The Hyphen Is Important, I Swear: Let's Play Classic X-COM [COMPLETED]

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Some plasma beams are quickly put together for the Avengers stationed at the north pole.


A new tank arrives at the Asia base.


The second Avenger arrives at the Arctic.


Assembly starts on some new power suits.



An Ethereal scout ship is located and shot down over northern China.




The Avengers are armed up with the new plasma beams.




Work starts on a psionic lab at the Arctic.




Work begins on another psionic facility at the Asia base. Now troops can be given training at multiple bases.



A pair of supply ships shows up on radar.


The transport heading to the Muton base is shot down over the Atlantic.


The Ethereal ship crashes in Africa.



A Snakeman ship is shot down in Central Asia.



Another ship lurking around Siberia is shot down.





A Muton scout almost slips away from radar, but an interceptor catches up with it over the Andes and obliterates it.


More armor is ready at the Asia base.




A pair of abductors shows up over the United States. One lands in the Midwest; this is a good opportunity to obtain Elerium.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

The Skyranger from X-COM One is directed to the Abductor landing site in the United States.


The other Abductor slips out of radar range. Interceptors remain on patrol in case it pops up again.


New troops arrive at the secondary base in Asia.


Forces arrive at the enemy ship, commencing Operation Raven Shade.











The squad gets armed and ready. An oversight was made and one soldier was not given armor; they will not be used in combat.


The squad arrives at night; the hovertank will take point.



A Floater is on a nearby rooftop, getting taken out by the tank as it exits out of the Skyranger.


As smoke and a flare get set down, another Floater is found.




The HWP pulls back, leaving an opening for another soldier to hit it.


Scouting continues, and the ship is found.


Troops on the ground continue fanning out.



Another alien gets hit by the HWP.

A Floater manages to get the jump on one of the scouting rookies.


A missed alien grenade tears the roof off a farmhouse.



The Floater gets attacked by another rookie, going down.



The HWP continues advancing, taking out another alien.



One of the officers with flying suits takes out one more Floater.




One of the aliens survived, but a failed grenade attack from it leaves no way for it to hide.


With the aliens gathered outside the ship cleared away, it's time to break through to the inside of the ship.


Yoko Shoji kicks open the door, finding more Floaters.


One goes down...


...but more retaliate, taking her out.





A firefight ensues in the main operating room of the ship.


With the center of the ship cleared, troops advance.




Iwahara aims the blaster launcher at the side of the hull, breaching the ship open. Troops get ready to move through the gap.



An alien tries to enter the operating room, getting taken out by an ambush of waiting troops.



A Floater on the upper level manages to get the jump on a soldier on the upper level.



Retaliation is swift.


A captain punches through a wall of the ship, closing off a potential route of escape and ambush.



Colonel Mederow enters the control room, taking out the Floater leader and clearing out the area.

Results of Operation Raven Shade:
HWP: 1 kill
Col. Uta Mederow: 3 kills
Cpt. Gennadi Korkia: promoted to Colonel
Bernard Dreyfus: 1 kill, promoted to Sergeant
Isao Noguchi: 3 kills, promoted to Sergeant
Jacques Pecheaux: Killed in action
Cpt. Yoko Shoji: 2 kills, killed in action
Col. Dwight Kemp: Killed in action
12 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
UFO hull, reactors, navigation systems, fuel, and surgical equipment recovered
Debriefing: Losing a few soldiers was expected for a night mission, but the cache of Elerium is a huge boon.


Production begins on more power suits for ground forces at the European forces.



The engineering division at the Asia base starts on producing more Firestorm craft.



The other abductor appears on radar again. One of the Avengers quickly sweeps in and takes the craft out.


This, however, depletes the supply of fusion missiles at the Arctic base; more will have to be manufactured and shipped over.


With the Skyranger at X-COM One fuelling back up, the forces from Asia will be handling the crash site of the other abductor.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

An Ethereal supply ship manages to make it to the ground and deliver its cargo before a Firestorm can catch it.



Forces from Asia get ready to move in on the crashed Abductor in the forests of Canada. Operation Boreal Hatchet commences.











Even a team of rookies should be able to handle a Floater crash site when equipped with power suits and plasma guns.




The HWP is hit as it starts advancing.



Smoke is set down, and the squad waits for a safe opportunity to move forward.





Floaters move into the field of fire of troops at the Skyranger's door, quickly getting mowed down.



Another alien wanders into range.


It's now clear for troops to move down the ramp and into the field.



Another Floater goes down.





Yet another alien is sniped by the squad.



Another hostile in the forest is hit.








Troops rush into the ship, leading to a deadly firefight.



Another alien past the surgical room gets taken out as the rookies advance.


As a sweep is carried out, one of the reactors is found intact.


An alien on the other side of the ship manages to catch one of the rookies with plasma fire.



Another of the team manages to take it out.



Troops make their way to the top level of the ship.





One rookie takes out two Floaters in the upper halls of the ship.




A push is made into the control room, and the ship's leader is taken out.


Results of Operation Boreal Hatchet:
HWP: destroyed
Bernard Gautier: 3 kills, promoted to Sergeant
Yutaka Fujimoto: Promoted to Squaddie
Virgil Thompson: 2 kills, promoted to Sergeant
Sylvie Gaudin: 1 kill, promoted to Squaddie
Clarence Kemp: 2 kills, promoted to Sergeant
Bernard Marcelle: 1 kill, promoted to Sergeant
Jungo Morita: Killed in action
Kenji Iwahara: Killed in action
16 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
UFO hull, reactor, navigation systems, fuel, and surgical equipment recovered
Debriefing: Losing a few rookies on a mission is an expected and acceptable loss, but the Elerium is again a major boon.



