21 WAYS TO DOMINATE XCOM2 | How to play XCOM 2 | Tips and tricks

[@beleagueredbeluga5228]

The one invaluable tip that every player should absolutely take away from this video is the ''Its a trick'' one. Xcom 2 does have some very intimidating looking aliens that will seem like priorities, but in reality other more common enemies are far more dangerous. Basically, prioritize enemies who are 100% guaranteed to shoot you in their turn, while leaving the ones that wont for later. For example the trooper, captain, lancer, muton, viper or mechs need to die asap because they will shoot at you, but guys like the sectoid, archon, codex or shieldbearer can be left alone in that first turn because they will most likely do something that will not immediately harm your soldiers. One's own combat will improve once this is realized, and less xcom soldiers need to die as a result lol.

[@zerocents4658]

Whenever I see a pod with at least one humanoid and sextoid, I always try to prioritize the humanoid first because the sectoid will almost always try to revive the dead soldier.

[@neilcampbell7375]

Never ignore shieldbearers. Even if they activate their shield, killing him will turn everyone else's off

[@WickedPrince3D]

Sectoid's may not do anything to damage you right away; but when they do the reverse of the "make an alien your pet" trick on one of your teammates they like to run and hide afterwards and now you have the choice of shooting your own guy before he starts shooting you; or dealing with that pesky hidden sectoid that's controlling him when you are going to probably have lousy shots. Shieldbearer's are likewise a problem when they give every enemy a defensive/armor bonus; better to kill them before they get the power off and avoid the whole problem. But yes; there are priority targets.

[@randomguy-tl5ql]

@@WickedPrince3D fun fact, flash bangs stop the sectoid's mind control

[@WickedPrince3D]

@@randomguy-tl5ql Huh, I've never really bothered with grenades let alone the specials. It's rare to be able to get enough of them in a group to use the grenade on them unless you plan for it as your opening move in an ambush so the only other thing I do with grenades is use them to both damage a target I can't get a good shot at and damage it's cover at the same time. Usually with the sectoids at that. But with my current run I may have to try the flash-bangs.

[@Vaaluin]

I have 300 hours in XCOM 2 and love the game. Figured I'd watch just in case there's something I don't already know. Was pleasantly surprise! - I've never used Bluescreen rounds. The damage in your example footage makes me want to give them a go. - HUNKER DOWN PUTS OUT FIRES?! I literally NEVER use hunker down. I had no idea. Thank you so much. lmao

[@SteefPip]

I had no idea about hunkering down putting out fires, but most of my hundreds of hours came before the expansion so I guess I have an excuse, but we all know how we feel about excuses.

[@LAZERAK47V2]

If you're caught in half cover with a low hit chance, it's safer to Hunker Down on harder difficulties. This not only gives you a defensive boost (which might make enemies try to Overwatch you instead of shooting), hit also makes it impossible for the soldier to be Crit, unless they get flanked. This is vital on harder difficulties, since a Crit can kill a Rookie outright. They will always survive a non-crit shot.

[@niedude]

@@LAZERAK47V2 hunker down negates crits?????? Why doesn't the game tell us this!

[@IMP_ROM]

@@niedude I think it does, you just have to go out of your way to press the more information button.

[@MeAMoose]

Bluescreen rounds combo well with the BoltCaster for an Anti-Robot 15+ damage slap.

[@Rechnerstrom]

Additional tipps: Mimics can use cover. They also have the step out mechanic like your soldiers. So if you throw the mimic beacon behind cover, they aliens can still see it but they miss it more often. It survives longer and you get less shot at. Use scouts. A reaper or a concealed ranger with Phantom does not reveal when the rest of your squad does. If you know what you are up against and where they are you decide where and when to do battle. They also help a lot when going for a flank shot. Nothing worse than going for a flank shot and activating a new pod when you are out of cover. If you are overwhelmed and not on a timer, fall back. You don't have to do a hold the line to the last man in unfavorable situations. Get every soldier out of sight and not all aliens will follow you. Now you can take them on piecemeal. Being out of sight is the best cover. Sharpshooter Face off skill is also kind of multikill. It synergizes extremely well with Reaper or Serial skill on rangers or snipers. Sharpshooter fan fire with bluescreen rounds lets the sharpshooter solo a sectopod. Don't understimate a Gunslinger (sharpshooter) relying on pistol skills. That's both crowd control and damage burst in one soldier. If not up against robots, their multi shot abilities with special ammo can deal a lot of status effects. Burning melee units will not melee. If the enemy can see one of your soldiers they can see all of them, line of sight or not. Except concealed ones. Don't rely on sneaking up to them out of line of sight while one of your soldiers can be seen. That muton will throw his grenade on your "unvisible" soldiers. Stay away from cars when the enemy has grenades. If you are scouting concealed, be wary of running around corners. You might be surprised by the civilian behind it revealing you.

[@Phoenix-kg5jv]

These tips are great! Thank you!! Btw for that last tip, I recommend the [WOTC] Peek From Concealment and [WotC] Peek From Concealment UI Fix mods so you can approach a corner without worrying about civilians immediately spotting you. Keep in mind the wall you’re peaking out from has to be be full cover or it won’t work.

[@matthew2531]

I remember one more Tip from Ali Gs interview of Neil Armstrong regarding aliens. "Don't go to the Sun during the day it's to hot go to the sun at night when it's cold. "

[@LoneWolf-ex5um]

Playing XCOM 2 for the first time and loving it - just started leaning into the ammo types and like the tactical tips you've made. Good job man 👍

[@roguebrothers]

Enjoy, it's a great game!

[@gamersthumbs4673]

I just bought it a hour ago.. I'm about to lose some days of my life but be extremely entertained along the way.

[@cristianoboschetti3882]

In my opinion, Talon rounds to a snyper or Pratal are a good option.. Great video...thanks for a lot of unknown tips..

[@Trevin_Taylor]

@@cristianoboschetti3882 I give them to ranger since they already have crit bonus. Makes them hit crit most of the time.

