UFOpaedia - User contributions [en]

MediaWiki talk:Sidebar

2026-03-26T01:35:32Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Removal of Mod Projects from Sidebar */

==Forums==
NKF, add XComRus (http://www.xcomrus.com/conference/) to the list, please. It is a russian forum about X-Com. --[[User:-=Troll=-|-=Troll=-]] 10:03, 1 October 2010 (EDT)

:Wouldn't it be better to add the XComRus forum link on the Russian version of the Main Page? If it's in Russian, it's not of general interest to everyone (sorry). We already have a link to the Russian Main Page on the Sidebar, I would think that is enough. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 12:10, 1 October 2010 (EDT)

:: I think it might be time we rethink if the forum links should stay on the side bar. They were fine up until now because for a long time the Wiki has only been in English. But now that we are getting various languages added to the wiki, perhaps the forum links should be moved to their own separate pages? -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 12:28, 1 October 2010 (EDT)

::: That sounds like the best idea. A sidebar link to "Forums" and a Forum page, broken up by language. Plus a link on each language's Main Page, jumping to the section for forums in that language. [[User:Spike|Spike]] 14:35, 1 October 2010 (EDT)

== Games ==

Enemy Within (2013) Link ...
To help being separating the EU and EW content.
--[[User:Flipmcf|Flipmcf]] 16:33, 22 December 2013 (EST)
: I've been thinking about this but I haven't come to any conclusion. Where would the link point to? The [[XCOM: Enemy Within DLC (EU2012)]] page? My question here is that EW is an expansion, not a stand alone game. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 07:25, 24 December 2013 (EST)
:: It is on the console version and having two seperate tables may make it less cluttered. --[[User:Ditto51|Ditto51]] 07:39, 25 December 2013 (EST)
::: No reason to do all that. EW isn't entirely different or graphically updated in comparison to EU, in contrast to EU 94 and TFTD (similar graphics but differing gameplay). Plus most players know EW is an expansion pack for EU. If willing to make a link there, then maybe it's time to start making (EW 2013) pages to make sure everything is separated... --[[User:DracoGriffin|DracoGriffin]] 12:50, 25 December 2013 (EST)
:::: I could see a point in having a link to EW since its the "new" thing but my definition of a stand alone game is something that is completely separated/new from the original, something that EW doesn't fit, even on the console edition, since it always requires a EU copy present to be played. My thinking here would be more of the solution presented in this [http://civilization.wikia.com/wiki/Civilization Games Wiki], where the expansions to the different Civilization games are considered to be a part of the games, not stand alone games.
:::: Ditto51's remark about the cluttered [[EU2012 Table]] made me also think if there's already too many links on the existing EU table. Any opinions on that? [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] 14:58, 25 December 2013 (EST)
::::: What about losing the separate DLC and removing any specific Base Facilities --[[User:Ditto51|Ditto51]] 17:23, 25 December 2013 (EST)
::::: What about this?

<table style="padding-left:20px;">
<tr style="vertical-align: top;">
<td colspan = "4">
{| {{stdTable}} title = "XCOM: Enemy Unknown (2012)" width = "100%"
|- {{stdTable Heading}}
| colspan = "4"| '''XCOM: Enemy Unknown (2012) / Enemy Within DLC [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px]]'''
|-
|}
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="vertical-align: top;">
<td style="width:220px; border:1px gray solid;">
{| {{stdTable}} width="100%" style="border:none;"
|- {{stdTable Sub Heading}}
| [[File:Vigilo_Confido_black.png|30px]] '''XCOM'''
|-
| [[Info (EU2012)|Game Information]]

: [[XCOM (EU2012)|Commander's Briefing]]

: [[XCOM_Base_Location_(EU2012)|Base Location]]

: [[The Council (EU2012)|The Council]]

: [[Difficulty (EU2012)|Difficulty Levels]]

:: [[Second Wave (EU2012)|Second Wave]]

: [[Achievements (EU2012)|Achievements]]

[[XCOM Headquarters (EU2012)|Headquarters]]

: [[Mission Control (EU2012)|Mission Control]]

: [[Research (EU2012)|Research]]

: [[Engineering (EU2012)|Engineering]]

:[[Barracks (EU2012)|Barracks]]
:: [[Memorial (EU2012)|Memorial]]

: [[Hangar (EU2012)|Hangar]]

: [[Situation Room (EU2012)|Situation Room]]
:: [[Gray Market (EU2012)|Gray Market]]
:: [[Finances (EU2012)|Finances]]
:: [[Covert Operations (EU2012)|Covert Operations]] [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px|EW DLC]]

[[Soldiers (EU2012)|Soldiers]]
: [[Classes (EU2012)|Classes]]
: [[Armor (EU2012)|Armor]]
: [[Equipment (EU2012)#Portable Equipment|Equipment]]
: [[Weapons (EU2012)|Weapons]]
: [[Medals (EU2012)|Medals]] [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px|EW DLC]]
: [[Covert Operative (EU2012)|Covert Operative]] [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px]]
[[S.H.I.V. (EU2012)|S.H.I.V.]]
|-
|}
</td>

<td style="width: 220px; border:1px gray solid;">
{| {{stdTable}} width="100%" style="border:none;"
|- {{stdTable Sub Heading}}
| [[File:Head red 2.png|30px]] '''Enemies'''
|-
| [[Alien Life Forms (EU2012)|Alien Life Forms]]
:[[Overviews of Aliens (EU2012)|Overview of Aliens]]
:[[Alien Stats (EU2012)|Alien Stats]]
|-
| [[UFOs (EU2012)|UFOs]]
|-
|[[Alien Artifacts (EU2012)|Alien Artifacts]]
: [[Meld (EU2012)|Meld]] [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px|EW DLC]]

[[EXALT (EU2012)|EXALT]] [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px|EW DLC]]
: [[EXALT Units (EU2012)|Soldiers]] [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px|EW DLC]]
: [[EXALT Weapons (EU2012)|Equipment]] [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px|EW DLC]]

|- {{stdTable Sub Heading}}
| [[File:Skyranger Pilot (EU2012).png|30px]] '''Missions'''
|-
| [[Gameplay Mechanics (EU2012)|Gameplay Mechanics]]
: [[Chance to Hit (EU2012)|Chance to Hit]]
: [[Cover (EU2012)|Cover]]
: [[Critical Wounds (EU2012)|Critical Wounds]]
: [[Flanking (EU2012)|Flanking]]
: [[Overwatch (EU2012)|Overwatch]]
: [[Suppression (EU2012)|Suppression]]

[[Tactics (EU2012)|Combat Tactics]]
: [[Squads (EU2012)| Squads]]

[[Missions (EU2012)|Mission Types]]
: [[Mission Names (EU2012)|Mission Names]]
: [[After Action Report (EU2012)|After Action Report]]

[[Maps (EU2012)|Maps]]
: [[Map Tables (EU2012)|Tables]]
|}
</td>

<td style="width:220px; border:1px gray solid;">
{| {{stdTable}} width="100%" style="border:none;"
|- {{stdTable Sub Heading}}
| [[File:Shen Small (EU2012).png|30px]] '''General DLC'''
|-
|
[[DLC (EU2012)|General Information]]

: [[Elite Soldier Pack DLC (EU2012)|Elite Soldier Pack]]
: [[Slingshot DLC (EU2012)|Slingshot]]
: [[XCOM: Enemy Within DLC (EU2012)|Enemy Within]] [[File:Meld Insignia (EU2012).png|20px|EW DLC]]
:: [[Progeny (EU2012)|Progeny]]
|- {{stdTable Sub Heading}}
| [[File:Meet New People Then Kill Them (EU2012).jpg|30px]] '''Multiplayer'''
|-
|
[[Multiplayer (EU2012)|Multiplayer]]

: [[Maps (EU2012)|Maps]]

: [[Multiplayer Tactics (EU2012)|Multiplayer Tactics]]

: [[Multiplayer Builds (EU2012)|Squad Builds]]

|- {{stdTable Sub Heading}}
| [[File:Bradford Small (EU2012).png|30px]] '''Guides & Tips'''
|-
|
[[Air Combat (EU2012)|Air Combat]]

[[Survival Guide (EU2012)|Survival Guide]]

[[Building Optimization]]

[[Economy]]

[[Panic (EU2012)|Panic]]

[[Storyline Missions (EU2012)|Story Walkthrough]]

[[Class Builds (EU2012)|Class Builds]]

[[Classic vs Impossible (EU2012)|Classic vs Impossible]]

[[Murphy's Laws (X-COM)#Strategic (Enemy Unknown)|Murphy's Laws (XCOM)]]
|}
</td>

<td style="width: 220px; border:1px gray solid;">
{| {{stdTable}} width="100%" style="border:none;"
|- {{stdTable Sub Heading}}
| [[File:Happy to Oblige (EU2012).jpg|30px]] '''Miscellaneous'''
|-
|
[[Game Credits (EU2012)|Game Credits]]

[[Storyline (EU2012)|Storyline]]

[[News Items (EU2012)|News Ticker]]

[[Game Universe (EU2012)|Game Universe/Artwork]]

[[Abilities (EU2012)|List of all Abilities]]

[[Hero (EU2012)|XCOM Heroes]]

[[Making The Game Harder (EU2012)|Making The Game Harder]]

[[Glossary|Glossary of Terms]]

|- {{stdTable Sub Heading}}
| [[File:Combat Ready (EU2012).jpg|30px]] '''Technical Information'''
|-
|

[[Patches (EU2012)| Patches]]

[[Bugs (EU2012)| Bugs]]

[[Mods (EU2012)| Mods & Suggestions]]

[[Game Editors (EU2012)|Game Editors]]

[[Game Files (EU2012)|Game Files]]

[[Unused Features (EU2012)|Unused Features]]

[[Wiki Tips (EU2012)|Wiki Tips]]
|}
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<noinclude>
[[Category:Enemy Unknown (2012)]]

I don't think any of that will fit in the sidebar to the left. Ha ha - er, never mind. No, I agree, if we made a separate link for EW, we'd have to make a separate section for all the DLC and that would just clutter it up. EW is an expansion for EU2012, albeit one of the more chunkier expansions. -[[User:NKF|NKF]] 17:50, 25 December 2013 (EST)

== Removal of Mod Projects from Sidebar ==

After using this wiki for many years, I've noticed that the mod projects have been removed from the sidebar, and replaced with a single link.

While I'm sure people far more devoted to this wiki project have their reasons for this, I think this is a major mistake.

That sidebar was the reason I (and I would bet many others) discovered Long War at all. Removing that reduces their visibility significantly.

In my estimation, the mods are the center of gravity for the fandom. The XCOM games host some of the greatest mod projects in all of gaming. The 'spiritual successors' of XCOM owe their lineage not just to the vanilla game and its developers, but the mods and their mod teams too.

[[User:TheHolotargeter|TheHolotargeter]] ([[User talk:TheHolotargeter|talk]]) 21:12, 20 March 2026 (UTC)

:This has been already discussed in detail over the years in [[Talk:Main Page]], respectively in the sections 'Removing All Featured Projects from Sidebar' and 'Featured Projects on Sidebar', and the active admins (me, Pete and NKF) recently had another discussion where it was decided to finally implement the removal of the projects. I won't repeat all the arguments, but the main one is that the wiki focus is about the games, not the fan projects, and we are more than happy and helpful to give wiki space for other XCom projects (I started the page for Long War 12 years ago for instance), but there have been so many fan projects over the two decades that the wiki has been active (and hopefully more will come) that it was needed to take action and remove all fan projects, in order to be fair and not favor one of them and prevent the Sidebar from becoming overcrowded. [[User:Hobbes|Hobbes]] ([[User talk:Hobbes|talk]]) 15:31, 21 March 2026 (UTC)

:::Fairness is a reasonable policy, apologies for not seeing the other discussions first. [[User:TheHolotargeter|TheHolotargeter]] ([[User talk:TheHolotargeter|talk]])

MediaWiki talk:Sidebar

2026-03-26T01:32:43Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Removal of Mod Projects from Sidebar */

MediaWiki talk:Sidebar

2026-03-20T21:12:15Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Removal of Mod Projects from Sidebar */

MediaWiki talk:Sidebar

2026-03-20T21:12:04Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Removal of Mod Projects from Sidebar */

MediaWiki talk:Sidebar

2026-03-20T21:10:00Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Removal of Mod Projects from Sidebar */ new section

UFOs (Long War)

2026-01-22T20:20:14Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Abductor */

{{Toc (Long War)|67}}

'''UFOs''' come in a variety of different sizes and configuration, and knowing what works well against what UFO can make the difference between victory and defeat. Below is a short general description of the types of UFOs that the player can encounter in the Long War. Unlike Vanilla, Long War UFOs get better over time. Just as the player researches and upgrades their fighters, the Aliens upgrade their UFOs. This means that new tactics need to be employed during later stages of the game, as late game UFOs can vary wildly from early game UFO of the same type.

It is also important to note that a new [[Research_(Long_War)#UFO_Analysis|UFO Analysis]] research project will become available after raiding a crashed or landed UFO, one for each type of UFO. Once this Analysis project is completed, your Interceptors will gain +10% damage against the matching UFO type (and you'll recover +20% more salvage from it too), providing your air force a better chance of taking down UFOs of the same type in future (and for better rewards).

Alien crew is subject to [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Overflow and Pruning|Pod Overflow and Pruning rules]]; in short, if there are too many aliens to fit in the number of available pods, additional aliens are discarded. Conversely, if this is not the case, the game may randomly use fewer than the maximum number of pods, compacting the aliens into fewer pods. This process does not apply to the Bonus pods.

Note that some missions require alien [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resource]] levels or [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|research]] to be at particular levels for powerful UFOs to be fielded. Frequently, as alien research increases, the required resource levels to field a given UFO may decrease; these instances are noted with the following color scheme:

:If [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|Alien Research]] > 0, new types require 100% of their base required [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]].
:If [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|Alien Research]] > 360, new types are possible at 72% of required [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]].
:If [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|Alien Research]] > 720, new types are possible at 40% of required [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]].

For more information on the missions UFOs are sent on, see the page on [[Alien Missions (Long War)|UFO Sorties]].

==Small UFOs==
===Scout===
<div style="width: 146px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Scout.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]] 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 15% 
'''Durability''': 750 HP 
'''Armor''': 0% 
'''Equipment''': 1x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Source]], 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]] 
'''Salvage''': 28 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 35/30/25/25 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Scout|Scout]]: Always in pool
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Research|Research]]: Always in pool
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Harvest|Harvest]]: Aliens must have > 225 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]; generates +10-14 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]] for the aliens
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 5-11 ''Crash'', 9-11 ''Landing'', or 21-23 ''Trap''; also, +3 aliens at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Pods''': 2 Soldier ''Crash'' or ''Landing'', 3 Soldier & 1 Terror ''Trap''; +1 Soldier 50% of the time (or 100% for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small pods]]); +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] of 1 outsider (before [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]]) / 2 outsiders (after [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]])

These will be the first UFO's that the player will encounter; use [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Avalanche Missiles]] to down them efficiently. They will start appearing right from the start of a campaign and continue to show up throughout the game. Scouts are unarmored and lightly armed, but fast moving, meaning that the interception window is very small; expect to have to send 2-3 interceptors after Scouts on Aggressive, at least in the early months when Interceptor accuracy and damage is low. Once you get [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Laser Cannons]], you can safely switch to Defensive Stance; Laser Cannons are enough of a firepower upgrade that you can down Scouts in fewer Interceptions on Defensive that an Avalanche can on Aggressive, and you'll take significantly less damage from enemy UFOs. Following this, you can use Scouts to train up your low-kill pilots; each pilot gains +3% accuracy (max +30%) and +1% damage (no cap) per kill, so try to hit 10 with as many different pilots as you can.

Although they give very little in terms of alloys and elerium, crashed Scouts offer a great opportunity to train up rookie soldiers throughout the early months, due to the extremely low number of aliens encountered. Furthermore, the presence of certain high level enemies (in this case, the guaranteed Outsider pod) grants the squad bonus XP; this is just enough to grant PFCs a level to Specialist without needing to obtain any kills, assuming no soldiers die on the mission. During the mid and lategame you can use crashed Scouts as a safe method of capturing alien captives, farming multiple meld cannisters at low risk, and training up lower level soldiers. Just remember that tough aliens can still appear randomly on any mission, so make sure your squad has a good enough alpha strike. For landed Scouts, keep in mind the chances of a [[Threat_(Long_War)#Trap UFO|Trap UFO]] and prepare your squad accordingly.

===Fighter===
<div style="width: 146px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Fighter.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]] (Upgrade at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 330: 2x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]]) 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 35% 
'''Durability''': 850 HP 
'''Armor''': 60% 
'''Equipment''': 1x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Source]], 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]] 
'''Salvage''': 28 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 35/30/25/25 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Hunt|Hunt]]: Always in pool
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Bomb|Bomb]]: Always in pool
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 3-9 ''Crash''; also, +3 aliens at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Pods''': 2 Soldier ''Crash''; +1 Soldier 50% of the time (or 100% for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small pods]]); +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] of 1 outsider (before [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]]) / 2 outsiders (after [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]])

Fighters can be distinguished from Scouts by the purple strobe emanating from their hologlobe signature. They can appear in the first month if you fail to shoot down a Scout, but are guaranteed to start appearing in the second and subsequent months trying to [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Hunt|shoot down your satellites]]. They have slightly more health and significantly more armor than Scouts; enough armor, in fact, to make [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Stingray Missiles]] the optimal choice in the early months, at least until you acquire [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Laser Cannons]]. Unlike the Scout, the Fighter poses a more serious threat to interceptors, not only due to its higher base armor penetration but also because it gains significantly more damage as it's research progresses, gaining a second Plasma Cannon after the first year is nearly complete. Engage it with [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Stingrays]] or [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Phoenix Cannons]] on Aggressive Stance, or [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Laser Cannons]] (if you have them) on Defensive Stance. A Fighter in high orbit will be [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Hunt|targeting your satellites]], and if successful you'll have to pay §200 to replace it; try to down it, or at least deal 50% damage to it to prevent it from succeeding. Conversely, a Fighter flying NoE will be [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Bomb|bombing cities]]; allowing it to complete its run unmolested will spike panic by 10 in a target country, but you can reduce this by dealing damage (or negate it entirely if you shoot it down).

Fighters never land and must be shot down for alien materials to be salvaged. They also have significantly less aliens overall than Scouts, with as few as 4 total; a crashed Fighter in March or April is a perfect opportunity to train up a bunch of rookies, so long as you're prepared for the [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Outsider|Outsider]]. For mid-to-late game, crashed Fighters are an easy way to secure 2-3 meld cannisters: bring enough Motion Trackers, Battle Scanners, SMGs, and high mobility troops and spread your squad out so you can collect them all.

==Medium UFOs==
===Raider===
<div style="width: 170px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Raider.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]] (Upgrade at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 570: 2x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]]) 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 35% 
'''Durability''': 1500 HP 
'''Armor''': 25% 
'''Equipment''': 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Sources]], 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]] 
'''Salvage''': 42 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 70/60/50/50 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Scout|Scout]]: Aliens must have > 50 / 36 / 20 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Research|Research]]: Aliens must have > 75 / 54 / 30 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]; generates +5 [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|research]] for the aliens
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Harvest|Harvest]]: Aliens must have > 125 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]; generates +17-20 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]] for the aliens
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Hunt|Hunt]]: Aliens must have > 100 / 72 / 40 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 11-15 ''Crash'', 16-20 ''Landing'', or 32-36 ''Trap''; also, +4 aliens at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Pods''': 2 Soldier ''Crash'', 3 Soldier ''Landing'', or 4 Soldier & 1 Terror ''Trap''; +1 Soldier 50% of the time (or 100% for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small/Medium pods]]); +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command]] pod of 2 outsiders (before [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]]) / 2-3 aliens (after [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]])

These UFOs can start appearing during the latter half of the first month, in place of either Fighters or Scouts. Tougher and better armored than the Scout, the Raider serves a similar purpose, though their higher armor penetration puts you at much greater risk of losing Interceptors to critical hits. Several interceptors are required to reliably bring one down, though a Raider is slow enough in the air that it will typically stick around long enough to be engaged by the 3-4 interceptors you'll likely need to down it in the early game. Both [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Avalanche]] and [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Stingray]] Missiles are equally as bad against this UFO, though Stingrays are much less variable. A [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Phoenix Cannon]] provides improved performance over both Stingray and Avalanche, while also being about as good as either against Fighters and Scouts, making it a decent bridge option to outfit your air force with. But the best counter for early Raiders, as well as Scouts and Fighters, is [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Laser Cannons]].

Raiders are a good way to gather alloys and elerium, as the crew contingent is rather small on crashes. You should be quite careful during landings, however, due to the risk of [[Threat_(Long_War)#Trap UFO|traps]].

===Destroyer===
<div style="width: 170px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Destroyer.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]] (Upgrade at [[Alien Research (Long_War)|AR]] > 270: 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]]) 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 75% (Upgrade at [[Alien Research (Long War)|AR]] > 540: +25%) 
'''Durability''': 1600 HP 
'''Armor''': 90% (Upgrade at [[Alien Research (Long War)|AR]] > 540: +70%) 
'''Equipment''': 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Sources]], 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]] 
'''Salvage''': 42 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 140/120/100/100 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Hunt|Hunt]]: Aliens must have > 100 / 72 / 40 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]] & > 75 [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|alien research]]
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Bomb|Bomb]]: Aliens must have > 75 / 54 / 30 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 11-15 ''Crash''; also, +4 aliens at [[Alien Research (Long War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Pods''': 2 Soldier ''Crash''; +1 Soldier 50% of the time (or 100% for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small/Medium pods]]); +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] of 3 outsiders (before [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]]) / 2-3 aliens (after [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]])

Well armored and well armed, this aptly named UFO will annihilate unprepared interceptors and roughly fills a similar role to the Fighter. Satellite-hunting Destroyers can potentially appear as early as mid-May, though they sometimes may be seen conducting bombing campaigns before then. They require a concerted effort to bring down, and while it's not impossible it is usually not worth the risk early on, as attempting to do so will most likely mean that there are no interceptors left to defend the continent's airspace for several weeks. You can prevent the aliens from fielding them much in the early and mid game if you do a good job shooting down or assaulting all of the Scouts, Fighters, and Raiders that appear, as well as assaulting any larger UFOs that land; this will keep [[Alien Resources (Long War)|alien resources]] low enough that Destroyers won't be available.

As the Destroyer is well-armored, [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Phoenix Cannons]] (with the [[Foundry (Long War)#Aerospace Improvements|Phoenix Coilguns Foundry project]]) or a [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Laser Cannon]] (with the [[Foundry (Long War)#Aerospace Improvements|Penetrator Weapons]] Foundry project) should be used if available to allow a solo kill. If not, a couple of experienced pilots (8+ kills) armed with [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Laser Cannons]] and [[Air Combat (Long War)#Modules|Aircraft Boosters]] (all three if you have it, but you can get away with just Boost and Aim if you have to) might be able to do the job instead. Mid-game [[Foundry (Long War)#Aerospace Improvements|Interceptor Upgrade Foundry Projects]] like Improved Avionics (+10% Interceptor Aim), UFO Countermeasures (-15% UFO Aim), and Penetrator Weapons (+25% Armor Penetration) are essential to ensuring swift and effective takedowns - once it's equipped with a "Double Plasma" (start of December at the very latest), you'll require Armored Fighters (+1000 Interceptor HP) as well so your Ravens don't get one shot killed by a critical hit, but of course it helps to have it even earlier than that.

Destroyers never land. They must be shot down for alien materials to be salvaged. Their internal structure is based on the Overseer UFO, rather than the Raider: a high-value target to raid for the elerium values of a Transport, and only the enemy numbers of a Raider. Plus, they contain few aliens, barely more than a crashed Scout, so once you've progressed enough to start downing them semi-reliably you can usually take the opportunity to rush around for the meld canisters as well.

===Overseer===
<div style="width: 170px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Overseer.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]], 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]] 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 125% 
'''Durability''': 2500 HP 
'''Armor''': 200% 
'''Equipment''': 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Sources]], 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]] 
'''Salvage''': 48 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 140/120/100/100 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Infiltrate|Infiltrate]]: Always conducts this sortie.
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Retaliation (Air Base)|Retaliation (Air Base)]]: Always inserts ground forces for this sortie
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Command Overwatch|Command Overwatch]]: Always performs this sortie.
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 15
:'''Pods''': 2 Soldier, 1 Terror, 1 Command

Overseers are stealth UFOs that can't be detected until the [[Hyperwave Relay (Long War)|Hyperwave Relay]] is built. They are roughly tied with the Battleship as the hardest to shoot down. It's got good armaments (comparable to an Assault Carrier or late game large UFOs); is extremely well-armored; and most importantly, blindingly fast, giving you an extremely small engagement window and making it difficult for your Interceptors to chase around pursue on the hologlobe. Plus, you can't take it down with [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Laser Cannons]], so your pilots will have 15% less aim than what you've been used to for for most of the midgame. An experienced (10+ kill) Firestorm pilot on Balanced stance with an [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|EMP Cannon]] or [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Plasma Cannon]], all three modules used, and all of the major [[Foundry (Long War)#Aerospace Improvements|Interceptor-boosting Foundry Projects]] can take it down. Notably, Elerium Afterburners and Boost modules are crucial here, each adding +33% engagement time on your Firestorms (or +50% to Ravens, but you won't be able to down it with them).