A Muton scout is shot down off the African coast.



The month ends, and the international community continues to pledge its support for us. Psionic training continues; the capabilities of the troops at X-COM One have been enhanced.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

A Muton probe, a Snakeman scout, and an Ethereal cargo ship appear on radar.


The Snakeman ship is shot down over Asia.


The Muton scout is completely destroyed.


The Ethereal ship lands at the alien base in West Africa. With psionic screening and training, plus the current-generation HWPs, it's feasible to make an attempt to seize the supply ship. However, the cargo ship takes off and escapes before the Skyranger can arrive.


A new batch of troops arrives in Europe, and goes through screening for combat capability.


More troops arrive at the Asia base.



Another Muton scout is shot down.


A new old-model tank arrives in Asia.



A fifth hangar is completed at the polar base; it's almost fully complete.



Another supply ship departs from Oceania, exiting the atmosphere over Asia.



Another Ethereal supply ship shows up over Asia, getting shot down by a Firestorm.



More power armor is ready, and engineering in Europe starts assembling more missiles for the Avengers stationed in the Arctic.




A Muton supply ship gets shot down over northern Canada by one of the Avengers; this is a good target to reclaim, although the severity of the damage to the ship's reactors can not be known until troops land. A ground operation would also be a good test to determine if our psionics are battle-ready yet.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Forces are en route to the crashed Muton supply ship in northern Canada. Operation Spring Permafrost begins.











The squad gets ready for combat. With another month of psionic training underway, the most skilled psychic troops are given amplifiers.




Right off the bat, a Muton near the crash site is taken out by Wright.



Smoke gets set down.



Another Muton gets sniped.



Colonel Mederow brings down another Muton in the vicinity of the landing zone.



A sergeant deals with another Muton.



One Muton is still outside the ship. A specialist directs their psi-amp, and manages to get the alien under mind control.



The Muton is convinced to throw down its weapon, disarming it.





Another Muton comes from the opposite side of ship, drawing reaction fire from the troops.



Mind control goes off again, and the Muton is ordered into the ship.







Another Muton is controlled, and the aliens are turned against one another.



Another Muton is forced to throw down its weapon.



With the hostile resistance softened up, a colonel moves in and begins the assault.



Iwahara aims the blaster launcher at the bridge of the ship.



Troops go in through the breach, taking the top level of the cargo shuttle.


An attack from a Muton lightly wounds Wright, but there's no severe bleeding and he can continue to press on.


Mind control is used to disarm the Muton and walk it into Wright's line of fire.



Another Muton arrives on the bottom level, and gets taken out by waiting troops.





Wright takes out the weakened Muton, then proceeds to take out another Muton further in the ship and clear the area out.

Results of Operation Spring Permafrost
Col. Alan ?Emergent? Wright: 3 kills; wounded, will recover in 7 days
Col. Uta Mederow: 1 kill
Col. Gennadi Korkia: 2 kills
Sgt. Bernard Dreyfus: 2 kills
12 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
1 alien captured
UFO hull, navigation systems, food capsules, and surgical equipment recovered
Debriefing: After months of research, testing, and training, we now have troops capable of psionic warfare. This opens up a new world of possibilities; it's now reasonable to start taking on the alien bases across the world.

[CyberAngel]

The success is indeed worthy of celebration, but don't get too cocky. Mutons are psionically weakest aliens, it'd probably be a bad idea to try that on Sectoids or Ethereals just yet.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

With psionics proving to be massively effective against the Mutons, it's time to take down their base in the Gulf of Mexico. Operation Mind Games begins.











The squad gets armed up and ready. Blaster launcher, psi amplifiers, heavy armor, everything.



The squad is divided into two teams, at the separate entrances of the base.


A Muton is spotted by troops, and the psychic assault begins.



The Muton is forced to discard its weapon and is used as a scout under the squad's control



Flares are being used to help extend visual range in the dark hallways of the base.



Another Muton is spotted by the one being used to scout, starting a chain reaction of mind control.




One by one, the Mutons of the base are disarmed.



By using mind-controlled aliens as scouts, there is no risk in being ambushed. It just means that the enemy is fighting against itself against the troops.




Another Muton helper spots some more targets for us.




Controlling an alien carrying a Blaster Launcher solves a lot of problems at once.




More Mutons are detected.


One of the aliens is taken out by the infighting.





The aliens continue to turn on each other due to psionic influence.



One of the colonels steps in and takes out a Muton himself when mind control isn't enough for the job.


Despite the overwhelming advantage, a lone scout is taken out by a lucky shot from a dark hallway.



Another Muton is taken out, leaving little between the troops and the command room.




More mind control is used to thin out the Muton ranks.



A Celatid takes out another of the controlled Mutons.



Iwahara carefully directs a Blaster warhead to try and take out the door and the Celatid beyond it. One of the troops is injured by the blast, requiring a rush for medical attention.


Fortunately, it's easy to get a medic through with most of the facility cleared out.



The HWP takes out another roving Muton in the halls.



The Celatid survived the explosion, but the hole in the door provides enough of an opening to take it out the normal way.



Using a mind-controlled Muton to scout the control room found no command personnel left upstairs, so it's just a matter of going in and clearing things out.

Results of Operation Mind Games:
HWP: 1 kill
Col. Gennadi Korkia: 2 kills
Cpt. Clarence Miller: 1 kill
Cpt. Rene Buchard: 1 kill; wounded, will recover in 13 days
Cpt. Louis Dujardin: killed in action
6 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
13 aliens killed by aliens
2 aliens captured
Alloys and entertainment systems recovered
Alien base destroyed
Debriefing: While there were some casualties during this mission, the use of psionics offloaded most of the risk of this operation onto the Mutons. It was hoped that a commander could be captured during this operation, but this did not come to pass.

