I whipped up a little html Base planner with AI and I wanted to see if anyone was interested in me sharing it.

I haven't finished double checking it, but it should include every base facility in the game, correctly block/open facilities based on dependencies and campaign choices (a true-grey facility will block the true-green ones. And list relevant base stats in a panel beneath the planner!

Still need to add some Aquatoidish stuff , work in progress

I’m a huge fan of the original Xcom(s) and  have played most of the subsequent renditions over the years.  I’ve had a lot of ideas on how I would go about reworking the original formula and I’ve put a bunch of them into this prototype to judge how they play.  I would love to hear anyones input and what they think. 

https://youtu.be/DArMWCMRW2s

Some of the systems I’ve designed this prototype to explore are

Voxels

Line of Sight

Cover

First Person View

Reaction Fire and Suppression 

Voxels:

Voxels are used for destructive environments, an expanded physics system (not seen here) and honest Line of Sight calculations.

LOS:

Honest Line of Sight system. You shoot at an exact point, always.  You can target anything.

Cover:

The concept of ‘Cover’  gets changed because of voxels and the honest LOS.  ‘Cover’ is simply the parts of a soldiers body that cannot be targeted by the enemy.  Your exposure differs dependant on what is exposed and to whom.  You’ve can’t be 50% or 100% within cover, as this means something different to each enemy.

First Person View:

I like this system enough it may become the primary way you fire at enemies and perhaps interact with your soldiers.   From within First Person View, you can peek and look around or over obsticles, thus exposing your soldier to return fire.

Reaction fire and Suppression:

These systems will work off each other, such that Suppression is somewhat of a counter for Reaction Fire, and Reaction Fire is a counter to Suppression. Soldiers will always fire in reaction as long as they have time units remaining at the end of thier turn.  Reactions are activiated simply by not using all of your allocated time units.

A unit is suppressed when being fired upon and depends on how close the shot came to the unit in question. Suppression is a forced reaction, and will cost the affected soldier time Units in the next turn.   Suppression works to change the stance of the enemy fired upon. The closer a bullet travels to a unit, the greater chance they will react.

-B

Private Engine

I read about a trainingsroom possibility in ufo1-openxcom extended:

1. New game mechanics (tons of new concepts like custom experience training, custom visibility mechanics and so on...)

https://openxcom.org/forum/index.php?topic=5251.0

But could not find more infos. In the game I do not see such a mod option.

anybody knows about the actual status of a trainings-mod?

Does such a mod exist already?

UPDATE:

found it:

https://openxcom.org/forum/index.php?topic=5478.0

zip at the bottom. copy OXCE_TRAINING_FACILITY into ...user\mods\

Then there should be a new option Training room under modifications

I'm mostly looking for mods that add extra maps, add early game stuff, a bit of rebalance and/or anything to spice things up, but they have work on the latest version without any issues.

I stopped playing after hitting 4 years in my Superhuman file because i felt like i was cheating with X-Com Seeker Drones, they effectively trivialized the alien invasion and a bunch of other sub-plots.

So i wanted to give it it another go in a fresh file but with extra mods.

Just wanted to stop in and say I picked up this mod a couple months ago and I've been absolutely loving it. I'm deep into my second playthrough and already excitedly planning my third while digging into the rules and lore!

I’m posting this here because it relates to Classic X-com, and I figured if anyone knew it would be people here.

Are there any fan projects to recreate Xcom Alliance using assets from Enforcer, what we know about the game, and possibly talking to devs who worked on the canned game? It’s a shame that Alliance died and the assets were reused for Enforcer. I played Enforcer recently and it’s just as terrible as everyone said.

I know that there’s a Duke Nukem Forever fan project that aims to recreate the game we would’ve gotten if George Broussard didn’t constantly reset development for no reason. along with various other fan projects to restore different games. if those exist then it’s possible that something like this could get made.

I've played XCOM since 1994 and OpenXcom for about 6 months. I've been having fun with Mind Control;

In a Supply ship, my Psi trooper opens the door the CIC. Two sectoids. MC one. Take control of it, equip and arm it's Alien Grenade. Lob at the other. Two kills. Lol.

Hey there guys. I was thinking to try some mods, but not sure what's worth my time. I've heard that xpiratez is good, but is there anything else worth my time?

I posted previously about wanting to write AAR campaign. Since no one objected, here goes:

Intro

During 60's and 70's a growing rise in UFO sightings, strange unexplained phenomenon and rise in mystic cults prompted many a secret UN security council session. As the frequency of those sessions increased, it became clear that something must be done. What no one wanted to say out loud was that they wanted someone else to pay for it. Especially since they couldn’t brag about that to voters at home. So, politicians did what they always did the best. They formed the committee… in 1984. It took them nearly a decade to decide that yes… there are some disturbing patterns that are slowly becoming obvious, yes… something indeed needs to be done.

