Genre: Real Time Strategy (RTS), Simulator, Strategy, Tactical
Nebulous: Fleet Command
Update 0.3.1.18 - Missile Mixing
Missiles are such a huge part of NEBULOUS, and it's been a while since they've gotten much love. I think a lot of our players know that I'm a hardcore missile main, so it's time that was fixed. And don't worry, if you're not that into missiles there are plenty of other things in this update that might interest you. Let's get started!
Mixed Missile Salvos
Up until this point, the art of mixing different types of missiles together for a simultaneous strike was only achievable by the most skilled of single missile players or extremely coordinated teams. The core feature for this update is new UI functionality to allow the easy mixing of multiple missile types into a single salvo.
The size of a salvo is dictated by the number of programming channels on the ship, but you can mix any types of missiles you want within that constraint. You can even group missiles of different sizes together, with different programming times, and they will all launch together (but won't fly at the same speed, so design accordingly). For ships in formation, the missiles you want to group need to be present on all of the ships. The last mixed salvo you launched from any given ship will also be saved for easy re-use later, until you start a new mix.
This feature should breathe new life into the flexibility and utility of S2 missiles by allowing players to combine different seeker heads and support modules without having to pay expensive penetration aid costs across every missile they want to fire.
There is also a new advanced tutorial mission covering the basics of using the new UI.
Torpedo Rework
On the Alliance side, torpedoes have sadly fallen by the wayside. This is mostly due to the fact that during the Modular Missile Update the torpedo body was made as flexible as all of the other missile types, leading to it being outclassed in everything by being exceptional at nothing. This update restores the SGT-3 to its original place as a close range, high durability, and high damage weapon.
We've also added the new TLS-3 launcher, the first turreted missile launcher for the Alliance, to help with low maneuverability weapons at close range.
Interceptor Missile Rework
Interceptor missiles, or AMMs as the community colloquially knows them, have been significantly improved in this update. Their warheads now determine probability of doing damage based on intercept angle instead of intercept velocity, with a head-on or tail-on intercept producing the best probability. This means you can build faster interceptors, to get out and defeat threats early, without having to sacrifice reliability.
The PD Controller logic has also been upgraded to allow ships to coordinate their AMM use and only fire from one ship at any given threat. This will significantly reduce wasted missiles and increase effective magazine depth. If you want to force a ship to fire even if it is not the chosen shooter you can still use the PD Prioritize order (hotkey Z) to queue up the engagement. This logic will also receive further improvements in the near future.
Capital Ship Buffs
Alliance capital ships have received a durability and repairability buff in this update. The Solomon has had its armor upgraded to 58 cm, allowing it to tank 450 shots at steeper angles and especially when bow-on, and the Axford has been given some more resilience in the form of a boosted repair ceiling for damaged components.
The most common complaint I hear from capital players is how quickly they become disarmed due to the size of the hitboxes of their main weapons. To remedy this, the Mk65, Mk66, and Mk68 guns have all had their HP and DT (damage threshold) significantly boosted. These main weapons should now last much longer in battle, comparable to the ships they are mounted on.
Deception Module
And finally, the least-used module in the game (aside from Battle Dressing Station), has been given a rework. The E15 Masquerade is now capable of producing a deceptive signature similar to Protectorate decoy containers on the ship they are mounted on. The type of ship you intend to mimic is selected in the fleet editor, and will appear as that type of ship on the enemy's radar until visually confirmed.
