Xenon no threat?

[Austin (Ocelot)]

I must have restarted the game 5 times now. The Xenon just seem like they are nowhere to be found. Hatikvah, Frontier, Getsu, all the sectors seem to be holding just fine, and are even expanding into the neighboring Xenon systems with impunity. What gives? Why do the Xenon not have fleets on the other side as the humans do? The world just seems boring, even 20h in?

[🎮 PalkoVvodets 🔑]

Outcome also depends on world generation seeds. But, yeah, Xenon is weak.

[Sticky Wicket]

Random seed. Sometimes it's totally the opposite with Xenon taking over core sectors and causing chaos from very early on.

[=X-men=]

Try to block the faction shipyards with L XL ships, occupying all the docks to give Xenon a chance to win. Each time the Terran Protectorate, Teladi, Holy Order of the Pontifex + Republic of Antigone will destroy the Xenon sectors very quickly. The first one of the sectors will fall with the Holy Order of the Pontifex and the Republic of Antigone along with the occasional Terran Protectorate may help it. The second sector will be cleared by Teladi. This can happen, but in rare cases the Xenons can overcome it and reproduce elsewhere.

[Wraith]

A second way is to get a moderately good xenon seed and then wipe out a few xenon sector

They become more centralized and then the threat really ramp up once they rebuild

[Austin (Ocelot)]

I hear a ton about seeds but is there any way to really FORCE a good one?

[SinisterSlay]

I even installed mods to make them harder and they still never do anything

[AllfatherOdin]

I just started game, and the Xenon have been very active and taking sectors from the very beginning. Kinda sucks for my first foray into X4 to see that, but I guess I am better prepared for the future lol.

[flywlyx]

Originally posted by Austin (Hammerbite):

I hear a ton about seeds but is there any way to really FORCE a good one?

Get the "good" seed and use it while creating the custom game.

[¥aeko]

Have a 2nd savegame now, xenon are getting their butts kicked.

ANT is taking the sector south of Getsu Fune, the xenon never managed to finish the defense station there, top left cant get out because the PAR for once have a defense station that isnt stupidly placed in fron of the gate, same goes for ZYA.

But then, I guess it just takes time until those are "chewed down" eventually.

A lot of this really depends on where those defense stations are spawned at the beginning - if they spawn in front of gates (one literally is so perfectly in front of it that I constantly crash into it coming out of the gate), then the xenon have a hard time for a long time, until the inevitable KKI comes through and mops the floor with it.

If it doesnt work out... maybe I need to cause some "accidents", you know, that kind of accident where you drop something on the big red button of an asgard.

[hurepoix]

Originally posted by Austin (Hammerbite):

Xenon no threat?

Yes.

They had some activity up to the V3.3. However some players wanted a peaceful world to quietly make business, and it seems devs followed this way.

[Bullpup]

Originally posted by hurepoix:

Originally posted by Austin (Hammerbite):

Xenon no threat?

Yes.

They had some activity up to the V3.3. However some players wanted a peaceful world to quietly make business, and it seems devs followed this way.

I think no one wants it peaceful just to watch a credit balance go up and buy cool battleships to use against ... nothing.

Problem for me is when you barely scrape up 30m and then a type I escorted by 2 Ks instagib both your L traders or wreck your first factory you spent 10 real hours waiting to build. You can't set up an alert because there are too many Xenon mining ships and nuisance fighter incursions. OOS you need to be endgame level strong to clear that sort of threat, or create some crazy blacklists.

[Bozz 💀]

Originally posted by Bullpup:

Originally posted by hurepoix:

Yes.

They had some activity up to the V3.3. However some players wanted a peaceful world to quietly make business, and it seems devs followed this way.

I think no one wants it peaceful just to watch a credit balance go up and buy cool battleships to use against ... nothing.

Problem for me is when you barely scrape up 30m and then a type I escorted by 2 Ks instagib both your L traders or wreck your first factory you spent 10 real hours waiting to build. You can't set up an alert because there are too many Xenon mining ships and nuisance fighter incursions. OOS you need to be endgame level strong to clear that sort of threat, or create some crazy blacklists.

You don't, you can put some defenses around gates where your factory is, or you can simply build it in a safe sector where they are no xenons.

Defenses don't cost much for defending even against a big xenon fleet.
They are many sectors where you can build without having to fear any xenon coming in.

[¥aeko]

Originally posted by Bullpup:

I think no one wants it peaceful just to watch a credit balance go up and buy cool battleships to use against ... nothing.

Problem for me is when you barely scrape up 30m and then a type I escorted by 2 Ks instagib both your L traders or wreck your first factory you spent 10 real hours waiting to build. You can't set up an alert because there are too many Xenon mining ships and nuisance fighter incursions. OOS you need to be endgame level strong to clear that sort of threat, or create some crazy blacklists.

xenon should simply scale as the game goes on - maybe relative to the players total asset value etc.

like: give them 2 Ks for the price of one etc. - the player will never go and actually count the ressources the xenon collected anyway.

Right now, they are beyond boring and useless - even K/I I can blow up with an M ship anyway, if not S.

[Donauwelle]

Originally posted by Austin (Hammerbite):

I must have restarted the game 5 times now. The Xenon just seem like they are nowhere to be found.

You can still "manually" buff Xenos,
Ive now have 2 6.2 saves with nearly extinguished Xenos before reaching 4d Playtime ~100 hrs into.
In both saves "the south" was overrun by ANT+HOP surprisingly quick while TEL took their time but cleared their Xenon sectors aswell, seems there is a pattern.

Hoping the "crisis" is gonna involve a huge Xenon buff im currently setting up smth for that.
In my current run im pirating the s*** out of ZYA to make it easier for Xenos to fight them. I hope i see the same behaviour as before with the commons clearing the south+east in no time.
MB i can even accelerate them with my pirating as it also gives ARG more room to breath.
Ultimatively im trying to create a Huge connected Xenon realm where ZYA+FRF+BOR are atm.

Without stuff like this the Xenon seem completly overwhelmed ATM

[D55]

If the Xenon are boring then go after a different faction, theres plenty to pick from or make it really interesting and go against them all if you want a combat playthrough.
The issue with the xenon is that new players dont understand how the universe works in terms of dealing with the xenon or what they need to do to aid the other factions and they often realise too late then come on to the forums and complain about how their game is now ruined by them.
The game balance with the Xenon is in my view about right, if you leave them alone and dont fight them at all and let them do their thing they will usually push through on at least one front, If you dont help ZYA they will eventually wipe as will the PAR on the top left.
Stop aiding factions and fighting the Xenon and youll see them expand but offer the slightest resistance and you will easily hold them back, again i think this was purposely done to aid new players.

You could always go the mod route which if you want a combat centred play through is in my opinion the way to go.
you have things like VRO, various Xenon overhaul mods or mods that change their ship build speeds, station build speed mods will affect Xenon expansion fairly dramatically, DeadAir mods like dynamic wars, mods that increase fleet jobs will have an affect especially those based on the Xenon and you could easily mod the files to give them crazy amounts of capital ships.

There are lots of ways to make this game harder but again i think they have it just right, the xenon are there just to keep the early economy ticking over and then mid to late game if players want a good scrap they should move on from the fairly easy Xenon and take on another faction.

If you`re beating the Xenon and have pushed them back or wiped them then i congratulate you for completing what i consider the Tutorial faction!