[Stuffman]

Pretty smooth operation for a fuckin' Muton base.

gg psionics.

[Reddyne]

6 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
13 aliens killed by aliens

WOAH. No wonder this was such a big thing in the reboot.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

A Muton scout ship gets shot down over Africa. The elite troops from Europe are sent to the crash site. Operation Brain Buster begins.











The squad gets armed and ready for battle.


Smoke gets set down to start the mission.


Troops get moving out.


More smoke gets set down as troops keep moving forward.



A Muton is controlled and pressured into throwing down its weapon.



A Muton fires on one of its allies, but misses.



It is sniped by rookie member of the squad.


One of the Mutons shoots one of the aliens under the squad's control.




Another Muton is controlled, throwing its weapon off the roof of a farmhouse before being manipulated into jumping off and into the range of the other troops.


Another Muton is sniped.


Troops wait outside the door of the UFO.


Another alien soldier is sniped by the new rookie.


A Muton emerges from the ship, but is ambushed by the waiting troops. It survives, retreating back inside.



It is mind controlled and disarmed.



Another Muton in the field is taken out.



The injured navigator is taken down with the stun rod.

Results of Operation Brain Buster
Col. Gennadi Korkia: 1 kills
Yoko Morita: 3 kills, promoted to Sergeant
4 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
1 alien killed by aliens
1 alien captured
UFO hull, reactor, navigation systems, and fuel recovered
Debriefing: A successful operation. Zero casualties on our part, and a fully intact UFO recovered.


Interrogation begins on the alien navigator that was just captured.

[Iced Fairy]

I like how one alien is being interrogated by 50 scientists.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Some fuel and ammunition is shipped to the base at the Arctic.


The workshop is completed there.



A small Muton ship is taken out over Western Europe; it's not worth trying to recover.


New personnel arrive.



Another Muton ship, presumably part of the same mission as the one that we recently recovered, is shot down over the ocean.



Interrogation of the captured Muton navigator leads to some concerning information about the nature of the alien operations.


One of the Firestorms has been finished at the Asia complex; a plasma beam has been quickly put together, and both the ship and its weapon are being shipped to northern Africa.



A Snakeman terror ship is shot down over the wilds of Siberia. The European forces depart to the crash site, beginning Operation Serpent Flayer.












The squad gets armed and ready for battle.



From the start, a Snakeman is visible from the landing zone. And when an alien is visible, it's vulnerable to psionics. Two Snakemen and a Chrysallid get controlled, becoming scouts for our cause.



More aliens are spotted via the use of the scouts.




With mind control expended for the moment, it's time to switch to a less subtle but no less effective battle tactic.



Unfortunately, Iwahara's shot with the launcher misses the mark.


With the presence of more Chryssalids known, the HWP continues to blast the ground.





Some Snakeman soldiers and a Chryssalid accomplice are neutralized.



Some long-distance shooting from Colonel Korkia brings down another Chryssalid.



Another Snakeman is controlled and disarmed.




The HWP gets ready to take a shot at the ground again, but a mistake in plotting the course causes the shot to fly back into the tank. Fortunately, no troops are harmed by the blast.



Korkia handles another Chrysallid.



Iwahara blows open the cockpit; the course of this warhead is planned much more carefully.


A Snakeman leader can be seen through the hole. Unfortunately, Sgt. Morita has no time to get into safe cover, and all she can do is try to crouch and make herself as small of a target as possible.



Unfortunately, Morita is seen and sniped.



Another Snakeman is spotted and quickly dispatched.



The Snakeman leader is mind-controlled. Its fire is directed at a Chrysallid, which survives the assault.




The leader then falls to the mutiny of another Snakeman, which is then taken out by Korkia.





Korkia takes out another alien in the cockpit, blowing out the navigation consoles in the process.






A Snakeman on the bottom level is mind controlled, turning on the Chryssalid next to it, then another Snakeman, then another Chrysallid.




The Snakeman is then taken out by a Chryssalid; fortunately, there isn't the usual infestation to deal with.


Another of the Snakemen outside is completely neutralized by Korkia.



The last Chryssalid is lured outside, and quickly dealt with.

Result of Operation Serpent Flayer
HWP: 1 kill, destroyed
Col. Gennadi Korkia: 6 kills
Cpt. Isao Noguchi: 2 kills
Sgt. Yoko Morita: Killed in action
14 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
4 aliens killed by aliens
UFO hull, entertainment systems recovered
Debriefing: Although some minor losses occurred, the Snakemen are almost as vulnerable to psionics as the Mutons.



The psionic troops have obtained the names ?Bend? and ?Break?.


Colonel Mederow has been given the title ?Hailfire?.


Colonel Korkia has obtained the name ?Stormbringer?.

With it now clear that Snakemen and Chryssalids can be overtaken by psionics, plans are being made to assault the Snakeman base in Papua New Guinea.

[Iced Fairy]

*Insert long list of Mentok the MINDTAKER quotes here*

Looks like things are picking up.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Engineers arrive at the Arctic.



The new Firestorm arrives in Northern Africa, and is equipped and prepared for interception.





The obsolete radar at the Arctic is replaced with a Mind Shield.



An additional Mind Shield is constructed on Sakhalin.



With the squad prepared to move out, forces move out to the Snakeman base on Papua New Guinea. Operation Severed Ouroboros begins.











Everybody gets armed up.




The two entry points to the base are close together, separated by only one single room.



A Snakeman trooper is spotted, and psychic powers are unleashed.


Two more Snakemen and a Chryssalid are found. The reason this base was left along for so long was the risk involved in fighting the Chryssalids in closed terrain; with psionics, that threat is almost completely eliminated.



