Advice for a new player

[Razorback]

hey, so I really loved the Xcom games as well as other strategy games such as xenonauts and when I saw the game was on sale I decided to pick it up as well as all dlcs.

So I was wondering is there any recommended advice for places like geoscape or the tactical layer?

[Artek [General]]

Too many to count, but nothing particular comes to mind.
The one thing you'll have to get used to is the idea that cover does not matter in this game as much as XCOM. Since the game actually simulates bullets hitting things - you can't just hide a soldier behind a barrel and call it a day. A slightly better angle - and that barrel will basically do nothing to stop bullets. So you will have to expand you brain and simulate shooting angles in your head using only bird-view camera to make sure your soldier are exposed as little as possible.

[Razorback]

Originally posted by Artek General:

Too many to count, but nothing particular comes to mind.
The one thing you'll have to get used to is the idea that cover does not matter in this game as much as XCOM. Since the game actually simulates bullets hitting things - you can't just hide a soldier behind a barrel and call it a day. A slightly better angle - and that barrel will basically do nothing to stop bullets. So you will have to expand you brain and simulate shooting angles in your head using only bird-view camera to make sure your soldier are exposed as little as possible.

thanks for responding ! Its pretty interesting the way that the bullet system works. Also just out of curiosity but do you have any recommended QOL mods or something akin to that ?

[Artek [General]]

Originally posted by Razorback:

Originally posted by Artek General:

Too many to count, but nothing particular comes to mind.
The one thing you'll have to get used to is the idea that cover does not matter in this game as much as XCOM. Since the game actually simulates bullets hitting things - you can't just hide a soldier behind a barrel and call it a day. A slightly better angle - and that barrel will basically do nothing to stop bullets. So you will have to expand you brain and simulate shooting angles in your head using only bird-view camera to make sure your soldier are exposed as little as possible.

thanks for responding ! Its pretty interesting the way that the bullet system works. Also just out of curiosity but do you have any recommended QOL mods or something akin to that ?

Not really... I kinda dropped the game before the modding crazy started.
But apparently i have Grenade Range Fix installed, as well as "custom campaign". That's about it. Haven't checked what else people added over the years.

[Bobucles]

Light cover in XCOM gives =20%. Light cover in PP gives... well that depends. If they're ducking behind handlebars, it may as well be 0%. It is very easy to get flanked from frontal angles, especially behind barrels and trees. Rounded corners are awful cover.

For the most part, rocks and other crouching cover protects your legs and only your legs. The head and torso remain easy targets. High ground is pretty effective, especially if you step back a few tiles and get a crouching position. LOS breaking is the most useful defense, if they can't see you their hit rate is 0%.

[Artek [General]]

Originally posted by Bobucles:

...High ground is pretty effective...

OH! This reminds me!
Don't send heavies to rooftops hoping to rain down machine gun fire from elevated position!
Heavies in this game are re@#$ds and refuse to lift their heavy weapon higher than their belt - so they WILL Shoot fences, safety pipes and other objects on the roof edges instead of the intended target.
If your heavy gets a talent to use literally anything else but heavy weapons - you are blessed, because everything else is used at shoulder level and can shoot from elevated positions properly.
If he doesn't - fill his ass with grenades and just use those instead. Or give him a melee weapon - they genuinely get more mileage out of a rusty machete than they do from their so called "Heavy Weapons".

Heavy class is truly a meme in this game, in all the hilarious ways.

[Lotor13]

Originally posted by Razorback:

So I was wondering is there any recommended advice for places like geoscape or the tactical layer?

- for the first game or games - do not play (activate) with DLCs, play just a base game. DLC expansions are poorly designated and make game so much harder. Only Kaos Engines is fine.

- as mentioned by others - cover system and aiming works different than XCOM with %chance, right positioning and angle is important

- Shooting do not finish Your turn - so You can, as You maybe guess, 1/ move from safe cover 2/ shoot 3/ move to cover again

- Phoneix Point is more about overpowered skills (spells) combinations, than tactics. You have to find them to play effectively, otherwise the game would became extremely hard.

- there is a lot more micromanagment in PP than in XCOM - soldiers have inventory, and weapons need ammo, if You forget to bring ammo to mission - You are doomed. So be ready to deal with that. + You must control trade manualy, build buildings in multiple bases etc.

- You can train soldier without combat, just build taining facility, and let soldiers in, they will gain level and skill points, Additional skill points will be received for mission completetion.

[Spotter]

Originally posted by Artek General:

Too many to count, but nothing particular comes to mind.
The one thing you'll have to get used to is the idea that cover does not matter in this game as much as XCOM. Since the game actually simulates bullets hitting things - you can't just hide a soldier behind a barrel and call it a day. A slightly better angle - and that barrel will basically do nothing to stop bullets. So you will have to expand you brain and simulate shooting angles in your head using only bird-view camera to make sure your soldier are exposed as little as possible.

That reply is a total Lie! Cover does work If the bullets hit it, instead of your trooper!
The ballistics in this game are extremely well done. The best of any TBS Combat game, based on my 20+ years of computer gaming.

[Just me n my pc...]

Some people like PP better than the other XCOMs. Others don't. My advice is play vanilla until you are confident, then add DLC one at a time to suit.

I'm a fan. I'll hit 1,000 hours by New Year's Day.

[Artek [General]]

Originally posted by Spotter:

Originally posted by Artek General:

Too many to count, but nothing particular comes to mind.
The one thing you'll have to get used to is the idea that cover does not matter in this game as much as XCOM. Since the game actually simulates bullets hitting things - you can't just hide a soldier behind a barrel and call it a day. A slightly better angle - and that barrel will basically do nothing to stop bullets. So you will have to expand you brain and simulate shooting angles in your head using only bird-view camera to make sure your soldier are exposed as little as possible.

That reply is a total Lie! Cover does work If the bullets hit it, instead of your trooper!
The ballistics in this game are extremely well done. The best of any TBS Combat game, based on my 20+ years of computer gaming.

M-hm. Say it to my sniper who was hiding in "cover" of Synedrion building's corner and ate literally all of the bullets because enemies just moved to have something like 30 degrees angle on him and that pretty much made him a target in the open, while the game's UI tries to convince me that it is indeed a "full cover".
I understand that the cover is realistic, but the UI just does not reflects it in any way and might as well not be there while player has to simulate everything in his head manually.

[Bobucles]

Yes, you pretty much have to learn the hard way that PP cover isn't XCOM cover. If they are visible they are shootable. It's that shrimple. Take advantage of the action system to duck behind walls, that's the best defense.

Don't send heavies to rooftops hoping to rain down machine gun fire from elevated position!
Heavies in this game are re@#$ds and refuse to lift their heavy weapon higher than their belt - so they WILL Shoot fences, safety pipes and other objects on the roof edges instead of the intended target.

Wow, you use the heavy gun as a firearm? Frankly, anything smaller than a Chiron isn't worth a heavy's gun. The weapon type just isn't made for human sized targets. Heavy weapons are made to be gigantic clubs, dealing 100-150 damage thwacks against just about anything.

Heavies are notable for War Cry, which is the most busted ability in the game, and their +50% damage on bash attacks. They are primarily a melee class, locking down trouble and smacking them. Eventually they get rage burst, which can one-tap jumbo targets at point blank range, but that's melee range so get used to running them up close.