Overwatch: An XCom inspired sci-fi battle against alien domination|| Interested?

[BitterSweet]

Welcome to a near future where the remnants of humanity’s struggle to free a decimated Earth from the ‘benevolent’ aliens who invaded and conquered twenty years ago.

October 9th, 2015 ....  Humanity discovered we are not alone in the universe.  Overwhelming alien forces decimated Earth’s unprepared military, destroyed most major cities, and eradicated any hint of overt resistance.  The XCOM Project, a covert world-wide operation, was the first and last defense against the alien invasion ... and was decisively defeated.  Scattered survivors preserved the truth, fought losing battles in the darkness, and watched as the aliens convinced a traumatized populace they were merciful, just, and kind.  But, rebels at the fringes of society remember the truth, and now the remnants of the old XCOM project are gathering - ready to reignite the battle for Earth’s freedom.

Overwatch will be a partially narrative, freeform game, meaning  the admin will be developing some main adventures that characters can participate in and that I'm not going to be using a system (though there will be a moderately in depth character sheet).  There’s plenty of room for self-directed fun, and participation in a particular adventure is always optional - though there may be game-wide consequences of some storylines that everyone has to live with.  Sex is quite welcome but characters are also expected to be involved in the sci-fi/adventure aspects of the game.  This game is LGBT*+ friendly.  It’ll be in the NC/Bon section to start due mostly to graphic violence and horror elements.

While this game is heavily based on XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and what little we know about XCOM2, particular player knowledge isn’t critical.  Anything you need to know to have fun in the game will be posted in information threads.  Characters will be part of the revived XCOM, working together to uncover the real reason the aliens are here, their plans for humanity and fighting against it.  Missions can range from infiltration and spying to sabotage and combat.  While XCOM is a tactical combat game, I'm not going to be obsessed with military trivia or 'proper combat' - missions will be managed by discussion and planning with perhaps some basic dice rolling if folks feel they need a randomizer to resolve issues.

The game will be slow paced, with a posting rate as slow as every 7 -10 days or so. 

Does this sound like something folks would be interested in?

The focus will be as much on figuring out what's the alien's real purpose, and interaction as on crunchy combat - but I expect some of that too.  Generally, I resolve missions via developing a story outline that players use to guide them through their adventure.  Because stories are developed cooperatively between the admin and players, players need to be comfortable with things like sharing the spotlight, letting their characters fail as well as succeed, and be flexible during actual posting.

I have more worldbuilding background but I'd like to gauge general interest before doing too much work.

Questions?  Ideas?

Characters and Information

OCC+PLotting

[BitterSweet]

Overwatch: General World Info

Overwatch is an alternate world not too different from ours until the dawn of the 21st Century, when humanity discovered they were not alone in the universe.

Aliens arrived in force in 2015, though old records show they were probing Earth well before then.  They arrived in vast numbers and with hugely advanced technology and they did not come in peace.  XCOM was a world-wide organization created to fight the invaders, made up of the best and bravest from around the world.  They fought pitched battles in rural deserts and shattered cities alike.  Despite their heroism and courage, dedication and sacrifice they lost - less than two years after their first arrival, the aliens shattered XCOM and conquered the planet.  Cities were destroyed and hundreds of millions of people were killed.

In the past twenty years, the aliens have set up a world-wide government, used their technology to eradicate war, poverty, many illnesses and greatly reduced crime.  Clean, new, safe cities were re-built on top of the old.  Religious dogma that generated hatred and fear has faded into obscurity, nationalistic fanaticism abandoned in favor of a world-wide, humanitarian government.  Skilled propaganda and ruthless persecution of any resistance means that most people believe that the aliens came in peace and were cruelly attacked by xenophobic human 'nationalistic fanatics' and the blame for the worldwide destruction placed squarely on the old human governments and militant fanatics like XCOM.

The day Earth unilaterally surrendered is celebrated across the globe as 'Unification Day'.

The New World
Vast changes happened in the past twenty years and the aliens have used every tool in their considerable arsenal to ensure that most humans believe that their alien masters are entirely benevolent and that they came in peace, only to be spurned by humans mired in the primitive mindset of the past.  Advances in technology, medicine, government, education and culture can all be directly traced to alien oversight.  They rebuilt Earth cities to be safe, clean, tidy and ... tightly controlled.

The aliens encourage human migration to the new cities where advantages like universal health care and education, inexpensive housing, and rewarding careers are available.  Stubborn people who refuse to move find their towns and homes starved of resources and infrastructure, plagued with mysterious disappearances, raids by Advent forces, and more.  It's simply easier and more sensible to move to the beautiful cities.

All humans are issued an ID number and card at birth, or registration, which allows access to various services.  Traveling without your ID is both extremely difficult and illegal.  In the past three years, Advent has made things even simpler for everyone by inserting a painless iDot into every child's left wrist on their first day of school.  iDots contain all the identity information of an ID card, without the risk of getting lost or stolen!

There have been huge technological advances; clean energy, ecological rebuilding, nano-computers and devices, linked AI machines, gene therapy and more.  The world is nearly idyllic; the average work week is 20 hours, children are educated for free in Advent schools and the elderly, disabled and needy are cared for with compassion and respect.  Humanity has entered a new golden age, all thanks to their alien overlords. 

Advent
The aliens administer Earth and humans as their 'beloved charges' via the Advent Administration.  This encompasses security, public health, and pretty much every government function you can think of.  Most Advent employees are average people, with no greater understanding of the underlying realities of the world.  Higher ups in Advent become progressively more aware of the hidden agenda - promotion beyond a certain level is closely monitored by the Envoys.

Envoys, a group of aliens who work closely with humans, are the ones in all upper level positions in Advent.

Former world governments are powerless cultural curiosities, little more than historical amusements.  Citizen participation in government policy and decision is non-existent and the very concept of such things is fading from public consciousness.  What need is there for that kind of stress when the Elders are so devoted to human advancement and comfort?

Beneath the Surface
Nothing is what it seems.  The aliens came to Earth not as benefactors but as monstrous conquerors and their current plans for a defeated world remain mysterious - but are assumed to be nefarious.

In the initial invasion, the aliens targeted major population centers, though they now blame the human militaries of the world for practicing a 'scorched earth' policy.  They fielded troops and equipment that made it clear they were here for war, as well as talented infiltration agents that sowed discord and confusion among human organizations.

In the twenty years, they have rebuilt Earth into a peaceful world, with a population who genuinely believes the aliens are here to help.  Envoys are seen in the media constantly assuring humans of their cherished place in the universe and the benevolence, mercy and kindness of the alien Elders.  Propaganda is churned out via every available method, schools induct children into the proper way of thinking and history is being re-written by the victors.

However, scratching the surface begins to reveal something much darker.

The universal education provided so freely indoctrinates humans into a firm belief that the aliens are our benefactors, and a sense of awe at the thought of them.  The Advent Administration - for a peace loving government in a peaceful world - has huge numbers of military mechanoids and Advent security, the 'police' for a 'crimeless' civilization is also huge.  'Troubled individuals' and terrorists disappear into rehabilitation faculties, few are seen again.  The media, except for a few pirate stations, is a mouthpiece for Advent and their alien overlords.

There is increasingly hostile pressure to force the diminishing rural populations into cities by both peaceful means (infrastructure neglect, subsidies for moving into the nearest city) and hostile ones.  Missing persons are common all over the world, but especially in the rural areas - there are stories of entire towns disappearing.

No one knows what the alien's plans are, though if you believe their lies it's to uplift humanity to the stars, as companions and partners in the grand galactic civilization that is - supposedly - out there.

This is the world of Overwatch and XCOM has its work cut out for it.

[BitterSweet]

{reserved}

[arkhos]

That sounds incredibly interesting, BitterSweet.

I would definitely be interested. :)

-ark

[BitterSweet]

Aha my first victimvolunteer!

We'll see how this goes, hopefully folks won't feel that you have to be an XCOM expert in order to enjoy the game.

[Lustful Bride]

*plants that interest flag So hard!*  ;D

Already having ideas for what kinds of rebels/resistance groups there are.

Most of the earth by now is mostly uninhabited thanks to the war and super cities.

So im thinking maybe my character is part of a group that almost went tribal, fighting in the Nevada dessert, calling themselves "The painted Ladies" Since they liked to wear warpaint to try and scare off the aliens/ bandit groups that wanted them as slaves.

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Possible plot ideas: Perhaps the Painted Ladies have their village near some caves where there was a small XCOM ooutpost that has been shut down before the Surrender but is still useable/ operational enough to make a hub for resistance in the region.

Or not *shrugs* :P  Im just excited for another Xcom game on this site. XD

[Praxis]

I am in.

In in in.

[De Leon]

Oh god. Finally an XCOM game!!! I am just finishing my classical ironman run and would love to have an XCOM RP!

[arkhos]

About how many folks are you looking for to start out, Bittersweet?

