MC lab

[gilet_vert]

I just nuilt a CM lab but I don't understand how to use it to make the soldiers CM specialists...

 

Can you help me?

 

Thanks

 

(Thread title edited to avoid confusion. - Bomb Bloke)

[NKF]

MC, actually, but nevermind.

 

After the MC lab is built, you have to wait until the end of the month. The game will then ask you to assign/reassign your aquanauts in the labs at each base. After you've assigned aquanauts to the labs, you must keep them alive for the next month. By the end of the month, they'll earn some M.C skill and their M.C. Strength is revealed.

 

Yeah, it takes at least 2 - 3 months to reap any of the benefits, but once it's done, it's well worth it.

 

You can then choose to leave them in training (recommended for those with high MC Strength, such as 80 - 100) otherwise, assign the slots to new recruits so that their MC strength's can be revealed.

 

Note: The Mind Probe doesn't need MC Skill to work, but the MC Disrupter does.

 

- NKF

[Bomb Bloke]

Note that once you've worked out the troopers MC abilities (or Psi, if you're playing UFO), you might like to sack some of your less 'intellegent' troopers. Regardless of their other stats, they can be a liability.

[Relien]

Note that once you've worked out the troopers MC abilities (or Psi, if you're playing UFO), you might like to sack some of your less 'intellegent' troopers. Regardless of their other stats, they can be a liability.

When I started the game with (I think) 8 seamen, I recruited about 20 more, kept only the 10 best of them and filled the remaining living quarters space with scientists. When I constructed MC-Lab and assigned my aquanauts to the MC training, I discovered that my very best man had MC power of ZERO. There were two people with 98, which was ok, the average was about 60, but this one person had simply ZERO. I wasn't even annoyed, it was just too funny.

[Sicarus]

I don't completely agree with that statement about sacking the low MC-strength troopers.

 

I am not about to sack my commader with FA 95 just because he only has MC strength of 26.

No way I did not spend all that time and effort letting him kill aliens just to sack him for that.

 

I'll just be more carefull in missions with him.

[NKF]

I know the feeling. However, from experience, I've found that soldier is eventually going to be only useful on lobsterman-only missions and when there aren't any high ranking gill-men. At other times, he's going to be a liability. With such good stats, this MC'd soldiers is going to make a serious killing against the wrong side. Can't have that happening.

 

Short of having that aquanaut use a drill exclusively (the AI does not know how to use the melee weapons), my suggestion would be to drop that aquanaut down to a supervisory role. As someone to watch over new recruits and pull them out of the fire when they get into trouble. Before long you can put that soldier into retirement, or take up a quiet post in some out of the way base. Or if you've really given up on the aquanaut, an MC sponge. But even the best MC sponges need mid-range MC strength to stump the aliens a bit into wasting their TUs.

 

Check out MikeTheRed's brilliant compilation of the mechanics of experience on the X-Com wiki for a little too much information than you'll probably want to know about it. Try to take some time off during the weekend. It's a hefty but very interesting read and it does help. Don't mind the UFO-specific aliens and weapons.

 

- NKF

[Gimli]

What about using them as DPL guys? Of course, that would mean picking up and throwing down weapons every time you want to fire, and while I'm not sure you'd have enough TUs to perform the whole procedure, that could be potentially useful, especially on Base Attack/Defense missions.

[ReCo]

all soldiers with MC Strength below 60 must be sacked as soon as possible, simply put: alien will always use mc attacks on them and most of them (if not all) will be succesfull;

 

so my advice is: do NOT socialize with your soldiers before you get to know their mc power;

 

the question: what should i do before i build mc lab?

the answer: once your soldier is succesfully attacked by enemy molecular control user, you may forget about him (sack or kill)

 

being "veteran" with 50 aliens killed and stats like 80 time unit and 120 fire accuaracy does not help the soldier if he has low mc power, he would be useless in most missions

[Bomb Bloke]

Heheh...

 

Times have changed a bit, and these days I'd recommend doing what I've always done. Ignore every stat except when deciding who throws psi attacks and who throws their weapons!

 

I've never actually cared about firing accuracy, strength or bravery stats. Either the soldiers do what I tell them or they die. Survival of the fittest is an automated process in my army.

 

When it comes to psi, however, I'm not about to sack a unit if I know it's power. Strong or weak, a unit is more useful if you know those values. Intellegent soldiers have the obvious perk in that they can be relied upon to convert threats into valuable weapons, but you can also disarm your dense soldiers and let them wander around - Hey presto, the chances of an average soldier being mind controlled drop significantly.

[Gray Fox]

all soldiers with MC Strength below 60 must be sacked as soon as possible, simply put: alien will always use mc attacks on them and most of them (if not all) will be succesfull

I find soldiers with low MC strength very useful for assaulting aliens with no MC abilities. And in case the base containing the MC weaklings is attacked, I just unarm all the weaklings, arm the stronger ones with weapons and disrupters and send out tanks to find the aliens.