Overseers never land; they must be shot down for alien materials to be salvaged, and at least one Overseer is required to be downed in order to recover the [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Story related items|Ethereal Device]] and unlock the Temple Ship assault. One thing to keep in mind is that additional Overseers can appear, as opposed to it being a one-time plot event. Given the challenge of shooting this craft down, compared to the material rewards, one may wish to ignore these additional Overseers, although they can provide the large amounts of elerium needed to build most of the lategame tech.

All Overseers have the following forces:

:1 Soldier Pod led by a [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Tough Leaders|Tough]] (+3 leader level bonus) [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Muton Elite|Muton Elite]] leader, with 4 supporting aliens.
:1 Soldier Pod led by a [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Tough Leaders|Tough]] (+3 leader level bonus) [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Muton Elite|Muton Elite]] leader, with 3 supporting aliens.
:1 Terror Pod led by a [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Tough Leaders|Tough]] (+3 leader level bonus) [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Sectopod|Sectopod]] leader, with 2 supporting aliens.
:1 Command Pod led by an [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Tough Leaders|Tough]] (+3 leader level bonus) [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Ethereal|Ethereal]] leader, with 2 supporting aliens.

==Large UFOs==
===Abductor===
<div style="width: 190px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Abductor.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]] (Upgrade at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 390: 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]], 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]]) 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 10% 
'''Durability''': 4000 HP 
'''Armor''': 150% 
'''Equipment''': 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Sources]], 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]], 6x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Stasis Tanks]], 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Surgeries]] 
'''Salvage''': 56 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 70/60/50/50 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Research|Research]]: Aliens must have > 125 / 90 / 50 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]; generates +8 [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|research]] for the aliens
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Abduction|Abduction]]: Always inserts ground forces for this sortie.
'''Crew''': 
:'''Aliens''': 13-20 ''Crash'', 18-25 ''Landing'', or 38-45 ''Trap''; also, +5 aliens at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Pods''': 3 Soldier & 1 Terror ''Crash'' & ''Landing'', or 4 Soldier & 2 Terror ''Trap''; +1 Soldier 50% of the time (or 100% for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small/Medium pods]]); +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] of 4 outsiders (before [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]]) / 3-5 aliens (after [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]])

These UFO's will pop up randomly and fly directly towards a country, immediately generating either a [[Missions (Long War)#UFO Landing Site|Landing]] or [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Abductions|Abduction]] mission. You won't be able to take these on during the early stages of the war. They're heavily armored, so you'll need multiple veteran (10+ kill) pilots with lots of armor penetration stacking to take one on: the Penetrator Weapons Foundry project (+25% armor penetration) is mandatory, and then either Phoenix Cannons with the Phoenix Coilgun Foundry Project, or Laser Cannons with the Supercapacitors Foundry project, plus generous [[Air Combat (Long War)#Modules|Aircraft Booster module]] usage. A single veteran pilot in a [[Air Combat (Long War)#Aircraft|Firestorm]] can also do the job, thanks to its significantly increased armor penetration and longer engagement window.

That being said, it is never necessary to shoot down Abductors, as they will not [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Hunt|go after satellites]] or go on [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Bomb|bombing runs]] over cities. Abductors are exclusively used for either [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Abduction|Abduction]] or [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Research|Research]] missions, both of which allow you to thwart its mission with a ground assault. It is significantly harder to shoot down an Abductor than it is to let it land and then handle the Abduction mission. Also keep in mind that you have a very narrow window to take one down, as they head straight for their Abduction target, so it is unlikely you'll have time to send two craft: if you're going to take one down, you'll have to go all in with boosters. The reward for shooting down and successfully assaulting one of these crafts are plenty, and while settling for the much lower council reward may be suboptimal, it's not necessarily worth crippling your Interceptor Bay. Only shoot it down if you can do so safely and reliably and there is some strategic value in doing so, e.g. you're short on alloys and elerium (not cash), or you want to [[Alien Resources (Long War)#Cost of Repairing / Replacing UFOs|cost the aliens resources]] to rebuild the UFO.

===Harvester===
<div style="width: 190px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Harvester.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]] 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 15% 
'''Durability''': 6000 HP 
'''Armor''': 100% 
'''Equipment''': 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Sources]], 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]], 6x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Stasis Tanks]], 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Surgeries]] 
'''Salvage''': 56 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 70/60/50/50 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Harvest|Harvest]]: Aliens must have > 75 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]; generates +27-30 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]] for the aliens
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 13-20 ''Crash'', 18-25 ''Landing'', or 38-45 ''Trap''; also, +5 at [[Alien Research (Long War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Pods''': 3 Soldier & 1 Terror ''Crash'' & ''Landing'', or 4 Soldier & 2 Terror ''Trap''; +1 Soldier 50% of the time (or 100% for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small/Medium pods]]); +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] of 4 outsiders (before [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Base Assault|ABA]]) / 3-5 aliens (after [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Base Assault|ABA]]) 

These UFOs sometimes pass through airspace with a satellite during the early stages of the war. Like Abductors, going against one early is a very unwise decision as it can decimate interceptors rather quickly, and you'll want experienced pilots in well-equipped interceptors to have a good chance of taking them down. Furthermore, these UFOs always land to gather materials, so any time you see one you can just assault it after it lands and enjoy much better salvage than you would for a crash. During the early months this can be extremely difficult, but if successful, you gain large amounts of alien artifacts while disrupting the aliens own [[Alien Resources (Long War)|resource-gathering]] endeavors. This limits their ability to field powerful UFO types against your Satellites (e.g. Destroyers, Battleships) and limits the number of aggressive missions (e.g. Research, Terror, Bomb, Hunt, Retaliate) they can field against you. However, this will also reduce the meld rewards received per canister.

If you can reliably clear out landed ones, but not fast enough to get to the Meld canisters on this lengthy mission: don't worry. The large quantities of elerium and alloys, as well as the intact [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Power Sources]] and [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Flight Computers]] will probably be more useful to secure; no need to risk an entire squad wipe rushing through for 2-3 meld canisters and accidentally pull 30 aliens down on you all at once.

===Transport===
<div style="width: 190px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Transport.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]] 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 0% 
'''Durability:''' 5000 HP 
'''Armor:''' 160% 
'''Equipment''': 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Sources]], 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]], 10x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Food]], 8x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Stasis Tanks]], 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Surgeries]] 
'''Salvage''': 70 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 140/120/100/100 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Harvest|Harvest]]: always in pool; generates +37-40 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]] for the aliens
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Infiltrate|Infiltrate]]: always assists in this sortie
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 22-39 ''Crash'', 30-39 ''Landing'', or 40 ''Trap''; also, +5 aliens at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360, to a maximum of 40 regular aliens
:'''Pods''': 3 Soldier & 2 Terror; +1 Terror for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small/Medium pods]]; +1 Soldier 50% of the time (or 100% if [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small pods]]); +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] of 3-6 aliens on a ''Crash''; alternately, 6 aliens on a ''Landing'' with a [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Tough Leaders|Tough]] Leader; plus a [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Bosses|random level 9 boss pod]] with 5 supporting aliens (after [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]])

This UFO is functionally identical to the Supply Barge from vanilla, but it has even heavier armor and packs some pretty formidable weaponry. The vast majority of Transports are landing to harvest [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]], and tend to show up often when aliens are resource starved, such as in the very first month or when you're doing a very good job in the midgame constantly shooting down every UFO they field. You will likely never see a Transport that doesn't land, unless you're losing the campaign rather badly and leaving the aliens free to launch [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Infiltrate|Infiltration]] missions, which instantly force a target country to leave the XCOM project regardless of its current panic levels.

Assaulting Transports early game is very risky, but can give your campaign a flying start, both in captured artifacts and denying the aliens [[Alien Resources (Long War)|resources]] for their [[Alien Missions (Long War)|UFO sorties]]. And if you continue to keep the aliens on the back foot, they won't be able to field powerful UFOs like Destroyers or Battleships that often (if at all) to conduct [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Bomb|bombing campaigns]] or [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Hunt|hunt down your Satellites]], allowing you to snowball even further. But always keep in mind that enemy troop counts are substantial with landed larges and that good cover is quite sparse. Find a good spot to sit tight, eliminate as many patrolling pods as you can with overwatch ambushes, and then move through the map carefully and systematically destroying one pod at a time, leaving the command pod for last. The 6 Overseer Command pod can be decidedly lethal to an unprepared, low-level squad by itself, let alone if there are multiple other surviving pods it can call in as reinforcements.

===Terror Ship===
<div style="width: 190px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_TerrorShip.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]] (Upgrade at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 390: 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]], 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]]) 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 0% 
'''Durability:''' 6000 HP 
'''Armor:''' 125% 
'''Equipment''': [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|4x UFO Power Sources]], 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]], 10x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Food]], 8x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Stasis Tanks]], 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Surgeries]] 
'''Salvage''': 70 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 140/120/100/100 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Research|Research]]: Aliens must have > 250 / 180 / 100 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]; generates +10 [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|research]] for the aliens
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Terrorize|Terrorize]]: Always assists in this sortie
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 22-39 ''Crash'', 30-39 ''Landing'', or 40 ''Trap''; also, +5 aliens at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360, to a maximum of 40 regular aliens
:'''Pods''': 3 Soldier & 2 Terror; +1 Terror for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small/Medium pods]]; +1 Soldier 50% of the time (or 100% for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small pods]]); +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] of 3-6 aliens on a ''Crash''; alternately, 6 aliens on a ''Landing'' with a [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Tough Leaders|Tough]] Leader; plus a [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Bosses|random level 9 boss pod]] with 5 supporting aliens (after [[Missions_(Long_War)#Alien_Base_Assault|ABA]])

Structurally identical to Transport (albeit with different armaments), you may encounter these in high-panic continents, but won't be able to take them on until lategame. If they don't land, they give advance warning on the location of terror missions, since they do a fly around the target country before the bulk of the alien forces are inserted via an [[UFOs (Long War)#Assault Carrier|Assault Carrier]]. Shooting down the Terror Ship won't stop the Terror mission, but it does give you a large chunk of salvage and cost the aliens [[Alien Resources (Long War)|resources]]. Terror Ships that land, on the other hand, are doing [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Research|Research]] missions, and can be assaulted for their valuable rewards.

In either case, shooting one down is neither necessary nor easy, and typically something you only consider while snowballing. If you want to try on a Raven, you'll need a veteran (10+ kill) pilot with at minimum a Phoenix Cannon upgraded with not just the Phoenix Coilguns Foundry Project and a full assortment of boosters but also all the notable Interceptor Combat Foundry upgrades unlocked via [[Research_(Long_War)#Materials_and_Aerospace|Advanced Aerospace Concepts]] including Penetrator Weapons, Improved Avionics, Wingtip Sparrowhawks, Armored Fighters, etc. Firestorms make it significantly easier, and a Phoenix Cannon + Phoenix Coilguns or a Laser Cannon + the Supercapacitors Foundry project and minimal other upgrades will do.

==Very Large UFOs==
===Assault Carrier===
<div style="width: 210px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_AssaultCarrier.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]], 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]] (Upgrade at [[Alien Research (Long War)|AR]] > ???: 2x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Double Plasma]], 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Single Plasma]]) 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 90% 
'''Durability''': 8000 HP 
'''Armor''': 140% 
'''Equipment''': [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|4x UFO Power Sources]], [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|6x UFO Flight Computers]], [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|2x Fusion Cores]] 
'''Salvage''': 84 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 140/120/100/100 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Terrorize|Terrorize]]: Always inserts ground forces for this sortie
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Retaliation (XCOM HQ)|Retaliation (XCOM HQ)]]: Always inserts ground forces for this sortie
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Research|Research]]: Aliens must have > 300 / 216 / 120 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]; generates +?? [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|research]] for the aliens
'''Crew''':
:'''Aliens''': 26-31 ''Crash'' (+5 aliens at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360); 38 on first Assault Carrier or Battleship mission
:'''Pods''': 2 Soldier & 5 Terror; +1 Terror for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small pods]]; +1 Soldier for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small/Medium pods]]; +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] with 6 supporting aliens, plus 1 [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Bosses|Boss pod]] with 4 supporting aliens

A less armored variant of the Battleship, it sacrifices some durability and armaments to allow it to rapidly unload large quantities of troops for large-scale ground operations. For the vast majority of the game, you won't be able to shoot these down, and will be powerless to stop any [[Missions_(Long_War)#Terror_Site|Terror Missions]] or [[Missions (Long War)#XCOM Base Defense|XCOM Base Defense]] missions it spawns. It can land, however, but only if the aliens have extremely high resources; this allows you the opportunity to come back in the late game if you have a particularly disastrous series of months and the aliens surge ahead in resources, as well as if a campaign stretches into year 3 and aliens monthly resource income snowballs high enough.

It has moderately less firepower than a Battleship, and noticeably less durability than both a Battleship and an Overseer. Ultimately, it offers the same rewards for shooting it down at less risk to your Interceptors, and is generally responsible for some of the most dangerous and difficult missions of the game: shooting it down means replacing that tough mission with a significantly less difficult one. A [[Air Combat (Long War)#Aircraft|Firestorm]] on Balanced stance, crewed by a top pilot (10+ kills) with the full assortment of Interceptor-boosting Foundry projects, including either Supercapacitors to boost the Laser Cannons damage or Phoenix Coilguns to boost Phoenix Cannon damage, as well as all three Aircraft Booster modules, could potentially shoot one down in a single attempt. In the late game while you're waiting to tech into Plasma and/or EMP, you could potentially avoid some Terror missions and XCOM Base Defense missions by shooting down the Assault Carrier before it can arrive at its destination, as well as potentially farm Fusion Cores for a Fusion Lance and/or Blaster Launcher. If your Firestorms are armed with Plasma, EMP, or Fusion weaponry instead, it becomes very easy to close out the game by reliably downing these.

===Battleship===
<div style="width: 210px; background:#333; border-radius: 6px 12px; float: right;">[[Image: UFO-Analysis_Battleship.png|center|128x64px]]</div>
'''Firepower:''' 1x [[UFOs (Long War)#UFO Weapons|Fusion Lance]] 
'''Armor Penetration:''' 125% 
'''Durability''': 9000 HP 
'''Armor''': 180% 
'''Equipment''': 4x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Power Sources]], 6x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|UFO Flight Computers]], 2x [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Fusion Cores]] 
'''Salvage''': 84 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]], 140/120/100/100 [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] (difficulty-dependent) 
'''Missions''':
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Scout|Scout]]: Aliens must have > 300 / 216 / 120 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Hunt|Hunt]]: Aliens must have > 225 / 162 / 90 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]] & > 75 [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|alien research]]
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Bomb|Bomb]]: Aliens must have > 175 / 126 / 70 [[Alien_Resources_(Long_War)|resources]]
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Infiltrate|Infiltrate]]: Always assists in this sortie
:[[Alien Missions (Long War)#Retaliation (XCOM HQ)|Retaliation (XCOM HQ)]]: Always shoots down the satellite over your HQ
'''Alien Crew''': 
:'''Aliens''': 26-31 ''Crash'' (+5 aliens at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360); 38 on first Assault Carrier or Battleship mission
:'''Pods''': 5 Soldier & 2 Terror; +1 Terror for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small pods]]; +1 Soldier for [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Pod Size|Small/Medium pods]]; +1 Soldier at [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|AR]] > 360
:'''Bonus Pods''': 1 [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Command Pods|Command pod]] with 6 supporting aliens, plus 1 [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Bosses|Boss pod]] with 4 supporting aliens

As the name implies, these massive ships are some of the most dangerous craft an Interceptor can go against. They are highly armored, packed to the teeth with weaponry, and very frustrating to deal with when they appear; unlike all of the large UFO types, Battleships will never land. They'll spawn in place of Scouts, Fighters, Raiders and Destroyers to target your satellites or bomb countries, which means you either shoot them down or pay the price of panic or satellite replacement costs. That said, DON'T engage them at any point except very late in the game when you have almost all possible Interceptor upgrades; you won't have any possibility of shooting it down, and they can even one-shot Interceptors without health and armor upgrades. All you can really do when one appears is watch powerlessly and hope you don't see another one any time soon.

Fortunately, Battleships may only be fielded in this manner if the aliens are snowballing (i.e. you do an extremely poor job shooting down their UFOs over a stretch of time or let them build and maintain too many [[Alien Deployment (Long War)#Alien Bases|bases]]), or you allow the campaign to stretch on well into the latter half of the second year and especially into the third. Conversely, if you're doing well or even just holding out decently well in the air, they'll almost never show up... except as a harbinger of arguably one of the most difficult missions of the entire campaign, the [[Missions (Long War)#XCOM Base Defense|XCOM HQ Base Defense]], where it will be used to shoot down the satellite over your starting country. This will allow the follow up Assault Carrier (which delivers the troops used in the mission) to land at your base undetected, potentially catching you by surprise as it triggers the mission without warning. Fortunately, this mission type is rare; see the [[Alien Missions (Long War)#Retaliate|UFO Missions page]] for details.

Battleships can only realistically be taken down with 10+ kill pilots in Firestorms with Plasma/EMP Cannons (or Fusion Lances from downed Assault Carriers) with max Foundry upgrades and triple modules; 1 might work but 2 should guarantee it. Once you've downed one, you can try and use the [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Fusion Cores]] within to build [[Air Combat (Long War)#Interceptor Weapons|Fusion Lances]] to make it easier to take down more, but realistically you can finish the campaign more easily than you can build an air force that can routinely take down Battleships.

==Other UFO Statistics==

===Salvage===

The values listed above are the salvage obtained from a landed UFO. Crash sites provide significantly less salvage. Each individual alien device has its own specific chance of surviving a crash site:
:25% per [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Flight Computer]]
:20% per [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Power Source]]
:30% per [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Surgery]]
:30% per [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Stasis Tank]]
:50% per [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Alien Food]]
:100% per [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Fusion Core]]

Each UFO class allows for a base number of alloys when salvaged, but only a fraction of that survives the crash site.

:[[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Alloys]] recovered from a crash site: 30% to 45% of the base value

[[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] rewards scale directly with the base number of [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Power Sources]] the UFO awards. The amount per [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Power Source]] is set by difficulty, but each destroyed [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Power Source]] takes with it some or all of the Elerium stored within.

:[[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] for an ''intact'' [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Power Source]]: 35/30/25/25 on Normal/Classic/Brutal/Impossible
:[[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] recovered per ''destroyed'' [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien devices|Power Source]]: 0% to 30% of base value

'''EMP Cannon'''

Use of an EMP Cannon additively increases the amount of alloys salvaged and the chance that UFO devices survive the crash by 20%. The amount of elerium isn't improved by using an EMP Cannon, but since the survival rate of Power Sources is, you should still expect to see an increase in the amount of [[Alien Artifacts (Long War)#Alien materials|Elerium]] recovered from crash sites.

:Device Survival Chance: +20% (applied additively)
:Alloys Salvaged: 50% to 65%

Since the chance of most devices surviving a crash is low (in the range of 20% to 30%), the additive increase to their survival chance is relatively significant, so using the EMP Cannon can nearly double the amount of devices awarded.

===UFO Weapons===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! Weapon !! Hit Chance % !! Range !! Fire Rate !! Damage !! Armor Pen.
|-
| Single Plasma || 18/33/48 || Long || 1.15 || 450 || 0%
|-
| Double Plasma || 25/40/55 || Long || 1.25 || 800 || 100%
|-
| Fusion Lance || 30/45/60 || Long || 1.25 || 1300 || 250%
|}

===UFO Upgrades===
All UFOs gain an additional +75 HP, +8 damage and +2% aim (capped at 95% of accuracy) for every 30 points of [[Alien_Research_(Long_War)|Alien Research]], to a maximum of +2400 HP, +256 damage, and +64% aim at 960 points. Some UFOs will also gain upgraded weapons over time.

===UFO Armor vs Damage Penetration===
Raw formula:
<div style="max-width:600px;">
Penetration = Ship Armor Penetration + Weapon Armor Penetration
Mitigation = Armor - Penetration; min 0%, max 95%
Damage = Damage * (100% - Mitigation)
</div>

The above formula for armor damage reduction can be summed up as (Armor - Penetration) with a low cap of 0% and a high cap of 95%. The formula allows for ships AND weapons to have armor penetration that stacks. Thus the same weapons will cause different amounts of damage when mounted on different UFOs.

A comparison of high end weapons against a Battleship gives an idea of various weapons effectiveness against heavily armored targets. Note that alien research increases UFO health steadily over the course of the game so these "minimum" number of hits would only be true during the first month of the game.

'''Battleship:''' 9000 base health (+75 per 30 alien research), 180% armor

'''Plasma Cannon:''' 650 dmg, 110% pen, rate of fire 1.00/s, Balanced Accuracy 40%

Damage reduction per hit 180-110=70%, actual damage per hit becomes 195, or a minimum of 47 hits per Battleship. Requiring an average of 117 seconds of firing to score 47 hits at 40% accuracy, RoF 1/s. As accuracy increases time-to-kill on the UFO reduces towards a minimum of 47 seconds with 100% accuracy (95% accuracy is the maximum for Plasma Cannons).

'''EMP Cannon:''' 310 dmg, 150% pen, RoF 0.55/s, Balanced Accuracy 30%

Damage reduction per hit 180-150=30%, actual damage per hit becomes 217, or a minimum of 44 hits per Battleship. Requiring an estimated of 79 seconds of firing to score 44 hits at 30% accuracy, RoF 0.55/s. As accuracy increases time-to-kill on the UFO reduces towards a minimum of 24 seconds with 100% accuracy (85% accuracy is the maximum for EMP Cannons).

'''Fusion Lance:''' 1200 dmg, 130% pen, RoF 1.25/s, Balanced Accuracy 30%

Damage reduction per hit 180-130=50%, actual damage per hit becomes 600, or a minimum of 13 hits per Battleship. Requiring an estimated of 53 seconds of firing to score 13 hits at 30% accuracy, RoF 1.25/s. As accuracy increases time-to-kill on the UFO reduces towards a minimum of 16 seconds with 100% accuracy (85% accuracy is the maximum for Fusion Lances).

===UFO Bounties===
UFOs that sustain excessive damage may be completely destroyed by an attack without generating a crash site. The amount is directly proportional to the amount the final blow overkilled the target by, compared to the UFO's max HP; for instance, knocking a UFO to -27% HP has a 27% chance of destroying it.

When this happens, the Council pays a bounty, depending upon the UFO type. Additionally, a small amount of alloys is recovered. The exact amount of salvage is rolled randomly every time a UFO is destroyed, and each value in the range is equally likely.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! rowspan="2" | UFO || rowspan="2" | Cash bounty || colspan="2" | Alloys Recovered (Average)
|-
| With Alien Metallurgy || Without Alien Metallurgy
|-
| Scout or Fighter || §100 || 2-7 (4.5) || 2-5 (3.5)
|-
| Destroyer or Raider || §200 || 2-11 (6.5) || 2-7 (4.5)
|-
| Abductor or Harvester || §300 || 2-14 (8) || 2-9 (5.5)
|-
| Transport or Terror Ship || §500 || 2-17 (9.5) || 2-11 (6.5)
|-
| Battleship or Assault Carrier || §750 || 2-21 (11.5) || 2-13 (7.5)
|-
| Overseer || §500 || 2-12 (7) || 2-8 (5)
|}

==See also==
* [[Air Combat (Long War)|Air Combat]]
* [[Alien Missions (Long War)|UFO Sorties]]

{{Aliens (Long War) Navbar}}
[[Category: Aliens (Long War)]]
[[Category: Long War]]

Rocketeer (Long War)

2025-12-26T18:27:37Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Tactical Advice */

[[File: Class Rocketeer (Long War).png|left|frame|64px| Rocketeer]]
{{Toc (Long War)|40}}

The '''Rocketeer''' class is similar to an explosives specialized Heavy in vanilla XCOM. Their signature ability is '''Fire Rocket'''.

:'''Primary Weapon''': Assault Rifles, Carbines, SMGs.
:'''Secondary Weapon''': Rocket Launcher.
:'''Class-Limited items''': Rocket, Shredder Rocket.

