stay, if they say, "wow, I remember doing all that" based on a stack of screenshots, that would be good. I'm thinking of easy sections that are light on text (and no Ufopaedia info), but heavy on thumbnails and click-on screencaps (see the image to the right - I love that financier in the background) like:
:*My first base - Decisions
:*The Globe - Radar alert!
:*First contact! Small farm in Iowa, USA
:*Managing Research
:*Terror in Sydney! ''(include zombies - squad wiped out - see next)''
:*Headline: World Council generally supports X-COM efforts - subheadline - Australia may now be under the control of aliens ''(funding results for a month)''
:*Headline: X-COM squad impacted by "Blaster bomb" - the world cries (before and after pix)
:*The tricky depths of a Battleship
:*Elite squad Mind Controls all aliens
:*Final showdown: Cydonia
:Each of the sections above might have 1-5 images. Something like that.

:If no one objects, can I ask that anyone who is willing to do it, make a bunch of screencaps, using .pngs and thumbnails as shown above. Then lurkers can "remember the days" right up front. And a few more lurkers than currently breeze through, might stay.

:To put this in context, CNN recently had a number of articles admiring Commodore 64s (one of them [http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/ptech/12/07/c64/index.html?iref=newssearch here]). X-COM is like that, to me... it lives past its "life expectancy" to gamers, because of how well put together it was, especially including how much it hit you in the gut.

In summary, then. I have one question for us XCOM hardcore (can we change the Main Page image) and one for everybody (want to post a lot of screencaps?). I have made a stub page for the screencaps page. I'll retract it if the hardcore object or there's no response in a couple of months' time. - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 21:44, 14 December 2007 (PST)
----

I'm perfectly fine with getting the main title changed. Get a few more ayes and we'll make it so.

A screencap section would be nice. I'm quite partial to creating screencap mini-comics (no, not real comics. Just sequential before/during/after images), although I never use them and they just get deleted in the end.

One benefit is that some of the shots can also be recycled throughout the rest of the site to illustrate certain things. Or for an article that's no more than a solid block of text, something to break up the monotony. I'm also always for a few well placed humorous shots.

-[[User:NKF|NKF]] 01:02, 15 December 2007 (PST)

:Sounds good, NKF. There could easily be a "comics" page link several ways:
::1) The new Main Page entry indented under [[Info|About X-COM: UFO Defense]] could also have a link to a comics page, but on the screenshot page itself,
::2) That same new entry on the Main Page could read something like "[[Screenshots]] - and [[Comics]]!" The concept of the screenshots page is to help folks relive the past. And something just as good as screenshots - or better - is screenshots with humor.
::3) Or, make a link for it, all by itself, somewhere obvious on the Main Page.
:I think it's a great idea!
:As for the other idea - you said you're fine re: changing the main title. But it's the graphic at the top of the Main Page that I'm talking about. Just to make sure we're clear on that. - [[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 17:21, 21 December 2007 (PST)

== Request ==

I have noticed that there is no pictures of TFTD, Apoc, or Int on the main welcome page. Any ordinary joe browsing to here from the four wiki (which I just added the links to point to here in "External links" on each page) is going to leave if they see just the first game picture (and not scroll down to see the other games covered).

SO, my request: have a collage of all four (five incl. email? ) on the front page which easily shows each game box-front. If copywrite issue, then someone could get creative with their own personal artiste skills.

: Further up this page there actually has been discussion of using the box art for the various games. Real life, as is often the case, intervenes. But it's not a bad idea mind you. A change is as good as a vacation. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 18:20, 18 September 2009 (EDT)

I was just thinking about this the other day in fact. Anyway, there is a nice collage of all the game boxes on the side of the X-COM Collection box. I could probably scan that and stick it up here for you guys to check out if you want. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 23:30, 18 September 2009 (EDT)

:: Zombie, have you had a chance to scan the collage? Just spotted this as I was responding to a different matter. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 22:05, 28 February 2010 (EST)

== Favicon ==

Does the UFOpaedia have a favicon? -- [[User:NinthRank|NinthRank]] 17:51, 6 November 2007 (PST)

:We did have it at one time but I think it disappeared after an upgrade to the wiki software. If you have an idea for a favicon, submit it here. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 18:21, 6 November 2007 (PST)

Okay, I don't know where that logo in the upper left came from, but after a quick GIMP edit, I came up with this: [[Media:favicon.zip]]. I'm not quite sure how The GIMP works with icons, so I also included the .png's. What do you think? -- [[User:NinthRank|NinthRank]] 18:51, 6 November 2007 (PST)

:Not too shabby. Next time I talk to GazChap, I'll run it past him. Any more ideas for a favicon? I'd like to get a few (at least 3) and run it through a vote here. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:28, 6 November 2007 (PST)

::[[image:FavIcon-Crude1.png|thumb|16px]][[image:FavIcon-Crude2.png|thumb|16px]]NinthRank and Z, my two cents are something like this. My pics are incredibly crude - I'm a total graphics n00b - and would need somebody like you, Ninth, to turn it into the "burnished gold and navy" (or is that black?), like you did with yours. I couldn't even get my damn background to change for me using simple MS Word art ... what do you use? (See how n00b I am?)