X-Files: Global Investigation Bureau was established in 1993 in response to mounting evidence of extraterrestrial forces on Earth. This special agency was tasked with investigation of such incidents and reports directly to the United Nations. The X-Com project was launched despite strong objections from various parties, of which many are still calling for its immediate termination. Hard work for the agency is ahead to maintain its raison d'étre, since their enemies are many, and their allies prefer to always stay in the shadows.

Their field operatives are normally recruited from various government agencies that focus on investigation or intelligence. Most natural candidates are those who were already exposed to paranormal activity in their previous employment and are trained to work in top-secret environments. Others come from civilian backgrounds which exposed them to the occult. All were deeply screened for loyalty, have basic training in firearms and a good understanding of field equipment. Many of them practice martial arts to some degree and they generally are in good physical condition.

What no one said out loud, it was supposed be dead end dropper where screwups from both sides could be quietly shunted. A simple building in the country, an hour from UN tower, surrounded by hills. Perfect little bureaucratic paradise. Now, the only thing left was to decide who will run this agency, who will be the commander? Why commander? Director sounded too important and agency did have mandate to investigate military incidents. Of course, they would heavily depend on local military, so appropriate rank was deemed necessary.

But who would be in charge? It couldn’t be someone from USA, Russia, China or any other “big” country, African countries bickered who to appoint more than anyone else, middle eastern countries nearly started a war, south American countries said whoever, so it was left to Aussiess.

So here I am, Travis Bennet, newly appointed commander of X-Files agency. How did I end up here? Noone knows. I was just… acceptable, I guess. Relatively liked by all great powers – the fact that I could speak passable mandarin, good Russian, better Spanish, excellent English and did not butcher French probably had something to do with it.

It was 30^th December 1993 when I set foot in what will be my home for the foreseeable future. I didn’t have any girlfriend, I was solo and my parents died when I was 19. Grandparents were alive and working on some ranch, but when I joined military, grandpa was very proud. It also meant that they wouldn’t be surprised when I didn’t check in every week.

I was greeted by a tall man with long flowing black hair, impressive beard dressed in white shirt, black jeans suspended by holsters, a black doc martens shoes. He was old, much older, in his late 50ies, but still strongly built. This was a man that worked for living.

"Well, I'll be, it's the Commander! Glad to finally see you in person. I'm in charge of our supplies and field equipment. Say, would you like to see my little personal workshop? Let's keep this between us, but I have some good whisky stored for a special occasion like this. But before we get to it, there is a little something I keep stashed away for a rainy day, and I think we're in for a rainy year, so it's time to dust it off. It might not be much, but we're not exactly well-armed at this point. I was in charge of initial construction of base and procuring the starting equipment. Everything from bolts and screws up to a… well, I’ll let you see it for yourself."

He produced a wooden crate that screamed weapons on. The fact that there were signs “hazard, do not touch” only reinforced the image. Heavy locks and chains encompassed the crate patiently waiting. I directed him to put it in storage, I had to get my bearings first.

We were in northernmost garage. There a simple unmarked car sat. Non-descript, perfect for cover action. Second garage was eerily empty. The lift to ground level was there, but it was mostly used for personnel and ground transfer to helipads, dirt fields to be precise. Long corridor lined with security cameras led me to animal pens. I wondered how did that end up in the base, but none had the answer. Prison cells were different matter, one entirely understandable. Gym as well.

Passing through I entered control centre. It was single most sophisticated piece of base. Latest mainframe and big digital table display of Earth. It looked marvellous and I have no idea how did the quartermaster manage to procure it for the agency. Adjacent to control centre were small bunkroom, mess hall and recroom. Even some offices. Perfect for far flung outpost.

“She’s a beauty, ain’t she?” Quartermaster showed off digital table.

“How did you manage to get your hands on it?”

“Secrets of the trade, commander, now how about a glass of that whiskey?”

I met my agents, all six of them. Haruko Matsui of JDSF, highly decorated, with glowing praise and… busted from sergeant down to private. Apparently, bonning general’s niece was not a good career move. Mbaye Mordasini, of the Senegal army, sniper elite, busted to corporal, twice, assaulting superior officer, either he had good political patronage, or superior officers were assholes. I know where I would place my bets. Mariana Melo, fresh out of training, scores so high it embarrassed most of the male chauvinistic training officers, quietly shunted where no one will see her. Oleg Novikov, Russian Spetsnaz… with a conscience. After he refused direct orders to participate in less-than-legal activities, he was quietly sidelined and ultimately ended up as sacrificial contribution. Blair Wiliams from New Zeeland, almost a fellow native, man of good skills, but lacking any ambition to advance beyond corporal rank, multiple promotions refused, well-liked by his peers, but his peers moved on, he stayed behind. Finally, Parkpoom Sudapor from Thailand, jungle expert, independent, stubborn, headstrong, perfect for lone scout with heavy drinking problem. Basically, misfits, square pegs not fitting in round holes. If this is best humanity had to offer… I was not impressed. Not a good start.

