#XCOM Bradford

[korbensoi]

Bradord waited 20 years for his chance to shine.

First invasion version from 2024

[etherealvoidechoes]

Bradford would be both relieved and annoyed with having Kamon back(Main or AU) as he had the brain for all the logistical stuff.

Relieved because less stress and Kamon catching things or making suggestions he and the team would have never come up with.

Annoyed because Kamon would handle stuff he wanted to do and Kamon sometimes forgets to inform people he took care of it when he’s just locked in. And stop disappearing into the engine(lab), workshop, or bowels of the ship to tinker/dismantle things to see how they work when you’re needed for a damn meeting.

[purple-nautilus]

Yuri commandford pt3

[ryunumber]

Does Bradford from Xcom have a Ryu number?

John Bradford has a Ryu Number of 3.

(explanation below)

There's a handful of names when inputted as soldier names in Enemy Unknown that change the soldier into an XCOM Hero that is very powerful (and therefore disables achievements). One of them is Sid Meier.

Meier can also be seen in a civilization leader context in Civilization IV; it's easiest to see (and hear) him as part of the base game's tutorial.

[ionjuno]

some old (and new) sketches of my commander

[xcommatriarch]

I remembered a hilarious observation about Bradford, specifically - about his rifle. So, you know how he has both the laser sight AND a scope on that thing? The things that do exactly the same thing, aka improving aim?

Lmao dadford is blind as shit at his age, get the hell out of here, grandpa, it's nap time for you >:^)

[ellikiins]

I TOLD YOU THE ALIENS ATTACKED. From March 2022, saved as "yeah." You can tell how done I was. Determined to draw and finish something, but alas... I do like this a lot more than the previous piece, I might finish it. But it has been over 2 years, so take it. (She has no shoes because her stilettos are too hard to run in. Maybe she should keep them? That's be badass.)

Because I love the drama, the premise of their relations were with no strings attached... but then someone gets attached, the other gets mad for breaking their promise... and then someone gets hurt... and the other comes to accept that they have also fallen in love, too. How romantic! I hope no one gets kidnapped and put in stasis for 20 years by the enemy and the world falls into chaos!

[msvblight]

Okay, might be a little fanfiction-brained of me but I think that in Xcom it would be so thematically fitting for Bradford to marry a Hybrid.

A way of showing him coming to terms with life after ADVENT. Setting aside his hatred of aliens to find love in the new world.

[anaveragedisaster]

I've been thinking of how a Nine Sols story set on a modern Earth would play out, as one does.

So far I've had two ideas. One's a follow up to the Shooting Star ending that involves the Solarian ship used by Kuafu and the Apemen getting unearthed that I might post separately about if I can actually get my thoughts in order. The other is basically 'what if New Kunlun showed up in the Solar system in our time.'

The thing is, I couldn't help but notice the similarities between the Solarians/Sols and the Ethereals from the Xcom games. Both are technologically advanced civilizations being driven to extinction by a disease and have invaded Earh to harvest humans in their efforts to find a cure, all the while presenting themselves as benevolent gods to those humans.

So now I've spent a considerable amount of time brainstorming how a Nine Sols and Xcom crossover au / total conversion mod would look like lore- and gameplay-wise. Here's the setup:

After realizing that the sapients on the Pale Blue planet are more advanced and numerous than initial images from the Haotian Sphere suggested (though still primitive by Solarian standards), the Tiandao council decides that instead of abducting a few hundred (or however many Apemen there were on Kunlun in canon) and leaving the rest of the species to fend for themselves in an ice age caused by the Fusang blocking sunlight, they'd colonize the planet proper. Not only would this make it easier for them to access their precious livestock. In their minds, it would also only be fair, even noble of them to uplift the remainder of the species with their science (or at least it's how the Sols that aren't Jiequan cope with the abject atrocities their plan involves).

For their invasion, they bring along a larger number of the biomechanical soldiers we see in the game, a fleet of Yuanbao ships (which do kind of look like flying saucers and by extension the xcom UFOs), as well as unseen warmachines from the Turbulent Era.

