Topics

1

Offtopic / Offtopic

« on: February 14, 2013, 11:18:32 pm »

I've imaginated a new test for managers dealing with potential recruits. All is in the pic :

2

Bugs in stable version (2.5) / Problems loading skirmish

« on: February 14, 2013, 12:55:33 pm »

I've just launched the 11-02-2013 version. For the first time there was no crash at the first loading, but I fall on a black screen when launched a skirmish. I tried twice, first with default set up, and then with my usual graphics set up. The strange detail is that I see during a microsecond the green earth of the menu before the map start when I push the start button.

Ok, I'll try a campain so..

edit : so sad, where do I report bugs for dev version ?

Oh, yes, I've been able to buy and equip a sniper with a standard armour (sorry for the misunderstanding about this previously). However I meet some complicated bug with maps. After using retry (after an abnormal process to get at menu screen), I've got a very messed mansion for instance.

3

Sounds and Music / Some try in the mysterious art of MIDI

« on: February 02, 2013, 08:30:25 pm »

Hello. I've grabbed some midi software, some old, named Bigboss6. That works fine, if you leave the editing affair when you made mistakes. I would like an opinion on such a sample like this in attachment. I'm not a pro but I tried to imitate the +hill ambiance, bringing a version more overload and more disturbing if you were counting on concentration.... But at least it is a first try. And it allows me to jump at this section again (I did some time ago and got an answer somewhere else at my questions), to ask if there would be an ideal free tool, easy to use and accurate, to make Midi stuff and things useful around sound and music?

Thanks.

Stuff below grabable at will of course.

Oh yes, I forgot to say that the difficult part had been the Midi to Wave conversion. I was using a cask wich changed my output mode or such a thing, and I was unable to record any sound. Half a day to understand this

4

Artwork / About booster addition on Firebird ?

« on: February 01, 2013, 09:48:53 pm »

Hello. I was trying to make some ship model. I'm so tired with exporters bugs in gmax that some static design was a sort of relaxing... At one moment I imported the Firebird existing ship to scale mine accordingly, and by chance a part of my reactors was grafted on the Firebird very exactly. It gives this following in attachment, and brings me on asking now if by any chance it could be possible or not to think about a new booster addon for the good old dropship, so that he could have a second life at the advanced campain?

The advantages of improving Firebird with a small addon is in the fact that it is low cost for a correct gain in the variety of choices in the game. Let me know what 's your opinion about this.

5

Discussion / A quick overview on my first launch of 2.5dev

« on: January 26, 2013, 04:03:34 pm »

I was on 2.4 which was very stable, but in order to have a look over the new features I've decided to change for the 2.5 dev version. A lot of work has been made, a lot of tweaking and introduction of new stuff. This game + his boards are a very huge machine indeed. Ok so here come some remarks about the 2.5 --> the version I've precisely played is the January10th's one.

LOADING
1st remark. Exactly like for the 2.4 (under XP), there was no display (black screen) at first launch. Solved at second attempt. The problem is the need of a process kill when the first attempt fails, that can perturbate some people if no prevention made (a readme?).

The other remark is that when windowed, I don't see the progression bar at bottom at the loading screen. I would have prefered this bar to be at top, because the loading is long for me so this bar is really needed ;-)

SETTINGS
The initial settings pop-up is a great idea. Maybe a first language question may be really appreciated before to have to read the set up, but anyway that's good.

About the overall settings a few things.
The mod (frame window) would require a mod small description text (or author, or goal text...).

About the tips when you're about to check a setting box. It is really nice to have put extensive text to explain what are the consequences of checking such or such box. But it would be really great to add a comment about the effects on the perfomances. For instance, "Precache models" : tips = "means having faster menus" ; but about perf. does it imply "but will eat more memory"..?

About the video, choosing the best setting would be easier with an immediate test. But I imagine that wouldn't be easy to add. Anyway just a remark.

About "Flares" , there is only 2 check box, low and high if I remember well. What about the medium option :-) ?

In general showing more tips about performance would be my only wish indeed.

Menu GLSL. Disabled for me.

In the gameplay settings, I've seen some new HUD choices. I dont think so, but isn't there the Homonculus one? or not yet ?

TUTORIAL
I decidedly wouldn't call that a tutorial. Just a question of good naming, I would prefere this to be entitled "Get started overview" or something like that.

