Alien movement patterns - Revision history

Hobbes: categorizing

2013-07-23T02:41:04Z

categorizing

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:41, 23 July 2013
Line 32:		Line 32:

	[[Category: Tactics]]		[[Category: Tactics]]
			[[Category:Enemy Unknown/UFO Defense]]

Ditto51: /* Large Scout */

2013-07-21T09:17:42Z

Large Scout

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:17, 21 July 2013
Line 12:		Line 12:
	The best way to deal with this guard is by setting up an ambush outside the left-hand door. Moving into the corridor outside that door will dislodge the guard, who will then come to you. By the next turn it should be in the room just beyond -- exhausted and unable to fight back. On Superhuman settings, a roused Sectoid guard will have enough TUs to step through the door, and you must arrange your troops to minimize reaction crossfire once the alien appears.		The best way to deal with this guard is by setting up an ambush outside the left-hand door. Moving into the corridor outside that door will dislodge the guard, who will then come to you. By the next turn it should be in the room just beyond -- exhausted and unable to fight back. On Superhuman settings, a roused Sectoid guard will have enough TUs to step through the door, and you must arrange your troops to minimize reaction crossfire once the alien appears.

	Thankfully, movement within the ~~Small~~ Scout's antechamber will not dislodge the guard -- only movement into the left and right subchambers will. You can preserve your TUs by moving your troops up against the wall opposite the UFO outer door, then arrange them facing the inner doors on the next turn.		Thankfully, movement within the Large Scout's antechamber will not dislodge the guard -- only movement into the left and right subchambers will. You can preserve your TUs by moving your troops up against the wall opposite the UFO outer door, then arrange them facing the inner doors on the next turn.

	===Abductor===		===Abductor===

Jasonred: /* Floaters and the Koan of Stairs */

2011-05-03T17:27:16Z

Floaters and the Koan of Stairs

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:27, 3 May 2011
Line 24:		Line 24:
	== Floaters and the Koan of Stairs ==		== Floaters and the Koan of Stairs ==

	~~How did those~~ Floaters ~~get~~ up ~~those~~ stairs ~~in the first place? They~~ certainly don't know how to go down them.		Floaters might know how to go up stairs, but they certainly don't know how to go down them.

	Eventually, the hapless floater will have the AI try to route it from the top of a staircase to the bottom of the same staircase. Unfortunately, not having legs, the art of walking down stairs escapes the floater. With a few precautions to abuse line-of-fire bugs, this makes the stuck Floater easy prey for even a lone X-COM agent.		Eventually, the hapless floater will have the AI try to route it from the top of a staircase to the bottom of the same staircase. Unfortunately, not having legs, the art of walking down stairs escapes the floater. With a few precautions to abuse line-of-fire bugs, this makes the stuck Floater easy prey for even a lone X-COM agent.

			Note that a similiar situation will occur with Mind Controlled X-com agents in flying suits. The AI knows how to walk them up a staircase, but cannot walk them back down. For player controlled units, IIRC, your units will have to find an alternate route or shoot the stairs then fly down, or other similiar workarounds.


	[[Category: Tactics]]		[[Category: Tactics]]

Ethereal Cereal: /* Large Scout */ slight additional rewrite

2011-01-13T23:10:48Z

Large Scout: slight additional rewrite

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:10, 13 January 2011
Line 10:		Line 10:
	The [[Large Scout]] sometimes has a nasty one, depending on the exact location where the alien spawns in the bridge. Stepping through the right-hand doorway when approaching the bridge (relative to the screen, this is the upper passage) will usually get you killed instantly.		The [[Large Scout]] sometimes has a nasty one, depending on the exact location where the alien spawns in the bridge. Stepping through the right-hand doorway when approaching the bridge (relative to the screen, this is the upper passage) will usually get you killed instantly.

	The best way to deal with this guard is by setting up an ambush outside the left-hand door. Moving into the corridor outside that door will dislodge the guard, who will then come to you. By the next turn it should be in the room just beyond -- exhausted and unable to fight back.		The best way to deal with this guard is by setting up an ambush outside the left-hand door. Moving into the corridor outside that door will dislodge the guard, who will then come to you. By the next turn it should be in the room just beyond -- exhausted and unable to fight back. On Superhuman settings, a roused Sectoid guard will have enough TUs to step through the door, and you must arrange your troops to minimize reaction crossfire once the alien appears.

	~~On Superhuman settings, Sectoid guards have enough TUs to step through the door once dislodged -- you should be prepared to gun them down with reaction fire.~~		Thankfully, movement within the Small Scout's antechamber will not dislodge the guard -- only movement into the left and right subchambers will. You can preserve your TUs by moving your troops up against the wall opposite the UFO outer door, then arrange them facing the inner doors on the next turn.

