Hi, so i back to game after a while with the idea of playing few mods that are out in Mods folder Steam steamapps common XCOM 2 XCom2-WarOfTheChosen XComGame Mods but manager do not see mods from this folder, only from steam. Did i miss something? Important: XCOM 2 save files are tied to the mods you use with them. Adding mods as you’re playing through a campaign is no problem, saving a game with a mod enabled will cause the save game. Mar 30, 2016 XCOM 2 General Discussions Topic Details. Mar 30, 2016 @ 3:30pm. Alternative Mod Manager!!! I got bored with the XC2 Mod manager so I've searched for a.
Originally developed byFiraxis Games
Developed for Mac by Feral Interactive Limited
Published for Mac by Feral Interactive Limited
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
This document is intended to help you answer any questions that you may have about XCOM 2: War of the Chosen
Does XCOM 2: War of the Chosen support achievements?
Yes, achievements are supported by XCOM 2: War of the Chosen.
If you are signed in to Steam, your achievements will be visible to you in-game and also to other players through the Steam application.
How do I use mods in the Steam version of XCOM 2: War of the Chosen for Mac?
There are two ways to install mods: you can either subscribe to mods via the Steam Workshop (this installs the mods automatically), or you can download mods from other sources and install them manually.
Once you have installed a mod, you can enable it by using the Mod Manager. To access the Mod Manager, select the Mod Manager tab on the pre-game Options window (this is the window that appears when you launch the game).
You'll find full instructions on using mods below.
Mod stability and compatibility
The vast majority of mods are made by amateur developers: many mods have not been thoroughly tested, and some may cause crashes or other stability issues.
Many mods are incompatible with each other. Enabling incompatible mods may cause the game to crash. If you plan to enable multiple mods at once, we recommend checking the mods' documentation for information about their compatibility with other mods.
Saved games and mods
It is possible to add mods to a saved game: you can enable mods and load a saved game made before those mods were enabled. However, we recommend enabling any mods you want to use before starting a new game, rather than adding them to an existing game.
It is not possible to remove mods from a saved game: if you save a game while using one or more mods, you must always have those mods enabled while playing that saved game. If you disable any of those mods, you will be unable to load the saved game.
Installing mods via the Steam Workshop
The easiest way to install mods is to subscribe to them via the Steam Workshop. Subscribing to a mod installs it automatically.
To subscribe to a mod:
Open the Steam application.
Select Library.
In the list of games on the left-hand side of the window, highlight XCOM 2.
In the list of links on the right-hand side of the window, select Community Hub.
Select the Workshop tab.
Use the Browse tab in the workshop to search for mods. To subscribe to a mod, click on the Subscribe button (“+” icon) on the mod.
The next time you launch the game, any mods to which you have subscribed will appear in the Mod Manager on the pre-game Options window.To unsubscribe from a mod:
You can also unsubscribe from mods via the Steam Workshop. To do so:
From the Workshop tab, place your mouse pointer over the Browse tab, then select Subscribed Items from the drop-down menu.
A list of the mods to which you are subscribed will appear. Click on the Unsubscribe button next to a mod to unsubscribe from it.
Once you have unsubscribed from a mod, it will no longer appear in the Mod Manager.Installing mods that you have downloaded
It's also possible to download mods from sources other than the Steam Workshop. In this case, you'll need to install the mod manually.
To install a mod manually:
Open the Steam application.
Select Library.
In the list of games on the left-hand side of the window, right-click on XCOM 2, then select Properties.
Select the Local Files tab.
Select Browse Local Files….
The “XCOM 2” folder will open. Navigate to XCOM2Data/xcomgame/mods. If the “mods” folder does not already exist, you should create it yourself.
Copy the folder of the mod you want to install into the “mods” folder.
From the “XCOM 2” folder, navigate to XCOM2Data/xcomgame/config.
Open the defaultmodoptions.ini file in a text editor.
Add a line to the bottom of the file that says:
ActiveMods='[MOD NAME]'
…where[MOD NAME]is the name of the mod file you are adding, excluding the file extension. For example, if the mod is called LW_SMGPack.XComMod, you would add the lineActiveMods='LW_SMGPack'Save the defaultmodoptions.ini file, then close it.