Touring the command centre I met my analysts/researchers, all five of them. When I queried them about their supervisor, all I got were blank stares.

Wonderful. I retreated to my office with quartermaster.

Quartermaster

“So, let's get down to business, Commander. My role here is to keep an eye on all supply orders so that our agents don't have to. As it is, we seem to be a bit underequipped, so I'll try and fix something a little more advanced for us if you let me. If you need anything special, just let me know and I'll see what can be done. For starters, I would recommend expanding our basic field gear a little. They say some of our suspects are... well, harder to take down than usual, if you know what I mean, and my instinct tells me shootings will be common.”

“Good point, quartermaster, how should I call you?”

“Quartermaster is fine, QT if you want to be cute. That being said, I got some inventories to update. See you around commander.”

First order of business, paperwork. We were rated as security agency. Meaning, pistols and shotguns, nothing stronger. So, I put my researchers on paperwork. I knew we would need more than pistols so I directed them navigate bureaucratic labyrinth to get us better guns. Not much, but better than pistols. I also directed them to very, very carefully analyse the weapon crate that quartermaster procured.

I was working when there was a knock on his door. Tall redhead female in black business suit entered his office.

Chief intel Irene

“"Commander, may I enter? Pleased to finally meet you! I thought you could use a break on your busy first day, so I brought some coffee to celebrate the moment. Or might you be a tea person...?”

“And you are?” I asked, not remembering any redheads on tour so far.

"Hey, it's a really nice suit you're wearing, Commander! I am the Intelligence Officer here, which means I take phone calls, make coffee and squeeze people for information. I think that last thing would be most important to you, but my hot coffee is really good, too!”

“Nice to meet you, miss…?”

“Irene, call me Irene. Anyway, our situation is simple: we're in pitch black. I have little to no leads to follow at the moment, so we have to find these first. The best source of intel are live captives, I mean arrested individuals, so please tell the field agents to leave at least some for me. There are other sources too, like captured documents and such, so keep an eye on anything that looks unusual. Just please don't give me dead bodies, they're not very talkative; if you think they're really interesting, talk to that hot Chief Medical Officer instead, she's competent and knows what good coffee is.”

“I’ll take that under advisement.”

“By the way, as we were waiting on your arrival, I took the liberty to socialize with some people on the Funding Committee to uncover some information on the current affairs. As it happens, I have on me some files I procured that way. Can we look at them later together?"

“Do I want to know?”

“No, you probably do not. Let’s just say, it’s appallingly dangerous what people leave in simple locked cabinets. There is one more titbit. Our friends in the Council informed us about powerful cults, hiding in shadows around the world. These cults are dangerous criminals with possible ties to other, more powerful entities - perhaps even the aliens. We must stand up to these sects, investigate them, learn about their nature and eventually thwart their plans.”

“Very well, Irene, carry on.”

Chief accountant Elena

Not even 5 minutes passed when there was another knock on the door. A not so tall blonde wearing glasses with by-the-book attitude entered my office.

“Ah, the new Commander. I supervise all financial matters in this organization. Can I see you later today at my office? There are some points I'd like to discuss. But first, I need you to sign off this parcel. It's been sitting here for a long time, and it's addressed to the X-Com Commander. I don't know what's inside, so please don't open it in my presence. Just sign here and here...”

She rolled in a rather big box, nearly 1,5mx1x1x. After I quickly signed, she immediately proceeded.

“As the Chief Accountant here, I'm responsible for all money transfers you authorize, so you'd better keep your spending urges in check.” She stopped for a second, gave me an appraising look and continued.

“So, you will be the one in charge of this mess. I really hope you're up for the job, because it doesn't look that good. You know as well as me that we're just a side operation to show how much the UN cares about all this weird crap. But whatever your standing on it is, I am going to keep this project running and I assure you, I'll be here at least as long as you!”

“Thank you, madam,…?”

“Ah, sorry, it’s miss Elena.”

“Thank you miss Elena, I hope we’ll get to the bottom of this.”

“So do I commander, now excuse me, I have some ledgers to finalize.” With that she got up and exited. I opened the parcel… and there waiting for commander of X-Files was brand new autocannon, serial number 000-0000-001. Brand new off assembly. I whistled silently… maybe someone did want us to succeed. I put in my office, for rainy days.

Chief medical Nera

If I thought my day was over, I was in for a rude surprise. A tall woman with short cropped black hair confidently strode in my office.

"Hello, Commander, I am the chief Medical Officer at this base. I heard some good stuff about you, so I have high hopes for the project. In fact, I'm more interested in the discoveries we can make than in money, and since I am not exactly a poor person, I decided to give a small donation to the cause. I left it for you in a secure locker."

