PS: I almost forgot to mention: I get where Trask is coming from with her latest idea and can see applications where it could be a genuinely sound tactical decision. However it still left me cracking up because it comes off as something you'd see in a Saturday morning cartoon. It's like something I'd imagine The Shredder from TMNT doing.

[MASSIVE SPOILERS AND STUFF (I think FF would benefit from spoiler tags.)]

Wanted to do this sooner, but by God writing reviews of late has been as easy as passing kidney stones. This was an experience in head-smashing frustration as I really could not find the means to convey what I wanted to. Repeatedly. On nearly everything. Onto the review!

Look the act's amazing, alright? I loved it. A lot. Stayed up entire nights reading it a lot. We clear on that? Good! Let's begin properly with whining about Florida arc!

So! Florida Arc! The developments of the second and third chapter saved the arc for me; but I personally felt this arc suffered drastically from a dire case of telling and not showing. I understand that an entire month long siege can't take up much of the Act; God knows even I wouldn't read that with how long these chapters are; however I can't help but feel that maybe an extra chapter or two would have been beneficial to give some of these events the attention they deserve.

Big B having his arm cut off. I knew it wouldn't have mattered ultimately; but that's the first time since the WHEEE cannon in Sherman/Washington that someone's been able to hurt him. First time to that degree period. The fight itself was over in the blink of an eye and lacked in the nuance and detail that makes the fights so interesting in the past; like those of the Insomnum Arc or the Battle of the Citadel. Even if the fight was short some more detail of it would've helped. Reactions to him losing his arm and retreating for instance. From the Collective in the battle who falter or outright break from morale loss; ADVENT who would probably have gained momentum from seeing that. Some XCOM soldiers discuss that happening and express cautious optimism that Geist doesn't share in. ADVENT sees universal morale boosts that are shattered when the horrific realization that he's back like nothing happened the next day is revealed.

Pantheon nearly killing an Ethereal but then losing one of their own and three XCOM soldiers is sorta thrown out there as an off-hand reference. Why? Pantheon are supposed to be these ultimate badasses of ADVENT proper; I realize there is a side-story for them, but I think this one thing would justify actually showing us their side in this story to actually exemplify why they are supposedly so badass; and show how they almost killed another Ethereal. Something that, even for a scrub like a Guardian shouldn't really just be hand-waved and thrown out there with a single sentence.

If anything, showing that could've acted as hype material for the story Areleth is doing. Show how badass they are and how well they work together; then promote that story for those who want to see more of them. C'mon, Jaylin was just a Peacekeeper and she got several scenes. That Russian legion dude was the same. Saying nothing of Cerian (piss be upon his grave) or even Duri to an extent. Which nothing against Duri I've enjoyed his character progression and story (now please stop hurting him). Aside from those instances, it told us weeks had passed and they wanted to just nuke the place and be done with it... but it didn't feel like it. I was puzzled when I think it was Sierra expressed such sentiments because it didn't feel that way when reading. I... wish I could expand on that more but I'm not sure how to.

I know it probably sounds like I want to burn your house down over the arc; but I really don't. I did ultimately enjoy the arc with the developments it brought forth, especially Big B's parts, and Gaia Contingency. Seeing how Battlemaster reacted to the prospect of Yang dying was endearing. It absolutely wasn't just for his own sake; he genuinely cares for her enough to risk his position to contact Sana for help. it really reaffirms just how much they've grown to care for one another. Coming from Big B wanting her dismissed without consideration, and telling her if she doesn't meet his expectations he'll kill her.

His near breakdown talking to Sana and newfound path only made him shine even brighter in my eyes. He's like Ethereal Van Doorne. Too perfect for this awful galaxy and its existence. I get the terrifying impression he's going to make a hasty and misinformed decision and move against Fectorian based off the Andromedon saying where their fleets were waiting. Trask! So fun fact, I actually made her and a handful of other characters from the story in XCOM 2. Them and some EXALT remnants with their backstories and lore tying into Xabiarverse. I think what I'm gonna do when I play again is go ahead and dust off that character pool, import Trask; then go ahead and make a recording of JULIAN burning her to death with a flamethrower or like, knocking her off a building rooftop with a Kinetic Strike Module; name the video "Justice", and watch it every time I feel down.

