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Twitter: https://twitter.com/BurningGray
Archive: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=XCOM%20Trooper%20Quest
Squad Info: https://pastebin.com/4KJN5HKK

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>>2868199
>Gather your squad together to increase the search party.

>>2868199
>Ask around for Burnout’s last known location.
while you
>Head to places where Burnout usually spends time at.

>>2868216
>>2868199

Supporting this

>>2868199
>>Head to places where Burnout usually spends time at.

Maybe he's at med-bay hanging out with some cute nurses?

>>2868199
>Gather your squad together to increase the search party.
>>Head to places where Burnout usually spends time at.

>>2868199
>>Gather your squad together to increase the search party.

>>2868199
>Other
Find Naru

>>2868199
supportinn >>2868216

Calling the vote here, writing!

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“I don’t think we have the time to look for others from Strike-1 to help, but Burnout’s hard to miss, you can smell his cigarettes before you even see him half of the time. Someone in the barracks probably has an idea of where to look. We’ll ask around, narrow the search, and head to his usual haunts.”

“I know where he generally spends most of his time.” Harita says, her ‘Team Mom’ aspects coming through. You’re pretty glad you gave her that role right now. “If he is not in the barracks… he is either in the shooting range practicing in the recently created obstacle course, at the armoury upsetting the armorer, some secluded places to smoke, and more recently the Gene Mod Labs.”

You idly wonder if Burnout is considering getting Gene Mods, after all there’s some really useful mods one can get for a Scout, such as the ‘Jumpy Legs’. The rest however generally make sense for how he spends his time. With general places he could be at learned, you and Harita split up for to try and grill some of the troops in the barracks for extra info on Burnout. Hopefully you can narrow it down, and if you’re really lucky, maybe someone knows exactly where he’s been...

>Roll 1d100 (TN ???)

Rolled 96 (1d100)

>>2868410

Rolled 32 (1d100)

>>2868410

Rolled 16 (1d100)

>>2868410

Rolled 84 (1d100)

>>2868410

Rolled 10 (1d100)

>>2868410

>>2868411
I think we found him.

Rolled 97 (1d100)

>>2868410

>>2868411
>>2868415
>>2868421
Dice gods want us to find our frog.

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You ask around for Burnout, just as those present slowly start to catch wind of the situation. Maybe it's because of how shitty France was or perhaps Burnout is a lot more social than you realized, but the other troopers are much more cooperative than you had realized. The other troopers go out of their way to really wrack their brains for possible last sightings of the French Scout.

Eventually, you manage to cross off several possible places off of the list and get an exact location. It seems Burnout’s been temporarily banned from the lower levels of the base specifically since he was sneaking off to smoke, so you don’t have to worry about that. And he’s probably not t in the Gene Mod Labs given today is an apparent ‘check-up’ day, meaning the Gene Mod Troopers are being treated with whatever medical substance they need to not turn into a slurry. Finally, the obstacle course is being used by the MECs for training right now.

That just leaves the armory.

You quickly regroup with Harita and set off for the Armory. You and Harita both move quickly, maneuvering and swerving past staff as weave through to the Armory. It’s another fortunate thing that you’re both Assaults and cardio is definitely not something your class doesn’t skip.

For a moment, you actually feel your sore body complain from all the continuous exertion throughout the day, from being mentally flagged from your psionics training to the soreness you earned through yoga. But that doesn’t stop you as you burst into the Armory. Upon doing so, you immediately scare the ever living hell out of the Armorer, the Swedish woman was apparently just dozing off in chair with a firearms magazine over her face, legs kicked up on her desk.

“Agh! Are we under attack!?” The Armorer yelps, toppling over on her chair behind the desk, swearing judiciously as she re-appears not a moment later brandishing… quite the massive and heavily customized Assault Rifle. Even despite the situation, you can’t help but admire how… ah…. ‘Tactical’ it looks. It has a freaking drum mag.

“Easy! We’re just here looking for Burnout.” You say quickly,.holding your hands up hastily as the Armorer swings her precious weapon your way. Harita quickly follows suit as the weapon is trained on her.

“...Pah! I cannot even have a moment of break!” The Armorer complains, lowering her weapon and setting it underneath her counter.

“Sorry! But do you know where he is? We won’t bother you anymore afterwards.” Harita adds, trying to sooth the irate woman.

“Nngh… that damnable Frenchman…” The Armorer grumbles, rubbing her eyes. “Yes, he is here. He is in the back with the armors. One of the few places I allow him to be in, for at least he is not smoking his cursed cigarettes near munitions...”

“Thanks!” You say as both you and Harita head over.

(Part 1 / 2)

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You and Harita finally enter into armor storage, where all the armored vests and soon to be Phalanx Armors are kept. It’s specifically for XCOM soldiers as the Blueshirts have their own armory and gear storage in the various checkpoints throughout the base. It doesn’t take long to find Burnout himself, a duffel bag on the floor beside him. He looks down at… the French flag decal in his hands. It’s one of the little things one can slot in the back of XCOM armor. A symbol of the international nature of XCOM.

“Burnout!” You call out to him. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you!”

He pauses and looks over to you, as you can see the man has been clearly conflicted with the situation. The cigarette in his lips has been used up all the way to it’s butt, a small ash dangling precariously on it. Despite the look of conflict, you can see the man has clearly made a decision from his eyes alone.

“...I had a feeling something like this would happen.” Burnout says, quietly shaking his head. “It’s a shame.”

Harita glances to you, worried.

You should think what you should say and do carefully, this is after all a pretty shitty situation for Burnout.

>Ask what he means.
>Reason that he should stay.
>Let him talk.
>Other.

>>2868553
>Ask what he means.

>>2868553
>Let him talk

>>2868553
>Ask what he means.

>>2868553
>Other.
"It is."
>Let him talk.