-ark

[BitterSweet]

*plants that interest flag So hard!*  ;D

Already having ideas for what kinds of rebels/resistance groups there are.

Most of the earth by now is mostly uninhabited thanks to the war and super cities.

So im thinking maybe my character is part of a group that almost went tribal, fighting in the Nevada dessert, calling themselves "The painted Ladies" Since they liked to wear warpaint to try and scare off the aliens/ bandit groups that wanted them as slaves.

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Possible plot ideas: Perhaps the Painted Ladies have their village near some caves where there was a small XCOM ooutpost that has been shut down before the Surrender but is still useable/ operational enough to make a hub for resistance in the region.

Or not *shrugs* :P  Im just excited for another Xcom game on this site. XD

Something like that is certainly possible!  I could see that after the war there were a lot of refugees - most of whom were shunted into the new cities as they were built but some wouldn't have gone there.  Violent experiences might have resulted in some women setting up their own little, fierce group who would expand, I guess, by taking in lost/refugee girls.

Official, organized slavers aren't likely to exist in large scale - but some raids by unsavory neighbors could happen (and what the aliens do with disappeared humans is unknown but probably even less fun that slavery) and that could add  wrinkles to the player's lives.

The idea of an old XCOM outpost being re-activated is a great one!

About how many folks are you looking for to start out, Bittersweet?

-ark

I'm pretty much good with starting with four (plus me!!) and seeing how it goes.  I've got some development work to do but I'll try and get an OOC and info thread up ... soon?  By this weekend if nothing else.

[BitterSweet]

Oh god. Finally an XCOM game!!! I am just finishing my classical ironman run and would love to have an XCOM RP!

:P  I'm trying to get through the game on ... 'normal' + a million saves.  I've only won the game once - the first time I played it and I thought ... oh! this isn't so hard! 

[Lustful Bride]

The idea of an old XCOM outpost being re-activated is a great one!

Im imagining the looks on all the women's faces when they see how they had a warm, safe, semi stocked hideout under their noses the whole time.

Though they wouldn't be all women. Just mostly females and a few trusted men. They just kept the name since it sounds fierce. An hey it offers up an excuse/ way for new characters to join in as the tribe offers up a new warrior to replace fallen ones as thanks for helping them move in/remain not raped by bandits and not on a dissection table. :P

Fun line: Painted lady: You guys ever try Fried Viper? Its better than Gecko! You just gotta cut out the poison gland first.

[De Leon]

:P  I'm trying to get through the game on ... 'normal' + a million saves.  I've only won the game once - the first time I played it and I thought ... oh! this isn't so hard!

Well, the best advice is to take things slowly and never rush.. Sometimes frustrating but better then losing whole squad.

Also,
My character concept is one of the survivors of original xcom, Major Sergei Tarkov. He would probably be a leader of one of remaining xcom "cells".
(Will get more info and pictures up tommorow)

[BitterSweet]

Well, the best advice is to take things slowly and never rush.. Sometimes frustrating but better then losing whole squad.

Also,
My character concept is one of the survivors of original xcom, Major Sergei Tarkov. He would probably be a leader of one of remaining xcom "cells".
(Will get more info and pictures up tommorow)

Yup, I'm certianly slow!

And, I'll be providing a character sheet so don't stress too much about getting the character up right away - and a survivor of the original XCOM group sounds good.  Though remember, even if they were a rookie (poor sap), they'd be in their mid-to-late 30s now.

[De Leon]

Yup, I'm certianly slow!

And, I'll be providing a character sheet so don't stress too much about getting the character up right away - and a survivor of the original XCOM group sounds good.  Though remember, even if they were a rookie (poor sap), they'd be in their mid-to-late 30s now.

Well, I am thinking mid forties.. I meant just general stuff like personality, story etc.

[BitterSweet]

Sounds excellent to me!

I've created a couple of threads:

Characters and Information

OCC+PLotting


You'll see that I like to write.  A lot.  ;D

[Grizzly]

So tempting.  I love the flavor of the games so trying out an RP based on it sounds like fun.

[BitterSweet]

So tempting.  I love the flavor of the games so trying out an RP based on it sounds like fun.

We'll you're certainly welcome.  You can pop by the ooc and and take a look at the ideas people are having and see if it's up your ally.

[BitterSweet]

The game has officially opened with our first four characters - quite a varied bunch, I'd say!  We've got plenty of room so ... if you're interested in sci-fi action, come on down!

