How Many Troops Do You Have?

[Paranoid Jack]

I have a total of 30 troops all but two are levels four to seven. More than half are above level five and trained in one or more weapon abilities. I rotate them on and off the field. And in and out of training.

 

I am now thinking I spent far too many resources on troops early in the game. Next time around I will most likely keep it to a dozen. But having so many makes it far easier to train them in groups.

 

Just curious, how many troops others might have. And if some of you are leaving behind dead on the field of battle.

[Pete]

I have twelve. I lost three on one mission the first time I encountered Cultists with burst mode sniper rifles as I didn't have very good armour but I learned my lesson after that.

 

The twelve I have now range from level 16-18 with just one being level 14 (my Psionic lady).

 

If a group likes you enough, and I mean their relationship bar in teh diplomacy screen is right at the very top, they'll start to offer up level 12 folks for about 4000 resources, which is where I got one guy from.

 

I tend to train most as Snipers first so that they can hit stuff at range even with normal rifles. Then I train them as Gunmen for the ability to use Heavy Armour, get more hitpoints and the ability to stay standing when taking a grenade in the face. It kind of varies after that as to what I do for the third lot of training, but generally it doesn't matter too much as they're pretty tough by then.

 

It does get to be a pain when I have eight in training and only four to take on missions, but I scrape by. If I get really stuck I can always use drones I guess

[Xzarr]

6

 

Recently re-started (again) and I'm about to launch a mission (Story) against the cultists

[greedo]

about 3 lvl 20-21, 5 11-18 and 6 5-10, and lots of lots of drones

[ricardo440]

I had about 16 troops.

 

9 front line, and a load of backups.

 

But now I can't do the wargot ship they won't get any better.

frontline were about level 16-18 but I had got them that high before then I had to reload back to level 8-12 because the fraking temple mission didn't trigger.

[Slaughter]

I have 8 soldiers (6 humans, 1 Cyborg and 1 Psionic) at level 8 - 12. Should have more I guess, and since my standing with the other factions is good I get high level soldiers from them.

 

As for leaving soldiers behind, I always load. Next time through I'll try the "Iron man" way

[greedo]

Hm i odnt like to hire high level soldiers from other factions, they are not advancing the way i want...

I usually hire lvl1-5 guys, and use the ones i got at the starting. Betty died from the starting four, but David, Neil, and Sue ar the lvl 20-21s now

[Doctoxic]

frontline were about level 16-18 but I had got them that high before then I had to reload back to level 8-12 because the fraking temple mission didn't trigger.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

hmmm - ypu got me worried here, most of my troops are lvl 16 and i haven't had a temple mission - do you know what triggers it?

 

thanks

 

Doc

[Dog Soldier]

****SPOILER******

 

 

The following research triggerd in my game the first cult temple mission

 

https://img339.imageshack.us/img339/7765/ss...082042560ws.jpg

[Doctoxic]

Thanks Dog Soldier

I haven't got that yet so hopefully all is OK.

 

Getting back on topic - I have one main squad of 7:

2 Sniper

2 Gunmen

1 Leader

1 Medic

 

Plus about a dozen others, only 2 PSI and 2 Cyborg though - as i haven't been able to research their stuff yet though

 

Doc

[Atzel]

I think I have 14 soldiers.

 

Lets see:

 

1 Human sniper - tears people apart from crazy distances with her .50 cal

2 Human gunmen - Just regular hardasses, one has an m60, the other an XM8

2 Human troopers - XM8 with grenade launchers, baby. Also drags LAWs around.

1 Human scout - Sneaky rifleman with a silenced and scoped M4 and a shitload of grenades. Spots targets for the snipers.

1 Human medic - SPAS-12 wielding field surgeon

1 Human stalker/ranger - Usually CQC backup for the scout

1 Cyborg trooper - Grenadier. As 20mm grenades are cheap as dirt and takes no time to make, he tends to use a lot. Also carries an RPG-7 and a pair of reloads in his backpack.

