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Let's Play UFO - Afterlight: Conclusion

Start over and fix my mistake or carry on as is?

  • Fix the damn mistake! We want to see squishy grays trying to make themselves useful

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Just go on already. We don't care about no steenkin' aliens!

    Votes: 1 100.0%

  • Total voters
    1
  • Poll closed .

Azira

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Codex 2012
Last time we established that flamethrowers magically work on Mars, apparently, our researchers came up with a self-oxidizing, self-sustaining flammable solution, and eklektyk used this to great effect. So great in fact, that chzr deviated from her designated plan of evolution, to pick up heavy weapons handling.
On a mission to pick up another beastman artifact, we come upon the most deadly foe so far.



The green matriarch. Just as fast, just as agile as the red one, but the green one keeps fighting until all health is spent. Simply getting her healthbar in the red doesn't take her out of the fight. She also seems possessed with greater accuracy than even our snipers. So the best course of attack is to get close to her, then unload with a couple of gatling cannons. Preferably coupled with a flamethrower or two.



The artifact that eklektyk picked up turns out to be a device for steering the little tornados.




It sounds useful, but I haven't seen the tornados for a while now, and the artifact seems to be unusable by humans anyhow. I regard this as a small piece of fluff, to try and explain why the nature forces attacks the human player only. :decline:
Research on the astronomical model concludes while we're away to retrieve this beastman artifact.




An extra moon? They speculate it might be a spaceship?! And earlier research into the fossil fuels we found on Mars, indicate a prior biomass growth... It's true then. It's the Giant Space Walnuts again.. :rpgcodex:
Kaiserin, Diggler and Drakron seem intent on visiting these "moons", they think it might have bearing on what was happening back on Earth.








I'm not in too much of a hurry though. There's now a "moon mission" button I can click, but it seems we're not quite ready to make the trip yet. :smug:




To research the proper tech, we need Fuel at level 7.



Alas, we're only at level 6. I guess the moon mission will have to wait a little while. :smug:
What better way to pass the time than trying to learn more about the green guys we've been fighting? We've already picked up two artifacts, and they let us learn about the moons, and the fact that the second moon hasn't always been there.
Off we go to another excavation site!



Retrieve the object, and we can even see it from where we exited the UFO? This should be easy. :smug:



There's a whole lot of robots in the way though. This map however is tailored to make life easy for us it seems. It comes with a handy bottle-neck, and we can sit back and let the laser sniper rifles and gatling cannons do the talking.




And soon the way is clear. :thumbsup:




Not a scratch. :incline: Too bad the robots only maps are few in between now. This is easy xp for little risk.
While we wait for research to finish, we grab some territories. It's not this harmless every time.






I really should stop splitting up the team. Concentrated fire rules the battlefield. If you divide your forces, you run the risk of losing part of it. I almost lost Bee and T'Brow a couple of times, but Desmond is a true lifesave with his ranged healing. :salute:
The last artifact provides us with the knowledge needed to decipher the martian language.




EM and plasma weapons are within our reach now, but Drakron seems much more excited about the prospects for terraformation..







I must admit however, that the terraformation of Mars is our original mission. I just feel that it's slightly more important trying to stop the creatures that want our destruction first..
Speaking of which. Our newfound knowledge of written martian records leads to unexpected discoveries about Mars' past.



Draw your attention to the middle paragraph, headed "Original Inhabitants of Mars".
Huh. Seems we're the colonial force that's trying to kill of the returning original natives, who had been ousted by an invading force, whom we're currently trying to get to understand, so we can make a cease-fire with them?
The Pinks and Grays are battling the Reds, which were originally deported by the Greens, who are just now awaking from hibernation, and might be willing to ally?
This game is now all about subjugating the indigenous population! And if we cannot confine them to their reserves, we'll just butcher the lot of them. :incline:

Our research on the martian language proceeds, and we finally make a breakthrough!




We're now able to understand the "spoken" martian language, so let's see if the Greens are open to peacetalks.