[@someonem8804]

the controls are gross and stupid

[@thomasohare]

I'd add two more: 1) use height advantage where possible. Has both offense and defensive perks 2) only move into full cover (avoid half cover) unless absolutely unavoidable. On hard difficulties you will get CHEWED UP if you're not in full cover

[@LAZERAK47V2]

Height Advantage defense is only a mechanic in Xcom: Enemy Unknown/Within. Xcom 2 doesn't offer any defensive bonuses for the high ground, you are totally reliant on the cover for defense. Additionally. avoid using destructible high ground when facing enemies like MECs and Mutons. If they decide to throw grenades at you, you'll take explosive damage and fall damage, more than enough to kill a low level solider outright in the early game. Stray fire can destroy the floor as well, but this is far less likely to occur and can never occur on a hit, so the risks are negligible compared to the rewards. An exception to the full cover advice: Try to avoid positioning your Reaper around cover when initiating combat. Enemies will scramble and positioning your Reaper in high cover that an enemy can scramble to will likely get your concealment blown. Since the detection radius for a Reaper who hasn't fired a shot yet is only one tile, position them completely exposed to minimize the chances enemies will enter the tile adjacent to them. This logic does not apply against units like the Lost, Berserkers and MECs, since they do not use cover.

[@Ted_Bell]

Noob tips

[@toasteddingus6925]

Half cover is totally fine for most regular players

[@the_tactician9858]

Half cover is fine if you are far enough away from the enemy; rule of thumb for me is 10 squares away equals the difference between half cover and full cover. Another tip I would give is to position your troops in ways that suit your units. A squad with many snipers should have most of the squad stick together apart from the scout who spots enemies. A squad of Rangers on the other hand might benefit from an L-formation, in which you pressure an enemy from 2 sides with an angle of around 90 degrees. It means flanking is guaranteed for either your Rangers on the flanks or your other squadmates that would normally face cover. Grenadier squads should prioritize staying at reasonable range blasting cover away like there is no tomorrow, and nobody should build a squad purely on hackers, but if for some reason you take more than 1 specialist along, you should play on the defensive, buffing allies and overwatching like crazy, or you should use your specialists as pseudo-rangers. And to be honest, SPARK squads and PsiOp squads just mean party time for you and your squads. Ultimately the best playstyle is the one where you gain and keep initiative to keep the aliens on the back foot. Too defensive means you play catchup to whatever the aliens do to you, leaving little time to do things to the aliens. Too agressive gets you in bad positions which allow the aliens to catch you with your kevlar pants down. See what playstyle suits you, and experiment with how agressive you want to be: balls deep into ADVENT with your rangers, using your big long shafts and your explosively vigorous balls to suprise even the manliest of the aliens or making the 'mindfuck' tag a reality for those ET's. Wait, how did this turn into an innuendo?

[@syncmonism]

Full cover just isn't available a lot of the time, and when it is, there's often only one or two spots available. The game is very often time sensitive, and it's often best just to make sure that you have all of your troops in position to attack (and also not too bunched up), in order to focus fire. As soon as you have one soldier in only half cover, that's often just as bad as having your entire squad in half cover, because the aliens will typically just shoot at whomever is easiest to hit... and a lot of alien attacks will ignore cover anyway as well. I found that I used to be OVER-focused on having full cover, to the point that I was not paying enough attention to other tactical considerations.

[@MatthewCampbell765]

7:10 I'm actually pretty fond of retaliation missions personally. Though mostly it's down to what they represent thematically. Basically, they demonstrate ADVENT's cruelty in a non-theoretical way. It isn't just something happening in cutscenes or in dialogue, ADVENT's cruelty and the heroic nature of your struggle against them is a core gameplay mechanic in these missions. They're killing specific civilian NPCs in a non-scripted way, and your gameplay decisions will decide whether those civilians live or die.

[@roguebrothers]

I agree with this - what I take issue with is Bradford, and his hysterical insistence to hurry up. Thanks for the advice Bradford!

[@StevenAlTorres]

We’re losing civilians left and right! Get those people outta here!!

[@MatthewCampbell765]

I will agree that Bradford talks too much, though I think that's a problem with almost every mission.

[@zlac]

If Bradford was smart, he would win the war without "the player" 😁

[@MsKeylas]

@@MatthewCampbell765 Bradford is a fucking cretin. Like when he yaps his gums about freedom. Yeah. that freedom is going to do soo much fucking good if you are dying from starvation or ilness... Bradford is a heartless insensitive uneducated moron

[@mrjblacc85]

Two Tips: 1:In retaliation missions, don't go up to civilians to save them, just move up the battlefront. Any civilians behind your troops will be very safe, this will let you engage aliens much quicker, saving civs further on the map. This will also reduce the chance of your troops getting up close and personal with a faceless, so that's a plus. 2: Scouting is essential, if you play right your squad should be equipped to handle ANY single pod. Shit hits the fan when you engage more then one. Reapers excel at this and should be deployed in between the pod you're engaging and the rest of the aliens. Phantom rangers should be used more conservatively but can still do the trick.

[@dogwithnobones906]

What's pod

[@mrjblacc85]

@dogwithnobones906 in xcom a group of enemies that moves together is considered a pod.

[@cplassen2138]

I prefer superior speed pcs to perception. Combined with grapple, this gives amazing blue-move range. Add overdrive serum and you can escape those nuisance ambush maps in two turns. Also, go for every engineer you can get in early game (scanning reward, mission reward, black market) and always, ALWAYS be excavating or building facilities on the avenger until it's fully built-out.

[@roguebrothers]

I might try that on the ambush missions - sounds powerful

[@cplassen2138]

@@roguebrothers Equip your two troops with grapples and OD serum. Hit the serum, shoot the grapple, and run like hell. It's a hilarious way to nerf an otherwise stupid map

[@LAZERAK47V2]

When using a melee attack with a Ranger and without prior scouting, ALWAYS drop an Evac zone where your unit will end up. This means that if you accidentally activate a pod and your Ranger is totally exposed, they can retreat from the field safely. This is also useful for the occasional melee miss, which should be much less of an issue when you pick up Blademaster. If possible, always use the Shotgun in the early game instead of the Sword. The Sword's main benefit is that it allows to double move and attack. However, if you can attack with a single move, always use the Shogun, as it likely has a 100% hit rate with more range. Better to be down a healthy soldier than down a dead one. Additionally, emergency Evacs can save a soldier from bleeding out and from ongoing damage like Cryssalid Poison (which doesn't go away on its own, it MUST be healed off).