>>2868553
>Let him talk.

>>2868553
>Ask what he means.
And where his short Japanese waifu with an explosives fetish is

>>2868553
>Let him talk.

>>2868553
>Let him talk.

Calling the vote here, writing!

“It is.” You say, nodding simply. Shame is not the word you’d use, but it’s certainly one way of describing things. You motion for Burnout to continue, he clearly has some words to say. He however doesn’t just immediately reply, looking back down at the French flag in his hands, his rubbing his fingers on the material.

“I spoke with the survivor of that convoy mission for some time. He was not part of GIGN, but the National Guard.” Burnout starts after contemplating for some moment. “The man had ran attempted to convince his comrades to retreat, they were quickly overwhelmed by the opposing force, using equipment leagues above their own. The others had refused, perhaps through orders or by pride. The last things he was told from his fellows before they were killed was that he was a coward. Yet, he lived.”

You recall the convoy survivor. He was distraught throughout the entire journey back to XCOM. Nobody could really blame the guy, given the apparent clusterfuck the convoy raid actually was before XCOM arrived.

“There is a time for heroism and for bravery, but there is also a time when one must survive. That is a question I thought I had an answer to, until now.” Burnout continues, before turning to you. “Do you think that decision that soldier made was the right one?”

You weren’t expecting Burnout to bring this up, but you think you have a general idea for what he’s leading up to. The events of that mission have shaped his ultimate decision, whatever it is. He wants your thoughts on the matter. Harita remains quiet, not wanting to interrupt this serious conversation just yet.

He waits for your answer.

>The soldier should not have ran, there’s always a chance he could’ve turned the tide.
>It was smart of him to retreat, one can’t win every battle.
>You wouldn’t know what to do unless you were there. You’d rather let your instinct decide things.
>Other.

>>2868768
>>You wouldn’t know what to do unless you were there. You’d rather let your instinct decide things.

>>2868768
>>You wouldn’t know what to do unless you were there. You’d rather let your instinct decide things.

>>2868768
He survived to tell the tale of his brothers. I agree with him, dying for no reason other than pride is empty. IF you cannot hold your mission objective, deny it to the enemy and persist, so you can be a thorn in their side again and again until you win.

>>2868768
>It was smart of him to retreat, one can’t win every battle.
Better to lose and live

>>2868768
>You wouldn’t know what to do unless you were there. You’d rather let your instinct decide things.
Fuck overthinking it and just go with your gut, that’s the American way.

>>2868768
>The soldier should not have ran, there’s always a chance he could’ve turned the tide.

>>2868768
>>It was smart of him to retreat, one can’t win every battle.
retreating is simply tactical and logical when there is little chance of victory. Run way to fight another day and all that.

>>2868768
>It was smart of him to retreat, one can’t win every battle.

>>2868768
Supporting >>2868791

Calling the vote here, writing!

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“He lived to tell the tale, which is a lot better than the others. If I was there I would agree with what he did, dying for no reason other than pride is empty. If you can’t hold the objective, deny to the enemy and persist elsewhere. It was smart of him to retreat that losing battle.” You answer back. A part of you considered using your gut instead to decide things, but in this situation, it seems rather clear.

“Yes. I agree.” Burnout nods, pausing to realize the spent cigarette between his lips.. “He did indeed live, despite what they called him.”

Burnout, while still holding flag, flicks the spent cigarette into an ashtray. Out of habit he slips another cigarette between his lips, pulling out his lighter.

“Ever since that operation, I have had doubts of my own country. Even before this. For my government to stoop so low disgusts me. This even more so.” Burnout continues, a different side of him coming out. Something different from his usual calmness. “What happened today has only reinforced my decision after some thought.”

For a moment, even despite everything, you have a fear that he’s just going grab his bag and walk out the door. Instead however, he flicks open the lighter in his hand, and sets the French flag on fire. Harita is taken aback by this as the flag burns in his hands.

“I’m not leaving.” Burnout says resolutely, the flag burning quickly in his hands. He waves the burnt remnants of the flag in his hands, stopping the flame. “If my government wishes to call me a coward and a traitor, so be it. I know where I am needed most. Here. Within XCOM. If we lose, there isn’t going to be a France left to return to. It’s hard to believe the others did not see it that way.”

“Burnout…” Harita murmurs.

You feel an immense relief at his decision. But that’s then quickly followed by your own wave of immediate confliction. What would you do if it was the USA that had pulled out? What if they recalled their forces? Would you let yourself be branded as Burnout is?

…

Of course you would. You would do it a dozen times over. XCOM is bigger than just mere patriotism or pride. There’s an alien invasion after all, for fucks sake! You turn back to Burnout as he stamps out the remnant embers on the floor with his boot.

>Commend him for his decision.
>Add that you would have done the same thing in his shoes.
>Let him know that Strike-1’s going to be happy to hear that.
>Other.

>>2868968
>Add that you would have done the same thing in his shoes.
>Let him know that Strike-1’s going to be happy to hear that.

>>2868968
>Commend him for his decision.
>Let him know that Strike-1’s going to be happy to hear that.

>>2868968
>>Add that you would have done the same thing in his shoes.
United we stand, divided we fall. In this war of survival against a global threat, the only logical choice to survive as a species is to fight not for any one country, but for all of humanity.

>>2868968
>Add that you would have done the same thing in his shoes.
>Let him know that Strike-1’s going to be happy to hear that.

>>2868968
>>Add that you would have done the same thing in his shoes.
He is a true brother-in-arms.

>>2868968
>>Add that you would have done the same thing in his shoes.
>>Let him know that Strike-1’s going to be happy to hear that.

>>2868968
>Add that you would have done the same thing in his shoes.
If it comes down to it, can I borrow your lighter?