We hope you really enjoy this one! See the full patch notes below:
Changes/Features: - Added mixed missile salvo planning. Click the green + buttons next to any pooled missile to being a mixed salvo. - Added TLS-3 Torpedo Turret to Alliance weapons. - Increased SGT-3 Torpedo speed envelope to 175-300m/s (was 125-200m/s) and increased turn rate slightly. - Decreased SGT-3 Torpedo flight time per engine increment to 1-4.5 seconds (was 3-17 seconds). - Added cost to increased SGT-3 maneuverability, minimum 0 points and maximum 3 points. - Increased SGT-3 Torpedo HP to 160 (was 110). - Decreased SGT-3 programming time to 3 seconds (was 6). - Added missing barrel glow to OSP cannons. - Dedicated servers will now refresh their global ban list every 6 hours instead of only on restart. - Dedicated servers will now reject joining players during the launch countdown. - SGM-2 and SGT-3 missile body warhead slots can now also accept support modules. - Decoy Launcher and Cluster Decoy Laucher missile support modules can now scale the number of decoys with the slot size (when put in a warhead slot). Decoy counts are unchanged for basic support slots. - Boosted Self-Screening Jammer will now steer to the target's position (within 30 degrees) rather than being fixed in missile's forward direction. - Increased Boosted Self-Screening Jammer range to 5km (was 4km), FOV to 20 degrees (was 10 degrees), and radiated power to 5 (was 0.5). - Increased Self-Screening Jammer radiated power to 2.5 (was 0.5) and radius to 1.5km (was 1). - Jamming support modules for missiles now activate on launch instead of at the start of the terminal guidance phase. - The probability of Blast Frag warheads doing damage is now related to the angle of intercept rather than relative velocity magnitude, with head-on intercepts having the highest pK and perpendicular intercepts having the lowest. - PD Controllers will now deconflict AMM use with other friendly ships to reduce wasted missiles. - Command seeker can now use TRPs natively without requiring another seeker to be present. - Increased SGM-H-2 sprint stage engine flight time envelope to 1-3 seconds per increment (was 0.75-2.5). - Decreased top-end speed cost for SGM-H-2 sprint stage engine to 5 points (was 8). - E15 'Masquerade' module can now produce a deceptive identity for enemy intel. Target identity can be selected in the fleet editor. - Changed E15 full name to E15 'Masquerade' Deception Module. - Added "Evacuated" intel report information for ships that have finished launching lifeboats. - Increased Mk66 Cannon HP to 550 (was 350) and DT to 40 (was 30). - Increased Mk68 Cannon HP to 650 (was 450) and DT to 40 (was 30). - Increased Mk65 cannon HP to 450 (was 325) and DT to 40 (was 30). - Added new stat hull-component-max-repair, default value is the current 10%, capped at 50%. - Added intrinsic hull modifiers for max repair to Axford (+20%) and Solomon (+5%) hulls. - DC section of Fleet Editor stats list now shows max repair amount. - Increased Solomon battleship armor thickness to 58cm (was 52). - Decreased PD20 Bastion fire rate to 3 rounds per second (was 4). - Changed icons on missile glance bar to have a new icon for "Searching" and a green crosshair for "Seeking". - Missile glance bar now indicates seeker jammed status. - Beam seekers will no longer force the current target to be considered validated if it was selected before a valid target was detected. - Added mixed salvos tutorial. - Changed Nyx's Eye to be 10 players (was 8). - Dedicated servers now have the option to block players with too many conduct reports from connecting. - Updated starter fleets to account for new point costs.
Bug Fixes: - Fixed selection circle remaining around a selected enemy ship when it was no longer visible. - Fixed anti-aliasing not working. - Fixed formation weapon groups for missiles showing the launcher count in the name when grouped. - Fixed turreted launchers continuing to play the traverse sound even after firing was completed. - Fixed NullReferenceException when toggling the pause menu in a tutorial mission with no voice over. - Fixed LOD levels on VLS-2 culling cell doors too early. - Fixed direct guidance module not leading targets when fired on a track. - Fixed HoJ seekers on AMMs flying towards the launching ship instead of the missile with the jammer.
Minor Update 0.3.1.17 - Tumbleweed
It was hard to decide on a name for this update, since it's mostly general improvements across the board with no headline feature, but there's still plenty here for everyone to enjoy!
New Map: Tumbleweed
We've added a new map to the game, our first in a while, called Tumbleweed. This is a complex twisting asteroid maze which leads to some really interesting dynamics. Close-range ships and waypointed missiles thrive on this map but there are still plenty of long sight-lines...just watch out for someone sneaking up behind you. We've been playtesting this one for almost two months with our tester group and it's proven to be a lot of fun, so we hope you enjoy!
Pre-Game Coordination
A very highly-requested feature is the ability to show your teammates your fleet composition in the skirmish lobby. I held off on this for a while due to the risks of a player swapping over to the enemy team, seeing their fleet comp, and then returning. In this update, I've added a fleet display next to the chat pane in the lobby which you can use to manually reveal your fleet to your teammates when you're ready. If anyone new joins your team all fleets will be automatically hidden and you will have to choose to reveal them again. Clicking on each ship in the list will show its weapon fitting.