BATTLESCAPE
I tried the alternate HUD, and unless I missed something, I dont get centered on my char when I double-click on the head.


Last remarks are put in attachments. I think some remarks have already been made around here, it is just as to complete this chart of first impressions.

One is about eclipses. I find that there are too many. I just show the 1st I've met, as a curiosity lets say ;-). Then comes a tiny problem of heads that look a little too big. Third thing is rather a bug, and unless already reported I will post about it in the bug section if not solved at 2.5 release.

6

Artwork / Some tech pictures - proposal

« on: January 21, 2013, 12:00:14 am »

Edit : i've transferd my propagand posters at my poll website finally. So recycling this room for other stuff ;-)

So Edited for cleaning purpose.
There will be 2 tech pictures proposed (if needed, and complying the licence hopefully):

• Alien infiltration tech
• Vaccine tech

In order to let the topic be readable, I will spare those elements in edited posts.

7

Discussion / On promoting secondary characters, e.g. the staff when base is under attack

« on: January 19, 2013, 10:39:45 pm »

This topic is about the ground attacks of a Phalanx base. The today game mechanics does not allow the staff to be represented on this ground. I would like to show some mechanisms that allow the staff of an attacked base to be present in some manner during the attack .

At least some spare parts in all this stuff could serve as a base of reflection on, more generally, how to improve the role of the secondary units over the battlescapes.

Coming :
  I         -->     some general principles about the influence of secondary characters,
  II        -->     the consequences of those principles,
  III       -->     the TODO list to make this real.


I. The general principle
= = = = = = = = = = = = = =

I.1 Bonus of presence
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

If I don't mistake the note below still applies today.

Note of 2.2 version :
base mission is lost if there are no soldiers, soldiers can be equipped before base attack without aircraft

What about the staff ? The idea here is to count every units present in the base and to turn it into an effect. For instance, even if you manipulate directly only one team, the fact is that your team should find indirectly an help in the number. Said differently:

• Even if the whole staff of the base cannot be displayed, it should influence because they are involved on your side.

General principle 1: even if an unit can't be displayed but is present in the battle ground, this presence should be evaluated and converted in an effect in the player team.

I believe that the staff should provide the player a bonus. To be convinced, you just have to figure out that some bases can host about 50 to 100 staff units. Should it influence something? It should.

Thus, to fix the ideas, each 40 non-military units could provide +1 in a defensive skill for each active soldier. That would be only a side effect of the staff presence.

I.2 Numeric staff conversion
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

People who haunt the base are generally too much to be simply pushed in the battle map. But anyway it would be of a great interest to be able to meet some of them in live when we play the attack scene. This paragraph is all about how to make this possible thanks to some principle of conversion.

We will considere a base named B.
Let's take consideration of each one's duty in B at the start of a given attack. We'll meet 4 main groups; let's go further, even 5 or 6 (and up to 7 or 8 when armed aliens arrive, no importance):

B = { G1, G2, G3, G4, G5 } with :
G1  - Scientists                                                -> they stick in the labs
G2  - Workers                                       -> they can be encountered around the workshops
G3  - Pilots                                                    -> they stick around the planes
G3b - Pilots in flight                                        -> away from home
G4   - Autonomous soldiers                           -> at living rooms
G4b - Active soldiers                                   -> at living rooms in general
G5   - Aliens kept alive in captivity      ->  visible at containment room

Staff+prisoners form the population of B like such as below:
#G1   =   24
#G2   =   12
#G3   =   6
#G3b  =   0       (in flight)
#G4   =   9
#G4b  =   6       (activated)
#G5   =    4

Total:
#B = 61 guys...  As said before really too many to display like that on the map.
A conversion is needed.

So let's distinguish our active soldiers (manipulated by hand) of the rest, so called the inactive (self units). The conversion could be :

• 4 inactive of a group is converted in 1 unity on the map (with a rounding rule).

After conversion we should have now:

   Initial                    =>            Converted     [ comes with some side effect ]
#G1 = 4 * 6               =>        6 scientists  [+ soldier defense bonus?]
#G2 = 4 * 3               =>        3 workers     [+ soldier defense bonus?]
#G3 = 4 * 1 + 2         =>        1 pilot (rounded) [+ soldier defense bonus?]
#G3b= 0                    =>            any         [brings no effect]
#G4 = 4 * 2 + 1         =>        2 inactive soldiers (self behaviour) [+ soldier bonus?]
#G4b= 6                    =>        6 active soldiers (controled by hand)
#G5 = 4 * 1               =>        1 captured alien   [+ alien psi bonus?]

