LW Rebalance - Blogging Brutal v1.43 part IV

'Tis the season of the Overseer and Base Defense.

It has been a long time since I’ve updated my blog. Most of this post was written over a month ago, and then delayed for IRL reasons (moving to another city, starting a new job, buying a new house, saying goodbye to friends, etc.) Anyways, this will cover the month of December, and it may be my last post for awhile as I still have an enormous backlog of chores.

I’ve heard that the Base Defense can hit you a lot earlier than December, but this is the month that I’ve always encountered it. It’s a fun mission now, not nearly as punishing as in base Long War, but still dangerous, especially if you are not prepared.

The other development this month is the straightening out of the research tree as we approach plasma tech. There are extreme resource requirements at this point in the campaign - If you want the top tier armor and weapons you need to keep shooting down UFOs.

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December

Technology: The Tech tree has narrowed. Very glad to have captured a Muton Elite quickly as that will keep my scientists productive.

MEC Mark 3: Heavy
Interrogate Muton Elite
Light Plasma Weapons
Sectopod Autopsy
UFO Analysis: Destroyer

Engineering: Somehow I forgot that the base defense will occur by the end of December, and so I found myself scrambling to build another MEC suit and gear for a 3rd MEC trooper, as well as armor and other accessories, and had to procrastinate on the Hyperwave Relay for a few weeks. The Base Defense came late in the month, and that gave me the time to build everything I wanted.

My base is completely built, other than the gollop chamber.

Dec 1: Colonels, Aircraft Boosters, rookie
Dec 2: LMEC-2, Pulse Lance #2, KSM #2
Dec 5: Restorative Mist
Dec 6: Combat Stims
Dec 8: HMEC-3
Dec 9: Satellite
Dec 15: Thumper x 2, Aim Booster x 2
Dec 16: XTP III
Dec 17: Corsair Armor #2, Psi Conduit #2
Dec 19: Grenade Launcher #2, Restorative Mist #2
Dec 21: Alloy Carbide Plating #3, Hyperwave Relay, KSM #3
Dec 22: Corsair Armor #3
Dec 27: Advanced Repair
Dec 29: Condensed Plasma, Plasma Carbine

Base Buildout on December 31:

Campaign Notes:

I had a disastrous extraction early in December. I left my assault exposed after hacking a relay because I thought this exalt SHIV could not attack him - but it was a leader, and had Lock N’ Load. So I lost that TSGT assault with 74 will.

At some point in Nov/Dec you start seeing 6+ exalt on the map at the start of extractions, so you really need to take care.

A couple missions later I almost got another assault killed. I ran him over next to a sectoid - and that somehow activates the command pod of 4 outsiders. Having used Run & Gun the assault was stuck, and there was no way to protect him - I assumed he was dead. But a sectoid commander mind controlled him, and that saved his life.

Was expecting the Base Defense mission throughout December, and hoarding my best soldiers. On the 27th, with the Base Defense still looming, I am offered an Overseen UFO which I decide to go for.

Overseer:

On the first turn, I decide to save a motion tracker charge, big mistake. The squad stumbles into a pod of heavy floaters. On turn 2, I move my SHIV forward which activates a Sectopod. And so now we have a real fight. I kill all the floaters and one drone, and break LOS with the sectopod. The Sectopod does not move and preps cluster bomb. On the next turn I have to relocate half the squad, and they all charge towards the Sectopod. We toss acid on it, then suppress it; I also place the marauder within punch range but not in line of sight (hiding behind a tree). The Sectopod hits one soldier hard, but I kill it on my turn (mostly with the marauder), but a sectoid commander pod has activated, so no chance to reload and reset. Just after finishing that pod, a cyberdisc pod activates. Just before we kill the cyberdisc, the squad is flanked by a muton elite leader and 2 berserkers, and that activates a pod of outsiders further back. Just as we finish the mutons, the outsiders are on top of us. So one pod after another like that, never a chance to regroup, until nothing is left but the ethereal command pod. Setting up at a closed door makes that encounter a piece of cake.

The Base Defense pops a day and a half later.

Base Defense Veteran pool: (asterisk on those selected)

* TSGT Marauder: LMEC2, pulse lance, KSM, Restorative Mist, AC plating, Thumper
* GSGT Goliath: HMEC2, pulse lance, KSM, G. Launcher, AC plating, Scope
* TSGT RnG Assault-Psi: Corsair, pulse scattershot, neural scope, conduit, stims
* GSGT Mayhem Sniper: Aegis, pulse strike, alloy plate, scope, high cap mags
* GSGT Rocketeer: Corsair, pulse carbine, concussion, acid, alien grenade 
* GSGT Gunner: Aegis, pulse autoblaster, scope, alloy plating, proximity sensor
GSGT Marauder: HMEC3, railgun, KSM, Restorative Mist, Grenade Launcher, AC Plating, Thumper, Alien Trophy
GSGT Support Medic Officer: Corsair, pulse rifle, smoke, concussion, medikit

So I didn’t get my officer Medic, and that’s not great. On the other hand, medics are weak offensively, and I have a diverse collection of strong soldiers.