	Thankfully, movement within the Small Scout's antechamber will not dislodge the guard -- only movement into the left and right subchambers will. You can ~~safely move~~ your troops up against the wall opposite the UFO outer door, then arrange them facing the doors on the next turn.

	===Abductor===		===Abductor===

Ethereal Cereal: I've retested this many times, to no avail -- it may have just been a fluke.

2011-01-13T01:30:57Z

I've retested this many times, to no avail -- it may have just been a fluke.

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:30, 13 January 2011
Line 23:		Line 23:

	It is usually safe to approach these hiding spots by hugging the north wall of the corridor until you step just inside the main saucer, then pivoting north to see what's hiding up there. The alien will not return fire when you are in this position, most likely due to the [[Tactical_Exploits#Elevator_Shielding\|elevator shielding]] bug.		It is usually safe to approach these hiding spots by hugging the north wall of the corridor until you step just inside the main saucer, then pivoting north to see what's hiding up there. The alien will not return fire when you are in this position, most likely due to the [[Tactical_Exploits#Elevator_Shielding\|elevator shielding]] bug.

	~~== Dislodging Guards ==~~

	Recent testing has suggested that aliens which remain fixed in place are stuck in "aggression mode" against one X-COM unit. As long as that unit does not move, the alien will not move either. To flush aliens out of fixed positions, try moving all your units, one at a time, and keep an ambush posted outside the UFO in case the alien emerges.

	== Floaters and the Koan of Stairs ==		== Floaters and the Koan of Stairs ==

Ethereal Cereal: /* Guards */ rewrite, more specific tactics

2011-01-13T01:30:01Z

Guards: rewrite, more specific tactics

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:30, 13 January 2011
Line 7:		Line 7:
	''[ [[User:Hobbes\|Hobbes]]: This is debatable - When the AI is moving an alien it can happen that the next waypoint is already occupied by another alien unit and thus it will freeze on its location without moving. In those cases what will happen is that the alien will wait until the path is clear before moving.'']		''[ [[User:Hobbes\|Hobbes]]: This is debatable - When the AI is moving an alien it can happen that the next waypoint is already occupied by another alien unit and thus it will freeze on its location without moving. In those cases what will happen is that the alien will wait until the path is clear before moving.'']

	~~For example:~~ The [[Large Scout]] ~~occasionally~~ has ~~one~~ nasty one, depending on the exact location where the alien spawns in the bridge. ~~When~~ approaching the bridge~~, head to the left passage~~ (~~your soldier's~~ relative ~~left), rather than the more obvious one~~ to ~~the right (relative o~~ the screen, this is the upper passage)~~- where~~ you ~~often get~~ killed instantly ~~the moment you step through that door~~.		===Large Scout===
			The [[Large Scout]] sometimes has a nasty one, depending on the exact location where the alien spawns in the bridge. Stepping through the right-hand doorway when approaching the bridge (relative to the screen, this is the upper passage) will usually get you killed instantly.

	~~Wait at~~ the ~~corner just before~~ the ~~left~~ door ~~and~~ the ~~alien~~ will ~~start moving towards~~ you. By the next turn it should be in the room just beyond -- exhausted and unable to fight back.		The best way to deal with this guard is by setting up an ambush outside the left-hand door. Moving into the corridor outside that door will dislodge the guard, who will then come to you. By the next turn it should be in the room just beyond -- exhausted and unable to fight back.

			On Superhuman settings, Sectoid guards have enough TUs to step through the door once dislodged -- you should be prepared to gun them down with reaction fire.

			Thankfully, movement within the Small Scout's antechamber will not dislodge the guard -- only movement into the left and right subchambers will. You can safely move your troops up against the wall opposite the UFO outer door, then arrange them facing the doors on the next turn.

			===Abductor===
	Other UFOs may require bigger weaponry to deal with these 'guards'. The [[Abductor]] for example has a guard that always waits in the centre of the bridge. It's untested, but it may be possible to get this guard to face in a different direction by placing a soldier as close as possible to it and ending the turn. On the next turn, have a soldier barge through the door. Again, this is untested, so use it at your own risk. More practical solutions to this include cutting a hole through the rear or floor of the room with a [[Heavy Plasma]], deploying a smoke grenade in front of the door, stepping through and launching a rocket or a grenade, or even just standing underneath the alien and firing a high explosive weapon directly at the ceiling.		Other UFOs may require bigger weaponry to deal with these 'guards'. The [[Abductor]] for example has a guard that always waits in the centre of the bridge. It's untested, but it may be possible to get this guard to face in a different direction by placing a soldier as close as possible to it and ending the turn. On the next turn, have a soldier barge through the door. Again, this is untested, so use it at your own risk. More practical solutions to this include cutting a hole through the rear or floor of the room with a [[Heavy Plasma]], deploying a smoke grenade in front of the door, stepping through and launching a rocket or a grenade, or even just standing underneath the alien and firing a high explosive weapon directly at the ceiling.