Important note : the converted soldiers are autonomous, driven by the A.I.

Those chart can be displayed more explicitely :

Code: [Select]

.------------------Initial state------------------------.                         scroll if needed --->
|  Attacking aliens : 6                                 |
|  A A A A A A                                          |
|                                                       |
|  Scientists : 24          Pilots : 6 / (0 in flight)  |     
|  s s s s s s s s           p p                        |
|   s s s s s s s s         p p                         |
|  s s s s s s s s           p p                        |
|                                                       |
|  Soldiers : 15 / (6 actives)        Workers : 12      |
|   o o o o o                          x x x x          |
|    o o o o                          x x x x           |
|   O O O O O O                        x x x x          |
|                                                       |
|  Aliens kept alive : 4                                |
|   K K K K                                             |
.-------------------------------------------------------.

.------------------Converted state----------------------.
|  Attacking aliens : 6   Hand soldiers : 6             |
|  A+ A+ A+ A+              O+ O+ O+ O+ O+ O+           |
|                                                       |
|  Scientists : 6          Pilots : 1                   |     
|   s+ s+  s+ s+ s+ s+          p+                      |
|                                                       |
|  Automated soldiers : 2            Workers : 3        |
|     o+ o+                             x+  x+  x+      |
|                                                       |
|  Aliens kept alive : 1                                |
|   K+                                                  |
.-------------------------------------------------------.
(+) means eventually a skill bonus is attributed

So you see the reduction compensated by a balance system based on skill bonuses. You'll say that anyway that leaves 13 guys so called "inactive" by here. You're right, but maybe another rate would prove to be best. I will keep the factor of 4 to 1 just for make easy counts. Else we could use a variant such as below.

I.2bis Variant :  Staff represented on map by 0 or a predefined constant
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Note that we could also fix an upper bound not to reach, of number of characters present on the ground, and decide of the conversion rate accordingly.

Even easier we can imagine a system where :

• if you have a void group, then you don't let it show up in map;
• if you have a group filled by any manner, then you represent it by always the same number (e.g. 4) of guys on the map.

The conversion rule is so: ( 0 -> 0 & any -> 4 ) . That would be less realistic but good enough anyway.

I.3 The armory
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
This last principle is a little addition that intends to improve some of the gameplay.

Today, if we have inactive soldiers in base, we can enroll them at the last minute but as you had surely recorded we may have nothing to equip them(!) That's terrible and the idea would be to introduce as a new building, an armory buildable into the base. Moreover, this building should be upgradable upto 3 levels, and would be fed by a mensual subscription depending on his level of upgrade. In return the armory would provide some weapons dedicated to the base defense.

In my opinion that would be good for the player, because the soldiers would have to reach the armory, in order to get some equipments. That solves the hopeless case of the permanently disarmed soldiers, and it's intrigating enough to need to reach the depot quickly before you face one alien.

As a natural limitation, the armory should provide only a definite number of items. Maybe more or better in quality when the armory is upgraded.

I.4 Conclusion of the principle
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

We so have introduced:

• a bonus of presence
• some rule of staff conversion
• and now there is an armory

Let's see all of that in more concrete cases.


II. Concrete implications of the principle
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

So the base is attacked. An alien's group has landed. Let's call this group G0, and fix #G0=6. We will consider now how the principles could actually work.

II.1. CASE 1 :: You have your active soldiers there, you fight, and you win
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

.a/ Containment destroyed = NO ; Staff shipped away = NO ; Total shutdown = NO

.a.a/ Begining state of the battle :

Code: [Select]

                          present    number on map    Soldier bonus          Aliens bonus
| Active soldiers       |   y     |     #G4b        |                    |                  |
| Self milirary units   |   y     |  converted 4->1 |  G4 defense++ (2)  |                  |
| Non-military staff    |   y     |  converted 4->1 | G4,G4b defense++(1)|                  |
| Aliens in captivity   |   y     |  converted 4->1 |                    |   G0 Psi++(3)    |
| Aliens attacking      |   y     |      #G0        |                    |                  |

(1) depending on the total inactive staff
(2) depending on the inactive soldiers number
(3) depending on the number of captured alien status and number

.a.b/ Ongoing battle :

• The staff are supposed to stand close of their working place.
• The automated soldiers start with a standard pistol, but if an armory is up, they will try to reach it to get something better.
• If no room left inside (according to a reasonable criterium of occupation), a part of the staff could stand in the upper levels.
  