I made sure to have healing on multiple soldiers in the pool - that pays off when my medic is not selected. The Gunner is Kitted, and one MEC has restorative mist. I will use up most of that healing, as well as both medikits carried by the blueshirts during the course of the mission. I also made sure to have grenades on multiple soldiers to deal with mind control. Marauders are incredibly useful on this mission, and so I have 2 in the pool to minimize the chance of not getting at least one, and every MEC has a KSM.

I also brought the proximity sensor, but it did not prevent the only seeker from strangling somebody.

1st round draw (map room - 6 total): muton elite leader, muton leader (wounded), muton elite x 2, chryssalid leader, chryssalid. The 2 chryssalid are in the rear guard station, and I can’t engage them. I manage to kill everything else; an assault with rapid fire can take care of a Muton Elite leader all by himself, as long as it has been shredded first.

The chryssalids rush in and corrode a couple soldiers, and those guys need to be healed as I move to the rear guard station, which slows my squad down, and they are not in great position.

2nd round draw (rear guard station - 4 flyers): cyberdisc, cyberdisc (wounded), 2 drones. The Rocketeer throws acid but it misses somehow, and only 1 drone is corroded. A blue shirt tosses an HE grenade on the full health cyberdisc which disorients it, and that combined with suppression controls it for a turn. The assault kills the other cyberdisc, and the explosion destroys his cover leaving him defenseless. The sniper kills a drone, and I run the marauder over next to the suppressed/disoriented cyberdisc hoping to keep it from shooting at the exposed assault. The cyberdisc goes on overwatch, and the drone is killed by the marauder’s CCS. I pull the overwatch with my goliath who is hit for only 3 damage. The marauder finishes things.

3rd round draw (MEC bay entryway - 2 total): chryssalid (wounded), muton elite leader. The gunner shreds the muton elite leader, and the KI assault is again able to solo it. The chryssalid is killed by a single grenade from the goliath.

4th round draw (MEC bay - 6 total): mechtoid leader (wounded), mechtoid, muton elite (wounded), sectoid x 3. I have to leave both of the mechtoids alive, though the leader is disabled by the sniper. It is amazing how much DR these guys have. I can’t do any real damage by shooting them. Instead I kill all the sectoids and get my marauder in range to punch on the following turn. The uncontrolled mechtoid goes on overwatch after missing a shot. On the next turn my marauder punch kills the leader. the rocketeer tosses acid on the other mechtoid, and the gunner suppresses it. The mechtoid again misses/overwatches, and is killed on the following turn.

5th round draw (MEC bay top of ramp - 3 total): mechtoid leader, muton, sectoid. I had my marauder hiding in the little room on the top left of the ramp. He is able to reach the mechtoid leader. First the gunner applies shred, and 2 punches later it has 6 hp. The sniper and a blueshirt finish it off. The assault kills the muton, and the rest of the squad kills the sectoid.

6th round draw (access tunnels - 5 total): sectoid commander leader, mechtoid, cyberdisc leader, seeker, drone. The squad hides behind the truck for a turn hoping the enemy moves forward. The sectoid commander casts psychic storm and the cyberdisc nearly kills a blueshirt in high cover. Sigh.

I use the assault to mind merge the marauder which gives him the mobility to reach the mechtoid and punch it down to 6 hp. The sniper and goliath finish it off - which was a mistake - I forgot that the marauder had CCS, and should have used one of those attacks on something else. The gunner suppresses the cyberdisc - another mistake - psychic storm wounds the gunner breaking the suppression. The wounded blueshirt is KO’d by psychic storm and that leaves only the gunner in half cover in sight of the cyberdisc. Uh oh.

The aliens start their turn strong with the seeker flying over the top of the truck and strangling my assault.¹ But then I get lucky and the cyberdisc misses a 74% shot on my gunner. As always the aliens go stupid; both the drone and the sectoid commander run at the marauder and trigger CCS.

We kill the seeker and sectoid commander, leaving only the cyberdisc. I am thinking that with a bit more luck, everyone will survive... But then the cyberdisc flies next to the KO’d blueshirt, and kills the other blueshirt with a flanking shot. I kill the cyberdisc, and it’s death explosion kills the remaining blueshirt. Sigh.

I kept everyone alive until the final alien turn, and brought home all the veterans. Not a bad result and pretty fun as well. Marauders and assaults are usually the MVPs on the base defense.

Comparing the enemy drops with those in my v1.36 Base Defense blog post, it all looks very similar. I think some of the enemies must be locked in, while some are random. In that campaign I also raided an overseer UFO right before the Base Defense.

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Goodbye to 1.43

This will be my last post for this campaign and this version of LW Rebalance. I’ve really enjoyed this campaign, but I’m swamped with other obligations. By the time I get back around to playing, the mod will probably have changed dramatically, and I will want to restart from the beginning. Thanks for reading, and good luck commanders!

1. This is the first time this campaign the seekers have managed to strangle someone. I thought they needed to be cloaked in order to use this attack but apparently not.