The Extraterrestrial Combat Unit, formed by the Council of Nations as a contingency against the possibility of hostile alien life, and reactivated in the wake of the Ethereal Collective's invasion of Earth. Originally, XCOM's mandate was to carry out the will of the Council of Nations, but became independent following the events of The Atlas Protocol.

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Organization Tropes

It's the Only Way to Be Sure: The Zeus Contingency, which responds to a failed ground mission with mass bombardment of the operational area to deny alien victories.
N.G.O. Superpower: XCOM under The Commander has a fully developed intelligence operations branch capable of altering world events, a near-monopoly on the most powerful alien technology including psionic powers, and a full suite of weapons of mass destruction including chemical and nuclear arms.
Would Not Shoot a Civilian: Averted. As is frequently noted, "civilians are not a priority" for XCOM and early on the Thanatos Contingency is enacted, permitting XCOM soldiers to kill any person who obstructs their mission.

The Internal Council

The Commander

A CIA operative sent to bring an end to the War on Terror, a task which he accomplished through mass atrocity and terror and was condemned for. After surrendering to ensure the survival of his subordinates, the UN faked his death and hid him away for the day that they might need to use him again. When Earth was invaded, he was placed in command of XCOM and returned to war with the same ruthlessness he always had.

A Father to His Men: Perhaps the Commander's highest held principle is the good treatment of his subordinates, who he provides high autonomy and no restrictions other than those he sees as necessary. It takes a catastrophic loss in the war for him to even make genetic enhancement mandatory for XCOM soldiers.
Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": He is exclusively referred to as the Commander, either in reference to his role in the War on Terror, or as the Commander of XCOM. His real name is never mentioned - not even by his closest friends - and when he does technically have a name of his own in the text, it's because he takes Vahlen's family name after marrying her.
Friendly Sniper: Downplayed, but he is always nothing less than fair to the people under him, and sniper rifles are a noted favorite of his. This applies even after becoming a psion, since he takes to launching bullet-sized alloy balls with his telekinesis.
Frontline General: When the aliens attack Hamburg, he heads to the field with them, helping coordinate efforts to repel the forces spreading terror through the city.
I Did What I Had to Do: Claims he takes no pleasure in committing atrocities, and simply follows the most effective path to victory without emotional involvement.
I Gave My Word: Will always keep to an agreement if he offers one, and for that reason is very particular about his terms and when he extends such an offer.
Military Maverick: Always focused on outside-the-box strategies, including those which are generally considered illegal, and does not stand on much formality or regulation for his subordinates.
Mind over Matter: His main psionic specialization.
My God, What Have I Done?: During his conversation with Nero, he learns that his wife was pregnant when he executed her for treason, and refrained from telling him. This single piece of information leaves him on the verge of a Heroic BSoD, but what makes it worse is the realization that he would have likely executed her even if she did tell him. On a (somewhat) more hopeful note, however, that same thought is what ultimately pushes him to try and lead XCOM down a better path.
- Come Advent Directive, he has another moment when he sees the full extent of the ADVENT military's actions during Scipio, Deus Vult, and other operations; actions which the ADVENT Directive (which he himself had a large hand in devising) implicitly allowed. He immediately makes efforts to help steer ADVENT towards a better path as a result.
Official Couple: With Dr. Vahlen, as of Atlas Protocol.
The Unfettered: To the greatest extreme possible. The Commander disregards the idea of morality as idealism and will undertake any action he deems to be necessary. In the War on Terror, this involved nuking cities and mass crucifixion of terrorist relatives and sympathisers, including of children. In the alien war, this included human experimentation, terror attacks against nations complying with the aliens, and uniting the world under his personal vision of perfect government.

John Bradford

Central Officer of XCOM, Bradford serves as the second-in-command and organizes solider deployments. Thoroughly a soldier's soldier, Bradford doesn't take any emotional investment in the war, but is also not dedicated to the Commander's worldview.

Killed Off for Real: Torn apart by the Ravaged One's psionics while defending the Citadel's command center near the end of Atlas Protocol.
Number Two: For much of Hades Contingency, he is second in XCOM's command hierarchy if the Commander is unavailable. Van Doorn takes over this trope after becoming Deputy Commander.

Moira Vahlen

One of the world's foremost scientific minds, Dr. Moira Vahlen was thought to have been a victim of the War on Terror. In truth, she had merely gone underground to work directly for the Council of Nations, which led her to XCOM. Though initially accustomed to working within the usual ethical restrictions of research, the Commander's irreverent attitude towards limitation in war soon awakens in Vahlen a cold and obsessive passion towards radical projects.

