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[GentlemanRaptor]

Let's play X-COM: Mulder never had an autocannon edition

Hello and welcome to yet another X-COM LP! This time, though, I'm doing something just a bit different from the usual fare. I'm going to be using SolariusScorch's excellent X-COM Files mod, which does some interesting things to the game.

Read all about it here - but the general gist is that X-COM begins as an underfunded investigative agency in 1997, and has to deal with all sorts of weird shenanigans going on in the world that, surprise surprise, point to alien involvement. It boasts a huge amount of content: new weapons, enemies, factions, mission types, and more all appear in the game.

Fair warning - this might be a bit slow going, because I'm a bit busy, but I couldn't resist giving this mod a shot. It'll be a screenshot LP, similar to my old TFTD run. So, in that vein, what I need from you all is this:

• Our base's name
• Its location
• The name/background of our organization's fearless leader

In the early game, base location is less crucial than in vanilla - X-COM doesn't actually start with massive radar dishes, instead relying on a global network of agents and on watching the news to come up with locations of interest. Location will only determine who we can respond to the fastest - and early-game, our fastest is in fact very slow, relying on public transport and privately-owned cars.

Also, if you want an agent, give me their name and any fluff you care to come up with and I'll get you on the roster whenever space allows.

And remember...the truth is out there.

Spoiler: Agents (click to show/hide)

Han Zoku (Hanzoku)
King George IX (TheDarkStar)
Mapother II (Greatness942)
Darkening Kaos (Darkening Kaos)
Joachim Duncker/Wilhelm Burgdorf (Silverthrone)
Anja Galena (Burnt Pies)
Brion Drake (Mephansteras)
Reiner Wind (Rince Wind)
Steven Calvin Ross Merrick (scrdest)

[Hanzoku]

Spoiler: Dossier - Zoku, Han (click to show/hide)

Name: Han Zoku
Gender: Male
Age: 28

Biography: A regular on a variety of conspiracy theory forums, Han is utterly convinced that aliens are out there, and probably already on Earth. He is eager to track down proof that will show the doubters that he's not insane, and that aliens are real, and a menace to the world.

[TheDarkStar]

Spoiler: Dossier - King George IX (click to show/hide)

Name: King George IX
Gender: Male
Age: 52

Biography: The one and only King of England. Sadly, no one else recognizes his completely legitimate claim to the throne. Worse, aliens disguised as doctors keep trying to abduct him. He hopes that by fighting the alien menace, he can reclaim his throne and use the military might of England to protect the planet.

_{yes he is completely insane}

[Greatness942]

Spoiler: Base Details (click to show/hide)

Base Name: Web of Secrecy
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Leader Name: Alan Wise
Leader Background: Born on the streets of Melbourne, Alan was born to homeless conspiracy theorists, convinced that the governments of every nation were in league with alien creatures, even putting the theory in Alan's head that humans came from space thousands of years ago. As Alan met other kids in public parks and numerous stores, he began to push the thoughts out...until the age of 15, where he witnessed a man who saw too much get slaughtered by a glowing light in Brisbane. At the age of 23, he took enough high paying contracts in legal demolition of private property, and used it to fund a base and Agents dedicated to wiping out the menace. As a kid, his parents always said the government was a web of secrecy of lies. Now? He is a Web of Secrecy.

Spoiler: Dossier-The Drifter (click to show/hide)

Name: Agent Mapother II
Gender: Male
Age: *CLASSIFIED-SECURITY LEVEL TANGO-FOXTROT*

Bio: A drifter with a nice suit who knows how to shoot a gun. Our organization found him wandering around, and despite our best efforts, he only gave his name and gender. That was it. No past, no age, no aliases. He has nice sunglasses, but he wears them all the time.

[Darkening Kaos]

     I'm always up for some X-Com.

Spoiler: Agent Details (click to show/hide)

     Name: Darkening Kaos
     Gender: Male
     Age: None of yer damn business, punk-ass kid!

     Bio: A retired government contract worker, Kaos bought a caravan and travelled around Australia, working casual jobs here and there for beer money.  He has three hunting rifles in his caravan, mainly used to hunt food, (underground mutton is a favourite), but he will also use them in defence.

     Preferred weaponry: Rifle, (scoped/sniper), extra ammo, medikit.