• The aliens in containment are calling their brothers.
• They may use (increased) psi-powers if humans close enough.
• The attackers try to reach the containments or at least to get into the base.

   The player team tries :

• to defend the civilian,
• eventually to heal civilians, or also to be healed by physicians ?
• to play eventually beside the autonomous soldiers,
• to intercept the attackers,
• to avoid the cross fires in an environment containing non-military people,
• to deal with the multiplied psi powers of the aliens and the chaos they put in the base
• .etc..

   
.a.c/ Battle terminates :

The battle still ends when either the alien's attackers or the player's team are killed (or psi K.O.).
In this case, the attackers are defeated as classically.

.a.c.1/ Classic victory - Attacking aliens are killed while at least one man of your active team is still alive.

Code: [Select]

                          %KILLED      after battle penalty                hospital
| Active soldiers       |  <100%  |       bonuses reseted          | -> hospital priority 3   |
| Self milirary units   |   K1%   |   injuries are distributed(1)  | -> hospital priority 1   |
| Non-military staff    |   K2%   |   injuries are distributed(2)  | -> hospital priority 2   |
| Aliens in captivity   |   K3%   |   injuries are distributed(3)  |                          |
| Aliens attacking      |  =100%  |      they are dead bodies      |                          |

(1) An analysis is produced. The procedure could be the following :
        - each time that one unit resulting from the conversation dies, an inactive soldier dies (low HP first)
        - the total HP lost by the converted ones is multiplied by the number of remaining true soldiers, so to obtain a number T
        - this T value is randomly redistributed between the remaining soldiers so that possible death may again occure
        - one absolute rule would be that the final number of inactive killed should never exceed the K1% of converted killed     
(2) The same as above, or must be refined to distinguish scientist of soldier, but this could require first the implementation of HP for those people   
(3) I don't know exactly how could the aliens that are in captivity, be injured. But if so, same system as above

II.2. CASE 2 :: You have your active soldiers there, you fight, they die, did the alien win ?
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

In my opinion the best answer is : not sure.
What we propose here is finally no more than a system that evaluates the real balance of power when a base is attacked. This because (even without evocating any mechanized defensive equipments) our soldiers are not alone, trapped in a sort of nowhere. They are at home, and supported by an elite staff.

So suppose that in one hand, the soldiers that are controled by hand are dead. In the other hand suppose now that few aliens have survived, moreover wounded, and that the most of your staff is still here. That should be taken in consideration to decide if the aliens could be overruled by a poorly armed but motivated and numerous staff.   

So a non-classical victory could born as in this following chart :

Code: [Select]

                               %KILLED       
| Active soldiers       |       =100%         |       
| Self milirary units   |  not far from   0%  |   
| Non-military staff    |  not far from   0%  |   
| Aliens in captivity   |  not far from   0%  |   
| Aliens attacking      |  not far from 100%  |     


III. Finally what is required to make all of this possible ?
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

This chapter should be very detailed because it is in fact the most important. But I'm not used with the TODO lists, so I will only give a tiny try.
     
TODO . Make a tiny TODO list
TODO . Skills for everyone 
       --> Bonuses mean also a skill system extended to the non-military units just in case (so to benefit of extra defense/speed/psi/.etc..)
      Note : maybe already implemented
                         
TODO . Base map design
       --> Room reservation for the staff
       --> Design of inhabited containers in the containment room
       --> Design of inhabited hospital beds too ?
       
TODO . AI
       --> creation of self behaving soldiers (needed also to introduce policemen in the urban maps)
       
TODO . And surely more ...


IV. As a postscriptum, I attached a sample of quotes related to this subject
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

Let me know if something is not clear. Criticizm is allowed, but remember this all is also a branch, maybe dead, of the same fertile tree yet in development. Ok, nice conclusion, thanks if have read this!

Bye

8

Offtopic / Sample of girls remaking some game music intros

« on: January 16, 2013, 06:59:45 pm »

Hello all,

I've found a couple of funny videos.