Right before Kunlun launches, like in canon, Yi discovers the secret behind Tianhuo and is murdered by Eigong.

After warping to the Solar system, the Sols spend maybe a few years preparing for the invasion, during which they abduct some humans to more thoroughly study what they're like. The actual invasion goes the way it does in XCOM 2 canon, with the Sols defeating any resistance and creating their worldwide regime (I haven't thought what it would be called yet, but it wouldn't be something as western as ADVENT). The date New Kunlun makes landfall on Earth is celebrated like Unification Day at the start of XCOM 2. Though I haven't decided whether it should be situated in the middle of the Pacific like the Etherals' facility or somewhere closer to land.

Instead of XCOM 2's Psionic network, there's a Rhizomatic/Fusang network created by the spread of Fusang roots from Kunlun throughout the Earth, generating clean energy and allowing for communication and maybe even teleportation due to their connection with the Limitless Realm.

The Gene therapy clinics are still a thing in this version of the story. We know Solarians in canon did gene modding. The Apemen were modified and the reason Tianhuo even exists is because Eigong tried to make Solarians genetically immortal. Like in XCOM 2, the clinics are also used to disappear an increasing number of humans, to be harvested for their brains, as well as biomass for Jiequan's transmutation factories and after a certain point, for Eigong's experiments with Tianhuo and the Tianhuo mutation.

As for Tianhuo itself, it is obviously kept secret from the humans. The official narrative as to why most Solarians are still in cryosleep is that humanity still needs to be 'raised' some more before they are ready to mingle with such an advanced species. The few non-Sols that have been woken up to help administer the planet are ones Eigong's made sure are loyal to her and even then, still closely monitored so they don't reveal anything.

Again, like in XCOM canon, at a certain point, survivors of the invasion led by Bradford get together to reform XCOM to start a guerrilla war against the Sols, steal an alien ship to use as a mobile base etc, etc. But no matter what they do, they can't seem to find the Commander. It's at this point that Yi wakes up.

Because Yi becomes the Commander in this au.

Instead of getting revived on New Kunlun, the Fusang roots, which stretch across the Earth now, spit him out in rural China. He's found and nursed back to health by Shuanshuan, whose parents left to get gene therapy in a city center some time ago but haven't been heard of since (the local representative insisted that they decided to stay, since the Sols make sure life is so much better there and as soon as there's an available spot, Shuanshuan will be able to join them).

At this point, I'm split on some key details. An idea I have is that initially, the roots revive Yi in a human disguise, specifically as a dead ringer for the missing Commander. This would make it easier for the rest of XCOM to trust him at the start, but would cause interesting conflict later (plus it would be so wonderfully karmic for him to have to be one of the humans he condemned into the role of cattle, and also I like me some TF in my fanfic). However, I'm worried about the effect this would have on Yi's and Shuanshuan's relationship. We know he's older than he looks in Solarian form, but still not that much older, so them as brothers still works. The Commander would have to be an older human, so if he looked like that, it'd start feeling less like a brotherhood and more like a father-son thing, which I'm not sure I want.

Otherwise, he'd claim he's a random defecting Solarian, demonstrating his hatred for the Sols in some way that convinces the humans to let him join them (though his getting the Commander's role is harder to justify in this case).

Either way, Shuanshuan refuses to part from Yi and is begrudgingly let on board the Avenger (which Yi realizes is his former personal transport and research ship, even being partly modelled after his Pavilion back on Kunlun). Either way, Yi gets to witness the devastation caused by the colonization that he masterminded and to work to dismantle it.

I haven't fully thought up how the rest of the story would play out, what the missions would be like and whatnot.

One thing I want there to be is XCOM being the one to discover an actual cure for Tianhuo, preferably through a method that combines science and the supernatural power of the Limitless realm. I like the sci-fi trope where humanity is the key element in figuring out something important, even when more advanced civilisations are involved. And I know that accepting the inevitability of the Solarians' extinction is a main theme in 9s, but it would also be fitting and nice if genuine help from humans (instead of them as cattle) proved to be the salvation not only for Yi, but for all remaining Solarians, giving them some hope.