[@dogwithnobones906]

What's pod

[@LAZERAK47V2]

@@dogwithnobones906 A "pod" is term for a group of enemies. The enemies in this game wander in groups, rather than individually, so they are referred to a "pod" of enemies. It stems from the saying "peas in a pod" a group of peas in a singular pod.

[@dogwithnobones906]

@LAZERAK47V2 awesome I am loving this game. Bought it on sale and now I finally feel joy after a longtime of gamin in the same spaces that made me sad, multiplayer lol

[@orangesoda4535]

The core tip I give all new players is that you should always advance your troops in single file after breaking concealment. Doing this greatly reduces risk of revealing an enemy pod prematurely. Also, for the mist part, you shouldn't spend both movement actions at once.

[@IMP_ROM]

X:EU tips come in handy in X2. Nice.

[@JoshSweetvale]

2:35 Colour code your classes 7:50 MECs can Dynamic Entry through walls.

[@davekachel]

I used to colour code my classes. Turns out this made them bland and boring for me

[@f9oeks965]

@@davekachel how does that make it boring?

[@CMTechnica]

@@f9oeks965 because they all look the same

[@niedude]

@@f9oeks965 personal preference, really. I can see how both color coding and diversifying can feel interesting and reward different people. For example, I can appreciate how creating a "uniform" of a sort for certain units gives them a cohesive identity and makes them feel a part of the same group, and can also make it look like your ragtag guerrila organization is actually acting like a proper army. But I can also see how it can be more fun to go harder on the individuality of each unit, have them wear different armor styles and in different colours to make them stand apart and highlight different "personalities". It also adds to the feel that you really are a rebel organization scrapping together equipment from scavenged resources when your units don't exactly feel like they go together: of course they couldn't, one unit got their gear from a fallen trooper on a mission in Rio, while another unit got a pristine, newly built army vest they nabbed off of a hijacked convoy in a mission in Russia. It all adds to the way each person plays this game differently, and "projecting" your own story onto the tactical, randomly generated campaign of this game is a large part of its appeal.

[@heavendog3194]

@@niedude ya, I go ham with customization I can't help it. With my mods, there are so many cool armor pieces I want to display so everyone ends up with unique armor and languages and stuff, makes them unique and identifiable at a glance, or even a listen.

[@JamesJeong-d6m]

"100 aim means you cant miss" lmfao

[@Thomas.T8]

😂😂😂

[@danielsurvivor1372]

Jokes aside, apparently 100% shots can literally miss due to some jank code 😂. Also not sure if it counts but grenades can somehow do 0 dmg aka miss despite the aoe

[@randomname9723]

​@@danielsurvivor1372I'm pretty sure grenades miss when terrain blocks the explosion. It's annoying because I'm pretty sure it didn't work that way in XCOM, but it is consistent afaik.

[@PlasmaExe]

@@randomname9723yeah pretty sure they have to be on the same level too. Unless its a building

[@PleasureValleyLordXavier]

Literally just had this happen at THE most clutch moment

[@nickn5419]

Honestly I love xcom 2. I put about 700 hours in the game. The best advice I can give is play on the EASIEST difficulty on your first time through. YOU WILL MAKE A TON OF MISTAKES but it won't matter on the lower difficulty settings because everything is faster. Base building is faster, soldiers heal faster. Playing on the lower diff settings means you can learn all of the mechanics of the game. What to research first to get what item you want, or what building to build next. Also it helps you learn how to deal with the AVATAR PROJECT. Learning how to deal with chosen. When to expand into a newer region when your ready for the next chosen. If you are just relying on huehue mimic beacon you are missing out on a lot of the game. ON LEGEND, YOU CAN'T get enough corpses to get mim beacon unless you get lucky with dark event. If you dont have dark event then you won't have enough corpses until the 3rd or 4th retaliation mission on LEGEND. You can rush it after the 1st retaliation mission and get one after the 2nd on commander and lower. believe me when I say WOTC is ALOT easier then Vanilla. Just learn about what you can do which is a lot. Ammo types, Grenade types, squad upgrades. I've seen a lot of different play styles on LEGEND difficulty. Some rush squad +1, some don't in favor of bigger firepower in terms of soldier rank, bonds, ammo types, grenade types, weapon/armor upgrades. The new classes are pretty vital also, they are all good in their own way. Templer, Skirmisher, Reaper can all help you if you learn how to use them properly. Picking which mission helps also, some can be easier than others DEPENDING on your soldiers. have a specialist at the highest rank? go for more hacking missions. Grenediars? Bounty missions like killing a commander. Rangers? Rangers help you kill things, most versatile class in the game. Snipers? Pistol spec'd snipers will help you out more in the early game, then rank up another sniper spec'd into sniping and they will dominate late game. Pistol is always almost 80% or higher chance to hit at close range even through high cover. Lots of things i can talk about, but I will stop here. gl hf!

[@jerometruitt2731]

Right now I'm attempting a psionics rush and I'm only gonna use 4 troops....on legendary

[@jerometruitt2731]

I tried to tell a steamer to play on easy a week ago playing xcom 2 for the first time. He didnt listen...started on legendary and lost on the first real mission. Stepped it down to veteran, lost again and quit LMAO

[@nickn5419]

@@jerometruitt2731 haha i wish i was there lol

[@thomasohare]

@@jerometruitt2731 I 100% believe this. X com 2 doesn't forgive mistakes, and if you make a few bad mistakes it'll kill you over time. Which makes it more painful! 🤣

[@sobeksuwek]

Thanks, I usually pick normal difficulty at most game

[@timostipow3751]

There is also seemingly unlimited, permanent bonuses that can be added to your soldiers stats via Covert Operations. I have several soldiers with over 50 mobility just from spamming +1 mobility operations over and over with the same character. Same goes for Health, Aim, Hack, Dodge, And Will. Spend enough time using the same soldiers in one playthrough, and you can turn them into gods.

[@TheWorldsRequiamas]

Finally a simple and to the point video that gives multiple options to achieve the same results.

[@gentlemanhat3427]

I'll give a few of my own tips for people playing xcom 2, mobility is a nice stat and important for positioning in xcom 2, rapid fire and fan fire are great if you want extremely important enemies dead or can be used in really interesting combos like the implacable and untouchable combo, and for retaliation mission just ignore civs and go around them if you want to fight faceless as the last enemies and not proc them in the middle of combat.