Agent Scully: Only once, towards the start of Hades Contingency; she's initially reluctant to accept that psionics are a thing. She soon changes her mind, however.
Mad Scientist: By the time she's experimenting on humans and creating a virus to wipe out the sectoids, it's clear that Vahlen loves what she does.
Playing with Syringes: Ends up being her primary way to test and refine XCOM's genemods.
Sarcasm-Blind: Towards the start of the story.
Telepathy: Her main psionic specialization when she awakens her talents.

Raymond Shen

The Chief Engineer of XCOM, Dr. Raymond Shen worked at DARPA before being called to join the secretive organization. He is one of the more morally principled elements of the Internal Council, even as his role as a member of the Internal Council earns him a look into the moral ambiguity of the military and intelligence world.

The Engineer: Creates the majority of breakthrough equipment used in the war, including gauss weaponry, MEC soldiers, and the WHEEE. The latter two are some of the only non-psionic weapons which are able to threaten Ethereals.
Killed Off for Real: Dies at Patricia's hands after the battle of Beijing, in Advent Directive.
Internal Reformist: Occasionally steers the Internal Council towards attempting less radical solutions before resorting to the Commander's preference.
Morality Chain: Beyond his engineering duties, he serves as one to the Commander on the Internal Council, advocating for a greater degree of accountability in XCOM's contingencies.

Shaojie Zhang

A former member of the Triads, Zhang betrayed them for assisting alien infiltrators and thereafter was rescued by XCOM. After refusing to turn him over to the UN, the Commander employed Zhang's rare talents in the establishment of XCOM Intelligence, which serves to steer world events in XCOM's favor.

Consummate Professional: Like the Commander, Zhang acts in whatever matter he believes is necessary, and unlike the Commander he almost never displays regret for those actions.
Defector from Decadence: Betrayed the Triads due to their short-sightedness in assisting the alien invaders.
The Spymaster: This is the role he fills for XCOM, as commander of XCOM's Intelligence Division.
Unscrupulous Hero

Peter Van Doorn

NATO General Peter Van Doorn served as one of the major figures of the War on Terror, and his name became as beloved as the Commander's was reviled. During the alien war, Doorn is rescued from an alien ambush by XCOM, and thereafter joins the organization in order to help against the alien threat, becoming XCOM's Deputy Commander. Though they greatly differ in perspective on a considerable number of matters, the Commander holds great respect for Doorn on account of his effectiveness and loyalty to his forces.

Badass Boast: Has an amazing one in Chapter 21 of Hades Contingency, in response to the possibility of disapproval by NATO for joining XCOM:
"I am Peter Van Doorn. I do not give a damn what they want. Matters of significance require my presence, and I do not follow orders blindly. It's time they remember that. That they remember the Nightmare of Abbas."
Defector from Decadence: Joins XCOM in protest of the Council infighting while humanity faces an existential threat.
Four-Star Badass: Almost universally respected for being able to balance the demands of war with ethical demands during the War on Terror. Even the Commander admires his good judgement, despite their disagreements.
Good Is Not Soft: He has his disagreements with the Commander, and is an advocate for a more conciliatory and idealistic approach compared to the former in things like handling spies. When it comes to dealing with EXALT, however, he reveals himself to be just as ruthless as the Commander, if not moreso.
Killed Off for Real: The Ravaged One kills him during the attack on the Citadel.
Number Two: Quickly becomes this to the Commander upon joining the Internal Council.
Red Baron: His deeds in the War on Terror earned him the title of Nightmare of Abbas.
Secret-Keeper: After Van Doorn joins XCOM, the Commander reveals his true identity to the General in their first conversation, making him the only element of XCOM besides Nero who really knows the truth during Hades Contingency.

Herman Diederick

Herman Diederick, Strategic Commander of XCOM

Ariel Jackson

Initially an analyst working under Bradford, Jackson's services in cybersecurity and intelligence work earn her a promotion to the Internal Council as XCOM's Chief Analyst, and later succeeding Bradford as Central Officer.

Patricia Trask (UNMARKED SPOILERS)

Patricia Trask

One of the early XCOM soldiers, Patricia Trask comes into greater prominence after the discovery of human psionics, which reveals her as one of the most powerful human psions ever discovered. After spearheading research into the psionic arts, she joins the Internal Council as its Psion Representative. Following several telepathic conversations and blackmail from the Imperator, Trask learns the truth about the state of the galaxy and defects from XCOM to become Harbinger of the Imperator.