::I think you have some great ideas there, but my favicons show as 16x16 pixels. (Is this because I use small icons? I had never heard the the word until you said it, Ninth, at which point I read the wiki entry, and it made immediate sense.) At 162, you have to keep it incredibly simply... having the COM on a big X does that, because it doesn't "waste a repetitive 'X-' across the center", if that makes sense. Another idea is be careful with the X ... I didn't like the X in your 16x16 and 32x32 because it was "narrow" (more vertical than horizontal). I definitely like your 48x48. (I can't tell what's going on with your animated 16x16 .ico, my friend - a 16x16 pic on a 1280x1024 screen (or higher) needs to be real simple. It looks like a tiny pulsing thing, with an X sort of there, overall.) I think the X should be, if not symmetric, then, more wide than high - to me, this implies something "ominous". A true X would have to be "cut off" at the corners to be "wide and fat" at 16x16. This shows more in my second try than the first.

::You can make things bigger than 162, a real plus and you get much more flexibility, but for me, only 16x16 exists.

::My two cents. I love your overall idea, and using navy (or black?) with gold trim. Thanks for signing in and helping out, NinthRank! -[[User:MikeTheRed|MikeTheRed]] 19:40, 14 December 2007 (PST)

==Technical Commentaries==

I just thought of adding a specific section concerning commentaries regarding the game, i.e., trying to explain how the weapons/diplomacy/funding/etc. would work in real life. The idea here is not to expand on the canon X-COM material but to describe/explain in a rational way.
I've come with this idea after reading Spike's section (on his [[User talk:Spike]] page) explaining the economics of X-COM and starting my own section regarding the Council of Funding Nations.
I think there is plenty of material available on the Data canisters that could be used/adapted to this. Also, the discussion regarding Elerium (with all those formulas) on the Talk Page is exactly the sort of thing I was thinking of.

- [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 22:59, 10 March 2008 (PDT)

: I don't see any problem with it. Go for it. We've started with a magnificent wealth of knowledge about the game itself (and a bit beyond, with the binary file diving). Theories and explanations of the X-Com world wouldn't be out of place. They'd certainly add a bit of literary colour and interest for those that wish to look beyond the game. There are lots of interesting bits and pieces scattered throughout the articles (like real world equivalents of weapon or tanks, just to name one example) that would probably fit better in a section like that than in the articles. Perhaps a an expanded data-canister like section would be in order. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 01:13, 11 March 2008 (PDT)

== Game Editors ==

I was going to add a link off the Main Page to the [[Game editors]] section that I wrote, under Misc. I still have a nagging feeling there is another list of them somewhere, but I can't find it. Any comments?

Also, any additions to the Game editors section are welcome.

[[User:Spike|Spike]] 03:40, 15 March 2008 (PDT)

: I don't think we've ever had a particular listing of editors.

: Tell you what, I'll throw these changes in, and we'll see how this works out.

:# I'll put the new game editor section onto the UFO main table (I've also renamed the page to stick to the first capital letter naming convention the other articles use).
:# I removed XComutil off the main table, since it'll be under the game file section.
:# Removed the UBK - it's just a tool for wiki editors and not something that would interest players of the game.

: I might also add the [[Command Prompt]] to the game editor section for its notes on using MS-Edit as a binary file editor.

:- [[User:NKF|NKF]] 04:46, 15 March 2008 (PDT)

:: While I see the validity of adding XComUtil to a page regarding editors won't it make sense to keep a sublink to the page which deals on how to use it, together with MSEdit? I mean, the other editors only have links to them on that page and I think that at least XComUtil deserves main page status because of its notoriosity and complexity. What do you guys think? - [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 14:08, 15 March 2008 (PDT)

----
a good idea to include the Command Prompt help. How about broadly dividing it into 2 sections: X-COM-specific tools and general purpose tools?
[[User:Spike|Spike]] 07:08, 17 March 2008 (PDT)

== Newb questions ==

Hello good sirs. Sorry for my bad non-native english. While in total noob in wiki, im relatively for long playd this great games. Great thanks for you for this great site, it really helped me with some ideas, especially with Funding Nation, even dont know how i played it before without it. Now more close to point, i realized what TFTD section here are, say, unperfect, if not somewhat wrong. As i readed somewhere not all play TFTD much, UFO1 instead, so it maybe be the point. Id edit something on it, but im totally dunno how to do it, and my language will have too many mistakes to be proudly presented to people. So id be glade to hear what you may propose for me to do. Again big thanks. Ill wait for answer.

PS Or im searched too badly, or its differ in TFTD (i play only it now) from UFO1, but i cant find here about stunned persons behaviour. Cant find what they awake only if theyr stun is lower then HP's and if only they have awaken person in theyr tile during end of turn. IMHO its important thing to know off, at least for me.

PPS. My friend made great tiny changes to one tiny file, what make FundingNations game way more easy and elegant then described in issue. I can upload it if you need this, tho its for TFTD im sure he can do UFO1 also if its needed. Anyway this game too easy even on FN to play it without it :).

