So are the extra weapons, massive funding in the beginning, extended Skyranger, and larger maps all part of your own mod, or are they in OpenXcom?
It's my own mod. Current features:
Geoscape:
-More realistic prices - aircraft are bought not rented and cost tens of millions of dollars. Interceptor and Skyranger AWACS cost 150 million and Skyranger costs 60 million.
-Radar ranges are smaller - so it's necessary to immediately start building lots of bases.
-Funding is higher because the upper two. Also, underfunded earth defence organization would be silly.
-Most of research times are 10x longer.
-Researching lasers and most of alien technologies requires researched Elerium.
-Some upgrades of X-Com items become available after research of some alien stuff. Heavy cannon and autocannon become available after researching alien alloys.
-No female agents.
-Much better agent stamina.
-Agents are more expensive but better trained (that is less failures that need to be fired).
-Aliens now have 20 points higher accuracy and reactions. I'll have to increase it, I think.
-Aliens have no blaster launchers. Now whole fusion missile tree is an X-com technology.
-Manufacture times of small items are much faster.
Battlescape:
-No heavy cannon/autocannon in the beginning.
-All human HE weapons assumed to be thermobaric due to how the explosion mechanics work.
-It's possible to fire two aimed shots per turn from most of weapons.
-Old rocket launcher is renamed missile launcher and can be fired only aimed at cost of 95% tu.
-Various modifications of weapon damage. For example Rifle has power of 22. It's to bring it in line with lethality stats of RL rifles.
-Vision range is now 100m.
-Maps are 100x100m.
-Terror sites have ~100 civilians.
-Alien grenades have power of 750 and blast radius of 20m.
-Starting Power Source explosions are much more powerful.
So researching an item would be possible only if the alien using it was captured?
<palpatine>good, good!</palpatine>
But once an item is researched, it should be also lootable from killed aliens. Is such an option supported?
It simulates weapon self-destructing when the wielder dies, so probably no.
That too, but the inferior numbers do make it unfair IMHO. Althrough I do think Battleships have around the same numbers of the expanded Skyranger or a Avenger.
I think that UFOs are simply much less efficient than X-Com craft. Which includes carrying less soldiers. Practically speaking, only a Battleship is an equivalent of X-Com craft when it comes to function.
The rest are just aliens minding their own business. Scout craft, experimentation craft, craft for terrorist actions, etc.