Though Yi still gets to die heroically at the end and reunite with Heng within the infinite Tao, as a treat.

I''ve got more ideas about this that I want to share, but am too tired to rn. As a final note for now: Advent Burgers (or a differently named equivalent) are also very much a thing in this au and are enjoyed by both humans and awoken Solarians.

[korbensoi]

Commander is not in the mood

[etherealvoidechoes]

Think I'm going to make a prosthesis branch for the MEC program. Makes sense that would be an option for my AUverse.

Save the "total conversion" for mech bodies for the most critically injured (and agreed beforehand) or disabled soldiers XCOM started pulling for the invasion who are happy to defend the world and get a second chance at life.

[purple-nautilus]

Yuri commandford pt.2

Central: I don't have a rose-tinted sunglasses for the commander

Also Central:

[asunder-aim]

That's why one must serve cunt

[image source]

JXT: When There’s No One To Serve But: The Cause

[rollforrandom]

I know the "Canon" is that XCOM failed in the first 1-2 months of the invasion, but does anyone else feel that's not -quite- the case? Hear me out:

The ADVENT mechs look very similar in design to the MEC trooper from EW, minus the actual person in it. This could just be standard mech design/reused assets, but it makes sense if the Elders found that humans had made something useful with MELD, they would take it for their own purposes.

The ADVENT troopers use magnetic weapons, which while not fully Canon to EU/EW (the main one was the railgun for MEC troopers), are rather prominent in Long war, a mod that helped inspire aspects of XCOM 2 and whose development worked with/for the actual game studio when XCOM2 was developed. But why would ADVENT use a weapon like that if they have plasma? Cause XCOM already designed it. It was cheaper, designed for humans, by humans, and coopted by aliens

Bradford's forces are too well organized at the start of XCOM 2. They have a WHOL ALIEN SHIP, with a launchable drops hip? That's not something that just "goes missing" without repercussions. Especially if we get stomped into the dirt with no resistance in 2 months. This feels like an opportunity was taken while the world was still in turmoil, fighting was going on, and XCOM grabbed what it could while the aliens were suppressing major dissonance across the globe. Something that according to the elder, didn't happen. And we all know we can trust them /s

This is all just theory and hypothetical. But I am really into that rn, especially other theories like "The commander/player is actually the Ethereal from the Bureau" level of theory. Tell me if you agree/disagree/want to hear more rambling.

[ellikiins]

Old artwork I made July 15, 2022, saved under the file name “man, i suck at this”.

It was an experimental coloring, using photoshop and a Kamvus tablet. It isn’t awful, but it doesn’t really look like something I made. But I have yet to remake it, so here… look at it.

Every teen show has that school dance plotline, right? A novel idea that crossed my mind many, many years ago that I managed to adopt into XCOM no less. There is pressure to get more funding, so the Commander and Bradford attend the Meridian Ball in D.C., a prestigious event filled to the brim with Congress, Cabinet members, and Diplomats. Something that Diane grew up with, but Bradford, I imagine, is a lot more blue-collar and in over his head to rub elbows with such rich elite. But Diane would do anything to keep her operations running, and not above schmoozing to keep countries supporting the XCOM Project. Sure, the rest of the operation would speculate and tease about the top brass getting dressed up for an elaborate dinner date… but there’s nothing to hide if they aren’t romantically involved, right? Just dedicated coworkers only…. Right???

AND THEN THE ALIENS ATTACK!!!

If only I was good at making a comic or fanfic with the shenanigans I put my OCs through… 💀

[biggestart]

Last year, I tried making an XCOM 2 screenshot Let's Play similar in nature to Guavamoment's old X-COM: UFO Defense Let's Play, but abandoned it quickly due to the difficulty involved, as well as the strain it put on my computer.

Nonetheless, I did manage to make a "Commandersona". Because of the way everyone in the game hypes up the importance of The Commander, I thought it would be cute and funny to make him an unassuming older guy. Plus it made it more fun to ship him with the haggard middle-aged XCOM 2 version of Bradford.

Maybe I'll try it again someday.