Their reservations aside, we can already broker the peace now, and they're willing to ally right away. This might be because of the modding I did. I remember that you had to rescue one of their troops first, but what the hey. One less faction to fight.



They even trade us some extra fuel!



We can now research the UFO spaceflight, so doing the moon mission thing is now within reach.
Even though we're allied, we still get the "rescue a martian" mission and we set off to do it immediately.



Sounds simple enough. But seeing as we already have the possible three martians in our team, there's no captive to be found anywhere on the map. I completed this map twice, the second time with one of the martians on the team, but that made no difference.





The only way to end the mission when the mission goal is absent is to abort and fail the mission.



Even though the mission is a failure, our alliance with the martians remain intact. I hope this is the last we see of the inconsitensies my modding has introduced into the game. :roll:

Next time, maybe there'll be more horny Giant Space Walnut action? Only time will tell. (I hope not)
 

lightbane

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So the horny Giant Space Walnuts are the true villains... Again.

By the way, will you eventually give us the option of betraying our xenos allies and capture their capitals? :twisted:

If I recall correctly when the planet's terraformation hits a certain percentage, Martians will automatically break the alliance and attack you anyways after an event, then you can exterminate them all or research a special technology that will make them cease their hostility
 

Azira

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lightbane said:
So the horny Giant Space Walnuts are the true villains... Again.

They certainly seem prolific in this universe.

lightbane said:
By the way, will you eventually give us the option of betraying our xenos allies and capture their capitals? :twisted:

If I recall correctly when the planet's terraformation hits a certain percentage, Martians will automatically break the alliance and attack you anyways after an event, then you can exterminate them all or research a special technology that will make them cease their hostility

I just might. Only time will tell. :smug:

Yes, that is correct, though I intend to research the "terraformation acceptable by Martians"
 

Kz3r0

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Sorry if I missed that, I have become head research perchance, seeing how every project is ascribed to me? :M
 

Azira

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That is because you're the most experienced researcher in that team. :salute:

Doing research earns you scientist xp gradually. Building geo-sondes and terraforming stations also reward scientist xp, as will some combat missions.
You've managed to get the most xp and as such, yes, you're the person the projects are ascribed to. Hence the "Lawrence Battery", aka the martian remote-control device for mucking about with martian robots. :M
 

Kz3r0

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Azira said:
That is because you're the most experienced researcher in that team. :salute:

Doing research earns you scientist xp gradually. Building geo-sondes and terraforming stations also reward scientist xp, as will some combat missions.
You've managed to get the most xp and as such, yes, you're the person the projects are ascribed to. Hence the "Lawrence Battery", aka the martian remote-control device for mucking about with martian robots. :M
:incline:
Genevieve is exactly how I have imagined her, a refined lady and a scholar. :obviously:
 

Azira

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Alright, I'm preparing another update. If this thread has not reached page 7 by the time the update is ready, page 6 is going to become image-heavy. :M
 

Azira

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Alright people, are you ready for another update?

If not, then you'd better steel yourself, for here it comes regardless. :M
Last time, we'd allied with the little green men. I'd managed to take all their territories excepting their homebase before doing this, to make sure they didn't grab a nice juicy resource-rich territory I couldn't have once we'd allied. :smug: One territory ought to be enough, don't you think? M:
Now, speaking of last territories, we'd left the reticulan rebels alone long enough now, if you ask me. We just do a test-run against a neutral (robot-held) territory first, to test out the usefulness of our new martian allies.



Hm. Not too impressed, but I guess he'll improve. We move on to the rebels' HQ.



For some reason, it's a "destroy object" mission. Whatever. The grays are pushovers, so no matter what kind of mission it were, we'd do it easily.