[@benjaminbaer9712]

8:00 YES! Thank you for mentioning this! Overwatch is talked about like some saving grace, but it is only really useful when breaking concealment. Even then, its brought down by the fact that your guys will shoot anyone, even if they cant hit their target.

[@flynn6737]

Definitely Benj I think once you over watch the game sends a low tear grunt in. Very smart

[@suzhengchong2593]

tip for using overwatch, use it such that you would get sighted during the alien's turn instead of revealing by initiating attack on your turn. this is extremely powerful as you have just managed to cause all aliens to lose a turn of attack, as aliens only get to move into cover if they see you on their turn. The same goes for when breaking concealment, make it such that one of your soldiers can be spotted flanked(as that's the only way you can be revealed on alien's turn while concealed), then unleash a free volley of bullets through overwatch that aliens pretty much have to eat.

[@hunghung9537]

@@suzhengchong2593 but the one got flanked is pretty dead. I just encounter that situation today. Somehow the alien turn a sectoid move into flanking my solder, break concealment, talk shit and immediately shot a critical hit at my soldier's face, killing him at once.

[@suzhengchong2593]

@@hunghung9537 huh I have never encountered that before, every time I get revealed on enemy turn they never got to shoot, I have no idea what is happening

[@hunghung9537]

@@suzhengchong2593 I am playing normal xcom 2 with all DLC (not Wotc). Before install any DLC I haven't encounter that situation. Maybe some patch change in those DLC?

[@_Dylanm]

Good to see new Xcom content. KZbin is starved of this stuff. Keep it up!

[@jayrent98]

Great video! I'm so glad you brought up the customization of your troops. It really makes me feel more attached to them, leading to what I think are "smarter" positions. Sometimes too attached haha Every time time someone doesn't make it back from mission, I make sure to go down to the bar memorial and pour one out for the fallen.

[@jimreaper1337]

Just started a coworkers playthrough, all of my characters are customised as someone from my work... Going to see how my real life personal views affect how my game runs through

[@wesleyfilms]

I name them after friends. Having to apologize to them after getting them killed makes me play smarter.

[@champdoggaming]

In games like this, I've always treated +Accuracy like +Damage in my own mind. If something hits 10% more frequently, it is doing 10% more damage, on average. While also saving me frustration.

[@Ardenithar]

It is even more of a boost than you realize. Going from 10% chance to hit to 20% to hit for example would double the damage you deal on average. Going from 50% to 60% is a 20% damage bump. Even when going 90% to 100% hit chance is an 11.1% damage increase.

[@rebelwithoutaclue9387]

I was recently given $8000 in PlayStation Store credit cards (the scratch code ones). My friend has a store that’s going out business so he gave them to me as a gift for helping him, clean the place out. I only did about $500 worth of work too lol. All of us who helped were paid in merchandise like this. Anyway I bought 182 games and a bunch of DLC. This was one of them, that I’m going to be trying first. So thanks for the tips!

[@benjaminfinlay829]

Always, _always_ keep your troops near each other - within vision radius - but not so close that they'll be hit by grenades. This will, without even really trying, cause positions where enemies would flank you to _be_ flanked, and the enemy AI really, _really_ does not like putting (non-melee) units in flanked positions: it typically won't even _try_ for flanking shots if you do this. It also results in your troops being able to support each-other if and when needed.

[@yanisbaker881]

Or mec/codexs as a walk in the park mission can go very wrong when all your guys suddenly have no ammo and are half dead for mec grenades

[@benjaminfinlay829]

@@yanisbaker881 You're talking about keeping your troops separated but close enough to support each other, yes?

[@yanisbaker881]

@@benjaminfinlay829 yes as while you need your troops to aid each other don’t put them on top of each other cos that scream use scary AOE attacks on you that cripples your entire squad

[@codysoukup5306]

I haven't read the comments so it might have been mentioned but, the problem with what you said about retaliation missions is the Faceless popping up and throwing you a wrench. Excellent video, 5 stars! As a veteran this is one of the best, if not the best and most concise videos I've seen. Kudos :)

[@roguebrothers]

Cheers buddy. That's why you scan the area before you send in your ranger. That way you know if there are any Faceless.

[@dominickk5293]

I like to organize my squads by buddies like so: ranger+specialist, sniper+grenadier, reaper/skirmisher/templar+ a psychic. What classes you team up isn't important, so long as they are all teamed the same. Now color code them by squad. Your 1st 4 or 6 can be your A team, and all wear black and red. Your B squad can be the killer Bees and dress in black and yellow, and so on. Make one team like all your friends from bowling league or whatever. I once had a squad that looked like the Diamond dogs from Metal Gear 5. Have fun with it. Now, if any one or two get injured, you can momentarily swap out 2 buddies into another squad so you don't end up with like 3 snipers because everyone else is out injured. Pairs of friends and a varied team makes this game much easier.

[@ForgottenTryhard]

Great video and tips, i do think psy troops take way too long to train to be useful early tho. Also over watch shots from concealment don't suffer the usual over watch penalty. This means its better because enemies spot you, then run to cover. You will shoot them before they cover, with no over watch penalty, add high ground for an almost sure hit. This will allow you to safely kill a group of enemies without approaching them, risking more spotting you and joining in. Also using the high ground is massive aim gain, and all XCOM units gain aim% closer to targets except snipers using thier sniper rifle. Enemies don't gain from close range but do gain from flanks and height advantage

[@chrainey]

Great video guys. Love the straight to the point style with a bit of humour. Keep it up!!

[@countrymonkOSB]

Very cool and helpful video, mate. Thanks a million. It'll help me a ton! I just bought the game yesterday on the Steam Summer sale for about 2 quid, so I'm stoked to play and dominate

[@DanMcLeodNeptuneUK]

I'm new to the game and this video was really helpful and informative. You put decent effort into this thank you! Subbed!

[@pattozebass9767]

Another 2 tips which may be useful. If you're trying to disable the distress beacon in a landed UFO beacon, you can just use a grenade rather than activating it. In alien facility missions you can also just place the evac right outside and use your concealed ranger to bomb and gtfo

[@stefanv.3991]

If you are playing on harder difficulties, always bring a medical specialist with you, especially if playing Long War 2 or WOTC. There is nothing worse than having your squad mates panic, go unconscious or become stunned, and bleed out when nobody can stabilize them.