The next time you launch the game, the mod will appear in the Mod Manager on the pre-game Options window.To uninstall a mod that you've installed manually, you must delete its folder from the “mods” folder. You should also remove the line from the defaultmodoptions.ini file. Once you have deleted a mod, it will no longer appear in the Mod Manager.
Enabling and disabling mods
Once you have installed a mod, either by subscribing to it in the Steam Workshop or by installing it manually, you must enable it using the Mod Manager before it will appear in the game.
To enable a mod:
From the pre-game Options window, select the Mod Manager tab.
The name of the mod will appear on an icon in the Mod Manager. Click on the red Off button next to the name of the mod to switch it to On.
The next time you launch the game, the mod will be enabled.
To disable a mod:To disable a mod, open the Mod Manager and click on the green On button next to the name of the mod to switch it to Off.
Can I use XCOM 2: War of the Chosen's modding tools to create my own mods?
XCOM 2: War of the Chosen's modding tools are not compatible with the Mac or Linux versions of the game.
On Windows, XCOM 2: War of the Chosen's provided modding tools are an extension of Visual Studio, Microsoft's proprietary integrated development environment (IDE). At present, Visual Studio is only available on Windows, meaning XCOM 2: War of the Chosen's modding tools are not available on other platforms.
If you own the Steam version of the game, you can still download and use mods using the Mod Manager. See How do I use mods in the Steam version of XCOM 2 for Mac? for more details.
Can Windows, Mac and Linux users play multiplayer matches together?
Yes.
Multiplayer matches in XCOM 2: War of the Chosen on Steam are cross-platform, meaning that you can play with anyone, regardless of the operating system they are using.
How do I play a multiplayer custom match in XCOM 2: War of the Chosen on Steam?
Playing a multiplayer custom match on Steam differs depending on whether you want to host the game, or simply join it.
To host:
From the Main Menu, select Multiplayer.
Select Create Custom Match.
The Create Game screen will appear, from which you can adjust the game's settings. Set the Lobby Type to either Private (only players that you invite can join the game) or Public (anyone can join the game).
Select Continue.
The Squad Loadouts screen will appear. Either select a loadout you've made previously, or create a new loadout, then select Confirm.
The Custom Match screen will appear. To invite a friend to the game, select Invite Friend. Otherwise, proceed to step 8.
The Choose Friends to Invite dialog will appear. Click the Invite button next to the name of the friend you wish to invite, then select Return to Game.
When you're ready to start the game, select Ready.
Once another player has joined the game and is ready to start, the Start button will appear. Click on the Start button to begin the match.
To join:From the Main Menu, select Multiplayer.
Select Search for Custom Match.
The Search screen will appear, from which you can choose the type of match you want to search for. Set the Lobby Type to Public, then select Continue.
A list of the available games that match your criteria will appear. Double-click on the game in the list that you want to join.
The Squad Loadouts screen will appear. Either select a loadout you've made previously, or create a new loadout, then select Confirm.
The Custom Match screen will appear. When you're ready to start the game, select Ready.
The host will start the match when ready.
How do I play a multiplayer custom match in XCOM 2: War of the Chosen over a LAN?
Playing a multiplayer custom match over a LAN differs depending on whether you want to host the game, or simply join it.
To host:
From the Main Menu, select Multiplayer.
Select Create Custom Match.
The Create Game screen will appear, from which you can adjust the game's settings. Set the Lobby Type to LAN.
Select Continue.
The Squad Loadouts screen will appear. Either select a loadout you've made previously, or create a new loadout, then select Confirm.
The Custom Match screen will appear. When you're ready to start the game, select Ready.
Once another player has joined the game and is ready to start, the Start button will appear. Click on the Start button to begin the match.
To join:From the Main Menu, select Multiplayer.
Select Search for Custom Match.
The Search screen will appear, from which you can choose the type of match you want to search for. Set the Lobby Type to LAN, then select Continue.