Easy-peasy, and now they're gone from the diplomacy screen. :incline: With the total rebalance mod, doing this isn't strictly necessary, but in the vanilla game, there's a slew of techs which only become researchable once you've eliminated a reticulan faction. Not with the mod it seems, so I could've let them live...
M:
We've started building terraforming stations all over the globe, and the environment hostility is slowly dropping and the surface is starting to show some green. Another effect of this is that water starts to show on the surface.




15% complete, and a pond next to the Martians HQ. Pretty, isn't it? As the process proceeds however, the pond grows.




Once the terraformation process reaches a certain point, ponds turn into lakes, which will again turn into seas. Then this can and will happen.



Territories get flooded, destroying any structures you may have built in them, and also cutting you off from any resources that might've been in said territories. The Hellas Basin had none, so no loss there. :smug:
This is also why I like postponing the heavier terraformation until later, to make sure I research and build the resource-heavy equipment before I flood too many territories. Otherwise you might never be able to build gatling cannons, and I do :love: my gatling cannons.
Weapon research also progresses nicely while we're building terraforming stations.




The Annihilator is sweet. :thumbsup: It's basically a toned-down version of the warp cannon, can be reloaded in the field, yet it requires plasma weapon handling skill training. But the beastman matriarchs seem delightfully vulnerable to plasma damage, making the skillpoint investment well worth a couple of plasma cannons. Martians have the skill as part of their template. :incline: And eklektyk was also quick to learn how to handle this baby.
I made some changes to the preferred away team, after I'd researched the next weapon.




These lightning balls sound like fun! :smug: But they require a technician with driver training to fire.. So I switch people around, and Storyfag becomes a regular in the away team! :salute:



This is how the lightning ball looks like in combat missions. Once you fire the weapon, the trooper's tab is replaced by the lightning ball and you command it like you would a trooper. When you order it to attack, it flies up next to its target and explodes, doing a lot of damage in an area. Then you regain control of your trooper (Storyfag). An advanced battery holds enough juice for 2 lightning balls. And these balls make for perfect scouts, as losing them means little, and you can use them to trigger mines for instance. :smug:
Plus, they seem to behave a bit like a robot, so you can detect enemies with them, so it can act as a forward spotter for your snipers.
We're quick to take advantage of this new tech, and perform a lot of missions, to rack up the xp. We're aiming towards teaching all our away-team troopers to wear heavy suits, as the damage reduction is vital.














I've also rotated Desmond out of the preferred team, as eklektyk now carries advanced first aid kits which can remove poison/burn/paralyze effects amongst other things. The psionic healing device, while working at a distance, could not do these things, and a reticulan is precariously squishy. Greene, our martian seems quite bullet-resistant. You just have to take care he doesn't get hit by fire or acid, as that'll end him rather quickly.
The total rebalance mod also introduces some research options that seem to be mere placeholders.



The description sounds intimidating, but there are no Particle Weapons or Improved Lasers available to build. Maybe they come later, once I unlock more research, but I rather doubt it. It's not as if we're not deadly already though, so I shouldn't complain. It's just a bit odd researching something which yields absolutely nothing. M:

Well, I feel it's time we advance the storyline a little, so I gather the team, and click on the "moon mission" button.




This moon mission consists of a single map, which is larger than any map I've encountered so far. The only type of enemy is the bipedal mech, either armed with dual lightning throwers (threat-level negligible) or dual plasma throwers (kill ASAP, start running if the plasma balls move your way). The mission is long due to the large map, but it's not too hard at this point in the game.




A whole lot of xp to go around, that's always nice. :incline:
Immediately after we return from the first moon mission, another one pops up..




Off we go again, the xp was very nice last time, so we hope for something similar. We are disappointed however..



Another huge map, consisting of 4 tunnels with walkways, connected by smaller tunnels. What's nasty about this map however is the mines. There are no enemies at all, but plenty of mines at nasty places. The lightning ball thrower is the quickest way to end this map. Just send your disposable ball running ahead, and it'll clear the way for you. :smug:
Once you get to the artifact you want..




A "moon quake" hits, preventing you from returning the way you came.. Guess what that means? More twisting passages lined with mines. Still no opponents.