>>2868968
>Commend him for his decision.
>Let him know that Strike-1’s going to be happy to hear that.
The war is still young, and there are no signs of us losing. The only cowards are the ones who care more about themselves than all of humanity.

Calling the vote here, writing!

Apologies, but something has come up and has slowed down my writing! I'm still alive but this next update may take a tad.

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“Well hell, I would have done the same thing in your shoes, Burnout.” You say, patting the man’s shoulder.

“I see.” Burnout replies. “You understand as well then. Good. Perhaps your country will not force you to be in the same position that I am in, but it’s good to hear.”

“Y’know, Strike-1’s going to be ecstatic about your call. We’d all be not too pleased if we lost our ace Scout and all. The extra plasma fire you run would suck to deal with.” You chuckle.

“Yes, you will always have a place with us in XCOM and in Strike-1.” Harita says warmly, glad for this turn of events.

The relief feels proper now. Maybe you shouldn’t have worried so much on Burnout. Ever since you met the man he’s been a proper brother-in-arms through and through. You’ll need to get everyone up to date soon however. It’s likely that once some of the other members of the squad catches wind of the whole France fiasco they might start their own search parties and--

You aren’t surprised by much now these days in the war ever since you learned you had psychic powers, but the person who bursts into the room still catches you off guard. Or more specifically her glowing orange veins and orange liquid dripping from the studs in her arms, staining her clothes. Her glowing orange eyes are frantic as she searches about the room and spots Burnout. You catch a glimpse of a very annoyed looking Armorer in the background from all the commotion.

She doesn’t even her rocket launcher on her person. As hard to believe as it sounds.

“BURNOUT!” Naru yells out. “I swear to fucking god if you dare leave XCOM I’ll--”

“I’m not going anywhere.” Burnout says calmly, instantly defusing the situation and leaving a mostly frazzled looking Naru, the glowing veins in her arms pulsing softly.

“Wait. Hold up.” Naru starts, but before she can go further, Burnout fishes out one of his shirts from inside his duffel bag and tosses it to her.

“Use that to dry yourself off, you are getting liquid everywhere. The Armorer does not like a messy armory” Burnout says, casually lighting up a cigarette.

“She doesn’t like you stinking up the place either!” Naru grumbles, panting heavily, but does take the offered shirt in hand to start drying herself off. “Well-- it’s good to hear you’re sticking around! I would’ve kicked your ass if you walked on that Skyranger!”

“Noted.” Burnout nods.

“See what I mean, Burnout?” You smirk, elbowing the man. Harita chuckles at the sight as well, even despite the clearly uneasy sight. The unease is quickly becoming the norm in XCOM.

“Are… you alright, Naru?” Harita asks her.

“Huh?” Naru says, woozily. “I’m just a bit annoyed s’all…”

Sure enough, Naru looks like she’s starting to check out. Could it be because she left her Gene Modding procedure mid operation? She begins to stumble a bit, leaning against the door frame… and then she begins to fall. You catch movement nearby, was that Burnout?

>Move to catch Naru.
>Wait and see if Burnout can get to her first.
>Other

>>2869275
>>Move to catch Naru.

>>2869275
>Move to catch Naru.

>>2869275
>>Move to catch Naru.
We are going to be too slow compared to Burnout but that's fine. At least we can say we tried.

>>2869275
>>Wait and see if Burnout can get to her first.
Burnout's got this.

>>2869275
>Move to catch Naru.
Everybody pile up on the rocketeer

>>2869275
>Move to catch Naru.

>>2869275
>>Wait and see if Burnout can get to her first.

>>2869275
>Move to catch Naru slow enough that if Burnout also moved he'll get to her first

Calling the vote here, writing! This will likely be the last post for tonight!

We’ll you’re not going to just stand there and let one of your squadmates hit the floor! Whoever is also moving up to grab her might not make it in time, and you’re the closest to Naru. If it is Burnout, he might just beat you in the speed department. Still, at least you could say you tried. Hopefully you don’t just collide with the other person and just embarrass everyone in one go.

You close the distance right as Naru reaches the point of no return in a fall. The exact moment where one can’t save themselves from getting a face full of the floor. You reach out to grab Naru just as someone else does at the same time, but you manage to grab her first. Even without her rocket launcher, the short Japanese woman is still rather heavy and you nearly drop her at first. The woman definitely has accumulated strength over time. Some of the orange liquid coming from her arm ‘studs’ gets on you as you adjust your weight not to just immediately drop her.

You think at one time in the beginning you recalled her as being less fit then she is now, but XCOM has certainly changed that. Combat and her usual regimen of lugging around a heavy rocket launcher all day has paid off, even despite being benched for some time after what happened in Vegas.

Burnout skids to a stop beside you, just missing grabbing Naru by a hair’s breadth. Harita following behind just incase as well. The scout relaxes a bit as you catch her. You see him furrow his brow ever so slightly, though. Maybe you should’ve let him catch her instead?

Eh, You’re probably just overthinking things.

(Part 1 / 2)

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“Guh…” Naru groans as she blinks blearily up at you, regaining her composure.

“I got ya.” You say to her reassuringly. “Can you stand?”

“‘Course I can -- oof fuck.” She attempts to wriggle out from your grip but goes slack again. The veins in her arms continue to glow, but not as much as before. Whatever’s happening with her is stabilizing, but she’s still out of it.

“Easy there, soldier.” You chide. “You pushed yourself and we’re probably going to need to bring you back to the labs or medical but you’ll live.”

“Ugh, you sound like my old Lieutenant. Fuck that guy.” Naru grumbles.

“What happened to you? Why are your veins glowing and your arms… leaking.” Harita winces at the word choice.

“I was just having my DNA ‘check-up’ s’all… just a tune up to keep my body in the green.” Naru shrugs in your arms. “Just the usual injecting of a shot of MELD and a bunch of other random medical crap to keep me all good and stuff. Nothing too serious.”