A list of the available games that match your criteria will appear. Double-click on the game in the list that you want to join.
The Squad Loadouts screen will appear. Either select a loadout you've made previously, or create a new loadout, then select Confirm.
The Custom Match screen will appear. When you're ready to start the game, select Ready.
Once another player has joined the game and is ready to start, the Start button will appear. Click on the Start button to begin the match.
Can I play XCOM 2: War of the Chosen using my Magic Mouse or Magic Trackpad?
Yes.
However, you must first enable the secondary click function on your mouse or trackpad. This will enable you to perform a right-click by clicking the right-hand side of your mouse or trackpad.
To do this, follow these instructions:
Open System Preferences ( Menu → System Preferences).
Select Mouse or Trackpad (depending on which you are using).
Select the Point & Click tab.
Check the Secondary Click checkbox.
Magic Mouse and Trackpad gestures interfere with the game. How do I disable them?
Finger 'gestures', which are used by Magic Mice and Trackpads to switch between windows and applications, can disrupt your game if used inadvertently.
To disable them, follow these instructions:
Open System Preferences ( Menu → System Preferences).
Click on Mouse or Trackpad (depending on which you are using).
Select the More Gestures tab.
Uncheck all the checkboxes.
How do I stop the dock, notifications and the desktop cursor from appearing while I'm playing XCOM 2: War of the Chosen?
The dock or notifications may occasionally appear while you are playing XCOM 2: War of the Chosen, or the desktop cursor may replace the game cursor. This can disrupt a game.
You can prevent them from occurring by checking the Hide the Dock (disables notifications) checkbox in the XCOM 2: War of the Chosen pre-game Options window. To do so, follow these steps:
From the XCOM 2: War of the Chosen pre-game Options window, select the Display tab.
Check the Hide the Dock (disables notifications) checkbox.
Can I run XCOM 2: War of the Chosen in windowed mode?
Yes.
To run XCOM 2: War of the Chosen in windowed mode, follow these instructions:
From the XCOM 2: War of the Chosen pre-game Options window, select the Display tab.
Check the Run in a window checkbox.
Click the Play button. The game will start in windowed mode.
NOTE: Enabling windowed mode may decrease the game's performance.
Is XCOM 2: War of the Chosen optimized for Retina displays?
Yes.
If you have a Retina display, you will be able to take advantage of the extra pixels by running XCOM 2: War of the Chosen in native resolution. This means that the game will display one pixel for every pixel on your display.
To do this, follow these instructions:
From the XCOM 2: War of the Chosen pre-game Options window, select the Display tab.
Select the largest resolution from the Resolution drop-down menu to play the game in native Retina resolution.
Click the Play button. The game will start in native Retina resolution.
NOTE: In many cases, increasing your game's resolution will impact upon its performance. For tips on improving performance, read the Performance Tips point in the ReadMe.
Why does music in iTunes pause when I start playing XCOM 2: War of the Chosen?
By default, music playing in iTunes will be paused when you start playing XCOM 2: War of the Chosen.
To turn this feature off, follow the steps below:
Double-click on the XCOM 2: War of the Chosen application icon. The pre-game Options window will appear.
Select the Extras tab.
Uncheck the Pause iTunes while playing XCOM 2: War of the Chosen checkbox.
Select the Play button to start playing.
To turn this feature back on at a later date, simply check the Pause iTunes while playing XCOM 2: War of the Chosen checkbox and then select the Play button.
Where are my saved games stored?
Your saved games are stored in your game's preferences folder.
To open this folder, click the Open Preferences Folder button in the Support tab of the pre-game Options window.
You can also navigate to the preferences folder manually. It is stored in the Feral Interactive folder in your computer's ~/Library/Application Support folder (where the '~' symbol refers to your home directory).
By default, the Library folder is hidden from your Finder. To open it, follow these instructions:
Open the Finder.
Open the Go menu from the main toolbar.
Hold down the Alt (⌥) key. The Library option will appear.
Click on the Library option. The Library folder will open in your Finder.
How do I take screenshots in XCOM 2: War of the Chosen?