			===Terror Ship===
			The [[Terror Ship]] has a pair of open-floor hiding places just above the corridors connecting the outer pods to the main body of the craft. Any armed alien stuck up there will have plenty of TUs available to gun your troops down as they walk underneath.

			It is usually safe to approach these hiding spots by hugging the north wall of the corridor until you step just inside the main saucer, then pivoting north to see what's hiding up there. The alien will not return fire when you are in this position, most likely due to the [[Tactical_Exploits#Elevator_Shielding\|elevator shielding]] bug.

	== Dislodging Guards ==		== Dislodging Guards ==

Zaimoni at 06:10, 22 November 2010

2010-11-22T06:10:37Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:10, 22 November 2010
Line 16:		Line 16:

	Recent testing has suggested that aliens which remain fixed in place are stuck in "aggression mode" against one X-COM unit. As long as that unit does not move, the alien will not move either. To flush aliens out of fixed positions, try moving all your units, one at a time, and keep an ambush posted outside the UFO in case the alien emerges.		Recent testing has suggested that aliens which remain fixed in place are stuck in "aggression mode" against one X-COM unit. As long as that unit does not move, the alien will not move either. To flush aliens out of fixed positions, try moving all your units, one at a time, and keep an ambush posted outside the UFO in case the alien emerges.

			== Floaters and the Koan of Stairs ==

			How did those Floaters get up those stairs in the first place? They certainly don't know how to go down them.

			Eventually, the hapless floater will have the AI try to route it from the top of a staircase to the bottom of the same staircase. Unfortunately, not having legs, the art of walking down stairs escapes the floater. With a few precautions to abuse line-of-fire bugs, this makes the stuck Floater easy prey for even a lone X-COM agent.

	[[Category: Tactics]]		[[Category: Tactics]]

Zombie: A little rewording.

2008-10-12T02:14:01Z

A little rewording.

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:14, 12 October 2008
Line 1:		Line 1:
	Closely linked to [[Spawn Points]] are the ~~Alien~~ movement patterns. Although the maps are randomly generated, each ~~section~~ (especially ones with doorways) have patrol points defined. Aliens on patrol will follow a ~~pattern~~ through these points until they spot the enemy (you). Then the [[aggression formula]] takes over.		Closely linked to [[Spawn Points]] are the alien movement patterns (aka routes). Although the maps are randomly generated, each module (especially ones with doorways) have patrol points defined. Aliens on patrol will follow a route through these points until they spot the enemy (you). Then the [[aggression formula]] takes over.

	== Guards ==		== Guards ==
Line 13:		Line 13:
	Other UFOs may require bigger weaponry to deal with these 'guards'. The [[Abductor]] for example has a guard that always waits in the centre of the bridge. It's untested, but it may be possible to get this guard to face in a different direction by placing a soldier as close as possible to it and ending the turn. On the next turn, have a soldier barge through the door. Again, this is untested, so use it at your own risk. More practical solutions to this include cutting a hole through the rear or floor of the room with a [[Heavy Plasma]], deploying a smoke grenade in front of the door, stepping through and launching a rocket or a grenade, or even just standing underneath the alien and firing a high explosive weapon directly at the ceiling.		Other UFOs may require bigger weaponry to deal with these 'guards'. The [[Abductor]] for example has a guard that always waits in the centre of the bridge. It's untested, but it may be possible to get this guard to face in a different direction by placing a soldier as close as possible to it and ending the turn. On the next turn, have a soldier barge through the door. Again, this is untested, so use it at your own risk. More practical solutions to this include cutting a hole through the rear or floor of the room with a [[Heavy Plasma]], deploying a smoke grenade in front of the door, stepping through and launching a rocket or a grenade, or even just standing underneath the alien and firing a high explosive weapon directly at the ceiling.

	== Dislodging ~~guards~~ ==		== Dislodging Guards ==

	Recent testing has suggested that aliens which remain fixed in place are stuck in "aggression mode" against one X-COM unit. As long as that unit does not move, the alien will not move either. To flush aliens out of fixed positions, try moving all your units, one at a time, and keep an ambush posted outside the UFO in case the alien emerges.		Recent testing has suggested that aliens which remain fixed in place are stuck in "aggression mode" against one X-COM unit. As long as that unit does not move, the alien will not move either. To flush aliens out of fixed positions, try moving all your units, one at a time, and keep an ambush posted outside the UFO in case the alien emerges.

