Part 18

Master EXALT Data Recovery and Target Extraction missions in XCOM: Enemy Within. Learn EXALT weaknesses, strategies, and how to locate their base.

After initiating an Intel scan and deducting the cost, any active EXALT cells will be revealed by an EXALT symbol next to a country's name. Send a support class soldier to gather intel and prevent damage. This soldier will only have a pistol and basic items, so your main squad can provide support with explosives and smoke. Eventually, you'll receive a message to extract your soldier; failure to do so results in their death. Assemble an extraction team, ideally with MECs, to begin either an EXALT Data Recovery or EXALT Target Extraction mission.

EXALT Data Recovery Mission: In this mission, an encoder and a transmitter are placed on the map, requiring protection. Your covert operative is positioned near the transmitter. EXALT can hack the encoder after a few turns, or you can destroy it. If EXALT occupies the encoder's area, they can then hack the transmitter, leading to mission failure. To aid your squad, the covert operative can hack nearby EXALT com relays, disabling EXALT's shooting capabilities but not their special abilities. These missions are generally easy due to EXALT's poor accuracy and low threat level.

EXALT Target Extraction Mission: Your squad spawns with the covert operative in a secluded area. The objective is to escort the operative to the relay stations in the center of the map. Keep the operative hunkered down while your squad clears the map of inactive EXALT squads, engaging them one by one. Once a safe path is established, move the operative towards the relay station. Position your troops to overwatch the map's edges, with a few units guarding the relay. EXALT soldiers will then approach from the edges and occasionally via helicopter. You should be able to eliminate them easily, even when elite units appear.

Why EXALT is a Joke: EXALT soldiers have significantly lower stats compared to aliens. Their aim is generally poor, and their health varies by difficulty but is consistently lower than most alien threats. For example, a standard EXALT Sniper has 75 Aim and 6 HP, while a Muton has 80 Aim. Elite EXALT soldiers are only slightly more dangerous. Most regular EXALT soldiers are not a threat, especially if your soldiers are in high cover, which EXALT struggles to overcome. Their damage output is also very low, with the highest possible damage being 7. MECs are particularly effective against EXALT due to their durability and high damage output, often capable of one-shotting EXALT units. EXALT rarely uses overwatch, giving you the first shot. Their grenades and rockets can be dangerous, but generally, you should be prepared for this level of damage by this point. Losing a soldier to EXALT is rare and usually due to overconfidence or poor tactical decisions.

Note: Add 5 to Aim on Impossible difficulty, subtract 10 on Normal or Easy. All EXALT soldiers have 6 movement spaces.

Locating the EXALT Base: Each completed EXALT mission provides clues to the location of their headquarters. These clues eliminate countries from a list (marked with a crossed-out EXALT symbol). Once you have enough clues, you can accuse a country. If incorrect, the country is permanently removed, potentially causing mass panic. If correct, you launch an invasion of the EXALT base.