I don't use autocomplete because more civvies die that way, although I've read that your soldiers level faster?
The opposite. They don't level at all! The kill count and the mission count go up but soldier stats do not improve. I'm playing version 2.4 here. Not sure if that matters.
Anyway:
- In my last game, I put my first base at the spot where Asia, Russia and Middle-East borders meet. Seemed like a good starting move.
- I guess you could build your 2nd base in South America. It seems to get unhappy quite fast.
- I keep 2 small hangars at each base for 2 Stiletto interceptors. Craft equipment: 3x SHIVA cannons, ECM, Targeting Comp, no armor. I never shoot down Harvesters. Both Stilettos are scrambled against any Fighter UFOs. I don't use Saracen interceptors or missiles at all.
- If you're feeling lucky, you could try to coordinate an attack against a Harvester with 4-6 Stilettos. Just be prepared to lose one of the Stilettos. Or if the Harvester will pass near the base, give a retreat order to the Stiletto it's firing at. With any luck, the Stiletto won't be destroyed while the other 3 can pound it for good measure. Make sure to attack with the right pair of Stilettos first, so their home base is the one nearby. All this requires some precision. Set up an ambush point somewhere along the Harvester's flight path and let it fly to your 4x Stiletto squadron. Then give it a warm welcome with all those SHIVA cannons. Engage it when it's close enough for your weapons. Often the Harvester won't open fire until you've attacked it first!
- The first base is the only base that gets a large hangar. I don't keep any other ground assault teams.
- Reserve 300-500k of money for building your second base. Reserve 500k for building each base after that.
- I don't hesitate to use the end-of-the-month fire&rehire exploit to save funds.
- Build a UFO yard as soon as possible. Start collecting UFOs. Even if it takes a long time before you can start disassembling them.
- Research gets priority over manufacture. Build a lab cluster first. Then focus on manufacturing/disassembly. Wait until there are enough scientists to hire before building labs.
- Eventually you'll want: one base with 5 labs, one base with 5 workshops.
- Note that some new researched items appear in the global market. This means you don't have to manufacture them, so don't waste precious workshop time to produce things you could simply buy.
- When building a new base, first build modules that are quickest to build - that is, Living Quarters and Storage. When LQ is built, hire 2-4 soldiers to defend the place. Remember to buy guns for them.
- Manufacture stuff in small batches, not large ones.
- Be very very cautious which base modules to build. Some of them are nasty expensive.
- Use cheap weapons in battles. Use the more expensive weapons sparingly. Some weapons are more useful when sold instead of used. No need to use a plasma grenade against a wounded Taman. (One does not simply draw a line between the strategic and the tactical elements.)
- Note that at some point you have access to an improved radar. So whatever your base's initial detection range is, don't hesitate to leave some gap and put some distance between your bases, which the advanced radar will later close up.
- If you don't feel like sending a ground team against an UFO, shoot it down over water. So decide first whether you want a ground team to handle the UFO before actually shooting it down.