Ogilvy the Astronomer Posted August 1, 2023 Share Posted August 1, 2023 Currently the medals system is a bit barebones -- every medal received adds one to each statistic. I think it would be neat if this was expanded a bit, maybe giving small but different bonuses for each medal. Similarly, the rank system has slightly more going on (the highest ranking Xenonaut imparts bravery bonuses) but feels underdeveloped. Wouldn't it be better if your troops gained more interesting abilities as they progressed? I've had an initial crack at some suggestions as to what these bonuses could look like, but inspiration is hard to come by. Maybe a bright mind reading this can improve on my ideas? Note I haven't thought too much about balance. That could come later. MEDALS Award For Bravery | Completed a UFO Crashsite mission +3 Bravery Award For Courage | Completed a Terror Site mission Nearby aliens have reduced Bravery. Award For Valor | Completed an Alien Base mission Couching / uncrouching costs 0 TUs. Crimson Heart | Suffered 30 HP damage during a mission +10% effectiveness when using medikits Crux Solaris | Eliminated 4 hostile units during the same mission Wearing armour incurs no accuracy penalty. Distinguished Service Medal | Completed 10 missions +1 to all stats Gallantry Citation | Completed a mission where 50% soldiers were casualties Increased chance of surviving a mission and making it back to HQ even when reduced to 0HP. Golden Star | Eliminated 5 hostile units One “free” grenade throw per turn (i.e. 0 TUs). If that's OP, maybe changing direction costs 0 TUs. RANKS Private - Corporal Nearby Xenonauts have boosted reflexes Sergeant Nearby Xenonauts gain +2 accuracy Sergeant Major Can control nearby civilian NPCs Lieutenant Nearby Xenonauts gain some suppression resistance Captain Can control nearby armed NPCs Major Nearby Xenonauts gain +5 TU Colonel Nearby Xenonauts gain +20 Bravery These buffs should only be applied once, i.e. two Colonels would give nearby Xenonuts +20 Bravery, not +40. And I guess each rank would keep all the bonuses they gained as they climbed the ladder! In general I think that the medals should impart a small but interesting bonus to the recipient; and the ranks should give buffs to nearby teammates. For more powerful buffs, I think the ideas in this thread are very good: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 23 hours ago, Ogilvy the Astronomer said: Currently the medals system is a bit barebones -- every medal received adds one to each statistic. I think it would be neat if this was expanded a bit, maybe giving small but different bonuses for each medal. Similarly, the rank system has slightly more going on (the highest ranking Xenonaut imparts bravery bonuses) but feels underdeveloped. Wouldn't it be better if your troops gained more interesting abilities as they progressed? I've had an initial crack at some suggestions as to what these bonuses could look like, but inspiration is hard to come by. Maybe a bright mind reading this can improve on my ideas? Note I haven't thought too much about balance. That could come later. MEDALS Award For Bravery | Completed a UFO Crashsite mission +3 Bravery Award For Courage | Completed a Terror Site mission Nearby aliens have reduced Bravery. Award For Valor | Completed an Alien Base mission Couching / uncrouching costs 0 TUs. Crimson Heart | Suffered 30 HP damage during a mission +10% effectiveness when using medikits Crux Solaris | Eliminated 4 hostile units during the same mission Wearing armour incurs no accuracy penalty. Distinguished Service Medal | Completed 10 missions +1 to all stats Gallantry Citation | Completed a mission where 50% soldiers were casualties Increased chance of surviving a mission and making it back to HQ even when reduced to 0HP. Golden Star | Eliminated 5 hostile units One “free” grenade throw per turn (i.e. 0 TUs). If that's OP, maybe changing direction costs 0 TUs. RANKS Private - Corporal Nearby Xenonauts have boosted reflexes Sergeant Nearby Xenonauts gain +2 accuracy Sergeant Major Can control nearby civilian NPCs Lieutenant Nearby Xenonauts gain some suppression resistance Captain Can control nearby armed NPCs Major Nearby Xenonauts gain +5 TU Colonel Nearby Xenonauts gain +20 Bravery These buffs should only be applied once, i.e. two Colonels would give nearby Xenonuts +20 Bravery, not +40. And I guess each rank would keep all the bonuses they gained as they climbed the ladder! In general I think that the medals should impart a small but interesting bonus to the recipient; and the ranks should give buffs to nearby teammates. For more powerful buffs, I think the ideas in this thread are very good: So I don't particularly want to add extra benefits to different ranks because they're really just a quick way to signify how much stat progression a given soldier has earned, but I think there's scope to make medals more interesting in terms of the stats they grant. In fact, I think it's basically already supported in the game. Having "chunkier" abilities like you've outlined for some of the medals (like a free grenade throw or crouch / uncrouch each turn) kinda ends up in XCOM superpower territory for me, though, and I'd rather not go down that route (plus it would take longer to implement). So if we can come up with 8 interesting medals that offer varying stats instead of all just being +1 to all stats, that would be great. Particularly if the way they earn the medal is somewhat tied to the stat(s) that they grant. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vitruviansquid Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 I also think if the medals had chunkier abilities, it would encourage players trying try to force their soldiers to win those medals and encourage degenerate playstyles. The medals would then matter too much, you might say. I sort of like them being incidental things you see at the end screen and lets you know "oh hey, this soldier got 5 kills in the mission, that's neat." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogilvy the Astronomer Posted August 2, 2023 Author Share Posted August 2, 2023 15 hours ago, Chris said: So I don't particularly want to add extra benefits to different ranks because they're really just a quick way to signify how much stat progression a given soldier has earned, but I think there's scope to make medals more interesting in terms of the stats they grant. In fact, I think it's basically already supported in the game. Having "chunkier" abilities like you've outlined for some of the medals (like a free grenade throw or crouch / uncrouch each turn) kinda ends up in XCOM superpower territory for me, though, and I'd rather not go down that route (plus it would take longer to implement). So if we can come up with 8 interesting medals that offer varying stats instead of all just being +1 to all stats, that would be great. Particularly if the way they earn the medal is somewhat tied to the stat(s) that they grant. Ok, here are some medal ideas: Award For Valor | Rescued three or more civilians during an Abduction mission +3 TU Crimson Heart | Reduced to 10HP or lower, but survived the mission +3 Health Sharpshooter Medal | Eliminated a hostile unit from a distance of more than xxx +3 Accuracy Gallantry Citation | Not sure about this one, it’s tricky. Maybe eliminated two enemies in a single mission by using grenades? Or maybe carried a Xenonaut corpse body back to the chopper (if that increases their chances of survival, which I think would be a cool game mechanic) +3 Strength Crux Solaris | Eliminated a hostile unit by using overwatch +3 Reflexes Award For Bravery | Completed a mission where Xenonauts suffered 50% casualties +3 Bravery Distinguished Service Medal | Completed 10 missions +1 to all statistics Golden Star | Completed a Terror and Alien Base mission +1 to all statistics As for the rank system, even if you don't want to go down the route of extra abilities, maybe there's a way of making the progression more interesting. What if soldiers' statistics increase upon promotion to a new rank but they currently gain promotion points at say 50% of the current rate, and the other 50% you get to assign how you see fit? You're the commander, after all. So you could pursue a strategy of having a few high-ranked soldiers and lots of lower-ranks, or have a more rounded team. Just an idea to have the player a bit more involved. Just an aside as we're talking about ranks, but I think that currently soldiers gain ranks too quickly. I'm about 50% toward Operation Endgame and I've got a team with loads of Colonels and Majors. Perhaps rank progression should be about 20 - 30% slower than it currently is? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Armor9D Posted August 3, 2023 Share Posted August 3, 2023 While the idea of different medals giving different stat bonuses and other effects is cool, I find it somewhat counterproductive given the nature of how medals are earned in this game. Since different soldiers are suited to different roles because of their stats, it would be irritating if a soldier got a medal that was effectively useless because it didn't match with what they're good at. As is, earning a medal is nice because the across the board stat increase benefits any soldier no matter what. XCOM Enemy Within had specialized medals, but that worked because the player could choose what soldier got the medal and because each medal had two different possible bonuses the player could choose between. The only way specialized medals make sense within the current system if if their bonus is very closely tied to the circumstances under which it is earned, to ensure that a soldier that gets it will naturally be capable of benefiting from its boost. (i.e., a Crimson Heart provides a small heath boost, reduces needed heal time, and/or improves odds of successfully surviving if killed) Personally, though, I'm in favor of keeping medals as is. The one change I would like to see is the addition of a medal for successful Base Defense missions, it seems weird that isn't a thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cman1983 Posted August 9, 2023 Share Posted August 9, 2023 I'd like to see a demotion or promotion that we choose rather than it just happening for example. Demotion for running away on battlefield or shooting ur own team member Promotion for doing something not normal like using the 1 soldier to do all the releasing of captives in abduction missions or all the data from computers or even if the soldiers kill over a certain amount of aliens in 1 mission Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogilvy the Astronomer Posted August 9, 2023 Author Share Posted August 9, 2023 4 hours ago, cman1983 said: I'd like to see a demotion or promotion that we choose rather than it just happening for example. Demotion for running away on battlefield or shooting ur own team member Promotion for doing something not normal like using the 1 soldier to do all the releasing of captives in abduction missions or all the data from computers or even if the soldiers kill over a certain amount of aliens in 1 mission I'm not sure actively demoting soldiers is something you'd ever really want to do, but my suggestion of having some promotion points you can distribute after a mission would allow you to roleplay it a bit more and give a boost to certain soldiers who perform particularly well, as you gave examples of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cman1983 Posted August 9, 2023 Share Posted August 9, 2023 Yeh defo and if we can't demote what about a firing squad haha for shooting a team mate or sent into nxt mission with no armour nothing except a hand gun n a knife Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadeth Posted August 9, 2023 Share Posted August 9, 2023 I personally have a big issue with the objective of this one: Gallantry Citation | Completed a mission where 50% soldiers were casualties If you are a min/maxer and trying to build the BEST soldiers, you'd want you A-team to get all the medals. Yet, the best way to ensure your best soliders get this is simply to go on an easy mission like a small craft shot down with 50% of the team as rookies, intentionally get them killed or kill them at the start, then complete it with your veterans. Boom, easy medal. But for killing your team on purpose, it seems like it might as well be a psychopath medal. I don't really care for it. I would rather almost any other objective than this since if you want to get all the medals, this encourages you to kill soldiers to complete it. Some people might get it on accident on a tough mission, but overall it would make sense just to sacrifice some noob units on purpose, which is just weird. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cman1983 Posted August 9, 2023 Share Posted August 9, 2023 Defo friend Do u no if you can rotate weapons etc in the vest like you can with the base section Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadeth Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 On 8/2/2023 at 10:59 AM, Chris said: So if we can come up with 8 interesting medals that offer varying stats instead of all just being +1 to all stats, that would be great. Particularly if the way they earn the medal is somewhat tied to the stat(s) that they grant. Hey @Chris I just thought of a potentially interesting idea for the medal, Gallantry Citation | Completed a mission where 50% soldiers were casualties I posted my criticism of that objective a couple days ago, but no real suggestions as to what else it could be! I was thinking on it while going to bed and I have what I feel is a good idea. What if the objective was "Complete a mission with only 4 soldiers deployed"? Or maybe 5-6 on lower difficulties? That would be a challenge, one for experienced soldiers for sure, and it doesn't allow someone to cheese it just killing people on purpose like you can do for the Gallantry objective right now. Might rename it to "Alpha Team" or something too, but I really don't care about the name so much as the objective and mechanics to earn it. Doing a mission with only 4 dudes and winning would feel awesome. Going in, killing half the team on purpose, and winning to get the medal on your select soldiers, would feel dirty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cman1983 Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 I think you may be onto something there but I'd go for the idea of the training and then implement training during mission and if also recomd sorting the soldiers into groups like a alpha team a brav team etc but that be up to the players wen they are choosing there squad for the certain mission as this would mean that untill 1 or 2 killed that squad would stay together and then recruit from the pool to the squad any 1 else think could be good or bad 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Komandos Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 4 hours ago, cman1983 said: I think you may be onto something there but I'd go for the idea of the training and then implement training during mission and if also recomd sorting the soldiers into groups like a alpha team a brav team etc but that be up to the players wen they are choosing there squad for the certain mission as this would mean that untill 1 or 2 killed that squad would stay together and then recruit from the pool to the squad any 1 else think could be good or bad Similar ideas have been expressed for a long time and by many players. Which only confirms the need for such a function. https://www.goldhawkinteractive.com/forums/index.php?/topic/21496-teamsplatoon-creation/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cman1983 Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 Yeah defo tbf a think alot of us gamers players wat ever way we look at it we see eg films and are expecting more reality from a great game that probably is set the right way but with a few of our ideas hopefully being picked up or read by developers could and probably should help take to next level eg like we have been saying when the specialists whether it's sas or seals or spetznaz etc all go out in teams - - team 1 team 2 /team a team b/alpha team bravo team/red troop blue troop nanad so on this could well be done I recon n not even taking much away from the reality of the game. @Chrisany thought or input or info help even Again love the game and this is 1 milestone and grateful for the time you guys take to read theese blogs whilst still working like we alien troopers to get game complete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cman1983 Posted August 12, 2023 Share Posted August 12, 2023 20 minutes ago, cman1983 said: Yeah defo tbf a think alot of us gamers players wat ever way we look at it we see eg films and are expecting more reality from a great game that probably is set the right way but with a few of our ideas hopefully being picked up or read by developers could and probably should help take to next level eg like we have been saying when the specialists whether it's sas or seals or spetznaz etc all go out in teams - - team 1 team 2 /team a team b/alpha team bravo team/red troop blue troop nanad so on this could well be done I recon n not even taking much away from the reality of the game. @Chrisany thought or input or info help even Again love the game and this is 1 milestone and grateful for the time you guys take to read theese blogs whilst still working like we alien troopers to get game complete The specialist teams apparently never leave a man behind this could be a medal propasal aswell if in teams and 1 or 2 shot they have to get them back to ship before either complete mission or aborting same in alien bases have to get them back to the lift Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.