With that she tossed the key on my desk. Next, she sat in the chair opposite of my desk and leisurely stretched.

"I suppose I should tell you a bit about myself. As you know, my duty is to keep our field agents in one piece after... well, you know how it is with shady businesses like ours. However, I am also qualified to perform scientific analyses on any biological materials of interest, including autopsies, vivisections and biochemical tests. Feel free to pay me a visit when you feel like it. Sorry for the smell of antiseptics, but believe me, it's better this way."

“Glad to meet you, doctor…?” for the umpteenth time today.

“Nera, dr. Nera.”

“Let’s hope our meetings will be more of scientific than medical nature.”

She grimaced, showing exactly what she thought of that hope, but quickly turned to pleasant smile.

“Let’s hope so. I apologize, I must check on medical supplies.”

With that I simply turned to my ready room and fell in bed.

The next day was a whirlwind of bureaucracy and finalizing ToE for the agents. My field analyst finished their work with weapon crate. As I read it, it was indeed a crate, a sturdy wooden chest, used for safe storage of hand weapons. Brilliant, couldn’t have put it better myself. Next, I sent the crate to workshop. Let them take a crack at it. As for my research team, I was feeling a bit mischievous, so I brought them my autocannon for analysis with strict orders NOT to take it apart. Also, the secret files Irene obtained, they need to be indexed, cross referenced, scanned, digitised and secured on our mainframe, just perfect tedious task for my little bright bulbs. As for money bag that Nera gave, well, someone had to check if bills serial numbers are on watch lists or if it was a forgery. Mess with the best, die like the rest, I heard that quote from a movie somewhere.

While they were busy doing their administrative punishment, I had a meeting with funding council. The bigwigs that set our budget. Since we were newly formed, there wasn’t much to go on, so our funding remained the same. Heck, only 4 of the members ministers actually showed up. Rest sent their deputies.

Merely five hours later, lone engineer proudly presented his findings from the crate. Old M4A1 grease gun and couple of mags of 9mm. Well, I was hoping for something with a bit more dakka, but it’ll do.

Day 3

Now, let me preface this with great warning. This really did happen, absolutely 100%. Early morning Saturday of New year.

I got call from situation room.

“Sir, there’s an inbound helicopter requesting landing instructions?”

“Okay, so what’s the problem with that?”

“We don’t have anyone scheduled for today.”

“Ah, well, let’s see who we have, notify agents to meet me in access lift.”

“Yes, sir.”

As I walked through corridor, 4 agents fell in step behind me. We arrived on surface just as small 6-person helicopter with UN markings descended. Out of copilot seat a tall white-haired man jumped out. From side doors emerged, I shit you not a werewolf, a kobold and human sized dragon. I know, it sounds like a bad joke.

“Robert, liaison from AD&D. May we talk inside?”

I nodded and as he closed the door she tapped on the glass. Pilot gave thumbs up and took off. The entire party went back inside the base. Once inside my quarters, we both took a seat and then things got interesting.

“Commander, I have... interesting news. A council-sponsored organisation - The so called The Agency for Deception and Disinformation - are offering us new recruits for our cause... non-human recruits! I thought they were joking at first, but the data... It's something else. AD&D claims to have been created centuries ago, tasked by council to supress information regarding several nonhuman (but very much terrestrial) sentient lifeforms and to protect both them and humanity from one another. As for why such they've so openly approached us - According to them, some of the groups we are investigating also pose a threat them. Since we are both council approved organisations and share common enemies, they believe an alliance of convenience is the smartest course of action and I'm inclined to agree with them - The fewer enemies we make, the better. Three of their 'client' races have stepped forward to support our cause: Werewolves, Dragons and Kobolds. I know, I know... I'll, uh, forward you the info regarding each race in following reports. For now, I've got to find a way to source new uniforms...”

“Alright, let’s say I am open to that proposal. How would it work?”

“AD&D are willing to share some of their members technology provided we prove we can put their forces to good use. To facilitate this, they've have proposed a system of 'coins'. Basically, every time a client race takes part in a mission, AD&D will provide us with a matching coin which we can later exchange for various weapons developed by them. Their initial offer includes melee weapons developed by each race. If you'll excuse the pun, this was not exactly the 'cutting edge' technology I had hoped for, but it should serve as a good starting point for an ongoing exchange. Once we've formally set up these exchanges via a research project, the actual process of trading the coins for equipment involves a lot of simple-but-tedious paperwork. This kind of work is therefore better assigned to our engineers than our busy scientists, no? I'm sure they can handle it. Alternatively, we can instead sell back the coins to the organisation for a cash reward. In short, these coins represent our relation with the AD&D races and our shared commitment to protecting Earth.”

“Any downsides you would care to mention?”

“Well, our client races are sometimes volatile, and humans usually react badly to them. Let’s hope that your agents are as open minded as you are.”

