01a. [QHD] XCOM: EW (PC) Abridged - Alien Abductions: Operation Unceasing Blade
2No Commentary / Edited Dynamically* / Classic Difficulty / 1440p60
Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7IEN-HGlR44G2wWcVD13Q891zTPTOjOk
*Wait times, overplanning, and dead time is edited out to make viewing much more interesting! I do try to include moments of forethought so it makes some sense and isn't just constant shooting.
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Quick breakdown for you: XCOM is a long running series that set a definitive style of turn based battles using ranged weapons, various powers, and other equipment to repel the aliens menacing Earth!
Whew.
Anyway, this is the reboot which brought nice graphics and other doodads. The "Enemy Within" expansion pack is being used on the base game "XCOM: Enemy Unknown". It basically tightens up the mechanics and adds a couple new classes and the "meld" pickup to reward people for quickly moving through maps rather than biding their time.
Hopefully this "abridged" playthrough will be a refreshing way to view the series!
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Following is a play-by-play explaining some core concepts (I don't expect this feature on other videos):
01:25 - I stumbled across those aliens with a dash and couldn't hunker down or Overwatch, so decided the best course of action was to bring up the rest of my squad to full cover positions to help spread potential damages and gain ground.
02:25 - Missed shots can destroy cover, leaving units exposed (easy to hit and crit against) as seen here. Yay.
02:43 - Having a second group of aliens self activate immediately after stumbling across the first is a bad turn of luck. More enemies is bad enough, but this also means they are more likely to Mind Merge which increases their critical chance rate which can easily take out a squad member in one hit! They also give an hp buff to their friend which means its harder to ohko them, too.
Its important to note that aliens which get "activated" will head for cover and not fire or overwatch. In general.
03:02 - Flanking enemies is important in this game because you get a bonus to crit (nearly double damage) and the enemy doesn't get the 20 or 40 percent cover bonus.
04:25 - Grenades are amazing because they are a guaranteed 3 damage unless something glitches out, which is why you see me move my one guy up with his back to the target. ...but they result in less drops if you explode an alien, so if I have a potential shot first I'll often take it.
05:22 - Grenades are also great for ensuring a Mind Merged alien dies along with his benefactor! The 4 hp is too high for a grenade and often a gunshot but the helper-alien still only has 3 hp AND if you take him out his friend dies, too!
05:48 - Those timed glowey things are a special pick up, Meld, which becomes unobtainable after it counts to zero which may help explain my hasty behavior at times.
06:56 - I definitely did not forget that alien had Overwatch activated and was simply demonstrating how dashing makes it even more likely they'll miss the shot. (Overwatch lets you take shot at the first movement you see on the enemy's turn with aim disadvantage.)
07:32 - Using my wounded soldier to set up an Overwatch trap was incredibly risky. Do not recommend