To take screenshots while playing XCOM 2: War of the Chosen you should use the following key command:
Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + P
When you press all three keys at once, a single image of the on-screen contents will be saved in the Feral Interactive folder in your computer's ~/Pictures folder (the '~' symbol refers to your home directory).
The JPEG image contains metadata in a string in the following format.
GameName/Version Number (OS Version; CPU Speed; Installed RAM; Video RAM; Current Graphics Card)For example in XCOM 2: War of the Chosen the string might look a little like this:
XCOM 2 WotC/1.0 (macOS 10.13.4; 3.0; 8.0; 4.0; AMD Radeon R9 M395X)This information can be easily removed by exporting the screenshot into a different format using Preview or another image editing tool.
NOTE: None of the metadata stored can be used to identify the user.
Can I play this game on a case-sensitive file system?
No. XCOM 2: War of the Chosen has been tested with the basic formatting option for Mac OS X, which is HFS+. This system is not case-sensitive and identifies files by name without checking capitalization.
The capitalization of filenames is not consistent throughout the game. While this will not always prevent the game from running on case-sensitive file systems, it may lead to crashes and other unpredictable behaviour.
If you have to run a case-sensitive setup and you experience problems with XCOM 2: War of the Chosen, please install the game on a standard formatted partition or read/write disk image. In most cases this will allow you to play the game on your machine.
XCOM 2: War of the Chosen runs slowly on my computer. Is there anything I can do to increase the speed?
There are several factors which have an impact on the speed at which XCOM 2: War of the Chosen runs. Please see the XCOM 2: War of the Chosen Performance Tips section in the ReadMe for ways to increase the speed at which the game runs on your computer.
How do I get technical support for XCOM 2: War of the Chosen?
Please read the technical support information in the ReadMe; this tells you what to check and if necessary, how to contact Feral Technical Support with your issue.
What makes XCOM 2 stand out is how involved the developers are when it comes to mod-capability.
Firaxis actually released the Unreal Development Kit to help modders create custom content for the game, creating one of the strongest modding communities for any video game out there.
Modding allows for infinite ways to enjoy the game, and there’s a lot to dig into.
So there’s always going to be something out there to keep it interesting.
Here are some of the best ones I’ve found so far.
40. Military Camouflage Patterns
With XCOM 2 featuring a variety when it comes to soldier customization, it’s unavoidable that we’re going to want them to look their best.
Military Camouflage Patterns adds tons of options for camouflage configurations, all based on real-life patterns.
These include Australian, Belgian, Irish, and Russian camouflage designs to choose from.
What’s even better about this is the changes work on both armor and weapons.
39. Free the Hood
Free the Hood further adds to your options, this time focusing on facial customization.
Getting the exact look in vanilla isn’t easy, since multiple facial customizations couldn’t be used at the same time.
Why can’t your soldier smoke his cigar even with a hood on? Or why does wearing a helmet suddenly mean your soldier no longer needs that eyepatch?
This mod simply makes it possible to stack facial customizations, so you won’t be limited in terms of how you want your soldiers to look.
38. Custom Face Paints
Nothing makes a soldier look more battle-ready than having that badass thick black line under their eye.
Soldiers and face paint, is there a better duo?
And whatever the reasons may be, you’re definitely going to want this in XCOM 2.
Custom Face Paints adds 20 custom face paint designs into the game.
Your soldiers will be looking scarier than ever with any of the options available here. The mod even includes a texture for the famous Braveheart face paint pattern, which is cool too.
37. Capnbubs Accessories Pack
Need more customizations? You can’t go wrong with Capnbubs Accessories Pack.
One of the more popular soldier customization mods out there, Capnbubs Accessories Pack adds a ton of options for head accessories, including helmets, facemasks, caps, and more.
What’s great about this mod is that the textures try to stay close to the original XCOM art style, so everything fits in perfectly with the base game.
Another cool thing is that the mod still gets updated pretty often, with new accessory options being added in from time to time.
You’re definitely going to be spending way too much time in the customization menu with this one installed.
