Soldier relations | Game mechanics XCOM 2: War of the Chosen Game Guide
Last update: 31 August 2017
The War of the Chosen expansion introduces an interesting game mechanic - Soldier Bonds. The soldiers whom you send on missions develop bonds and earn each other's trust (as reflected by the compatibility bar). After a few such missions, the player can choose to develop a bond - a close relation that's not just a cosmetic change; it provides culpable, sometimes very powerful, advantages.
Bonds-based bonuses
The bond begins with level 1 when it's first established. After that it can be further developed by sending soldiers on operations, as well as by finishing some missions for the Resistance (Guerilla Ops). The soldiers who formed bonds will receive the following bonuses:
Bond level | Bonus |
1 | Soldiers can give each other 1 extra action point (once every mission). This way, a soldier can cover a longer distance, or attack twice in the first round. |
2 | If the soldiers are sent to a Guerilla mission, it will take one day less. The soldier earns a bonus for accuracy if his companion is attacked or has attacked a target. Additional bonus is given when both of them are next to each other. If a soldier completes a move standing directly at his comrade, then the latter will be cured of all negative mental effects. |
3 | Soldiers can offer each other 1 additional action point (2 times during a mission). Thanks to this, one of the soldiers can cover a greater distance, or attack twice in one round. Soldiers are able to perform a dual attack on the target. The attack consumes activation points of the soldier, who initiated the attack, but it is free for the other one. |
As you can see, these bonuses get pretty powerful, so you should make sure to take many soldiers with developed bonds for missions - this will make your whole team more effective. In a critical situation you will always be able to resort to the additional action points.
How to establish and develop bonds
As we've already established, it's absolutely enough to send the soldiers on a couple missions in order for them to create a bond. With each finished mission, the compatibility bar will increase (you can check that by selecting a soldier and then clicking on "bonds"). When it reaches the top, a pop-up command will tell you that the soldiers are now able to form a bond. Just click that icon and choose the other soldier to create a bond. Both soldiers will establish a level 1 bond.
Keep sending them on missions to develop the bond. Reaching subsequent levels is much slower - you need around a dozen missions to reach level 2, and even more for level 3. It's much easier to just send them on a Guerilla Operation, which, if they manage to complete it, will automatically raise the bond one level up. This lets you save a lot of effort.
There's one more problem with increasing the bond levels - it's impossible without a Training Center. This facility is a new addition introduced by the War of the Chosen expansion, and it allows unlocking additional soldier abilities (about which you can learn more in the chapter devoted to skill points) and developing bonds. Just build the facility, send the soldiers there and establish a bond. After a few days, the soldiers will come back to duty and the bond will be raised one level up.
Let's conclude with a few other factors that will help you develop bonds:
- There's no point using Guerilla Ops to form a level-1 bond. It's better to send them to a couple missions and let them reach it themselves, and use these Ops for reaching level 2 and 3, since they require a lot more time.
- Try to create 2-3 full squads of soldiers and send them to missions. They will create bonds, hence significantly increasing their offensive potential and providing more tactical possibilities.
- Each soldier can only participate in a singe bond - think twice when you chose the soldiers.