Eh PPPS. Dunno how to properly log on :(.

: Do not worry about the language barrier - sometimes it's harder to understand people who speak English natively! ;) In any case, There'll be other editors who will be able to help fix the article for you if you can get the idea across.

: To get started editing pages, check the Community Portal on the left sidebar. That has links to articles that can help you get started - more or less. One good way to find out how some text is formatted (or anything else you'd like to duplicate) is to edit the page and see how it's done in the source.

: If in doubt, or if you're unsure about editing the article, feel free put your ideas or suggestions in the article's Discussion page.

: Because TFTD and UFO share a lot of the same mechanics, there would be a lot of unnecessary duplication if we were to write up articles for it that are already available in the UFO articles. Therefore we mainly include articles that cover topics that are unique to TFTD, like the weapons, door opening, aliens, etc. General mechanics like how damage works or how experience is earned is identical to UFO's, so there's no need to duplicate them. What sections do you think need improving or what sections do we need to add? The more input the better.

: Regarding consciousness, have you checked the [[Unconscious]] article? I think we might need to redo that article bit and perhaps add a few illustrations. One note about the difference between UFO and TFTD with the visual appearance of a unit recovered with a medikit needs to go in there too if it hasn't already. Oh well. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 22:54, 22 May 2008 (PDT)

: PS, to sign your messages in the discussion pages, put four tilde's <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki> anywhere you want to insert your name and the timestamp.

== same questions ==

Thank you for answer. I been somwhat incorrect in my english. I didnt mean what TFTD pages are bad or what they lose reduntand UFO1 information. All they lack are only slightly wrongly described alien's dangers levels (one of most dangerous creatures cant be low treat, and least dangerous one medium) and lack of mission types what only TFTD have. Also i readed "Unconscious@ article few times, stiil cant find only how to use medkit and no word about what generally need for stunned person to rise. From that follow advices to grenade stunned chryssalids and so on.

PS. Oh, yes, and whats wrong with door openings?
[[User:Derrida|Derrida]] 08:59, 23 May 2008 (PDT)

: A unit falls unconscious when the stun bar is equal or greater than the unit's remaining health points. If it's under that, the unit will be awake.

: To wake a soldier up, you have to reduce the stun level by either waiting for the stun to wear off, 1 point per turn, or use stimulants on a medikit. Looks like the TFTD section doesn't have its own medikit page, but UFO's [[Medi-Kit]] section explains how to use it, as they are identical. Basically, if the unit is unconscious, the medic must stand on top of the unconscious unit and use stimulants (the second choice) until the unconscious soldier wakes up. When the unconscious unit wakes up, they'll appear to the north of the medic.

: TFTD's stun weapons are much more powerful than in TFTD, so you often have to use a lot of stimulants to wake a person up.

: TFTD's unique because it allows you to open doors by right clicking them - and it's a free action so you won't spend any TUs to do it. UFO cannot do this (except the Playstation version).

: As for the threat levels of the aliens - I agree, some should be reclassified. Personally I'd move the Gill-Men and Calcinite up to medium threat - all the current medium level threats look just about right though. What are your suggestions?

: Hang on, why are there so many references to vibroblades in the overview article? That can't be right. I'll have to update that later on. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 15:05, 23 May 2008 (PDT)

Nonono. I mean what if unit's stun damage falled below it's HP, and no one stand in tile it lying, it will never rise. Medkits not the point. No stunned aliens or soldiers will rise if no one will end turn on it, or take it to inventory/hand. I tried to say this. Maybe it been different in UFO1 (as with doors, i thought what doors always open by right click, and in UFO1 too (btw cant find about door opening anywere in wiki)), but in TFTD it means what you dont have to bother with stunned tentaculats etc to rise after stun if you do not stand on it, or try to move it in backpack/hand. Same with soldiers, you can click zillion turns, but they will never rise until someone stand on it. Without this game must be horrible with all this undying lobsters awake afer you pass them.
With danger level id suggest this: Harmless: hallucinoid; deep one; Low: gillmen; aquatoid; Meduim: zombie; calcinite; bio-drone; lobsterman; xarquid; high: tasoth; triscene; What really matters: tentaculat. In line of growing dangerness. [[User:Derrida|Derrida]] 16:30, 23 May 2008 (PDT)

== Regarding image file formats ==

I'd really like to add a note somewhere obvious about using GIFs for screenshots in the wiki, rather than JPGs. For 256-color images like X-COM uses, GIFs are no larger than JPGs and generally look much better. For example, see the nasty compression artifacts on the terrain maps in the [[Terror ship|Terror Ship]] article. PNGs might work just as well, I'm not sure, but we should really avoid JPGs.