Best Friend: With Paige Broker, early in Hades Contingency.
Face–Heel Turn: After learning of the true nature of the Sovereigns and their conflict, she accepts the Imperator's offer to fight by his side as Harbinger of the Imperator.
Mind Control: Her specialty as a Telepath psion.
More than Mind Control: Subjected to this due to a combination of the Imperator's loyalty aura and learning the true insignificance of Earth to the Ethereals.
Power Levels: The Trask Scale, named after her, rates her at an 84 out of 100. This makes her the second most powerful human psion to date.
Psychic-Assisted Suicide: Her specialty for wide-ranging attacks is to compel suicidal impulses, which against non-psionic aliens is irresistible.
Wrong Side All Along: Comes to believe this of XCOM after learning about the Sovereign Ones and the state of the universe, as well as the Imperator's plan to overthrow them.

Anius Creed

As one of XCOM's longest-serving soldiers through the war, Anius Creed's experience leads XCOM to choose him to fill the vacant position of Military Advisor soon after the Battle of the Citadel.

Iosif Bronis

Initially a soldier like any other, Iosif's path in XCOM started with the attack on the Alien Base, where he discovered his psionic affinity. After fully unlocking it, he discovered his talent for defensively-oriented psionics, becoming one of XCOM's most proficient psions, and later rising to the rank of Psion Overseer after Patricia's abduction.

Kong Mercado

An EXALT engineer before the organization's dissolution, Kong is selected to assume the position of Chief Engineer of XCOM, succeeding Shen.

The Engineer: Fills this role within the Internal Council, in the wake of Shen's demise.

Nartha

Zar'nartha'intha

The sole alien member of the Internal Council. Nartha was initially a spy for the Vitakara (AKA "Thin Men") Zararch sent to infiltrate XCOM, but he eventually turned himself in, providing XCOM with valuable information on the Ethereal Collective's inner workings. In return, XCOM made use of him as a spy on Collective territory, before eventually returning to Earth, where he was appointed as the head of XCOM's Chimera Division.

Deep Cover Agent: Even describes himself as one during his interrogation.
Defector from Decadence: One of the main reasons he turns himself in is because he feels the Ethereals are treating humanity as unreasonable warmongers like the Mutons, when his experience as a spy tells him they are much more like his own people and could have been diplomatically assimilated.
Official Couple: With fellow XCOM soldier Shun Anwei, as of Chapter 66 of Advent Directive.

XCOM Soldiers

Introduced in Hades Contingency

Liam Jaster

One of the first soldiers seen under XCOM, Liam was a Russian counter-terrorist operative prior to joining the paramilitary project, where he becomes one of its most reliable infantrymen.

Never Found the Body: He is last seen falling through the Dreadnought in Hades Contingency. Come Advent Directive, it turns out the Collective got a hold of him and took him to the Hall of Steel, where Fectorian resuscitated him.
Odd Friendship: He (a stoic, no-nonsense veteran counter-terrorist) forms one with Abby (a comparatively more chipper and idealistic newbie) over the course of the story, with hints of Ship Tease. And on Fectorian's Blacksite, he does the same thing with the AI version of her, the Ship Tease elements becoming ever so slightly more prominent.
The Stoic: He's less emotionally expressive than most of the other soldiers. When he shows up in Fectorian's Blacksite, he's somewhat more open, though this may be more because of him being with Abigail.
Walking Spoiler: It's understandably very difficult to speak about his role in Advent Directive without revealing the fact that he survived Operation Gangplank.

Shawn Cage

An assault trooper hailing from the French Army, and one of the more laid-back soldiers under XCOM.

And Then John Was a Zombie: His fate at the hands of the aliens in Hamburg, shortly before birthing a shiny new Chryssalid.
Berserk Button: Willfully killing innocent civilians in battle is as close to one as he has. This comes to a head in Hamburg, as the sight of the wanton mass murder of people by Thin Men and Chryssalids drives him to anger.
Close-Range Combatant: As an Assault, he specializes in this.
The Gadfly: He's perhaps the most humorous of XCOM's early soldiers. One highlight goes to his "aesthetic improvements" to the Silent Sniper's helmet (that being a smiley face).
Heroic Sacrifice: Charges in to save some civilians from pursuing Chryssalids in Hamburg, at the cost of his life.
Official Couple: Forms one with Carmelita. It doesn't last.