The other two Snakemen are controlled, and they unleash hell on the surrounded Chryssalid.



The outer layer of the command center is opened up, and another Chryssalid is taken out.



Mind-controlled aliens are ordered to throw down their weapons.



The roving HWP spots another Snakeman. Mind control doesn't take, so the tank gets into cover.


Another Snakeman is disarmed via psionics.


A Snakeman elsewhere is taken out by a snap reaction shot from one of the troops.




Control is obtained over a Snakeman with a Blaster Launcher. Troops clear away from the vicinity as the alien fires on its allies and blows a hole into the inner part of the command center.



The attacking Snakeman survives, and throws down its weapon.


A navigator also discards its weapon.



An engineer is made to throw away its Blaster Launcher.




Colonel Korkia moves in and stuns a Snakeman.


A clump of Snakeman troops is spotted; it's hard to tell which ones are armed and which ones aren't, so troops just hang back for now.


More Snakemen are disarmed via mind control.

Unfortunately, as one of the troops moves forward, he is sniped by a Snakeman that wasn't anticipated.



The HWP searches the blind spot, finding the Snakeman but unable to take it out. The tank pulls back and waits for a better opportunity.


The HWP is damaged when the Snakeman notices it.


Mind control is used to disarm it.




More aliens are stunned.




Squad members surround a navigator, preventing it from escaping as it's stunned.


A mind-controlled Snakeman is sent up to the command room, finding a lone Snakeman officer.




It's not the commander we're looking for. The leader is mind-controlled, taking out the entire command room with a Blaster Launcher.



A Snakeman that had neither been noticed or disarmed by the squad gets the jump on the severely damaged HWP.


Colonel Korkia is hit by a Blaster Launcher round from one of the still-remaining Snakemen.


Psionics quickly disarms and defangs the aliens.



A Chryssalid that was left unnoticed almost catches Mederow, but she has just enough time to blast it repeatedly before it can close in. She then proceeds to clean up the remaining Snakemen.

Result of Operation Severed Ouroboros
Col. Uta ?Hailfire? Mederow: 4 kills
Cpt. Jungo ?Bend? Tanida: Promoted to Colonel
Sgt. Bernard Dreyfus: 1 kill, promoted to Captain
Col. Gennadi ?Stormbringer? Korkia: Killed in action
Cpt. Clarence Miller: Killed in action
HWP: Destroyed
5 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
11 aliens killed by aliens
3 aliens captured
Alien alloys and entertainment systems recovered
Alien base destroyed
Debriefing: Unfortunately, no commander was found at this base, and two troops and the HWP were lost in the assault. However, destroying another alien base means we are turning the tide.


Scientists start pumping the captured Snakemen for intelligence.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

A Floater scout is destroyed over Siberia.






Radar picks up a Muton battleship. One of the Avenger craft goes after it, and after a back-and-forth, the alien ship is shot down. This is the first time we've managed to take out a battleship in transit. Little stands in the way of X-COM forces anymore, in the ground or on the air.



After taking out an alien capital ship, a small scout is nothing for our interceptors.



Forces prepare to move out to the crashed battleship. As this is part of a major turning point in the campaign against the aliens, this is going to be called Operation New Dawn.











The troops get equipped and ready. Armor was forgotten for one of the rookies, so they will be hanging back, operating the mind probe.


From the start, a Silacoid can be seen in the desert.




A nearby Muton is spotted and mind-controlled. It then attacks the Silacoid, before being taken out by another alien soldier.



That Muton is forcibly disarmed.




A Celatid is spotted, controlled, and has its venom directed at the Silacoid.


The disarmed Muton is taken out.



More Mutons are manipulated into scouting around for the troops, throwing down their weapons in the process.



The Celatid is taken out by a rookie.



A Muton is sent inside the ship, finding more hostile.





One with a Blaster Launcher is controlled, causing massive devastation.


A Muton outside finds the will to use a grenade, but falls short of actually hitting the squad.




One of the aliens that survived the blast is used to take out a Celatid, before falling to another in the ship.



Another with a Blaster Launcher is manipulating into attacking alien forces.







Rookies outside mops up the disorganized Muton forces.



A navigator is stunned and captured.


One last Muton is taken out, clearing out the wreckage of the ship.

Results of Operation New Dawn
Col. Uta ?Hailfire? Mederow: 2 kills
Gerhard Steinbach: 2 kills, promoted to Sergeant
Spencer Horton: Promoted to Sergeant
Shigeo Kojima: 2 kills, promoted to Sergeant
No X-COM casualties
6 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
11 aliens killed by aliens
1 alien captured
UFO hull, reactor, navigation systems, fuel, and entertainment systems recovered
Debriefing: A massive victory for X-COM forces.





Radar picks up a Muton fleet preparing to set up a base. The base is in X-COM territory, and Mutons are no match for psionic troops. As soon as this base is located, it will be destroyed.


One of the supply ships is taken out by a Firestorm, although with everything going on there might not be time to recover it.

[Iced Fairy]

Well that was a crushing victory.  More like that pls.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

The Muton ships take off from their landing sites, but are immediately intercepted and shot down. Even the battleship leading the operation is taken out.


Two supply ships and a battleship are crashed in the vicinity of Siberia and the Arctic. A series of missions begins in order to recover the crashed fleet; this will be a multi-part operation called Bright Aurora.


The battleship near the North Pole will be the first target. Phase One begins.











The squad gets ready for battle.




Smoke gets set down and troops get moving.




Mutons get located and mind-controlled.


They are used to take out a roving Celatid.




The Mutons turn on each other, one firing on the ones under mind control.




A Silacoid tries to attack one of the soldiers, but the heat can't get through the armor and the alien is promptly taken out.



