Sectoid
Sectoids are an alien race from the X-COM series.
Contents |
History
Original Timeline
The Sectoids had a long and well documented history amongst the Human race which preceded the First Alien War. They were primarily responsible for reported abductions of Humans and cattle mutilations that go as far back as 1948. It was only during the latter stages of the 20th century were their existence confirmed and the nature of their threat revealed. They proved to be the most common and familiar of the alien races encountered by the Extraterrestrial Combat Unit. Similar to the other alien species, the Sectoids were crippled when their base on Cydonia Mars was destroyed by X-COM which killed the alien Brain in charge of the species. The Enforcer after it was activated by Professor Able Standard encountered Sectoids and other aliens invading its creators laboratories and worked to eliminate them. Once the High Ethereal was killed, the Sectoids and their allies were seemingly defeated at the conclusion of the First Alien War.
During the Second Alien War, their aquatic cousins known as the Aquatoids operated on Earth from the alien city of T'leth but after its destruction the threat posed by them ended. Despite the defeat of the aliens, their first wave of incursions led to many genetic experiments in crossbreeding between themselves as Humanity. This led to the emergence of hybrids who survived the defeat of the Sectoids and this race of cross breeds continued to live in Human city though they were denied the right to procreate within the confines of the city. Due to their nature, they suffered discrimination in both employment and educational fields. These members of the Mutant Alliance were largely genetically similar to Humans though they retained the Sectoids facial appearance and also possessed psionic talent though this made them a source of renown and distrust. The Mutant Alliance was active in city politics and sought to promote the concerns of the mutant community. Some of their members even joined the ranks of X-COM
Years later, when Humanity entered the stars and began exploring the Frontier, they once again encountered the Alien menace where the Sectoids returned as fighter pilots that fought against mankind. At some point in this era, a small colony of Sectoid-Human hybrids were discovered living in the sewers as well as the catacombs beneath the ruins of the Roswell Urban Complex in New Mexico. X-COM Psi-Squad troopers after investigating reports of worker illness took the 456 members of the hybrid mutant community to the Galactic Science Corps Labs in X-COM's Central City base of operations at Illinois desert for observation. This led to the discovery that the hybrids origins were before the start of the First Alien War and that it may go as far back as 1947 when a report was discovered of an alien ship crash in the desert near Roswell. Later, the Sectoid-Human hybrids began to demand to be set free though the official word from X-COM was that until the mutants origins were discovered, they were considered a security risk and thus needed to be contained.
This later attracted the attention of the Cult of Sirius who were an alien sympathizer group formed in the mid-2040s. The leader of the group, Robert Ulysses Sirius, joined his cult followers in demanding that the hybrids be freed and later stated that the GSC was conducting heinous experiments on their captives which included dissection. These claims were dismissed by X-COM and the government as being ridiculous. The Sectohumes were eventually released when their leader Mary Fransico demonstrated to X-COM and the government that they did not have any psionic abilities to pose a threat to the community. Once freed, they formed a political group known as the Mutant Alliance.
Reboot Timeline
After the conquest of Earth, the Aliens established ADVENT to control the planet and in the years afterwards the Sectoids were genetically altered. This saw more human DNA added into their genome that greatly transformed their appearance along with improved their abilities. The XCOM resistance forces continued to operate where they began to encounter the improved Sectoid aliens.
Overview
The race appeared as gray skinned humanoids similar to sightings by UFO abductees in Roswell. An autopsy revealed that they possessed a vestigial digestive system and a simple organ structure. Despite this simplicity, their eyes and the brain of the subjects were highly developed. The species was notable for the presence of psionic abilities within the race. This allowed them to not only use this offensively to demoralize enemy troops in combat but to actually take control of their minds. It was speculated that this structure was the result of either genetic engineering or mutation. Their faces possessed a small mouth and nose but these appeared to have had little function. Their hands were webbed and they had flat feet which suggested that they were of aquatic origin. A more detailed examination also revealed the lack of any form of reproductive organ and it was a mystery as to how the race procreated. These findings led to X-COM determining that the Sectoids were a genetically engineered race. The Aquatoids were a similar race but with certain differences.
Their society was known as the Sectoid Hierarchy with its members ranging from soldiers to leaders. They were involved with Human abduction and cattle mutilation in order to extract genetic material in order for it to be used for cross breeding purposes as well as to develop clones in order to infiltrate Human society. Their prime reason for the mutilation of cattle was not only for gathering genetic material but also for nutritional purposes as well. It was believed by X-COM that the race intended to create a series of superior genetic hybrids with which they could increase the efficiency of their hive-like society. They were a multipurpose species and capable of a wide variety of roles which included serving as pilots where they used their psionic talents and superior mental capacity in space combat though their flying and marksmanship was described as being average.
Notes
- Sectoids were set to appear in the cancelled X-COM: Alliance game where screenshots showed Sectoid buildings and the intro trailer for the game showed a Human officer from the Patton being knocked out from a psychic attack whereupon a Sectoid examines his body.
- Whilst the aliens from the main X-COM series did not feature in X-COM: Apocalypse, the mention of Sectoids was present with numerous hybrid Human-Sectoids present within the Human populace who refer to them as members of the Mutant Alliance.
- According to the novel adaptation by Diane Duane, the Ethereal ruling caste amongst the aliens were originally Sectoids who lived on a planet near a dying red star and in order to survive its effects, they began altering replacing their bodies with bionic prothesis in order to increase their psychic powers as well as reduce their dependency on physical needs.
Appearances
- X-COM: UFO Defense:
- X-COM: Interceptor:
- X-COM: Enforcer:
