Ironman, what kind of loss should I expect?

[River Victor]

Topic. I'm starting to miss this game, and Ironman is something I've never tried, so I think I'm going to re-download it.. The problem is I have a lot of work and workout routine and can only play 4 hours at night max, except on Thursday, Friday and weekends. So I'm looking to start Ironman at the level that's not to rage-inducing. (I have a new niece living with me now, and she's barely a week old, so no screaming.) I'm also a perfectionist. I do try to keep all of my soldiers alive in all rounds of play, but I think it's not gonna be possible with this mode, but at least my OCD will make me finish up all missions in every continent.

So, which level should I go for? What kind of heavy loss should I expect in Ironman mode? I really want to go ahead with this but I really hate starting over just when I'm so close to the end. Granted, I could just start on the most pathetic difficulty, but I have more self-respect than that so maybe you can suggest me the highest mode I should go for without going insane. Also, how do I know if my start is bad and should just abort and restart everything?

EDIT: I am on War of the Chosen, but I don't have Alien Ruler.

[Punkachuros]

+1 (I follow for the same question and hope you got an answer ^^)

[AD]

Do not afraid to start over, the funniest part is to play, not win. I am playing legendary ironman, almost all early missions are flawless.
My current save just got mag weapons, and I only lost two rookies so far.

1.Place your soldiers well and save who you must. Don't hesitate to sacrifice a rookie or someone not your main power, they only cost 40$.

2.Keep in mind what they are carrying and what their skills are, utilize them when encounter.

3. Do not risk your whole squad to push, let say you have a 4 guy squad, after the first and second one go scouting, third one and last one never push further than they, not even one step. Or else, enemies can take three actions in a row and u can just watch.

Recommend you go though once in commander which is easy so to know the enemies and stages, if you forget all those things.

[.O.]

Good tips by the above poster. My only differing comment is that if it's been a while and it's your first time with ironman, just go with veteran difficulty. No shame in that everyone has to start somewhere.

When i first started i lost countless soldiers in non ironman veteran. Now i regularly play legend ironman with no mission or soldier loss with mods that increase difficulty.

[swordfish]

Originally posted by River Victor:

Topic. I'm starting to miss this game, and Ironman is something I've never tried, so I think I'm going to re-download it.. The problem is I have a lot of work and workout routine and can only play 4 hours at night max, except on Thursday, Friday and weekends. So I'm looking to start Ironman at the level that's not to rage-inducing. (I have a new niece living with me now, and she's barely a week old, so no screaming.) I'm also a perfectionist. I do try to keep all of my soldiers alive in all rounds of play, but I think it's not gonna be possible with this mode, but at least my OCD will make me finish up all missions in every continent.

So, which level should I go for? What kind of heavy loss should I expect in Ironman mode? I really want to go ahead with this but I really hate starting over just when I'm so close to the end. Granted, I could just start on the most pathetic difficulty, but I have more self-respect than that so maybe you can suggest me the highest mode I should go for without going insane. Also, how do I know if my start is bad and should just abort and restart everything?

In my opinion if you are a busy man then expect that you will lose a lot at start, many restarts, now you have forgot a lot of stuff and you need to ask and search, after almost 7th mission- each mission will need at least 1 hr and a half, and if you are like me then you gonna have your mind busy all day worried about the next mission and the countdown.
But, in the end, all depends on what diffic. If you pick legend or commander diffic, then expect to have your life messed up D:

[crayno]

WOTC or vanilla?
Soldiers are easier to replace in WOTC
I'd go for veteran if I were you.
Try to get through Gatecrasher (First mission) with max 1 soldier wounded.
It's easy to start over and having squaddies for your next 2 missions is a big help.

[River Victor]

Originally posted by crayno:

WOTC or vanilla?
Soldiers are easier to replace in WOTC
I'd go for veteran if I were you.
Try to get through Gatecrasher (First mission) with max 1 soldier wounded.
It's easy to start over and having squaddies for your next 2 missions is a big help.

War of the Chosen.

[psychotron666]

I'm doing ironman for the first time myself right now. On commander difficulty, and I just unlocked plasma guns and the last tier armour, one chosen is ready to hunt down and I'm on stage 2 with the other 2.

So far it's been easier than I expected. I have failed 3 missions so far, and only lost 3 soldiers very early on. I just fought the first alien ruler, the snake, and killed it in a single turn.

So far so good. Just be careful, I focus more on surviving than accomplishing the objective (unless it's very crucial) and like I said only failed 3 missions so far.

Been making heavy use of the reaper to scout with and deliver killing blows to stay in shadow.

[swordfish]

Originally posted by psychotron666:

I'm doing ironman for the first time myself right now. On commander difficulty, and I just unlocked plasma guns and the last tier armour, one chosen is ready to hunt down and I'm on stage 2 with the other 2.

So far it's been easier than I expected. I have failed 3 missions so far, and only lost 3 soldiers very early on. I just fought the first alien ruler, the snake, and killed it in a single turn.

So far so good. Just be careful, I focus more on surviving than accomplishing the objective (unless it's very crucial) and like I said only failed 3 missions so far.

Been making heavy use of the reaper to scout with and deliver killing blows to stay in shadow.

I am on Ironman legend, never lost a mission, lost two soldiers. Beat chosen like 7 times and once she escaped. I am 8 days from plasma assault rifles. Doing very good so far.