Another Celatid is located, getting sent into the ship before getting taken out by waiting Muton troops.


Muton soldiers are disarmed.






Soldier in the ship are taken control of, using Blaster Launcher warheads to wipe out their allies.



An alien is stunned.



Iwahara uses her own Blaster Launcher to wipe out more Muton forces.



A Muton that survived that blast is taken out by a shot from another of the troops.


One of the Mutons that was forced to throw down its weapon manages to use a grenade, managing to land it precisely near one of the troops. The blast is point-blank, causing them to bleed out before aid can be rendered.


The alien is quickly taken out in response.

Results of Operation Bright Aurora, Phase One
Avatar of War, Yoko Iwahara: 3 kills
Cpt. Rene Buchard: promoted to Colonel
Sgt. Gerhard Steinbach: 1 kill, promoted to Captain
Sgt. Shigeo Kojima: 1 kill
Kenji Fujimoto: 1 kill, promoted to Sergeant
Col. Leon Dreyfus: Killed in action
5 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
11 aliens killed by aliens
UFO hull, reactor, navigation systems, fuel, and entertainment systems recovered
Debriefing: Other than an unlucky grenade, this mission went very well.


More crash sites remain, and the search is on for the location of the Muton base.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Work begins on some more flying suits using the recently salvaged materials.



The Muton supply ships have self-destructed, but flyover patrols have found the base. Phase Two of Bright Aurora begins.











The squad gets armed up.



Troops are split between the two entrances of the base.


Scouting locates one of the Muton guards, allowing Buchard and Tanida to unleash their powers.



A Muton soldier with a Blaster Launcher is taken control of, blowing away its allies around the outer doors to the control room.




Another mind-controlled Muton is turned on the enemy.




A firefight breaks out between the alien forces.


A clump of Muton troops under mind control attracts a shot from an enemy Blaster Launcher.


One of the troops advancing down a hallway is caught by surprise.



Iwahara directs her launcher towards the source of the shot.




A Celatid is controlled, spitting its venom at a Muton.



Once its usefulness is expended, Mederow takes it out.



She then proceeds to take down a Muton further into the storage chamber.




A sergeant takes down some disarmed and demoralized Mutons, clearing out the base.

Results of Operation Bright Aurora, Phase Two
Avatar of War, Yoko Iwahara: 1 kill
Col. Uta ?Hailfire? Mederow: 1 kill
Sgt. Kenji Fujimoto: 1 kill
Sgt. Shigeo Kojima: 2 kiils
Sgt. Spencer Horton: Killed in action
5 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
12 aliens killed by aliens
1 alien captured
Alien alloys and entertainment systems recovered
Alien base destroyed
Debriefing: The alien base was destroyed within days of going online. No clear sign of a commander, but this is still a huge victory.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

A Snakeman scout is taken out over Central Africa.



A Muton probe is destroyed near the location of the former Muton base.


Psionic labs are ready in Asia and the Arctic. More troops can now be trained for psychic warfare.



Interrogating a captured navigator leads to some new intelligence.



More materials are shipped to Asia. Captain Buchard arrives to provide psychic capabilities to the squad at X-Com Two.



A Muton ship is pursued over Europe, getting shot down.




A new Firestorm is ready in Asia. It gets armed and shipped off to Sakhalin with some fuel.





Engineering in Europe finishes the flying armor, and gets started on another HWP. It is quickly put together and loaded up onto the Skyranger.


Another Muton scout is taken down.



A supply ship is sunk off the African coast.



A Floater scout is shot down over Russia.



A Muton harvester appears on radar over the Arctic. An Avenger shoots it down only a few miles away from the polar base. The option exists to reclaim the wreckage if we so wish. However, it might be more efficient to focus on getting to the end of the month with as few bumps as possible and get more psychic training online.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

The Harvester ship is going to be ignored; it is unlikely that desirable materials will be gained from it, and it will be difficult to reach the site in daylight.




A battleship is pursued from the Arctic, being shot down over the western Sahara by an Avenger craft. This will be a much more valuable recovery. Forces are sent in from Europe for Operation Sand Scourer.



A captured navigator gives more information about UFO flight plans.


The mission to seize the wrecked battleship commences.











The squad gets armed up. A quick check indicates that Iwahara's psychic capability is enough to take on Mutons, so she's given an amplifier in addition to her launcher.



The team gets to work fast.



The usual playbook is carried out. Use one Muton to scout around, control any others that are found, and disarm as many as possible.



A Muton in the ship is taken out by others waiting for intruders.



Two heavily armed Mutons are disarmed.


Another Muton is taken out by its allies.




The HWP takes out a roaming Celatid.





Various officers take out the Mutons in the desert. In the process, Captain Noguchi is hit by a Muton that wasn't disarmed, going down.





Launcher fire is directed near the entry point to the ship, but only succeeds in wounding a Muton.





With the enemies weakened and their numbers thinned out, forces pour into the ship, overrunning the crew.

Results of Operation Sand Scourer
Col. Uta ?Hailfire? Mederow: 3 kills
Cpt. Gerhard Steinbach: 2 kills
Cpt. Bernard Dreyfus: 2 kills
Sgt. Kenji Fujimoto: 3 kills, promoted to Captain
HWP: 1 kill
Cpt. Isao Noguchi: Killed in action
10 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
7 aliens killed by aliens
1 alien captured
UFO hull, reactor, navigation systems, fuel, and entertainment systems recovered
Debriefing: One casualty is within acceptable limits for a mission; no alien commander found here, but some useful Elerium has been retrieved.









Alien ships of varying classes and purposes are shot down by intercept craft.


The month ends, with great approval from all of the backing nations. Destroying multiple alien bases and neutralizing several battleships has earned a very favorable performance rating.


