So, started up on Classic/Ironman. I got through the first five missions with no KIAs and only three injuries (all on the first mission). I got classed as a Sniper, and my brother (who was watching/inputting his turn) got classed as Assault, both buddies that I put in became Heavies. They'd be okay with that. Bro and I are completely backward, though.
I also have a corporal (I think) who is the only person not to be injured in the first mission. She is also a heavy, and has earned a nickname. Anyway, not too long in, terror levels are high, and I'm on the brink of losing Russia, Brazil and Argentina (I started in Asia.) Suddenly, I get a report out of Mexico that a town's being attacked. So, I send in the boys, and whom my brother refers to as "Little Miss Blow-Shit-Up". Turn one, we evac four civs, and take down two floaters. Not bad, I think. Next turn, we move up into a bar, and hear something in the next room. Bro moves up and carefully opens the door, only to find nothing. An empty room. So, HeavyBud1 moves in, and meets...
Chryssalids. Four of them. In one turn, I lose everyone but me, and I have no choice but to fall back to the Skyranger. We lose Mexico in the process of me leaving, but there was nothing I could do. Right as I get back, we spot a UFO over Japan. So, four rookies and myself head out. It takes us 6 turns of dead silence before we hear anything. I camp out up on an embankment near lots of trees. Two rooks scout the first room of the UFO, while the other two spot some sectoids over the hill I'm on. I have squadsight, so I'm just hanging out. The sectoids scatter away from the UFO, and my rooks chase them down. Three dead sectoids later, my rooks in the UFO come across something. A lone floater, just kind of hanging out. It takes off and hides. The rooks and myself move up on the UFO, so that we can contain anything else there. Before my mini-squad gets there, the two rooks in the UFO get cut down by a hail of plasma. There are at least three floaters in the ship. Next turn, we get there, and knock down two of them. One takes off into the sky. The two rooks I have left move into the ship for cover, and the floater lands next to me, blasting me down to one HP. I, on the other hand, repay the favor by killing it outright. Turns out, there were two more floaters in the ship, and my final rooks found out the hard way. So, I'm the only one left, but I manage to plink both floaters to death with no problem.
There's still alien activity.
So, I move up to scout the UFO, and it takes me three turns to find anything. When I get there, I find what I believe to be an Ethereal. I run as far as I can, and duck into cover, but it's no help. It walks right up to me and melts a hole in my face with its plasma gun.
Everybody's dead, Dave. (I'm gonna restart...on medium.)