[Haztur]

:P  I'm trying to get through the game on ... 'normal' + a million saves.  I've only won the game once - the first time I played it and I thought ... oh! this isn't so hard!

I am with you, the game is not easy, and it hurts my soul every time one of my "men" fall in battle.

add me to those interested and that would love a shot at the game... je and while I know you intend it closer to the content material it might be fun if anyone who "falls" in battle is actually captured by the aliens who "experiment" (have fun) with them (some how they get their hybrids, don't they?)

[BitterSweet]

add me to those interested and that would love a shot at the game... je and while I know you intend it closer to the content material it might be fun if anyone who "falls" in battle is actually captured by the aliens who "experiment" (have fun) with them (some how they get their hybrids, don't they?)

It was tempting!  I love me some good alien/human porn but in this particular case, it doesn't suit the feel fo the game.  Their hybridization process involves more ... needles and vivisection and less sexin'.

[Joel]

i've had this secret desire to do an xcom rp forever....

*stalks all the group-rp info*

[BitterSweet]

i've had this secret desire to do an xcom rp forever....

*stalks all the group-rp info*

Well, we've still got plenty of room!

It's sorta ending up being X-COM (2) with a touch of fallout, at least so far.

[Joel]

i'm thinking of introducing a character that's got some associations with the old xcom.  would there be opportunity to deliver some plot element with my character?  for example, he's been hired to bring an old xcom member to the new 'base' or he's found some material or equipment that the new xcom would want.

thoughts?

[BitterSweet]

i'm thinking of introducing a character that's got some associations with the old xcom.  would there be opportunity to deliver some plot element with my character?  for example, he's been hired to bring an old xcom member to the new 'base' or he's found some material or equipment that the new xcom would want.

thoughts?

Something like that is certainly doable. Central is trying to get a cell off the ground in the Nevada area. Hrm.  There's a possible shipment that your character could be escorting from a larger group - essentially energy cells for some experimental weapons that were stashed before Base fell.  That work for you?

Take a look at the nevada desert thread, you can see the group coming together and get an idea of who they are.

[Joel]

Thanks.  Here's a slightly different idea, that'll hopefully accomplish the same thing.  What about a smuggler/criminal who is in possession of important material or information... and he's not exactly interested in charity.  (Basically he gets recruited anyway, but an initial meeting wouldn't be friendly, you know that trope).

[Lustful Bride]

Thanks.  Here's a slightly different idea, that'll hopefully accomplish the same thing.  What about a smuggler/criminal who is in possession of important material or information... and he's not exactly interested in charity.  (Basically he gets recruited anyway, but an initial meeting wouldn't be friendly, you know that trope).

Yay we get our own Han Solo <3

[BitterSweet]

Thanks.  Here's a slightly different idea, that'll hopefully accomplish the same thing.  What about a smuggler/criminal who is in possession of important material or information... and he's not exactly interested in charity.  (Basically he gets recruited anyway, but an initial meeting wouldn't be friendly, you know that trope).

Whichever character type you like, works for me.  We can figure a way to get them into the game. 

...
...
Does he shoot first?  :P

[Joel]

lol, and I was trying so hard not to make the han solo connection.

damn straight he shoots first.

[BitterSweet]

damn straight he shoots first.

I promise not to ret-con your character so that you're more acceptable to the mom's of 13 year olds.

[Joel]

BAM!

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Player Name: JOEL
Timezone: pacific
Expected posting rate: daily to weekly

AHRON YARIV

Character Role: INFILTRATOR Build: ATHLETIC, MUSCULAR Sex and Orientation: MALE, BISEXUAL Nicknames: MAD DOG. Reputation: RAIDER, arms dealer, and smuggler of goods in and out of the cities.  mass murderer, preying on Advents and resisting towns alike. Quirks and oddities: ISRAELI (HEBREW) ACCENT subtle but pronounced when angry.  sings when he thinks he's alone or when especially drunk.  has an excellent baritone.  can probably drink anyone under the table.  cheats at cards, always.  Knack: KRAV MAGA SPECIALIST.  especially deadly in hand to hand combat.  may not be the largest or the strongest, but he knows exactly how to use what he has (often at arms reach) to maximum and lethal effect.

Description:
Of Croatian and Russian descent, he is a tall and broad framed man with a ropy but muscular physique.  His features are ruddy and hard set, with pale green eyes that are often lost beneath the shadow of his brow or behind the squint of his eyes.  Wind weathered and scarred with a gapped brow and crooked nose, the man's nearly forty, with it's toils and misery, has only toughened his hide.

