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[WOTC] Operators vs. Aliens Core Mod (In Alpha)

THIS IS AN IN-PROGRESS MOD. IT IS CURRENTLY LACKING A FULL DESCRIPTION OR CHANGELOG, IS BUGGY, AND IS STILL MISSING CERTAIN FEATURES. IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST TIME LEARNING ABOUT THIS MOD, READ THE DESCRIPTION CAREFULLY!

This mod is ONLY balanced for Legend right now. I'll work on balancing it for other difficulties in the future if there's interest.

Operators vs. Aliens is a very big collection. I highly reccomend using the community alternative mod launcher to speed up your load times and make managing the mods so much easier: https://github.com/X2CommunityCore/xcom2-launcher

This is the core mod for the Operators vs. Aliens overhaul. On its own, it bundles a few smaller things, but its main purpose is to provide the entire range of custom configs for all the mods used in the complete Operators vs. Aliens collection.

You'll need to subscribe to that collection in order to play. You can find that collection at the following link:

Operators vs. Aliens - Complete Collection: https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1931824165

This is a complete collection and overhaul that includes not only gameplay changes but also a complete visual and audio overhaul to weapons and soldiers. For compatability, ensure that you are ONLY running the mods listed in the collection. If you run anything else, I can't guarantee this modset will work or make sense.

If you can't afford the filesize or number of mods included in the complete collection, I've also created a lighter modlist. This version has almost no cosmetics or nice-to-have addons, no extra maps, nothing - it's very barebones, and I don't reccomend it, but the option is there for people who need it. You can find it below.

Operators vs. Aliens - Light Edition: https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1931853656

As for the changes made by this mod and by the Operators vs. Aliens overhaul, I will include a full description and changelog in the next day or so. However, right now, I just want to get this mod onto the workshop without any more delay so that people can finally start to test and play it for themselves.

It's worth noting that this mod is still not quite feature-complete - most notably, though I have played a full campaign of this experience personally, it depended on me observing some house rules and ignoring some rough edges.
Here's an example - there will be a bunch of extra weapons in the XCOM armory, but you're not meant to use most of them, as only a few have been balanced for intended use and the rest are just pending being removed from the armory UI.

As a result, this mod is currently only really for people already familiar with it and its concept and how its meant to be played. In the next few days I'll be adding more to this mod so that there are no house rules necessary and everything's baked in - however, if you already know what Operators vs. Aliens is and you've been waiting to play it, this mod and collection should give you everything you need to start playing right now.

You can find the start of my own Operators vs. Aliens campaign here: https://youtu.be/B_2Wy958A1w

All the house rules I remember so far:
Legend difficulty only
Enable Time Turner, Precision Explosives and Alternate Bleedout Mechanics in the Advanced Options view when you're starting your campaign
No weapon attachments
No wounded SPARKs on missions, unless the mission also allows wounded XCOM soldiers to deploy
No taking extra training center perks on the Operator class until they've hit Colonel
The SPARK utility slot is for the SPARK launchers only
Disposable Launchers take 2 slots - if you take a Disposable, don't take a second item
The only XCOM soldier class you should have access to is Operators. The only other classes you should be using are Psi Operatives, SPARKs and Heroes (Skirmishers, Reapers and Templars) - if you find a way to accidentally get other XCOM soldier classes, it's a bug.

Perhaps most importantly, until I properly blacklist them, don't use all the different weapon variants in armory - the weapons you should be using are:
Assault Rifle, Cannon, Shotgun, Sniper Rifle, USP 45, UMP 45, Combat Knife, Sawn-off Shotgun, Holo-targeter (It's a tool to provide a lock for Lock-on rockets later on), Bullpup, Vektor Rifle, Templar Gauntlets, Templar Autopistol, Templar Ballistic Shield, SPARK Rifle, SPARK Launchers (Normal and Support versions)
If you're using any of the other weapon variants than these or their upgraded versions, you're probably using a weapon that wasn't properly balanced for this modset and will be removed soon. Be advised!

I also play this campaign with some custom evac rules - I'm looking at adding a mod to make them real, but until then, they are:
Place EVAC wherever you want it, then roll a 1d3 and add 2 to the result. This is how many turns have to pass until you are allowed to use EVAC.
EVAC lasts for 3 full turns after it's placed, then Firebrand has to leave and come back. Roll a 1d3 and add 2 to the result. This is how many turns have to pass until you are allowed to call in EVAC again and restart this procedure.

If you check your character pool imports, you'll find a bundled Operator pool that provides you with all the uniforms from my OvA campaign. Dump them into your main character pool and all the characters with a last name of "Uniform" will serve as templates that all your future soldiers will pull their appearances from automatically, and when you tech your armour up, just load the new cosmetics from the pool uniforms as needed.

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Thanks to E3245, who did all the work to create this core mod and move all the configs into it so that Operators vs. Aliens could be released onto the workshop. Without them, this wouldn't be possible and this mod wouldn't exist!

E3245 is a very talented modder, and they have a Patreon - go check them out here: https://www.patreon.com/E3245

Thanks to E3245, Iridar, NotSoLoneWolf and bountygiver for all the help they gave me creating this overhaul and beyond. They've provided me with so many custom mods and so much help, and I wouldn't have been able to do anything without them.

E3245 is a very talented modder, and they have a Patreon - go check them out here: https://www.patreon.com/E3245
You can also visit Iridar's patreon, where he uses his considerable talents to make tons of new innovative mods over at https://www.patreon.com/Iridar