[@matthewriddle2698]

Here is a tip from me, set up traps. The Reaper’s claymore is a beautiful bomb, but imagine setting it off with an acid grenade? The amount of armor lost on really big enemies would be crippling and if planned right can take out nearby weaker enemies too. Second tip, zombies the double edged sword. Zombies are annoying when swarming you, but when using a special item that attracts zombies to a Chosen’s location is always fun~ I did this to them once and all I had to do was take pot shots at him and kill the occasional zombie who wandered away from the pack toward my guys. While the Chosen had his hands full of zombies and even was forced to retreat because of them after losing his health bars. It was even funnier how he cursed how the “wretched lost” for being in their way. On that day, zombies became my favorite double edged sword~

[@AnonEyeMouse]

Using a mimic beacon and a sonic lure on the same spot can be great fun.

[@Chaosfred]

Opening the battle in other way: When your team is concealed, set them to overwatch and set one soldier to sit just one or two squares away from the detection radius. This is common part. Then the funny part, if you are triggering the ambush by attacking first or intentionally move into the detection on your turn, your overwatch soldiers do get ambush bonus (removes overwatch penalty aim bonus). But after that, your soldier can't move at all (since overwatch ends their turn). However, if the patrolling enemy is the one detected you on their turn, then the overwatch will not get ambush bonus. HOWEVER, the patrolling walk actually already takes one of the enemy AP and their "scramble" run takes another, if they attacked you or go overwatch, they will be left on open. So the battle now starts with all your soldiers full of AP (and released an overwatch shot at that), meaning you can shot twice here even before enemy first actual turn. If you have grenadier with salvo, now is good time to drop a grenade on any enemy taking cover too. The exception to this if you got the "initiative" continent bonus or when you starts unconcealed. Also do not hesitate to spend grenades on early game.

[@RobFisherUK]

Very useful! Like many others probably, I'm finally playing this on the Steam Deck. It's an obvious choice since there aren't many turn based strategy games with decent controller support. Luckily this is a great game. Very much reminds me of staying up all night playing UFO Enemy Unknown when I was a teenager!

[@Bluemilk92]

I love the idea behind this, very honest.

[@handsomejack3444]

I'm surprised there was no talk about Reapers. After 700 hours I'd say they are far more OP in utility than any other class. Give your Reaper maximum movement (they'll usually max out aim Naturally) and they can scout and mark all the enemies on the map in 2-3 turns. Remote detonation is ridiculously exploitable. Finally the garunteed concealed after a kill makes picking off enemies behind cover easy. Just make sure they never leave concealment.

[@donkeysunited]

Drop a claymore near a group of enemies and then use remote detonation for massive damage. They're also great for spotting at super long range for the snipers, especially when you need to destroy the EMP spike and the artillery attacking your ship. But bring a strong Templar into the Chosen bases, especially against HER.

[@lebozo869]

Reapers are by far my fav soldier class in WOTC. I hardly go on missions without at least 1 in my squad. The reduced detection range and explosives focus is so much fun .Best scout available, though rangers can do in a pinch.

[@Rikolus8383]

Many Thanks for a very helpful video (as well as additional hints from other viewers below)!

[@roguebrothers]

Glad you found it helpful - make sure you check out my 21 tips for War of the Chosen video if you need more tips

[@venombeetle7473]

I can understand why the aliens would focus down on something like the mimic beacon, they only have 1 other creature that has that static holographic feature to it and that, is the codex. The alien must see the mimic beacon act all static and codex in its appearance and go “Oh god I have to kill it this turn or else it’s gonna wreck my whole pod.”

[@michaelwolejszo6445]

This game is such a gem. Starting another play through and am amazed how well it holds up to games now. Epic story, cutscenes, skills, building, etc. Other games in the genre just cannot get the formula right as this one did. The modding community just adds to the repeatability of the game.

[@youraverageenclavesoldier]

I really like the love that's been put both in this video and in these comments. I have nearly 500 hours in XCOM 2: WotC, and easily 1000 in XCOM: EU/W, and sadly I can't say much to newcomers. Why? Because I'm a mod user since my second playtrough in both games! What I can say, though, are miscellaneous tips that helped me out as I made the literal Enclave alongside Raiden from Metal Gear cut trough ADVENT and Combine forces; - Kill the buffers first (Shieldbearers, Priests and AVENT Officers), specially in the 2nd half of the game. Why? Well, the Shieldbearer(SB from now on) give additional HP and reduce greatly the damage taken, the Priests can (and will try to) mind control your soldiers/put your strongest units in Ecstasy/buff their teammates, the Officers might Mark (increase aim against the selected target) your soldiers, even though this last one isn't much of a pain. Thing is, shit can turn from easy to "EVAC! EVAC!!" pretty fucking quick, specially against modded enemies. - Take profit of concealment, specially in countdown missions. Why? Even though most times it only takes 1 or 2 turns to take down an enemy pod, you don't usually get more than 7 turns in concealed missions (concretely, "search and destroy" typa missions, which are the longest starting with your squad hidden), and all it takes is one oopsie to get nervous. Plus, you could always bring a Reaper (WotC users only) and abuse its absurdely small detection range to scout. Because we all HATE when you step on a tile that wasn't supposed to break concealment, but "hello, it's your friendly neighbor Sectopod, up to fuck your turn up", and having the enemy on full sight always reveal all concealment-breaking tiles. Just put that Reaper in a safe cozy spot, and let it sit back while you struggle to move your soldiers trough the battlefield, hidden like the spec ops they are. - DOMINATORS (Shen's Gift/WotC DLC users only). Yes, in caps, cause those are THE aliens. THE bosses. Don't hit me w that dollar store Avatar, here you have the only three bastards who take an action for every action your soldiers take. Yes, and they do it IMMEDIATELY after your soldier's action if said soldier is in its line of sight. Truly a masochistic DLC, but who am I to judge. Every Dominator has its own fighting style, but they all are absurdely broken. Keys for them three: + Viper king; don't stick your soldiers together, he will perform a freezing AoE attack that will, well, freeze y'all's soldiers for some turns. You do not want that. + Berserk Queen; the most exploitable one, look for a high place, and block the ways up with your soldiers. You'll encounter the greatest parry you could ever use against her: she can't climb with a jump! So she may stay underneath your soldiers, where with some convenient nades on the roof (or, the floor from your soldiers' POV) she can be shot trough. + Archon Lord, or whatever his name was; kinda same as the Viper, cause of his bomber ability. But he's the most dangerous of those three due to how much he suffices in every skill; CQC, Shooting, and mobility. He really doesn't have any weak spots, but for when you encounter him, you'll probably be in plasma tier. So he's your final test, and you better get an A+. + THE JOKER CARD; Captain Rangers and Arc Swords. Why? ✨B l a d e s t o r m a n d f r e e s t u n s !✨It's simple; start slashin' and dashin' towards the DOMINATOR, and if you're lucky enough, your Arc Blade will stun the boss for some free repositioning or attack actions. And if that doesn't work, well, you have MORE rangers on their way to surround the enemy! With so many free slashing (Bladestorm), you'll literaly decimate the DOMINATOR for every action he takes. 'Thing is, keep your rangers alive. They'll be CQC against the enemy, and that hurts a lot. Get a Specialist with some medkits too, and the alien will fall dead very, very soon. Good luck! I might come up with more tips if any of y'all remind me I wrote this in some future lmao, this shi takes mental energy. Have a good one, and good luck against ADVENT!

