Terror mission

So continuing with the testing of ZoG and the campaign for X-Com I played a Terror mission. As I do not have the Snakemen painted yet, I used Sectoids and Mutons instead.
Also, as you can see my buildings are pretty basic. I wish I could have real ones but my budget at the moment is almost non-existent. I bought 20 of those cars for 3 dollars from an Ebay Chinese shop.

In Terror missions your team must clear the site from all Aliens who are attacking civilians. In the campaign, the more time you take to do it the less resources you get at the end of the encounter. Also in these rules, the more you spread your soldiers the less time you take to finish the mission, but more dangerous it becomes, so you have to think carefully not to pack them but neither to over split them.

For this mission I made three groups: Team A with two grunts and the HWP, Team B with one veteran in personal armour and two grunts, one of them with SAW, and Team C with one veteran (Corporal Jonlan) in personal armour and two grunts, one of them with missile launcher. All three team members with assault rifles, combat knives and hand grenades.
 
In the first picture below you can see a general view of the city and the Skyranger deploying first X-Com grunts with a Heavy Weapon Platform (HWP) or remote controlled tankette.

As it happened to me in many encounters in the PC game, the first aliens encountered were behind the dropship and shot at my back, wounding Cpl. Jonlan and making him and one grunt to hit the dirt.

My troops moved back at the forest but four of them were needed to shoot down the two Sectoids.

On the left flank Team A pushed forward without seeing anybody. As you see, they were moving and covering their backs in Opportunity fire just in case.

Teams B and C could not follow as they were ambushed by more Sectoids on their right flank.

Combined missile, SAW and assault rifle fire killed them all.

A Sectopod!

It appeared behind the HWP and destroyed it with one shot of its heavy plasma gun. The accompanying grunts run for cover.

A shot in the back.

Grunts from Team B trying to sneak behind of the Sectopod resulted ambushed by a Chryssalid!

Miraculously the grunt with the SAW survived the first assault and could turn around and face the creature. In the next turn he was hit and fell stunned to the ground and then his team member killed the Chryssalid with his assault rifle.

Straggled behind, a solitaire Muton who was accompanying the Chryssalid. Later caught in the open by the grunt with the SAW already recovered from the Chryssalid attack.

 Two Sectoids popping up behind Team C

General view of the city in chaos.

The surviving elements of Team A who took cover far behind the buildings after the Sectopod attack, were attacked mentally by a Sectoid who turned the corner and was fired in opportunity but totally missed. Its victim panicked and got into the building but his mate managed to lob a grenade to the Sectoid and kill it.

After killing the Chryssalid the X-Com soldier from Team B ambushed the Sectopod with hand grenades from a building. The turn before the Sectopod had already killed the grunt with the missile launcher who fired a missile at it but failed and paid dearly for that.
At the bottom of the picture you can see Jonlan having a lot of trouble when wounded and ducking back in a building was surrouned by three more Sectoids. He could kill two of them with a grenade.

The other Sectoid mind-controlled Cpl. Jonlan and made him to go in the open with the hope of killing him there afterwards. But in the next turn the alien was surrounded and eliminated and it was the last of them so the mission ended. Terror mission ships carry 23 crew but it is never exact and in this mission for example there were 25 in the end.

Mission was finished in 12 turns so I got 2 resource points that could be used on my return to base to research, recruit or buy new equipment and armament. I lost one HWP, one veteran in personal armour and two grunts, but one of them recovered after the mission. Cpl. Jonlan has to rest to heal his wound.

As usual, after the game I had to write a lot of amendments but they are less and less after every game. The game was fun, smooth and surprising, so I can say I am happy with my progress in the rules.