Research is the lifeblood of XCOM 2: War of the Chosen. Without research projects, XCOM wouldn’t be able to develop all the killer alien-fighting gear required to save the world. That’s why we’re pretty happy to report that the War of the Chosen expansion is full of new research projects, items and weapons. Here, we’ll break down all the research we’ve found (so far) and how to make that stuff appear for you.
So far, we’ve found powerful breakthroughs (random bonus research projects) and incredibly useful items from autopsies. There are four new standard enemies in War of the Chosen — the Priests, the Purifiers, the Spectres and the Lost. All of them can be brought down to the lab for autopsy, and each new enemy provides a powerful item. Autopsy Priests to create a one-use item specifically to prevent death, or use lures to trick the Lost into attacking your enemies. There’s a lot of great stuff, and we’ve only just scratched the surface.
More XCOM 2: War of the Chosen guides on Gameranx:
- XCOM 2: War of the Chosen – 11 Expansion Starter Tips | Beginner’s Guide
- XCOM 2: War of the Chosen – How To Beat The Assassin | Boss Tips & Tricks
- XCOM 2: War of the Chosen – Unlocking the Reaper | Resistance Mission Guide
- XCOM 2: War of the Chosen – How To Unlock The Templars Faction
- XCOM 2: War of the Chosen – Instantly Unlock New Hero Units With Advanced Options
- XCOM 2: War of the Chosen – All New Mission Types Explained
- XCOM 2: War of the Chosen – How To Make Custom In-Game Propaganda
Research, Weapons & Items| New Projects List
As you progress in XCOM 2: War of the Chosen, you’ll find all-new research projects. These can completely change the way some items function, or unlock completely new items.
Special [Breakthrough] projects are seemingly random — these are limited-time only projects your science team will randomly discover after completing a project. Jump on them when you have the chance, or you’ll miss them forever.
[Work-In-Progress: Check back soon for more updates!]
- Sustaining Sphere
- Requirement: ADVENT Priest Autopsy
- A Sustaining Sphere is an emergency failsafe mechanic that automatically activates when a soldier is on the brink of death, placing them in temporary suspension to extend their life. The sphere can only be used once in combat, and will be permanently removed from the soldier’s inventory once activated.
- Reinforced Underlay Active
- Requirement: ADVENT Purifier Autopsy
- The ADVENT Purifier armor features a number of improvements designed by ADVENT to enhance their tolerance of environmental hazard. We’ve mirrored some of these changes to increase the durability of our armor underlays. All vest utility items now provide an extra +1 health.
- Ultrasonic Lure
- Requirement: The Lost Autopsy
- Using what we’ve learned of the Lost and their behavior, the Ultrasonic Lure was designed to help control their movements in the field. Deployed like a grenade, the lure will draw the Lost to wherever the device is thrown. Any Lost within sight of the target area will move to attack.
- Adaptive Personal Combat Sims [Breakthrough]
- Requirement: N/A
- A breakthrough in the interface design of our Personal Combat Sims will allow us to reuse them indefinitely.
- Guerilla Tactics School Construction [Breakthrough]
- Requirements: N/A
- A breakthrough in the design of our training equipment will reduce the material expense, lowering construction costs of the Guerilla Tactics School by 50%.
- Technical Advances [Breakthrough]
- Requirements: N/A
- Breakthroughs in both our manufacturing and finishing processes should further improve the balance of our swords, increasing their damage by +1.
- Modular Sniper Rifles [Breakthrough]
- Requirements: N/A
- Despite initial concerns over balance, our recent breakthrough will allow us to add another weapon upgrade slot to all Sniper Rifles.