<div style="clear:both;"></div>

==Abilities==
{{Class Tree (Long War)|
|Specialist1={{ Fire Rocket (Long War)|text=1}}
|SpecialistE1=''No other bonuses.''
|LCorporal1={{ Will To Survive (Long War)|text=1}}
|LCorporal2={{ Ranger (Long War)|text=1}}
|LCorporal3={{ HEAT Warheads (Long War)|text=1}}
|LCorporalE1='''+3 Will.'''
|LCorporalE2=''No other bonuses.''
|LCorporalE3=''No other bonuses.''
|Corporal1={{ Rapid Reaction (Long War)|text=1}}
|Corporal2={{ Fire In The Hole (Long War)|text=1}}
|Corporal3={{ Snapshot (Long War)|text=1}}
|CorporalE1='''+2 Aim.'''
|CorporalE2=''No other bonuses.''
|CorporalE3=''No other bonuses.''
|Sergeant1={{ Suppression (Long War)|text=1}}
|Sergeant2={{ Platform Stability (Long War)|text=1}}
|Sergeant3={{ Shredder Ammo (Long War)|text=1}}
|SergeantE1=''No other bonuses.''
|SergeantE2=''No other bonuses.''
|SergeantE3=''No other bonuses.''
|TechSgt1={{ Tactical Sense (Long War)|text=1}}
|TechSgt2={{ Opportunist (Long War)|text=1}}
|TechSgt3={{ Mayhem (Long War)|text=1}}
|TechSgtE1=''No other bonuses.''
|TechSgtE2=''No other bonuses.''
|TechSgtE3=''No other bonuses.''
|GunSgt1={{ Extra Conditioning (Long War)|text=1}}
|GunSgt2={{ Double Tap (Long War)|text=1}}
|GunSgt3={{ Shock And Awe (Long War)|text=1}}
|GunSgtE1='''+3 Aim, +3 Will, +1 Mobility.'''
|GunSgtE2=''No other bonuses.''
|GunSgtE3=''No other bonuses.''
|MSgt1={{ Tandem Warheads (Long War)|text=1}}
|MSgt2={{ Javelin Rockets (Long War)|text=1}}
|MSgt3={{ Danger Zone (Long War)|text=1}}
|MSgtE1=''No other bonuses.''
|MSgtE2=''No other bonuses.''
|MSgtE3=''No other bonuses.''
}}
''*Perks tagged with blue are fixed even with Second Wave Training Roulette option is enabled''
==Stat Progression==
{{Stat Progression Table (Long War)
| rank1-hp-add=1 || rank1-aim-add=3 || rank1-will-add=5(-6) || rank1-hp-total=1 || rank1-aim-total=3 || rank1-will-total=5(-6)
| rank2-hp-add=0 || rank2-aim-add=3 || rank2-will-add=5(-6) || rank2-hp-total=1 || rank2-aim-total=6 || rank2-will-total=10(-12)
| rank3-hp-add=0 || rank3-aim-add=3 || rank3-will-add=3(-4) || rank3-hp-total=1 || rank3-aim-total=9 || rank3-will-total=13(-16)
| rank4-hp-add=1 || rank4-aim-add=3 || rank4-will-add=3(-4) || rank4-hp-total=2 || rank4-aim-total=12 || rank4-will-total=16(-20)
| rank5-hp-add=0 || rank5-aim-add=3 || rank5-will-add=3(-4) || rank5-hp-total=2 || rank5-aim-total=15 || rank5-will-total=19(-24)
| rank6-hp-add=0 || rank6-aim-add=3 || rank6-will-add=3(-4) || rank6-hp-total=2 || rank6-aim-total=18 || rank6-will-total=22(-28)
| rank7-hp-add=1 || rank7-aim-add=3 || rank7-will-add=3(-4) || rank7-hp-total=3 || rank7-aim-total=21 || rank7-will-total=25(-32)
}}

* Note that, even without Hidden Potential turned on, there is a chance of gaining 1 extra will per level (shown in parentheses above). Psionic soldiers can also gain 1-6 extra will per psi level (<code>1 + rand(6)</code>).

==Tactical Advice==
'''Role''': Mid/Long range Offensive Support.

An offensive support class, whose value depends on the players playstyle. The Rocketeer's speciality is the Rocket Launcher that she carries with her. Unlike Vanilla, the Long War Rocketeer perk tree focus almost exclusively on ways to improve the rocket launcher.

Even though they are less reliable to hit, in Long war, the rocket launcher's primary uses are still the same as in vanilla: clearing tightly packed groups or hard cover, while letting the rest of the squad clean up any stragglers. Unlike vanilla, Rocketeers can move and fire, though with a hefty aim penalty and reduced range, which can be somewhat negated with the '''Snap Shot''' perk.

Generally speaking, rockets should usually be fired as one of the first actions in a turn due to their cover destruction support, somewhat random damage, and shredder application support potential. Knowing when to use them in a fight and when to hold them steady in case things go wrong is important game knowledge that can make or break campaigns. Some Rocketeer builds will ease this burden by giving the soldier utility outside of firing the rocket, while others will double down on the concept to make the rockets as impactful as possible. Broadly speaking, rockets should only be used when the situation can’t be safely handled by your other troops or to take down exceptionally dangerous units. This is due to the fact that rockets are a limited resource on any given mission and, as Dr. Vahlen will happily inform you, aliens killed by explosives do not drop artifacts, not even their own corpses or wrecks.

Another important ability is the '''Shredder Ammo''' perk, which gives a free rocket with increased AoE and increases the damage dealt by friendly forces, while also doing respectable damage on its own. A major difference from vanilla is that Shredder Rockets will not destroy cover, and will not affect units that are in cover relative to the center of the blast.

With perks like '''Ranger''', '''Suppression''' and '''Danger Zone''' and a respectable Aim increase per level, the Rocketeer can hold her own during fire fights if built as a rifleman, though less so than Infantry or Gunners. Rocketeers are the only class that can mimic the Gunner’s ability to perform damaging AOE suppression. They can never access holotargeting or shredding on their primary weapon, however.

Unlike Vanilla, Long War Rocketeers rely on their Aim to determine how precisely they can aim their rockets; a higher aim will mean that a rocket will scatter less, also the further away the target, the higher the scatter will be. It can be valuable to end a Rocketeer's turn with ''steady weapon'' rather than overwatch. Equipment such as the SCOPE reduce scatter, but laser weapons and carbines do not influence rocket scatter.

Due to the way that rockets behave in Long War, it is very dangerous to shoot rockets while friendly forces are near the target area, as the rockets can easily veer off course and hit friendly soldiers, meaning that danger close rocket support is next to impossible.

Rocketeers can carry additional rockets in item slots, but each one has a weight of 2 (twice that of most items). This can be offset by using lighter armor, or using an SMG as a primary weapon. Even without the Javelin perk, rockets can be fired slightly beyond visual range, allowing a lightly armored Rocketeer to remain slightly back from the front line while still being able to launch rockets.

Rocketeers excel at removing groups of flying enemies; a Rocketeer with the HEAT perk can not only eliminate the support drones surrounding a Cyberdisc, but also inflict significant damage. Rocketeers can enable aggressive styles of play where rockets are used to remove cover, while others push against the enemy position.

==Sample Builds==
Rocketeers, more than any other unit, can save a situation gone horribly wrong, by blowing up a swarm of aliens, often clearing an entire flank or removing the cover of all opposition with a single action. They require forethought with '''Steady Weapon''' to make them effective, however, meaning they can be useless if they're caught out of position. As Rocketeers are difficult to use in the beginning of the game without careful preparation because of rocket scatter, it would be wise to choose '''Snap Shot'''; however further on in the game as aim improves, and eventually when the Blaster Launcher is available for manufacture, perk choices such as '''Fire in the Hole''' that increase the range and accuracy of rockets without moving can be highly desirable. In the midgame, Council requests allow troops to instantly be promoted from Specialist to Corporal; with this a bumbling rookie can be immediately launched to the level of a competent Rocketeer with no labor required.

===Living Missile Silo===
{{Class Build (Long War)|
|LCL={{ HEAT Warheads (Long War)}}
|CPL={{ Fire In The Hole (Long War)}}
|SGT={{ Shredder Ammo (Long War)}}
|TSG={{ Mayhem (Long War)}}
|GSG={{ Shock And Awe (Long War)}}
|MSG={{ Javelin Rockets (Long War)}}
|Boost=N/A
|Strength=devastating rockets especially against robotics
|Weakness=demands good positioning, little use outside of rockets, vulnerable
|Battles=All
|Loadout=Extra Rocket(s), SCOPE
|Power Ranks=CPL for decent accuracy, SGT and GSG for rocket supply
|Description=This build is a massively powerful, long range mobile artillery unit that requires some preparation for maximum effectiveness. The only unit in the game that can single-handedly destroy a swarm of flying robotic units in a single turn, and can also destroy huge swaths of cover while doing massive damage. Falls off compared to MECs somewhat in the late game, only to come roaring back in the very-late game with the Blaster Launcher, becoming the most damaging unit in the game.
|Strategic Analysis=A carbine or SMG is sorely needed to compensate for the mobility loss of carrying several rockets. Try to keep this soldier in position and behind cover while moving through the map before making contact so that if first contact is brutal a rocket can punch a hole in it immediately. Javelin rockets can even allow you to activate a pod with a Rocket, which is quite useful. Special care needs to be taken deciding when to use rockets on longer missions since this soldier contributes little outside of them.
}}

===Overwatch Rocketeer===
{{Class Build (Long War)|
|LCL={{ Ranger (Long War)}}
|CPL={{ Rapid Reaction (Long War)}}
|SGT={{ Platform Stability (Long War)}}
|TSG={{ Opportunist (Long War)}}
|GSG={{ Extra Conditioning (Long War)}}
|MSG={{ Danger Zone (Long War)}}
|Boost=+5 aim, +3 will, +1 mobility
|Strength=decent overwatch utility and survivability
|Weakness=rockets are underwhelming late game and fewer overall, burns ammo quickly
|Battles=All
|Loadout=Extra Rocket, SCOPE
|Power Ranks=TSG for Overwatch, MSG for rocket upgrade
|Description=An interesting hybrid rifleman that is both a powerful shooter and rocket slinger. Suffers from the fact that rockets need a lot of specialization to become truly useful and cannot get key perks to be both an optimal Overwatch and Rocket build. Platform Stability compensates for the lack of Fire in the Hole and synergizes with Rapid Reaction to give +10 aim and crit to all three shots.
|Strategic Analysis=This build focuses much more on Overwatch power than rocket power. This means you will only have 2 or 3 rockets per mission even in late game fights, so spend them wisely. Ammo management can also be difficult due to lack of access to Lock N Load, so reload whenever possible.
}}

===Snapshot Survivalist===
{{Class Build (Long War)|
|LCL={{ Will To Survive (Long War)}} or {{HEAT Warheads (Long War)}}
|CPL={{ Snapshot (Long War)}}
|SGT={{ Shredder Ammo (Long War)}}
|TSG={{ Tactical Sense (Long War)}}
|GSG={{ Extra Conditioning (Long War)}}
|MSG={{ Tandem Warheads (Long War)}} or {{Danger Zone (Long War)}}
|Boost=+3 aim, +6 will, +1 mobility
|Strength=very mobile and durable for a rocketeer, line of sight easily managed, frees good cover for squadmates
|Weakness=trades power for its survivability, rocket accuracy often somewhat lacking
|Battles=All, doesn’t mind maps with bad line of sight
|Loadout=SCOPE/Neural Gunlink, Extra Rocket(s) (Shredder or normal),
|Power Ranks=SGT for rocket supply, TSG and GSG for durability
|Description=This build is focused on being able to fire rockets even with badly placed Rocketeer, and survive the consequences. Consequentially this Rocketeer is built to be much more durable (with Will to Survive, Tactical Sense, and Extra Conditioning) and doesn’t mind being part of the frontlines, especially with heavier armor. Rocket scatter at low levels will be much higher without Platform Stability and Fire in the Hole, and Snapshot is borderline useless until close to MSgt. You can also combine Snapshot with an officer's Command ability to fire two rockets in a turn, making the rocketeer an even better panic button than it already was. Javelin is downright terrible with Snapshot as you'll never hit anything at that range anyways; Tandem Warheads or Danger Zone, meanwhile, can mitigate some of the costs of a poor scatter, as can HEAT Warheads against mechanical units (the damage bonus is a flat +50% of your base rocket damage, and the full bonus is applied out to the edge of the blast radius).
|Strategic Analysis=Positioning and good cover is less important with this build (particularly thanks to Tactical Sense), meaning the good cover positions can be left to other squadmates while the rocketeer moves forward into the frontlines. Snapshot is useful for repositioning, but SHOULD NOT BE USED UNLESS ACTUALLY NEEDED. Steadying will still give much more accurate rockets, so don’t neglect keeping rockets steadied until needed.
}}

===Rifleman Rocketeer===
{{Class Build (Long War)|
|LCL={{ Ranger (Long War)}}
|CPL={{ Fire In The Hole (Long War)}}
|SGT={{ Shredder Ammo (Long War)}}
|TSG={{ Tactical Sense (Long War)}}
|GSG={{ Shock And Awe (Long War)}}
|MSG={{ Tandem Warheads (Long War)}}
|Boost=N/A
|Strength=powerful rockets, decent firefight damage, relatively safe on frontlines
|Weakness=lacks the pure devastation of HEAT-Mayhem rockets, still vulnerable if a shot actually connects on it
|Battles=All
|Loadout=Extra Rocket(s), SCOPE
|Power Ranks=CPL for decent accuracy, SGT and GSG for rocket supply
|Description=This build keeps a heavy focus on powerful, accurate rockets but invests slightly more into survivability and rifle damage with Tactical Sense and Ranger. Tactical Sense also makes advancing toward enemies less risky, meaning Tandem Warheads or Danger Zone can more easily be taken over Javelin Rockets for more damage or cover destruction respectively.
|Strategic Analysis=A carbine is generally preferred for the accuracy boost on shots, though an SMG for better mobility before rockets are fired also works nicely. This soldier can use its rockets a bit more freely since it can still contribute meaningfully to firefights without them via noteworthy chip damage. Tactical Sense certainly helps keep fire away from this soldier but care must still be taken to avoid flanks, stray shots, and of course enemy explosives since it lacks any true tank perks and can’t afford to carry tank items.
}}

==Rockets==
Rockets in Long War behave quite differently than in vanilla. See [[Weapons (Long War)#Rockets|Rockets]] for more details.

Rocketeers get one rocket as part of their standard loadout, and can gain additional rockets with the Rocketeer and Shredder Rocket (renamed Shredder Ammo) perks as in vanilla. Additional rockets and shredder rockets are also available as carried items, however rockets are heavy, so carrying additional rockets as items will cause a mobility penalty due to encumbrance.

==See also==
{{Soldiers (Long War) Navbar}}
[[Category:Long War]]
[[Category:Soldiers (Long War)]]

Alien Life Forms (Long War)

2025-12-18T20:33:43Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Mechtoid */

{{Toc (Long War)|25}}

[[File:LW_Chryssalid_Queen.jpeg|left|thumb|A Chryssalid "Greater Hive Queen" compared to its smaller brethren.]]
==Overview==
Much like in vanilla, '''Aliens''' deploy in [[Alien_Deployment_(Long_War)#Pods|Pods]], which are "activated" by seeing them. Unlike in vanilla, alien pods are frequently made up of several different types of aliens, such as a Thin Man leading some Sectoids, or some Mutons with Floater scout.

All pods now make noise when they move, but some pods will choose to wait in one spot rather than patrol. The percentage of pods that hide out in this fashion is different per mission - on Abductions, it is 50%, on Large UFO's, 40%, and on Small UFO's, 10%.

===Research Upgrades===

The aliens will continually improve their technology as the war goes on, represented by a hidden variable called [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]]. This will grant aliens extra stats, and in some cases unlock new perks.

Some upgrades are granted for free to all aliens, whereas other upgrades have only a chance of applying to any given alien. In the latter cases, the aliens sometimes receive a new name, and hence they are named "Variant" upgrades.

Do note the alien research values shown in the tables refer to '''Classic''' difficulty, and upgrades will happen slower for '''normal''' (70% speed), and faster for '''brutal''' (110%) and '''impossible''' (130%).

===Pod Leader===
Each Pod will be led by one '''Pod Leader''' alien, possessing both improved stats and new abilities. Pod leaders can easily be identified by their larger health pool and increased physical size.

Pod Leaders initially start at level 0 with standard stats, but as [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]] progresses, they begin to start being able to acquire higher leader levels. At Alien Research 40, aliens start having chance to roll a level 1 leader for all pods. At each multiple of 40 Alien Research thereafter, an additional level unlocks, up to a maximum of 7 on normal missions. Special level 8 or 9 may appear on special missions, see [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Bosses|Bosses]] below.

Below 360 Alien Research, the chance to roll every level of leader for a pod is the same; for example, at Alien Research 120, a pod has a 25% chance to roll a level 3 leader, a 25% chance for a level 2, a 25% chance for a level 1, and a 25% chance for a level 0.

Starting at 360 Alien Research, and all the way up to 600, the chance of rolling any given leader stops being equally likely. The higher alien research, the more the formula is biased towards rolling high leader levels.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! rowspan=2 | [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]]
! colspan=8 | Alien Leader Level
|-
! 0 !! 1 !! 2 !! 3 !! 4 !! 5 !! 6 !! 7
|-
! 0
| 100% || || || || || || ||
|-
! 40
| 50.0% || 50.0% || || || || || ||
|-
! 80
| 33.33% || 33.33% || 33.33% || || || || ||
|-
! 120
| 25.0% || 25.0% || 25.0% || 25.0% || || || ||
|-
! 160
| 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || || ||
|-
! 200
| 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || ||
|-
! 240
| 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% ||
|-
! 280
| 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5%
|-
! 320
| 12.5%
| 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5%
|-
! 360
| 10.0% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86%
|-
! 400
| 9.09% || 9.09% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 13.64%
|-
! 440
| 8.33% || 8.33% || 8.33% || 15.0% || 15.0% || 15.0% || 15.0% || 15.0%
|-
! 480
| 7.69% || 7.69% || 7.69% || 7.69% || 17.31% || 17.31% || 17.31% || 17.31%
|-
! 520
| 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 21.43% || 21.43% || 21.43%
|-
! 560
| 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 30.0% || 30.0%
|-
! 600+
| 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 56.25%
|}

====Tough Leaders====

Certain pods in difficult missions (such as Alien Base Assaults, the EXALT HQ Raid, and lategame EXALT missions) are flagged as "tough" and get a +3 bonus to their alien leader's level (max 7). These pods can eclipse the normal maximum defined by Alien Research, but leader levels in excess of 7 are reduced to 7.

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="35%"
|-
|+ "Tough" Alien Leader Levels
|-
! rowspan=2 | [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]]
! colspan=5 | "Tough" Leader Level
|-
! 3 !! 4 !! 5 !! 6 !! 7
|-
! 0
| 100% || || || ||
|-
! 40
| 50.0% || 50.0% || || ||
|-
! 80
| 33.33% || 33.33% || 33.33% || ||
|-
! 120
| 25.0% || 25.0% || 25.0% || 25.0% ||
|-
! 160
| 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0%
|-
! 200
| 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 33.33%
|-
! 240
| 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 42.86%
|-
! 280
| 12.50% || 12.50% || 12.50% || 12.50% || 50.0%
|-
! 320
| 12.50% || 12.50% || 12.50% || 12.50% || 50.0%
|-
! 360
| 10.00% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 51.43%
|-
! 400
| 9.09% || 9.09% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 54.55%
|-
! 440
| 8.33% || 8.33% || 8.33% || 15.0% || 60.0%
|-
! 480
| 7.69% || 7.69% || 7.69% || 7.69% || 69.23%
|-
! 520
| 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 71.43%
|-
! 560
| 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 73.33%
|-
! 600
| 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 75.0%
|}

===Appears===
The '''Appears''' data listed for each alien is the lowest time in days it could appear normally (as a Pod Leader) with a time-only based [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]] progression. [[Alien Research (Long War)#Bonus Research|Bonus Research]] from outside sources (e.g. Alien Bases, XCOM Soldiers left behind on failed missions, etc.) may cause some of these aliens to appear ahead of their schedule. In addition, landed UFOs present the possibility of aliens one [[Alien Research (Long War)#iMonth|iMonth]] (28 days) ahead of their standard schedule during that mission.

Pod composition is dependent upon the leader alien, and the leader alien is dependent upon Alien Research progression. For more information on when leader aliens can appear and how pods work, see [[Alien Deployment (Long War)|Alien Deployment]].

===Legend===
{| class="wikitable" width="75%" style="align: center"
|-
| width="8%" | '''No Color''' || '''Research Upgrades'''

These stat boosts are automatically unlocked as soon as Alien Research reaches the required amount, for all aliens of this type (including variants, leaders, and bosses).
|-
| style="background: #FFB" width="8%" | '''Yellow''' || '''Variants'''

These are available to all aliens of this type, including leaders, and sometimes change the name of the alien when inspected in the battlescape. They have a certain chance of appearing, indicated in the "Variant chance" column, which is rolled per alien. A given alien can roll multiple variants, in which case all bonuses apply and the alien takes on the name of the highest-leveled variant. The number of upgraded aliens in a pod is not limited. Variant aliens can only gain (or lose) base damage, hit points, aim, will, or special perk; they never gain defense, mobility, critical chance or anything else.

|-
| style="background: #FBB" width="8%" | '''Red''' || '''Leader Upgrades'''

These are only available to pod leader aliens of that type. The alien leader's level is rolled randomly based on alien research, from level 1 up to level 7. All leader upgrades are cumulative, meaning a level 3 leader will have the level 3 upgrades as well as the level 1 and 2 upgrades. Leaders display the highest-leveled Leader name they have unlocked when inspecting them in the battlescape.
|-
| style="background: #EEF" width="8%" | '''Purple''' || '''Boss Upgrades'''

These rare aliens are level 8 or level 9 Leaders, and only show up in [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Bosses|specific situations]]. Reminder that leader upgrades are cumulative, so a level 9 leader gains the upgrades of all previous levels.
|}

==Support Units==
Like XCOM's own support units, these aliens are not especially threatening in a simple firefight, but instead improve the effectiveness of other alien units. They can heal and buff the stronger aliens in the collective, forcing the player to be more thoughtful in their target selection and damage output.

===Sectoid===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=0
|picture=[[File:Sectoid (EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=3 - 8
|hp=3 - 14
|aim=55 - 79
|crit=0
|defense=0 - 28
|move=12 - 13
|will=5 - 120
|regen=0 - 2
}}
'''Sectoids''' behave in much the same way as you'd expect from vanilla, with low Mobility, HP and Aim, and mediocre Will. Basic Sectoids have access to a few more psionic powers than before, being able to ''Mind Merge'', ''Mindfray'' and ''Psi Panic''. The good news is that ''Mindfray'' has been altered to only do 1 damage. Be aware that ''Mind Merge'' has been altered so it does some damage to the merged target if the merger dies, but doesn't kill outright. Sectoid pod leaders get the ''Low Profile'' perk. All Sectoids technically have the ''Gunslinger'' perk to cancel their offset from using pistols, but do not gain extra damage.

Unlike most alien types, Sectoid pod leaders do +1 damage over regular Sectoids at the start of the game without requiring extra research.

''Rewards:'' Sectoids carry Alien Pistols (which explode into weapon fragments/alloys if not captured alive) and leave corpses. After ''Xenobiology'' is researched, the Council will request Sectoid Corpses from time to time. Typical requests exchange 6 Sectoids for 1 or 2 scientists, plus a 10% boost to the requesting nation's defense against panic.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=3 | level1-hp=3 | level1-aim=55 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=5
| level2-damage=3 | level2-hp=3 | level2-aim=60 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=5
| level3-damage=3 | level3-hp=3 | level3-aim=65 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=10
| level4-damage=3 | level4-hp=4 | level4-aim=65 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=15
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)|{{Gunslinger (Long War)}}|{{Suppression (Long War)}}|{{Mindfray (Long War)}}|{{Mind Merge (Long War)}}|{{Psi Panic (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{ListPerks (Long War)|{{Low Profile (Long War)}}from 270 AR|{{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 720 AR}}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 15 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 30 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 30 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 75 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || +1 || - || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Low Profile (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 300 || - || - || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 300 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 300 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 510 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 690 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 720 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +4 || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +3 || +4 || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Low Profile (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || - || +4 || +5 || - || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || - || - || +5 || - || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +4 || +5 || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 4 || Sectoid Leader
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || - || - || +5 || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +4 || +5 || - || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || - || +4 || +5 || {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 7 || Sectoid Master
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || +4 || +5 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +2 || +4 || +5 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Reticulan
|}

===Drone===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=0
|picture=[[File:Drone 1 (EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=3 - 7
|hp=3 - 10
|aim=50 - 70
|crit=0
|dr=1 - 2
|defense=-5 - 7
|move=12 - 16
|fuel=32
|will=0
}}
'''Drones''' can be encountered right from the beginning of the game, even in the first mission. They can come in groups of their own or be attached to Sectoid pods, and later they will accompany more powerful mechanized units like Cyberdiscs and Sectopods. Drones behave similarly to vanilla, but, like most mechanized units, have some damage reduction. Their constant light cover from flying with damage reduction and ability to mutually repair can make them extremely frustrating to kill when encountered in packs. A standard or Shredder rocket with the HEAT Ammo perk can make short work of them, however. Variant & Leader Drones have ''Holo-Targeting'', making them a bit more dangerous when supporting other aliens. Drones also start at 80% size at the beginning of the campaign with a variant upgrade.

A Level 9 Drone, the '''Atlas Drone''', will appear in the 18th Terror mission.

''Rewards:'' Drones primarily drop Drone Wrecks, the autopsy of which (10 required) grants access to the ''Field Repairs'' Foundry project and the Holo-Targeter. Later-game, Drone Wrecks are required for several Foundry projects including ''Field Repairs'' (10), ''Drone Capture'' (30), ''Improved Arc Thrower'' (10), ''Sentinel Drone'' (1), and ''Advanced Flight'' (5). Also, two Drone Wrecks are required for UFO Tracking (Boost).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=3 | level1-hp=3 | level1-aim=50 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=-5 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=0
| level2-damage=3 | level2-hp=3 | level2-aim=55 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=0
| level3-damage=3 | level3-hp=4 | level3-aim=60 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=0
| level4-damage=3 | level4-hp=4 | level4-aim=60 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=0
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Overload (Long War)}} | {{Repair (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 15 || - || - || - || - || +0.2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 30 || - || - || - || - || +0.2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 45 || - || - || - || - || +0.2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 60 || - || - || - || - || +0.4 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || - || +3 || +4 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 120 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Holo-Targeting (Long War) }} || 90% || Tracker Drone
|- align="center"
| 270 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || +4 || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || +4 || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || +4 || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || - || - || - || {{ Holo-Targeting (Long War) }} || 1 || Tracker Drone
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || - || - || - || - || 2 || Tracker Drone
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +2 || +2 || - || - || - || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || - || - || - || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || - || - || - || - || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || - || - || - || - || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +3 || +15 || +15 || - || - || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ Absorption Fields (Long War) }} || 8 || Battle Drone
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +3 || +30 || +10 || - || {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} || 9 || Atlas Drone
|}

==Harassment Units==
Harassment units are generally not a major threat on their own, but can quickly make a mixed engagement go from bad to worse. Their special abilities can greatly impair XCOM's ability to perform on the field. This can be countered with advanced tech options or specialized tactics.