@Greatness942's base details +1

[GentlemanRaptor]

So, right now we're sitting at 2 votes for Greatness942's idea and we have 4 agents, which is actually enough to start given low initial squad sizes. I'll give it a bit, and then if no new ideas/people crop up I'll start.

[Silverthrone]

Room for one more?

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Joachim Duncker. [Assumed] Wilhelm Burgdorf [True].
Age: 50. [102]
Bio: After staging his death, he slipped out of the Shitlerbunker, and assumed a new identity. A severe laboratory accident in the Wolfenstein program halted his age at 50, provided that he keeps consuming a staggering amount of alcohol. This proved to be a very managable drawback, and he has not been sober for a day since the bunker Christmas party in 1944. He is motivated to fight the alien, partly because he believes Fegelein might be at the bottom of it.

[GentlemanRaptor]

Of course there is. Alright, I'll get everything set up and start the LP proper soon^TM!

[Darkening Kaos]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

     As there are no rifles at the start of the campaign, I'll change my load out to:
     Beretta 92 FS with a spare clip;
     Electric Club;
     {depending on strength}, electro flare and first aid kit.

     Bio, {additional}:  Hired to be a 'cleaner', Kaos has been busy about the office with a mop and bucket, he does, however, think that the three piece black suit is a bit much for a janitor.

[GentlemanRaptor]

And it is time for UPDATE #1!

A quick note - This will be a partially narrative LP, with my commentary punctuated by IC speech and other things from the characters. With that, let's go!

Update #1



Welcome to Secrecy! Web of Secrecy wouldn't fit in the text box, sorry. Nice neighborhood, good schools, and best of all, completely Xeno free! Let's get up to speed on our mission and our support staff.

This will be a bit of a lore dump - skip the spoiler if you don't care for that sort of thing.

Spoiler: LORE ALERT (click to show/hide)

This cast of characters will be around for the whole game, and will give us updated reports on whatever is going on at the time as research progresses and certain events occur.

Also, note how the Quartermaster is talking about being underequipped - we start with pistols, shotguns, no armor, and very little else. Our basic transport seats only two. Upgrading that stuff is a huge priority.

Now it's time for our early-game purchases.





It's not worth buying scientists now - we can't build labs until much later, and our base can only support 5 researching simultaneously right now.

Now you might have noticed something odd about this purchase order - yes, this mod adds one of the most basic tools of any good investigator, the flashlight. And it doubles as a melee weapon!

As for starting research, have a gander:



Personal Protection is absolutely key - it unlocks basic armor and improves the longevity of our agents.

//BEGIN PERSONAL LOG - DIRECTOR ALAN WISE//

Well, everyone's gotten all settled in - but we only have two field agents so far.
More are on the way, but for now we'll have to deal with this Zoku character and
some lady who insists on wearing a red shirt everywhere. Not sure what that's about,
really. That all aside, they need to be good - we need to work fast to prove to
the UN bigwigs that there is something out there, and they don't have
our best interests in mind. Hopefully something comes up soon.

//END LOG//


Sorry about not getting you all in right away, but the game gave me two agents, and one of them is a woman. Soon as the fresh tactical ablative armor rookies come in you'll be dorfed proper.

Speaking of the two agents, they'll be getting a workout, because here comes...



This is one of the new mission types. Usually on a small-ish map, X-COM agents are tasked with apprehending cultists or other ne'er-do-wells in order to further their investigations into various illicit organizations.

So, Han Zoku and Miss Redshirt Brianna Kay get an all-expenses paid trip to LA! Join X-COM, see the world! _{and die a horrible agonizing death but we don't talk about that part}

//BEGIN BRIEFING LOG - OPERATION RETARIUS//

ATTENDING:
- HAN ZOKU

- BRIANNA KAY

BRIEFER: All right, everyone here - oh, its only you two. All right, here's what we know.

BRIEFER: We've got agents of a shadowy criminal organization known only as EXALT skulking around LA.
We've got their location narrowed down to a pretty small area - that's where you come in.

What's an "EXALT", sir?

BRIEFER: Not much to go on there, son. The UN put this one on our plate without giving us much info. If I
were more suspicious, I'd say...never mind. Bring one back alive and we'll see what we can tell you, all right?

Sounds good, sir. C'mon, Brianna. Let's go bag us some crooks.