Where would be the best place to mention this? I'm thinking near the top of the main page for visibility, but that might be more clutter than people want. [[User:Phasma Felis|Phasma Felis]] 23:59, 11 June 2008 (PDT)

:It's been dealt with [[User_talk:Zombie#Image_Types|here]] that PNG is the preferred file format of the wiki; however, where to note this...I honestly don't know. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 00:37, 12 June 2008 (PDT)

:: PNG's reduced to 256 or less colours can be quite the space saver for X-Com screenshots. You can go the extra step and run them through PNG compression programs and somesuch - but they're pretty good as-is. Jpgs should be reserved for images with a broader range of colours. One place the note could go is in [[Guidelines to writing articles]]. In fact, that section could do with a few extra additions in any case to expand is to that it's not just covering the composition of the language of the articles, but to cover the creation of the articles. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 03:04, 12 June 2008 (PDT)

== Hosting move. ==

Hi guys. It appears I'm still hosting the UFOpaedia - I did discuss moving it to StrategyCore with both Zombie and Pete a while ago and I think I gave them copies of what would be required.

Anyway, I'm moving hosting servers so the UFOpaedia is going to move too. I'm aiming to carry out the transfer on Sunday September 28th at about 8pm GMT+1. Any changes made between this time and the time that the transfer completes may be lost, but hopefully not. Just thought I'd give you guys a bit of notice.

I should point out that I still have no objection to hosting the UFOpaedia on my servers, it's a great project and you guys have done a bang-up job with it, it's far surpassed my original intentions :) However, if StrategyCore want to take over hosting to remove the potential "failure point" (i.e. me) then that's fine and we can give it another shot?

GazChap, 25th September 2008 12:50 GMT+1

:Thanks for the heads-up Gaz-Chap! Sure, StrategyCore is still willing to host the UFOpaedia. Sorry things didn't quite work out the last time we talked. Pete needs to be constantly reminded to do things as he's easily distracted. I'll try and start a fire under his bum to get the ball rolling again. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 07:14, 25 September 2008 (PDT)

::Hosting has now been moved to StrategyCore. Cheers to Pete and Zombie for sorting it out. GazChap, 11:28, 1 October 2008 (GMT+1)

::: There may be a slight problem with caching of the temporary holding page ("coming back soon". On some browsers I'm using (not all), the temporary page is still up and you can't see the UFOPaedia site. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 17:48, 1 October 2008 (CDT)

::The new website address is quite likely still propagating out through DNS, since we moved hosts. So that's just the nature of the internet and should be gone in a day or two. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 19:06, 1 October 2008 (CDT)

:Most browsers seem to allow a full page refresh via Ctrl + F5. There's also an option re caching under the Misc section of your Preferances - I had to disable it ages ago 'cause it was always failing to show me page changes... - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 21:54, 1 October 2008 (CDT)

Sorry about the downtime everyone. The bandwidth limit wasn't set high enough after the recent change in hosting and basically didn't allow access. I contacted Pete and he fixed the issue. Good to catch these issues earlier rather than later. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 15:11, 15 October 2008 (CDT)

=== 14 March 2009 ===

Zombie mentioned that Pete may be moving the server this weekend. I'm getting lots of errors and more or less unable to make updates to the site. Probably this is to do with the server move. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 19:14, 14 March 2009 (EDT)

:Apparently the move has been complete most of the day. So if you guys continue to have problems, please contact me and I'll relay it over to Pete. I'm not experiencing any problems though. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 21:34, 14 March 2009 (EDT)

== 500 Internal error ==

This seems to occur whenever I edit a subsection on a page, and I click the edit button on the TOP of the page instead of the edit button next to the subsection title. So, if you wanna avoid this error, try using the button which only edits that subsection... [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 05:40, 21 March 2009 (EDT)

:Already been tried. Doesn't work any better. UFOpaedia admin is on it, I've been told. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 12:05, 21 March 2009 (EDT)

:: Pete's finished his latest round of changes. Give it another go. - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 22:12, 21 March 2009 (EDT)

== Proposed top level links ==

I've written some pages which I'd like to be proposed be linked to the main page, unless anyone can suggest where to put them (careful now!).

I'd like to link [[Fictional Equivalents]] to the main page.

I'd like to link [[Wish List (TFTD)]] to the TFTD page. It would also be good to start a [[Known Bugs (TFTD)]] page, for TFTD-specific bugs.

However as some tricky template work is involved, I'd rather not make these links myself for fear of screwing up the main page(s). Thoughts? [[User:Spike|Spike]] 11:20, 14 November 2008 (CST)

: Feel free to edit the templates - as long as the tables look okay when you preview them, they shouldn't break the page. The templates are standard pages but with a fancy prefix to their file name to categorize them as templates. This was needed so that any updates to them would show up on the main page right away without forcing the viewers to force-refresh the page. - [[User:NKF|NKF]] 12:46, 14 November 2008 (CST)

::It should be noted that the [[TRTBAG]] more or less covers the "Known Bugs for TFTD" segment. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 16:08, 14 November 2008 (CST)

:Well it covers the Research Tree bugs but not any of the other TFTD-specific bugs as far as I can see. Still that's a good starting point, thanks AQ! And thanks Zombie for adding the links. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 17:34, 14 November 2008 (CST)

::Maybe TRTBAG should just BECOME the "Known Bugs(TFTD)" page. [[User:Arrow Quivershaft|Arrow Quivershaft]] 17:36, 14 November 2008 (CST)

