Shaojie Zhang

Shaojie Zhang is a Triad Operative and Council contact who is introduced as part of the Slingshot Content Pack for XCOM: Enemy Unknown. He is the VIP that must be extracted during the mission Friends In Low Places, and joins XCOM following his rescue.

Description[]

Zhang is of Chinese origin with cropped white hair and goatee. He has a scar over his right eye and another on his right cheek. Zhang features his own distinct voice and personality. His nickname, 'Chilong', means "Crimson Dragon". ^[1] This is referenced in his titular Achievement, "Rising Dragon".

If Zhang is killed during his introductory mission, that mission will later be offered again. His powers of "re-incarnation" falter once recruited. (In XCOM: Enemy Within, Zhang's death during the first mission will terminate the entire Slingshot campaign.)

Stats[]

Shaojie is different from other soldiers, in that he has 9 HP upon joining XCOM as a Heavy class Lieutenant regardless of the game's difficulty setting. Although only one point more than a regular Heavy Lieutenant on Easy, his HP becomes more significant at higher difficulty levels, on account of his HP being unaffected by difficulty (on Impossible a standard Heavy Lieutenant has 5 HP compared to Zhang's 9). He gains two additional points while rising through the ranks, finishing with 11 HP at Colonel.

Zhang joins XCOM with 75 Aim, equal to a Colonel-ranked Heavy despite being three ranks lower. He gains five points while rising through the ranks, finishing with 80 Aim at Colonel. He also starts with 70 Will, which gives him an excellent chance of having the Gift. He can reach a maximum of 88 Will at Colonel, or 106 Will if leveled-up with the Iron Will OTS upgrade.

Optimized Build

These traits make him an extremely desirable candidate for:

Automatic Soldier / Volunteer, as he is able to take and dish out massive amounts of damage.
Augmentation, as Lieutenant is the ideal rank for switching over to MEC Trooper to maximize Will and Aim gains.

Dialogue[]

The following dialogue is spoken by Zhang during Friends In Low Places:

Event	Dialogue
XCOM's arrival	"You must be my contacts. No one who fears reprisal would make an entrance like that."
After shooting a Sectoid	"Not so different from killing a man."
Preparing to leave	"It won't take long for them to realize I'm missing, especially since I've got this thing with me. If you take me with you, it's all yours."
Proceeding to the extraction zone	"I'm not sure where my boss got this thing, but he was taking offers from a variety of bidders - regardless of their intentions."
Proceeding to the extraction zone	"The job itself seemed trivial, delivering equipment to a predetermined drop point..."
Proceeding to the extraction zone	"Once I saw this device, I began to fear the implications of our involvement."
Proceeding to the extraction zone	"I've crossed many lines during my life, but now we all face a common enemy."
At the extraction zone	"I'm alive...but the life I had is gone now. Funny, that my life should take such an unexpected path. Turning my back on old friends, to defeat a common enemy."

Zhang also has a number of unique responses to various scenarios during combat, such as when he requires a weapon reload, goes into Overwatch, or spots an alien.

Notes[]

Despite using a pistol to kill a Sectoid during his first cutscene, once Zhang joins XCOM his Heavy class prevents him from using handguns. Zhang's initial pistol is also of a different model from the XCOM Pistol, closely resembling a Walther P99 or a FN Five-Seven instead.
Although stronger than the average soldier, Zhang is still mortal and can be killed in battle after recruitment. He can also be dismissed from XCOM if so desired by the player.
Zhang is one of two soldiers that can be recruited whose name and appearance cannot be customized (the other being Annette Durand from Operation Progeny in XCOM: Enemy Within).
- The options to modify his armor look, hair color and facial hair were added in XCOM: Enemy Within.
Taking Zhang on the game's final mission rewards the player with the "Rising Dragon" Achievement.
Even with the option on to have soldiers speak their "native" language, Zhang will always speak in the language the game is set and cannot be changed.
Zhang's voice actor Feodor Chin also covers miscellaneous roles in The Bureau: XCOM Declassified.
Zhang is the only unique character in XCOM: Enemy Unknown/Within that uses a weapon that resembles a real-world weapon, whereas the German soldier being mind controlled by a Sectoid Commander in Operation Devil's Moon uses an XCOM shotgun.
Zhang's rank will allow you to unlock Squad Size I from the Officer Training School, this is useful if you don't already have a Sergeant.