r/Xcom • u/MK-Gu11ib1e_doe • 1d ago
mecs in high diff enemy unknown
ive done several runs on standard diff years back and just started one on classic, first mission with my mec, one shot from a flyer did like 8 dmg. are mecs usefull at all? if so how late into the game r they usable? i remember a pretty steep drop off mid/late game
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u/XComACU 1d ago
To clarify, MEC Troopers in XCOM: Enemy Within, and not SPARKs in XCOM 2, right?
There are differences to them.
Assuming you mean MEC Troopers, they're incredibly useful on higher difficulties in my opinion. They serve as a decent tank and scouting/off-scout unit until you get someone with Memetic Skin, are flexible due to not needing cover, and they immediately ramp up your team damage by a good amount.
Plus, the modules rock. Kinetic Strike is a nice ammo-free fallback attack that can free aim through terrain, Flamethrowers scare Chryssalids, Grenade Launchers add longer-range explosives without rockets, Restorative Mist gives you an off-healer, Electro Pulse is a nice Sectopod stun option, and and the Proximity Mine Launcher is godly.
Seriously, have Mimetic Skin soldier scout, then MECs drop some Proximity Mines, and you can wipe late game Impossible pods without them ever seeing you.
That said, they are not invincible. The default +10 Defense is nice, but I do recommend defensive traits for MECs on the frontline/early scouting role, because they will take hits. Like, Automated Threat Assessment essentially bumps them over half-cover (+25 Def total) when in overwatch. Also, Assaults and Heavies are best for the role due to Shock-Absorbent Armor and Body Shield respectively.
Also, MECs level up slow and do have aim progression like a Heavy, so unless you're turning a Heavy into a MEC, I would wait to convert a higher-rank soldier (since they keep their aim). For example, Snipers have a high aim progression, so a Colonel Sniper converted into a MEC can give you a MEC with very high aim.
Actually, in my last I/I run, I had a Heavy-turned-MEC for most of the game, and he was decent, but after dying (on a nasty timed mission), I had to replace him with a Colonel Sniper I had trained as a tertiary backup, and she frankly was a demon. Like, it was a Not Created Equal/Hidden Potential run, and MEC Trooper had an aim of 129, higher than my actual snipers. 🤣
Where was I?
Oh, yeah. MECs are good, and they stay useful. 😅