:Because TRTBAG is such an excellent self contained guide, and well written, and quite long, I think it should be separate. I will link to it under the Known Bugs (TFTD) page. I suggest the main page link to TRTBAG be remained "''Research'' Bug Avoidance Guide". Probably the TFTD Alien Glitches page can be gotten rid of. It only mentions one bug, which is not a bug at all. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 06:16, 15 November 2008 (CST)

==Terminology==

===X-COM/XCOM/XCom/Etc.===

I remember reading about this discussion before and if something concrete comes out I think it should be added to the [[Guidelines to writing articles]].
Do we have set a proper spelling to refer to the organization? IIRC the game uses X-COM/XCOM/X-Com/etc. Should we set a standard for the Wiki? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 07:52, 21 November 2008 (CST)
:It's a good idea to agree on a single standard spelling for the Wiki, if only to keep links consistent and prdictable. But it's a shame if there is no clear canonical spelling though. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 12:28, 21 November 2008 (CST)
::From what I recall there isn't a standard followed on UFO Defense, where you have X-COM/XCOM/XCom/etc. Apocalypse might be more consistent and I have no idea for the other games. I try to use X-COM and I've done some edits to follow this standard spelling but I'd like to read more opinions [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 17:43, 22 November 2008 (CST)
:I've had a check through the in-game strings and most if not all of them say "Xcom", which is my least favourite spelling. :( I think X-COM has the best flavour. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 19:41, 22 November 2008 (CST)
If any of you folks here have been following what I've been up to lately at the StrategyCore forums, you'll see I have been amassing a collection of most of the game versions in the series. Checking my [http://www.strategycore.co.uk/xcom/pg/ufogameversions UFO Game Versions] site page, you'll see that the original European release used XCom while the budget releases used X-Com. Other than that, those spellings quickly fell by the wayside as MicroProse decided on X-COM which quickly gained approval and remained the standard spelling throughout the series. (You can't really go by in-game text as those were not checked for consistency). Anyhow, I'd opt for the same route MicroProse took: X-COM. --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:33, 22 November 2008 (CST)

===Capitalization guidelines/rules for the wiki===

Another thing that crossed my mind are guidelines/rules tossed in to prevent overcapitalization.

Specific ingame terms/names should be always capitalized:
*Weapons (Boomeroid, Elerium, Entropy Launcher
*Alien Races (Sectoid, Lobsterman, Skeletoid, etc.)
*Organizations (MarSec, General Dynamics, Council of Funding Nations)
*X-COM Crafts (Skyranger, Manta, Dimension Probe)

Generic ingame terms/names (that already exist in English) should be capitalized the first time they are mentioned on a wiki entry. Some examples:
*Weapons (Plasma Rifle, Torpedo Launcher, Vortex Mine, etc.)
*UFO types (Large Scout, Dreadnaught, Alien Mothership, etc.)
*Soldier Attributes/Agent Stats (Stamina, Psi-defense, etc.)
*Base Facilities

Wiki terms should be capitalized the first time they are mentioned on a wiki entry:
*Tactics
*Economics
*Game Mechanics
*Etc.

A few other rules to prevent overcapitalization and make a smooth reading:
*After the 1st mention, generic ingame terms are not required to be capitalized. As an example, after the first mention of a Laser Pistol, any additional mention(s) to them can simply use the term pistol(s).
*When refering to similar names/terms, it is advisable to capitalize both when they are mentioned. Eg. "Auto Cannon, unlike Heavy Cannon, allows for automatic fire" "Large Scouts are more dangerous than Medium Scouts".
*The same applies to wiki terms.

[[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 16:54, 23 November 2008 (CST)

== Humor and Flavour Text ==

GEH!!! This whole issue is taking on a life of it's own. On one hand, yes, I can see the allure of ufopedia being a serious informative site. On the other hand, there's the "fun" factor... When you get right down to it, Xcom is actually a rather simplistic game in terms of storyline, and storyline interactivity, so we REALLY have to make up our own, otherwise the game degenerates into "capture this technology, research research, shoot shoot. MC = win game". The ingame UFOpedia is great, but it's limited to several paragraphs to describe an entire race of creatures, and 2-3 lines to describe the horror of Blaster Bombs and such. ... I vote that this online UFOpedia becomes everything that the ufopedia in-game was missing... let's have something that ENTERTAINS as well as giving good accurate information!

I'll wait for the votes to come in before touching anything else. I agree with you guys, the Lobstermen and other aquatic aliens getting eaten is something that is VERY much a part of the X-com community's culture... it should go into the UFOpedia. [[User:Jasonred|Jasonred]] 04:00, 13 March 2009 (CDT)

: I've nothing against humour. All for it. In fact I'd very much like to see more of that so that definitely gets my vote. A few light hearted moments in between all the seriousness does wonders. Perhaps not when you're getting into the particulars, but the descriptions or opening paragraphs that don't get into deep detail could be livened up a little. In moderation, of course!

