XCOM: Enemy Unknown aka the one where Haphazard dies repeatedly

[Ug the Barbarian]

We choose to deploy to the right side where there is a large bus which provides decent full height cover early on. As I know you don't trip the first spawn point until about half way along the bus, we get a couple of dashes in initial deployment.



We slowly move up the bus then deliberately trip the first spawn with a dash to full cover inside the front of the bus by a brave DazedRoyalty. He spots two sectoids ahead which quickly scurry for cover. However Ug was waiting in Overwatch and picks one off.





Next turn, DazedRoyalty chooses to 'Run & Gun' and moves up behind the police car for a shot. I use this tactic when I have multiple covering shots at a lower % to hit.



Dazed nails the second kill so other shots aren't needed this time. The rest of the team moves up as Dazed reloads.
Haphazards next move reveals a single sectoid and Anna's location



Again, we have multiple shot options (Ug at 48%, Hap at 33%) so we again 'Run & Gun' Dazed into a first shot position with better odds.



Dazed nails his second one shot kill and gains a promotion.

We close up to better cover near Anna and reload before speaking to her. The objective changes to getting her back to the Skyranger. Knowing that alien re-inforcements (usually Thinmen) start getting dropped in randomly from this point, we sit in Overwatch for a couple of turns, hoping to catch them dropping near us. Nothing happens

So the squad starts a slow leapfrog/overwatch movement back and we trigger the alien re-inforcements immediately - a lone thinman drops behind a van on the far (unexplored) side of the map.

We continue our movement back towards the bus and the thinman pops us by the fountain on the alien's turn. The two overwatch shots that trigger both miss



The Thinman takes aim and shoots Uberfish for 3 points of damage. Uberfish, even with a scope, only has a 39% of hitting back directly without moving up & closer (and possibly triggering more alien spawns).



However Ug just behind him has a flanking shot on the alien at 88%



He takes it and also gains a promotion



A quick reload and healing for Uberfish follows before we move out again. We're warned of another wave incoming so we take cover in and around the bus.

Again a single Thinman drops in, this time near our exit zone and too far away to trigger reaction fire. However Haphazard has a shot available from his position in the bus



He too gets a one shot kill. Despite warnings of more incoming aliens, we're allowed to get Anna safely back to the extraction and given the task of cleaning out any remaining aliens.

This is where we want the high ground so I start to move the squad towards the fountain. We spot a Thinman on the far side but he immediately retreats out of sight behind a car.

The Thinman re-appears on the alien turn and spits poison at Ug. Cpl Barbarian panics and fires back with his pistol, hitting for 2 damage.
However Sgt Uberfish is obviously feeling his previous wound and also panics. In this case, he takes his feelings out on Sareln, blazing away at him for 4 points damage



With two teammates out of action, Dazed steps in to save the day. Another 'Run & Gun' sets up this shot



Another easy kill for Dazed
Once order is restored, the team gradually moves up the centre from cover to cover to flush out any remaining aliens. It should be noted that Sareln makes sure he stays behind Uberfish

Finally Haphazard spots a lone Sectoid near a van in the far corner.



As the shot odds are poor (33%) he lays smoke so the others can get in position.
The Sectoid shoots at him and misses.
Another 'Run & Gun' from Dazed allows him to sneak up behind it



However he misses this one and we fall back to the next best choice. Ug takes careful aim and mission over

[Ug the Barbarian]

We get four promotions but also three out wounded



The scientists gained from the mission cut the research time quite nicely so Beam Weapons will now complete this month.



Generally a much easier mission than expected - probably playing on Impossible has lead me to expect more aliens all the time

[Ug the Barbarian]

Save file attached

[Ug the Barbarian]

It's probably Sareln's fault.

Funny you should say that in retrospect

[uberfish]

Err... it was clearly Sareln's fault so I had to shoot him! He might have been a werewolf.

don't you love how soldiers panic when someone else gets poisoned for 1

[xenin]

Got it. So it's got round to me and we haven't actually lost a soldier yet? No pressure then!

[xenin]

Erk. Problem. Can't load the savegame without the DLC, and I'm not sure I want to pay £3.69 to colour my soldiers blue. Are there any workarounds for this?

[dazedroyalty]

I don't know personally. I was wondering if this was going to be a problem. Someone more technically minded should weigh in.

[Jkaen]

Can you set all players to normal boring default colour scheme and see if that helps?

oh and you will have to change the guile haircut that is also part of the early buy bonus

[dazedroyalty]

Easier than that would be just to send a save that hasn't been customized and see if it can be opened. I can do that I'm about 10-12 hours of no one else can first.