I was shocked to find the Faceless' origins was so... ordinary or lack of a better term. I never would've expected the Dath'Haram, those precious cinnamon rolls of a species would've created something so terrifying. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I would've predicted something made or seized during the Synthesized war before I predicted they could make something like that. Something not even the Ethereals seem to fully understand.

Volk! His suffering gives me life. Fuels me. Fulfills me in ways even the Bringer could not match. I'll be honest, I don't know what to make of the Riders so far. Gabriel/Gaunter sounds fun. But the Riders themselves; I'm not thrilled. They show up for the first time and that quickly necessitates Imperator himself showing up to get a handle on the situation. Then again it could be to save his pet bitch. Maybe both? Anyway! They're described to have frankly absurd levels of technology and capabilities; training on worlds with no sun but even colder, the domain that sounds like something that makes the Palace of Slaanesh come off as a crack den in Detroit post-apocalypse, etc.

That and the General who fought Big B to a standstill and who conquered thousands of worlds... whose favorite weapon is a long heavy object. Is it a mace or something or just a club? Which killed presumably billions if not trillions. I mean Big B at first was a hard pill to swallow for me but I got used to it. This seems... almost comical. Big B was him conquering the Muton's homeworld with a sword; this is a being who conquered thousands with a mace/club and still killed more enemies with it than the population of some planets. They also travel across different universes or something? Is that the case or am I mistaken as to what Spheres are?

I'm keeping an open mind for now despite everything; but I do have concerns about what part this is going to play. Maybe I'm missing something because I never played Witcher 3? Not sure. I did read the messages you mentioned and that did help somewhat. I really need to just open up the wiki and look this stuff up there for a bit firmer context. Anyway, that's that I guess. I wrote this at 5 in the morning after another lovely night of no sleep. Sometimes my reviews come off as assholish or otherwise the ramblings of a madman in such circumstances, I tried not to come off that way. If I did I am sorry; it is not intentional.

Even though I'm in the Discord I'll probably still be doing these. Just as milestones per usual. Now I'm off to do another one of these for New Blood!... in the next day or two. God I wish Gabriel were real and I could just wish one into existence. I'll make any corrections if I see any mistakes in the next day or two.

Oh Bradley, the cute dumbass just doesn't know the Empress is his waifu, as horrifying as it'd be to know that. I sincerely hope JULIAN pops in and says that if he's ever around to hear all about it. It'd just be so perfect.

Crazy maybe-ancient super human alien spy's arrogance may very well be his downfall. The fact that he's had sex with Earth humans is also really really weird. I'd call him a degenerate but I'm not sure interspecies 'romance' between sentients could be as degenerate as bestiality, which it feels a lot like but isn't.

Weirdly enough, I actually like Nemo. His aspiration towards perfection and curiosity of the world is very human/people-like. Him switching sides or becoming a double agent sounds more appealing than "Fights for No Justifiable or Plausible Cause" Volvikov. What he's done so far isn't any different than what the Commander did back in the Middle East and to ensure the downfall of the United Nations.

The brewing storm awaits

Well an eclipse during an assault, that's not gone poorly for any group fictional or otherwise ever (*Cough Cough* TLA *Cough Cough*). Another interesting chapter than takes the series an interesting place, both strategically and generally.

I must say it's rare for a series to be both well written and to really *Explore* the boundaries that the sc-fi elements of a story gives; you have teleporters? Hit them literally anywhere. You have nanotech that can build a large structure easily? Why not create an eclipse. It's genuinely clear that this series is extremely well thought through, something I often wish I could say for my own writings.

But I think my favorite aspect is the usage of what I might call a realistic trope; is an army of technologically superior superbeings often going to underestimate an inferior enemy army? Yes. Are they going to be stupid? No.

All in all a fantastic chapter in a marvelous story.

Turns out, the Life is Strange soundtrack really fits to the end of the chapter. Perhaps since there are strange eclipses in both? Predicting it now, there will be psions or other creatures capable of time travel at some point.
Jokes aside, given the slightly sad nature of the soundtrack, it really fit the kinda ominous ending of this chapter.

Also, if a certain somebody is going to be the new Japanese Emperor at some point, let it be known that I just predicted it.

Apart from that... wow! That chapter introduced so d cool stuff. Old alien artefacts (and the Holy Grail is real?) - check. Mysterious abandoned bunker of possible soviet origin, check. Humanity's first real planetary invasion - check. Wait, what? I'm really interested how that will turn out. Seriously curious about the Axis.