: However, the hard part is deciding on the line between being humorous within the confines of what's available (yes, funny discussions amongst the troops about eating lobstermen after battle instead of selling it could count towards that), and then there's making stuff up. Apologies to Morken for borrowing an example from his on-going graphic novel: explaining the alien's general idiocy/sportsmanship through their strong belief in the tenets of Amgoth. Highly amusing, but not part of the story. Granted, I don't think we've got anything like that on the wiki, but you never know.

: In any case, a good mental exercise for the writers. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 05:14, 13 March 2009 (CDT)

My two cents then: I like the humour, anecdotes, flavour and fan fiction but I think the main purpose of UFOPaedia is informational and that should not be compromised. I like the little touches of humour, and I've been known to attempt them myself. But humour and anecdotes should be kept brief and supplementary - e.g. one-liners and wry observations at the end of a section. Non-canonical flavour text and fan fiction (especially) should be kept clearly separate and distinguishable. Someone reading the site with no prior knowledge of XCOM should be able to tell right away what is factual vs what is humour or speculation/imagination. Not quite sure how to do that - maybe by using sidebars, the Humour category... ok ran out of ideas there already. Maybe we need an "official" font for reproducing canonical, in-game flavour text, so it stands out. Not sure.

Also, humour, anecdote and flavour are much more subjective than fact. What one person thinks is funny, others may not. So non-factual content may just get edited out unless a lot of people agree that it's funny/cool/interesting etc - in fact that's probably already happening. Maybe a good idea is to make the jokes on the Talk pages, and if they are found to be universally funny, move them on to the main articles later - pretty much the same as factual content in fact? [[User:Spike|Spike]] 05:19, 13 March 2009 (CDT)

: I'm certain that we would all agree that the wiki is first and foremost an informative site. We needn't go so far as to point out to the readers what is or isn't. That would be overdoing it. A dash of humour anywhere we can get away with it without compromising the message, facts or turn it into fan fiction is really all that's required and can be more effective. Like spices, the right amount can add to the flavour of a dish. Too much and it just ruins it.

:Now a little creative writing to make the articles (with or without the humour) more captivating to the reader and less like text-books will certainly go a long way. But then again, I believe that we've always attempted to do this. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 06:04, 13 March 2009 (CDT)

:: I agree with NKF's point here regarding humor. But, concerning fanfic, to make up and add things that aren't on the original UFOPaedias or the History distributed with Interceptor is to take too much liberty with the original material (in regards with fan fiction). Just because it gets discussed in the forums at strategycore or xcomufo or that it is mentioned in someone's fanfic doesn't mean that it should be taken as a fact, regardless of the argument that the game story belongs to its fans/players. The game belongs to all of them and quite frankly we are quite a minority (although a very loyal one) regarding that. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 21:58, 2 April 2009 (EDT)

I personally hate the in-game perspective of some articles. I come to this page mainly to get information, not cheesy stories somebody made up. How about splitting it into two wikis? A serious one in the style of a guide book and a fan-fic one full of funny stories and made up background information? [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 07:55, 10 May 2009 (EDT)

: That's why we've got the Field Manual, which is all fiction. The rest should be as fan-fiction free as possible, and any light hearted bits in the non-essential text shouldn't affect the game mechanics explanations (which I feel is the wiki's star aspect). Much of what fiction there (all the non-canon stuff) is a throwback to when we first started and were populating the wiki before we started developing article standards. If you think there's anything that can be done better, we can easily sort that out. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 08:53, 10 May 2009 (EDT)

==XML dumps available?==
Hello guys! Kudos for creating this amazing wiki!

I have some ideas and I'd like to test them on an XML dump of ufopaedia, since it's a small but interesting wiki. Do you offer the dumps for download somewhere (like wikipedia does)? That would be absolutely fantastic. :) [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 10:23, 2 May 2009 (EDT)

:Do you mean [[Special:Export]]? --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:31, 2 May 2009 (EDT)

::I'm not sure if that export page does the job. It seems that it only allows downloading a list of articles I have to type in. What I want is ALL articles of Ufopaedia in XML, be it one file per article or one file for all articles(which I would prefer, since that is what Wikipedia provides and I'd like my software to work with all wikis). You can see what Wikipedia offers here [[http://download.wikimedia.org/]] and here [[http://download.wikimedia.org/enwiki/20090501/]]. Thanks! [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 23:19, 2 May 2009 (EDT)
::Never mind, I just entered all the relevant categories into the export page and got the XML file I was looking for (Downloading only the files relevant to playing X-COM 1 results in 1.5MB of XML). Thanks! [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 11:21, 4 May 2009 (EDT)

More problems! Since "Special:Export" seems to only allow categories it is impossible to download articles that have no category (e.g. "civilian"). I see two ways how you could fix this: Add an option "Include all uncategorized articles to export" to the export page or put every article in categories. Or run a script that puts every article without category in a "Other" category. [[User:RedNifre|RedNifre]] 07:26, 10 May 2009 (EDT)

== Stats & Purchasing Options ==

Two wildly different subjects here, but worth mentioning:

1) Are any of the Wiki overlords interested in gathering Wiki usage statistics using something like Google Analytics? I just fished about in the server logs and it may interest you to know that the Wiki gets 6,000-8,000 unique visitors a month with anywhere from 13,000-25,000 visits a month from those visitors. With Analytics plugged in (which would take about five minutes from me) then interested parties could keep an eye on what's getting the most attention and, possibly, what people are searching for most (as in things that they're looking for that may not be covered). I'm new to MediaWiki though so I have no idea whether it's got some level of reporting built in?