The price to pay to fight the aliens, just like the MECs then. Is it possible for your Gift to have consequences on your own body? Only time will tell, and you’ll probably by the first to learn. Joy. You push the thought aside as you motion for Burnout to help you shoulder Naru. He doesn’t have to be told twice. Naru mumbles in Japanese to herself as Burnout moves to help.

“Hari, think you can let the others know Burnout’s not going anywhere? We’ll handle Naru.” You ask Harita.

“Alright.” She nods, taking her leave.

As you begin to carry her out however, Burnout speaks up.

“You called Harita by her nickname.” Burnout says.

“I didn’t call her Ranger.” You shake your head.

“The other one.” He clarifies.

“...Oh. Huh.” You blink. It seems you did. Well that’s something.

You don’t let the thought dwell as much as some of your other thoughts as you focus on making sure Naru doesn’t get worse off. One things for sure, XCOM is always going to need more MELD for the foreseeable future. You’re just going to have to tackle things one at a time just like you always have.

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>...And with that, I'm going to call it here! Pretty satisfied with this thread, I think got to say a lot without going overboard. Next time we continue we'll be getting ready to go on a mission, so until next time...

Thanks for playing!

>>2869448
>The scout relaxes a bit as you catch her. You see him furrow his brow ever so slightly, though. Maybe you should’ve let him catch her instead?

Yup, good going Dozer, or really voters, ignoring all the potential romantic subtleties for the sake of trying to be nice to everyone we meet.

Either people were that oblivious, or simply didn't care. owell.

>>2869456
Thanks for running!

>>2869462
I hoped for a collision when I voted to catch her.
I also don't think Dozer (not talking about the voters) was really aware of it before seeing Burnout's reaction to him catching Naru. Without moving in to help her we probably wouldn't have got anything about it out of Burnout.

>>2869462
Meh, we’ll make it up to him later.

>>2869456
Very nice art. Might say you're improving.

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>>2869504

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I'm fucking disappointed in you, anon

>>2869537
Oh please Anon, you say that like it's the first time they fucked up this hard.

>>2869539
Yes, but I'm still disappointed

>>2869462
While i didnt vote u dont agree to your point. Sure if it was a dance in a fancy party he could have first go if it seems there is anything romantic, but we are talking about saving a person from getting hurt. Who gets there first isnt a romantic choice, what's important is that she didnt get hurt.
And we were even sure Burnout reacted, or that he would make it.

>>2869559
U - i
Were - weren't

>>2869559
This will only motivate Burnout more to get faster reflexes thru gene therapy.

>>2869462
>>2869557
Oh no they lost a chance to flirt because we didn't want our teammate to faceplant! truly xcom can never win the war now! All is lost and the end is neigh!

>>2869698
But how are we going to defeat the aliens if not with the power of love? Clearly, Dozer has failed humanity.

Well if their romance were weak enough to be foiled by so little, how real was it even to begin with..
If it's meant to be, it will be. And since im not on the Naru boat (even if she is quite likable), they have my blessing

>>2869698
To be honest. Naru has enough scars on her face already. And maybe can we can learn Burnout to express his feelings more instead of just a shrug or a frown.

>>2869698
Totally agree. If he's petty enough to think we're using this opportunity to flirt or some shit Naru deserves better.

Eh, I still ship Naru/Burnout. We just need to give them alone time and show Burnout we'll back him up so he can get some alone time with her

Reminder that Burnout is a slut and doesn't deserve Naru.

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Things stabIlize for a short spell after you make sure Naru isn’t in any serious peril. You later learn that what she was going through was indeed MELD withdrawal, the major complication with being a Gene Modded Trooper. The practically magical orange bioorganic nanomachine things are simply way too effective at their job, rewriting one’s body to be ‘perfect’ at the cost of pain, agony, and possibly death if left unchecked. It shouldn’t be an issue if a Gene Modded trooper is looked after but that basically means increased downtime for them, similar to MECs.

You don’t get to spend the rest of your free time in anything else as the day after Strike-1 is called up on deck for a mission. It was only a matter of time before your squad would be slotted into rotation for a fight, and you feel pretty prepared this time. Your training with psionics should play a part in keeping the advantage in Strike-1’s favor if you use it right.

Interestingly, instead of another Council Mission or other higher ‘tier’ operation, Command is instead having you dealing with clearing out a UFO, and a small Scout-class UFO at that. But it’s not a crashed UFO but instead a landed small in a forested area in Spain.

“This is a change of pace.” You comment idly as you review the area in the Delta Section’s smaller Hologlobe. Delta Section is essentially the briefing area for a squad that’s on deck

“Fatigue and injuries are catching up to the rest of the roster, so we’re sending yours out to handle this easier mission.” Bradford shrugs, seeming indifferent of the whole deal. He’s not as standoffish with you today, so you’ll take it. Perhaps he’s wary of you this time around?

“Anything we should keep in mind down there?”

“We’re not exactly sure why the UFO has landed but it has. A wing of interceptors were en-route to splash it but were waved off at the last minute when it landed and it’s stayed put since. It’s not often you get to secure UFOs like that in one piece and both RnD and Engineering are chomping at the bit to get intact salvage and alien equipment. So try not to blow everything up down there. Captures are preferred as well.” Bradford explains.

“Crew complement?”

“Spain isn’t a Council Nation so we don’t have an XCOM satellite watching from above unfortunately. Not that we’d have the funding to launch one over there.” Bradford sighs. “We’ve managed to get conventional recon of the area and we’re expecting a full standard Sectoid crew, Outsider, and possible an escort pod or two. It’s no Raider-class, so I wouldn’t expect more than fifteen aliens.”

“Roger.” You nod.

