Councilors

Councilors are a faction's primary proxies on Earth and may also go to space to advance its interests there. Factions may initially have four councilors but certain projects allow them to expand the size of their council to six. Their primary role is to perform Missions on behalf of their faction.

Periodically, the game will enter the assignment phase, during which all factions will assign their councilors to missions. These missions will be resolved in a random sequence over the next few weeks. While some missions are automatically successful, most require a success roll. Missions can target nations, control points, habitats, and other councilors.

Factions can recruit councilors by spending Influence. Each month there is a new group of potetial recruits to choose from. You can also turn councilors from other factions to work for you.

The name and appearance of recruired councilors can be changed at any time.

Profession
Each councilor has a profession, which determines the range of their initial stats, available missions and possible traits. The Alien profession is only available to alien councilors.

Attributes
A councilor has eight attributes. They determine success chances on missions or offer bonuses to incomes.

Detection
After every completed mission (whether successful or failed, but not aborted) each councilor has a chance of being detected based on the detection risk of the mission. The chance is reduced by the councilor's Espionage attribute and increased by noise. The chance is increased by the following: 4 * % control of nation where mission took place (e.g. if faction controls 4 out of 5 CPs in nation then this is 3.2) +12 if the region or an adjacent region has been surveyed during the same missions phase and the councilor risking detection is human

+ Sum of (Investigation attribute of each faction's councilor * region proximity multiplier) Investigation to include also bonus +inv when detecting from traits Region proximity multiplayer: if in same region = 1 else if in same nation = 0.5 else if in adjacent region = 0.25 else = 0

Sum of all above / count of faction's advisors (this effectively means the more councilors faction has the weaker effect of e.g. xenoscience modules is)

When detecting alien councilors the following bonuses and penalties also apply: A detection success will reveal the location but not the faction of the councilor, marking councilor with a gray icon. This will allow the Investigate Councilor mission to target them. A detection critical success will reveal the faction of the councilor and allow all missions to target the councilor, marking councilor with a faction-colored icon.
 * +1 from Global Listening Network council engineering project
 * +1 per Xenology Lab hab module (max xenoscience bonus is +9 )
 * +2 per Xenoscience Research Center hab module (max xenoscience bonus is +9 )
 * +3 per Xenoscience Institute hab module (max xenoscience bonus is +9 )
 * -1 per 10% xenoforming in the region
 * -6 if an Alien Facility is built in the region
 * If the region or an adjacent region has been surveyed during the same missions phase there is a +4 bonus. It increases by +1 for each investigated alien councilor above 4, capping at +12 after 12 alien councilors have been investigated.

Detection awareness
When a councilor is detected there is a chance to gain knowledge about the detection. The roll is done separately for each faction that detected the councilor. The chance of discovering the detection is determined by the Investigation attribute of the detected councilor against the Espionage attribute of all councilors from the detecting nation divided by 6. If the player faction discovers a councilor has been detected they'll see the pawn notification icon on left edge on screen in color of their faction.

All councilors keep track of all factions they are aware spotted them. Player has this information about turned councilors as well. It is visible on councilor's face image - as highlighted on the picture here. This information however does not tell you when was the last time the councilor noticed that he was spotted by those factions.

Go To Ground mission will erase this information. Even though it's not 100% sure other factions will lose all intel on the councilor. (But it is likely that espionage 1 or more is enough to ensure that). However - it is still possible to be spotted on the Go To Ground mission - it's just unlikely with noise caused being negative 8.

Intel on target
Councilors have 5 levels of intelligence given to each faction aware of their existence. Each level reveals more information about this councilor:


 * 1) Councilor is detected
 * 2) Their affiliation, identity and class is revealed
 * 3) Their stats, orgs and available missions are revealed
 * 4) The faction sees their actions during mission phase
 * 5) The faction knows their loyalty and can turn them

Intel on target is also added to some mission against this councilor, for example, Assassinate and Hostile Takeover.

Intel may increase with consecutive passive detection, or more actively with Investigate mission.

Turn councilor
Councilors with 5 intel on them can become this faction's spies via Turn councilor action. Each faction can have no more than 2 spies in other factions.

Spies provide full vision of their faction, 3 intel on other councilors, and can be forced to increase failure chance on their missions. Other factions are programmed to track councilors suspected to be spies and deal with them (their suspicion about advisers is stored in  variable).

Hydra councilors can never be turned.

Dealing with spies

 * Investigate councilor may reveal whether investigated adviser is turned or not.
 * Inspire will make target councilor cut their contacts with faction that turned them. This will not reveal whether this councilor was a spy or not.
 * Firing suspected councilor or sending them on suicide mission is also a valid option.

Stealing councilors
It's possible to steal turned councilors from other factions. To do that, open their profile in council interface and press resign. This will add them to unemployed councilors pool, from where they will be available to hire.

Traits
Traits are innate characteristics of a councilor. They may grant permanent or conditioned stat bonuses or maluses, incomes, or access to certain orgs. Some traits may be purchased, upgraded or removed by spending XP.

Implant Traits
Implant traits can only be added or upgraded following certain projects. Higher tier traits must be upgraded from the previous tier.
 * Tier 1 traits cost 500 Money and require the Cybernetic Implants project.
 * Tier 2 traits cost 1000 Money and require the Neural Engineering project.
 * Tier 3 traits cost 2000 Money and require the Cyborging project.

Pherocyte Emitters
Pherocyte emitters are special implant traits which increase Persuasion. They require the Pherocyte Emitter project, which can be researched in parallel with the Cyborging project once the faction has completed the Pherocytes project.