Personality:
Scrubbed raw by the unforgiving nature of this new reality, the man distrusts the honest and eschews all sentimentality.  Acerbic and dry, his militaristic calm is frank and deceptively simple-minded.  In most cases he is contentious and surprising sensitive to subtlety such that he appears both fair and diplomatic on the surface.  However, his eyes betray his mercurial moods, which smolder patiently as a bed of coals. 

Yariv is not known by his namesake for nothing.  A dangerous and explosively violent man with a cruelty that takes no prisoners -- not even Yariv knows how much of it is necessary anymore and how much of it he actually enjoys.

He is characteristically enigmatic, and as if one is a cover for the other, he's forgotten the difference between a public and private face.  More likely, the man has erected so many barriers between himself and the rest of the world that everything he presents is probably pretended.  In better company, if that even exists anymore, he can be genuine and affable as if recalling a truer calling from before the Fall. 

Background:
Rumors have a way of telling their own tall tales, and Yariv does not say which are true and which are not.  It is true that his group smuggles weapons, narcotics, and other goods.  They also raid Advent depots and ambush poorly defended Advent convoys.  They do not, however, attack resisting towns or murder civilians without good cause... normally. 

In War and Peace and all things under the sun, the truth is murkier than one would like.  The reason is simple: his group has its own priorities beyond the struggles of all the other survivors out in the no-man's-land, and Yariv will not tolerate anyone or anything getting in his way.

---

He is a "resistance" cell leader of the now defunct United Defense Force, a short-lived, multinational effort intended to resuscitate NATO following its catastrophic defeat on the Eurasian continent.  The plan was to regroup in the United States where thousands were expected to arrive, but in the end only a paltry number survived the Eurasian withdrawal.  Numbering fewer than two hundred and comprised mainly of rookies or conscripts, the remaining soldiers chose not to join the American forces in what they knew was a suicidal defense of New York City.  Instead the soldiers consolidated materials and went to ground to begin a protracted resistance against the invaders.

Despite how lofty it began, over the years the soldiers' resistance effort diminished.  Losses became heavy until attrition sounded the death keel for the UDF.  Those that remained, like Yariv, had long ago made peace with the fact that the invaders were here to stay.  For Yariv and the other die-hards, the only option was survival.

---

Yariv spent three years in the Israeli Defense Force, as would have been the requirement of his mandatory service.  It is 2017 and he is just nineteen. 

In the final hours of Tel Aviv, Yariv was aboard a C-17 en-route for Richmond, Virginia.  His squad had been tasked with the protection of the plane.  All of the soldiers green, they did not expect to find the military transport filled with cultural artifacts and artwork.  It was not just that plane but others too, an insane inversion of expectations while millions in the city awaited annihilation.  With horror he realized that that was why his squad had been sent there.  They were expected to keep the civilians away, that rampage of people fleeing across the tarmac.  He watched them chase after the plane as it left the runway.  In his rage, he thought he should have stayed with them, but when the bombardments began and the city crumbled, he came to realize: why.   

Anything else:
He secretly has a young daughter, Rebecca, with the leader of a rival group.  A poorly kept secret in fact, the situation is strained and an on again off again alliance forced.  Likely this rival will absorb Yariv's group, and Yariv will not do anything to stop it.  His attention is on his daughter and that is precisely what the rival leader expects.       


Meta Info:
I think he'd start out as a third party that is in possession of something that the new XCOM team needs.  Much more of a criminal than he is an ex-soldier, he really couldn't give a damn about the cause (anymore at least).  He'd take a bit of convincing to join the team, but deep down the man's hungry for retribution.

[Garuss Vakarian]

Not the first Xcom interest thread ive seen, but the first to actually display any attempt at world building and have effort. ^^ Mighty fine effort, I may add. I might be interested, I just need to think it through. The post frequency you recommended is actually more then fair, and creates a level of patience I appreciate. But Im back after a hiatus. And have a record of losing interest in groups. So I would chose attentively on if I would be interested later, after the fresh, new group smell is gone. So to speak. :P

[BitterSweet]

BAM!

