Hi Jandau,
Welcome to the game!
I guess geever already answered quite a number of ur queries! Hope u have had fun!
The 2.3 is not out yet, though there have been some of the folks doing self-compiled SVN versions of it. Destructavator, Muton and myself all have these. Can check the current built here: (Though be warned, alot of bugs and testing still in process).
My SVN current builts hereDestructavator's Built + Muton's patchesI do pretty regular builts, which u can download at nakido's site. U need not the nakido flag, though it helps support resume download functions.
Muton does regular patching - do some reading up on his patches notes..... its a little bit technical but nothing u cant handle.
On your queries, i believe geever done a good job already. Here's some more of my own views:
1. How many Scientists early on? With only 10 research felt really slow. I tried making an extra lab, but that meant I need another Living Quarters and my first base is already quite cramped . Should I perhaps just start a new base as soon as I get my first paycheck and specialize it in research, with some 20-30 scientists?
10 is pathetic. U need 100s of em. lol. I crammed as many as i can, and u see quite a diff already when u have >30 of em.
2. Lasers, Boltgun or Plasma first? Which should be the first priority?
IMO? 1st priority is always Boltgun in v2.2.1. They have good stats. Once u r there, do Lasers. then u can manufacture DF carts and Laser Rifles.
For V2.3 dev built, u will do away with bolts and go straight into Lasers. DF Carts and Rifles are the least, wat u really want is coilguns (excellent sniper wpns). Wont spoil the game for u, or intend to impose or restrict ur style of play.
U may want to discuss them in the Tactics sections in the forum
here.
4. When reading about squad weapon loadouts I rarely see anyone mention the Grenade Launcher. Why is that? I've found that being able to auto-fire three grenades for some 12 TUs wipes out almost anything, and accuracy isn't much of a concern since it only needs to land near the target (Airburst mode).
Again, read the section in tactics. For me, i do not even use GL (Grenade Launchers in military terms, btw). Lol. I prefer rocket launchers (to save cost, to save environment [ok, this does not get implemented in gameplay], and to prevent perhaps civilians [aka civi here] who might just be around). Anyway, its back to ur own style of play, and i guess everyone has diff ones. Though some might just be more effective than others lol.
5. Does nighttime have any gameplay effect? I assumed my accuracy and line of sight would go down, but as far as I can tell nothing changes...
Not too sure on this one. There used to be trace discussions on this, but perhaps u could post this separately in a diff thread to get dev's attention?
Logically, yes, there are. PLUS, there is definately the feel of eerieness. But like u, i see no diff in day / night.
6. I understand that there is a maximum number of civilians that can get killed before I'm shut down regardless of my overall performance. Is this true? If yes, what's the limit? Is it monthly or grand total? Also, if yes, why is such a mechanic in place? Wouldn't it be better to just make civilian deaths have a larger impact on country happiness? Also, there's also the fact that I've had missions where almost all civilians were dead in the first two rounds, before I saw more than one Alien...
Yes, this was in 2.2.1. Frankly, tat was simply not practical and i confirm what geever shared: that the dev team already removed this in the current 2.2.1 and instead, nations simply become less happy, and if u go below their happiness level, u lose the game (instead of like u say, X nos of civis deaths before GG).
