XCOM 2
XCOM 2

Resistance Comms & Contacts

Improve your XCOM 2 strategy by managing Resistance Comms and Contacts. Establish communication networks for vital intelligence and resources.

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Resistance Comms & Contacts

Establishing and maintaining strong communication networks with the various Resistance factions across the globe is paramount to XCOM's success in XCOM 2. These contacts provide vital intelligence, resources, and opportunities to strike back at ADVENT. Understanding how to effectively manage your Resistance Comms and utilize your Contacts will significantly impact your campaign.

Expanding Your Reach: Building Resistance Comms

Your ability to contact and work with Resistance cells is limited by your current Comms capacity. Expanding this capacity is a critical early-game objective. Without sufficient Comms, you won't be able to establish new contacts or maintain existing ones, severely hindering your strategic options.

  • Constructing Resistance Comms: The primary method for increasing your Comms capacity is building the Resistance Comms facility on the Avenger.
    • Location: Prioritize building this facility in a power-rich area of the Avenger, or near an Engine Room or Power Relay to minimize power strain.
    • Staffing: Assigning an Engineer to a Resistance Comms facility significantly boosts its output, allowing you to contact more regions faster. Consider assigning your best Engineers here, especially in the early to mid-game.
    • Upgrades: The Resistance Comms facility can be upgraded to Advanced Resistance Comms, further increasing your Comms capacity and often providing additional benefits like reduced contact costs.
  • Resistance Radio Relay: This is a secondary, but crucial, method for expanding your Comms. Building a Resistance Radio Relay in a region you've already contacted will increase your Comms capacity by 1 for that region and reduce the cost of maintaining contact. This is particularly useful for establishing a strong presence in strategically important continents.

Making Contact: Reaching New Regions

Once you have sufficient Comms capacity, you can begin making contact with new regions on the Geoscape. Each region requires a certain amount of Supplies and a specific number of days to establish contact.

  • Prioritization:
    • Resource-Rich Regions: Prioritize regions that offer valuable resources like Supplies, Intel, or Alien Alloys as monthly income.
    • Dark Event Countermeasures: Regions often host Dark Events. Contacting a region allows you to launch missions to counter these threats, preventing detrimental global effects.
    • Story Progression: Certain story missions and facilities are locked behind contacting specific regions. Keep an eye on your objectives and prioritize accordingly.
    • Continent Bonuses: Each continent offers a unique bonus once all regions within it are contacted. Aim to complete continents for powerful passive buffs. For example, contacting all regions in North America might grant a bonus to Supply income, while Europe could offer reduced research times.
  • Cost Management: The cost of making contact increases with each new region. Plan your Supply expenditures carefully, especially in the early game when resources are scarce.

Maintaining Contacts: The Monthly Resistance Report

At the end of each month, you'll receive the Resistance Report, detailing your income, expenses, and any new developments. A key expense here is maintaining contact with your established Resistance cells.

  • Supply Drain: Each contacted region incurs a monthly Supply cost. This cost can become substantial as you expand your network.
  • Managing Over-Capacity: If your active contacts exceed your current Comms capacity, you will incur a significant penalty to your monthly Supply income. This is a strong indicator that you need to build more Resistance Comms facilities or Radio Relays.
  • Breaking Contact: In dire situations, you may need to temporarily break contact with a region to reduce your monthly expenses. This should be a last resort, as re-establishing contact later will cost Supplies and time again.

Leveraging Your Contacts: Opportunities and Missions

Your Resistance contacts are your eyes and ears on the ground. They provide crucial intelligence and unlock various strategic options:

  • Mission Opportunities: Contacts will frequently offer missions, ranging from Supply Raids and VIP Extractions to Retaliation Missions and Dark Event Countermeasures. These missions are your primary source of resources, experience, and progress against ADVENT.
  • Intel Gathering: Contacts can provide Intel, which is essential for scanning for new missions, purchasing items from the Black Market, and initiating research projects.
  • Black Market Access: Once you've contacted a region with a Black Market, you can access it from the Geoscape to buy and sell resources and equipment. Prices fluctuate, so keep an eye out for good deals.
  • Recruiting Resistance Personnel: Some missions offered by contacts will allow you to recruit new Resistance personnel, such as Engineers or Scientists, who are vital for staffing your Avenger facilities and accelerating research/construction.

By strategically expanding your Resistance Comms, carefully choosing which regions to contact, and effectively managing your resources, you can build a formidable global network that will ultimately lead XCOM to victory against the alien occupation.