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Player Name: JOEL
Timezone: pacific
Expected posting rate: daily to weekly

AHRON YARIV

Character Role: INFILTRATOR Build: ATHLETIC, MUSCULAR Sex and Orientation: MALE, BISEXUAL Nicknames: MAD DOG. Reputation: RAIDER, arms dealer, and smuggler of goods in and out of the cities.  mass murderer, preying on Advents and resisting towns alike. Quirks and oddities: ISRAELI (HEBREW) ACCENT subtle but pronounced when angry.  sings when he thinks he's alone or when especially drunk.  has an excellent baritone.  can probably drink anyone under the table.  cheats at cards, always.  Knack: KRAV MAGA SPECIALIST.  especially deadly in hand to hand combat.  may not be the largest or the strongest, but he knows exactly how to use what he has (often at arms reach) to maximum and lethal effect.

Description:
Of Croatian and Russian descent, he is a tall and broad framed man with a ropy but muscular physique.  His features are ruddy and hard set, with pale green eyes that are often lost beneath the shadow of his brow or behind the squint of his eyes.  Wind weathered and scarred with a gapped brow and crooked nose, the man's nearly forty, with it's toils and misery, has only toughened his hide.

Personality:
Scrubbed raw by the unforgiving nature of this new reality, the man distrusts the honest and eschews all sentimentality.  Acerbic and dry, his militaristic calm is frank and deceptively simple-minded.  In most cases he is contentious and surprising sensitive to subtlety such that he appears both fair and diplomatic on the surface.  However, his eyes betray his mercurial moods, which smolder patiently as a bed of coals. 

Yariv is not known by his namesake for nothing.  A dangerous and explosively violent man with a cruelty that takes no prisoners -- not even Yariv knows how much of it is necessary anymore and how much of it he actually enjoys.

He is characteristically enigmatic, and as if one is a cover for the other, he's forgotten the difference between a public and private face.  More likely, the man has erected so many barriers between himself and the rest of the world that everything he presents is probably pretended.  In better company, if that even exists anymore, he can be genuine and affable as if recalling a truer calling from before the Fall. 

Background:
Rumors have a way of telling their own tall tales, and Yariv does not say which are true and which are not.  It is true that his group smuggles weapons, narcotics, and other goods.  They also raid Advent depots and ambush poorly defended Advent convoys.  They do not, however, attack resisting towns or murder civilians without good cause... normally. 

In War and Peace and all things under the sun, the truth is murkier than one would like.  The reason is simple: his group has its own priorities beyond the struggles of all the other survivors out in the no-man's-land, and Yariv will not tolerate anyone or anything getting in his way.

---

He is a "resistance" cell leader of the now defunct United Defense Force, a short-lived, multinational effort intended to resuscitate NATO following its catastrophic defeat on the Eurasian continent.  The plan was to regroup in the United States where thousands were expected to arrive, but in the end only a paltry number survived the Eurasian withdrawal.  Numbering fewer than two hundred and comprised mainly of rookies or conscripts, the remaining soldiers chose not to join the American forces in what they knew was a suicidal defense of New York City.  Instead the soldiers consolidated materials and went to ground to begin a protracted resistance against the invaders.

Despite how lofty it began, over the years the soldiers' resistance effort diminished.  Losses became heavy until attrition sounded the death keel for the UDF.  Those that remained, like Yariv, had long ago made peace with the fact that the invaders were here to stay.  For Yariv and the other die-hards, the only option was survival.

---

Yariv spent three years in the Israeli Defense Force, as would have been the requirement of his mandatory service.  It is 2017 and he is just nineteen. 

In the final hours of Tel Aviv, Yariv was aboard a C-17 en-route for Richmond, Virginia.  His squad had been tasked with the protection of the plane.  All of the soldiers green, they did not expect to find the military transport filled with cultural artifacts and artwork.  It was not just that plane but others too, an insane inversion of expectations while millions in the city awaited annihilation.  With horror he realized that that was why his squad had been sent there.  They were expected to keep the civilians away, that rampage of people fleeing across the tarmac.  He watched them chase after the plane as it left the runway.  In his rage, he thought he should have stayed with them, but when the bombardments began and the city crumbled, he came to realize: why.   

Anything else:
He secretly has a young daughter, Rebecca, with the leader of a rival group.  A poorly kept secret in fact, the situation is strained and an on again off again alliance forced.  Likely this rival will absorb Yariv's group, and Yariv will not do anything to stop it.  His attention is on his daughter and that is precisely what the rival leader expects.       


Meta Info:
I think he'd start out as a third party that is in possession of something that the new XCOM team needs.  Much more of a criminal than he is an ex-soldier, he really couldn't give a damn about the cause (anymore at least).  He'd take a bit of convincing to join the team, but deep down the man's hungry for retribution.

Excellent!  I'll take a more thorough look tonight and let you know, but first impressions look good.