===Thin Man===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=28
|appears2=28
|picture=[[File:Thin_Man_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=5 - 7
|hp=5 - 22
|aim=60 - 95
|crit=4 - 34
|defense=0 - 35
|move=14 - 19
|will=25 - 55
|regen=0 - 8
}}
'''Thin Men''' are quite similar to vanilla, with high mobility, mediocre aim and low will. The main change is that their poison has been replaced with acid, which lowers aim (flat -20%) and mobility (-25%) as poison does, and affected units take slightly more damage from attacks, but acid no longer causes damage directly. Instead, acid inflicts damage to a victim as they take actions, so moving, reloading, firing, overwatch, etc. will all cause an affected unit to take 1 damage. A unit that goes on overwatch will take the damage when they go on overwatch, not when they fire. Hunkering down is safe and a unit that simply remains still and hunkered for the duration of acid will take no damage at all. Acid clouds dissipate within 2 turns and the acid debuff lasts 2-5 turns. Robotic units and soldiers with Medikits or sealed armor are immune to the mobility effects of acid and won't take damage from actions, but will still take more damage from attacks and have reduced aim while affected by acid.

A Level 9 Thin Man, the Typhon, can appear in a scripted encounter in Furies without the prerequisite Alien Research.

''Rewards:'' Thin Men carry Alien Carbines (with the standard dead-man switch) and leave corpses. These can be spent on the ''Improved Medikit'' Foundry project (10x) after completing an autopsy (10x). The Thin Man interrogation gives a 25% research credit towards laser weaponry.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=5 | level1-hp=5 | level1-aim=60 | level1-crit=4 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=14 | level1-will=25
| level2-damage=5 | level2-hp=5 | level2-aim=70 | level2-crit=4 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=14 | level2-will=25
| level3-damage=5 | level3-hp=5 | level3-aim=75 | level3-crit=4 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=14 | level3-will=35
| level4-damage=5 | level4-hp=5 | level4-aim=75 | level4-crit=4 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=14 | level4-will=50
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Acidic (Long War)}} | {{Acid Spit (Long War)}} | {{Leap (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{ListPerks (Long War)|{{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 240 AR|{{Low Profile (Long War)}}from 400 AR}}

}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 90 || - || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || {{ Damn Good Ground (Long War) }} || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} || 15% || Sidewinder
|- align="center"
| 210 || - || +1 || - || +5 || - || - || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || +5 || +5 || - || +3 || +1 || +3 || +2 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 400 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Low Profile (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 450 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +3 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 550 || - || -4 || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 10% || Thin Man Sniper
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +1 || +5 || +5 || - || +3 || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 600 || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Deadeye (Long War) }} || 10% || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || - || +5 || +5 || - || +3 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +3 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +6 || +5 || +5 || - || +10 || +1 || +3 || +2 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +6 || +5 || +5 || - || +10 || +1 || +3 || +2 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +5 || +4 || {{ Sharpshooter (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Bombard (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 4 || Thin Man Sniper
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +5 || +5 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +1 || +10 || +6 || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} || 7 || Sidewinder
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +2 || +5 || +10 || +7 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || +5 || +5 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Typhon
|}

===Seeker===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=56
||appears2=56
|picture=[[File:Seeker_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=2 - 5
|hp=4 - 15
|aim=55 - 71
|crit=0
|dr=2 - 5
|defense=0 - 20
|move=16 - 25
|fuel=32
|will=0
}}
'''Seekers''' can be found both in pods made up entirely of Seekers, and accompanying pods of other aliens. This indirectly makes them more dangerous than vanilla, since a Seeker itself isn't much threat, but a Seeker supporting other aliens can be a deadly distraction. Seekers have had the shackles taken off their AI, and will happily decloak and Strangle 4 of your soldiers at once. As mechanized units they have some damage reduction, which makes them difficult to damage with low power weapons like pistols and carbines. Seekers only cause 1 initial damage when strangling, but this damage doubles every turn they remain attached, so quickly knocking a Seeker off will result in minimal damage, but if left it will cause massive damage in 3-4 turns.

Battle Scanners are available to Engineers and Scouts as carried items in Long War, giving an early counter to Seekers. They have a habit of going into overwatch while in stealth, so if you're waiting out Seekers without a Battle Scanner, try moving a soldier, one might reveal itself to take a pot shot at you. Ground-hugging Seekers can also be 'detected' by scanning for seemingly empty tiles that cannot be moved into; any explosive/area effect attacks (bar the MEC Flamethrower; Seekers are fireproof - though an 'IMMUNE' popup will still appear) that catch an invisible Seeker in their area will force them to decloak.

If Seekers have no valid targets for their strangulation attack (as MECs and SHIVs are immune, and several armors and items grant immunity also), they will most often go into overwatch (which will not decloak them until they have fired), or attempt to flank soldiers in cover and try to score a critical hit with their plasma gun. A Seeker who does not cloak on pod activation will usually try for this approach. Like Sectoids, Seekers possess the ''Gunslinger'' perk and suffer no range penalties for their plasma shots, but do not deal extra damage from base. In terror missions, they prefer to hunt down any remaining civilians if all XCOM units are immune; if a Seeker is the last enemy active on a Terror mission, focus on rescuing the civilians. Once the Seeker has no civilian targets remaining, its AI will switch to focusing on XCOM instead.

''Rewards:'' As robotic units, Seekers cannot be captured. Upon destruction, they leave wrecks, which are needed for autopsy (5) and ''UFO Countermeasures'' Foundry project (10).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=2 | level1-hp=4 | level1-aim=55 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=16 | level1-will=0
| level2-damage=2 | level2-hp=4 | level2-aim=60 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=16 | level2-will=0
| level3-damage=2 | level3-hp=4 | level3-aim=65 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=16 | level3-will=0
| level4-damage=2 | level4-hp=5 | level4-aim=65 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=16 | level4-will=0
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Gunslinger (Long War)}} | {{Strangle (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Unlimited Cloak (Long War) }} || 67% || Stalker
|- align="center"
| 75 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 150 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 210 || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || - || +2 || - || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 300 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 540 || - || - || +2 || - || +1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +3 || +2 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || +6 || - || +1 || +5 || +3 || - || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || - || - || - || {{ Unlimited Cloak (Long War) }} || 1 || Stalker
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +3 || +2 || - || {{ Holo-Targeting (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +3 || +2 || - || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || +1 || +5 || +2 || - || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +5 || +2 || - || {{ Platform Stability (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +5 || +2 || - || {{ Damage Control (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +10 || +2 || - || {{ Close Encounters (Long War) }} || 7 || Wraith
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +10 || +2 || - || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Hydra
|}

==Combat Units==
Combat units often appear in large groups. They present substantial threat to XCOM forces.

===Outsider===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|picture=[[File:Outsider (EU2012).jpg|128px]]
|damage=6 - 10
|hp=10 - 23
|aim=65 - 95
|crit=4 - 22
|dr=0 - 3
|defense=0 - 15
|move=12 - 17
|will=115 - 150
|regen=3 - 7
}}
Long War '''Outsiders''' are enormously more dangerous than vanilla Outsiders. They start with 10 HP and 3 HP regeneration per turn, meaning it will take a concerted effort from the whole squad to take them down early game. Like vanilla, Outsiders are mostly found in charge of UFOs, usually holed up on the bridge, but not always. In Long War, they will occasionally patrol. You should be careful not to activate a UFO's Outsider until you're ready for it, since their HP regen means they can easily take on 1 or 2 XCOM soldiers without even taking damage. On larger UFOs Outsiders spawn in larger groups than in vanilla. On larger ships and later encounters, Outsiders spawn in pods of 3 to 6.

When you first meet them, fighting Outsiders in a war of attrition across cover is a bad idea, since their HP regen and relatively high damage and accuracy with their Alien Carbines means they may well win. Neutralizing the Outsider with Flashbangs and ''Suppression'' while you move your troops up to set up for a one turn kill is more effective. Note that their regenerative abilities will increase over the course of your game.

''Rewards:'' Outsiders captured alive grant Outsider Shards, which can be fashioned into Skeleton Keys. These are essential for initiating Base Assault missions, a requirement for ending the game. They also carry Alien Carbines. Killed Outsiders provide nothing.

''Note:'' The bonus regen column includes the bonus conferred by ''Adaptive Bone Marrow''.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=6 | level1-hp=10 | level1-aim=65 | level1-crit=4 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=100
| level2-damage=6 | level2-hp=10 | level2-aim=75 | level2-crit=4 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=100
| level3-damage=6 | level3-hp=10 | level3-aim=85 | level3-crit=4 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=110
| level4-damage=7 | level4-hp=10 | level4-aim=85 | level4-crit=4 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=125
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Suppression (Long War)}} | {{Muscle Fiber Density (Long War)}} | {{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{Neural Damping (Long War)}}from 600 AR
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || +3 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || +1 || +2 || +4 || - || - || +5 || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || +3 || +4 || +4 || +1 || +2 || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || +1 || +3 || +4 || - || +1 || +2 || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 480 || - || - || +4 || +4 || - || +2 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +1 || +4 || - || - || +2 || - || +5 || - || {{ Neural Damping (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 750 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || +2 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +10 || +10 || +1 || - || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || - || +5 || - || - || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || - || - || +10 || {{ Opportunist (Long War) }} || 2 || Outsider Engineer
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || - || +5 || +10 || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} || 3 || Outsider Navigator
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || - || +5 || +10 || {{ Ready For Anything (Long War) }} || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +10 || +5 || +10 || {{ Close Combat Specialist (Long War) }} || 5 || Outsider Captain
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || - || +5 || +10 || {{ Sentinel (Long War) }} || 6 || Outsider Commander
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || - || - || - || +10 || {{ Damage Control (Long War) }} || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || +20 || - || +10 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Outsider Overlord
|}

===Floater===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=28
|appears2=28
|picture=[[File:Floater_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=5 - 8
|hp=5 - 16
|aim=55 - 80
|crit=4 - 9
|defense=-5 - 11
|move=12 - 20
|fuel=32
|will=20 - 44
}}
'''Floaters''' behave identically to vanilla Floaters. Floater pod leaders often gain the ''Damn Good Ground'' perk (+10 Aim and +10 Defense against anything you have height advantage on), which, given their ability to fly, makes them significantly more dangerous than regular Floaters.

''Rewards:'' Floaters leave corpses (10-autopsy, 30-''Armored Fighters'', 25-''Shaped Armor'', 3-Uplink Targeting (Aim)) and carry Alien Carbines. Floater interrogation provides aerospace research credit.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=5 | level1-hp=5 | level1-aim=55 | level1-crit=4 | level1-defense=-5 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=20
| level2-damage=5 | level2-hp=5 | level2-aim=60 | level2-crit=4 | level2-defense=-5 | level2-mobility=13 | level2-will=20
| level3-damage=5 | level3-hp=6 | level3-aim=65 | level3-crit=4 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=13 | level3-will=30
| level4-damage=5 | level4-hp=6 | level4-aim=65 | level4-crit=4 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=13 | level4-will=45
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Launch (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 60 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 15% || Floater Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 60 || - || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Danger Zone (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center"
| 75 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 90 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 210 || - || - || +4 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 240 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center"
| 330 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 570 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 690 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 780 || - || - || +5 || +5 || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +4 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +4 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +1 || +4 || +2 || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 1 || Floater Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || - || +2 || {{ Danger Zone (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +4 || +2 || {{ Close Combat Specialist (Long War) }} || 4 || Floater Raider
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +1 || - || +2 || {{ Damn Good Ground (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +4 || +2 || {{ Mayhem (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +5 || +8 || +2 || {{ Ready For Anything (Long War) }} || 7 || Floater Reaver
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +3 || +5 || +15 || +6 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 8 || Great Reaver
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || +5 || +2 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Reaver Lord
|}

===Chryssalid===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears2=0
|picture=[[File:Chryssalid_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=8 - 12
|hp=8 - 20
|aim=0
|crit=25
|defense=10 - 35
|move=20 - 27
|will=50 - 70
|regen=0 - 7
}}
'''Chryssalids''' are similar to vanilla Chryssalids. A big difference is that Chryssalid pod leaders can have ''Lightning Reflexes'', which can seriously reduce the amount of damage a charging Chryssalid pod will take from overwatch fire since the pod leader moves first, and is thus the most likely to trigger overwatch fire depending on positioning. Like Thin Men, the Chryssalid's claw poison has been replaced with acid.

AP/HE grenades are an effective early counter to Chryssalids, since they'll frequently charge in a tightly packed group on first sight, and the grenades will do full damage since Chryssalids don't benefit from cover. Similarly, Flashbangs can debilitate a whole group of Chryssalids by reducing their move by 40%, which brings it considerably under the range a Flashbang can be thrown. Chryssalids are immune to acid, so Chem Grenades won't reduce their mobility. Taking out the Chryssalid leader will make reaction fire effective against them; a ''Close Combat'' Assault can frequently finish off leaderless Chryssalids. The MEC Flamethrower is also quite effective; aside from the damage (especially with the ''Jellied Elerium'' upgrade) it can cause the Chryssalids to panic, and they may then run away from your soldiers instead of towards them.

Chryssalids on a terror mission will always spawn Zombies from civilians they kill off-screen - normally, this only occurred on higher difficulties in vanilla. As such, expect to have to deal with many additional Zombies during Terror missions that focus on the deployment of Chryssalids. Additionally, Chryssalid pods may occasionally contain a number of Zombie units regardless of the mission type.

Some Chryssalid pod leaders may be particularly large. Beware, as these monsters often have upwards of 40-50 health on top of the fact they are escorted by several more Chryssalids and have augmented damage.

''Rewards:'' 5 Chryssalid Carcasses are needed for autopsy, 10 for Chitin Plating.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=8 | level1-hp=8 | level1-aim=- | level1-crit=25 | level1-defense=10 | level1-mobility=20 | level1-will=50
| level2-damage=8 | level2-hp=8 | level2-aim=- | level2-crit=25 | level2-defense=10 | level2-mobility=20 | level2-will=50
| level3-damage=8 | level3-hp=8 | level3-aim=- | level3-crit=25 | level3-defense=10 | level3-mobility=20 | level3-will=60
| level4-damage=9 | level4-hp=8 | level4-aim=- | level4-crit=25 | level4-defense=10 | level4-mobility=20 | level4-will=75
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Acidic (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Implant (Long War)}} | {{Leap (Long War)}} | {{Melee (Long War)}} | {{Stun Immune (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 180 AR
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 10% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 150 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 300 || - || +2 || - || - || - || +5 || +1 || +2 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 550 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 650 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 725 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || +5 || +2 || +2 || +2 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || +1 || +2 || - || +5 || - || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} || 2 || Chryssalid Warrior
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || +2 || - || +5 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 4 || Chryssalid Charger
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +2 || - || +5 || - || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War) }} || 6 || Hive Queen
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +5 || - || +5 || - || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +10 || - || +5 || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +20 || - || +5 || {{ Resilience (Long War) }} || 9 || Greater Hive Queen
|}

===Zombie===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|picture=[[File:Zombie_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=7 - 15
|hp=12 - 23
|aim=0
|crit=0
|defense=0
|move=9 - 16
|will=120
|regen=0 - 2
}}
Not even '''Zombies''' are immune to getting tweaked in Long War - at first, they become faster, and later tougher, whilst their melee damage steadily ramps up over time. They can occasionally spawn as a member of Chryssalid pods on any mission, and it is also be possible to encounter them as a special pod spawn during Terror missions, in which four to five identical zombies will spawn in a group. Unlike regular Zombies, the members of this Zombie "pack" do not seem to spawn Chryssalids if left to their own devices for too long.

Zombies that have been spawned through a victim implanted by a Chryssalid will spawn a "baby" Chryssalid after two turns, easily recognized by their slightly pink skin color. This Chryssalid variant will have the same stats as an adult Chryssalid and can both move and attack during the turn it emerges. It will furthermore always emerge at full health regardless of how much damage the Zombie has taken.

''Rewards:'' None.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=7 | level1-hp=12 | level1-aim=- | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=9 | level1-will=120
| level2-damage=7 | level2-hp=12 | level2-aim=- | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=9 | level2-will=120
| level3-damage=7 | level3-hp=15 | level3-aim=- | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=9 | level3-will=130
| level4-damage=8 | level4-hp=15 | level4-aim=- | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=9 | level4-will=140
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Acidic (Long War)}} | {{Chryssalid Spawn (Long War)}} | {{Melee (Long War)}} | {{Stun Immune (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 450 AR
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 210 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 450 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 480 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|}

===Muton===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=56
|appears2=84
|picture=[[File:Muton_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=8 - 10
|hp=8 - 22
|aim=60 - 82
|crit=4 - 6
|defense=10 - 33
|move=12
|will=30 - 60
}}
'''Mutons''' are similar to vanilla Mutons, and will start with Alien Carbines and later upgrade to Alien Rifles. Muton pod leaders have significantly more HP than regular Mutons, as well as a number of overwatch enhancing perks. Before 105 days of alien research, Mutons use Alien Carbines, which modifies their base damage and aim to be 6 and 76 respectively. Muton grenades also have a base damage of 5.

''Rewards'': Either Alien Carbine or Alien Rifle when captured, and also Alien Grenade if ''Alien Grenades'' Foundry project isn't completed. Muton Corpses are required for autopsy (10) and ''Ammo Conservation'' Foundry project (20). The Muton interrogation gives a 25% research credit towards gauss weaponry.

''Note'': Values tagged with an asterisk(*) are only unlocked on regular aliens during later stages of the war.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=6 -> 8* | level1-hp=8 | level1-aim=66 -> 60* | level1-crit=4 | level1-defense=10 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=30
| level2-damage=6 -> 8* | level2-hp=8 | level2-aim=71 -> 65* | level2-crit=4 | level2-defense=10 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=30
| level3-damage=6 -> 8* | level3-hp=10 | level3-aim=76 -> 70* | level3-crit=4 | level3-defense=10 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=40
| level4-damage=7 -> 9* | level4-hp=10 | level4-aim=76 -> 70* | level4-crit=4 | level4-defense=10 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=55
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Alien Grenade (Long War)}} | {{Blood Call (Long War)}} | {{Intimidate (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
}}
'''*''' After 105 days of alien research.
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 15% || Muton Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 120 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Hyper-Reactive Pupils (Long War) }} || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 150 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Depth Perception (Long War) }} || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 210 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 330 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 450 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 10% || Muton Sniper
|- align="center"
| 510 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 650 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || 50% || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +3 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +5 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +5 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 1 || Muton Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Opportunist (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ HEAT Warheads (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Bombard (Long War) }} || 4 || Muton Grenadier
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +2 || +2 || +4 || {{ Fortiores Una (Long War) }} {{ Will To Survive (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +2 || +4 || {{ Sentinel (Long War) }} || 6 || Muton Sentinel
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +2 || +10 || +4 || +8 || {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || 7 || Muton Centurion
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +2 || +5 || +10 || +10 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || +5 || +5 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Sargon
|}

==Specialist Units==
These units are all significantly more dangerous than those listed in the combat section. Their abilities are designed to exploit specific weaknesses in the XCOM squad, but in turn, each of them has their own glaring weakness that can be exploited. For example, a single Berserker can effortlessly savage a smoke and suppression based squad composition, but will crumble to a well-placed chem grenade.

===Cyberdisc===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=112
|appears2=84
|picture=[[File:Cyberdisc_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=9 - 14
|hp=18 - 32
|aim = 60 - 74
|crit=8 - 18
|dr=2 - 6
|defense=0
|move=18 - 22
|fuel=32
|will=0
}}
'''Cyberdiscs''' are similar to vanilla Cyberdiscs; even their deployment behavior is largely unchanged. They get the ''Automated Threat Assessment'' perk, which given their habit of immediately going on overwatch when seen will often give them extra defense at least for the first turn. Cyberdiscs are usually accompanied by two to three Drones, and usually prefer to throw their grenade if an eligible soldier is in range rather than shooting. This grenade has a base damage of 5.

Cyberdiscs pose a significant threat throughout the game. Early on their high health pool makes them difficult to kill unless you have more than one soldier with ''HEAT Ammo/Warheads'', or a soldier with Shredder Ammo/Rockets. Their movement range can take you off guard as it's close to that of a Chryssalid; if they're not dealt with quickly or retreated from, they are very likely to flank and hit you with raw firepower, move up next to you and use their powerful ''Death Blossom'' attack, or simply fire long-range explosives at you.

The Drones escorting a Cyberdisc are of course more dangerous as well (see the main Drone entry); they can tag a target with ''Holo-Targeting'', making it easier for the parent Cyberdisc (and any other enemies, for that matter) to hit the victim. Drones can be distracted by damaging the Cyberdisc (in which case they will fly back to repair it) but this is hardly an ideal strategy.

More annoyingly however, these Drone escorts also complicate killing Cyberdiscs in two other important ways. First, when the pod gets activated, it will usually be because an XCOM soldier sees the surrounding drones, not the Cyberdisc itself. Since the Cyberdisc overwatches on activation without moving, this means that moving to establish squadsight LOS will risk triggering the overwatch. The second complication is that if XCOM decides to instead prepare an overwatch trap for the non-visible pod, the Drones will usually trigger the trap, leaving the main threat unscathed.

One important note about the Cyberdisc is that they only have the ''Hardened'' trait as long as they're closed. A Cyberdisc must open up in order to attack with its cannons or grenade, and will immediately return to closed form if hit by an incoming attack. A Cyberdisc that overwatches can often be hit when open twice, by shooting it, then drawing out its overwatch with a Scout, causing it to reopen for a second shot.

In close range, Cyberdiscs explode for damage upon death, a trait that can be used against the aliens in tight packed groups. The Long War mod has also made efforts to better calculate the discs ''Death Blossom'', so be cautious not to engage too closely.

''Rewards:'' Cyberdisc Wrecks are needed for autopsy (3), several Foundry projects (10), and Defensive Matrix (Dodge) (2).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=9 | level1-hp=18 | level1-aim=60 | level1-crit=8 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=18 | level1-will=0
| level2-damage=9 | level2-hp=18 | level2-aim=65 | level2-crit=8 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=18 | level2-will=0
| level3-damage=9 | level3-hp=18 | level3-aim=70 | level3-crit=8 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=18 | level3-will=0
| level4-damage=10 | level4-hp=21 | level4-aim=70 | level4-crit=8 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=18 | level4-will=0
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Alien Grenade (Long War)}} | {{Automated Threat Assessment (Long War)}} | {{Bombard (Long War)}} | {{Death Blossom (Long War)}} | {{Death Explosion (Long War)}} | {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || - || +2 || - || - || +1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +1 || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 480 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 720 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || - || +3 || +5 || +5 || +1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || - || +3 || +5 || +5 || +1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +1 || - || - || - || 1 || Cyberdisk Gunship
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || - || - || - || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +1 || - || - || {{ Damage Control (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +2 || - || {{ HEAT Ammo (Long War) }} {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} || 4 || Cyberdisc Destroyer
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +1 || +2 || - || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 300 || - || +2 || +2 || - || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 300 || - || +3 || +2 || - || {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} || 7 || Gunstar
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || +15 || +5 || - || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} {{ HEAT Warheads (Long War) }} {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || 9 || Dreadnought
|}

===Mechtoid===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=140
|appears2=140
|picture=[[File:Mechtoid_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=8 - 11
|hp=25 - 39
|shield=6 - 13
|aim=65 - 85
|crit=8 - 12
|dr=2 - 4
|defense=0 - 8
|move=14 - 16
|will=40 - 64
}}
'''Mechtoids''' behave identically to vanilla Mechtoids. Like vanilla, they will appear with Sectoid escorts, and later with Sectoid Commanders.

Mechtoids are one of the few "big" units vulnerable to psionics - ''Mind Fray'' will restrict their movement and prevent them from charging to flank as well as reducing their accuracy. ''Psi Panic'' will completely disable a Mechtoid. Their Will is a little higher than regular troops, but not stellar, so are excellent targets for psionics anyway due to the large amount of firepower a successful psionic attack will neutralize. Chem Grenades will hurt their accuracy a bit.

The Psi Shield granted to Mechtoids by ''Mind Merge'' also grants a significant amount of extra Damage Reduction on top of the added temporary health. As a result, it is absolutely essential that you find and kill the Sectoid that set up the link (helpfully indicated by the purple streams) and eliminate them.

While Mechtoids do not explode for damage, a Mechtoid that falls backwards in a fight it will crush cover it lands on. Be careful not to destroy your own cover in close quarters combat.

There is a simple technique for avoiding unwanted cover destruction upon their deaths, however. When they are killed by gunfire, Mechtoids will fall directly backwards, flat onto their backs. Since they will also turn to face their attackers, this means that you can control where they fall by having the killing shot come from the correct angle. This still requires caution, however; sometimes even a stray limb brushing against something will be enough to destroy it.