1 Cyborg technician - RPK.. "In Soviet Russia..."

1 Cyborg ranger - Duel wields Mp5s

1 Psy commando - Psys acctually make exellent commandos. Hire one early and train them up.. if you either make or recover a katana early on they can hold thier own extremly well. When you get thier dodge skill up to heroic and give them an interferance circlet, they'll kick ass like no ones business

1 Psy.. err... psy - Carries a wide array of projectors.

1 Psy medic/sniper - Works as close sniper support for the rest of the squad, usually with the SR-25

 

That way I can keep a full squad at all times, regardless of injuries or training. Or, I can mix and match troops for specific missions. I like scouting out a mission site to get the lay of the land and an idea of potential dangers.. like, if there's lot of open terrain, possiblity of lots of indoor fighting, etc, and then I load the autosave and equip my squad to suit the situation.

I wouldn't concider it cheating, as it would seem logical to me that the Laputa (am I the only who reacts to that "La puta" means "the whore" in Spanish?) would be able to provide good recon photos

[Paranoid Jack]

****SPOILER******

The following research triggerd in my game the first cult temple mission

 

https://img339.imageshack.us/img339/7765/ss...082042560ws.jpg

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

I have been delaying the Cultist Threat on my research list... maybe I should look into it soon. My problem is I am going in all directions at once. I have Psi & Implant Lab almost complete and finally being able to research sniper rifles via blueprints. I am drooling for some new weapons. I loved the first cultist mission... great weapons they gave me.

 

Since it is my third restart of the game I am only two days or so into the ships count-down. And the Cultist have left me alone after the first ambush I had them walk into. They never got a shot off, it was beautiful I tell you.

 

The tactics side I am fairly competent at its the research & developement side which I am left double guessing myself. Just not sure I am making all the right choices. Not to mention I have run my resources out several times with all the developement and non-stop mission after mission approach I have taken.

[Atzel]

I tend to train most as Snipers first so that they can hit stuff at range even with normal rifles. Then I train them as Gunmen for the ability to use Heavy Armour, get more hitpoints and the ability to stay standing when taking a grenade in the face. It kind of varies after that as to what I do for the third lot of training, but generally it doesn't matter too much as they're pretty tough by then.

 

Errr...

 

Snipers get better long range skill than rifles. Long range skill only applies to sniper class weapons, ei, those that require sniper training.

 

Anyways, that's not a very clever tactic. It's better to compare soldier stats to different classes to see what they are best qualified for. No class is really better than any other, it all depends on how they are used.

 

A man with a smg, especially a duel wielding ranger, can beat a man with a rifle in CQC combat, since the smg aims ridiculesly much faster, and pistols even more so. A man with a shotgun will however very likely sweep the floor with the guy with the smg at point blank range, but a good smg user can hit very accuratly from well outside the shotguns range.

 

A melee fighter might not stand much of a chance in the open, but in enclosed areas, especially when it's so cramped that enemy soldiers are blocking each other, the katana is king. My commando slized a bloody swath through a group of 5 cultists in a base assault mission, because they all got bunched up in a one got in the way of an other, and by the time he'd moved into a possition to get a clear shot, she had already cut his comrade down and was aiming a slash at his face.. then the other three who had fallen behind got bunched up in a doorway and was brutally hacked to bits.

 

Likewise, a sniper, even one equiped with an SR-25, is in serious shit when encounterning enemies at close range, but on the open field, they'll blow off heads left and right.

 

A trooper with a grenade launcher can wreck serious damage on enemies that are moderatly bunched up, especially if working in tandem with a LMG wielding tech or gunman.

 

A machinegun wielder can alone hold thier own against a large opposing force as well, thanks to being able to keep insane amounts of lead in the air at any time. Ammunition is cheap and quick to make. I rather seldom used the aimed shot function with the lmgs.. they fire almost twice as fast with snap shot and even if you have 30% or 40% chance of hitting, that still means that you're likely to have a larger over all chance of hitting than one aimed salov... and don't forget, stray rounds can still hit any enemy standing around the intended target. I once killed three cultists with one PKM salvo.. hit the intended target with two rounds, which put him out of business, and then scored a critical hit on a cultist psyionic and hit a sniper in the back of thier squad, which my own sniper had already softened up.

 

The only weapon I'm still not completely sure about are the rocket launchers. For the most time, the enemy I'm trying to hit has already moved out of the way when the rocket gets there, and trying to lead targets is usually unsuccesful, as they can change direction or simply stop where they concider themselves to be in range. I do suspect I'm yet to encounter something that I would need it for. I was jumping with joy when I encountered the first car crabs in Aftermath.. finally something to use my anti-tank weaponry against

[Martian base commander]

I have 4 full squads at the moment,and a partly formed 5th PSI unit.