We make it out alright, though I do get a bit impatient near the end and have Storyfag simply run through the last two mined passages.
Once this second moon mission is succesfully completed, Drakron chimes in with some observations.





Ah, so we've just been inside two dead or dormant myrmecols. :rpgcodex: I really hate those things.
At least the artifacts we brought back spurs some activity amongst our researchers.



Second to last paragraph, "Moon Data Analysis". Once this research topic is completed, Drakron tells us we can now initiate a mission to try and stem the flow of beastmen through the hyperspace gates.











Immediately after this cut-scene fires, another one follows. Our friends on the Laputa has some good news for us.










The war on Earth is over, and they're sending us another ship, this one laden with a virus the Laputa researchers have tailormade to cripple the beastmen! :incline:
The Moon Data Analysis have however also confirmed that the beastmen are in fact the original inhabitants of Mars, and Kaiserin seems concerned with whether what we're doing is morally right..















Feh! You'd think she'd watched Avatar or something. Mars has resources and the potential to be a second Earth, and she has qualms about whether we should be here at all? We were forcefully removed by the reticulans that attacked Earth and sent us into space, on the Laputa and on this ship to Mars. And she's considering suggesting that we just pack up and leave, just because someone else was here first thousands of years ago?
Guess she doesn't know much about how the white man works, does she now? :smug: M:
I say it's time to cleanse this planet of the beastman infestation, so we can claim it for our own. I mean, they were moved to another planet those thousands of years ago, weren't they? They can stay there for all we care. If they persist in coming to our Mars, they will be met with force! :bro:
 

Kz3r0

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Azira said:
Alright, I'm preparing another update. If this thread has not reached page 7 by the time the update is ready, page 6 is going to become image-heavy. :M
:M
 

lightbane

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Hey, don't you dare to compare Avaturd with Afterlight, the game doesn't deserve such mistreatment. Besides, Avaturd's plot made little sense, the aliens were obviously evil and made no attempt to negotiate with the human forces, despite the humies tried to resolve things peacefully several times... Unfortunately the situation is identical here with the Beastmen, since they refuse to talk to you. It's totally impossible to not fight the Beastmen in UFO: Afterlight.
 

Azira

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Trooper lightbane tells the truth! :salute:

It's impossible to negotiate with an opponent who refuses to speak with you. We have no alternative.

They must be purged from the planet! :mob:
 

CrimsonAngel

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Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong
KILL'EM ALL!

This planet is ours.
The Beastmen won't talk so they deserve to die.
The Grays deserve to die because of the crimes against humanity.
The "Martians" deserve to die for leaving the beastmen alive so we have to clean this shit up.

NO one is blameless and every one deserves DEATH!.
 

Azira

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CrimsonAngel said:
KILL'EM ALL!

This planet is ours.
The Beastmen won't talk so they deserve to die.
The Grays deserve to die because of the crimes against humanity.
The "Martians" deserve to die for leaving the beastmen alive so we have to clean this shit up.

NO one is blameless and every one deserves DEATH!.

Is this the general consensus? Should I purge the planet of all xenos? Or should I let the grays and greens have their territories, we could call them "reserves" or alternatively, "petting zoos".
If you'd rather see them gone however, I will remove them. I've already removed the aliens from the away team, as I've reached the point where the martians are ticked off by the terraformation process we're helping along. M:
 

Storyfag

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Azira said:
CrimsonAngel said:
KILL'EM ALL!

This planet is ours.
The Beastmen won't talk so they deserve to die.
The Grays deserve to die because of the crimes against humanity.
The "Martians" deserve to die for leaving the beastmen alive so we have to clean this shit up.

NO one is blameless and every one deserves DEATH!.

Is this the general consensus? Should I purge the planet of all xenos?

Yes.
 
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To let the aliens live, or not? Perhaps this Martian Question will require a lot of blood spilled to come to the solution, preferably one that is...final
uTlQo.gif
.