''Rewards:'' Mechtoid Cores are required for autopsy (3), ''Advanced Servomotors'' Foundry project (8), and Psi Screen device (1).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=8 | level1-hp=25 | level1-shield=6 | level1-aim=65 | level1-crit=8 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=14 | level1-will=40
| level2-damage=8 | level2-hp=25 | level2-shield=6 | level2-aim=70 | level2-crit=8 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=14 | level2-will=40
| level3-damage=8 | level3-hp=27 | level3-shield=6 | level3-aim=75 | level3-crit=8 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=14 | level3-will=50
| level4-damage=11 | level4-hp=30 | level4-shield=6 | level4-aim=75 | level4-crit=8 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=14 | level4-will=60
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Combined Arms (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Light Em Up (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} | {{Psi Shield (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="9%" |{{Health (Long War)}} Shield HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || - || +2 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +2 || +1 || +4 || - || +1 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 500 || - || +3 || - || +4 || +4 || - || +4 || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +3 || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +3 || +8 || - || +1 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Platform Stability (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Advanced Fire Control (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War) }} || 4 || Vulcan Mechtoid
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || +1 || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +2 || +10 || +2 || +3 || {{ Absorption Fields (Long War) }} {{ Reactive Targeting Sensors (Long War) }} || 7 || Leviathan Mechtoid
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ HEAT Ammo (Long War) }} {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 9 || Colossus
|}

===Berserker===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=168
|appears2=140
|picture=[[File:Berserker_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=10 - 20
|hp=20 - 44
|aim=0
|crit=33
|defense=20 - 30
|move=17 - 23
|will=80 - 110
|regen=0 - 7
}}
'''Berserkers''' can also be Pod Leaders, meaning the first Berserkers you see could have terrifying amounts of health.

Like Chryssalids, anything you can do to slow down a Berserker will greatly reduce its threat. Flashbanging a Berserker will reduce its half-movement range to well below flashbang throw range, so is a good way to neutralize a Berserker you're not ready to kill. It will also reduce its movement from ''Bloodlust'', so you can also shoot a couple of times after flashbanging (but don't go overboard). Another good piece of equipment to use against them are Chem Grenades, not only does it reduce their damage reduction and limit their movement, but it also deals damage to them each time they move after being shot.

Since it's possible to have multiple soldiers with ''Rift'' outside of the Temple Ship, using their aggression against them to make them wander in and out of the ''Psionic Storm'' will make quick work of them, if you can set up the situation. With a few other AoE attacks, a cluster of them becomes a comedic slaughter: excellent payback for all the times they will crush your soldiers under their fists.

Two well placed ''Close Combat Specialist'' Assaults (optionally with Shredder Ammo) can also quickly make short work of even a group of Berserkers while a grenade or rocket makes them to run all at once towards the CCS trap. Beware of low ammunition shotguns.

''Rewards:'' Berserkers don't carry a weapon. Their corpses are needed for autopsy (5), ''MEC Close Combat'' (8), and Combat Stims (1). Interrogating a Berserker gives a 25% research credit towards all armor technologies.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=10 | level1-hp=20 | level1-aim=50 | level1-crit=33 | level1-defense=20 | level1-mobility=17 | level1-will=80
| level2-damage=10 | level2-hp=20 | level2-aim=55 | level2-crit=33 | level2-defense=20 | level2-mobility=17 | level2-will=80
| level3-damage=10 | level3-hp=22 | level3-aim=60 | level3-crit=33 | level3-defense=20 | level3-mobility=17 | level3-will=90
| level4-damage=12 | level4-hp=25 | level4-aim=60 | level4-crit=33 | level4-defense=20 | level4-mobility=17 | level4-will=105
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Bloodlust (Long War)}} | {{Bull Rush (Long War)}} | {{Intimidate (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Muscle Fiber Density (Long War)}} | {{Melee (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 10% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 300 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 330 || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +2 || +3 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 500 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || +5 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +2 || +5 || - || - || - || - || +2 || +3 || +3 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +2 || +5 || - || - || - || - || +2 || +3 || +3 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +2 || - || +3 || {{ Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War) }} || 2 || Behemoth
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || +2 || - || +3 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +2 || - || +3 || - || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +2 || - || +3 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 6 || Juggernaut
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +5 || - || +3 || - || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || - || +3 || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +15 || - || +3 || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 9 || Mongo
|}

===Sectoid Commander===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=196
|appears2=196
|picture=[[File:Sectoid Commander 1 (EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=4 - 10
|hp=15 - 36
|aim=55
|crit=0
|defense=20 - 39
|move=12 - 14
|will=90 - 200
|regen=1 - 6
}}
'''Sectoid Commanders''' represent a substantial step up from their first-month brethren, and carry new psionic abilities as well as better statistics. Sectoid Commanders can use ''Mind Control''.

''Rewards:'' Just like basic Sectoids, Sectoid Commanders carry Alien Pistols. Besides the autopsy (5), five of their corpses are needed for Mind Shield. Their interrogation provides 25% research credit towards psionic research and ''Psi Warfare Systems'' Foundry project.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=4 | level1-hp=15 | level1-aim=55 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=20 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=90
| level2-damage=4 | level2-hp=15 | level2-aim=60 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=20 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=90
| level3-damage=4 | level3-hp=15 | level3-aim=65 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=20 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=105
| level4-damage=6 | level4-hp=15 | level4-aim=65 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=20 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=115
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Gunslinger (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} | {{Greater Mind Merge (Long War)}} | {{Mind Control (Long War)}} | {{Mindfray (Long War)}} | {{Psi Panic (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 420 AR
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || 50% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 50% || -
|- align="center"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 400 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +20 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 480 || - || +2 || - || - || - || +3 || - || +20 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 660 || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || +4 || - || +20 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 780 || - || +3 || - || - || - || +3 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || +4 || +1 || +10 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || +5 || +1 || +10 || +1 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || +1 || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Distortion Field (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Low Profile (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +2 || - || +4 || - || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || +1 || +2 || - || +4 || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 300 || - || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 330 || +1 || +2 || - || +4 || - || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Regen Biofield (Long War) }} || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || +5 || +5 || +10 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Great Reticulan
|}

===Heavy Floater===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=224
|appears2=224
|picture=[[File:Heavy_Floater_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=8 - 10
|hp=15 - 30
|aim=60 - 76
|crit=8 - 12
|dr=0 - 1
|defense=5 - 25
|move=12 - 14
|fuel=32
|will=25 - 41
}}
The '''Heavy Floater''' is improvement over the original Floater. Unlike regular Floaters, Heavy Floaters can throw grenades, and with the ''Bombard'' perk, they can throw them very far. This grenade has a base damage of 5.

''Rewards:'' Heavy Floaters carry Alien Rifles. The corpse is needed for autopsy (5), ''Advanced Flight'' (5), and ''Advanced Repair'' (4). Interrogation provides plasma technologies research bonus.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=8 | level1-hp=15 | level1-aim=60 | level1-crit=8 | level1-defense=5 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=25
| level2-damage=8 | level2-hp=15 | level2-aim=65 | level2-crit=8 | level2-defense=10 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=25
| level3-damage=8 | level3-hp=15 | level3-aim=70 | level3-crit=8 | level3-defense=10 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=35
| level4-damage=10 | level4-hp=15 | level4-aim=70 | level4-crit=8 | level4-defense=10 | level4-mobility=13 | level4-will=50
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Alien Grenade (Long War)}} | {{Bombard (Long War)}} | {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Launch (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 25% || Heavy Floater Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Sapper (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 270 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Danger Zone (Long War) }} || 20% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 300 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Shredder Ammo (Long War) }} || 10% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 300 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || {{ Depth Perception (Long War) }} || 50% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 360 || - || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || +3 || - || - || +1 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +2 || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 450 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Mayhem (Long War) }} || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 500 || - || +2 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +2 || - || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +2 || +4 || +4 || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +2 || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +2 || +2 || +2 || {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ HEAT Ammo (Long War) }} || 2 || Heavy Floater Destroyer
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ Close Encounters (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 5 || Aircobra
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ Damn Good Ground (Long War) }} || 6 || Warmaster
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 420 || +1 || +2 || +2 || +2 || {{ Will To Survive (Long War) }} || 7 ||
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +3 || +3 || +5 || {{ Mayhem (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +2 || +3 || +8 || +5 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} {{ Danger Zone (Long War) }} {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || 9 || Archon
|}

==Alpha Units==
These units present significant threat on their own. Except Muton Elites, who come in large groups late game, Sectopods and Ethereals appear either alone or in a group of two, accompanied by support units.

===Muton Elite===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=252
|appears2=252
|picture=[[File:Elite_Muton_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=10 - 12
|hp=20 - 40
|aim=70 - 86
|crit=0 - 4
|defense=20 - 40
|move=12 - 15
|will=40 - 85
|regen=0 - 5
}}
'''Muton Elites''' are similar-looking to Mutons, but with red armor.

Care must be taken, because they have a lot of innate defense and ''Tactical Sense'', as well as a lot of firepower at their disposal. Their heavy plasma weapons are both destructive and highly damaging, and even though they lose ''Intimidate'', they still benefit from ''Blood Call''. As they appear as pod leaders, a lot of their good perks trigger earlier than they actually appear in hordes, making Muton pods very dangerous.

Their overwatch becomes lethal with ''Opportunist'', ''Covering Fire'' and ''Sentinel'', they can fire twice with ''Light' Em Up'' and further with ''Squadsight'', crit with ''Aggression'' and ''Bring 'Em On'' and respond to fire with ''Reactive Targeting Sensors''. Watch out for ''Bombard'' grenades with ''HEAT Warheands'' and ''Tandem Warheads'' as well. An encounter with them can only be done without losses by using advanced Technology like MECS or Psionics or very good tactics, forcing the player to focus and speed up their research.

Take care when using Psionics to attack them, as they gain high will and potentially ''Neural Damping''.

''Rewards:'' Muton Elites are the only aliens carrying Alien Heavy Weapons. Their corpses are extremely useful, too, since 20 are needed for the extremely useful ''Tactical Rigging'', and 5 for autopsy. Interrogating a Muton Elite gives a 25% research bonus to all weapon technologies and projects.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=10 | level1-hp=20 | level1-aim=70 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=20 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=40
| level2-damage=10 | level2-hp=20 | level2-aim=75 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=20 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=40
| level3-damage=10 | level3-hp=20 | level3-aim=80 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=20 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=50
| level4-damage=13 | level4-hp=20 | level4-aim=80 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=20 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=65
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Alien Grenade (Long War)}} | {{Bombard (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Hyper-Reactive Pupils (Long War)}}from 360 AR | {{Tandem Warheads (Long War)}}from 420 AR | {{Lock N Load (Long War)}}from 700 AR}}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Grenadier (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 33% || Muton Elite Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ HEAT Warheads (Long War) }} || 33% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 33% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 33% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 33% || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || {{ Hyper-Reactive Pupils (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 450 || - || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 450 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 10% || Muton Elite Sniper
|- align="center"
| 500 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 500 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +20 || - || - || 10% || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +2 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 600 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Neural Damping (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 600 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || 33% || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Lock N Load (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || - || +4 || +4 || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || +4 || - || - || +5 || +1 || +10 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +10 || +4 || - || - || +5 || +1 || +10 || +1 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Fortiores Una (Long War) }} {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} || 1 || Muton Elite Legionary
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +1 || +3 || {{ Opportunist (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || +1 || +1 || +1 || +4 || {{ Bring Em On (Long War) }} {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 4 || Muton Elite Commando
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +2 || +2 || +4 || {{ Sentinel (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +1 || +4 || {{ Will To Survive (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 450 || +1 || +2 || +2 || +4 || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} {{ Reactive Targeting Sensors (Long War) }} || 7 || Muton Elite Praetorian
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +10 || +5 || +30 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} {{ Neural Damping (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ Shredder Ammo (Long War) }} || 9 || Bashar
|}

===Sectopod===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=364
|appears2=280
|picture=[[File:Sectopod 1 (EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=7 - 27
|hp=35 - 60
|aim=70 - 80
|crit=8
|dr=3 - 9
|defense=0
|move=12
|will=0
}}
Massive mechanical war machines, '''Sectopods''' are similar to their vanilla incarnation - only more deadly, of course. Approach with extreme caution. As with all aliens, their strength and power progresses with time, making them significantly more dangerous as the war drags on.

*The Sectopod's attacks have different base damage values. The Sectopod chest cannon has a base damage of 11 and is used for any cannon attack on the sectopods turn. The normal cannon has a base damage of 9 and is used for overwatch and reactive targeting sensors attacks during the players turn. The Cluster Bomb has a base damage of 7.
*Sectopods do not need to reload; both their chest and "normal" (green) cannon are supplied with infinite ammo.
*Despite the fact that the Sectopod has infinite ammo, disabling shot will work. A successful disabling Shot will remove overwatch and disable RTS, and the sectopod will have its chest cannon disabled for the next turn. The cluster bomb is the only attack that is not disabled.

''Rewards:'' Sectopod Wrecks are needed for autopsy (3) and EMP Cannons (1).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=7 ~ 11* | level1-hp=35 | level1-aim=70 | level1-crit=8 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=0
| level2-damage=7 ~ 11* | level2-hp=35 | level2-aim=75 | level2-crit=8 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=0
| level3-damage=7 ~ 11* | level3-hp=35 | level3-aim=80 | level3-crit=8 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=0
| level4-damage=9 ~ 13* | level4-hp=35 | level4-aim=80 | level4-crit=8 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=0
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Cannon Fire (Long War)}} | {{Cluster Bomb (Long War)}} | {{Death Explosion (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 450 || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +4 || +5 || +5 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || +3 || +5 || +5 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || - || - || - || - || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || - || - || - || - || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 360 || - || +5 || - || - || {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 420 || - || +5 || - || - || {{ HEAT Ammo (Long War) }} || 4 || Sectopod Destroyer
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 660 || - || +5 || - || - || - || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 720 || - || +5 || - || - || {{ Reactive Targeting Sensors (Long War) }} || 6 || Reaper
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 999 || - || - || - || - || {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || +35 || +30 || - || {{ Absorption Fields (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Titan
|}

===Ethereal===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=336
|appears2=308
|picture=[[File:Ethereal_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=13 - 16
|hp=20 - 40
|aim=90
|crit=0
|defense=40 - 45
|move=12
|will=135 - 190
|regen=4 - 10
}}
The floating psionic leaders of the alien race are substantially more deadly and no longer trade frailty for their power. Using a Psionic Lance attack that is based on will as well as the feared ''Mind Control'' and ''Rift'' abilities, Ethereals represent the pinnacle of psionic deadliness.

'''Ethereals''' regenerate health and will reflect any shots taken at them which roll as misses (except overwatch shots), dealing 33% of the damage to the attacker (this cannot crit). This means any non-overwatch shots will be either hits or reflections, so taking high-percentage shots is particularly important against Ethereals. Explosives and stuns cannot be reflected. The Ethereal's Psionic Lance is a cross between psionic power and weapon; it has no cooldown, and its accuracy is reduced by [[Abilities_List_(Long_War)#Suppression|Suppression]], but it can't be disabled with [[Abilities_List_(Long_War)#Disabling_Shot|Disabling Shot]].

''Rewards:'' Captured Ethereals carry no weapons and only three of their corpses are needed for an autopsy. Interrogating an Ethereal gives research bonus to all remaining technologies and Foundry projects.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=10 | level1-hp=20 | level1-aim=90 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=40 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=120
| level2-damage=10 | level2-hp=20 | level2-aim=95 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=40 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=120
| level3-damage=10 | level3-hp=20 | level3-aim=100 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=40 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=145
| level4-damage=12 | level4-hp=20 | level4-aim=100 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=40 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=155
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War) | {{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Death Explosion (Long War)}} | {{Mind Control (Long War)}} | {{Mindfray (Long War)}} | {{Psi Drain (Long War)}} | {{Rift (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 1 || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || +4 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 540 || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || +2 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || +2 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || +2 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 360 || - || +2 || - || +3 || {{ Distortion Field (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 390 || - || +2 || - || +4 || {{ Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 420 || - || +2 || - || +4 || - || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 450 || - || +2 || - || +4 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 480 || - || +2 || - || +5 || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 510 || +3 || +5 || - || +5 || - || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 540 || +3 || +5 || - || +15 || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +3 || +5 || - || +15 || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +3 || +5 || - || +15 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Ethereal Overmind
|}

===Uber Ethereal===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|picture=[[File:Uber_Ethereal_2_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=10
|hp=60
|aim=110
|crit=0
|defense=50 - 80
|move=12
|will=200 - 230
|regen=15
}}
The ultimate Ethereal. He is immune to stun and Mind Control, and receives 15 Damage Reduction from every nearby live Ethereal.

''Rewards:'' Winning the game.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=10 | level1-hp=60 | level1-aim=110 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=50 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=200
| level2-damage=10 | level2-hp=60 | level2-aim=115 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=50 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=200
| level3-damage=10 | level3-hp=60 | level3-aim=120 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=55 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=225
| level4-damage=14 | level4-hp=60 | level4-aim=120 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=60 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=235
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Absorption Fields (Long War)}} | {{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}} | {{Close Encounters (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Lightning Reflexes (Long War)}} | {{Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War)}} | {{Squadsight (Long War)}} | {{Stun Immune (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Distortion Field (Long War)}} | {{Mind Control (Long War)}} | {{Mindfray (Long War)}} | {{Psi Drain (Long War)}} | {{Rift (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Navigator Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 540 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|}

==Bosses==

Level 8 and Level 9 leaders cannot spawn as the leader of a normal pod, but may spawn as a fixed encounter in certain specially-designated "boss" or "monster" pods. Some maps spawn a specific alien type, others pick from a random pool.

Fixed Spawns:
* Furies (Progeny DLC): "Reaver Lord" (Level 9 Floater) and "Typhon" (Level 9 Thin Man)
* 9th [[Missions_(Long_War)#Terror_Site|Terror Mission]]: "Greater Hive Queen" (Level 9 Chryssalid)
* 18th [[Missions_(Long_War)#Terror_Site|Terror Mission]]: "Atlas Drone" (Level 9 Drone)
* [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Base Assault|Alien Base Assault]]: "Dreadnought" (Level 9 Cyberdisc)
* [[Missions_(Long_War)#EXALT_Base_Assault|EXALT Base Assault]]: Level 9 EXALT Elite Sniper, "EXALT Deputy Commander" (Level 9 EXALT Elite Operative), "EXALT Elite Captain" (Level 9 EXALT Elite Medic), "EXALT Commander Iago Van Doorn" (Level 9 EXALT Elite Heavy)
* [[Missions_(Long_War)#Temple_Ship_Assault|Temple Ship Assault]]: All regular aliens are Level 8

Random Leader Spawns:
* 11th and subsequent [[Missions_(Long_War)#Council_Missions|council missions]]: 1 random level 9 leader pod added
* Crashed or Landed [[UFOs_(Long_War)#Assault Carrier|Assault Carriers]] and [[UFOs_(Long_War)#Battleship|Battleships]]: 1 random level 9 leader pod added
* Crashed or Landed [[UFOs_(Long_War)#Terror Ship|Terror Ships]] and [[UFOs_(Long_War)#Transport|Transports]] (only after first Alien Base Assault): 1 random level 9 leader added
* [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Base Assault|Alien Base Assaults]] (only after first Alien Base Assault): 1 random leader added (on top of the level 9 Cyberdisk)

===Random Pool===

The pool of aliens selected from during a random spawn is based on the number of [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Base Assault|Alien Base Assaults]] you have completed this campaign. Each alien in the pool is equally likely to be selected.

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible" width="90%"
! width="10%" | ABA Completed
! Level 9 Pod Leader Pool
|-
! 0
| Drone, Sectoid, Thin Man, Floater, Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid
|-
! 1
|Sectoid, Thin Man, Floater, Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater
|-
! 2
|Thin Man, Floater, Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander
|-
! 3
| Floater, Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod)
|-
! 4
| Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite
|-
! 5
| Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod
|-
! 6
| Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 7
| Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 8
| Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 9
| Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 10
| Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid, Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 11
| Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid, Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 12
| Mechtoid, Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 13
| Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 14
| Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 15+
| Ethereal
|}

==See also==
{{Aliens (Long War) Navbar}}
[[Category: Aliens (Long War)]]
[[Category: Long War]]

Alien Life Forms (Long War)

2025-12-18T20:27:33Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Cyberdisc */

{{Toc (Long War)|25}}

[[File:LW_Chryssalid_Queen.jpeg|left|thumb|A Chryssalid "Greater Hive Queen" compared to its smaller brethren.]]
==Overview==
Much like in vanilla, '''Aliens''' deploy in [[Alien_Deployment_(Long_War)#Pods|Pods]], which are "activated" by seeing them. Unlike in vanilla, alien pods are frequently made up of several different types of aliens, such as a Thin Man leading some Sectoids, or some Mutons with Floater scout.

All pods now make noise when they move, but some pods will choose to wait in one spot rather than patrol. The percentage of pods that hide out in this fashion is different per mission - on Abductions, it is 50%, on Large UFO's, 40%, and on Small UFO's, 10%.

===Research Upgrades===

The aliens will continually improve their technology as the war goes on, represented by a hidden variable called [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]]. This will grant aliens extra stats, and in some cases unlock new perks.

Some upgrades are granted for free to all aliens, whereas other upgrades have only a chance of applying to any given alien. In the latter cases, the aliens sometimes receive a new name, and hence they are named "Variant" upgrades.

Do note the alien research values shown in the tables refer to '''Classic''' difficulty, and upgrades will happen slower for '''normal''' (70% speed), and faster for '''brutal''' (110%) and '''impossible''' (130%).

===Pod Leader===
Each Pod will be led by one '''Pod Leader''' alien, possessing both improved stats and new abilities. Pod leaders can easily be identified by their larger health pool and increased physical size.

Pod Leaders initially start at level 0 with standard stats, but as [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]] progresses, they begin to start being able to acquire higher leader levels. At Alien Research 40, aliens start having chance to roll a level 1 leader for all pods. At each multiple of 40 Alien Research thereafter, an additional level unlocks, up to a maximum of 7 on normal missions. Special level 8 or 9 may appear on special missions, see [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Bosses|Bosses]] below.

Below 360 Alien Research, the chance to roll every level of leader for a pod is the same; for example, at Alien Research 120, a pod has a 25% chance to roll a level 3 leader, a 25% chance for a level 2, a 25% chance for a level 1, and a 25% chance for a level 0.

Starting at 360 Alien Research, and all the way up to 600, the chance of rolling any given leader stops being equally likely. The higher alien research, the more the formula is biased towards rolling high leader levels.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! rowspan=2 | [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]]
! colspan=8 | Alien Leader Level
|-
! 0 !! 1 !! 2 !! 3 !! 4 !! 5 !! 6 !! 7
|-
! 0
| 100% || || || || || || ||
|-
! 40
| 50.0% || 50.0% || || || || || ||
|-
! 80
| 33.33% || 33.33% || 33.33% || || || || ||
|-
! 120
| 25.0% || 25.0% || 25.0% || 25.0% || || || ||
|-
! 160
| 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || || ||
|-
! 200
| 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || ||
|-
! 240
| 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% ||
|-
! 280
| 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5%
|-
! 320
| 12.5%
| 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5% || 12.5%
|-
! 360
| 10.0% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86%
|-
! 400
| 9.09% || 9.09% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 13.64%
|-
! 440
| 8.33% || 8.33% || 8.33% || 15.0% || 15.0% || 15.0% || 15.0% || 15.0%
|-
! 480
| 7.69% || 7.69% || 7.69% || 7.69% || 17.31% || 17.31% || 17.31% || 17.31%
|-
! 520
| 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 21.43% || 21.43% || 21.43%
|-
! 560
| 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 30.0% || 30.0%
|-
! 600+
| 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 56.25%
|}

====Tough Leaders====

Certain pods in difficult missions (such as Alien Base Assaults, the EXALT HQ Raid, and lategame EXALT missions) are flagged as "tough" and get a +3 bonus to their alien leader's level (max 7). These pods can eclipse the normal maximum defined by Alien Research, but leader levels in excess of 7 are reduced to 7.

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="35%"
|-
|+ "Tough" Alien Leader Levels
|-
! rowspan=2 | [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]]
! colspan=5 | "Tough" Leader Level
|-
! 3 !! 4 !! 5 !! 6 !! 7
|-
! 0
| 100% || || || ||
|-
! 40
| 50.0% || 50.0% || || ||
|-
! 80
| 33.33% || 33.33% || 33.33% || ||
|-
! 120
| 25.0% || 25.0% || 25.0% || 25.0% ||
|-
! 160
| 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0% || 20.0%
|-
! 200
| 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 16.67% || 33.33%
|-
! 240
| 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 14.29% || 42.86%
|-
! 280
| 12.50% || 12.50% || 12.50% || 12.50% || 50.0%
|-
! 320
| 12.50% || 12.50% || 12.50% || 12.50% || 50.0%
|-
! 360
| 10.00% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 12.86% || 51.43%
|-
! 400
| 9.09% || 9.09% || 13.64% || 13.64% || 54.55%
|-
! 440
| 8.33% || 8.33% || 8.33% || 15.0% || 60.0%
|-
! 480
| 7.69% || 7.69% || 7.69% || 7.69% || 69.23%
|-
! 520
| 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 7.14% || 71.43%
|-
! 560
| 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 6.67% || 73.33%
|-
! 600
| 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 6.25% || 75.0%
|}

===Appears===
The '''Appears''' data listed for each alien is the lowest time in days it could appear normally (as a Pod Leader) with a time-only based [[Alien Research (Long War)|Alien Research]] progression. [[Alien Research (Long War)#Bonus Research|Bonus Research]] from outside sources (e.g. Alien Bases, XCOM Soldiers left behind on failed missions, etc.) may cause some of these aliens to appear ahead of their schedule. In addition, landed UFOs present the possibility of aliens one [[Alien Research (Long War)#iMonth|iMonth]] (28 days) ahead of their standard schedule during that mission.