Myra Rodriguez

A Mexican GAFE soldier with a strong moral core, and one of the first soldiers recruited upon the XCOM program's activation.

Paige Broker

A combat engineer who joined XCOM alongside Patricia.

Best Friend: With Patricia; she's one of the few people who gets along with the English Gunner in the early chapters.
The Engineer: Her combat specialization in XCOM.
Playful Hacker: One of her main specialties.
We Hardly Knew Ye: Dies only five chapters after her introduction, at the hands of two Outsiders.

Mira Vauner

Mira is one of the more reserved (and dangerous) soldiers in XCOM's roster, having been a part of the Mossad's Kidon unit prior to joining the secretive organization.

Dark and Troubled Past: She and her unit (including her husband) were captured by the Caliphate and tortured during the War on Terror. She was subjected to experiments in the field of disguise surgery (the results of which are described in Facial Horror below), while her friends suffered slow and humiliating deaths. She considers herself one of the lucky ones.
Facial Horror: The result of the Caliphate's "experiments", which left her with a face quite literally stripped of any skin. She's actually described as looking closer to a skull than a human being.
Heroic Sacrifice: She throws herself in the path of a Thin Man's shot aimed at Abby. She manages to put down said Thin Man before dying, plus a few others.
Official Couple: With Luke Warner near the end of Hades Contingency.
The Quiet One

Luke Warner

A battle scout with XCOM. Formerly a renowned Olympian athlete from Germany, Luke is one of the first soldiers called to join XCOM, though the circumstances behind his presence are more dire than most; imprisoned by the Chinese government for killing the son of a dignitary, he was offered the chance to serve XCOM, though it would mean a mandatory death sentence after a single year of service.

Bait-and-Switch: In his first mission and its aftermath, it's hinted that he has some form of psionic potential, with the implication that he will be humanity's first psion. The assault on the Dreadnought reinforces this further. He dies partway through said mission, and Patricia ends up becoming XCOM's first soldier to unlock her psionic talents.
Explosive Leash: The Chinese government implants an explosive on his neck, programmed to explode after a year. The Commander immediately has Engineering work on a way to remove said explosive. Luke asks Mira to detonate it during the assault on the Dreadnought.
The Lost Lenore: His wife, victim of an accident.
Official Couple: With Mira Vauner towards the end of Hades Contingency.
The Stoic: Not to the same degree as Liam, but he's more reserved than your usual soldier.
Taking You with Me: He has Mira detonate the explosive on his neck to take out the squad of Thin Men that shoots him down in the alien Dreadnought.
Your Days Are Numbered: The condition for his service with XCOM is that he would only have one more year of life left.

Nero

A sniper who was once part of the Commander's team during the War on Terror, and broke away for an unspecified motive. The Council got a hold of him after the War on Terror, sending him to XCOM when the program was activated.

Cold Sniper: He is a sniper, and a loner who vastly prefers to keep to himself.
The Mole: He was planted by the Council to keep an eye on the Commander and kill him if he ever got out of line.
My God, What Have I Done?: Oh boy. During his conversation with the Commander, it's abundantly clear the events of the War on Terror have left deep scars on him, physical and otherwise. To say nothing of the fact that he watched the Commander kill his own wife and (unknowingly) unborn child, and did nothing to try and prevent it.
The Quiet One: Hardly ever speaks during missions, bordering on Elective Mute. His conversation with the Commander late in Hades Contingency is the most we ever see him talk.
Talking with Signs: He knows ASL, which he learned in order to talk with his deaf sister and later adapted to use while working with the Commander.

Vicky Ramsey

One of XCOM's first soldiers, coming from the Canadian Rangers, and the first of XCOM's many casualties over the course of the war.

Adaptation Expansion: The 2022 Edition of Hades Contingency gives her a slightly larger role in the chapter she's in, giving some exposition on Canada's domestic affairs with the Inuits, as well as their Prime Minister.
We Hardly Knew Ye: She dies on the very same chapter she's introduced in.

Carmelita Alba

An elite black ops operative from South Korea.

Blood Knight: Gradually develops a taste for killing aliens as the war progresses, stemming from Shawn's death in Hamburg.
Close-Range Combatant: As befitting an assault trooper.
Official Couple: Briefly forms one with Shawn before his untimely death.

Marten El-Amin

The youngest soldier to join XCOM in its early days, Marten served within Iran's Imperial Guard prior to his recruitment. Despite his enthusiasm and initial nosiness, he soon proves to be a legitimately skilled and reliable soldier on the field.

