🚀 go-pugleaf

Shaun wrote

> It was much, much worse
> taking on Tasoths on a cargo ship.  But I still did it, albeit with more
> civilian deaths (about 40 % dead), and four casualties.

Pack a particle disturbance sensor as the aliens love lurking in the hall
beyond the kitchen and the room leading up to the bridge.  Always a
firefight there.  The biggest problem I have is making the initial run to
the cover of the nearest rooms - big open expanse to get MC'd.  And those
darn boxes & crates next to the Triton usually hides an alien, the sneaky
toad!

> I had to pull out of a third ship mission.  I cleared the first deck with
> only two men down, but the turn before we went down below one of them got
> controlled and I lost him... additionally, two of the seven who went down
> (I'd left the coelacanth on board and so only had ten men; d'oh), had
> panicked the turn before and had no weapons.

That's nasty.  It's nice though when the injured troops do good, even with
their accuracy shot to bits (ho ho, a little pun there).

> Incidentally, I can't emphasize enough how damn useful that coelacanth
was.
> First thing out of the sub, pick off a few bugs, soak up incoming fire,
and
> so on.  Also accounted for many kills, and scouted out many others during
> night missions...

In addition to making extra holes in walls and as a bit of temporary mobile
cover.

> Moving on, I did wax my first alien base today.  The upper level was
> delicious.  First turn, disruptor pulse launcher out of the triton -
greased
> two tasoths and two aquatoids who'd been standing *inside* a building!  I
> love TFTD and it's windows / vents.

Heh... alien bases.  Just wish it wasn't always so darned dark down there!
Tentaculats are a real bugger, cos they seem to rise over obstacles and nab
'nauts in the back.  Most unsporting!

I try to use MC to kill the aliens on the upper level, so I can grab as many
DPL's and ammo as possible.  Makes it a bit long winded, but makes it well
worth it in the second level.

> I  also got shitted up on turn three or four when two of the vast
jellyfish
> things (still don't know what they are; don't tell me :-)  ) burst out of
a
> building and BOTH finished right next to some of my troopers.  Still, on
> that first level, I lost... hmm... NONE of my fourteen aquatoids, although
I
> confess to reloading saves (never did that before on TFTD) when disruptor
> pulses blew five or six of my core aquanoughts away.

Tut, tut...  Take a DPL with you and lay down some blanket air support in
the usual alien hide outs - tip of nothern arm of upper base, under the bit
that sticks out (gawdknows what it's there for, probably hiding some
tentaculats or something).  North western area of base, in the open but
usually lurking near the western arms furthest door.  And those little
turrets in the corners - usually one alien behind each.  That's not to
mention the floating attacks from above...

> Down below was weird.  (I killed 23 bugs on the surface alone, for
heaven's
> sakes)... but for the first thirty turns, I found nothing.  Then I found
one brain-thing (uhrm...
> <thinks>... nope, can't remember what they're called; no weapons but
> powerful psis) and grenaded it (out of boredom <g>).

Heh, I think you may be underestimating them Shaun.  You done an artefact
site mission yet?  I bloody hate those!  Too much arsing around for too
little return, and the second level is really annoying.

> Then, things went mad.  About eight lobstermen erupted all over the map...
> three of them I found in the synonium (sp?) device.  They were easy to
kill;
> I even captured one of them (the Commander, woah).

You want to try and keep all three of those lobsters alive; 2xnavigators and
a commander, iirc.  You'll need the navigator as a matter of urgency.  This
sounds all way too easy so far - what difficulty was this on again...?

> But the others... one I
> greased with my Commander (Shaun Green; how convenient that the trooper
> named for me got promoted.  Shame he's a crap psi; he's gonna become a
> liability)... before the others tore into my troopers.  Lost three or four
> aquanoughts before I turned things around and splatted them.

Ah good, a bit of action at last! <g>

> My 'naughts
> were all over the map when they burst out, you see, so my troopers were
> going in there in ones and twos... <shudder>.

Hmm. I make it a priority to regroup my team before I even consider heading
off into the bowels of the base.  Usually cos the agents who get dumped
elsewhere have something I need.  Like medikits, for one! :-)

> I think four or five casualties and one wounded is a fair exchange for one
> base's worth of equipment captured intact, one alien colony knocked out,
and
> one captured lobsterman commander, hey?

(round of applause)

> Robert B - woah!  Best psi of the starting lot.  Plenty kills, plenty
> experience.  Bright future ahead...

Obviously a career minded brown noser.  arf.

> Andy.  You were doing great, but unfortunately you were one of the fellas
> chomped up by the first few lobstermen.  On the bright side, you killed
two
> of them and wounded another, and had 20-30 kills to your name
beforehand...

He died a glorious death; in battle!

> Wow, I just wrote all that?  Blimey.

Yeah, it kind of does that to you... <g>