Right behind you.

//END LOG//




And they're off! Early game, transport times are painfully long, so night-fighting equipment is important - but equally important is knowing when to cut and run. A few corpses are generally not worth dead agents.



//BEGIN BATTLESCAPE TACTICAL RECORDING//

ASSIGNED TO OPERATION:

- HAN ZOKU

- BRIANNA KAY



Alright, let's check out this first building. I'm on point.







Nothing here - wait. This door's open...

BANG BANG BANG



Crazy bastard jumped out at me! He looks like he's alive.

Hey, Han, you're, ah, bleeding.

Must have grazed me. There's gotta be more of them - let's keep looking.



This building's a wash. Let's move and check the other one out.



CONTACT! I'll take him!

Wha - is that a knife? Seriously?

THUD



Tango down. Let's bag 'em and tag 'em. Shame no aliens, though. I wanted to see one so bad...

//END BATTLESCAPE TACTICAL RECORDING//







So that could have gone a bit better, but I'll take one wounded over one killed. Prisoners are good early game, as interrogations unlock more storylines and research. And, of course, since promotion = dying less, I'll always take that.

And that's the first episode! Early on I'll focus in on individual missions like this, but later as they start to pile up I might back out a bit and just stick to documenting important ones. Let me know what you think - sorry again about not dorfing everyone right away, but you'll be in for the next op.

[Burnt Pies]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Anja Galena
Gender: Female
Age: 24
Bio: Anja maintains that aliens have been responsible for the majority of the unfortunate events in her life, from a UFO's engine temporarily blinding her and causing her to veer off the road while driving, to every single pet she has ever owned disappearing within a week of purchase. Her tenacity in trying to prove this made her a nuisance to local law enforcement, but the grounding she picked up in investigation techniques while seeking proof of her claims coupled with that same tenacity will no doubt make her a useful agent, so long as she has a senior partner to rein her in and prevent her from chasing down leads pulled from nowhere.
Gear: Favours ranged weaponry, few explosives. Greatly enjoys firing automatic weaponry.

[Parsely]

PTW

[Mephansteras]

Looks like an interesting mod. I'm in!

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Brion Drake/Brianna Drake
Gender: Male, preferably, but I'm not that picky
Age: 26
Bio: A former Marine who became a private investigator after getting out. He saw some stuff in Afghanistan that he could never explain, and some clues picked up during a few cases led him to believe the events were happening worldwide. He signed up with X-COM as soon as he heard about its existence.
Gear: He did room clearing in the Marines, and is most comfortable with a good shotgun in hand and some armor to keep him safe.

[somemildmanneredidiot]

Ptw

[Rince Wind]

I am always down for some old fashioned alien killing:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Reiner Wind (male)/Rina Wind (female)
Gender: flexible (=whatever you need at the moment)
Age: 34
Bio: R. Wind is a German researcher who came to study the dangerous Australian flora. Turns out the fauna is more dangerous, so s/he studied that. Had sleepless nights over how to explain that to the university at home and the board that granted the grant. Luckily now it looks like this won't be necessary, at least not in the next couple years.
S/he was just poking around in an unusually snake infested area when someone or something attacked. They probably underestimated the skinny person with glasses and a book in one hand. It was a big, heavy, scienty book though, and the creatures skull was no match for it. R. Wind wasn't sure what to make of this attacker, it looked vaguely human, but with scales and reptilian eyes, no discernable sexual organs. It was naked and seemed to be wild, and while strange, s/he filed it under the weird Australien fauna and began cutting it up when, all of a sudden, two wounded X-Com agents arrived who had tangled with this creature before. S/He was dragged to their base, kicking and screaming, and only stopped when s/he was promised more interesting samples, and not just from Australia. After making sure that it wasn't some trap by her/his now former university s/he agreed to stay.
R.Wind is rather naive, being sent to Australia just to get rid of her/him, but a good close combat combatant. R. doesn't believe in aliens at all and thinks most of the people here are nutjobs and in serious need for therapy. Strange creatures are just evolution hard at work, maybe harder than usual, but that could well be because of the atomic tests this century. But if s/he gets to study more, s/he'll put up with this. And crimefighting had always been a dream, but police didn't take R. because of the asthma.
Secret agenda: find out what the others are smoking and get some as well, seems to be really good stuff.