2) Is it worth putting a link in the menu to the left to a page with more details on buying options and what's in the "complete" collections (as they're not totally complete technically, and people may not be aware that they can buy just one of the games if they want)? I would imagine it's something that quite a few people would be looking for, though admittedly without the detailed stats it's hard to say. Just pretend I don't have an interest in affiliate linking with this question too - I'd thought about it before putting my business hat on, honest!
--[[User:Pete|Pete]] 17:58, 23 June 2009 (EDT)

:1 - MediaWiki doesn't have much in terms of stats so it would be great if you could install that for us. Would be a handy tool for all sorts of things.

:2 - Good idea. If someone creates such a page I'll add it to the left menu. :) --[[User:Zombie|Zombie]] 20:11, 23 June 2009 (EDT)

::I like both ideas as well [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 20:30, 23 June 2009 (EDT)

: That is a decent number of UVs and well worth monetising just to defray the costs a bit, which is all it would do. I guess you are talking about some Adwords and affiliate links to Steam? Fair enough. I don't pay for the site and it has to be paid for somehow.

Interesting stats though. So there are 6 to 8,000 people viewing and what, at most 10-20 people posting regularly? That's a pretty high "lurker ratio". :) [[User:Spike|Spike]] 21:18, 23 June 2009 (EDT)

== Copyrighted Materials from Official Sources ==

I've read a post concerning this and I suddenly couldn't remember if there's any guidelines regarding this, so I decided to ask your opinion about it. I've been transcribing quite a few descriptions from game manuals and game UFOPaedia's for the articles about Apocalypse that I've been adding because I worked under the assumption that this site is basically an online resource for players and it already uses a lot of copyrighted materials, especially images (and also to save some work in creating articles for the pages I've been adding).
Another thing that I've been putting into practice is some special editing to differenciate canon material from official sources, I can't remember how to describe but just check any the page of any organization from Apocalypse. Likely there's a better way to it but the most important would be to add something regarding this matter to the UFOPaedia's guidelines [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]]

: I've been thinking that official quotes of in-game text should be clearly defined as such and left unmodified. Perhaps a formatted table with a note at the end stating its source (or title/author/publisher/ISBN if it's from official printed material). Perhaps even have the quotation in italics.

:(Example removed)

: Would something like the above, or along similar lines work? Could be done by way of two templates (open and close), and you just sandwich the text in between them. The open/close templates could take one parameter each, the title/source. Leaving it out will obviously leave a blank. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 21:56, 28 February 2010 (EST)
:: Something like this would do rather nicely. I think the important part is for the source of the copyrighted material to be clear. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 12:36, 6 March 2010 (EST)

:::These could use some adjustments if anyone has any feedback to offer, but I've converted the previous example into a pair of templates. We now have <nowiki>{{Ref Open}} and {Ref Close | }}</nowiki> to wrap around quotations.

{{Ref Open}}

'''Celatid Autopsy Official Entry'''
''"The core contains a small bio-mechanical device which appears to be a naturally evolved anti-gravity propulsion system. The sac of venom is the largest organ and there does not appear to be a separate brain structure. There is no discernible digestive or reproductive system. A small organ contains embryos which can grow rapidly into a new being."''

{{Ref Close| Source: Enemy Unknown/UFO Defense Ufopaedia}}

::: The pipe symbol is very important for Ref Close - you put the list of references right after it. Check the source for the above example. The text is set to display one size smaller than the current font and is right aligned, but you can also use links and simple text formatting in the reference list. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 22:15, 6 March 2010 (EST)

:::: Awesome stuff - thanks for the great work NKF. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 4:57, 7 March 2010 (EST)

==UFO Classes==

Hi all!

I recently finished a mod for X-COM UFO: Enemy Unknown that automatically assigns class and level to soldiers based solely on their stats, called "UFO Classes". It would have been nearly impossible if not for all the reseach into game mechanics i gleaned off this site.

In hope that my work improves the best game of all time, for all the people who made this possible, I proudly present: [[User:Necuno|UFO Classes]]

--[[User:Necuno|Necuno]] 15:20, 9 December 2009 (EST)

==Deleting trash files==

I haven't been able to find an option for deleting trash files, these files are not in use:

If anyone could instruct me or perform the deletions I’d appreciate it.