With psi-labs online at three bases, psionic screening and training will be no problem at all.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

A pair of scout ships get taken out by the air fleet.




An Ethereal supply ship is shot down as it departs from a base. The European squad moves in for a recovery mission we are calling Operation Meeting of Minds.









Only eight troops are being used this time around, selected for their psionic strength. The troops with the strongest capability are being given amplifiers, while those with the weakest are being left with support tools.


Tanida has become powerful enough to even mind control Ethereals.




The Ethereals are turned on each other in the greatest of ironies.



Iwahara fires the launcher at an alien taking cover behind a house.


The HWP is taken out by another lurking Ethereal.


Another Ethereal is sniped by the troops.




Tanida's mind control is used again to turn one Ethereal on another, softening the enemy up before Dreyfus takes the remaining one out.




Psionics are used to weaken the enemy again before Mederow does some sharpshooting.


With the field clear, forces pour out of the Skyranger.
 




Ethereals in the ship are suppressed by Tanida, leaving them vulnerable to assault.




An Ethereal on the second level of the ship is mind-controlled and lured to the bottom, where Mederow is waiting.



Another Ethereal is dealt with by Wright.



Ethereals have started using their own psionic powers on the squad. Mind control is only able to work on the troops that have been set up as decoys. They are able to inflict panic on a few other soldiers, but with every alien in sight disarmed, this only slows them down.




An assault begins on the top level of the ship.




The control room is breached.




Mind control is used to prevent any counterattacks, and the ship is cleared out with minimal opposition.

Results of Operation Meeting of Minds
HWP: Destroyed
Avatar of War, Yoko Iwahara: 1 kill
Col. Alan ?Emergent? Wright: 5 kills
Col. Uta ?Hailfire? Mederow: 3 kills
Cpt. Bernard Dreyfus: 6 kills
Sergei Mikhailov: Promoted to Sergeant
Yuzo Fujimoto: Promoted to Sergeant
15 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
2 aliens killed by aliens
UFO hull, food capsules, and surgical equipment recovered
Debriefing: We are now on a nearly even footing with the Ethereals.


Buchard is recalled to Europe to prepare for fighting against the Ethereals.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Production shifts to old-generation laser tanks. They're less resource-intensive to produce than the hover HWPs, and engineering has nothing better to do right now.



A Muton scout ship gets shot down near the Mediterranean.



An Ethereal supply ship manages to outrun the Firestorms from Asia, reaching its destination and taking off again before it can be caught.





A Muton harvester is intercepted and shot down over Northern Europe. Forces rapidly move in to reclaim the site, commencing Operation Withered Leaf.











Squad gets armed and ready.



The tank moves out first, with smoke getting set out on top of it for cover.




Scouting spots some Mutons in the field. Psionic powers are unleashed, and the work of pacifying the enemy force begins.


One is sent into the UFO, revealing the engines have been blown out by the interception.


A Muton under the troops' control is taken out by another in the field.


The aliens guarding the ship are manipulated into disarming, as well as searching for any other hostiles.


One of the mind-controlled Mutons is hit by a grenade from one of its former allies.


Colonel Wright starts to breach the ship and start clearing the area out.


One of the Mutons sent into the cockpit by the troops is taken out by a waiting navigator.


Another Muton wandering in the field is hit by snap reaction fire.


Troops in flying suits maneuver through the trees, hunting for hostiles. One Muton tries to retaliate by throwing a grenade in their direction, which works about as well as one would expect.


The HWP manages to take out one of the Mutons with its laser cannon.


Wright continues to sweep up the Mutons inside the ship.




Mutons are herded from the upper levels into Wright's range.


Captain Fujimoto assists with the cleanup.



Eventually, troops reach the cockpit, clearing out the whole of the ship.

Results of Operation Withered Leaf
HWP: 1 kill
Col. Uta ?Hailfire? Mederow: 1 kill
Col. Alan ?Emergent? Wright: 3 kills
Cpt. Bernard Dreyfus: 2 kills
Cpt. Kenji Fujimoto: 2 kills
No X-COM casualties
7 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
4 aliens killed by aliens
1 alien captured
UFO hull, navigation systems, food capsules, and surgical equipment recovered
Debriefing: Our psychic troops are becoming numerous enough and powerful enough that they will soon overwhelm any opposition.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

The intercept fleet continues their assault on the invading ships.



An Ethereal supply ship goes down in Central Africa.



A Snakeman terror ship is shot down over Japan after a lengthy pursuit.



Yet another Muton scout is taken down over Europe.


An assault begins on the crashed supply ship. Operation Clashing Will begins.











Forces get equipped for combat. There's a mix of psychic troops and decoys for this operation.


The HWP is hit when trying to exit the Skyranger.




An Ethereal comes into range of the troops, getting mind controlled. It is used to scout around before getting mowed down on the second level of the ship.




The use of psionics starts a firefight in the ship, taking out more aliens before disarming the rest.






Troops start moving out into the field and taking out the weakened Ethereal force.



The aliens respond with a psychic assault, getting control over the decoys. One of the other troops is momentarily panicked, opening fire on one of these rookie decoys. There are wounds, but not life-threatening ones.






Colonel Wright breaks through into the second level of the ship, taking out a number of Ethereals.


Iwahara, completely immune to the powers of the Ethereals, takes a plasma gun and moves in directly, along with another soldier. They take the top level of the ship.


A mind-controlled Ethereal is used to open up the control room, where numerous leaders have holed up.



\

One is stunned by an ally before being blown up with the navigation console as Iwahara storms in and takes out the other two. She then proceeds to eliminate one more around the corner.




Other troops quickly mop up the remaining hostiles.