“Specialist Polis will be your comms support for the operation. If you have any extra questions, ask her. She already has coverage on the site with what little recon we were able to requisition from Spain.” Bradford finishes.

(Part 1/2)

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You salute back and Bradford takes his leave without another word. XCOM’s Central Officer remains decidedly cold to you, but hey, at least it’s not as bad as some other times. The next order of business is picking a squad for the operation. There’s rumors that the Skyrangers are eventually going to get an update to better fit more soldiers and their equipment, but for now it’s still only six soldiers max per Skyranger. XCOM isn’t going to waste risking multiple Skyrangers unless it’s a serious operation. There’s only a handful of the dropships in XCOM’s air force and they’re expensive as hell.

You have to go on the operation of course and that means you have to pick five other members on the team to head out. Sweet and Peppermint remain out of commission due to their injuries but everyone else is ready to go. Two people are going to sit out. Explosives are also generally a no-go if Command wants to salvage an intact UFO, but Loki can be kitted out for support and Naru has been chomping at the bit to fight again. Another consideration is Rachel and her MEC suit is a force multiplier that is very hard to miss, so sneaking up to the UFO as a squad is unlikely with her even in the forest and the element of surprise might make the mission clean/

Hm.

>Loki. Engineer. She can be kitted out for support grenades and her SIC rank would give you better tactical awareness on the ground. She’s the most used to your psionics.
>Harita. Assault. Stealth remains king in almost all situations and her shotgun would do a lot of damage inside the UFO.
>Rachel. MEC. She can easily control the outside and make short work of any runners safely.
>Zhang. Gunner. His suppression can keep the aliens inside the UFO in place. He’s the second person most used to your psionics.
>Rook. Infantry. His battle rifle and versatility makes him useful in all situations.
>Burnout. Scout. Scouting always helps, and his Strike Rifle lets him be a marksman to fill in for Peppermint.
>Naru. Gene Modded Rocketeer. The most eager to fight, her Gene Mod would make her excellent for spotting aliens. Her flamethrower can burn out aliens in the UFO.
>SHIV. A mobile weapons platform that can draw fire from the squad and breach the deadly accurate Outsider without risking people’s lives.

(Pick five! I’ll tally them up.)

>>2876647
>loki
>zhang
>burnout
>naru
>rook
we should take some additional medikits because we have no medic, but this seems like a well balanced squat

>>2876647
>Loki, Harita, Rook, Burnout, Zhang
Don't take Naru because explosions.
Take additional medikits

>>2876647
>loki
>harita
>zhang
>rook
>burnout

>>2876647
>Naru
>Burnout
>Zhang
>Harita
>Loki

>Just give Naru some other weapon than the Rocket Launcher. She must have had training in them. And take extra medkits

>Loki, Harita, Rook, Burnout, Zhang

Seems like an optimal setup. I would love to take Rachel, but stealth might be better approach. Take couple extra medkits to compensate lack of medic.

>>2876681
>>2876684
>>2876716
>>2876721

>>2876647
>Naru can take a flamethrower
also all you guys are boring and dont want to test out our gene modded trooper

>>2876723
Naru's Flamethrower is smallish and strapped on the wrist so I think she can take a LMG-equivalent weapon besides that ?

>>2876647
I'm gonna go with...
>Harita
>Rachel
>Zhang
>Burnout
>Naru

Also +1 to taking medkits. Naru should take one instead of extra rockets if she normally has them. Swap most of the grenades with support grenades and at least one person has to have an arc thrower.

>>2876723
>>2876647

How about this: Naru takes only shredder (those don't destroy objects according to game mechanics), flamethrower and the medkits (since she has space because she isn't bringing normal rockets) plus some decent primary weapon.


If this is possible i'll change my vote >>2876721
to include Naru and drop out Rook (sorry bud)

>>2876731
>How about this: Naru takes only shredder (those don't destroy objects according to game mechanics), flamethrower and the medkits (since she has space because she isn't bringing normal rockets) plus some decent primary weapon.
Sounds good. Assuming that we have a majority vote for Naru in the squad, can we go with this, Pixel ?

>>2876647
>Loki
>Harita
>Zhang
>Rook
>Burnout

>>2876731
+1

>>2876647
>>SHIV. A mobile weapons platform that can draw fire from the squad and breach the deadly accurate Outsider without risking people’s lives.
Aren't we risking the SHIV's life?

>>2876647
>loki
>harita
>zhang
>rook
>burnout

No explosions to minimize potential damage to the craft

Can a Faceless morph into a tree ? (Maybe a winter one that is easier to mimic).

>>2876647
>Harita
>Zhang
>Rook
>Burnout
>Naru
Replace the normal rocket(s) with medkits and hope the shredder one doesn't deal too much collateral damage to the ayy tech scattered around.

>>2876647
>Harita
>Zhang
>Rook
>Burnout
>Rachel

>>2876647
>Loki. Engineer. She can be kitted out for support grenades and her SIC rank would give you better tactical awareness on the ground. She’s the most used to your psionics.
>Harita. Assault. Stealth remains king in almost all situations and her shotgun would do a lot of damage inside the UFO.
>Rachel. MEC. She can easily control the outside and make short work of any runners safely.
>Zhang. Gunner. His suppression can keep the aliens inside the UFO in place. He’s the second person most used to your psionics.
>Rook. Infantry. His battle rifle and versatility makes him useful in all situations.
No explosions, and which aliens do we still need to capture for interrogation?

>>2876967
>No explosions, and which aliens do we still need to capture for interrogation?
Outsiders and Floaters, as far as species are concerned. Ans some elite units.

>>2876731
That's totally fine for Naru to be kitted out with. And yes, Shredders work in the story much like the game. Salvage teams just have to work a bit extra to clean up the shrapnel mess is all!