	[[Category: Tactics]]		[[Category: Tactics]]

Zombie: /* Guards */ Redirecting

2007-12-07T03:05:00Z

Guards: Redirecting

← Older revision		Revision as of 03:05, 7 December 2007
Line 11:		Line 11:
	Wait at the corner just before the left door and the alien will start moving towards you. By the next turn it should be in the room just beyond -- exhausted and unable to fight back.		Wait at the corner just before the left door and the alien will start moving towards you. By the next turn it should be in the room just beyond -- exhausted and unable to fight back.

	Other UFOs may require bigger weaponry to deal with these 'guards'. The [[~~Abducter~~]] for example has a guard that always waits in the centre of the bridge. It's untested, but it may be possible to get this guard to face in a different direction by placing a soldier as close as possible to it and ending the turn. On the next turn, have a soldier barge through the door. Again, this is untested, so use it at your own risk. More practical solutions to this include cutting a hole through the rear or floor of the room with a [[Heavy Plasma]], deploying a smoke grenade in front of the door, stepping through and launching a rocket or a grenade, or even just standing underneath the alien and firing a high explosive weapon directly at the ceiling.		Other UFOs may require bigger weaponry to deal with these 'guards'. The [[Abductor]] for example has a guard that always waits in the centre of the bridge. It's untested, but it may be possible to get this guard to face in a different direction by placing a soldier as close as possible to it and ending the turn. On the next turn, have a soldier barge through the door. Again, this is untested, so use it at your own risk. More practical solutions to this include cutting a hole through the rear or floor of the room with a [[Heavy Plasma]], deploying a smoke grenade in front of the door, stepping through and launching a rocket or a grenade, or even just standing underneath the alien and firing a high explosive weapon directly at the ceiling.

	== Dislodging guards ==		== Dislodging guards ==

Ethereal Cereal: /* Reactions bait */ retested -- it's not quite as either of us stated, Hobbes, and I'll have to test it more in my next few missions

2006-06-21T19:22:32Z

Reactions bait: retested -- it's not quite as either of us stated, Hobbes, and I'll have to test it more in my next few missions

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:22, 21 June 2006
Line 13:		Line 13:
	Other UFOs may require bigger weaponry to deal with these 'guards'. The [[Abducter]] for example has a guard that always waits in the centre of the bridge. It's untested, but it may be possible to get this guard to face in a different direction by placing a soldier as close as possible to it and ending the turn. On the next turn, have a soldier barge through the door. Again, this is untested, so use it at your own risk. More practical solutions to this include cutting a hole through the rear or floor of the room with a [[Heavy Plasma]], deploying a smoke grenade in front of the door, stepping through and launching a rocket or a grenade, or even just standing underneath the alien and firing a high explosive weapon directly at the ceiling.		Other UFOs may require bigger weaponry to deal with these 'guards'. The [[Abducter]] for example has a guard that always waits in the centre of the bridge. It's untested, but it may be possible to get this guard to face in a different direction by placing a soldier as close as possible to it and ending the turn. On the next turn, have a soldier barge through the door. Again, this is untested, so use it at your own risk. More practical solutions to this include cutting a hole through the rear or floor of the room with a [[Heavy Plasma]], deploying a smoke grenade in front of the door, stepping through and launching a rocket or a grenade, or even just standing underneath the alien and firing a high explosive weapon directly at the ceiling.

	== ~~Reactions bait~~ ==		== Dislodging guards ==

	Recent testing has ~~shown~~ that ~~if a unit with a low [[Reactions]] score (~~in ~~the 30s) walks near an alien, even an unmoving~~ "~~guard~~"~~, it will spur the alien to give chase to the~~ unit. ~~This may work even if~~ the alien ~~is deep inside the UFO and the "bait" is outside~~. ~~Set~~ an ambush outside ~~a door and have a low-Reactions unit walk around~~ the ~~perimeter of the craft~~ in ~~order to try to flush remaining aliens out.~~		Recent testing has suggested that aliens which remain fixed in place are stuck in "aggression mode" against one X-COM unit. As long as that unit does not move, the alien will not move either. To flush aliens out of fixed positions, try moving all your units, one at a time, and keep an ambush posted outside the UFO in case the alien emerges.

	~~''[ [[User:Hobbes\|Hobbes]]: What happens is that when~~ the alien sees the X-COM unit it will switch from patrol to agression mode. While in agression mode the alien will not follow the patrol routes anymore while fighting the enemy unit it has seen. The alien will remain in agression mode as long as it sees an enemy unit OR depending on his intelligence stat.~~'']~~

	[[Category: Tactics]]		[[Category: Tactics]]