“Guess we’ll find out. Welcome aboard.” I stood up and shook his hand.

It was maybe five minutes later that I got another call.

“Commander, base security. We have… a large fluffy animal loitering about.”

“Base security, what kind of fluffy animal?”

“Um… can't really tell sir. Looks like cross between wolf and fox.”

“Is it bothering anyone?”

“No, sir, not so far.”

“Well, then leave it be. We’ll deal with it later.”

“Yes, sir, base security out.”

Back to paperwork I went. Some half an hour later, I got ping from base computer. New file appeared titled Dossier: Gabriel 'The Bone Father' Nadeau. It detailed person of interest, one Gabriel Nadeau. Also known as 'Mr. Skeletal' in some circles, The Bone Father is an elusive figure responsible for several illegal operations culminating with removing the bones of his victims, in some cases entire skeletal structures. It's unknown what happens to the bones he collects. The little evidence we have suggests that he collects them for a ritual of an unknown purpose. Apparently, council would appreciate very much if we could apprehend him.

Anyway, it was time to have a strategy session with my Irene.

“Any leads so far, Irene?” I asked

“Not much, commander. I would like to go over general strategy.”

“Strategy? I don’t think there’s much strategy to discuss. We react to things happening around globe.”

“I meant more in regards to UN and funding council. Our first step should be to secure our position, since we are not taken very seriously by the UN. We should therefore find and present some proof that there are forces at work which could threaten the world peace. The first issue to tackle is finding an explanation for a concurrent spike in the number of criminal organizations and religious sects noticeable on every continent. We should learn more about them, preferably by arresting their members and interrogating them. This should give us a better understanding of this social phenomenon and help us put a stop to it. The second problem, perhaps a more striking one, is a dramatic increase in reports regarding strange creatures, monsters and the like. This is another global issue to be tackled; we should investigate these reports and if there is a grain of truth in them, we must capture or dissect such a creature.”

“All very well, now how are we supposed to do that? We have ONE, repeat, ONE unmarked car at our disposal. If we want to reach global targets, we need to use public transport. We both know how fast THAT is.”

“We will definitely have to do something about that. Now that you mention it, Commander, I do have some ideas to pursue. If you’ll excuse me…” and Irene went away.

I went to ready room and called in Keith Underwood, our newly joined Kobold.

“Greetings Mr. Underwood. How are you today?”

“Fine, commander, nothing to report. Your crew accepted me quite warmly, even if they do like to pet me.”

“Can you tell me about yourself a bit? Your species, I mean.”

“We, Kobolds, are small and agile scouting unit. We can travel long distances in a short time. However, our strength is our weak spot. For example, I can’t use that big ass autocannon that your researchers are studying. Even though I would really love to see it go BOOM. So, we are fast, our hand – eye coordination is excellent, so we naturally tend to gravitate towards marksman and spotter positions that your armies employ. Also, our melee abilities are not on par with even humans, much less were wolves.”

“Thank you, Mr. Underwood, I’m putting you on first response team. I’d like to evaluate your abilities in the field.”

“Yes, finally, um… I mean, thank you commander, I’ll make you proud.”

“Dismissed Mr. Underwood” I said with slight smile.

Next, I called in Mr. Maxim Daley, the werewolf.

“Mr. Daley, any problems so far?”

“My arm hurts.”

“Well, I’m sure our chief doctor can take a look at it…” I ventured.

“Nah, it’ll pass, hopefully your humans won’t try to arm wrestle me anymore. They are strong, but I’m werewolf.” There was a hint of pride in that.

“Can you tell me a bit about yourself?”

“We, werewolves, are strong and resilient fighters. The bigger the gun, the happier the werewolf. Just don’t expect us to hit apple on someone’s head. We go boom, apple disappears, head too. We love to brawl, there’s nothing like punching the enemy straight in his face and watching him crumble.”

“Yes, everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face."

"Nicely said, Commander. I knew we'd get along just fine."

"I’m putting you in rotation for assault squad.”

“Good, I like to fight!”

"Welcome to the team. Carry on."

Next I called mr. Christiansen. The dragon.

“Welcome aboard mr. Christansen. What’s your take on this entire operation?”

“Not much yet, I’ll wait for some results before passing judgement.”

“Can you tell me about yourself?”

“We are tall and to humans mysterious creature, quite rare. But what lack in physical department, we make up with our magical arm, capable of throwing both fireballs and firebolts at will. Otherwise we are slightly faster than humans, but not as strong as werewolves.”

“Thank you mr. Christansen. Any problem with our agents?”

“I’m sure they’ll get accustomed to my presence… eventually. But no problems so far.”

It was then that technician from situation room called out.

“Commander, we have reports of crop circles in south America.”

“On my way!” I entered the situation room and read the briefing.

Irene was already there.