Also let Shepard get EXTREME on some aliens.
 

Azira

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Endlösung?

We're getting closer to our goal, the transformation of Mars into a habitable planet for homo sapiens.
But first, we have to eliminate the beastman threat. Our primary concern at the moment is shutting down the hyperspace gates, to keep the rate of reinforcements low.
We immediately order an attack on their primary hyperspace facility.




It seems like a simple destroy object mission, but here there are 4 objects we need to disintegrate, and in the background we can see a large facility probably housing a lot of matriarchs..



The four "keys" are quickly taken care of however, and even though we can simply withdraw to the UFO and leave, we choose to hunt down the last aliens on the map first. Suffer not the xeno to live! :mob:



I count 12 matriarchs on this debriefing screen. Only two of them were the red variety. Which also accounts for the huge xp reward. :incline:
Shortly after completing this mission, we get a message from Earth. I do not believe the two events are linked, I believe it's simple coincidence, but I could be wrong.




I presume it's the spaceship carrying the anti-beastman virus we're talking about here. Nice. :thumbsup:

Our researcher completes a study into a topic that will render us independent on the aqueduct from the polar cap. This is tied into the terraformation project, hence it only appearing at this relatively late stage in the game.







Now we'll not be seeing anymore aqueduct attacks. In truth however, we haven't seen any in months, as I cleared the territories neighboring the aqueduct ASAP in the beginning, so this tech has little impact on the game as is. It's just nice to see that the aqueduct has been torn down. :smug:
Straining humidity from the air has led to improvements in our terraformation capabilities as well.



Accelerated terraformation lets us upgrade our terraformation stations around the planet, speeding the process of terraforming considerably.
For some reason, another technology also comes very late.



The advanced mining tech lets us upgrade our mines to increase output. Also having no impact at this point in the game. I suppose the total rebalance mod may have rearranged the order in which different techs can be researched, but I remember getting this tech much earlier in the vanilla game, at a point where it actually made a difference. No matter. It'll give the technicians something to do. :smug:

We mop up the last beastman held territories and leave them just their main fortress.




You're probably curious just as I was, what happens if you try to assault the beastman HQ now, before the virus has been delivered?
This is what happens:





You get swarmed immediately after arriving and are ordered to fall back. We managed to kill a few enemies, but I spotted another 12 at least, just around the corner, and I suspect loads more waited inside the fortress. I seem to recall, that even if you were stubborn and stay, killing all the enemies still wont win you this mission. You have to fall back. :decline:
Oh well. We'll just sit back, improve our terraformation stations and mines and wait for the spaceship to arrive, while we defend against the odd attack by the beastmen..
Once the terraformation mark crosses 65% however, the green dudes we call Martians get butthurt.










And the martians leave our team. Feh. No big loss. We've researched all there is to research (except for any hitherto hidden techs) meaning the Martian expertise in Martian techs isn't missed. And their soldiers lack the ability to run. The total rebalance mod has introduced an armour add-on that enables troopers wearing heavy suits to run, so having members in the team be slower than the rest hampers the entire group.
Therefore I've cut both reticulans and martians from the away team.

The question now remains, should I go ahead and purge both the martians and the grays from the planet, or should I try and see if another solution presents itself?
I've already counted Storyfags and Edward_R_Murrows decision. :salute:

We'll get to research a tech which makes the terraformation acceptable to martians, and I'll probably finish this game with the other inhabitants alive and destroyed both, I'll just let your decision be the first one I present. Our "canon" decision, as it is. :salute:
 

lightbane

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I vote for the 3rd option: Kill only the martians and leave the greys alive... For the moment.
 

Azira

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Apparently noone has bothered to put the good ending for UFO Afterlight online at youtube. Can anyone recommend me a video-capture program that doesn't do retardedly bloated .avi files as FRAPS does?
Or you could just get the truncated, still-pictures only version via the screenshots I can do. :M
 

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