[Zeonista]

It's Ironman, you will lose soldiers eventually. I have never lost less than six, losses mostly in the transfer from a lower tech tier to a higher one as the next set of tougher aliens show up. And sometimes the muton or archon or Chosen rolls a crit from max range, and there it is, another body to be retrieved. That's XCOM, baby!

Now, if you want to play it safe instead of dangerous to keep losses down, here's some advice to save the pain.
1. Play Veteran level to get back into things. That's good enough for an Ironman run, and it won't be as rough as the higher difficulty levels.
2. Work that soldier pool, get the Rookies trained up ASAP, build the GTS first, grab the early Soldiers/Rookies that show up. WOTC will make this a little easier than vanilla once the Ring gets built, but having a bunch of Squaddies in mid-late May is still better in the long run than 1 crack team, 1 decent team, and a bunch of plasma fodder that won't survive their debut mission past June.
3. Go for recon/protection first; wounded soldiers that live will return to action. If WOTC & Tygan has an Inspiration for armor and vests in April or May jump on it with both feet! Getting scanning ability is important; finding the pods before they find your squad will make all the difference in Ironman. Also invest in a Flashbang or two in the early game; dazed basic enemies have lousy aim and won't use their skills.
4. After growing the Squad size the first time, buy Vulture. Let the enemy build your squads' ability! Also consider the mods Loot Drops +1 and Gremlins Grab Loot. No more having a squaddie unmasking a pod while going for the loot, and extra loot!
5. Look at everything on the map as the squad advances. Always make the terrain work for you, and if the unaware Advent pod is hanging out by a fuel tank, you know what gets a rocket or Sharpshooter round, right? BOOM, baby!
6. Remember everything you learned to do to win non-Ironman missions before? Just keep doing that. Play it cool, play it smart, don't get anxious or angry.
7. The Bronzeman mod will keep you from going insane if a glitch occurs or the aliens have a turn of near 100% accuracy. Just sayin'.
8. Avoid the UFO hunt when possible. Defending the Avenger is epic, but in Ironman it has usually cost me 1-2 dead soldiers that I really didn't want to lose.

Good luck, Commander!

[.O.]

Originally posted by Zeonista:

It's Ironman, you will lose soldiers eventually.

it is entirely possible to play ironman without losing a soldier, it just requires experience and the willingness to adapt. People lose soldiers when they do the same thing over and over again even though it didn't work well the first time around.

[Zeonista]

Originally posted by .O.:

Originally posted by Zeonista:

It's Ironman, you will lose soldiers eventually.

it is entirely possible to play ironman without losing a soldier, it just requires experience and the willingness to adapt. People lose soldiers when they do the same thing over and over again even though it didn't work well the first time around.

Some people can get lucky that way on Ironman campaigns. I always seem to draw some lethal alien crits mid-game or late-game. If a pod survives due to RNG, the aliens do get to shoot back, and sometimes they get lucky. And if a mission is going well enough, a single loss isn't worth hitting the Bronzeman re-do.

[Node]

Originally posted by Zeonista:

Originally posted by .O.:

it is entirely possible to play ironman without losing a soldier, it just requires experience and the willingness to adapt. People lose soldiers when they do the same thing over and over again even though it didn't work well the first time around.

Some people can get lucky that way on Ironman campaigns. I always seem to draw some lethal alien crits mid-game or late-game. If a pod survives due to RNG, the aliens do get to shoot back, and sometimes they get lucky. And if a mission is going well enough, a single loss isn't worth hitting the Bronzeman re-do.

I've beaten L/I on WotC without losing a soldier. It's not so much luck as it is just facing off against RNG against the first 4 missions... after that, once you have down what to do, it doesn't require all that much luck. There are whole guides out there with tons of tips/tricks on how to get the upper hand as well as how to play smart such that you're not relying so much on luck.

[|H|H| Fr3ddi3]

Yeah just to add onto this, it is possible to complete an ironman campaign without any deaths, but on legend it's a total lottery.

Enemies will get turns against you, even advent troopers can hit for 5 without a crit and the chosen can OHK ... the assassin in particular, good strategy and tactics should keep the losses down, but a clean run? I would not count on it.

[mosspit]

Originally posted by |H|H| Fr3ddi3:

Yeah just to add onto this, it is possible to complete an ironman campaign without any deaths, but on legend it's a total lottery.

Enemies will get turns against you, even advent troopers can hit for 5 without a crit and the chosen can OHK ... the assassin in particular, good strategy and tactics should keep the losses down, but a clean run? I would not count on it.

I disagree. Beyond the starting 3 or so missions, it is fairly possible to complete a L/I campaign without losing a soldier. I did it without actually intending for it.

It just requires one to just approach the gameplay in a methodical way. But that in itself requires a good understanding of the game mechanics.

Btw the generic Advent Troopers can't hit for 5 without crits. It is the advanced variant that do that. Just to be clear.

[Jonatas]

It's really up to you. Mileage vary a lot with Xcom players and each have their own style.

I'd advise for Veteran because it is really fun and you won't be punished like you would in Commander for a bug or a misclick or if you have to reload mid operation and the game just rolls and all misses.

Also if you don't want rage I'd heavily advise to play WotC (you could even watch a playthrough of a normal youtube to get an idea or maybe try your luck with Enemy Unknown for a while (it induces less rage and can be fun depending on the difficulty you're playing).