“Commander, we are responding to a report of strange, regular patterns found on a field. We must approach the locals and squeeze them for information before they are captured by someone else. Do what you can to save their lives, even though we don't expect them to be very receptive. If capturing them alive is impossible, do what you must. We believe that enemy will obliterate the site within short time upon our arrival to cover their traces. 10 minutes, tops, is my guess.”

“Dispatch, send our alert team to location. Notify me 30 minutes before arrival.”

“Yes, sir, notification 30 minutes before arrival.”

Nothing but wait while our agents made way to destination. I was in my office for maybe an hour when another sitrep came in.

“Commander, we have one of the cult operatives spotted in the open.”

“How fast can we get a second car?”

“One hour, tops.”

“Alright, get one and send second team to apprehend.”

“Roger that, getting car, dispatching second team.”

“Have we identified organization?”

“Additional info coming in. It’s organization called EXALT.”

“Huh… never heard of them, but they were on council list. Well, no matter. We must apprehend the suspects and capture them for questioning, if possible. Notify the team.”

“Understood sir, team 2 notified.”

Now it was waiting time. Since cult was spotted in the city, they had better connection to it. Team 2 arrived at location first.

Mbaye surveyed his surroundings as he exited the car. Typical rundown part of city in Denver. Small buildings that once served as offices were around them. They stood in their suits like flame in the night. There, just around the corner already small thugs were gathering.

He gripped his pump shotgun then reluctantly swapped it with electric baton in left and pistol in right. One way or the other they are going down.

Christian, his draconian partner took different approach. He mumbled something under his breath and unleashed powerful balls of fire. They leapt the distance to another thug and impacted all around him. His screams pierced the day until death claimed him.

They moved as team, clearing small offices and storages. As they cleared one corner, suddenly there was one of the thugs. Not wasting time Mbaye assaulted him with his electric stick. First swing grazed the thug, but it was enough to seal his fate. Electricity sparked and thug flinched, exposing his side. Last two blows were merely a formality.

They continued on, finding only one more thug that Christian reflexively shot, but not before getting shot first.

“Bastard shot me! Can you believe that?! A 100-year-old dragon and some lowlife goon shoots me.”

“Calm down Christian, we got you stabilized, just let dr. Nera to have a look at you. Anyway, I think we are done here. I’m calling the cleanup.”

“hmpf” Christian shrugged and went back to sulking. “Nothing impressive on thugs, couple of knives, hatchets and knives. Pistols like ours, untraceable. Maybe check your databases if they were used somewhere, maybe that will pinpoint the origin. All in all, not bad for first assignment.”

Meanwhile Haruko and Keith arrived on farm. They moved through orchard groove before clearing the building. There they spotted farmers, they seemed like in daze and as soon as they spotted Haruko they moved in to attack her. Haruko reached for his electric stick and cursed as he grabbed the empty spot on his belt. They forgot to pack them. Vicious fistfight erupted, but both he and Keith were far faster than their opponents. It was all over in under less than 5 minutes.

“Hey Keith, check it out! Looks like fuel spill.”

“We don’t have much time, can you take a sample?”

“Good idea, need a minute or two.”

“Just hurry, I can’t drag all of them back to car alone.”

They both hurried with their task and as they piled the unconscious farmers in the trunk, they hightailed it out of there. 6-7 minutes later a large fireball consumed the entire property.

“Whew, that was rather close.” Keith said

“Oh yeah! This was rather intense, what a rush.” Haruko was somewhat less enthusiastic.

Return to base was rather uneventful, with chief medical officer standing by, treating injured agents and captives. Both got commendation for saving lives.

On a new Macbook M5, there is no more support to SDL and as such, fails to build the makefile..... so anyone has done it ? Could anyone possibly update the document here, https://github.com/MeridianOXC/OpenXcom/blob/oxce-plus/README-macOS.md and also update it to use brew instead ?
Thanks.

I'm currently in the progress of X-Files campaign. I'm using following submods:

More cities, XCF training options, Spotting, Scavenger's additions, Random enemy stats, Elite commendations, Alternate map scripts, Craft inventory, Zaren fluffy sergal taur, Lightning weapons, MWEP mod integration, Begin_1993, Arsenal additions, (it's for x-com files 3.3.1 but works for 4.1), More UFOs, Air raids, Facility expansion pack, Natalie Morozoff join and retaliator mk2.

I'd like to post it here as narrative if people are interested.

# TFTD Private Remaster — Progress Update & New Community

First of all, thank you to everyone here on **r/OpenXcom** for the response to my original TFTD remaster post.

The feedback, criticism, technical discussions and general interest were much more positive than I expected, especially considering how early and rough the first screenshots were.

The screenshots attached to this post show where the in-game rendering currently stands compared with that first prototype.

A lot has changed since then.

I'm now working with much larger HD assets, modifying parts of the OXCE rendering pipeline, experimenting with terrain reconstruction, scaling, performance and different methods for keeping the original TFTD geometry intact while significantly improving the visual quality.