[@Herigin]

I started Wotc and felt really dominated right from the first mission. After some time i just dropped it and installed LW2 on vanilla and going to do that. Basically taking your advice 21.

[@Zaky-Tocapelotas]

Brilliant tips ! Thanks man. Definitely earned a subscription there chap !

[@All_Mighty672]

Just finished my first War of the Chosen playthrough, and omg the ability of Sword master rangers was insane! By the end, the enemy had to deal with 3 Col. Rangers all equipped with the different unique armors (Viper King etc), a Chosen Sword and shotgun, and the axes. Oh and I forgot to mention that by the end they all had 25+ mobility, so no where on the map was safe if someone could see it. (Also I don’t know how, but the throwable axe duplicated, so my ranger with the Chosen Sword also had a free axe throw move :/)

[@jerometruitt2731]

Axe comes with a throw ability. It's part of the alien hunter pack

[@All_Mighty672]

@@jerometruitt2731 yeah, but that character had the Katana equipped, but also was able to throw an axe, even though another character was using the axes.

[@jerometruitt2731]

@@All_Mighty672 OOOOOOOOH! Yeah that's definitely a glitch

[@BoomBurster]

Jokes on you- I customized my troop as my ex girlfriend and throw her into the heat of battle as bait/faiuder… and now she’s my strongest troop 😩😭

[@roguebrothers]

Hilarious!

[@blakedixon2838]

Great video brother, I agree have FUN! It’s only a game, if you’re getting wrecked it’s only because you haven’t learned these specific tips. Cheers from America 🇺🇸 🤙

[@TheNathon11]

I'm getting back into the game and just suck and I uninstalled, but I don't want to give up that easily so looking at these tips they might really help thank you, reinstalling now I hope I don't do as bad as before lol

[@thrudur84]

The Reaper is by far my favourite character and it's really useful to give it as much mobility as possible as it can scope out the entire battlefield without getting seen. When fully powered up, armed with bluescreen rounds as well as advanced magazine size (6 bullets) and he sees a troublesome enemy like the Sectopod, you can just use Banish or Annihilate and job done in a single go. If he's got bullets leftover after the Sectopod and got Annihilate, then he moves onto the next target and finishes that off too, until bullets run out. The Ranger is also soooo good when they've got Bladestorm, Untouchable and Reaper!! So fun. The Mindshield is also super useful particularly on the very final mission against the Avatars, as it prevents the Priests and Sectoids from controlling your (by this point incredibly powered up) soldiers, preventing a bloodbath.

[@Gorionsbelt]

Great video, just what I was looking for

[@cheesepiece6106]

Bro thanks for the tips, they are very useful. Sorry for my englis

[@roguebrothers]

Glad you found them useful! (English seems very good)

[@ojgfhuebsrnvn2781]

Nice tips, i generally didn't bother with some of the things mentioned offtop. While i do like xcom 2, i like xenonauts much more. In that game i never had a problem with misses from close range (i dont say it doesn't happen but it's not that common and irritaging as in xcom) i however have a problem with aliens killing me from far away even when i am in cover. We could say "well, they are aliens" but description of that specific aliens suggests they are bad at long range fight.

[@jacobely6826]

whilst an extra mod slot is undoubtedly good... i still think that the bonus that gives all of your mods an extra bonus (i.e stock will do 2 damage instead of one, advanced will do 3 instead of 2 and superior will do 4 instead of 3) is far far far better. with this you can get 60 percent crit chance with a superior laser sight when right next to an enemy with the ranger. this means that without any other utilities you can reach 100 percent crit chance with just 1 weapon attachment. 7 ammo in a vektor is also amazing for banish, 4 free reloads is pretty awesome. basically all of these upgrades are amazing, and potentially far better than that extra mod slot.

[@niedude]

I've been playing xcom since 2018 and I have NEVER seen this bonus you speak of!

[@jacobely6826]

@@niedude interesting, cant remember the name of it but it can come as research or continent bonus and simply gives everything an extra bump and is absolutely ludicrously overpowered.

[@fateslegion8061]

Omg I didn’t know that flash bangs canceled mind control! Thank you

[@roguebrothers]

It can be a life saver early on!

[@FatalJapan]

I love that people are still putting out content for xcom 2. I just started playing xcom 2 myself and its my first rts.

[@ianvu8737]

xcom 2 is tbs not rts.

[@riccardoleardini7318]

Great video, I always get frustrated for all the wrong reasons when I play this game

[@benlydster2777]

Great video. Well compiled ✅

[@wingn3849]

The best tips are the ones that apply to the early game. Xcom 2 gets easier the later you get into the game. 1. Know what is ahead. Use a scout at the start of your turn to see where the enemy is. If you’re not sure what is ahead, don’t uncover that area. The worst feeling happens when you run into multiple squads with the last soldier you move. 2. Deal with enemy squads 1 at a time and try to get rid of them the same turn you find them. Best defense is not letting them attack :). If you can’t deal with all of them concentrate on killing 1 at a time (don’t spread out your firepower.) At least, you’ll get 1 or 2. 3. Prioritize targets. As mentioned in the video, know which are the problematic enemies and deal with them first. 4. Don’t get injured and don’t let your guys die. You’ll fall into a qualified troop shortage very fast. 5. Increase your squad size ASAP. Build GTS first and focus on getting the necessary promotions to unlock the squad size increases. 6. Attack power and aim are key. They help you kill faster. Research those guns and gun breakthroughs asap to improve power. Get on buildings, break cover, put on scopes/mods to increase aim.