That Hunter / Memo scene was just glorious. Wonder what the implications of that are going to be. And Gaunter is increasing his network... I have a feeling that he's going to be pretty important later on.

Can't wait to see what the Vault is hiding!

The Russian bunker might be related to Elena.

Damm, those two's escape was smooth as fuck.

Oh God, Nemo and Hunter, haha!

Having read the last chapter, and coming back to this one to see that the guy at the end is probably Gabriel, I am much intrigued. I also decided to envision him as Q, and read his lines to the Battlemaster in John de Lancie’s voice. I found it much fitting to the character and highly entertaining.

Interesting chapter! I rather like it. First time we've seen a large scale psychological ploy not based on terror attacks by the aliens. The 'eclipse' is a rather unique idea.

And I get the feeling the 'pyramid attack' is going to be the story version of the original final mission from UFO Defense? Looking forwards if it is - if it isn't, still bet it's going to be fun! Particularly for the first big extraplanetary offensive.

I dipped my toes into this story drawn in by the idea of a dark story of XCOM's struggle to fight the alien threat, regardless of the cost. I was prepared for a lot of messy politics, characters with strong and extreme opinions and much grim darkness. I am not even really bothered by the summary invasion and destruction of Islamabad-Rawalpindi, my hometown.

However, it seems to me that the extremism is not just in the minds and words of the characters, but in the author's voice as well. There are some welcome challenges to Advent's and the commander's ideas and actions by various characters, but ultimately it seems that you are content to shove the entire Muslim world into a box labelled the "Middle East", a vague and unhelpful geographic structure at the best of times, and then to consign that box into a pit labelled "misguided, pathetic, selfish and barbaric." Your understanding of these places, people and cultures is two dimensional and one-sided. You seem to believe that opposition to Israel's colonial project, which was implemented through ethnic cleansing and is maintained through brutal apartheid, is unjustified and completely inexplicable - there seems to be a suggestion that it is rooted purely in antisemitism. You identify Islam as the root of most problems facing the region, and have condemned the entire religion to oblivion without any attempt at nuance. I myself am quite open to critique of Islam, and feel that issues like terrorism and the treatment of women in the context of Islam need to be tackled more forcefully by Muslims themselves - but you seem to have already made up your mind that the entire religion, with its bounty of history, art, literature and philosophy and in its many different forms of expression simply belongs in the dustbin.

Under the circumstances, despite the strengths your story has I don't think that I will be proceeding any deeper. I realize that this story is a couple of years old, perhaps your opinions have evolved since then - or perhaps not. I simply wished to express my thoughts, in the hope that they might give you cause to re-examine some of your beliefs. Regardless, I wish you well and the best of luck for the future.

Mox has been the voice of reason and pillar supporting Betos since her defection, possessing a bond with her beyond the typical camaraderie between soldiers. Now that he's gone, Betos is off-balance that Patricia had to pull her up. I guess It makes sense given the shared circumstance they've experienced on losing someone close to them, but I can see the pragmatism since Betos at her current state will be unreliable and predictable and that wouldn't make her a good puppet for the Collective. If anything, It might make rash decisions whenever they did something that runs contrary to her morals now that Mox's gone. Patricia's offer will enable her to clear her head and establish rapport with Betos, but this could also bring her close to the Imperator's influence given that she's talking to his Harbinger after all.

After Betos' section, I paused to reread the files regarding her and Macula. While this isn't something I normally do, I felt the need to consult the Files if what came to my mind has a potential to transpire. I can say that she's ripe for Macula's manipulations given her current emotional state, she's in turmoil and so very malleable for Macula to twist into something else. I know Macula enough that he won't let an opportunity like this pass, and no doubt XCOM will do something when they notice the subtle changes in the SAS's foreign policy.

Its been a long time since I've read AD, not even rereading the previous chapters as my attention had been… elsewhere until recently, but I don't recall reading a scene between the Pantheon and Hive Commander 666.

Mind uploading is the Hive Commanders' trump card; immortality. Fits perfectly with their soulless nature, detached from mortality and any idea of afterlife.
The best analogue I can find for this are the Meths from the Altered Carbon series, who maintain immortality through cloning and mind uploads so long as their neural implant stays intact. Hmm… I wonder if you got the idea from them? Quisilia mentioned how the HCs do this frequently, wouldn't that degrade the mental copies due to the repeated upload or they can keep it intact?