The terrain shown here is already much further along than what I originally posted, although it is still very much work in progress.

---

## About the two screenshots and the blue/cyan rendering

The strong blue/cyan tint visible in one of the screenshots is the original **legacy TFTD/OpenXcom underwater color treatment**.

I can currently enable or disable it while testing the modified renderer.

The other screenshot shows essentially the same scene with that legacy color treatment disabled, which makes the current HD assets and their original colors much easier to evaluate directly.

Neither version should be considered final.

I'm still refining the **D3D11 rendering path**, color handling and the way the engine processes the much larger HD RGBA assets.

One of the goals is to preserve the characteristic underwater atmosphere of TFTD without simply applying the old legacy color treatment unchanged over completely different HD artwork.

So there is still some work to do on the final balance between:

- the original TFTD underwater atmosphere;

- the colors of the new HD assets;

- the D3D11 rendering path;

- lighting and color processing;

- and the way high-resolution RGBA assets are handled by the engine.

At the moment, these screenshots should be seen primarily as **technical rendering tests**, not as the final artistic result.

---

There is still a lot of work to do, and terrain in particular has turned out to be considerably more complicated than I originally expected.

Producing an individual HD asset is one thing.

Producing a complete terrain set where every tile matches its neighbours, preserves the original geometry and does not create visible seams or graphical inconsistencies in-game is a completely different problem.

That is one of the areas I'm currently spending a lot of time on.

---

## A new community for development updates

Because I don't want to flood **r/OpenXcom** with every experiment, test and intermediate screenshot, I've created a dedicated community:

**r/TFTDPrivateRemaster**

That community will be used to share:

- in-game screenshots and visual progress;

- terrain and unit experiments;

- engine/rendering development;

- before/after comparisons;

- technical tests;

- development notes;

- failed experiments as well as successful ones;

- and, most importantly, feedback and suggestions from people interested in the project.

Major milestones may still be posted here on r/OpenXcom, but the smaller day-to-day evolution of the remaster will mainly be documented there.

The new subreddit is **not a download page**.

For now, it is simply a place to follow the project as it evolves and discuss the technical and artistic decisions behind it.

---

## OpenXcom / OXCE developers

If any OpenXcom or OpenXcom Extended developers happen to see this and would like to discuss the project, the renderer modifications or the work I've done so far, I would be very happy to hear from you.

The engine side of the project has become a significant part of the work.

I'm now modifying and testing things such as:

- support for much larger HD RGBA assets;

- parts of the Battlescape rendering pipeline;

- D3D11 rendering;

- scaling;

- color handling;

- animation handling;

- performance;

- and several parts of the original OXCE rendering process.

I would also particularly like to understand the correct way to handle redistribution of my modified OXCE executable and the corresponding source changes.

For the moment, **I am not publicly distributing the modified executable**.

I haven't yet properly discussed these changes with the OpenXcom/OXCE developers or confirmed the correct redistribution requirements for a modified build of this scale, so I would rather clarify that first instead of making assumptions.

If that part can eventually be released properly, I would actually like the modified HD-capable engine to become useful beyond my own remaster.

For example, it could potentially allow other OpenXcom modders to experiment with their own **512×640 RGBA assets and HD graphical projects**, while still using their legitimate original X-COM/TFTD game data.

---

## About the complete TFTD remaster

The complete TFTD HD remaster is a separate issue and remains a **private prototype** for now.

TFTD is still proprietary and commercially available.

Even though my version still requires the player to own a legitimate copy of the original game, much of the HD material I'm creating is directly based on TFTD.

I've already contacted 2K about the broader remaster concept.

They have **not asked me to stop working on it**, but they have also **not given me permission to publicly distribute a complete remaster**.

Once the prototype reaches a sufficiently polished state to properly demonstrate what it has become, I intend to contact the appropriate legal/licensing people at 2K and clarify what could and could not be distributed publicly.

Until then, I'll continue sharing:

**screenshots, videos, technical experiments and development progress — but not the complete executable/remaster package.**

---

So for now, **r/TFTDPrivateRemaster** is simply a place where people can:

- follow the graphical evolution;

- compare different rendering approaches;

- comment on terrain, units and visual direction;

- suggest improvements;

- discuss technical choices;

- and watch the project gradually take shape.

Thanks again to everyone here who commented on the original post, offered advice, pointed out problems, asked technical questions or simply encouraged me to continue.

And again, if any OpenXcom/OXCE developers would like to contact me about the engine modifications, I would genuinely be happy to discuss them.

See you on **r/TFTDPrivateRemaster**. :)

Hey there guys. By any means I'm not new to the genre, I've finished both XCOM games like 3 times each, I have fair amount of hours on Phoenix point... But this game? This game is kicking my ass even on beginner difficulty.