: Deleted as requested. You need to be an admin to delete files, so just ask like you did :) [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 21:42, 19 December 2009 (EST)

Note that you can overwrite old files. Might be better off sticking to a more generic filename, then mentioning stuff like version numbers in the file comment section. One file name constantly being overwritten would be better then many files and many delete requests. - [[User:Bomb Bloke|Bomb Bloke]] 21:45, 19 December 2009 (EST)

== "Spin-Off in progress" edit ==
I don't think the last edit to Main Page (adding a "Spin-Off in progress" section) is appropriate. It implies official sanction (by Microprose, Mythos or whomever has the X-COM licence now) where there isn't any AFAIK. I would have reverted, but I guess it's best to discuss this first. [[User:Cesium|Cesium]] 19:57, 26 February 2010 (EST)
: I share the concern. This is effectively an ad for an in-development product. It is not a sanctioned product like the others in this section. It's of interest to XCom fans, but should be grouped with UFO2000, Pocket UFO, etc. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 22:04, 26 February 2010 (EST)
:: I also agree that calling it a spin-off is incorrect since it implies continuing some element of the original series and developing it, which would require permission from the owner of the trademark/copyright (on this case Take-Two). There are precedents for having projects related to X-COM on the Main Page (UFO2000 and Project Xenocide) but those are/were open-source and intended to recreate the original game, replicating or drawing heavily from it. It might be debatable if UFO2000 should have a place on this wiki, though.
:: For time being I will keep the change on the page until more opinions are heard, from the other administrators and hopefully from the author. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 19:45, 28 February 2010 (EST)
::: Almost a week has passed without any more comments on this issue. Unless there is further discussion I shall remove the section next Monday. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 12:35, 6 March 2010 (EST)

::::I've often wondered if UFO2000 should be a part of the wiki as well. I'm not saying that it (and all the other projects) don't deserve a place, but just having it here sets a precedent. If one fan made game can be on the wiki, why not all all the others as well? Removing any one could be seen as favouritism. But letting them all in has the danger of muddying the purpose of the wiki.

::::I don't know what should be done with UFO2000 now that is has been established, but for the others: how about setting up a page that links to and advertise the various active fan X-COM-influenced projects? -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 03:31, 8 March 2010 (EST)

::::: Isn't the case that UFO2000 has some special relationship, e.g. this is the "official" Wiki site for UFO2000 or something like that? So it's a special case. In the general case, fan made games and remakes should have less prominence, IMO. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 13:55, 8 March 2010 (EST)

:::::: I'm biased towards UFO2000 since I was a member of the developer team, but I'll state what I think about it. UFO2000 is a playable game, but still in progress, which aimed to be a remake of the original game, although only the tactical game is implemented and the remake aim had to be dropped to prevent copyright issues. I can't remember who asked for it to be included in the wiki list of games but it clearly has content of its own (new weaponsets, tactics, etc., all expanding upon the original game). I agree with having a page to list all active projects. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 15:16, 8 March 2010 (EST)

: Since there's a consensus the previous edit was inappropriate, and the Monday deadline came and passed, I've reverted the edit. [[User:Cesium|Cesium]] 08:34, 15 March 2010 (EDT)
:: The deadline applied if there was no further discussion after it was set. Since people contributed to the discussion afterwards, the deadline became void. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 12:05, 15 March 2010 (EDT)

: Is there a consent in moving the section on the Main Page moved to a new Spin-Offs and Projects page? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 21:40, 13 March 2010 (EST)
:: I would agree to create a fan/tribute/etc projects page. The term Spin Offs should be reserved for "official" sequels and spin offs, if only because that's how it has been used. UFO 2000 could move to the tribute projects page, or keep its current special position. I don't mind which. It's more logical to have it all on one page, unless there are objections. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 14:47, 15 March 2010 (EDT)
:: I don't mind moving, as long as the current distinction re: spin-offs is kept, and the current wiki pages regarding these spin offs are also kept (e.g. timeline info). UFO 2000 can keep its special position, as this is also the official UFO2000 wiki and there's a lot of wiki pages for it. However, I wouldn't mind if it were moved. [[User:Cesium|Cesium]] 15:48, 15 March 2010 (EDT)

== NPOV-ing of TFTD Equipment ==

After Spike used the new reference templates on the Dart Gun section, I got to reading most of general descriptions for the equipment articles. I feel they are due for rewrite to set them in line with the NPOV stance we've adopted. That and some reorganization of the content, such as the UFO/TFTD weapon comparisons need to be shifted to the analysis page.

If everyone doesn't mind, I'll try my hand at a few pages this week. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 08:03, 15 March 2010 (EDT)

: I very much agree that the TFTD pages are generally weaker than the UFO pages, in their less neutral POV, more chatty style, and also in overall completeness. I think any effort to improve them would be most welcome. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 14:49, 15 March 2010 (EDT)

:: Started on the [[Dart Gun]]. Not sure if there's too much else to elaborate on, but at least now it's not openly saying it's the worst weapon in the game.

:: Need to fiddle with the layout a bit as I'm not too keen on just one big block of text. I thought it would be a good idea to move the official entry to the top of the section for a start. Still needs a bit more zing to it. Maybe a screenshot of an in-action picture of aquanaut armed with a dart-gun would break up the monotony a bit?

::One other idea I've been toying with is an executive summary of sorts. A split pro/con table that highlights the key features and flaws of the weapon for readers to quickly glance over. Would that work, or would that just add more clutter to the page? -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 03:07, 16 March 2010 (EDT)

::: Those all sound like excellent ideas. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 15:12, 16 March 2010 (EDT)