Part 16

Thin Men Threat: Thin men can deal significant damage and perform critical hits. Multiple thin men can overwhelm even well-equipped soldiers. If you advance too cautiously, bombs will activate, giving you 3 turns to reach the extraction zone. Failure to evacuate all soldiers within 3 turns results in their death.

MEC Advantage: MECs simplify missions by advancing 12 tiles and then using overwatch or shooting, allowing for simultaneous advancement, node disabling, and alien elimination.

Alternative Squad Composition: If not using MECs, bring a squad with good synergy: snipers for distant thin men, Heavies for area damage, Supports for grenades and healing, and Assaults for rapid advancement.

Target Extraction: Missions start on one of three maps (museum, highway, or neighborhood with a fountain). The extraction target is always in the same location. On the highway map, a soldier near the start will indicate the extraction target's location. Initially, one or two aliens are present near the target. More aliens appear when you pick up and move the target. Warning: Do not pick up the NPC (non-player character — anyone the game controls, not you) until all aliens on the map are dead and your soldiers have established an overwatch (a defensive stance where soldiers automatically fire at enemies within range) perimeter around the NPC. Only move the NPC when soldiers have an overwatch perimeter covering the NPC's dash radius. Aliens that drop in will go on overwatch but can be immediately shot by soldiers on overwatch. Rushing the NPC or failing to anticipate alien drops can lead to failure.

Target Escort: Similar to Target Extraction, but the NPC is already under your control and can be very annoying. These missions can occur in an alley, docks, or observatory. Aliens will drop on the first turn around your starting position, with at least one often appearing behind you. Form an overwatch perimeter and eliminate any aliens not caught by it before advancing. Always establish a forward overwatch perimeter before moving the NPC.

Asset Recovery: This is a straightforward kill-all aliens mission. Each map has a valuable object that must not be destroyed by player explosives or alien attacks. Maps include a highway overpass (save helicopter wreckage), an office (save an old computer), a harbor (save grey crates), a truck stop (save crates in a truck), a graveyard (no specific asset), and an observatory (save the large scope). Take your time and engage aliens one squad at a time.

Air Combat: When a UFO is spotted, you can scramble an interceptor from the hangar menu. Interceptors engage UFOs based on their weapons. You can withdraw an interceptor and launch another if needed. Equipping crafts involves selecting a craft in the hangar and assigning a weapon. Interceptors can also be dismissed or transferred between continents.

Interceptor Armaments: An interceptor with an avalanche missile can handle small and large scouts. An interceptor with a laser cannon (available by the end of the first month on Classic difficulty) can handle all other naturally occurring UFOs. UFOs on Impossible difficulty have significantly more health. By the fourth or fifth month, research new fighter craft and capture aliens for plasma technology. Researching light plasma rifles yields the plasma cannon, the second strongest armament, which, combined with new fighter craft, ensures no UFO survives interception.