Pod composition is dependent upon the leader alien, and the leader alien is dependent upon Alien Research progression. For more information on when leader aliens can appear and how pods work, see [[Alien Deployment (Long War)|Alien Deployment]].

===Legend===
{| class="wikitable" width="75%" style="align: center"
|-
| width="8%" | '''No Color''' || '''Research Upgrades'''

These stat boosts are automatically unlocked as soon as Alien Research reaches the required amount, for all aliens of this type (including variants, leaders, and bosses).
|-
| style="background: #FFB" width="8%" | '''Yellow''' || '''Variants'''

These are available to all aliens of this type, including leaders, and sometimes change the name of the alien when inspected in the battlescape. They have a certain chance of appearing, indicated in the "Variant chance" column, which is rolled per alien. A given alien can roll multiple variants, in which case all bonuses apply and the alien takes on the name of the highest-leveled variant. The number of upgraded aliens in a pod is not limited. Variant aliens can only gain (or lose) base damage, hit points, aim, will, or special perk; they never gain defense, mobility, critical chance or anything else.

|-
| style="background: #FBB" width="8%" | '''Red''' || '''Leader Upgrades'''

These are only available to pod leader aliens of that type. The alien leader's level is rolled randomly based on alien research, from level 1 up to level 7. All leader upgrades are cumulative, meaning a level 3 leader will have the level 3 upgrades as well as the level 1 and 2 upgrades. Leaders display the highest-leveled Leader name they have unlocked when inspecting them in the battlescape.
|-
| style="background: #EEF" width="8%" | '''Purple''' || '''Boss Upgrades'''

These rare aliens are level 8 or level 9 Leaders, and only show up in [[Alien Life Forms (Long War)#Bosses|specific situations]]. Reminder that leader upgrades are cumulative, so a level 9 leader gains the upgrades of all previous levels.
|}

==Support Units==
Like XCOM's own support units, these aliens are not especially threatening in a simple firefight, but instead improve the effectiveness of other alien units. They can heal and buff the stronger aliens in the collective, forcing the player to be more thoughtful in their target selection and damage output.

===Sectoid===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=0
|picture=[[File:Sectoid (EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=3 - 8
|hp=3 - 14
|aim=55 - 79
|crit=0
|defense=0 - 28
|move=12 - 13
|will=5 - 120
|regen=0 - 2
}}
'''Sectoids''' behave in much the same way as you'd expect from vanilla, with low Mobility, HP and Aim, and mediocre Will. Basic Sectoids have access to a few more psionic powers than before, being able to ''Mind Merge'', ''Mindfray'' and ''Psi Panic''. The good news is that ''Mindfray'' has been altered to only do 1 damage. Be aware that ''Mind Merge'' has been altered so it does some damage to the merged target if the merger dies, but doesn't kill outright. Sectoid pod leaders get the ''Low Profile'' perk. All Sectoids technically have the ''Gunslinger'' perk to cancel their offset from using pistols, but do not gain extra damage.

Unlike most alien types, Sectoid pod leaders do +1 damage over regular Sectoids at the start of the game without requiring extra research.

''Rewards:'' Sectoids carry Alien Pistols (which explode into weapon fragments/alloys if not captured alive) and leave corpses. After ''Xenobiology'' is researched, the Council will request Sectoid Corpses from time to time. Typical requests exchange 6 Sectoids for 1 or 2 scientists, plus a 10% boost to the requesting nation's defense against panic.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=3 | level1-hp=3 | level1-aim=55 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=5
| level2-damage=3 | level2-hp=3 | level2-aim=60 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=5
| level3-damage=3 | level3-hp=3 | level3-aim=65 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=10
| level4-damage=3 | level4-hp=4 | level4-aim=65 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=15
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)|{{Gunslinger (Long War)}}|{{Suppression (Long War)}}|{{Mindfray (Long War)}}|{{Mind Merge (Long War)}}|{{Psi Panic (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{ListPerks (Long War)|{{Low Profile (Long War)}}from 270 AR|{{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 720 AR}}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 15 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 30 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 30 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 75 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || +1 || - || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Low Profile (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 300 || - || - || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 300 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 300 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 510 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 690 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 720 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +4 || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +3 || +4 || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Low Profile (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || - || +4 || +5 || - || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || - || - || +5 || - || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +4 || +5 || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 4 || Sectoid Leader
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || - || - || +5 || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +4 || +5 || - || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || - || +4 || +5 || {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 7 || Sectoid Master
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || +4 || +5 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +2 || +4 || +5 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Reticulan
|}

===Drone===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=0
|picture=[[File:Drone 1 (EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=3 - 7
|hp=3 - 10
|aim=50 - 70
|crit=0
|dr=1 - 2
|defense=-5 - 7
|move=12 - 16
|fuel=32
|will=0
}}
'''Drones''' can be encountered right from the beginning of the game, even in the first mission. They can come in groups of their own or be attached to Sectoid pods, and later they will accompany more powerful mechanized units like Cyberdiscs and Sectopods. Drones behave similarly to vanilla, but, like most mechanized units, have some damage reduction. Their constant light cover from flying with damage reduction and ability to mutually repair can make them extremely frustrating to kill when encountered in packs. A standard or Shredder rocket with the HEAT Ammo perk can make short work of them, however. Variant & Leader Drones have ''Holo-Targeting'', making them a bit more dangerous when supporting other aliens. Drones also start at 80% size at the beginning of the campaign with a variant upgrade.

A Level 9 Drone, the '''Atlas Drone''', will appear in the 18th Terror mission.

''Rewards:'' Drones primarily drop Drone Wrecks, the autopsy of which (10 required) grants access to the ''Field Repairs'' Foundry project and the Holo-Targeter. Later-game, Drone Wrecks are required for several Foundry projects including ''Field Repairs'' (10), ''Drone Capture'' (30), ''Improved Arc Thrower'' (10), ''Sentinel Drone'' (1), and ''Advanced Flight'' (5). Also, two Drone Wrecks are required for UFO Tracking (Boost).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=3 | level1-hp=3 | level1-aim=50 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=-5 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=0
| level2-damage=3 | level2-hp=3 | level2-aim=55 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=0
| level3-damage=3 | level3-hp=4 | level3-aim=60 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=0
| level4-damage=3 | level4-hp=4 | level4-aim=60 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=0
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Overload (Long War)}} | {{Repair (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 15 || - || - || - || - || +0.2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 30 || - || - || - || - || +0.2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 45 || - || - || - || - || +0.2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 60 || - || - || - || - || +0.4 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || - || +3 || +4 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 120 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Holo-Targeting (Long War) }} || 90% || Tracker Drone
|- align="center"
| 270 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || +4 || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || +4 || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || +4 || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || - || - || - || {{ Holo-Targeting (Long War) }} || 1 || Tracker Drone
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || - || - || - || - || 2 || Tracker Drone
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +2 || +2 || - || - || - || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || - || - || - || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || - || - || - || - || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || - || - || - || - || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +3 || +15 || +15 || - || - || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ Absorption Fields (Long War) }} || 8 || Battle Drone
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +3 || +30 || +10 || - || {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} || 9 || Atlas Drone
|}

==Harassment Units==
Harassment units are generally not a major threat on their own, but can quickly make a mixed engagement go from bad to worse. Their special abilities can greatly impair XCOM's ability to perform on the field. This can be countered with advanced tech options or specialized tactics.

===Thin Man===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=28
|appears2=28
|picture=[[File:Thin_Man_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=5 - 7
|hp=5 - 22
|aim=60 - 95
|crit=4 - 34
|defense=0 - 35
|move=14 - 19
|will=25 - 55
|regen=0 - 8
}}
'''Thin Men''' are quite similar to vanilla, with high mobility, mediocre aim and low will. The main change is that their poison has been replaced with acid, which lowers aim (flat -20%) and mobility (-25%) as poison does, and affected units take slightly more damage from attacks, but acid no longer causes damage directly. Instead, acid inflicts damage to a victim as they take actions, so moving, reloading, firing, overwatch, etc. will all cause an affected unit to take 1 damage. A unit that goes on overwatch will take the damage when they go on overwatch, not when they fire. Hunkering down is safe and a unit that simply remains still and hunkered for the duration of acid will take no damage at all. Acid clouds dissipate within 2 turns and the acid debuff lasts 2-5 turns. Robotic units and soldiers with Medikits or sealed armor are immune to the mobility effects of acid and won't take damage from actions, but will still take more damage from attacks and have reduced aim while affected by acid.

A Level 9 Thin Man, the Typhon, can appear in a scripted encounter in Furies without the prerequisite Alien Research.

''Rewards:'' Thin Men carry Alien Carbines (with the standard dead-man switch) and leave corpses. These can be spent on the ''Improved Medikit'' Foundry project (10x) after completing an autopsy (10x). The Thin Man interrogation gives a 25% research credit towards laser weaponry.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=5 | level1-hp=5 | level1-aim=60 | level1-crit=4 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=14 | level1-will=25
| level2-damage=5 | level2-hp=5 | level2-aim=70 | level2-crit=4 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=14 | level2-will=25
| level3-damage=5 | level3-hp=5 | level3-aim=75 | level3-crit=4 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=14 | level3-will=35
| level4-damage=5 | level4-hp=5 | level4-aim=75 | level4-crit=4 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=14 | level4-will=50
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Acidic (Long War)}} | {{Acid Spit (Long War)}} | {{Leap (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{ListPerks (Long War)|{{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 240 AR|{{Low Profile (Long War)}}from 400 AR}}

}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 90 || - || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || {{ Damn Good Ground (Long War) }} || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} || 15% || Sidewinder
|- align="center"
| 210 || - || +1 || - || +5 || - || - || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || +5 || +5 || - || +3 || +1 || +3 || +2 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 400 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Low Profile (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 450 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +3 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 550 || - || -4 || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 10% || Thin Man Sniper
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +1 || +5 || +5 || - || +3 || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 600 || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Deadeye (Long War) }} || 10% || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || - || +5 || +5 || - || +3 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +3 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +6 || +5 || +5 || - || +10 || +1 || +3 || +2 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +6 || +5 || +5 || - || +10 || +1 || +3 || +2 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +5 || +4 || {{ Sharpshooter (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Bombard (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 4 || Thin Man Sniper
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +5 || +5 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +1 || +10 || +6 || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} || 7 || Sidewinder
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +2 || +5 || +10 || +7 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || +5 || +5 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Typhon
|}

===Seeker===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=56
||appears2=56
|picture=[[File:Seeker_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=2 - 5
|hp=4 - 15
|aim=55 - 71
|crit=0
|dr=2 - 5
|defense=0 - 20
|move=16 - 25
|fuel=32
|will=0
}}
'''Seekers''' can be found both in pods made up entirely of Seekers, and accompanying pods of other aliens. This indirectly makes them more dangerous than vanilla, since a Seeker itself isn't much threat, but a Seeker supporting other aliens can be a deadly distraction. Seekers have had the shackles taken off their AI, and will happily decloak and Strangle 4 of your soldiers at once. As mechanized units they have some damage reduction, which makes them difficult to damage with low power weapons like pistols and carbines. Seekers only cause 1 initial damage when strangling, but this damage doubles every turn they remain attached, so quickly knocking a Seeker off will result in minimal damage, but if left it will cause massive damage in 3-4 turns.

Battle Scanners are available to Engineers and Scouts as carried items in Long War, giving an early counter to Seekers. They have a habit of going into overwatch while in stealth, so if you're waiting out Seekers without a Battle Scanner, try moving a soldier, one might reveal itself to take a pot shot at you. Ground-hugging Seekers can also be 'detected' by scanning for seemingly empty tiles that cannot be moved into; any explosive/area effect attacks (bar the MEC Flamethrower; Seekers are fireproof - though an 'IMMUNE' popup will still appear) that catch an invisible Seeker in their area will force them to decloak.

If Seekers have no valid targets for their strangulation attack (as MECs and SHIVs are immune, and several armors and items grant immunity also), they will most often go into overwatch (which will not decloak them until they have fired), or attempt to flank soldiers in cover and try to score a critical hit with their plasma gun. A Seeker who does not cloak on pod activation will usually try for this approach. Like Sectoids, Seekers possess the ''Gunslinger'' perk and suffer no range penalties for their plasma shots, but do not deal extra damage from base. In terror missions, they prefer to hunt down any remaining civilians if all XCOM units are immune; if a Seeker is the last enemy active on a Terror mission, focus on rescuing the civilians. Once the Seeker has no civilian targets remaining, its AI will switch to focusing on XCOM instead.

''Rewards:'' As robotic units, Seekers cannot be captured. Upon destruction, they leave wrecks, which are needed for autopsy (5) and ''UFO Countermeasures'' Foundry project (10).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=2 | level1-hp=4 | level1-aim=55 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=16 | level1-will=0
| level2-damage=2 | level2-hp=4 | level2-aim=60 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=16 | level2-will=0
| level3-damage=2 | level3-hp=4 | level3-aim=65 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=16 | level3-will=0
| level4-damage=2 | level4-hp=5 | level4-aim=65 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=16 | level4-will=0
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Gunslinger (Long War)}} | {{Strangle (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Unlimited Cloak (Long War) }} || 67% || Stalker
|- align="center"
| 75 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 150 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 210 || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || - || +2 || - || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 300 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 540 || - || - || +2 || - || +1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +3 || +2 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || +6 || - || +1 || +5 || +3 || - || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || - || - || - || {{ Unlimited Cloak (Long War) }} || 1 || Stalker
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +3 || +2 || - || {{ Holo-Targeting (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +3 || +2 || - || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || +1 || +5 || +2 || - || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +5 || +2 || - || {{ Platform Stability (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +5 || +2 || - || {{ Damage Control (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +10 || +2 || - || {{ Close Encounters (Long War) }} || 7 || Wraith
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +10 || +2 || - || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Hydra
|}

==Combat Units==
Combat units often appear in large groups. They present substantial threat to XCOM forces.

===Outsider===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|picture=[[File:Outsider (EU2012).jpg|128px]]
|damage=6 - 10
|hp=10 - 23
|aim=65 - 95
|crit=4 - 22
|dr=0 - 3
|defense=0 - 15
|move=12 - 17
|will=115 - 150
|regen=3 - 7
}}
Long War '''Outsiders''' are enormously more dangerous than vanilla Outsiders. They start with 10 HP and 3 HP regeneration per turn, meaning it will take a concerted effort from the whole squad to take them down early game. Like vanilla, Outsiders are mostly found in charge of UFOs, usually holed up on the bridge, but not always. In Long War, they will occasionally patrol. You should be careful not to activate a UFO's Outsider until you're ready for it, since their HP regen means they can easily take on 1 or 2 XCOM soldiers without even taking damage. On larger UFOs Outsiders spawn in larger groups than in vanilla. On larger ships and later encounters, Outsiders spawn in pods of 3 to 6.

When you first meet them, fighting Outsiders in a war of attrition across cover is a bad idea, since their HP regen and relatively high damage and accuracy with their Alien Carbines means they may well win. Neutralizing the Outsider with Flashbangs and ''Suppression'' while you move your troops up to set up for a one turn kill is more effective. Note that their regenerative abilities will increase over the course of your game.

''Rewards:'' Outsiders captured alive grant Outsider Shards, which can be fashioned into Skeleton Keys. These are essential for initiating Base Assault missions, a requirement for ending the game. They also carry Alien Carbines. Killed Outsiders provide nothing.

''Note:'' The bonus regen column includes the bonus conferred by ''Adaptive Bone Marrow''.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=6 | level1-hp=10 | level1-aim=65 | level1-crit=4 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=100
| level2-damage=6 | level2-hp=10 | level2-aim=75 | level2-crit=4 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=100
| level3-damage=6 | level3-hp=10 | level3-aim=85 | level3-crit=4 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=110
| level4-damage=7 | level4-hp=10 | level4-aim=85 | level4-crit=4 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=125
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Suppression (Long War)}} | {{Muscle Fiber Density (Long War)}} | {{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{Neural Damping (Long War)}}from 600 AR
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || +3 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || +1 || +2 || +4 || - || - || +5 || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || +3 || +4 || +4 || +1 || +2 || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || +1 || +3 || +4 || - || +1 || +2 || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 480 || - || - || +4 || +4 || - || +2 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +1 || +4 || - || - || +2 || - || +5 || - || {{ Neural Damping (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 750 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || +2 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +10 || +10 || +1 || - || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || - || +5 || - || - || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || - || - || +10 || {{ Opportunist (Long War) }} || 2 || Outsider Engineer
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || - || +5 || +10 || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} || 3 || Outsider Navigator
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || - || +5 || +10 || {{ Ready For Anything (Long War) }} || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +10 || +5 || +10 || {{ Close Combat Specialist (Long War) }} || 5 || Outsider Captain
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || - || +5 || +10 || {{ Sentinel (Long War) }} || 6 || Outsider Commander
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || - || - || - || +10 || {{ Damage Control (Long War) }} || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || +20 || - || +10 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Outsider Overlord
|}

===Floater===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=28
|appears2=28
|picture=[[File:Floater_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=5 - 8
|hp=5 - 16
|aim=55 - 80
|crit=4 - 9
|defense=-5 - 11
|move=12 - 20
|fuel=32
|will=20 - 44
}}
'''Floaters''' behave identically to vanilla Floaters. Floater pod leaders often gain the ''Damn Good Ground'' perk (+10 Aim and +10 Defense against anything you have height advantage on), which, given their ability to fly, makes them significantly more dangerous than regular Floaters.

''Rewards:'' Floaters leave corpses (10-autopsy, 30-''Armored Fighters'', 25-''Shaped Armor'', 3-Uplink Targeting (Aim)) and carry Alien Carbines. Floater interrogation provides aerospace research credit.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=5 | level1-hp=5 | level1-aim=55 | level1-crit=4 | level1-defense=-5 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=20
| level2-damage=5 | level2-hp=5 | level2-aim=60 | level2-crit=4 | level2-defense=-5 | level2-mobility=13 | level2-will=20
| level3-damage=5 | level3-hp=6 | level3-aim=65 | level3-crit=4 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=13 | level3-will=30
| level4-damage=5 | level4-hp=6 | level4-aim=65 | level4-crit=4 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=13 | level4-will=45
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Launch (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 60 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 15% || Floater Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 60 || - || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Danger Zone (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center"
| 75 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 90 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 210 || - || - || +4 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 240 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center"
| 330 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 570 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 690 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 780 || - || - || +5 || +5 || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +4 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +4 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +1 || +4 || +2 || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 1 || Floater Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || - || +2 || {{ Danger Zone (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +4 || +2 || {{ Close Combat Specialist (Long War) }} || 4 || Floater Raider
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +1 || - || +2 || {{ Damn Good Ground (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +4 || +2 || {{ Mayhem (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +5 || +8 || +2 || {{ Ready For Anything (Long War) }} || 7 || Floater Reaver
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +3 || +5 || +15 || +6 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 8 || Great Reaver
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || +5 || +2 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Reaver Lord
|}

===Chryssalid===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears2=0
|picture=[[File:Chryssalid_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=8 - 12
|hp=8 - 20
|aim=0
|crit=25
|defense=10 - 35
|move=20 - 27
|will=50 - 70
|regen=0 - 7
}}
'''Chryssalids''' are similar to vanilla Chryssalids. A big difference is that Chryssalid pod leaders can have ''Lightning Reflexes'', which can seriously reduce the amount of damage a charging Chryssalid pod will take from overwatch fire since the pod leader moves first, and is thus the most likely to trigger overwatch fire depending on positioning. Like Thin Men, the Chryssalid's claw poison has been replaced with acid.

AP/HE grenades are an effective early counter to Chryssalids, since they'll frequently charge in a tightly packed group on first sight, and the grenades will do full damage since Chryssalids don't benefit from cover. Similarly, Flashbangs can debilitate a whole group of Chryssalids by reducing their move by 40%, which brings it considerably under the range a Flashbang can be thrown. Chryssalids are immune to acid, so Chem Grenades won't reduce their mobility. Taking out the Chryssalid leader will make reaction fire effective against them; a ''Close Combat'' Assault can frequently finish off leaderless Chryssalids. The MEC Flamethrower is also quite effective; aside from the damage (especially with the ''Jellied Elerium'' upgrade) it can cause the Chryssalids to panic, and they may then run away from your soldiers instead of towards them.

Chryssalids on a terror mission will always spawn Zombies from civilians they kill off-screen - normally, this only occurred on higher difficulties in vanilla. As such, expect to have to deal with many additional Zombies during Terror missions that focus on the deployment of Chryssalids. Additionally, Chryssalid pods may occasionally contain a number of Zombie units regardless of the mission type.

Some Chryssalid pod leaders may be particularly large. Beware, as these monsters often have upwards of 40-50 health on top of the fact they are escorted by several more Chryssalids and have augmented damage.

''Rewards:'' 5 Chryssalid Carcasses are needed for autopsy, 10 for Chitin Plating.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=8 | level1-hp=8 | level1-aim=- | level1-crit=25 | level1-defense=10 | level1-mobility=20 | level1-will=50
| level2-damage=8 | level2-hp=8 | level2-aim=- | level2-crit=25 | level2-defense=10 | level2-mobility=20 | level2-will=50
| level3-damage=8 | level3-hp=8 | level3-aim=- | level3-crit=25 | level3-defense=10 | level3-mobility=20 | level3-will=60
| level4-damage=9 | level4-hp=8 | level4-aim=- | level4-crit=25 | level4-defense=10 | level4-mobility=20 | level4-will=75
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Acidic (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Implant (Long War)}} | {{Leap (Long War)}} | {{Melee (Long War)}} | {{Stun Immune (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 180 AR
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 10% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 150 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 180 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 300 || - || +2 || - || - || - || +5 || +1 || +2 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 550 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 650 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 725 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || +5 || +2 || +2 || +2 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || +1 || +2 || - || +5 || - || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} || 2 || Chryssalid Warrior
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || +2 || - || +5 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 4 || Chryssalid Charger
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +2 || - || +5 || - || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || +1 || +1 || - || +5 || {{ Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War) }} || 6 || Hive Queen
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +5 || - || +5 || - || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +10 || - || +5 || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +20 || - || +5 || {{ Resilience (Long War) }} || 9 || Greater Hive Queen
|}

===Zombie===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|picture=[[File:Zombie_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=7 - 15
|hp=12 - 23
|aim=0
|crit=0
|defense=0
|move=9 - 16
|will=120
|regen=0 - 2
}}
Not even '''Zombies''' are immune to getting tweaked in Long War - at first, they become faster, and later tougher, whilst their melee damage steadily ramps up over time. They can occasionally spawn as a member of Chryssalid pods on any mission, and it is also be possible to encounter them as a special pod spawn during Terror missions, in which four to five identical zombies will spawn in a group. Unlike regular Zombies, the members of this Zombie "pack" do not seem to spawn Chryssalids if left to their own devices for too long.

Zombies that have been spawned through a victim implanted by a Chryssalid will spawn a "baby" Chryssalid after two turns, easily recognized by their slightly pink skin color. This Chryssalid variant will have the same stats as an adult Chryssalid and can both move and attack during the turn it emerges. It will furthermore always emerge at full health regardless of how much damage the Zombie has taken.

''Rewards:'' None.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=7 | level1-hp=12 | level1-aim=- | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=9 | level1-will=120
| level2-damage=7 | level2-hp=12 | level2-aim=- | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=9 | level2-will=120
| level3-damage=7 | level3-hp=15 | level3-aim=- | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=9 | level3-will=130
| level4-damage=8 | level4-hp=15 | level4-aim=- | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=9 | level4-will=140
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Acidic (Long War)}} | {{Chryssalid Spawn (Long War)}} | {{Melee (Long War)}} | {{Stun Immune (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 450 AR
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 210 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 450 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 480 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|}

===Muton===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=56
|appears2=84
|picture=[[File:Muton_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=8 - 10
|hp=8 - 22
|aim=60 - 82
|crit=4 - 6
|defense=10 - 33
|move=12
|will=30 - 60
}}
'''Mutons''' are similar to vanilla Mutons, and will start with Alien Carbines and later upgrade to Alien Rifles. Muton pod leaders have significantly more HP than regular Mutons, as well as a number of overwatch enhancing perks. Before 105 days of alien research, Mutons use Alien Carbines, which modifies their base damage and aim to be 6 and 76 respectively. Muton grenades also have a base damage of 5.

''Rewards'': Either Alien Carbine or Alien Rifle when captured, and also Alien Grenade if ''Alien Grenades'' Foundry project isn't completed. Muton Corpses are required for autopsy (10) and ''Ammo Conservation'' Foundry project (20). The Muton interrogation gives a 25% research credit towards gauss weaponry.

