Challenges

[NKF]

Before I go on: No, I have absolutely no idea why I'm doing this.

 

So some of you probably recall my old Solo-floater-base-assault-with-pistols -and-handful-of-grenades challenge thingy that I mention from time to time. It's a bit dated now, so I thought I'd try something different scenario for a change.

 

I'm testing it at the moment to see if it can be done, but I thought I'd post the idea up and see what everyone thinks about it.

 

The basic idea:

• Play the game from scratch. i.e, you build the base from the ground up from the access lift.
  
• Starting funds will be set to $9 million (As opposed to $4.5 mil). Not sure if that's more than enough or less than what the default base costs. It doesn't matter, as it works anyway.
  
• You get no monetary funds from any of the world governments. They're set so they've all signed pacts with the aliens. The advantage of this is that you can safely ignore infiltration attempts, as there's nothing left to infiltrate. However, you can still lose the game in the normal methods (poor scores or negative funds for several months in a row, all bases destroyed, etc).
  

The idea was to experience playing X-Com from the ground up rather than starting off with a prefabricated base. Yes, this is mostly inspired from the recent discussion thread regarding build times for the default base.

 

I tried it, and it's rather tricky. You can actually get a working base with a Skyranger with fully armed troops and tanks within the first month. You'll get negative scores by the time the month is over, but you shouldn't get shut down immediately.

 

If anyone would like to try it, you can use the CWE editor to set up the above scenario (relations and money) and give it a go. Just dismantle the default base all the way down to the lift, and off you go (use $8mil instead of $9mil, to simulate buying the new base site) . If you don't want the phantom small radar, build a new base and remove the old lift.

 

If I get round to it, I'll put up a special savegame on my webpage that sets all the above for you - and you still get to choose where to build your first base. Sadly, however, any new Skyrangers will start from 2 and the inteceptors will start from 3.

 

Any thoughts?

 

- NKF

 

P. S: One alternative would be to keep the countries friendly, but reduce the amount of funds they're supplying to 0. Then use Xcomutil and have it generate a token amount of activity points (say 150) for the first month just to work against any UFO activity for that month.

 

P. P. S: I realise this thread is rather limited in terms of its usefulness, so apart from what I've just suggested, the rest of the thread can probably be used to post, discuss or just simply talk about any self-imposed challenges that you want to talk about. Such as discussing the various impressions players have of playing with Ironman rules(no save-reload immortality), or the 'scenarios' on the XComutil page, etc. I suppose it's far too late in the game for that now, but hey, it's here if you need it.

[Stewart]

Normally I play with no base and the 6M-ish or so you would start with. I see the extra 3 M is because you'll have no funding. Okay the BIG question:

 

If all the countries have signed packs can you still lose with poor scores?

[Hobbes]

Sounds fun....can you post the savegame? I have no idea of what CWE is or how it works

[NKF]

Righty'o then.

 

CWE is the Clark Wehyer(sp?) Enterprises suit of editors for UFO and TFTD. Very comprehensive, but has a few bugs that need to be ironed out (Re radars).

 

Anyway, I've just slapped together a html page and here we go:

 

The UFO: Play from Scratch Challenge

 

It's in superhuman. You can use XComutil to change the difficulty level for you if you feel it's a bit harsh.

 

I've been playing it for a bit, and it's rather amazing what you can do from the ground up. I mean, later on, say just before your last base gets destroyed (say you were doing very badly), you can actually keep playing if you have the funds and quickly build a new base just before the battleship arrives and decimates the base.

 

But without sufficient funds, it's all over.

 

- NKF

[Stewart]

Actually in some ways I find it easier to start with no base and 6M-ish cash. Budgetary constraint is built in so to speak. You CANT spend yourself into a hole.

 

Anyway, assuming in your challenge you can't have the project cancelled due to low scores because all countries have signed packs then it seems to me this is a cinch. Of course if you CAN have the project cancelled due to low scores well . . . . .

