XTA
What is XTA?
XTA is one of the original mods for Spring, and the one many players feel is "more OTA than OTA itself" due the authentic OTA feel combined with the Spring engine.
With only a few units added from OTA, most notably the Sub Pen, XTA is able to refine the original units. Having been around since the dawn of Spring, the mod has been balanced for over five years allowing the gradual introduction of new units. No mod is perfect, but XTA has been debated to be the most balanced TA mod of all time, even more so than Balanced Annihilation.
What are the positives?
Here are just some of the many good aspects of XTA
As already mentioned, XTA has had time to develop and its relativly low unit count means every unit is used and can be balanced accordingly. However, unlike most mods, in XTA every unit has its place and is used often. Some may seem to be more useful than others however the best players are able to decide which unit is best. However, one of XTA's strengths is that it is not always which unit but how it is used.
XTA is more micro orientated as units have more health than other mods. This enables players to keep units alive. This also prevents spam as many units can be lost to a few well microed ones.
One of XTA's best selling points is the Commander. Being the first mod in Spring to offer the ability to morph the Commander, XTA games are heavily orientated around this historic figure from OTA. Players will use their Commanders on the front line however the versitlity of the Commander means it is able to be used by all types of players; Aggressive, tactical, defencive, economical and many more. Morphing allows players to invest in their Commanders for resources/experience to keep up with the Tech race.
Very much similar to Spring itself, XTA has a friendly community. However the XTA community is relativly small which allows for balance talks to be held within a group. However, this also allows all players to know each other making games more between friends than foes. It also has one of the most active clan systems.
XTA has a tough learning curve making it difficult for a new player, however an intelligent player will quickly learn when to build what, may it be lab or unit. It also gives the opportunity to rebuild your base after an attack. This makes XTA a mod constantly keeping the player enteratained and challenged. With different tactics being discovered all the time users have many ideas to choose from of how to start their game.
The XTA community is always willing to listen to suggestions. The current forum can be found[1]. From there you will be able to read on the latest plans of XTA here, read the change log, and contribute your own ideas on the mod itself. Something not to your liking about the current XTA? Talk about, maybe have it changed! Many balance issues are discussed from the introduction of new units to the changing of a single unit's DPS.
What are the negatives?
Obviously, there are some negatives with any game, and XTA is no exception. However every player has a different view on what is a negative.
XTA is, despite being faster than OTA, seen to be a slow mod. Units move slower and due to the higher health, take longer to die. This allows for the player to have more impact and give a more tactical input, however is not for everyone's liking.
In recent versions, due to the Commander becoming more powerful both stats wise and by the increase in Commander tactics by players, XTA has become sysnoymous with the Commander. This has led to it being labelled an "RPG RTS" as in some circumstances the Commander resembles a "Hero" unit without the abilities. With extreme cases of micro, the Commander has become Over Powered to some. This issue is being addressed for the next balance.
The tough learning curve of XTA means a lot of players find it difficult to start. The community is happy to help any new player willing to listen to advice however a newbie may learn how to play the hard way as XTA is unforgiving.
History
XTA was a balance mod for TA, developed by the SY clan.
For spring, it was the first mod available to the public for online play, the first that was ported and is what comes with the installation of the Spring engine ready to play.
The mod has gone through many developers, starting with the [SY] clan with the most ancient and famous to the oldest of players, SJ; and then moving onto other users. Most notably Noize, a founder of BA and the [KnoX] clan who worked on the mod. Noize started XTA's modern look, with upated graphics and flash explosions (XTA Pimped Edition), which he would later unnecessary and extremely laggy. A short time afterward the [KnoX] clan, the leading XTA clan ran by Myg and Gizmo starting to devolop the mod. For a short time a major debate became visible that XTA was KnoX's mod now, this would be shortly dismissed.
After [KnoX] disbanded XTA was still maintained until Noruas began upkeep of the mod. With XTA 7.1 being seen as a watershed moment due to the peak of XTA's playerbase due to the decline of AA and rise of BA, so too can XTA 8.1. With some debate to wether the current XTA is the best, the two main contenders would be 7.1 and 8.1. With 8.1 came updated graphics and what many players remember as "The golden days" whereas 7.1 was the hayday of XTA itself.
Noruas has introduced more units than any other modder of XTA, improved graphics and dragged XTA through the new Spring versions. With the community split about where they stand on many of his somewhat radical ideas, Noruas has certainly added to XTA.
Noruas still maintains XTA however is constrained by personal life. Players contribute and offer help on a multitude of scales most notable Raaar and Deadnightwarrior.
How to get involved
XTA is proud to be a community-run development program.
Devolpment of the mod is done by the community with everyone's views being respected, feel free to visit the forum and ask questions, suggest or discuss balance issues.
You can join the #xta channel to find other XTA players and see if anyone wishes for a game. There is nearly always an AutoHost, Helium, maintained by Det, hosting XTA.
Newer versions will continue to be released to incorporate more detailed visual effects/or models as the Spring Engine develops.
If you wish to learn the basics of XTA, you can read guides such as:
For some commented XTA games please feel free to visit here to get a feel of the game.
EyeCandy
XTA is arguably the best-looking mod in terms of graphics. With new unit models and new explosion/smoke effects being released with every update, the XTA mod keeps up to date with the Spring Engine and what it has to offer.
Here are some pictures of what XTA has to offer:
Alternativly, you can view some clips of XTA in action [here].
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