I'll keep the vote going until later today. This is a rather important vote for the next few threads, after all!

>>2876731
Seconding with the shredder revision

>>2876647
>Loki
>Harita
>Naru
>Rook
>Burnout

>>2876647
>>Harita. Assault. Stealth remains king in almost all situations and her shotgun would do a lot of damage inside the UFO.
>Zhang. Gunner. His suppression can keep the aliens inside the UFO in place. He’s the second person most used to your psionics.
>Rook. Infantry. His battle rifle and versatility makes him useful in all situations.
>Burnout. Scout. Scouting always helps, and his Strike Rifle lets him be a marksman to fill in for Peppermint.
>Naru. Gene Modded Rocketeer. The most eager to fight, her Gene Mod would make her excellent for spotting aliens. Her flamethrower can burn out aliens in the UFO.

Give Naru a shredder or two

>>2876967
>>2877070
If that's so i'd like to change Rachel to Naru, and Rook to Burnout on my vote.

>>2877070
>Salvage teams just have to work a bit extra to clean up the shrapnel mess is all!
If we get glares after the mission we'll know it's the salvage teams.

Calling the vote here!

File: MAG Shotgun.jpg (158 KB, 1400x1280)

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Briefing sorted, you make your way to the armory to pick your squad and arm up. This is something you’ve been looking forward to for a while now. The first line of starting Gaussian MAG weaponry and not only Phalanx armor but a heavier Carapace armor as well. Apparently Shen had become inspired and had solved the weight issue for heavier armor, much to the applause of the troops. You and the rest of the squad will get to properly all the new equipment in the field instead of just in the firing range, the aliens are going to be in for a surprise.

Picking the team takes you a bit, but you finally settle on taking Burnout, Zhang, Loki, Harita, and Naru. Given that the job is to seize a landed UFO, the full living crew complement would better be dealt with stealth. Rachel is her MEC suit is the complete opposite of stealth. Naru meanwhile is completely ecstatic to finally be gearing up for a mission again.

“Gonna kick some ass, gonna kick some ass, oh baby I’m gonna kick some ass, haha!” Naru grins singing a bit to herself, as she appreciatively rubs the Magnetic Stuttergun, the MAG line of SMG against her cheek.

“Aw man, you’re taking Naru instead of me?” Rachel grumbles, crossing her augged arms as she watches the squad gear up. “She’ll just blow everything up!”

“Like I said, Naru has her flamethrower and will be using Shredder rockets instead.” You explain again to Rachel, frowning.

“Yeah yeah…” Rachel sighs.

“There’s always next operation, Rachel.” Harita says hopefully, pausing to adjust the hilt of her sword’s holster.
“We’re just going to need some tact for this operation.” Loki says, pausing for a moment at her sarcastic barb, pulling it back. “I mean, as Harita said, there’s always next time.”

Rachel raises an eyebrow a bit confused at Loki’s attempts at being friendly. A work in progress.

You head over to Zhang and Burnout as the pair finish getting geared up, they’re by the weapon racks, grabbing ammo.

“It’s a shame I’m not to going to be using you anymore, pal.” You say sadly to the scatterlaser resting in it’s rack. “But, maybe you’ll find some use with the Blueshirts if that training program gets up in running...”

“Why are you speaking to that weapon?” Zhang furrows his brow, confused.

“It’s a western thing.” Burnout explains to him.

You decide to politely ignore the both of them as you heft the Magnetic Shard Gun, a certainly beautiful piece of machinery. It’s certainly is extremely function over form in design, but you know how much of a punch it packs. The question remains on the rest of your gear you’ll be bringing and what armor you picked besides your shotgun...

For armor you picked;
>Carapace.
>Phalanx.
(Pick 1!)

For sidearm you picked;
>MAG Pistol
>MAG Autopistol.
>MAG Slugger. A 'Sawn-off' shard gun.
(Pick 1!)

And finally for the rest of the kit you picked;
>Smoke Grenades
>Flashbangs
>Arc Thrower
>HE/AP Grenades
>Medikit.
>Alloy Plating
(Pick 2!)

(This will decide your new ‘Standard’ layout from now on!)

>>2880313
>>Carapace.
>>MAG REVOLVER
>Arc Thrower
>Alloy Plating

>>2880313
>>2880324
Sounds good. Im partial to pick a flashbang over arc thrower though, seeing as the ufo landed and wasnt splashed.. But given our psionics, that may be fine

>>2880313
>Carapace.
>MAG Autopistol.
>Arc Thrower

Since the Magnetic Shard Gun is already packs a slow but powerful shot per hit, the side arm should be something with emphasis on fast rate of fire to balance it, which the autopistol should do well for.

>>2880313
>Carapace
>MAG Autopistol
>Arc Thrower
>Medkit.

Flashbang would be nice for indoor fighting but with the amount us and the squad are getting hurt we might as well cover ourselves all over with medkits

>>2880313
>>2880324
Is a Mag Revolver a thing? I love the thought of that!

>>2880373
Medkit wont stop anyone from getting hurt though.. and as assault, i think someone else would be better off being encumbered by such an item

>>2880417
It's fine we just need to strap on more Medkits. On ourselves, our weapons, heck even the aliens! When in doubt spam Medkits.

>>2880446
We'll heal them to death!
In all seriousness though, i think a medkit would be better on Loki or zhang

>>2880313
>Carapace
>MAG Slugger
>Flashbangs
>Arc Thrower

>>2880465
Fair enough, at this point Xcom really should invest in having medics on the thunderhawks. Not necessarily as combatants but first responders.

>>2880536
WTF is a Thunderhawk?

You mean the Skyranger which barely has room for our squad in the first place?

>>2880549
Yep confused it with Warhammer for some reason. But I won't continue about this in order to avoid derailing.