[Rosstoid]

This sounds like a fun idea. A very fun idea. I'm not exactly a good player, so playing the game with this method would give me little other choice than to use hit-and-run guerilla tactics in order to win. Instead of taking down whole UFOs I may have to attack a single alien just for his rifle. My hat off to NKF

[NKF]

Stewart: Sorry, I forget to reply to that. Yes, you can lose if you have poor scores and or negative funding for a few months straight (as per usual, actually), even though the game says that the countries start pulling their funds one by one (when there aren't any ) .

 

The only real difference is that you won't have to worry about losing the game due to infiltration. That's all. Or, at least that's what I've tested so far.

 

By the way, you often will have negative points on the first month, unless you can get the Skyranger out to a terror site.

 

I wonder, is the $9mil slightly too much for starting funds for playing from the ground up?

 

- NKF

[Stewart]

If the terror site is in the dame region as your base and your two interceptors have dual avs . . . . well you know.

 

Anyway anouther challenge.

 

Raw rookies, t-shirt armor, regular weapons, and optional regular HWPs (Cannon/Missile) . . . Cydonia!

 

Possible?

[Hobbes]

Just tried the first time....you definitly have to make some hard choices at the beginning. Here's some things I've noticed:

 

-A safe base or an unsafe one? You can either place the access lift at the center, allowing you to start building four other sections of the base. However, if the aliens meanwhile attack you'll have a tough time defending it. The alternative is to group the hangars and lift together, but there you can only build two sections at the time.

-What to build first? A hangar, radar, stores and quarters sound to me the most needy but with luck they'll only be ready at the beginning of February, therefore it becomes impossible due to time constrains to respond to the first terror raid unless you place the lift on the center.

-Also, another thing to consider: buy the first craft in January or February? The hangar will take 25 days, plus the 72 hours it takes for the aircraft to arrive. However if it arrives in January then you start paying the 500 or 600 k montly lease on it.

 

So, are the good citizens of Novosibirsk in trouble or not?

[NKF]

Hobbes, just a thought regarding safe bases. Your base modules do not all have to be permanent.

 

For example, you could build the lift three spaces down and build the hangar in the corner. Stores and a small radar can go into the buildable areas. Continue building southward and whatnot. When you're ready, dismantle the one to the west of the lift. The small radar's good temporary module. It builds fast and it's cheap to maintain.

 

- NKF

[M. Hoz]

Raw rookies, t-shirt armor, regular weapons, and optional regular HWPs (Cannon/Missile) . . . Cydonia!

 

It's probably possible to set that Scenario,but win it...lol.

 

Raw Rookies...can't hit those Chrysalids in time.

T-Shirt "Armor"*...will never stand the Sectoid's Plasma Cannons.

Regular** weapons...can't penetrate Muton Armor.

Regualr** HWP's...are no match for REAL Sectopods.

Cydonia...it's quite your luck that matters against those Ethereals.

That is unless you're going to disable Psi just for that one?

 

 

 

 

*I assume by that you mean no Armor?

**I assume by regular you mean Terran?

[Stewart]

I don't know if it helps but you only need to get to the lift then you only need to kill the brain.

[NKF]

Well, if you insist on destroying all the aliens in your path, high explosives and large rockets, when applied in sufficient quantities, can destroy ANYTHING! Mwahahaha! *Ahem* Even on superhuman. Good luck carrying them, though. High explosives cost 6 points of strength per pack to carry, and large rockets cost 8.

 

Or if you're desparate, a sectopod can be knocked out with four to five hits from a stun rod. But I seriously doubt you'll get the chance.

 

Proximity mine aren't so bad at dealing with cyberdiscs either. So you might bring some for the first half of the cydonia mission. Though you have to remember that they only get set off by the upper left corner of large terror units.

 

It's really amazing how much firepower X-Com has at its disposal at the beginning of the game.

 

- NKF

[M. Hoz]

high explosives and large rockets, when applied in sufficient quantities, can destroy ANYTHING!

 

And so can Pistol Bullets.

 

[Stewart]

Also the stats for "Martians" are weaker than their "Earthly" counter parts. IIRC even Psionics are lower.

[NKF]

You know how Sectopods take double damage from laser damage? The sad thing is, X-Com units take double damage from everything. So, if a weapon is listed as being able to do 80 damage, that's half the usual amount of damage you'll almost always take.

 

- NKF