[@stevenwheeler4198]

Good tips but personally I prefer getting Resistance Ops before GTS. Slightly delaying your squad size increase means 1 or 2 extra RO missions which puts you in a better position for next few missions.

[@heavendog3194]

not in LWOTC. that's why i enjoy it the most, it is challenging from day 1-500. Thanks for coming to my lil Ted Talk

[@davysmith1934]

I am dreading the day Pete Complete decides to complete this. Not because he'll find it impossible. But because he'll make it look easy. He is a truly incredible strategist.

[@Grzesuav94]

Also, flanking! Whenever there's an occasion to flank, go for it! It's maybe not guaranteed damage, but a very likely damage with a very likely crit!

[@JoshSweetvale]

Just don't dive too deeply into terrain you don't have sight on. You might uncover another pod.

[@jimreaper1337]

Was a massive fan of XCOM: Enemy Unknown years ago, just saw Xcom 2 on the store for £2 or £5 with all the DLC so i got the lot and I'm loving it, loads of carry over from the previous games with some new mechanics, customizations & gameplay Already doing half of the things suggested in this video, will implement the rest as i play through Xcom 2 for the 1st time

[@roguebrothers]

That is a bargain price for the amount of game you get. Plus you can add all sorts of mods to expand the game even further!

[@c0d3014]

OP set up.. ranger/reaper as spotter, sniper whit serial and Archon boss armour, Templar/ranger whit blade specialisation, 1 psi op/skirmisher , and if you got DLC reaper whit repeater and banish shots... as 6th pick what ever you like...

[@kabbythedog9409]

👍👍 good vid I’ve been playing through trying to get ready for an Ironman

[@Axera-Aisen]

I only found 1 mistake (or not so mistake?) throughout the video and I'm impressed by it, since i always find a guy that does have good tips but has mistakes, like 3-4 5:56 Flashbang doesn't really remove overwatch, it just makes it worse, since it gives disoriented debuff + 9:05 with the emp rounds you can actually decrease their resistance to hack, which is really good, considering you'll meet way more dangerous robotic enemies (Sectopods, super heavy turret, etc.) Hope that helps commanders, bye, kiss you :) Wait

[@calebgriffard401]

Good tip at the end about taking a break

[@dericlima]

Amazing video. Thank you for the gold tips :)

[@manzarek74]

Thank you for the tips. Do you have a video with your standard team build with weapons and gear?

[@sudetenrider-pili6637]

Thank you. I was started being despered on commander diff ...

[@sr202-n7c]

I could be wrong, but I was under the assumption that aim had nothing to do with dodges/grazes. From what I understand, the dodge calculation (for both enemies and XCOM) only comes into play after the hit calculation, and is just a simple percent based on the dodge stat (so a dodge of 100 guarantees a graze every time). This is in regards to the early tip about aim helping with dodges by archons.

[@Dragonblaster1]

I always equip my Sharpshooters with AP rounds when they're available. I will usually equip Bluescreens on one grenadier and one Ranger.

[@thefailus4550]

my favourite parts about this game is when VIP spawn outside of the map, when the button to pick up a teammate is missing, when my troop refuses to look around a corner and when my troop misses his swing, gets counter attacked and dies instantly

[@donkeysunited]

And when a mission won't end because it thinks there's an enemy left, forcing you to extract and fail the mission.

[@ExtraRaven_]

loved this video, very informational and entertaining. I have xcom 2 but i've just been playing through enemy within, would this advice apply to that too?

[@roguebrothers]

Enemy Within has different mechanics and it's so long since I last played it I can't really tell you.

[@juniorqindes8335]

Man this video was so good. I wish you didn’t tell me to dislike it

[@zargouellette3668]

Using Hunker Down before engaging packs of aliens on your soldiers, can be very useful as well in saving your units when surrounded or about to be surrounded.

[@themelonman4979]

Thanks Dood you helped me a lot I am gonna try and do the aim and outside perk mostly

[@RedCrusaderArc]

My tip- leave the hard drive space open for the re-install later.

[@nicktan9739]

Great video! Usually play once a year

[@Dragonblaster1]

What I hate most about retaliation missions is Bradford "We're losing civilians left and right, Commander!" Yes, Central, I'm well aware of that.

[@roguebrothers]

Haha. Yes I know the feeling!

[@Dragonblaster1]

@@roguebrothers “I’ve had enough of your attitude, Bradford! Perhaps Private Bradford would be more respectful.”

[@aloox395]

Thanks for this vid. This game has been kicking my ass lmao.

[@allibababoo]

You got a like for making a good video. You got a sub for the way you asked.

[@twiztedmind209]

The main problem I have when trying to play xcom 2 is that I want to research everything, and I end up shooting myself in the foot with the Avatar Project. It's difficult and demoralizing having to restart multiple times to learn what I should and shouldn't research, but I finally managed to get WOTC and so I hope this is going to help at least a little bit. I've noticed that so far, however, I'm doing way better at Enemy Within compared to Xcom 2. I think it's mainly the time constraints on the ingame missions, and the avatar project just make me think irrationally and I just have a hard time learning to be faster, when I haven't really learned how to play the game well in the first place.

[@suzhengchong2593]

unless you are playing on legendary difficulty, you never actually have to worry about avatar project timer until it almost runs out, as the timer resets every time you set back progress, so you can very well just wait until the last day to do a facility assault to completely reset the timer(not the bar though), which leaves you with plenty of extra time

[@dag_of_the_west5416]

Need to prioritize resistance contacts so you can always get an alien black site that can be demolished to stop the timer.

[@twiztedmind209]

@@dag_of_the_west5416 it's been a while since I made this comment, honestly don't even remember making it at all, but having played a bit with WoTC, I can say that I do feel better playing the game now. I'm not sure what it was, maybe the extra units and missions, maybe having access to more utility like with the stealth snipers and all that, but I have gotten better from it. Found myself not rushing as much, found that when bosses actually end up ambushing me I'm not panicking from in game timers and everything now. Been playing more turn based games like Wasteland, Gears Tactics and Fire Emblem. It definitely was just a skill issue on my part

[@Ocelaris]

This will be free on the EGS next week. Good guide interested in learning more about the game

[@fightinsightpodcast]

Great video.. my issue is I don't know when to let things go and I always rush from mission to mission as soon as they pop up! How do I know what to do and what to scan?!?!