Results of Operation Clashing Will
HWP: Destroyed
Avatar of War, Yoko Iwahara: 3 kills
Col. Alan ?Emergent? Wright: 5 kills
Col. Uta ?Hailfire? Mederow: 3 kills
Cpt. Bernard Dreyfus: 1 kill
Alan Martin: Promoted to Sergeant; wounded, will recover in 7 days
12 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
4 aliens killed by aliens
UFO hull, reactor, fuel, food capsules, and surgical equipment recovered
Debriefing: While the threat of mind control has been almost completely nullified at this point, the risk of psionic-induced panic in our forces still exists. This must be taken into consideration for future missions.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Intercepts and shootdowns continue, including scouts and an Ethereal supply vessel.



Forces are sent to the crash site of the Snakeman terror ship that was recently shot down over Japan. Operation Serpent Sacrifice begins.











Troops get armed and ready.




Psionic ability is used to suppress the Snakemen that are spotted by initial scouting.




The Chryssalids that are detected are controlled and used to scout the area, one getting into the ship.



One Snakeman still has its gun, and is turned on other aliens around it.



With the area under control, troops start to move out.


One Snakeman under mind control is attacked by a Chryssalid. This takes care of one hostile for us, and helps to exhaust the Chryssalid for an eventual takedown.





Some oddness with how hills and explosions work prevents the Blaster Launcher from having its proper effect, leaving a Chryssalid unscathed from Iwahara's attack.


A grenade from a Snakeman doesn't do much to it, either.


Other aliens are mind-controlled and left in its range of attack as a diversion.




Two Snakemen and another Chryssalid are torn apart.


More troops hit the ground as the field is cleared.




More Chryssalids are taken out by the troops.



A Snakeman coming out of the ship is ambushed by a soldier hovering between the trees.




Another alien comes out of the ship, completely outnumbered and outgunned.





The HWP spots two more Chryssalids, which are lured outside with psionics before being sniped.






The ship is quickly stormed and any remaining aliens are dealt with.

Result of Operation Serpent Sacrifice
Col. Uta "Hailfire" Mederow: 3 kils
Cpt. Gerhard Steinbach: 2 kills
Cpt. Kenji Fujimoto: 4 kills
9 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
6 aliens killed by aliens
No X-COM casualties
UFO hull, navigation systems, and entertainment systems recovered
Debriefing: A clean recovery.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

A battleship departing from a harvest operation is pursued, but leaves the atmosphere before an Avenger can catch up.



Laser cannons are fitted to some of the aircraft, partially to replace the old and obsolete Avalanche launchers on the original interceptors and partly to be a secondary support weapon. It's more than affordable at this point.


Engineering at X-COM Two in Asia starts on another Firestorm, which will be shipped to the polar base when completed.





A pair of Ethereal supply ships is crashed in the ocean off the southern coast of Asia.






A battleship seeks out the location of X-COM One in Europe. It vastly overshoots the location, going over the Atlantic. One of the Avengers engages it, shooting it down over Iceland. Operation Cold Judgement commences.











Forces get prepared for combat.



A Celatid is the first alien to be spotted, meaning it's the first to volunteer to scout.



The HWP deploys, with Wright providing smoke cover for it.



The Celatid is killed when it goes into the battleship, but spots several more targets in the process.


One of the Mutons has a Blaster Launcher. This clears up at least one problem.


The walls being ripped apart reveals another Muton soldier, which is mind-controlled and used to handle the alien that survived the prior explosion.



A Muton on the upper level of the ship also has a launcher, which gets rid of more hostiles and breaks the center of the ship apart.



A clear line of sight to the top level gets the troops control over another Muton, which takes out a Silacoid.



The Mutons outside the ship are turned on one another.


The HWP manages to get a lethal hit in on one of the aliens emerging from what's left of the central elevator.



A mind-controlled Navigator takes out one of the Mutons still in the ship, getting a line of fire thanks to the various holes from explosions.


Colonel Wright manages to take out a Muton, one of the rare times a soldier gets directly involved during this mission.




The navigator brings down another of its former allies before disarming itself.


Troops get moving to capture it.


Mind control is used to wear the Navigator out and get it into range, at which point it's surrounded and stunned, ending the operation.

Results of Operation Cold Judgement:
HWP: 1 kill
Col. Alan ?Emergent? Wright: 1 kill
2 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
11 aliens killed by aliens
1 alien captured
UFO hull, reactors, navigation systems, fuel, an entertainment systems recovered
Debriefing: Our assaults on alien ships have still not retrieved a commander, but this mission was completed without any casualties.


Interrogation of the navigator begins. Trying to get intelligence is all the science division has to do at this point.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

A Mind Shield comes online at the base in the Arctic.



An Ethereal supply vessel gets shot down over the Thar Desert between India and Pakistan. It's unlikely any Elerium survived the explosion, and this ship is too small to have a commander; it is being left alone.



A Muton scout ship gets shot down over eastern Russia.





Another pair of alien ships is intercepted and neutralized.




A batch of laser HWPs has been completed and is ready to be shipped off to various bases. Work starts on some newer-model hover HWPs, which are quickly finished.



A scout ship is shot down off the African coast.


Troops and equipment are shipped to the Arctic base. The plan is to use one of the Avengers to transport multiple HWPs and the best troops available, then start launching assaults on the remaining alien bases.

Names are being considered for the Avenger craft themselves; the working names are ?Jane Bailey? and ?Andrea Sharpe?, for X-COM's earliest veterans. Suggestions are being accepted for other names.


Work begins on some more armor for the troops that remain in Europe.



A scout ship is shot down over Britain.



Interrogating the recently captured navigator gives some information about the nature about the retaliation missions, although much of this had been figured out already.



An Abductor is shot down over the Arctic.



