Maxim 56. Infantry exists to paint targets for people with real guns.
I've played many games like Xenonaughts (X-com, UFO:After-whatever, Phoenix Point) and one thing that has always annoyed me is that there is no off-map support. Like, we're fighting off an invasion by a technologically superior enemy, and we are LOSING, and the powers-that-be can't be bothered to give us fire support? We got aircraft, why can't one of them strafe the enemy lines? Or have our transport stop a kilometer from the fight, and drop off two guys with a mortar? Calling out for people to rain hell down on the enemy positions have been a staple of human combat since WW1! Why aren't we doing that now?
(salt)
Now I know that this would shift the balance in the player's favor, but if the xenos are beating the regular armies of earth, they should be showing it. Give the xenos a CIWS, either deployed or mounted to a robot or something. Have the ufo's weapon systems be operational, and shoot back at the air support. If we want to be able to call in artillery from a nearby base, it would take time for them to get set up, which the xenos could use to fortify their position or destroy valuable artifacts.