 

Squad A marine corps.This is my general purpose squad and is used for mutant extermination,and rebel humans.

 

1 squad leader

1 gunner

2 troopers (long range rifle support,and grenades)

1 combat engineer,trooper trained in demolitions,carrying grenade launcher and loads of grenades.

1 combat medic,proficient in heavy armour and rifle usage too.

1 PSI scout and sniper.

 

Squad B is my 2nd marine corps,and is kitted the same.Squad B is used to support Squad A if I sustained casualties and I need to go out in the field again.

 

Squad C is my heavy Cyborg infantry.

They carry very heavy equipment,and contain 2 anti armour elements.They are mainly used on Cultist missions,or any other that carries a degree of high risk.

 

Squad D are my commando unit.Based around the British SAS they will generally be lightly armoured and carry close contact SMGs,flashbangs,smoke grenades,a demolitions team ect.They are normally used on night missions where I can use stealth for surprise,and for rescue missions.

 

Squad E is not formed yet,but is designated as a PSI unit,used for capture probably.

 

As you can see I prefer to have squads for certain environments,instead of building say bulk front line troopers ect,and reserves ect.

And I always leave the dead where they fall,they will then be carried back home with full military honours

[Xzarr]

The only weapon I'm still not completely sure about are the rocket launchers. For the most time, the enemy I'm trying to hit has already moved out of the way when the rocket gets there, and trying to lead targets is usually unsuccesful, as they can change direction or simply stop where they concider themselves to be in range. I do suspect I'm yet to encounter something that I would need it for. I was jumping with joy when I encountered the first car crabs in Aftermath.. finally something to use my anti-tank weaponry against 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

Use a scout to crawl up to enemy building and sense the people inside (psionic or other eq)

 

Attack a ground spot with your rocketman.

 

~1000 damage to people before they notice wtfs going on

[Martian base commander]

Atzel.

 

On your rocketman query,there IS another use for it,and I would consider it its MAIN use also.Remember WWII?,well maybe not I dont either hehe,but they werent just designed as anti-armour weapons,they were ALSO used for destroying units well entrenched in buildings.The Germans mainly used em as anti tank weapons with their fearsome 'Panzerfaust' ,but they quickly discovered its potential for ridding buildings of well dug in troops too,so fire one through a section of upper storey wall,and see if anyone is still in that area next time you get chance to go in.They may have a useful role in clearing mines too.

 

Against a moving target however the target would have to be very slow or even imobile,and I have not met any units that fit that description yet in my game.They are PRETTY good against Cyborgs,but they DO tend to move out of the way as you mentioned.I actually have 2 anti armour Cyborgs (Rocketmen) in my heavy infantry squad.

 

Think of em a bit like a mobile Mortar team.

 

By the way the word 'Panzerfaust' is bloody sexy,it simply means 'Armoured Fist'

[buzz-br]

man...

i got 5

 

4 humans : 26/27/26/25

1 cyborg : 22

 

[BlackAlmaz]

i hace 3 squads of 7 and 5 back up units + drones

1st

1 leader, gunner, trooper-rpk with ap -level 28 -good for everything

2 sniper, ranger, gunner - 50cal ap- 2 .50 pistols -level 27- sniper manily

3 sniper, scout, ranger, psg-90 exp ammo, shotgun -level 28- sniper mainly

4 trooper, gunner, ranger, shotgun, m4 spec ops style- level 29- recon, and close combat unit, very fast

5 commando, gunner, tropper, shotgun, m4 spec ops style, and sword - level 30 " " same sas above

6 cborg, tropper, gunner m60 done up with dif rounds - level 20- support very handy

7 cborg, trooper, gunner m60 done up with dif rounds- level 25- support very handy

 

 

i found that this team has not lost one man in over 200 missions

with most of thies guys avr a kill count of 200+

[Accounting Troll]

I have ten soldiers in my current game, and I'm aiming to double that.

 

I think 15-20 soldiers would allow you to have a good mix of specialists and give you cover for when soldiers are in sickbay or training, while at the same time being few enough that each soldier gets to go on plenty of missions.

[Preda]

Only 11 here: 5 humans, 3 cyborgs, 3 psionics. Also, I have 4 or so drones, but I don't always use them.

 

All soldiers are past level 15, and one is level 21, my medic-gunner.

[woflborg]

Just curious, how many troops others might have. And if  some of you are leaving behind dead on the field of battle.