''Note'': Values tagged with an asterisk(*) are only unlocked on regular aliens during later stages of the war.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=6 -> 8* | level1-hp=8 | level1-aim=66 -> 60* | level1-crit=4 | level1-defense=10 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=30
| level2-damage=6 -> 8* | level2-hp=8 | level2-aim=71 -> 65* | level2-crit=4 | level2-defense=10 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=30
| level3-damage=6 -> 8* | level3-hp=10 | level3-aim=76 -> 70* | level3-crit=4 | level3-defense=10 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=40
| level4-damage=7 -> 9* | level4-hp=10 | level4-aim=76 -> 70* | level4-crit=4 | level4-defense=10 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=55
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Alien Grenade (Long War)}} | {{Blood Call (Long War)}} | {{Intimidate (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
}}
'''*''' After 105 days of alien research.
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 15% || Muton Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 90 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 120 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Hyper-Reactive Pupils (Long War) }} || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 150 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Depth Perception (Long War) }} || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 210 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 330 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 450 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 10% || Muton Sniper
|- align="center"
| 510 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 650 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || 50% || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || +3 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +5 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +5 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 1 || Muton Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Opportunist (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ HEAT Warheads (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Bombard (Long War) }} || 4 || Muton Grenadier
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +2 || +2 || +4 || {{ Fortiores Una (Long War) }} {{ Will To Survive (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +2 || +4 || {{ Sentinel (Long War) }} || 6 || Muton Sentinel
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +2 || +10 || +4 || +8 || {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || 7 || Muton Centurion
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +2 || +5 || +10 || +10 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || +5 || +5 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Sargon
|}

==Specialist Units==
These units are all significantly more dangerous than those listed in the combat section. Their abilities are designed to exploit specific weaknesses in the XCOM squad, but in turn, each of them has their own glaring weakness that can be exploited. For example, a single Berserker can effortlessly savage a smoke and suppression based squad composition, but will crumble to a well-placed chem grenade.

===Cyberdisc===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=112
|appears2=84
|picture=[[File:Cyberdisc_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=9 - 14
|hp=18 - 32
|aim = 60 - 74
|crit=8 - 18
|dr=2 - 6
|defense=0
|move=18 - 22
|fuel=32
|will=0
}}
'''Cyberdiscs''' are similar to vanilla Cyberdiscs; even their deployment behavior is largely unchanged. They get the ''Automated Threat Assessment'' perk, which given their habit of immediately going on overwatch when seen will often give them extra defense at least for the first turn. Cyberdiscs are usually accompanied by two to three Drones, and usually prefer to throw their grenade if an eligible soldier is in range rather than shooting. This grenade has a base damage of 5.

Cyberdiscs pose a significant threat throughout the game. Early on their high health pool makes them difficult to kill unless you have more than one soldier with ''HEAT Ammo/Warheads'', or a soldier with Shredder Ammo/Rockets. Their movement range can take you off guard as it's close to that of a Chryssalid; if they're not dealt with quickly or retreated from, they are very likely to flank and hit you with raw firepower, move up next to you and use their powerful ''Death Blossom'' attack, or simply fire long-range explosives at you.

The Drones escorting a Cyberdisc are of course more dangerous as well (see the main Drone entry); they can tag a target with ''Holo-Targeting'', making it easier for the parent Cyberdisc (and any other enemies, for that matter) to hit the victim. Drones can be distracted by damaging the Cyberdisc (in which case they will fly back to repair it) but this is hardly an ideal strategy.

More annoyingly however, these Drone escorts also complicate killing Cyberdiscs in two other important ways. First, when the pod gets activated, it will usually be because an XCOM soldier sees the surrounding drones, not the Cyberdisc itself. Since the Cyberdisc overwatches on activation without moving, this means that moving to establish squadsight LOS will risk triggering the overwatch. The second complication is that if XCOM decides to instead prepare an overwatch trap for the non-visible pod, the Drones will usually trigger the trap, leaving the main threat unscathed.

One important note about the Cyberdisc is that they only have the ''Hardened'' trait as long as they're closed. A Cyberdisc must open up in order to attack with its cannons or grenade, and will immediately return to closed form if hit by an incoming attack. A Cyberdisc that overwatches can often be hit when open twice, by shooting it, then drawing out its overwatch with a Scout, causing it to reopen for a second shot.

In close range, Cyberdiscs explode for damage upon death, a trait that can be used against the aliens in tight packed groups. The Long War mod has also made efforts to better calculate the discs ''Death Blossom'', so be cautious not to engage too closely.

''Rewards:'' Cyberdisc Wrecks are needed for autopsy (3), several Foundry projects (10), and Defensive Matrix (Dodge) (2).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=9 | level1-hp=18 | level1-aim=60 | level1-crit=8 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=18 | level1-will=0
| level2-damage=9 | level2-hp=18 | level2-aim=65 | level2-crit=8 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=18 | level2-will=0
| level3-damage=9 | level3-hp=18 | level3-aim=70 | level3-crit=8 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=18 | level3-will=0
| level4-damage=10 | level4-hp=21 | level4-aim=70 | level4-crit=8 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=18 | level4-will=0
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Alien Grenade (Long War)}} | {{Automated Threat Assessment (Long War)}} | {{Bombard (Long War)}} | {{Death Blossom (Long War)}} | {{Death Explosion (Long War)}} | {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 0 || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || - || +2 || - || - || +1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +1 || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 480 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 720 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || - || +3 || +5 || +5 || +1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || - || +3 || +5 || +5 || +1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +1 || - || - || - || 1 || Cyberdisk Gunship
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || - || - || - || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +1 || - || - || {{ Damage Control (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +2 || - || {{ HEAT Ammo (Long War) }} {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} || 4 || Cyberdisc Destroyer
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +1 || +2 || - || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 300 || - || +2 || +2 || - || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 300 || - || +3 || +2 || - || {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} || 7 || Gunstar
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || +15 || +5 || - || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} {{ HEAT Warheads (Long War) }} {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || 9 || Dreadnought
|}

===Mechtoid===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=140
|appears2=140
|picture=[[File:Mechtoid_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=8 - 11
|hp=25 - 39
|shield=6 - 13
|aim=65 - 85
|crit=8 - 12
|dr=2 - 4
|defense=0 - 8
|move=14 - 16
|will=40 - 64
}}
'''Mechtoids''' behave identically to vanilla Mechtoids. Like vanilla, they will appear with Sectoid escorts, and later with Sectoid Commanders.

Mechtoids are one of the few "big" units vulnerable to psionics - ''Mind Fray'' will restrict their movement and prevent them from charging to flank as well as reducing their accuracy. ''Psi Panic'' will completely disable a Mechtoid. Their Will is a little higher than regular troops, but not stellar, so are excellent targets for psionics anyway due to the large amount of firepower a successful psionic attack will neutralize. Chem Grenades will hurt their accuracy a bit.

The Psi Shield granted to Mechtoids by ''Mind Merge'' also grants a significant amount of extra Damage Reduction on top of the added temporary health. As a result, it is absolutely essential that you find and kill the Sectoid that set up the link (helpfully indicated by the purple streams) and eliminate them.

While Mechtoids do not explode for damage, a Mechtoid that falls backwards in a fight it will crush cover it lands on. Be careful not to destroy your own cover in close quarters combat.

''Rewards:'' Mechtoid Cores are required for autopsy (3), ''Advanced Servomotors'' Foundry project (8), and Psi Screen device (1).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=8 | level1-hp=25 | level1-shield=6 | level1-aim=65 | level1-crit=8 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=14 | level1-will=40
| level2-damage=8 | level2-hp=25 | level2-shield=6 | level2-aim=70 | level2-crit=8 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=14 | level2-will=40
| level3-damage=8 | level3-hp=27 | level3-shield=6 | level3-aim=75 | level3-crit=8 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=14 | level3-will=50
| level4-damage=11 | level4-hp=30 | level4-shield=6 | level4-aim=75 | level4-crit=8 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=14 | level4-will=60
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Combined Arms (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Light Em Up (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} | {{Psi Shield (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="9%" |{{Health (Long War)}} Shield HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || - || +2 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +2 || +1 || +4 || - || +1 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 500 || - || +3 || - || +4 || +4 || - || +4 || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +3 || +1 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +4 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +3 || +3 || +8 || - || +1 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Platform Stability (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Advanced Fire Control (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War) }} || 4 || Vulcan Mechtoid
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +3 || {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || +1 || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Rapid Reaction (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +2 || +10 || +2 || +3 || {{ Absorption Fields (Long War) }} {{ Reactive Targeting Sensors (Long War) }} || 7 || Leviathan Mechtoid
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ HEAT Ammo (Long War) }} {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 9 || Colossus
|}

===Berserker===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=168
|appears2=140
|picture=[[File:Berserker_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=10 - 20
|hp=20 - 44
|aim=0
|crit=33
|defense=20 - 30
|move=17 - 23
|will=80 - 110
|regen=0 - 7
}}
'''Berserkers''' can also be Pod Leaders, meaning the first Berserkers you see could have terrifying amounts of health.

Like Chryssalids, anything you can do to slow down a Berserker will greatly reduce its threat. Flashbanging a Berserker will reduce its half-movement range to well below flashbang throw range, so is a good way to neutralize a Berserker you're not ready to kill. It will also reduce its movement from ''Bloodlust'', so you can also shoot a couple of times after flashbanging (but don't go overboard). Another good piece of equipment to use against them are Chem Grenades, not only does it reduce their damage reduction and limit their movement, but it also deals damage to them each time they move after being shot.

Since it's possible to have multiple soldiers with ''Rift'' outside of the Temple Ship, using their aggression against them to make them wander in and out of the ''Psionic Storm'' will make quick work of them, if you can set up the situation. With a few other AoE attacks, a cluster of them becomes a comedic slaughter: excellent payback for all the times they will crush your soldiers under their fists.

Two well placed ''Close Combat Specialist'' Assaults (optionally with Shredder Ammo) can also quickly make short work of even a group of Berserkers while a grenade or rocket makes them to run all at once towards the CCS trap. Beware of low ammunition shotguns.

''Rewards:'' Berserkers don't carry a weapon. Their corpses are needed for autopsy (5), ''MEC Close Combat'' (8), and Combat Stims (1). Interrogating a Berserker gives a 25% research credit towards all armor technologies.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=10 | level1-hp=20 | level1-aim=50 | level1-crit=33 | level1-defense=20 | level1-mobility=17 | level1-will=80
| level2-damage=10 | level2-hp=20 | level2-aim=55 | level2-crit=33 | level2-defense=20 | level2-mobility=17 | level2-will=80
| level3-damage=10 | level3-hp=22 | level3-aim=60 | level3-crit=33 | level3-defense=20 | level3-mobility=17 | level3-will=90
| level4-damage=12 | level4-hp=25 | level4-aim=60 | level4-crit=33 | level4-defense=20 | level4-mobility=17 | level4-will=105
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Bloodlust (Long War)}} | {{Bull Rush (Long War)}} | {{Intimidate (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Muscle Fiber Density (Long War)}} | {{Melee (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 10% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 20% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 300 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +5 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 330 || - || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || +2 || +3 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 500 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || +5 || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +2 || +5 || - || - || - || - || +2 || +3 || +3 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +2 || +5 || - || - || - || - || +2 || +3 || +3 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +2 || - || +3 || {{ Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War) }} || 2 || Behemoth
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || +1 || +2 || - || +3 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +2 || - || +3 || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +2 || - || +3 || - || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +2 || - || +3 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 6 || Juggernaut
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 280 || +1 || +5 || - || +3 || - || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +5 || - || +3 || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +15 || - || +3 || {{ Lightning Reflexes (Long War) }} {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 9 || Mongo
|}

===Sectoid Commander===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=196
|appears2=196
|picture=[[File:Sectoid Commander 1 (EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=4 - 10
|hp=15 - 36
|aim=55
|crit=0
|defense=20 - 39
|move=12 - 14
|will=90 - 200
|regen=1 - 6
}}
'''Sectoid Commanders''' represent a substantial step up from their first-month brethren, and carry new psionic abilities as well as better statistics. Sectoid Commanders can use ''Mind Control''.

''Rewards:'' Just like basic Sectoids, Sectoid Commanders carry Alien Pistols. Besides the autopsy (5), five of their corpses are needed for Mind Shield. Their interrogation provides 25% research credit towards psionic research and ''Psi Warfare Systems'' Foundry project.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=4 | level1-hp=15 | level1-aim=55 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=20 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=90
| level2-damage=4 | level2-hp=15 | level2-aim=60 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=20 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=90
| level3-damage=4 | level3-hp=15 | level3-aim=65 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=20 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=105
| level4-damage=6 | level4-hp=15 | level4-aim=65 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=20 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=115
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Gunslinger (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} | {{Greater Mind Merge (Long War)}} | {{Mind Control (Long War)}} | {{Mindfray (Long War)}} | {{Psi Panic (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}}from 420 AR
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || 50% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || +1 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 50% || -
|- align="center"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 270 || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 400 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +20 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 480 || - || +2 || - || - || - || +3 || - || +20 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 660 || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || +4 || - || +20 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 780 || - || +3 || - || - || - || +3 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || +4 || +1 || +10 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || +5 || +1 || +10 || +1 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || +1 || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Distortion Field (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Low Profile (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +2 || - || +4 || - || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || +1 || +2 || - || +4 || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 300 || - || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 330 || +1 || +2 || - || +4 || - || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || - || +4 || {{ Regen Biofield (Long War) }} || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || +5 || +5 || +10 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Great Reticulan
|}

===Heavy Floater===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=224
|appears2=224
|picture=[[File:Heavy_Floater_1_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=8 - 10
|hp=15 - 30
|aim=60 - 76
|crit=8 - 12
|dr=0 - 1
|defense=5 - 25
|move=12 - 14
|fuel=32
|will=25 - 41
}}
The '''Heavy Floater''' is improvement over the original Floater. Unlike regular Floaters, Heavy Floaters can throw grenades, and with the ''Bombard'' perk, they can throw them very far. This grenade has a base damage of 5.

''Rewards:'' Heavy Floaters carry Alien Rifles. The corpse is needed for autopsy (5), ''Advanced Flight'' (5), and ''Advanced Repair'' (4). Interrogation provides plasma technologies research bonus.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=8 | level1-hp=15 | level1-aim=60 | level1-crit=8 | level1-defense=5 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=25
| level2-damage=8 | level2-hp=15 | level2-aim=65 | level2-crit=8 | level2-defense=10 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=25
| level3-damage=8 | level3-hp=15 | level3-aim=70 | level3-crit=8 | level3-defense=10 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=35
| level4-damage=10 | level4-hp=15 | level4-aim=70 | level4-crit=8 | level4-defense=10 | level4-mobility=13 | level4-will=50
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Alien Grenade (Long War)}} | {{Bombard (Long War)}} | {{Flight (Long War)}} | {{Launch (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 0 || - || - || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 25% || Heavy Floater Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Sapper (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 270 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Danger Zone (Long War) }} || 20% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 300 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Shredder Ammo (Long War) }} || 10% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 300 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || {{ Depth Perception (Long War) }} || 50% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 360 || - || +1 || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 25% || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || +3 || - || - || +1 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +2 || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 450 || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Mayhem (Long War) }} || 20% || -
|- align="center"
| 500 || - || +2 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +1 || - || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || +2 || - || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +2 || +4 || +4 || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +2 || +4 || - || - || +4 || - || +2 || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +2 || +2 || +2 || {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ HEAT Ammo (Long War) }} || 2 || Heavy Floater Destroyer
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ Close Encounters (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || - || +1 || +2 || +2 || - || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 5 || Aircobra
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 360 || +1 || +1 || +2 || +2 || {{ Damn Good Ground (Long War) }} || 6 || Warmaster
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 420 || +1 || +2 || +2 || +2 || {{ Will To Survive (Long War) }} || 7 ||
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +3 || +3 || +5 || {{ Mayhem (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +2 || +3 || +8 || +5 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} {{ Danger Zone (Long War) }} {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || 9 || Archon
|}

==Alpha Units==
These units present significant threat on their own. Except Muton Elites, who come in large groups late game, Sectopods and Ethereals appear either alone or in a group of two, accompanied by support units.

===Muton Elite===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=252
|appears2=252
|picture=[[File:Elite_Muton_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=10 - 12
|hp=20 - 40
|aim=70 - 86
|crit=0 - 4
|defense=20 - 40
|move=12 - 15
|will=40 - 85
|regen=0 - 5
}}
'''Muton Elites''' are similar-looking to Mutons, but with red armor.

Care must be taken, because they have a lot of innate defense and ''Tactical Sense'', as well as a lot of firepower at their disposal. Their heavy plasma weapons are both destructive and highly damaging, and even though they lose ''Intimidate'', they still benefit from ''Blood Call''. As they appear as pod leaders, a lot of their good perks trigger earlier than they actually appear in hordes, making Muton pods very dangerous.

Their overwatch becomes lethal with ''Opportunist'', ''Covering Fire'' and ''Sentinel'', they can fire twice with ''Light' Em Up'' and further with ''Squadsight'', crit with ''Aggression'' and ''Bring 'Em On'' and respond to fire with ''Reactive Targeting Sensors''. Watch out for ''Bombard'' grenades with ''HEAT Warheands'' and ''Tandem Warheads'' as well. An encounter with them can only be done without losses by using advanced Technology like MECS or Psionics or very good tactics, forcing the player to focus and speed up their research.

Take care when using Psionics to attack them, as they gain high will and potentially ''Neural Damping''.

''Rewards:'' Muton Elites are the only aliens carrying Alien Heavy Weapons. Their corpses are extremely useful, too, since 20 are needed for the extremely useful ''Tactical Rigging'', and 5 for autopsy. Interrogating a Muton Elite gives a 25% research bonus to all weapon technologies and projects.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=10 | level1-hp=20 | level1-aim=70 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=20 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=40
| level2-damage=10 | level2-hp=20 | level2-aim=75 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=20 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=40
| level3-damage=10 | level3-hp=20 | level3-aim=80 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=20 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=50
| level4-damage=13 | level4-hp=20 | level4-aim=80 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=20 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=65
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Alien Grenade (Long War)}} | {{Bombard (Long War)}} | {{Suppression (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Hyper-Reactive Pupils (Long War)}}from 360 AR | {{Tandem Warheads (Long War)}}from 420 AR | {{Lock N Load (Long War)}}from 700 AR}}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Grenadier (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} || 33% || Muton Elite Sentry
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ HEAT Warheads (Long War) }} || 33% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 33% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 33% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 1 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || 33% || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || - || {{ Hyper-Reactive Pupils (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Tandem Warheads (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 450 || - || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 450 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 10% || Muton Elite Sniper
|- align="center"
| 500 || - || - || - || - || - || +3 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 500 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +20 || - || - || 10% || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || +2 || +4 || - || - || - || +1 || +5 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 600 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Neural Damping (Long War) }} || 15% || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FFB"
| 600 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +2 || {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} || 33% || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || {{ Lock N Load (Long War) }} || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || - || - || +4 || +4 || - || +4 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || +4 || - || - || +5 || +1 || +10 || +1 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +10 || +4 || - || - || +5 || +1 || +10 || +1 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Fortiores Una (Long War) }} {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} || 1 || Muton Elite Legionary
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || +1 || +1 || +3 || {{ Opportunist (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 120 || - || +2 || +2 || +3 || {{ Tactical Sense (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 160 || +1 || +1 || +1 || +4 || {{ Bring Em On (Long War) }} {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 4 || Muton Elite Commando
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 200 || - || +2 || +2 || +4 || {{ Sentinel (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 240 || - || +1 || +1 || +4 || {{ Will To Survive (Long War) }} || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 450 || +1 || +2 || +2 || +4 || {{ Covering Fire (Long War) }} {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} {{ Reactive Targeting Sensors (Long War) }} || 7 || Muton Elite Praetorian
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +1 || +10 || +5 || +30 || {{ Aggression (Long War) }} {{ Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War) }} {{ Neural Damping (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ Shredder Ammo (Long War) }} || 9 || Bashar
|}

===Sectopod===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=364
|appears2=280
|picture=[[File:Sectopod 1 (EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=7 - 27
|hp=35 - 60
|aim=70 - 80
|crit=8
|dr=3 - 9
|defense=0
|move=12
|will=0
}}
Massive mechanical war machines, '''Sectopods''' are similar to their vanilla incarnation - only more deadly, of course. Approach with extreme caution. As with all aliens, their strength and power progresses with time, making them significantly more dangerous as the war drags on.

*The Sectopod's attacks have different base damage values. The Sectopod chest cannon has a base damage of 11 and is used for any cannon attack on the sectopods turn. The normal cannon has a base damage of 9 and is used for overwatch and reactive targeting sensors attacks during the players turn. The Cluster Bomb has a base damage of 7.
*Sectopods do not need to reload; both their chest and "normal" (green) cannon are supplied with infinite ammo.
*Despite the fact that the Sectopod has infinite ammo, disabling shot will work. A successful disabling Shot will remove overwatch and disable RTS, and the sectopod will have its chest cannon disabled for the next turn. The cluster bomb is the only attack that is not disabled.

''Rewards:'' Sectopod Wrecks are needed for autopsy (3) and EMP Cannons (1).

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=7 ~ 11* | level1-hp=35 | level1-aim=70 | level1-crit=8 | level1-defense=0 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=0
| level2-damage=7 ~ 11* | level2-hp=35 | level2-aim=75 | level2-crit=8 | level2-defense=0 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=0
| level3-damage=7 ~ 11* | level3-hp=35 | level3-aim=80 | level3-crit=8 | level3-defense=0 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=0
| level4-damage=9 ~ 13* | level4-hp=35 | level4-aim=80 | level4-crit=8 | level4-defense=0 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=0
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Cannon Fire (Long War)}} | {{Cluster Bomb (Long War)}} | {{Death Explosion (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Robotic (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 120 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 240 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 360 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 450 || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 600 || - || - || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +4 || +5 || +5 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 800 || +3 || +5 || +5 || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +3 || +5 || - || - || +1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 40 || - || - || - || - || - || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 80 || - || - || - || - || - || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 360 || - || +5 || - || - || {{ Repair Servos (Long War) }} || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 420 || - || +5 || - || - || {{ HEAT Ammo (Long War) }} || 4 || Sectopod Destroyer
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 660 || - || +5 || - || - || - || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 720 || - || +5 || - || - || {{ Reactive Targeting Sensors (Long War) }} || 6 || Reaper
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 999 || - || - || - || - || {{ Light Em Up (Long War) }} || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || +35 || +30 || - || {{ Absorption Fields (Long War) }} || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || - || - || - || - || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Titan
|}

===Ethereal===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|appears=336
|appears2=308
|picture=[[File:Ethereal_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=13 - 16
|hp=20 - 40
|aim=90
|crit=0
|defense=40 - 45
|move=12
|will=135 - 190
|regen=4 - 10
}}
The floating psionic leaders of the alien race are substantially more deadly and no longer trade frailty for their power. Using a Psionic Lance attack that is based on will as well as the feared ''Mind Control'' and ''Rift'' abilities, Ethereals represent the pinnacle of psionic deadliness.

'''Ethereals''' regenerate health and will reflect any shots taken at them which roll as misses (except overwatch shots), dealing 33% of the damage to the attacker (this cannot crit). This means any non-overwatch shots will be either hits or reflections, so taking high-percentage shots is particularly important against Ethereals. Explosives and stuns cannot be reflected. The Ethereal's Psionic Lance is a cross between psionic power and weapon; it has no cooldown, and its accuracy is reduced by [[Abilities_List_(Long_War)#Suppression|Suppression]], but it can't be disabled with [[Abilities_List_(Long_War)#Disabling_Shot|Disabling Shot]].

''Rewards:'' Captured Ethereals carry no weapons and only three of their corpses are needed for an autopsy. Interrogating an Ethereal gives research bonus to all remaining technologies and Foundry projects.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=10 | level1-hp=20 | level1-aim=90 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=40 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=120
| level2-damage=10 | level2-hp=20 | level2-aim=95 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=40 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=120
| level3-damage=10 | level3-hp=20 | level3-aim=100 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=40 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=145
| level4-damage=12 | level4-hp=20 | level4-aim=100 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=40 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=155
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War) | {{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Death Explosion (Long War)}} | {{Mind Control (Long War)}} | {{Mindfray (Long War)}} | {{Psi Drain (Long War)}} | {{Rift (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Variant Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 1 || +3 || - || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || +4 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 420 || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 540 || - || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || +2 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || +1 || - || - || - || - || +5 || - || +5 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || +2 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 1200 || +1 || +5 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || +2 || - || - || -
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Leader Progression
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
! [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! {{Health (Long War)}} HP !! {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! Perk !! Leader Level !! Special Name
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 360 || - || +2 || - || +3 || {{ Distortion Field (Long War) }} || 1 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 390 || - || +2 || - || +4 || {{ Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War) }} || 2 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 420 || - || +2 || - || +4 || - || 3 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 450 || - || +2 || - || +4 || {{ Sprinter (Long War) }} || 4 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 480 || - || +2 || - || +5 || {{ Executioner (Long War) }} || 5 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 510 || +3 || +5 || - || +5 || - || 6 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#FDD"
| 540 || +3 || +5 || - || +15 || {{ Squadsight (Long War) }} || 7 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +3 || +5 || - || +15 || - || 8 || -
|- align="center" style="background-color:#EEF"
| N/A || +3 || +5 || - || +15 || {{ Combined Arms (Long War) }} || 9 || Ethereal Overmind
|}

===Uber Ethereal===
{{Unit Stat Box LW
|picture=[[File:Uber_Ethereal_2_(EU2012).png|128px]]
|damage=10
|hp=60
|aim=110
|crit=0
|defense=50 - 80
|move=12
|will=200 - 230
|regen=15
}}
The ultimate Ethereal. He is immune to stun and Mind Control, and receives 15 Damage Reduction from every nearby live Ethereal.

