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[WotC] Tactical Combat Overhaul

Have you ever wondered if it is fair for your conventional weapons to be on par with high-tech alien magnetic and beam ones? Do you feel that XCOM 2 is way too fast-paced, but Beta Strike option simply isn't for you? Then you should absolutely give this overhaul a try.

This mod has been derived from one of my older mods called Vanilla Balance Overhaul. As I was a bit too excited to try out new things at the time, it slowly moved away from what it was meant to be: a rebalance mod with the aim to slow down tactical combat while making various defensive options more appealing. What you see here is a lightweight and improved version of the mod aimed at accomplishing the abovementioned purpose.


XCOM power levels:

One of the goals of the mod is to improve the player's experience by balancing the equipment around both sides of the conflict. XCOM is on the run fighting with makeshift gear and limited combat experience after all. Offensive power of pretty much every XCOM weapon, item and ability is reduced. Various defensive tools such as vest items received a buff to compensate. In addition, some abilities and items (e.g. Combat Protocol, Flamethrower) as well as weapon range bonuses/penalties have been tweaked to make them fulfill a more unique role.

Changes to mission limiters:

The main aim of Tactical Combat Overhaul is to slow down the game while making defensive approach more appealing. As such, the timers on timed missions are increased by around 50% on Guerilla Ops and 34% on Council ones. The amounts of containers on Supply Extraction and health values of armed civilians on WotC Retaliation are increased. The minimum amount of saved civilians required to win basic Retaliation is reduced.

Hunker down rework:

It is impossible to ignore Hunker Down when talking about defensive tools. However, this ability is nothing more than an eyesore on the HUD in vanilla, used only to put out an occasional fire. The mod fixes that. Hunker Down now works outside of cover and costs only one action point, making it a great alternative to moving or reloading before performing other actions. These buffs come at a low cost of -5 defense.

Enemy changes:

Tactical Combat Overhaul implements some simple changes to make enemy encounters more engaging. Ranged enemies now use proper weapon range bonuses. Some units also recieved small changes to their stats. ADVENT troops learned to use Hunker Down when under pressure and all enemies are now more willing to use Overwatch (and grenades) if chances to hit are too low.

Geoscape changes:

There are some changes to the strategy layer of the game. You may now recruit unlimited number of soldiers from every faction. Alien Rulers are set to begin spawning a bit later to make them easier to manage. Soldier health recovery speed has also been altered to reduce the unfair sick times for minor wounds.

And more! (Check the full changelog for details.)


This mod does not override any classes and accomplishes most of the changes through ini file edits. Therefore, it should be save to use alongside other content mods. In fact, I recommend installing some vanilla bug fixes for improved experience.

Supported languages: English, Russian.