The first is about some twin harpist (nothing to do with *new* aliens!) - link here : http://video.day.az/view=W5RB-gr9DTU. They offer a photogenic remake of Morrowind main theme (if like me you played so much at it you will be touched). Very photogenic to say truth  , and artistically very correct.

The second sample is from another girly artist in a remake of Assassin's creed intro. The music is good, done by hand by a correct violonist. But the screenplay is really impressive, it reminds well the model, and moreover the landscapes are pretty nice (I wouldn't say photogenic, landscapes are always so).
Link here : http://youtu.be/MOg8Cz9yfWg.

I think those videos are great initiatives, don't you?

9

Discussion / Tiny poll about what do actually contributing mean

« on: January 13, 2013, 10:19:01 pm »

Hello,

I don't know if it is of any interest for the largest number (it would require a poll to know that!) but I heard about poll in another topic and slowly the idea was born for me to (try to) make some about the "contributing" question.

I could'nt do it with the forum tool because here is involved multiple questions. So I took some of my day to make it as a dedicated page. Here is the link : http://krillpoll.jigsy.com/.

I hoped I could get some of you curious enougth to take a look at this poll. If enough people participate I'd make a summary chart here as soon as relevant (there is already an automated chart generated there, but not including the whole poll).

Let me know what you think anyway.

10

Artwork / Shevaar body.amn file discussed

« on: January 10, 2013, 07:55:51 pm »

Hi there, sorry for commiting a new topic on a really little point of detail. But it would have been useful for me, so.

The background is the following, my goal was to look into the .amn file (animation descripting file) of Shevaar unit as it is currently implemented, in order to know what is the rule to follow if I want to add some animation to an incomplete model. But I discovered a file that I found a little messy because sorted by *suffixe* (stand3-walk3-cstand3-move_rpg-shoot_rpg-cmove_rpg-cshoot_rpg.....) so I resorted it by animation sequence order --> see the screenshot joined below.

Doing that I saw more evidently the way all of that was designed. First, it follows the requirements that are listed in the wiki : http://ufoai.org/wiki/Modelling/Character_Animation#Example. But until resorted it was not easy to check for me.

Then I saw that in one hand the file was describing the animation sequences by group of 2 for move_*/shoot_* (where * is a given item - see the wiki) and cmove_*/cshoot_* (where c is for crouched actions). When in the other hand, for stand/death/dead/panic it was grouped a more arbitrary maneer - except for the last frame of a death sequence which is taken logically for a dead state single frame.

Another thing is there are duplicates sequences. In red in the table below. For instance Stand0 and Stand2 referes to the same 189-190 animation sequence (2 frames sequence here). That's good to know that such a thing is lawful.

Last thing, for clarity certainly there are lost frames in the md2. For instance frame 113, 134, 142. They are used as separators.

And very last thing. I find useful to have at least one coloured table for observation purpose, because it makes easier to watch the fps settings and the sequences lengthes. Such things are difficult to set up when you start a model from scratches. A clear example is really useful for it. Of course, it is also possible that making a model from scratches is not the method. But here was not my purpose anyway.

11

Offtopic / Soon an alien version of UFOAI coded in Malbolge ?

« on: December 20, 2012, 03:13:47 pm »

I wondered what sort of code would be GIT-added if an alien decided to contribute. I think it would be in the marvelous Malbolge.
It is worth to be known :
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malbolge

In anyway, if any UFOAI was fully converted in this postmodern language it would prove that aliens are involved in the game.

12

Mapping / Should unrevealed civilians move?

« on: December 19, 2012, 03:23:59 pm »

Hello guys,

Here is a little question. I tried to solve it by myself and failed, so here it is delivered to your wisdom. I think that it is finally a mapping topic for a reason that will appear below (spawn). But first, lets take the facts:
 
Today at any moment of the battlescape playtime, when the soldiers have finished their turn, comes automatically the alien turn, and the civilian one (in what order? I would have to check). Both, aliens' actions, and civilians' actions, take time. And if aliens and civ. were not given a turn for action it would of course accelerate the game, the soldiers turn would come faster for the greater player satisfaction. Ok, so the question:

As written in the topic title, is it really necessary to let the civilians move before they are actually sighted by our (or aliens) troups?

