Update 8: Strategic Defense InitiativeThe Skyranger ride back was much quieter than normal, perhaps because half of our numbers were missing, or because we were more tired than usual. Anyway, when I got out of bed in the morning, there was again another briefing waiting on the table.X-COM SOLDIER BRIEFING (FEBRUARY)
CLEARANCE LEVEL: CAPTAINSCIENCE DEPARTMENTWe here at the X-COM Science Department have recently made great progress on our new line of laser weapons, with several battlefield applications.
The recently developed Heavy Laser is a scaled-up version of the laser rifle. Due to its power consumption rate, however, it does not possess an automatic fire mode, as that would cause the laser to overheat.
The Laser Cannon is again a scaled-up version of the Heavy Laser, this time designed as an aircraft weapon. The Laser Cannon’s lasers lose coherence and dissipate at short range though, making the cannon obsolete for air-to-air combat.
The Laser Cannon shows promise as a HWP-mounted ground weapon, with power surpassing even that of the Heavy Laser. Due to Engineering Division being currently busy with the production of armor, the tank cannot currently be produced.
The final product of our laser weapons research has lead us to this: a ground based anti-air defense. The Laser Defenses would be more effective than a missile-based system in repelling hostile alien UFOs, but Command does not think that the aliens know the location of our base, and so base defense is not a priority.
After analyzing the samples of alien alloys, we have learnt their secrets. Alien alloys are used to construct both the inner and outer hulls of UFOs, and are extremely heat-resistant, which explains why the alien UFOs can survive the heat of atmospheric entry at high speed. The alloys are composed of several elements fused together, instead of being sandwiched in layers. They are extremely tough, and can only be molded by electro-magnetic fields, which presents a great difficulty in manufacture. The most important use of these alloys, however, is for armor.
Personal armor is a great improvement over the Kevlar vests that our troops wear into battle. They are effective at dissipating the heat and impact of the aliens’ plasma weaponry, turning an otherwise fatal shot into an injuring one, which allowed soldier “Phantom” to survive a direct hit to the chest. The Engineering Department is currently working on producing armor for all soldiers.
ENGINEERING DEPARTMENTWe have completed an examination of the three Cyberdiscs recovered intact from the recent mission.
The Cyberdisk is in effect, a robotic weapon designed to seek out and kill human life. It attacks with a top-mounted plasma weapon, which appears to have great power. Its “hull” is again made out of alien alloys, and is thus nearly impervious to conventional weaponry. The means by which it hovers above the ground is currently unknown, but appears to be similar to the propulsion systems of UFOs. Soldiers are advised to be cautious when engaging Cyberdisks, as they self-destruct when inoperable, thus taking out their attacker.
COMMANDAs many soldiers have noticed, we have begun construction of a new “radar” at base. The Hyperwave Decoder is based on intercepting the transmissions of a UFO, which will reveal its location. Thanks to information provided by a captured Sectoid navigator, we can also decode said information to translate the type of UFO, its destination and mission, as well as the race crewing the UFO.
We have also received an autopsy report on the new species of alien, named “Floaters” for their ability to float in midair. The Floaters can do so because of a device implanted in their body, which acts as a life support system and antigravity device. More importantly, however, the Floaters have a smaller brain size than that of ours, suggesting that they are not the controlling intelligence behind the Sectoids.
Finally, due to Dr. Kramer’s insights, we now believe the UFO intercepted last night was on an alien terror mission. This ship has several features designed for its purpose, mainly the extra-wide doors and the large “wings”, which may be used to transport Cyberdisks. The Sectoids captured on the upper floor of the ship appear to be the “command staff” of the missions, and will be helpful in our understanding of the alien war effort.
Finally, we are happy to report that most of our funding nations were satisfied with our capture of the Terror Ship and have increased funding to X-COM.
Good luck in your battles, Soldier!
X-COM Commander,
Gen. Charles Brooke