I've always enjoyed "optimizing" the beginning of games or setting myself somekind of extra challenge after beating a game once normally. And since you can just start the game and try it, trying to take as many sectors as possible on day 1 is a nice challenge, because you can keep re-trying it.

For a completely different challenge, it might be fun to try to beat the game with the "worst" mercs available or otherwise limiting yourself from the best mercs and the usual suspects like Ivan, Ice. Fidel, Magic, etc.

Its very easy one, unless something else is added to it. There is no deep problem in it even assuming nobody should be lost dead (otherwise player could just lose too weak and useless ones and proceed with better ones), if player is not restricted in game days, as slow and cautious advance work just fine (sure its harder with armored enemies).

Intentionally keeping the worst possible ones in squad for a whole game with GEAR INV on Hard is indeed not that easy (ofc we probably have to assume Skitz will kill Sparky and it will not mean end game), but i think it require way less replays to achieve than a top performance game. Go Ahead add literally nothing to its difficulty tho (less camo, what else?). Deal there is only to not let anybody die. It could require a silly boring Experience exploits maybe, as player would have nothing to do most parts of days anyway. Even if player will bans deaths and firing mercs, there is also a way to let them go away with money found in process, or by some more complicated way via letting them go away due to dissatisfaction to things going on (or we should have the be bribed to stay by the rule (what to do with ones who cannot be bribed, like Biff, will his resignation mean the game is over?)), as we have to assume that Sparky would be dead anyway (of course it could also mean she should'nt be hired at all then, and player have to wait for Elio instead). So as summary: ofc player can make game hard enough with some strict homerules, just there is desperate need to them added to make vaguely described goal of "to try to beat the game with the "worst" mercs available" any difficult on its own (even if player have remained available only best mercs in game, it still would fit description otherwise).

Btw, Turtle is great, get a hands to him and boost his phys would be a boon in such game, just he's too good for rules above.

edt: Maybe i got it wrong, as i have to assume worst as cheapest, but it obviously could mean something else. In case of some arbitrary opinion of "worst" it would also end in paradox with somebody else having different arbitrary opinion about it; and in case of "cheapest" problem is about getting a Level - does that mean that merc should be fired and changed for a next cheapest possible one (so it could mean that its a game over if some of them would gain a level).

upd: Afterthought assuming "worst = cheapest" the rule against initial "away" status of mercs is needed too, otherwise if any of cheapest merc is unavailable due to being on assignment, it would means that Kaboom is a valid option, and it will simply mean that the game is won on a first day.

I agree "worst" is not well defined and subjective (as case of Turtle shows). I don't think "worst"="cheapest", as they differ in value for money. But defining it this way is the simplest objective way. You still have to address a few problems:
- Conflicts: one reasonable solution would be that you don't hire conflicted mercs; or instantly fire the more expensive one; either way that means you get two next in line instead of Larry and Sparky. I guess that makes place for Kaboom.
- Natives: their price is zero, so probably should be included, not sure if this should mean you have to keep original Elio or be able to fire and wait for another one;
- Is beating the game instantly (with Kaboom) acceptable or do you have to capture all sectors?
- Initial availability: i think it should be asummed all non-natives are available for hire, otherwise you could just go into and out of laptop repeatedly, until you are able to hire a normal team

If you were serious about Turtle, you probably have the throwing-a-rock exploit in mind, as you can get any level of dexterity with it, although that would be laborious and painful for your real-life wrist (that shows the value of mercs depends also on some conditions like allowing of exploits). Without it, physical training is very ineffective (3 days of training and Turtle probably still has 8 APs, I think). It would be easier to get Wink to decent marksmanship, so I would prefer him. Actually, I would prefer him even with exploits allowed.

There so many addiitonal rules are possible, and they obviously could make stuff hard. Just it would be pretty silly described eventually: "its about winning with worst possible, meaning without this and that, and surely another stuff is not possible too, and other is mandatory and so on and so on etc", compared to simple "winning in X days with all sectors captured without save\loads".

Im totally forgot that Larry hate Reuban, so, strictly speaking, you may need to force player to hire them in right order, otherwise it could mean simply hiring Kaboom on a day 1, right.

Main problem is why player is assumed to keep the slot for Elio for a start. Elio is not available on a day 1. Suppose there is some merc who cost 100$, but available only from day 2, like Smoke. It would mean player should keep a place for him/her, or fire somebody coz new option is possible now? Its already something very weird to trying to definine above a "i play it this way cos i like it", to make some strict rules from it require some eccentric millionaire with own show.

Thats just 2 different types of game, speedrun or max run (max run not easily defined there too ofc, as it could include something like " completing all the quests" beside merely capturing all sectors etc).

Strictly speaking in 1.15 you have to restart a game for it, as its a pure exploit .