36. CX Praetor Armor
With any mod-capable game, you’ll find mods that pay tribute to other popular video games, movies, or public figures.
That’s cool for players, since who doesn’t love infinite crossovers?
The CX Praetor Armor mod fits that category perfectly. It adds the option to use Doomguy’s armor from Doom 2016.
Who wouldn’t want to use one of the most iconic shooter characters in any game?
The pack comes with tintable armor sets for male and female characters, along with other customizable options like transparent or non-transparent visors.
35. CP Halo Spartans
Next up is the CP Halo Spartans pack, making it possible to include some of the known Spartans from the popular Halo video game series in your roster.
The pack currently contains 10 of the known Spartans including Linda, Fred, Kurt, and of course John.
Most of their armor will look similar, as they mostly use Mjolnir Mark V.
What’s cool about this mod is that their faces were actually recreated with XCOM 2 textures to make them look as close to the base game as possible.
Each Spartan comes with a completely unique bio as well, so it’ll actually be as if you’re playing with XCOM 2 with Halo Spartans in your squad.
34. Star Wars Galactic Republic Armory
Of course, any mod list referencing pop culture wouldn’t be complete without a Star Wars mod.
Star Wars Galactic Republic Armory adds almost 600 unique cosmetic options based on Star Wars models.
The pack includes armor sets for Storm, Clone, Snow, and Jungle Troopers – basically any Republic model you can possibly think of.
It’s actually a remastered compilation of 5 previously released Star Wars armor packs, so this is the most complete set you can get.
33. Uniforms Manager
Now that you’ve added an overwhelming number of options to customize your soldiers with, you’re going to want to get Uniforms Manager to match.
Uniforms Manager is a quick and easy way to save uniform combinations, allowing you to name each outfit for easy access later.
If you’re anything like me, your OCD probably dictates that soldiers of the same class should be dressed similarly.
Well that’s easy enough to manage here!
32. Arnold (Arnie) Schwarzenegger Voice Pack
Beyond cosmetic upgrades available for XCOM 2, some modders even went so far as to make audio customizable as well.
This mod actually changes your soldiers’ voice samples to Arnold Schwarzenegger quotes.
Quotes are taken anywhere from The Terminator, Predator, Commando, Total Recall, The Running Man, and Kindergarten Cop.
So I’m not so sure how relevant each sample will be… but funny is better than nothing, right?
Regardless, it’s a lot of fun to imagine that Arnie is actually in your roster.
31. Deadpool Voicepack
Another sound mod that’s good for taking a break from all the seriousness of the game – the Deadpool Voice Pack.
The pack contains 420 different voice clips from the Deadpool films, providing comic relief just when the battle starts to get pretty tense.
What’s cool here is that the quotes have actually been placed to match in-game scenarios.
So what you’ll be hearing will mostly be relevant to what’s actually happening in the game.
30. Darth Vader Voice Pack
The James Earl Jones portrayal of Darth Vader has become so iconic over the years, there’s just no reason to skip over this mod.
It adds 110 quotes from the film series, which can be used to replace male voices in the game.
The chance to hear Vader speak “as you wish” while commanding your soldiers, or “I want them alive, no disintegration” just before an attack… it’s just too good to pass up.
His taunt of “perhaps you’re not as strong as the emperor thought” can even work as motivation to make better decisions on the battlefield.
29. Mark Hammil Joker Voicepack
Another undoubtably iconic voice performance is Mark Hammil’s Joker.
I don’t know about you, but even with the recent Joaquin Phoenix portrayal (good as it was) Mark Hammil’s voice is still the one I hear whenever I think of the Joker.
The mod includes over 650 Joker lines, with name and location references removed. So you won’t be hearing anything about Batman here.
28. Better Tactical Zoom Out
Once you finally get past the character customization menus, you’re going to want some quality of life mods to keep things interesting.
As with any top-down strategy game, camera options are almost always going to become an issue.
The same is the case with XCOM 2, as most players find that it’s just not possible to zoom out too far.
This is especially important as XCOM 2 is mostly made up of careful planning and routing.
Better Tactical Zoom Out should help with that, giving a much wider view of the battlefield.