>>2880313
>Carapace.
>MAG Autopistol.
>Arc Thrower
>Flashbangs

>>2880324
+1

>>2880313
>Carapace.
>MAG Pistol
>Arc Thrower
>Flashbangs

>>2880773
>>2880940
Supporting

>>2880962
Whoops misread I support the mag pistol option.

>>2880313
>>Carapace.
>MAG Pistol
>Alloy Plating
>Flashbangs

>>2880313
>>2880324
Supporting

Loki has flashbangs, doesn't she? And Harita might have them too. They can cover us with flashes while we go stun 'em.

>>2880313
>Carapace.
>MAG Autopistol.
>Flashbangs
>Arc Thrower

>>2880313
>Carapace.
>MAG Autopistol.
>Flashbangs
>Arc Thrower

>>2880313
>Carapace.
>Mag Pistol
>Arc Thrower
>Alloy Plating

>>2880536
>Fair enough, at this point Xcom really should invest in having medics on the thunderhawks
It would somewhat fit in with the game as a dying
trooper will surive the mission as long as he/she gets back on the Skyranger. Or at least a extra medkit supply on our ride.

Calling the vote here!

>>2881906
Update when?

Picking gear is always a tough choice and you wish you could carry extra gear, but XCOM Armor doesn’t really factor pockets versus the more immediate concern of surviving alien plasma. If Shen ever does figure out some sort’ve Rigging or whatever for extra kit, you’d be a very happy soldier.

For the time being you’ll be rocking the heavy but durable Carapace armor, a Mag Pistol for a sidearm, Arc Thrower for stun shenanigans, and finally after much deliberation flashbangs. You couldn’t decide between that and a trusty Alloy Plate, but with Carapace being the next generation of armor, you hope that you won’t have to worry about armored vests anymore. The extra safety net will be missed, but given how many of the things you’ve broke over the few months in XCOM, the Engineering team will be glad to not have to repair them.

You make a point to spread Medikits around the squad. Zhang opts to take one at the cost of smoke grenades and so does Harita at the cost of AP grenades. Two among the squad isn't much, but it's better than nothing.

With loadouts sorted you and the rest of the squad begin heading out to the Skyranger. Rachel wishes the team good luck before heading back to train herself. Before you can leave however, Naru stops you. In each of her hands is a Shredder rocket and a normal rocket. She looks like she can’t decide what shoes to wear today.

“I know you want me to go full Shredder mode, Dozer, and I get it… but I kinda want to at least bring one normal rocket. I can still bring two shreds no problem, but what if we need an ‘Oh Shit’ panic button?” Naru says. “I won’t fire it into the UFO unless you tell me too, I promise. So, whaddaya think, boss?”

While it’s a reasonable suggestion, you’re 90% sure Naru just wants to see a proper explosion again…

>All Shredder. You really want to ensure nothing is broken in the UFO.
>Bring along a normal rocket. A panic button would be useful.
>Other

(As an aside, the Loadout Pastebin has been updated a fair amount. Various things from names squad mates learned and useless 'rankings' have been changed. Take a look for a better idea of squad gear!)

>>2883383
>Other
Take a medkit instead. If shtf juggernaut mode is going to be the panic button.

>>2883383
Aight Naru, you have your regular high explosive rocket too

>>2883383
This >>2883398

>>2883383
>>All Shredder. You really want to ensure nothing is broken in the UFO.
Juggernaut/Swap is the panic button. Also the new guns should help.

It could be useful outside the ufo though

>>2883383
>>All Shredder. You really want to ensure nothing is broken in the UFO.

Order her to bring that third medikit just in case.

>>2883383
>All Shredder. You really want to ensure nothing is broken in the UFO.

>>2883429
Hopefully we get the jump on enemies and dont need it. By the way what happens if you fire a AP rocket at a enemy standing behind a tree, will the explosive blast go right through the tree if the trunk is hit ?

>>2883516
Shredder rockets, if you mean those, act a bit funky i think. In my experience, the main function of the rocket is the shred debuff, the damage is really low. Shredding increases any subsequent dmg a unit takes by 50 %.
It seems to me that enemies get shredded regardless of cover, even sometimes enemies not directly hit will get shredded

>Bring along a normal rocket. A panic button would be useful
Ok, you can bring ONE normal rocket [mostly because I'm afraid a sectopod or something shows up.[/spoiler]

>>2883383
>Bring along a normal rocket. A panic button would be useful.
I can FEEL the sectopod, or enemy mech suit, or berserker, or ethereal. I'm on to you Pixel.

>>2883383
>Alright, but only because you're making those alien puppy eyes

>>2883516
Normal rockets damage everything in a sphere around the point of impact regardless of cover. Shredder rockets are affected by cover except when the game is having a bad day.

>>2883383
>>Bring along a normal rocket. A panic button would be useful.

>>2883383
>>All Shredder. You really want to ensure nothing is broken in the UFO.

>>2883383
>>Bring along a normal rocket. A panic button would be useful.

>>2883383
>>Bring along a normal rocket. A panic button would be useful.
What if that thing happens to carry something bad?

>>2883383
>>>All Shredder. You really want to ensure nothing is broken in the UFO.

You Shredder guys realize there are pod's outside the UFO right?

In fact most of them are out there.

>>2883656
So? This mission is doable with or without Naru at all, so her having a normal rocket is not required to beat any enemy.

>>2883658
You don't know what those pods consist of. I believe he is very on point. Hypothetically, there could be a pack of 3 muton elites and a muton berserker. That would indeed need an o shit button

>>2883665
Once again, why does it matter what the enemy could be if no one is a required character? To me that means no specific weapon or person is needed to win, unless stated otherwise.