 

I got also thirty. about 20 of those are somesort of close combat characters, with average to heroic speed and shotguns or katanas.

 

Usually my tactics use 2-3 riflemen, one psi, one gunner and one close combatant.

 

The riflemen carry a variety of weapons, usually one laser rifle for basic mutant hunting (flatsters are a pain!) and something with ap rounds in it for a bit more of a punch. Most of them are also trained as snipers.

 

Psionic usually confuses or paralyses targets that get too close or are just plain too dangerous, and close combatant runs next to them and hacks them up. I also use the close combatants for soaking up damage, and they tend to die pretty easily if I misjudge the situation. But any character with average speed and average close combat does just fine so theres a cheap cyborg with those stats allways available

 

Gunner i usually use for groups of soft targets, or soft targets that have sickening amounts of health.

 

I dont play totally ironman, but i do let the close combatants take damage and die if necessary. Im still pretty new at this game so few times my certain experimental tactics have lead to few complete wipes and necessary reloads

[SBOY]

I have three I am at the (spoiler sort of) Wargot stage playing on Super-Hero difficulty.

1 Male Trooper-Scout-Gunman level 26

2 Female Trooper-Scout-Gunwoman Level 26

3 Psionic Female Psionic-Medic-Technician Level 19

Own most of the planet though I have left Austrailia with one cultist base to localise my Laputa (as it really annoys me travelling all over the planet to defend my bases against cultist infiltration).

Exceptionally difficult game I only use one troop on all my missions unless it is a mission which involves helping to lead people to a safe area then I use two.

My troops are maxed out in all the stats they need to be and use all of the add-ons they can gather to suppliment their armour and weapons.

I am still using conventional weapons even at this stage.

[fgbrooks]

I have 8 total, 7 Humans and 1 Psionic, all lvl 12-14. All are multi-class, with a Specialty. For example, my Sniper(3rd grade) also has a grade in Scout. I have 1 Sniper, 1 Scout, 1 Medic, 1 Technician, 1 Gunman, 2 Troopers, and a Psionic. I have been playing on Experienced, and I kick ass against anything I've come up against so far, using conventional weapons. One of my best killers is my Lvl 14 Commando (3rd grade), armed with a Katana, that can take out anything in 2-3 swipes. I get very attached to my troops, even the ones that constantly complain.

 

I have three days to go before the Alien Spaceship gets to Earth, and then we will see what happens.

[Tanveyor]

Here is my team, i have 8.

 

1. Lvl 25 Leader, Ranger, Trooper

2. Lvl 23 Sniper, Technician, Stalker

3. Lvl 19 Medic, Scout, Commando

4. Lvl 19 Sniper, Technician, Stalker

5. Lvl 18 Sniper, Technician, Stalker

6. Lvl 15 Cyborg, Technician

7. Lvl 11 Psionic, Medic

8. Lvl 11 Sniper, Technician, Stalker

 

All new ones i plan to train on sniper, technician and stalker.

[Martian base commander]

I have 3 full squads now and 2 partly formed,each specializing in different areas.My primary squad A is my anti mutant task force.

Which consists of:

 

1 leader/trooper armed with plasma gun (PG) and plasma grenade launcher (PGL)

1 squad heavy gunner,armed with machine gun,long range suppression fire for the team.

2 experienced troopers armed with Laser Rifles and PGLs (rifle support)

1 technician/trooper,demolitions work and incendiary support.Carries RPG with phos rounds and phos grenades.

1 combat medic (4th level medic),PG and PGL.

1 Psionic scout/sniper,carries laser sniper rifle and scanning equipment.She also has the task of disabling any aliens that need capturing.

 

Notes: No conventional rounds for this squad except for the MG,as energy based weapons are my preference for the aliens,plus the fact they have a low tolerance for such damage.

 

Squad B is my heavy infantry,which has a similar set up to this team except it has 3 cyborgs and the 4 humans are in heavy armour as opposed to the medium protection of squad A.This squad may also become heavy mechanized infantry as the game progresses,with the POSSIBLE addition of drones to replace the men.

 

Squad C is made up of 7 commandos,who attack at night only,so I am able to operate around the clock.Stealth and speed based,with light armour,silenced weapons,with flash bang support also.Demolitions technician too,for breaching buildings and rooms.

 

Squad D,no idea yet.

 

Squad E (Enigma),pure Psi members,for infiltration and capture.