27. Free Camera Rotation
Sometimes zooming out just doesn’t cut it.
Being a tile-based game, it can be important to maximize your limited movements per turn.
While the base game allows you to rotate the camera in 90-degree angles, sometimes it’s just not good enough to get a clear look at your destination, and what possible threats might be in your way.
Free Camera Rotation fixes that, granting completely free control of camera angles in the game.
You’ll be able to make smaller adjustments, in 45-degree angles, or even freely rotate the camera to get any visual you wish.
26. Stop Wasting My Time
Strategy games can get quite repetitive over time.
Xcom 2 Multiplayer Co Op
Especially when the same animations play over and over for each action.
Sometimes you just want to get things going a bit faster.
Stop Wasting My Time is the perfect mod for that.
What it does is basically removes most of the unnecessary time-wasters in the game, from the 1-2 second pauses after shooting, to the unnecessary enemy cinematics scattered throughout.
It doesn’t have any impact in terms of what you’re supposed to see, so you don’t have to worry about missing anything important.
25. Evac All
Keeping with the theme of avoiding repetitive gameplay, it just doesn’t make sense that evacuating your units has to be done one by one.
If you’ve gotten all your soldiers into the active evac zone, why would you have to command each to evac one at a time?
Evac All is the solution.
Now you can evacuate all units within the evac zone with one quick click of a button. Easy!
24. Overwatch All/Others
Similar to the Evac All mod, Overwatch All/Others is also designed to save some time by avoiding repetitive commands.
It just becomes tedious to have to put each soldier on overwatch one at a time.
The mod adds two new options, allowing you to put all soldiers on overwatch with one click, or to put everyone other than your selected soldier on overwatch.
Not only does it save time with fewer commands, but you’d be skipping the mandatory pauses at the end of each turn as well.
23. ShowMeThePersonel
Preplanning for your missions is important in XCOM 2, and you’re pretty much always going to want the right soldiers for the job.
ShowMeThePersonel makes that a much simpler task.
This mod gives you the option to hover soldiers to see stats, XP, and other useful information.
With all the necessary details much easier to see, you’ll have the best squad members picked out every time.
22. ShowMeTheSkills
Another one from modder ²²², who also gave us ShowMeThePersonel – ShowMeTheSkills makes it much easier to find information as well, this time focusing on skills and perks.
Coming back from a mission with wounded soldiers, it’s inevitable that you’re going to maximize your bench roster in XCOM 2.
Having assigned different skills and perks across your roster, it can get tedious to find who you assigned what to.
ShowMeTheSkills makes it easy, displaying skills for each soldier in the squad selection menu.
Now you won’t have to go through multiple menus to find that information anymore.
Much faster deciding who gets what equipment and whatnot.
21. Show Enemies on Mission Planning
As the saying goes, knowing is half the battle.
This applies to XCOM 2, since knowing what you’ll be up against allows you to prepare better by choosing the right skills and equipment for each battle.
Show Enemies on Mission Planning is a small mod that will save you a lot of time by displaying the enemy types and quantities detected by the Shadow Chamber, all directly in your Mission Planning screen.
The information is available in the Geo screen, but who wants to keep going back and forth just to check if everything fits?
20. Blackmarket Usage
Games with market mechanics always tend to be a bit intimidating.
If you’re anything like me, you eventually become the hoarder you never thought yourself to be, refusing to let go of any items in case they might come in handy later on.
XCOM 2 is no different with its Black Market feature, where you can go to sell items you no longer need.
The Blackmarket Usage mod should come in very handy when you’re selling your crafting items, as it basically tells you exactly what you can give up.
If an item is completely useless, you’ll know.
If an item can be used to craft things, you’ll be told what they can be used for and how many pieces you’ll need.
It makes navigating through the black market much simpler than it has to be.
19. Show Health Values
Just reading the name of this one, you might be thinking it’s probably something you won’t even need.
You might be thinking “there’s nothing wrong with the health bars anyways, so what’s this all about?”
Well yeah, early on the health bars aren’t an issue.