>>2883676
What? Im not sure what you are trying to get at.
But I stand by my point that a large area high damage attack is good to have when you don't know what ypu face

>>2883676
>>2883658
That's your excuse for being less prepared for anything? By your logic I can assume the rocket will be necessary since we are having this vote at all. Not only that you'd be a fool to assume that QMs are inflexible or don't come up with stuff on the fly. Pixel can easily add a Mectoid to keep things interesting due to the squad composition we picked.

I feel like you Shredder guys are putting all your eggs in one basket when we can simply not use the regular rocket inside the UFO, but also have it case of an emergency outside.

>>2883383
>>Bring along a normal rocket. A panic button would be useful.
Proceed to accidentally blow up the whole thing with our panic button.

>>2883383
>>All Shredder. You really want to ensure nothing is broken in the UFO.

>allow one normal rocket

>>2883718
If we didnt have Loki with us there would be a issue. But we do have Loki and (I assume) her grenade launcher. So iI think were good in the explodey department.

Calling the vote here! Next post will be the last one for this thread!

File: Vigilo Confido.jpg (120 KB, 736x640)

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You’re about to let her down gently on the topic, until she begins to look at you with those glowing alien eyes of hers. Despite the origin of those eyes, it’s still rather emotive. She begins to give you… ‘puppy’ eyes? You wince.

“Alright alright!” You say. “You can bring along a rocket as a panic button, but only as one. You’re not loading that in until I say so.”

“Yes!” Naru pumps a fist, idly tossing about the spare rocket in her hand like it was nothing.

You’re about to admonish her for playing about with the heavy ordinance, but she’s already hurrying off to the hanger. She really doesn’t want to miss the Skyranger. As you start to head to the hanger yourself you trail behind the squad and Rook. He’s leaning against a wall watching the rest of Strike-1 make their way past, the others acknowledge him, but he remains mostly at arms length and polite.

“Good luck.” Rook says simply. “Some of us are looking forward to see if we have what you have, you know.”

“Thanks. I’ll definitely try and make some time for it when we get back.” You anser return.

He nods to you as you walk past him. Rook’s certainly eager at the possibility of being a psion. It would be nice if anyone in the squad in general has the Gift, but he seems the most hopeful at the prospect. Maybe he will. Stepping into the hanger, you join the rest of the squad and board the dropship. Rook lingers, watching the group as the ramp begins to close. You wonder what’s going on his head. Does he still resent you for being in his place after everything and wishes to be in your spot?

You don’t dwell on it and settle in, you have a mission to be prepared for, after all.

File: Naru in Covert Ops.png (137 KB, 500x677)

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>...And with that, I'm going to call the thread here. Time to get back into combat proper tomorrow, it's been a while coming. So until next time...

Thanks for playing!

>>2885722
Thx for running. Looking forward to next time. Though im a bit nervous about Rook.

>>2885727
I atill think Strike-1 is a bit big and is bad for morale when people get left out in the mission roster, and that two should be transferred to a smaller squad, or form a new squad.

>>2885839
there's only 10 of us

While that is theoretically enough for 2 full run squads, injuries and the like would cause ther squads to operate poorly quickly.

Strike one Is only so large because we've been doing so well. Most squads have lost more than one person so far. many have lost multiple or even been wiped. Breaking up the squad is stupid especially when in later missions we will need to bring more people just to keep even with the aliens.

File: Raptor Exo.jpg (432 KB, 997x1364)

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>>2885722
See you next time, boss!

>>2885896
>White hair
>Yellow reptilian eyes
>Power frame armor

Wow never thought we'd get a genemodded, Psion in power armor. Basically a budget librarian.

>>2885727
>>2885719
Here's a theory: Rook thinks that if he can be a psion, and maybe even a stronger psion than Dozer that he can be squad lead again.

>>2885875when in later missions we will need to bring more people just to keep even with the aliens.
And until then those who have to sit ou the mission, unhappy and bored out of their mind.

Can Naru at least keep helping Shen when she is in reserve ?

We really need to do that psionic screening asap. We said we'd do it soon so the squad expects us to do it.

>>2886329
Start with Rook, it might be really eating him up.

>>2886248
Issue is if we get a bad mission we could be down to “normal” strength squad one one go. We still haven’t got a replacement for Babbler yet.


The others can test and train while we are on mission yeah, but cutting people which hurts squad morale too and leaves us short handed is a bad idea.


>>2886329
Aye. After this mission or once we get shut eye after it. Depending on how tired/hurt we are.

>>2886426
>Issue is if we get a bad mission we could be down to “normal” strength squad one one go.
What is normal squad strenghth, 5 ? I dont know every piece of Xcom lore.

>>2886489
6 with full squad upgrades.

>>2886426
>Issue is if we get a bad mission we could be down to “normal” strength squad one one go
Even a single fatality will be rare in this quest, even if Pixel is allowed"to do so. I still remember the raging shitstorm after Babblers'death.
So that argument doesn't really hold water. And the next one crippled can just be genemodded. (assuming we have enough MELD surplus to allow that)

>>2886825
>I still remember the raging shitstorm after Babblers'death.

Most reaction to his death wasn't anything special beyond an 'Press F to pay respects' kind of way.

The issue was how he died and the agency of the player. Spending a banked crit (so glad we've gotten rid of that mechanic) to even have an attempt at saving him + a 17 or 18 roll not being enough + it being Babbler the squadmate the players were the least invested in + it leading to Rook's meltdown and Dozer's 'redemption' as a leader made it all feel nice and scripted.

>>2886846
At that is the problem with players who aren't used to more challenging and mature systems, where rolling a crit once doesn't mean instant enemy death or a perfect save of the situation.
Maybe my perspective is different because I played the Pathfinder RPG.
I will go back and read Gangplank again, but I have little doubt in my mind that things didn't happen the right way.

New thread soon!

>>2885719
I'm really hoping Rook gets the psychic shit.

>>2887328

New thread is up!