[@roguebrothers]

You need to do nearly every mission (if you can). I would say, when scanning, scan for those things which will benefit you long term (don't worry about scans for small amounts of supplies / intel if you're not desperate for it).

[@fightinsightpodcast]

@@roguebrothers and don't stop scanning at a place when something else pops up? It won't go away?

[@roguebrothers]

I have never noticed my scans to go away

[@whatever7240]

The little scan events will absolutely disappear after so much time passes if they aren't scanned. I don't know if simply scanning them a bit will prevent them from disappearing but I doubt it. Not possible to get each one without skipping missions. But missions are more important.

[@Dylan-zg2jl]

Awesome video bro I learned heaps

[@jefferydraper4019]

Firepower! Firepower! FIREPOWER!!!!!!! The more shots you put on target, the less shots you will have coming back at you. Taking the enemy off the board or removing their turn is the key. Ive seen guys load teams up with support troops that have a great short range weapon...that never gets into range to be used...or a guy designed to open anything or heal anybody to the max...but left in a position with nothing to do during the shooting phase. My philosophy...boom, boom, boom until theres no one left in the room. When the combat music stops and theres nothing but alien bodies to pickup to bring back to Tygan...thats a win.

[@roguebrothers]

This is the way I like to play too!

[@gamersthumbs4673]

Thank you for an updated tip video.

[@catdust]

One tip that i remember is that if you can kill loads of grunts at once or swarm on a higher health officer, kill the grunts. The officer can only target one of your guys

[@ratsmans5644]

When in combat and you have a skirm and a temp use them as a large rush forward while your sharpshooters stays in the back high up it leads to a clean sweep 1 counter tho so mutons are a big no no but flash bangs solve that

[@barryvillatoro6567]

This game is definitely rougher than Enemy Unknown. Will definitely use these tips.

[@trieder9985]

Great advice.

[@BeFree2BeGrotesque]

Great video.

[@Lo0seCabLEwire]

Dude when I saw customize your troops for better placement this is true because I want my favorite decorated character to stay alive lmao (usually all of them)

[@admiralhalo7293]

Ya most of these help alot I destroy 3 blacksite with ease and then out of nowhere I started to losing troop one by one I have about 10 solder left and I haven't tuch the game since

[@roguebrothers]

Yep, this game can be brutal if you start losing your men. The more you lose the harder it gets.

[@jarluska]

Reapers with bluescreen rounds AND banish... keep banish (with the plus ability for the rest around) for the hardest and annoying packs (sectopod if used haywire before, gatekeeper etc)... go near in concealed, and use banish... 2 max 3 shots (and 2 or 1 left for the others :D ) with the spec bullet and all high hp robotic units will expolode and hurts his friends around (that why start concealed)...

[@jarluska]

oh.. and oc keep it for chosens too... to kill them in one row :)

[@Demonamic777]

As someone who perfected this game within the first month of it's release, this is some solid advice. 1000% agree that overwatch is overrated on higher difficulties, it wastes ammo, has higher chance to miss, and at best is free damage. My personal advice; Snipers are overrated. This game is about action economy and dealing high damage fast, which is the Ranger's speciality. Rangers are extremely mobile, can flank for good crits, use shotguns the most powerful weapons in the game, and have strong action economy. I always run 3 Rangers in missions, each with shotguns, each with boosted crit chance or Talon rounds/Laser Sights. If I think I can hit an enemy while leaving my soldier out in the open with a shotgun from a mile back with a boosted 60% crit chance, I will take it everytime, because that unit will die and my soldier will live.

[@roguebrothers]

Yes, damage output on your soldiers means less damage coming back at you! Add in Untouchable on your Rangers means this is an even more powerful strat

[@xiaco8309]

I went into this game backwards. Never played a strategy game like this until i played Mario Rabbids Kingdom and loved it. Then I found out it’s a style of game like XCON. I don’t play Mario anymore now ha

[@basilisk5620]

What an awesome video!!!!

[@robinhanley6029]

Good vid man

[@EADF-CDF-SQ]

Question: We’re you using mods in the gameplay in the background? Also, great video, really helped me out. Thanks!

[@roguebrothers]

I think there are a couple of mods. Overwatch all, Evac all and maybe Coloured Actions.

[@MightyMelvo]

Hey mate, thanks for the video! XCOM is confusing

[@roguebrothers]

Yeah it really can be starting out. It can punish mistakes in a brutal way! Glad you enjoyed the video

[@suzhengchong2593]

overwatch is very powerful if you use it right. use it such that you would get sighted during the alien's turn instead of revealing by initiating attack on your turn. this is extremely powerful as you have just managed to cause all aliens to lose a turn of attack, as aliens only get to move into cover if they see you on their turn. The same goes for when breaking concealment, make it such that one of your soldiers can be spotted flanked(as that's the only way you can be revealed on alien's turn while concealed), then unleash a free volley of bullets through overwatch that aliens pretty much have to eat.

[@roguebrothers]

I like this idea. I hadn't thought about intentionally being spotted on your turn to gain an overwatch trap. Thanks!

[@g4340]

Awesome video --thanks! But how do you get all these things early? You need Supplies, Intel, etc. I know you get them through missions, Black Market, etc. But in order to build those buildings you need Engineers, Scientists for research and you also get them through Missions, Black Market. But, the Supplies, Intel you get from Missions is never enough to get the staff you need. Everytime you scan, there's ALWAYS some mission to interrupt you from achieving those things. It seems like I'm earning an Engineer every 5 missions or whatever. Does that sound accurate? I'm gonna watch your XCom 2 series. EDIT:. Awesome! You clearly numbered your videos, do you know how many do not do that?

[@roguebrothers]

XCOM2 is a weird sort of game, in that, it is arguably at its most difficult near the beginning of the game. You have very few options and are heavily reliant on RNG. If you can survive early game everything should get easier later on!

[@elcee3292]

Personalizing troops is awesome. Just a squad of me and friends. Just sucks because it increases save scumming about a thousand percent