But as you progress through the game, your soldiers improve. And your enemies do as well.
In the later stages it can become quite tedious to count those tiny little health bars to know exactly how much health someone has.
Show Health Values adds a simple numerical display of remaining health vs. total health to each unit. Very handy.
You’ll never want to play without it, I assure you.
18. Stabilize Me!
If you’re not too concerned about adding a tiny little modification to the gameplay mechanics, Stabilize Me! is a great addition.
It’s inevitable that some of your soldiers are going to be severely injured during battles.
It’s left to your medics to get them up and fighting again.
But everything pretty much falls apart when it’s your medic that gets downed in the middle of combat.
Stabilize Me! adds a neat little feature that let you make use of the fallen soldier’s medkit to patch him up.
Basically, as long as the fallen unit has a useable medkit, you’ll be able to use that one to get him up.
Even when your other units don’t have any available.
17. Perfect Information
XCOM 2 being a tile-based game plays out like a tabletop game when it comes to combat.
This means that much like rolling a pair of dice, attacks have different percentage chances of being successful, along with critical and dodge probabilities.
In XCOM 2, these details aren’t readily available.
And that’s where Perfect Information comes in.
It gives you information like hit, crit, and dodge percentages that wouldn’t normally be displayed.
This is especially useful for attacks taken from overwatch, where this information is super helpful.
16. Gotcha (Flank Preview Evolved)
A huge part of strategizing in XCOM 2 is positioning your soldiers to successfully attack enemy aliens.
As you move around levels and learn more about how combat works in the game, you’ll find that flanking is a huge part of that.
You’ll have to maneuver your squad to get tactical advantages over your enemies, considering line of sight against environmental obstacles around the map, and sometimes it’s not as simple as you might think.
Gotcha is a mod to help with all of this.
It turns the little red icon next to enemy health bars yellow when you hover any tile that allows you to flank the enemy.
It may seem like a small upgrade, but most players consider this to be something they can’t play without.
15. New Target Icons
Further improving on Gotcha, the New Target Icons mod makes it easier choosing where you move your soldiers around the map.
New Target Icons basically adds icons for different target types beyond XCOM, Alien, and Advent, making it easier to position your soldiers.
The icons give you a better idea of who should be attacking which enemy, so you’ll be able to make better battle strategies with that information in mind.
14. Tactical Kill Counter
Character customization plays a big role in XCOM 2.
Soldiers level up as they gain experience in combat as well.
You’ll inevitably end up favoring some of your soldiers more than others, grinding to level them up to the tippy-top.
Tactical Kill Counter is a brilliant mod to help with this process, displaying how many kills each unit has accumulated along with how many more kills they need to be promoted to the next level.
This is useful in the early game as well, since you’ll be able to identify which of the newbies racked up some kills during battle.
13. Free Reload
Here’s a small mod that will prove useful during battles: Free Reload by tjnome.
Certain weapon components in XCOM 2 grant your soldiers with free reloads.
And strangely enough, these aren’t displayed during combat.
All Free Reload does is adds an icon in the skills portion of your UI, so you’ll easily be able to tell if you have any available free reloads remaining.
12. After Action – Days Wounded
Another small mod here that’ll be a big help in terms of analyzing your After Action Reports.
Days Wounded gives you more information to go by after battles are done.
In addition to how badly each soldier was wounded, it will tell you how many days they’ll be out for, based on the injuries they sustained.
Super handy time save.
11. Upgrade Reminder
If you tend to forget to actually use the things you find during missions, Upgrade Reminder is a good mod to have.
It adds little icons in the Mission Preparation menu that say if any soldiers in your squad are eligible for upgrades.
Be it a weapon upgrade module or whatever else, you’re going to want to get those upgraded as soon as possible.
A simple quality-of-life mod to manage your squad a little better.
10. True Retroactive AWC
The Advanced Warfare Center is the base game’s built-in feature where your soldiers can earn random perks, but it isn’t without its flaws.
How it works is that recruited soldiers are given a random perk if you already have the AWC built. Or all soldiers are given random perks when you build it.