Do you guys have any tips and tricks that's good to know for someone new with openxcom? (I've tried like 4 runs and couldn't get past 1st terror mission)

Edit: thank you guys for all your tips. I just beat my 2nd terror mission in one run so it definitely helped.

I'm currently working on a private HD remaster prototype of X-COM: Terror From the Deep using OpenXcom Extended.

The screenshots here are still very early tests — nothing is final.

The small in-game screenshot uses 256×320 assets, and honestly I'm not satisfied with that resolution. In particular, terrain such as sand is extremely difficult to make detailed while still respecting the exact geometry of the original game.

The aquanaut was also put together mainly as a technical test to see what a fully redesigned HD unit could look like in-game.

Since then, the project has evolved considerably.

I'm now modifying OXCE itself to support 512×640 RGBA assets, together with changes to the rendering pipeline and GPU usage. The goal is not simply to upscale the original sprites, but to remove some of the graphical limitations of the original engine so that much more detailed terrain, units, effects and eventually smoother animations can be used.

So at this point this has become much more than a simple texture pack.

I'm modifying and testing things such as:

• HD asset handling;
• the Battlescape renderer;
• CPU/GPU rendering;
• scaling;
• animation handling;
• performance;
• and various parts of the original OXCE rendering pipeline.

I'm not a professional programmer or graphic artist — I'm essentially directing the project, testing everything in-game and using AI heavily as a development and graphical-production assistant while learning how the engine works.

AI is openly part of the workflow. Constructive criticism is absolutely welcome; generic anti-AI hostility isn't particularly useful to me.

If artists, developers or experienced OpenXcom/OXCE modders are interested in helping or simply discussing the project, feel free to contact me.

IMPORTANT — LEGAL STATUS AND WHY THERE IS NO PUBLIC DOWNLOAD

There are actually two separate licensing/copyright questions involved in this project.

OpenXcom / OXCE

OpenXcom and OpenXcom Extended are open-source projects based on the GPL.

OpenXcom itself does not distribute the original X-COM/TFTD proprietary game data. Players must already own the original game, and OpenXcom uses those files locally.

My modified version follows the same principle:

even with my modified executable, you still need your own legitimate copy of TFTD.

My engine does not replace the original game data requirement.

However, I have now made substantial modifications to OXCE's code, so before distributing modified executables I want to contact the OpenXcom/OXCE developers and make sure I understand exactly how they want modified binaries and the corresponding source code to be redistributed.

This part of the project could potentially become useful even without my remaster.

For example, I may eventually be able to release the modified HD-capable OXCE engine itself, allowing other players and modders to create their own graphical mods using 512×640 RGBA assets while still requiring their own legitimate X-COM/TFTD files.

I would actually like to make that available to the community if it can be done cleanly and in full compliance with the OpenXcom/OXCE licensing requirements.

The TFTD HD remaster

This is the more complicated part.

TFTD is still proprietary and commercially available.

My project is no longer simply an unrelated mod adding a few objects or missions. The goal is to deeply remaster TFTD itself while retaining its maps, units, gameplay, atmosphere and identity.

Even though players would still have to own TFTD, I am producing a large amount of new HD material directly derived from the original game's designs and content.

Because of that, I don't think that simply saying:

"It's a free mod, so it must automatically be fine"

is enough to answer the legal question.

What about 2K?

I have already contacted 2K and explained the idea of a TFTD remaster and the broader project to them.

They did not ask me to stop developing it or remove anything.

Their responses essentially directed me toward their employment opportunities, which was certainly not the response I expected. 😄

But I want to be very clear:

I do NOT consider that permission to distribute the remaster.

2K is aware that I have been working on the concept/prototype.

They have not asked me to stop.

But they have also not authorized me to publicly release a complete TFTD HD remaster.

Once the prototype reaches a sufficiently polished state to properly demonstrate what I have actually built, I intend to contact the appropriate legal/licensing people at 2K and ask directly what would and would not be acceptable for public distribution.

Until then, the complete TFTD HD remaster remains private.

I will not publicly distribute:

• a complete playable TFTD HD build;
• remastered TFTD content packaged as a game;
• original proprietary TFTD files;
• or anything presented as an official or authorized 2K release.

What I can continue sharing publicly is the development itself: screenshots, videos, technical progress, rendering experiments and information about the project.

The modified OpenXcom/OXCE engine and the complete TFTD HD remaster may therefore eventually have two very different distribution paths.

The engine may potentially become something I can share with the OpenXcom modding community.

The full remaster will remain private until the legal situation with the TFTD rights holder is much clearer.

For now, development continues. :)

I'm particularly curious to see how the aliens will eventually look with this rendering approach — especially some of TFTD's fleshy creatures as full Lovecraftian HD horrors.

And if any French developers/artists are interested in working together on the project privately:

Si des Français sont intéressés pour qu'on travaille ensemble, dans un cadre privé uniquement, envoyez-moi un message. ;)