In addition to the revelation above, the sectoids have been stepping up their game by making their own Avatars. Despite being incomplete, it managed to kill one of the Pantheon; a feat alone showing the danger they are bound to present. The only thing I'm opposed to is that its name (Lesser HC) sounds too generic to give off any impression–too stale. Given the purpose of their creation and keeping with the soulless nature of sectoids, I would recommend naming them as either "Marionettes" or "Thralls" since they're meant to be controlled by the HCs.

Assuming XCOM or ADVENT gets this info, they could leak it to the Andromedons and so intensify the rivalry between the two species to further cause problems for the Collective elsewhere. Best case scenario would be to spark a conflict between the two that will distract the Collective. But I'm certain the Imperator wouldn't stand by so that's a pipe dream at best.

Volk's having second thoughts about the Collective due to the peculiar (militant) approach to Humanity. He now knows something's wrong with the whole thing especially when the progression of the War isn't taking the logical route he outlined. Of course, the Imperator wouldn't share the true reason as he did to Patricia.

That section with the Marianna Trench was unsettling when you suffer from thalassophobia as I do, one of the rare moments I felt fear reading something. The Paradise chapter was a stroll in the park for me but I had to skim this particular section because I can't help but feel what they're experiencing. The psychological pressure that place can put into something is so strong especially at the state of isolation; the sheer oceanic pressure can kill you instantly, but the isolation alone can slowly drive you mad.

Even for all the money in the world this is something I will never do.

Fortunately, T'Leth was there to end their little trip and give a warning.

On the sidenote, I'm happy Nartha and Shun are now officially together. You've building up the relationship between these two since the start of AD. However, I won't get my hopes high due to what happened with Nuan and Iosif so to avoid disappointment.

As for what Kaya is doing, its something very logical in times of crises when people look to their leaders for guidance and inspiration. While the military department of ADVENT is indeed prioritised, she's right that not everyone's cut to serve in the front lines; every idle hand has to contribute since they're all that stand against defeat. This will especially be more important when the War inevitably becomes total in scope. The question is… Is ADVENT ready for Total War? At this stage I doubt it even with the economic adjustments recently made a few chapters back.

That Shatterpoint Satellite looks like a small-scale iteration of Project Zeus from the second GI Joe movie. I remember people criticising it for getting the physics wrong by just dropping the rod and expecting it to fall into the Earth at terminal speed, when it should've been launched to have the necessary momentum to enter the atmosphere. I hope you got yours right.

I'm not going to comment on the Field Hospital section. Not because I have nothing to say, but because I'm so confused by what happened I don't know what to say.

Busan's destruction by the Collective was symbolic. Since the start of the War, it served as a testament of ADVENT's determination and resilience against the Collective's global invasion. Damages were repaired and losses replenished while defences were refined, similar to how ADVENT behaves. Its obliteration sends the message that resistance is futile and that the Collective will triumph in the end. But the surviving inhabitants begged to differ and fought to the last, knowing their all but dead in the end anyway so they at least take down as many as they can.

I'm curious to know if there remained a significant civilian presence in Busan or its primarily the ADVENT garrison. The city being the focus of Collective offensives makes it a dangerous place to live due to the risk of collateral damage being high.

The frictions are now evident between the Imperator and the Battlemaster when the latter's authority has been overridden, starting from that episode on Paradise. Despite his insubordination and sedition, the Imperator still needs him to lead the Collective military. For all his power, I don't believe the Imperator can channel the same charisma and loyalty as the Battlemaster no matter the telepathic nudges he make. The military is more loyal to the Battlemaster for fighting beside them in the warzone, and would follow him until the end.

But Quisilia is right in a way. The main flaw in the Battlemaster's character is that he's convinced he's right in what he says and do. He wants to conduct this war conventionally and abiding to certain rules as an honourable warrior would. The problem is his worldview isn't always consistent with reality and not everyone thinks like him, there are those who are will to cross lines in order to be victorious.

That's all my review for this chapter, my friend. It's been a long time since I did this and I'm unsure if the quality remained consistent, care to tell me later when you formulate your feedback.

I look forward to talking to you, Xabiar.

I kinda feel bad for Beto but her willful ignorance to not seeing the Collective being worse then Advent turns that around. I'm having a feeling that the Collective got Mox killed because how can a sentient being (human) get close to the leader of the SAS, who I may add is Psionically protected by a F%$ing Ethereal. And now Patricia is giving her a shoulder to lean on... whatever, lets see where this goes.

Interesting pov of Patricia... I can't say I feel bad for her but it was interesting nonetheless.

Oh no... I hope no one really nice gets assassinated.

I hope Volt does the right thing and leaves the Collective

Omg it looks like Advent's plan to invade the SAS is moving without a hitch as Beto and the Keeper are completely unaware of the ambush, decoy and traps. Yay.

Interesting to see the comparison between the Communist Party of China and the Zararch of how similar they are, made by Shun. I was wondering the same thing for a few chapters now.
Ahhhh how cute that Shun finally confessed to Nartha... I really hope they both survive and have a happy ending. Gosh I'm so sappy and vanilla.

Yay that the assassination attempt on Kaya failed.
But Damn that General Imraam being killed by a alien satellite was ugh... it was too overkill for an assassination. But I suppose "you gotta give the aliens something"
Yaaaaaaaahh. Volt and Elena are captured!

Moth#$Fuc#$%#... God! Fu$% me. Patricia is sooooooo heartless! Those Advent solders... God. That imagery of nuclear sludge covered solders fighting to the death...
But truly... This is a hell of a view. Almost makes me think it's real. And thankfully it isn't.

Yahhhhhhh! Awesome to see the Imperator is not doing anything to mend his relationship with the Battlemaster and other Etherials.
I am really starting to Love the Battlemaster and his Backbone to not bend his principles of honor in combat and righteousness in duty and honesty. I hope he joins the Advent but let's see where this takes us.

Keep up the Awesome work.

Great to be back and see you're back as well.
Nice to see the chapter starting with some much needed information on who the hell crashed the party on the end of the last chapter and prevented the final blow on Patricia. I wonder how many thousands will pay for that.

Wow the universe just got bigger. Or should I say, we have found out about multiple universes and the throne world that controls travel amongst them.

Awesome to see Flore is safe for now since the Sage King has called off the hunt for her.

T'Leth is awesomely badass to mind control an alien outpost from hundreds of thousands of miles away as a threat. I hope Busan survives the ridiculous nuclear sludge weapon the Collective is sending.

Awesome to see the Advent is on the offensive and is hammering the SAS.
I sure hope the recordings the commander is making and is saving under Prometheus isn't a death flag. I'm too emotionally attached to his ruthless pragmatism, survival till now and unusual romance with Vahlen. ;)

Haha Awesome to see the shock on Beto. And I obviously hold no love for her as she seems to accept the "egregious" actions by the Collective succinctly stated by Macula, yet Beto says "But…there was no ambiguity here.
There was only one enemy here, and it was ADVENT." Which makes her in my humble opinion a 'stupid blind bitch'.

Very good to see x-ray vision written realistically and Sierra looking awesome. Plus Dawn Conley looks adorable.
Man oh man. I always use to dread Mutons playing XCOM now Sierra is easily killing them with her bare hands as well as Cobrarians and Andromidons. Humanity has come a long way ;D.

Fire Storms! God that brings back memories. Plus is that a transformer reference "STARSCREAM Wing" because I think thats awesome :D. And a starwars reference with "SKYWALKER Wing" hot damn that awesome.

Ayyyy. Saudia's speech was epic.
Whoa... The XCOMs battle against the Bladedancers was badass. I'm wondering if there will be repracation for that.

Awesome to see the Mars invasion going well starting with the killing of the Andromedon operator. Now the Valkyrie looks epic aswell.
Damn you Overmind, getting OP all of a sudden... The Etherials are the eternal party poopers, except Quisilia ofcourse. Hopefully the XCOM squad survived on Mars and return to earth with help of T'Leth.

Hot DAMN... Saudia was super badass when talking to the cowardly neutral countrie's ministers.

Well... Stay safe and keep up the amazing work

Ok, you sir are amazing. That spee h? Perfect. Volk bieng imprisoned and being tempted i belive to fight the bringers or wild hunt also the mirror man WHAT. Thank you sir for this amazing story truly i am beyond lucky to have found this gem.

Hey king, really enjoyed this chapter. Especially the naval battle and the speech inside it. I am quite curious what advent will do with the african civvies though.
I look forward to the next chapter.