The argument is the following : what the player doesn't see is not important at all. You will maybe agree with me that the game has not to be a simulation ("agent based" or so on). So, if the civilians spawn randomly enougth on the maps, they dont need at all to be moved before they get really detected. If detected by aliens they will be killed unless they run, and if detected by soldiers, the player will expect to see them doing anything.

It is all about saving CPU time, and about accelerating the game at early battlescapes. In one other side, to apply this trick there would be to multiply the civilians spawning possibilies to make impossible for the player to say that they never move before they get detected. Did this civilian move? Did he just stand waiting? ... So, doesn't the spawning range finally balance the *first* moves?

13

Design / Beastiary rules of naming

« on: December 10, 2012, 03:44:25 pm »

Hello,

I open a topic about a detail of the game design concerning aliens names.

After a while, when alien bestiary will have grown up, I'm affraid we will encounter the risk of having some feeling of a lack of unity in the naming. I checked, and there exists only 2 single naming styles today :

• a condensated one
• an explicit one

My first proposal would be to apply the condensated version to the whole alien bestary. The explicit naming is necessary at UFOpedia, or as a small description behing the original name, but alone it doesnt bring to much originality.

For you see that the naming job has already and miraculously been done for the main alien units, here is rebuilt the actual naming dictionnary :

Shevaar     ---->   She-varan (varan - any of various large tropical carnivorous lizards of Africa and Asia and Australia - www.thefreedictionary.com/Varan)

Ortnok       ---->  Orthodox knocker  - <here my explanation is that orthodox is something near of straightforward, or direct. And knocker is something that recalls knock-out. The all evocates a kind of uppercut alien (so to say not upper cute!).>

Taman       ----> Tall man  - <Taman is effectively small and tall. I'm sure that without the necessity of making the characters fit one map level height max, the taman would be further tall.>

The other aliens units are named by a non-condensated definition. Just as a first proposal here my try to put them in the dictionnary.

Alien tank              could be ---->       the Alitank

Blood spider      could be ---->    the Blospied
(if I rely on Shevaar, 2 first appearing vowels in the second part of the explicit name are put together)


Hovernet            ----- Hovnet

Here are all my linguistics 2-cents.

14

Artwork / UNO mark on armours and uniforms

« on: December 10, 2012, 03:09:10 pm »

Hi there,

I'm not sure that UNO's logo is copy free but anyway an adapted logo would be great to be put onto our soldiers uniforms. At least on the standard equipment. Ok, that asks for texture repainting but if a logo is choosen, it should be an easy job.

The UNO logo is something like that :
http://www.pelagon.de/wp-includes/images/mediadaten//logo-uno.jpg

15

Artwork / Some alien beasts (alien ghost + ... )

« on: December 08, 2012, 04:39:29 pm »

I changed a little this topic tittle so I can show eventually here new ideas. If in your opinion they were impossible to realize for any reasons just let me know.

Hello,

I'm still discovering slowly this very refined game. While I'm doing some very little first steps in various directions, sometimes a point calls my attention... What I translate into some sketches... I can't say if I will go further or not for the moment due to the technical gap. Moreover I generally dont know if it would be of any interest. But in the present case after doing some basical sketch I discovered with surprise that the idea was already on the starters, so it should be of interest !

The alien beast I called ghost is really close to the psi-amplifier. For some reasons I was not alone to think about such an unit. Whatever there remains differences in the way my ghost should work compared to the psi-amplifier. First of all the artwork design. Here is mine ... ( may it show what no to do at least )

Alien Ghost artwork

Then comes the way it works. Apparently the Psi-amplifier should be a weak unit, almost gazeous, with no offensive powers. At this point, this is exactly the same support unit as mine.

Anyway if I understood well, the Psi-amplifier is a 0/1 unit. I mean, 0, it is alive, there is a bonus over the whole alien team. 1, it is dead, the bonus vanishes. Ok, my ghost is also bonus-binary, but it doesn't work about psi-power and there is a range of effect. The ghost is a healer. He is providing energy refeed to any hurt alien located close enought , and it reacts by the reaction fire mechanism.

But there is something more. When the ghost comes attacked, he can give a regroup order to any aliens falling under his effect-range.

To make it clear, I took a battlescape case that I pictured (you can see that aliens need a cask to be linked with the ghost):

Alien Ghost - battlescape case 1/3


Alien Ghost - battlescape case 2/3


Alien Ghost - battlescape case 3/3

Ok, I hope it can be of any interest.