I meant Turtle is overall good in comparison to many other cheap weaklings, as he's improving also. Wink is way better ofc. 8 AP is not that unbearable assuming player need to capture 1-2 sectors only. Its hard to call Turtle "worst one" also because he belongs to optimal team for day 1, as he bring another Canteen (together with Biff, who hate him, eh), id say it should qualify him as one of best ones, paradoxally.

In general, I agree, it gets overly complicated to define this challange. It would probably be easier to just list specific 8 mercenaries you have to hire on day 1 and then to make them survive, capture all sectors and win.

About reentering the laptop I actually meant exactly what happens in 1.15 (I forgot how it was originally) - the number of mercenaries on side assignments increases, you could quickly arrive at a quite good team (especially with game restarting added to it).

An additional Canteen from Turtle has a high value only for the speedrun. Considering him one of the best just for that is a bit much. Personally I would put him among 8 worst in general. Maybe that's just my opinion (and it surely depends on what kind of game you play).

Right, but also shitload of other rules aswell. Id say realize why all of that stuff about worst mercs have any value on its own is a challenge on itself.

Right, silly me, ofc it treated reversed way there. The only difference is that without patch mercs already away on a side assignments will have a chance to become suddenly free to hire, so exploit you're about is possible there the same way, just could require more tries.

Right, mostly its a joke about "arbitrary worst" mercs. But really, how come he is not one of the best, if he actually improve the best ever squad? I mean its about some sorta definition of best or so (ofc he's not so good under other rules, maybe even "among 8 worst in general" indeed, not checked).

Hello again. I'm playing 1.13b and something really weird just happened. I took Sector 17 and there was this 68 strength locked door here (the one that leads to the room where the Chunk of Steel is). I didn't have the key and couldn't pick the lock, so I waited for the guards to arrive and then went back to S16 to take all the keys that dropped there and see if any of them would fit. But when I returned to S17, the door was already opened for some reason. Have you had a similar bug happen in your playthroughs? And do you maybe know what could've caused this?

No. There is a trigger on a wall to open that door.

Oh, so that's what it was. Yeah, I must've activated it while searching for hidden loot. Thanks!

Two problems in one save:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/xnrke3ofqf3jlzp/QUICK.SAV?dl=0

1. Dying enemy still standing, I don't think I have ever seen something like this.
2. Tear gas cloud still appears (although does no harm) indoor after tear gas had been thrown to a tile adjacent to door from north (problem related to doors?)

Crap stuff, well. I cannot reproduce nothing of it yet, and while tear gas one is rather harmless, other is really sad one.
Maybe you would be able to recall something else?
1. Who shot that guy down? Did you seen the bullet hit, and then nothing happend, or he just reappeared next turn again? UPD: I think i got this one - you killed him with small hit of some grenade, while he was in really low HP already, will check more, but looks like its good original bug, unnoticed prior because enemies had no armor usually.
2. Door was open or closed the moment tear gas initially blasted? There was no other tear gases thrown around that turn? Very ideally that tile the stuff landed, directly north of door or diagonal?

1. Yes, Hurl threw a MolotovCocktail at him. Maybe this might happen if enemy's health is exactly zero? Notice that also some players cannot see him, although they can kill him (kill him again, so will that score another kill?)
2. The door was open, opened by an enemy. Tear gas was aimed at directly north of door, no 100% guarantee it landed there, but I think so. No other tear gases at all.

1. Yes, already confirmed and fixed, great find from you as usual. It happens if merc die from explosion, that do not actually dropped him to ground; its when explosion is not in his square and deals less than 6 damage. Sadly they way authors did the game, animations are involved into game mechanics; and here, as no animation being triggered for such case, merc simply never get to a moment death process should happens (as the way they did it for non-water deaths, it assumed that merc would fall to ground in process). Just without armor options such case would be really rare to happen, as it require both to deal very little amount of damage and that damage should already push a merc into dying state.
All other things about seeing are merely consequences of bug, they not expected to happens in normal conditions. The way they did it, they arent really consistent, some places care for 0 HP mercs, some not. Say, thats why he dont die on his own - they dont check about bleeding damage if merc is already at 0 HP, so he cannot die from it. They also check for it in explosion - so he cannot be killed by grenades anymore. They do not check for bullets or knives - so he possible to be killed this way (note, "again" is not a right word there, that enemy is still alive). He's invisible on map view, cos they again check there, but not check in regular view, etc. But the problem there is wrong condition itself, all those anomalies goes away with a fix.

2. Sadly no success in reproducing it still. It goes away just fine for me no matter i tried. That enemy who opened a door, he died prior of tear gas was thrown, or while cloud stayed, or after it gone already or so etc?
UPD: actually i managed to reproduce it, but only in pretty special circumstances, with Enemy merc's involvement likely being mandatory (as only Enemies could close a doors normally, with exception of a rare door close triggers):
Enemy should open the door; TearGas should be thrown near door the way it will spread into room; Enemy should close the door while TearGas cloud is still on.
Any other way it just work fine for me, please, tell if it could be something you indeed encountered in process of creating that save.