Introduced in Atlas Protocol

Soran Kakusa

Samuel Roche

Shun Anwei

Galia Loeb

Jamali Muhammad

Annette Durand

A French woman abducted by EXALT for the purposes of psionic experimentation, Annette is the latest of four test subjects to have their psionic powers awakened. She finds a way out shortly afterwards, fleeing across half the world while catching up to the reality of EXALT, XCOM and the alien war that sprung up while she was held captive.

Blessed with Suck: Her psionics are more offensively oriented, translating into manifestations of highly caustic energy. This unfortunately means that every time she uses her powers, she inflicts severe burns on her own hands.
Ludicrous Gibs: Her fate at the hands of the Ravaged One during the Base Assault.

Latrell Moreau

Sierra Morrow

Introduced in Advent Directive

Oliver Ilari

An old NATO veteran, brought into XCOM's service at the beginning of Advent Directive. Though willing to defend Earth from an invading Collective, Oliver is among XCOM's more skeptical soldiers, not entirely on board with the global changes to the status quo brought forth by ADVENT's official establishment.

Nuan Kun

Geist

Geist (formerly known as Lukas Von Theil)

Kane McTaggart

Kunio Azuma

Once a regular ADVENT soldier like any other, Kunio unwittingly tapped into his psionic power for the first time during the Collective's invasions of Japan. Said power turned out to be that of teleportation, an exceedingly rare talent by human standards. As the first human psion capable of teleportation, he was soon brought into XCOM, as one of the reinforcements following the attack of the Imperator's Harbinger on the Praesidium.

Dawn Conley

Much like Kunio, Dawn was the first noted psion capable of employing a psionic discipline - in her case, biopathy - rare enough to warrant bringing her into XCOM, in spite of her age; at eighteen, she's by far the youngest soldier ever conscripted by the program.

XCOM Intelligence

Abigail Gertrude

Abigail "Abby" Gertrude

Initially one of the youngest and least experienced soldiers in XCOM's roster, Abby's skills as a combat medic/surgeon made her nonetheless invaluable to her teammates. However, after the loss of a close friend during Operation Gangplank, she ends up reconsidering her role within XCOM, applying to join its Intelligence branch instead.

Combat Medic: As is customary for XCOM's Medics, she fills this role as a soldier.

Ruth Shira

Kalonymous

Akello

Jochern Schwarz

Chimera Division

Aegis

The last surviving member of the Aegis of the Ethereal Empire, Aegis gradually came to oppose the Imperator for drifting from their goal of defeating the Synthesized and an unnecessary invasion of Earth. After providing clandestine assistance to XCOM for some time, he eventually defected wholesale to protect humanity from the Ethereal Collective.

Ape Shall Not Kill Ape: As an Aegis, he swore never to take the life of another Ethereal. The other species of the Collective, however...
Battle Aura: Like all other Ethereals. His creates feelings of confidence and security in those effected.
Defector from Decadence: One of the few Ethereals with ethical objections to the Imperator's actions, and the only one to have acted on them.
Deflector Shields: His specialty as an Aegis, which can be individual or as large as the horizon.
Friendly Enemy: Took this role with the Commander before defecting, having provided him both the Ethereal language and advance warning of Collective attacks.
Power Levels: Rates 134 of 100 on the Trask Scale, which he breaks due to being an Ethereal.
Resign in Protest: His outright treason against the Ethereal Collective is treated this way by the other ethereals, and seen as a mere protest against the Imperator's polices towards other species which he will easily return from once humanity has surrendered.

Xarian

Rava'xarian'hegemon

An Oyariah defector and former Ravager of the Hegemony, Xarian joined XCOM out of a desire to serve under the same organization that saw an Ethereal defect from the Collective. His loyalty and experience made him a valuable element of XCOM, and a natural pick to oversee combat operations within Chimera.

Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: One of his weapons of choice.

Calintha

Sci'calintha'valian

The Chimera Division's manager of Research Operations, a Vitakarian scientist who has worked with XCOM on plasma weaponry, among other projects.

Spartacus

A vat-grown Muton, created by XCOM as part of a plan to address the complete and utter subjugation of the Mutons at the hands of the Collective.

Berserk Button: The Collective's treatment of their Mutons on Desolan is a major one for him.
Genius Bruiser: He was designed with a significant basis on Muton Sargons and Praetorians, so this is obviously a given. He may very well be the most intelligent member of the Chimera Division.

Characters / Xabiarverse XCOM

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