A battleship is shot down over the UK. Unfortunately, the damage from the engagement means that neither of the Avengers can bring the elites from the Arctic in, and a Skyranger isn't available there, either. There are troops and transports available at other bases, but it might not be possible to fully equip those troops and there will not be access to psionics during the operation. We may have to pass up a recovery operation and wait until our forces are better prepared again.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

A pair of Floater abduction craft is knocked out of the air over Russia.





A Sectoid scout appears over the ocean, heading west before being intercepted over central Africa.



A new Firestorm is ready. It will be shipped over to the base in the Arctic to assist in intercepting smaller craft, while the Avengers handle larger vessels such as battleships.




An Ethereal supply vessel crosses the southern tip of Japan, heading over mainland Asia before getting shot down above China.





Another Sectoid scout is located, pursued, and eliminated.



Another supply barge is shot down, sinking far from the Madagascar coast.





A Muton scout flies over the Arctic, being intercepted in the Russian tundra.



A new batch of armor has been completed at the main base in Europe. Some of it will be used for the troops there, while some is being shipped to supplement forces at the Arctic. Engineering starts work on some additional Psi-Amps.


A Skyranger has been ordered for the Arctic base to act as an additional transport when Avengers are unavailable.



Another Ethereal cargo transport goes down in the ocean.




Yet another Sectoid scout is shot down over the Sahara.



A Muton scout craft is shot down in the sea between Japan and the main continent.


April ends, and the council of nations is extremely satisfied with X-COM's overall progress. Psionic screening continues, obtaining very favorable results.




Shootdowns continue at the start of the new month, starting with a Snakeman scout ship.




A small scout is pursued over Europe and destroyed.


More powered armor and some UFO components arrive at the Arctic base for use by personnel.





Another supply ship is shot down in the ocean, not far from landing at its intended destination.




An Ethereal terror attack is stopped before it reaches its target, leaving the transport to crash on the tip of Scandinavia.



Sectoid scouts continue to be shot down over Africa.







A pair of Floater abductors is neutralized, both of them crashing in the ocean.






Scout ships continue to be easy prey for the pilots at New Three One and New Three Two.


One of the Avengers has been fully repaired from its engagement with alien battleships. The most heavily equipped troops with the strongest psionic capabilities have been assigned on board, along with three HWPs. After months of preparation, it is now time to start directly assaulting the Ethereal bases on Earth.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

With an Avenger prepared for a ground assault, it is now possible to attack any Ethereal base of our choice.




The base in Sri Lanka is closest to our own facilities, and will be the first to be targeted. Destroying this base will leave X-COM's defense of Asia and Europe almost completely unchallenged. This assault will be the first phase of an ongoing mission, Operation Defiant Will.












Going all-out with equipment. Multiple psi-amps, two blaster launchers, and a wide array of support tools.



Forces are ready to storm both entrances of the facility.




An Ethereal is spotted and controlled. It turns out that troops have found an alien commander.



An Ethereal soldier is sent into the outer layer of the command room, finding another Ethereal and some kind of alien machine; from intelligence data, we can presume this is the Sectopod.



One alien takes out the other, before getting shot itself as the door to the command center closes up.


The commander is disarmed and sent into a corner with mind control, while troops pin it and get out stun rods. One of the HWPs provides cover for them while this goes on.





Another group of Ethereals comes under X-COM control and is turned on itself.




A Sectopod with other aliens next to it is the perfect target for Iwahara's launcher. An Ethereal that wasn't seen gets hit by the warhead, but the explosion is more than enough to take everyone out.




An Ethereal soldier is sent up against a Sectopod, getting taken out.




Iwahara gets the launcher ready again. The shot goes slightly off-course, but the blast still destroys the Sectopod, along with a good number of alien bodies.



The alien commander is panicked with psionics, suppressing it until it can be knocked out with stun rods.


The unconscious commander is carried upstairs and set down, with troops waiting in case it wakes up again.





Another Sectopod is obliterated with a launcher, this time by Mederow.






One of the troops gets control over the organic components of a Sectopod, causing it to fire on itself and self-destruct.



A force of alien leaders is gathered in the control room. While a single Blaster Launcher round would annihilate them all, it would also destroy some of the equipment we're hoping to recover. One of the aliens has a stun launcher, so it quickly fires on the group, knocking out two of them.




One Ethereal is used to take two more of the leaders out before being disarmed.




The HWP takes out the two aliens left in the command room.




Only one alien remains. It's lured into a position where it's quickly dealt with.


In all the planning to secure the base's commander alive, a crucial detail had been forgotten. The Arctic base does not have a containment facility to store it, leading to its death along with several stunned leaders.

Results of Operation Defiant Will, Phase One
New-model HWPs: 2 kills
Avatar of War, Yoko Iwahara: 4 kills
Col. Alan ?Emergent? Wright: 1 kill
Col. Uta ?Hailfire? Mederow: 1 kill
8 aliens killed by X-COM ground forces
6 aliens killed by aliens
3 aliens killed due to complications from capture
No X-COM casualties
Alien alloys and entertainment systems recovered
Alien base destroyed
Debriefing: Clearing out an Ethereal base with no injuries or even a loss of HWPs is astounding. However, failing to obtain the commander alive is a setback that will slow down our progress in defeating this invasion.



Construction starts on containment and additional storage at the Arctic base. Operation Defiant Will will resume when these facilities go online.

[Iced Fairy]

The Arctic base does not have a containment facility to store it, leading to its death along with several stunned leaders.

 :colonveeplusalpha: :colonveeplusalpha: :colonveeplusalpha:

I have no idea how you take the mental strain.

[Reddyne]

:colonveeplusalpha: :colonveeplusalpha: :colonveeplusalpha: