XCOM- Long War 14 (RNG Reckoning)

[Yugian]

So coming back to XCOM after moving and getting back on a stream schedule, I noticed that Long War Patch 14 Came out. Woo!  :derp:

But the creators are a little silly and don't post those changes on their front page or in a place that could easily drive conversation.  So for the 3 people who still play XCOM and maybe the 2 other people who play long war
http://www.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/2jr06q/xcom_enemy_within_long_war_mod_beta_14_has_just/

Its too long to post up the entire thing without it looking like a TL;DR Mess, but theres the entire patch. Few key things I find in the patch to be interesting
(Note Balancing is from the Notepad that comes with the installed game. Its not the reddit page)-

Aliens will now sometimes attack your interceptor bases, using a map previously available only to MP games. Failure to defend your bases will mean destruction of and damage to many of your aircraft.
Hey look, Base defense might actually happen in a game now, instead of Never.

Soldier hit points display in tactical UI will differentiate between armor/item HP bonuses and permanent HP
Thats a neat little UI change. Much approval.

Completing the Exalt HQ assault will net three unique items, a really nice scope (an improved illuminator gunsight usable by any soldier; old IG no longer buildable) and items that respectively grant 20% bonus XP and PsiXP whenever carried on missions.

Balancing -  All Exalts lose 2 hp on Normal; 1 hp on Classic

Balancing - Dead Exalt Elites provide 1 meld as loot if you don't kill them with explosives. Floaters and Heavy Floaters provide a bit more meld.

Balancing- Defeating the Exalt base provides a lot more bonus meld

Balancing - Increased cash reward from exalt missions
"We're Sorry Exalt was OP as fuck and we broke them. Please forgive us."

Balancing - Primary Weapon aim bonuses/penalties (like the +7 with carbine or -15 with heavy rifles) no longer apply to rocket launchers. All other aim bonuses (small items, steady weapon) still apply.
"We know you guys like min-maxing with lasers. Stop that now."

Balancing - Removing many mobility bonuses from perk trees; between all the ways to gain mobility from armor and weapons this is growing unnecessary
My 12 Movement Rocketeer disagrees.

Balancing - Infantry, Medics, Assaults, and Engineers can now use Arc Rifles (along with snipers and scouts), gave Arc Rifles unlimited range for squadsighted soldiers
Hey look, they dont blow as much ass anymore.  :3
Also, i noticed you guys moved Disabling shot to T3, along with snap and precision. Owwy.

Balancing - Increased starting roster to 40 soldiers and cost of recruiting a rookie to $25 ($30 on advanced difficulties). (Working numbers; may alter these before release). New recruits now take nine days to arrive at base.
Well. Shit. Thats gonna suck for later recruitment.  :ohdear:

Balancing - Increased engineers needed to build each Nexus
Because you know, Satellites spam was a bad thing and we need to keep knocking dat shit down. in the mean time, hows the 6 missing countries?

Balancing - PFCs (Rookies) may no longer be covert operatives
Damn, there goes the cheap labour to get exalt out of the way ASAFP.

Balancing- Panicking units caught out of cover will no longer get free move to cover, eliminating advantage of panicking in those situations. Panicking units in cover will still hunker down.
With how much Sectoids spam Psi powers now, this is actually kinda shitty. Along with the Ailen will buff, Sectoids are gonna get a lot of people killed now because they're pissing themselves for 3+ turns out in the open, with the mectoid spam.

Balancing- Messed around with oppo forces on EXALT missions; covert extractions will now often have a kind of singular guard / big QRF setup.
THANK FUCKING CHRIST.

Balancing - Field Medic perk now gives 1 free medikit charge and +1 charges for carried medikits. Packmaster applies bonus to free charge and each medikit. Field Medic unchanged for restorative mist (+2 charges, no freebies)
"No, we dont like you with 12-16 Medkits. Stop that now."

Balancing - Berserkers all receive muscle-fiber density genemod
MOTHER FU-

Balancing - Europe now provides discount to OTS projects. Asia no longer provides OTS discount.
Too bad ALL of Europe in my Current game went the way of the Dodo. And the entire reason why i went for asia. goddamnit

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

I really need to check this mod out at some point, I'm hearing a lot of good things about it from people who have seen Beaglerush's playthrough of it and it sounds like an interesting blend of the gameplay of the original and the new game.

[Yugian]

It is, but it also will kick you in the teeth hard. Its fun in that Dwarf Fortress kind of way to start off with, and then it turns into this "I am a Tactical Genius, SUCK IT CREED" Kind of way, before another gear gets thrown in that makes you cry. (Introducing the 80+ HP berserker with Regen people! :V )

All and all, its fun!

[commandercool]

I only played the core game, so do any of the expansions give more uses for planes? The game implied that I would need them so I invested in them fairly heavily, but I felt like they never mattered ever. By the end of the game I felt like the only use I was getting out of my huge fleet of high-end planes was saving a marginal amount of money on not using as many satellite links.

[Yugian]

I only played the core game, so do any of the expansions give more uses for planes? The game implied that I would need them so I invested in them fairly heavily, but I felt like they never mattered ever. By the end of the game I felt like the only use I was getting out of my huge fleet of high-end planes was saving a marginal amount of money on not using as many satellite links.

You will not have enough now.
Simple as that.

You will be LUCKY if you shoot down something that isnt the smallest craft- and your plane will take a MONTH to fix up if you fight it out.  Your better off injuring a craft, then retreating to lick your wounds. if your lucky, it'll be 6 days.

[Yookie]

Long War makes air-combat way more interesting.
You get a choice of different "stances" to approach the UFO, there's many more types of them, more base-weapons for the interceptors that are effective versus the different types and your pilots/interceptors can actually level up now which increases odds of dodging and hitting.
And yeah, it's cruel.