The problem stems from the fact the random hidden perks are assigned to be activated in a specific soldier level.
If your soldier receives a perk for a level he hasn’t reached yet, then it activates once they hit that level.
Here’s the rub: picking up a perk meant for a level lower than his current level. This would mean that the perk would never be activated. Frustrating stuff!
Well this mod is the only fix you need.
9. True Concealment
One problem with concealment is that sneaking around still consumes time during missions.
The mission timer is also a big part of how combat plays out, and this was likely designed on purpose.
Some players might even say that mods affecting the mission timer are a bit of a cheat.
But True Concealment is also said to be the most fair modification to the mission timer.
Here’s how it works: the mission timer doesn’t run down while you’re hidden from enemy sight, making stealth gameplay all the more rewarding. Not too cheaty, just helpful.
8. Elerium Grounds
Once you reach mid-to-late game in XCOM 2, Elerium becomes a rare commodity. And shortages are almost unavoidable.
This makes it virtually impossible to maximize the Proving Ground, leaving you to fall behind on some powerful equipment upgrades.
Elerium Grounds seeks to remedy that by giving the ability to craft your own Elerium Cores.
You’ll have to complete the necessary research before you’re able to do so, but it’s well worth it.
With this mod you’ll be able to upgrade the Spider and Exo suits with research as well, so they can stay useful towards the later stages of the game.
7. XCOM 2: Tactical Co-Op
There’s also a lot of mods when it comes to actually adding to the base game, or even changing the gameplay completely.
To start off on this path, we have XCOM 2: Tactical Co-Op.
This is actually a mod created by the makers of XCOM themselves, allowing you to experience the game in multiplayer mode.
If you’ve got a friend who’s as into XCOM as you are, this should make for some good fun for the both of you.
6. More Maps Pack
Another good way to keep the game interesting is by spicing up the level design.
More Maps Pack lets you do that, adding more configuration options and elements to the world builder of XCOM 2.
This makes for more variation when it comes to the procedurally created levels.
Changing the map configurations might seem like a minor change. But you’d be surprised how big of an impact this has on combat.
5. Additional Mission Types
Additional Mission Types is another mod that keeps the game interesting. Especially when you feel like you’ve seen everything the base game has to offer.
It introduces a few new mission types to the campaign, like defense missions and VIP rescues among others.
Certainly a great way to keep the campaign mode fresh as you’ll be playing through new scenarios.
4. Long War Alien Pack
Mixing it up in terms of enemy types is also a solid way to keep you on your toes.
The Long War Alien Pack introduces over a dozen new enemy types, each with their own abilities and strengths.
Some enemies will be incredibly strong, while others will be sharpshooters from a distance – whatever it is, prepare to encounter unfamiliar baddies.
3. Long War 2
If you’re looking for more of an entire overhaul, you might want to look into the whole Long War mod for XCOM 2.
Pavonis Interactive’s Long War for Enemy Unknown was one of the major reasons Firaxis expanded on the second game’s mod capability, which in itself is pretty indicative of how good it is.
They’ve come back with Long War 2 for XCOM 2, adding tons to the game like a longer campaign, new classes, a wider range of customization options, and much more.
Check it out for yourself and see what you think!
2. Guerrilla War
Guerilla War is one of the less popular overhaul mods, but it’s certainly worth a peek if you’re a hardcore XCOM 2 player.
It drastically changes combat mechanics to make things a bit more challenging.
Xcom 2 Mod Launcher Download
So if that’s what you’re after, I would recommend giving this a try.
It also includes an interesting play on the mission timer, where Advent has unlimited reinforcements. This means lingering in a battle for too long will just get you beat from the sheer number of enemies that come your way.
1. A Better ADVENT: War of the Chosen
Now if you’re seriously looking for a more challenging XCOM 2 experience, without changing much of the gameplay, A Better Advent is the mode to try.
Much like a new game+ mode, A Better Advent introduces around 60 new enemy types to start.
While none of them are overpowered, you may find yourself struggling to find weak spots or defensive strategies for some of the new abilities they have.
The mod also features an improved AI, so enemies will be much smarter too.
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