''Rewards:'' Winning the game.

{{Alien Difficulty Table (Long War)
| level1-damage=10 | level1-hp=60 | level1-aim=110 | level1-crit=0 | level1-defense=50 | level1-mobility=12 | level1-will=200
| level2-damage=10 | level2-hp=60 | level2-aim=115 | level2-crit=0 | level2-defense=50 | level2-mobility=12 | level2-will=200
| level3-damage=10 | level3-hp=60 | level3-aim=120 | level3-crit=0 | level3-defense=55 | level3-mobility=12 | level3-will=225
| level4-damage=14 | level4-hp=60 | level4-aim=120 | level4-crit=0 | level4-defense=60 | level4-mobility=12 | level4-will=235
| perks={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Absorption Fields (Long War)}} | {{Adaptive Bone Marrow (Long War)}} | {{Close Encounters (Long War)}} | {{Hardened (Long War)}} | {{Lightning Reflexes (Long War)}} | {{Shock Absorbent Armor (Long War)}} | {{Squadsight (Long War)}} | {{Stun Immune (Long War)}} }}
| perks2={{ListPerks (Long War)| {{Distortion Field (Long War)}} | {{Mind Control (Long War)}} | {{Mindfray (Long War)}} | {{Psi Drain (Long War)}} | {{Rift (Long War)}} }}
}}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" width="90%"
|-
|+ Research Progression
|- align="center"
! width="6%" | [[Alien Research (Long War)| Alien Research]] !! width="9%" | {{Damage Icon}} Base Damage !! width="5%" |{{Health (Long War)}} HP !! width="5%" | {{Aim (Long War)}} Aim !! width="8%" | {{Crit Hit Chance Icon}} Crit. Chance !! width="5%" | {{DR (Long War)}} DR !! width="5%" | {{Defense (Long War)}} Defense !! width="5%" | {{Mobility (Long War)}} Mobility !! width="5%" | {{Will (Long War)}} Will !! width="9%" | {{Regen Icon (Long War)}} Bonus Regen !! Perk !! width="12%" | Navigator Chance !! width="9%" | Special Name
|- align="center"
| 1 || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || - || +15 || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 540 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 700 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|- align="center"
| 900 || - || - || - || - || - || +10 || - || +10 || - || - || - || -
|}

==Bosses==

Level 8 and Level 9 leaders cannot spawn as the leader of a normal pod, but may spawn as a fixed encounter in certain specially-designated "boss" or "monster" pods. Some maps spawn a specific alien type, others pick from a random pool.

Fixed Spawns:
* Furies (Progeny DLC): "Reaver Lord" (Level 9 Floater) and "Typhon" (Level 9 Thin Man)
* 9th [[Missions_(Long_War)#Terror_Site|Terror Mission]]: "Greater Hive Queen" (Level 9 Chryssalid)
* 18th [[Missions_(Long_War)#Terror_Site|Terror Mission]]: "Atlas Drone" (Level 9 Drone)
* [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Base Assault|Alien Base Assault]]: "Dreadnought" (Level 9 Cyberdisc)
* [[Missions_(Long_War)#EXALT_Base_Assault|EXALT Base Assault]]: Level 9 EXALT Elite Sniper, "EXALT Deputy Commander" (Level 9 EXALT Elite Operative), "EXALT Elite Captain" (Level 9 EXALT Elite Medic), "EXALT Commander Iago Van Doorn" (Level 9 EXALT Elite Heavy)
* [[Missions_(Long_War)#Temple_Ship_Assault|Temple Ship Assault]]: All regular aliens are Level 8

Random Leader Spawns:
* 11th and subsequent [[Missions_(Long_War)#Council_Missions|council missions]]: 1 random level 9 leader pod added
* Crashed or Landed [[UFOs_(Long_War)#Assault Carrier|Assault Carriers]] and [[UFOs_(Long_War)#Battleship|Battleships]]: 1 random level 9 leader pod added
* Crashed or Landed [[UFOs_(Long_War)#Terror Ship|Terror Ships]] and [[UFOs_(Long_War)#Transport|Transports]] (only after first Alien Base Assault): 1 random level 9 leader added
* [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Base Assault|Alien Base Assaults]] (only after first Alien Base Assault): 1 random leader added (on top of the level 9 Cyberdisk)

===Random Pool===

The pool of aliens selected from during a random spawn is based on the number of [[Missions (Long War)#Alien Base Assault|Alien Base Assaults]] you have completed this campaign. Each alien in the pool is equally likely to be selected.

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible" width="90%"
! width="10%" | ABA Completed
! Level 9 Pod Leader Pool
|-
! 0
| Drone, Sectoid, Thin Man, Floater, Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid
|-
! 1
|Sectoid, Thin Man, Floater, Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater
|-
! 2
|Thin Man, Floater, Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander
|-
! 3
| Floater, Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod)
|-
! 4
| Chryssalid, Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite
|-
! 5
| Muton, Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod
|-
! 6
| Seeker, Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 7
| Outsider, Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 8
| Cyberdisc, Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 9
| Mechtoid, Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid (Variant Pod), Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 10
| Heavy Floater, Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid, Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 11
| Sectoid Commander, Mechtoid, Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 12
| Mechtoid, Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 13
| Muton Elite, Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 14
| Sectopod, Ethereal
|-
! 15+
| Ethereal
|}

==See also==
{{Aliens (Long War) Navbar}}
[[Category: Aliens (Long War)]]
[[Category: Long War]]

Scout (Long War)

2025-12-09T22:46:56Z

TheHolotargeter: /* Master Sergeant */

[[File: Class Scout (Long War).png|left|frame|64px|    Scout]]
{{Toc (Long War)|28}}

The '''Scout''' is a unique class that doesn't have an equivalent in vanilla XCOM, combining elements of Assaults and Snap Shot Snipers. The Scout's signature ability is '''Lightning Reflexes''', greatly reducing the chance to be hit by overwatch fire while moving. Scouts are the only class other than Snipers that can use marksman rifles, but they cannot use sniper rifles.

:'''Primary Weapon''': Assault Rifles, Battle Rifles, Carbines, Marksman Rifles, Shotguns, SMGs.
:'''Secondary Weapon''': Pistols, Machine pistols, Sawed-off Shotgun.
:'''Class-Limited items''': Marksman Scope, Chameleon Suit, Battle Scanner.
<div style="clear:both;"></div>

==Abilities==
{{Class Tree (Long War)|
|Specialist1={{Lightning Reflexes (Long War) |text=1}}
|SpecialistE1= '''+1 Mobility.'''
|LCorporal1={{Holo-Targeting (Long War) |text=1}}
|LCorporal2={{Damn Good Ground (Long War) |text=1}}
|LCorporal3={{Lone Wolf (Long War) |text=1}}
|LCorporalE1=''No other bonuses.''
|LCorporalE2=''No other bonuses.''
|LCorporalE3=''No other bonuses.''
|Corporal1={{Low Profile (Long War) |text=1}}
|Corporal2={{Ranger (Long War) |text=1}}
|Corporal3={{Deadeye (Long War) |text=1}}
|CorporalE1=''No other bonuses.''
|CorporalE2='''+1 Aim.'''
|CorporalE3='''+1 Aim.'''
|Sergeant1={{Flush (Long War) |text=1}}
|Sergeant2={{Aggression (Long War) |text=1}}
|Sergeant3={{Battle Scanner (Long War) |text=1}}
|SergeantE1=''No other bonuses.''
|SergeantE2=''No other bonuses.''
|SergeantE3=''No other bonuses.''
|TechSgt1={{Concealment (Long War) |text=1}}
|TechSgt2={{In The Zone (Long War) |text=1}}
|TechSgt3={{Hit And Run (Long War) |text=1}}
|TechSgtE1=''No other bonuses.''
|TechSgtE2=''No other bonuses.''
|TechSgtE3=''No other bonuses.''
|GunSgt1={{Tactical Sense (Long War) |text=1}}
|GunSgt2={{Bring Em On (Long War) |text=1}}
|GunSgt3={{Sprinter (Long War) |text=1}}
|GunSgtE1=''No other bonuses.''
|GunSgtE2=''No other bonuses.''
|GunSgtE3=''No other bonuses.''
|MSgt1={{Extra Conditioning (Long War) |text=1}}
|MSgt2={{Vital Point Targeting (Long War) |text=1}}
|MSgt3={{Smoke And Mirrors (Long War) |text=1}}
|MSgtE1='''+4 Aim, +4 Will, +1 Mobility.'''
|MSgtE2=''No other bonuses.''
|MSgtE3=''No other bonuses.''
}}
''*Perks tagged with blue are fixed even with Second Wave Training Roulette option is enabled''
==Stat Progression==
{{Stat Progression Table (Long War)
| rank1-hp-add=0 || rank1-aim-add=4 || rank1-will-add=5(-6) || rank1-hp-total=0 || rank1-aim-total=4 || rank1-will-total=5(-6)
| rank2-hp-add=0 || rank2-aim-add=3 || rank2-will-add=5(-6) || rank2-hp-total=0 || rank2-aim-total=7 || rank2-will-total=10(-12)
| rank3-hp-add=1 || rank3-aim-add=4 || rank3-will-add=3(-4) || rank3-hp-total=1 || rank3-aim-total=11 || rank3-will-total=13(-16)
| rank4-hp-add=0 || rank4-aim-add=3 || rank4-will-add=3(-4) || rank4-hp-total=1 || rank4-aim-total=14 || rank4-will-total=16(-20)
| rank5-hp-add=0 || rank5-aim-add=4 || rank5-will-add=3(-4) || rank5-hp-total=1 || rank5-aim-total=18 || rank5-will-total=19(-24)
| rank6-hp-add=0 || rank6-aim-add=3 || rank6-will-add=3(-4) || rank6-hp-total=1 || rank6-aim-total=21 || rank6-will-total=22(-28)
| rank7-hp-add=1 || rank7-aim-add=4 || rank7-will-add=2(-3) || rank7-hp-total=2 || rank7-aim-total=25 || rank7-will-total=24(-31)
}}

* Note that, even without Hidden Potential turned on, there is a chance of gaining 1 extra will per level (shown in parentheses above). Psionic soldiers can also gain 1-6 extra will per psi level (<code>1 + rand(6)</code>).

==Tactical Advice==
'''Role''': Scout / Mobile Offense

The Scout is a versatile, mobile generalist class, capable of dishing out good damage output while providing a host of utility. Singularly, the Scout is a master of reconnaissance, able to provide situational awareness and thus battlefield control like no other unit can, but this is not it's only use; potent damage dealing perks like ''Hit and Run'' or ''In The Zone'' (gained relatively early at Tech Sergeant) make the Scout mobile & lethal at any range, and are some of the more mobility-focused of the multi-attack perks to boot.

Scouts have a great deal of flexibility, able to be built to fill anywhere from one to all three of the following roles, depending on degree of specialty:
* '''Scout''': A major role of the Scout class is in their ability to recon - in Long War, the importance of situational awareness and the existence of extended range on some weapons means that gaining vision of the battlefield is more important than ever. A scout can spot for the team, moving forward into a position that may draw enemy contact and then escaping relatively safely using the core class perk ''Lightning Reflexes'' if any major threats choose to Overwatch. Even better is advancing under ''Concealment'', which is an effective method of gaining vision with almost no risk, so long as it is employed properly. The Scout class also gains the Battle Scanners perk relatively early which provides substantial vision out to a massive distance, which may be supplemented with Smoke & Mirrors later on for an extra charge.
* '''Mobile DPS / Off-DPS''': The Scout can be specialized as a primary damage dealer thanks to the presence of multi-attack perks ''Hit and Run'' or ''In The Zone'' combined with other potent damage increasing abilities (''Aggression'', ''Bring Em On'', ''Ranger'', ''Vital Point Targeting'', and even ''Lone Wolf''), allowing a damage-focused Scout to effectively compete with other classes in a niche role as a heavily mobile flanking DPS unit. While other DPS classes gain an edge late game (most notably, [[Infantry (Long War)|Infantry]] and [[Sniper (Long War)|Snipers]] at Master Sergeant, and [[Gunner (Long War)|Gunners]] after flying armor), the Scout readily transitions into one of the best DPS MECs in the game, the [[Pathfinder (Long War)|Pathfinder]]. Marksman Rifles can be used to make extended range attacks from risky positions, while the large ammo capacity of Shotguns makes them deadly for a close quarters ''In The Zone'' build.
* '''Utility / Fire Support''': The Scout class contains a veritable toolbox of utility skills that can round out any squad. ''Concealment'' and ''Smoke & Mirrors'' can make for a decent Support Grenadier, able to Flashbang or Chem enemies from close range without breaking concealment; this is especially potent if the Scout also brings support psionics like ''Mind Merge'' or ''Psychokinetic Strike''. ''Holo-targeting'' and ''Flush'' offer utility value in various circumstances as well.

Incidentally, Scouts also make for great covert operatives, as their wide variety of perks that increase mobility and survivability help immensely during Covert Operations against Exalt cells. ''Concealment'' is particularly valuable for mid-to-late game Covert Extractions, where the sheer quantity of enemies make direct engagement with EXALT almost impossible.

===Lance Corporal===

''Holo-Targeting'' is a solid support ability that allows your Scout to fill a fire support role and give your entire squad +10 aim against a target of your choice. It will help immensely both in the early months when your squad has poor aim overall, as well as in the mid-to-lategame when fighting tough leaders and bosses with high defense. However it can also be found on other class perk trees as well as on MECs and SHIVs (via an item), and multiple instances of Holo-Targeting do not stack, so be sure to plan out who is getting it and how many Holo-Targeters you plan to bring. ''Lone Wolf'' is solid for DPS scouts, both the Marksman Strike Rifle and Shotgunner variety, though it can be difficult to activate without making a deliberate attempt to do so. As for ''Damn Good Ground'', the aim bonus is somewhat superfluous given that height advantage already provides +20 aim; similarly, the +10 defense bonus isn't bad for urban environments which have a lot of low cover rooftops to fight from, but it tends to not be particularly useful in other maps and is outclassed by perks like Low Profile for that reason.

===Corporal===

''Low Profile'' is the go-to perk here, giving your Scout a near-universal +15 defense and freeing up heavy cover for your allies. That said, the other two options have their own niche. ''Ranger'' is a very versatile and solid perk for damage scouts, granting +1 damage and useful secondary weapons if your primary runs out of ammo; it's particularly good for Shotgun builds as well to give them a medium-range option. ''Deadeye'' synergizes well with an In The Zone Marksman build as it helps you kill chain fliers.

===Sergeant===

''Battle Scanner'' is an amazing perk with so much utility, including: letting you preview and prepare for pods, allowing you to move aggressively through the map to grab more Meld or take flanks, blocking fog-of-war civilian heart attacks, and activate pods from Squadsight with Rockets, Snipers, and LMGs. However, ''Aggression'' is core on damage Scouts for boosting your critical rate and its synergy with Bring 'em On. ''Flush'' is the ugly duckling here, up against far too many good perks. It's an attack with +30 aim and half damage that forces enemies to move. It synergizes well with Suppression and Overwatch, and you can use it as an execution attack thanks to its significant aim boost.

===Technical Sergeant===

''Hit and Run'' is a versatile, bread-and-butter damage perk for Scouts, letting you shoot twice a turn while also moving as well, so long as your first shot is a flank. It's solid for damage builds and allows a crit Scout to compete as a more mobile version of a crit Infantry. It also synergizes well with Holo-Targeting Fire Support builds as you can tag two different targets in a turn. You may need to set it up with cover destruction, or use the Scouts high mobility to hit flanks. ''In the Zone'' is somewhat more situational than Hit and Run as it requires you to kill the target, but has significantly more upside as you can potentially shoot many more times each turn, at least until your ammo runs out. It is excellent for both crit Shotgun and squadsight Marksman Strike Rifle builds. It also works on Fliers, unlike Hit and Run. ''Concealment'' is a unique perk available only to Scouts which allows the Scout to effectively act as an unlimited use, unlimited duration portable Battle Scanner; it also carries with it a respectable amount of offensive utility in the form of a bonus to your critical hit chance when breaking stealth. It is essential to complete late game Covert Operations, and also pretty useful for safely farming hundreds of meld a month off crashed small and medium UFO maps. However you can find yourself in very tricky situations if you get too aggressive with your movement and end up in vision of multiple inactive pods that keep patrolling closer and closer to your Scout.

===Gunnery Sergeant===

''Bring em On'' is core on damage builds, particularly any that took Aggression at Corporal, providing up to +6 damage on your critical hits. ''Sprinter'' is good on concealment and utility builds as well as to set up flank shots for Hit and Run or In the Zone. ''Tactical Sense'' is an excellent perk for discouraging enemies from firing at you but it comes at the cost of missing out on better perks.

===Master Sergeant===

''Extra Conditioning'' is a nice pickup for any build, with a bunch of free stats to aim, mobility, will, and HP. ''Vital Point Targeting'' is great for damage builds, or just adding decent damage to any Scout build even if you didn't invest in it per se. It also helps counteract some of the stacking damage penalties on In the Zone builds. ''Smoke and Mirrors'' has some synergy with Concealment as support grenades don't break stealth, and pods activated by a thrown flashbang or chem grenade will often not scatter properly. However, outside of such tricks it is probably the least useful choice of the bunch.

==Sample Builds==
===Concealment Recon===
{{Class Build (Long War)|
|LCL={{ Holo-Targeting (Long War)}}
|CPL={{ Ranger (Long War)}}
|SGT={{ Battle Scanner (Long War)}}
|TSG={{ Concealment (Long War)}}
|GSG={{ Sprinter (Long War)}}
|MSG={{ Smoke And Mirrors (Long War)}} or {{Extra Conditioning (Long War)}}
|Boost=+4 will, +5 aim, +1 mobility
|Strength=Excellent recon, holo support and solid chip damage in firefights
|Weakness=fragile and lacks damage due to lack of aim perks
|Battles=Abductions, UFO missions, Council Missions, Covert Extractions
|Loadout=Marksman Scope, Motion Tracker, Flashbang, Psi Grenade, Chem Grenade, Mimic Beacon, and/or Shadow Device
|Power Ranks=SGT and TSG for recon
|Description=Pure information and utility build that utilizes Concealment to make the scout a permanent, portable Battle Scanner. You should still take the Battle Scanners perk anyways because it's just that good, especially when you can chuck it 70% past visual range. Low Profile does not work with Concealment; Ranger in its place allows some offensive utility, and allows a Strike Rifle to be combined with a heavy pistol for damage at all ranges. Smoke and Mirrors allows the Scout to maintain concealment while throwing offensive Support Grenades or utilizing Psi powers; you can take Extra Conditioning instead to allow the Scout to slug it out when the firefight starts. Sprinter allows the Scout to aggressively move forward to hit heavy cover and also grab meld.
|Strategic Analysis=Get your Scout hidden near the front line to plan engagements and get your snipers, LMG gunners, and Rocketeers get into position for a devastating first strike. Use a combination of Battle Scanners, Motion Sensors, and the Scout itself to collect information about what you're up against to prevent your squad from walking into a multiple-pod trap. Use a Strike Rifle and Heavy Pistol for their high base damage. Caution: Concealment can get your Scout pinned, as you cannot move in sight of an alien without activating it.
}}

===Crit Scout===
{{Class Build (Long War)|
|LCL={{ Lone Wolf (Long War)}}
|CPL={{ Ranger (Long War)}} or {{Low Profile (Long War)}}
|SGT={{ Aggression (Long War)}}
|TSG={{ Hit And Run (Long War)}} or {{In The Zone (Long War)}}
|GSG={{ Bring Em On (Long War)}}
|MSG={{ Vital Point Targeting (Long War)}} or {{ Extra Conditioning (Long War)}}
|Boost=+1 Aim
|Strength=Great damage and great mobility
|Weakness=Runs out of ammo fast and can be quite squishy
|Battles=All
|Loadout=SCOPE/Neural Gunlink/Illuminator Gunsight, Targeting Module, Hi Cap Mags
|Power Ranks=TSG brings the build online, GSG and MSG both bring lots of damage
|Description=Interestingly, Scouts can take a build path very similar to crit infantry or crit assaults. Compare to Infantry, Hit and Run functions even better than Light Em Up against enemies out of cover, but only against enemies out of cover; Scouts can also use Strike Rifles, which come with higher base damage and crit rate than an assault rifle, though Scouts can't use Rapid Fire and don't get Lock n Load. Alternately, take In the Zone for a highly mobile shotgunner build that dive into the thick of things and solo entire pods before fleeing out of line-of-sight; you won't be able to move as far as a Rapid Fire assault, but you can deal with condensed groups of foes very effectively. You’ll need a lot of cover destruction on hand and/or need to take aggressive flanks (which can be dangerous to do sometimes) in order to take full advantage of the build. Lone Wolf, Aggression, Ranger, Bring Em On, and Vital Point Targeting combine to maximize the damage output of either a Hit and Run flank or an In the Zone kill chain. Extra Conditioning and/or Low Profile can be taken instead of Vital Point Targeting and Ranger, to trade raw damage for more reliability and safety.
|Strategic Analysis=Plays similarly to crit infantry (for Hit and Run) or Crit Assaults (for In the Zone). Good positioning is needed to activate Lone Wolf. Always make sure you shoot uncovered targets first if possible once you have Hit and Run. With In the Zone, stay out of line of sight so you can't be shot at until the moment to strike is ready, and manage your kill chain very, very carefully so you can flee back out of sight when you're done.
}}

===Covert Operative===
{{Class Build (Long War)|
|LCL={{ Lone Wolf (Long War)}}
|CPL={{ Ranger (Long War)}}
|SGT={{ Battle Scanner (Long War)}}
|TSG={{ Concealment (Long War)}}
|GSG={{ Sprinter (Long War)}}
|MSG={{ Extra Conditioning (Long War)}}
|Boost=+5 aim, +4 will, +1 mobility
|Strength=Good mobility, good intel with battle scanners and motion trackers, can maintain stealth with concealment, can’t be pinned due to Lightning Reflexes, needed for Covert Extractions
|Weakness=Must hold Alien Trophy to stop panic, having active pods with no relay in blue move range is very dangerous, not too useful in Covert Data Recovery
|Battles=Covert Operative Deployments
|Loadout=Alien Trophy, Motion Scanner
|Power Ranks=SGT for intel, TSG for stealth, GSG for mobility
|Description=The two main classes that generally perform well as Covert Operatives are scouts and assaults. Scout Operatives are effective at gaining lots of intel about their surroundings and moving into relay range without activating pods prematurely thanks to Concealment and Battle Scanners. They are arguably mandatory once you're on the second half of EXALT missions and it stops being feasible to beat Covert Extractions by killing all EXALT units rather than just extracting (25-30 Exalt vs. 4 XCOM troopers + covert operative is tough even if everything goes well). Ranger, LR, Extra Con, and Sprinter will help immensely once the bullets inevitably start flying.
|Strategic Analysis=Good use of motion scanners and battle scanners is key to keeping this operative out of danger. Your priority for covert extractions is to hit the transmitters one after the other in consecutive turns and then extract; killing EXALT is useful along the way but wiping them out is not. Getting in blue move range of the first transmitter, or even reaching it while concealed, is crucial; if the operative activates a pod before getting in range, break line of sight (or take full cover) at a location in range of the transmitter for next turn and pray to RNGsus (keep in mind that concealment DOES NOT ACTIVATE when an enemy can see the scout’s starting location). On Covert Data Recovery, finish off low hp enemies when possible while chaining transmitters.
}}

===Runner===
{{Class Build (Long War)|
|LCL={{ Holo-Targeting (Long War)}}
|CPL={{ Low Profile (Long War)}}
|SGT={{ Flush (Long War)}}
|TSG={{ Hit And Run (Long War)}}
|GSG={{ Tactical Sense (Long War)}}
|MSG={{ Extra Conditioning (Long War)}}
|Boost=+4 aim, +4 will, +1 mobility
|Strength=High utility, noteworthy damage potential
|Weakness=Damage output is inconsistent due to lack of aim perks, Lightning Reflexes will eventually/occasionally backfire
|Battles=All
|Loadout=Scope/Neural Gunlink, Marksman Scope, and/or Chameleon suit
|Power Ranks=SGT for intel, TSG for stealth, GSG for mobility
|Description=This is a default Scout build for use in squads that want a Scout for the utility it provides with Lightning Reflexes, but don't expect to need Scout features such as Concealment/Battle Scanner or an In the Zone build, that instead provides broader utility in general firefights. Holo-Targeting works well with Flush, below, and generally helps the Scout contribute more towards squad firepower. Low Profile lets the Scout use a wider range of cover, leaving the choice full-cover spots to team-mates. Tactical Sense helps the Scout dodge Overwatch fire and reduces the chance of them being targeted in other situations, but sprinter is an alternative if you just want to race these soldiers after Meld as fast as possible!
|Strategic Analysis=Holo+Flush will set up easy shots for squad-mates who are good Overwatchers. With Hit & Run, the Scout can provide considerably more with their own firepower, with the option to slip back to a position fully out of sight after the first shot. To make the most of this soldier, you’ll need the courage to run enemy overwatches when other soldiers need to move.
}}

==See also==
{{Soldiers (Long War) Navbar}}
[[Category:Long War]]
[[Category:Soldiers (Long War)]]