Tactical View Stenciling & Radar Display
The range circles seen in the tactical view, which show sensor and weapon coverage, have been improved to no longer create a giant mess. The circles are now merged together and overlapping lines are stenciled out,
I've also added a small but helpful set of lines around your currently selected ship showing radar panel coverage, with red lines showing panels that have been knocked out.
Balance and Drag
It wouldn't be an N:FC patch without balance changes. First off, for OSP we've fixed C81 being extremely tough (which was not intended) by reducing its integrity values to match the CR65. The Ocello also had one of its CR75 comms antennas swapped for a C10, and the small Yard Drive has had its linear thrust bonus decreased to prevent the Ocello from taking too much advantage of it. On the Alliance side, the Axford and Solomon have had their thrusters beefed up by increasing their damage threshold (the amount of damage necessary in one hit to destroy them), making their maneuverability more resilient to long range mass-driver fire. The OSP also got a buff to grapeshot, increasing its velocity, range, and armor damage, to make it more useful against groups of frigates.
One of the longest running jokes in Nebulous is space drag. Drag exists for a few reasons, mostly to prevent disabled ships from careening into rocks or off into the ether. It also had the secondary effect of making it more difficult for ships with damaged thrusters to reach their top speed with reduced thrust. Unfortunately, after the last thruster/flank changes, this made Alliance capitals unable to reach their top speed laterally and made them complete sitting ducks after losing a thruster or two. To remedy this, the global drag value has been cut in half. While capitals will now find it easier to reach higher speeds later in the battle, it also means changing direction is harder because you can't count on drag to supplement your braking thrusters.
Optimization
In my endless quest to make the game run better, I've also optimized the CPU-based armor system which is used on the dedicated servers. Servers should no longer stutter or freeze for several seconds when large amounts of armor damage, such as a reactor bloom hitting multiple ships, occurs. I've also significantly cut down on the game's memory usage by purging the decompressed asset bundle data after loading. The stock game should occupy almost 1.5GB less space in memory when running, and my tests with a ton of mods took memory usage from 8GB to 5.5GB.
As always, full patch notes follow:
Patch Notes - 0.3.1.17:230630-0454
Changes/Features: - Added new map Tumbleweed. - Added fleet display to help teammate coordination in the skirmish lobby. - Added "Hide Empty" multiplayer game filter. - Lobby point values now have comma delimited numbers. - Parallelized and optimized CPU armor damage application, dedicated servers should no longer freeze for several seconds when multiple ships are caught in a reactor bloom. - Overlapping range circles in the tactical view are now stenciled out. - Added tactical view lines to show radar coverage for the selected ship. - Changed C81 Plasma Casemate health and DT values to match the C65. - Increased 100mm Grapeshot flight speed to 1,100m/s (was 900) and range to 8km (was 5.5km). - Increased 100mm Grapeshot armor damage to 16 (was 10). - Halved drag force for non-disabled ships to 0.015 (was 0.03). - Reduced CHI-777 Yard Drive linear motor bonus to 10% (was 30%). - Increased damage threshold for Solomon and Axford strafe thrusters to 20 (was 15). - Increased damage threshold for Solomon and Axford main and braking thrusters to 25 (was 15). - Changed Ocello aft antenna from a second CR75 to a CR10. - When switching PDTRT mode to DEDI, any dual-purpose weapons, fire-control radars, and illuminators currently targeting missiles will be set to idle.
Bug Fixes: - Freed unnecessary memory usage left after loading an asset bundle. - Fixed reactor blooms doing armor damage to the same hull segment multiple times. - Fixed Bulker LN Stern A engines 5 and 6 not playing particle effects. - Fixed PD prioritization and MAN setting being exploitable to ignore missile decoys. - Fixed mod faction equipment sharing via "Shared Faction All" unlocking hulls as well, which was not intended. Hulls can still be added to the shared equipment list directly. - Fixed Solomon thruster 7 missing from DC board. - Fixed several zero-length vectors causing look rotation failures and log spamming. - Ships owned by a disconnected player can no longer be transferred to former teammates who have previously disconnected or retired. - Fixed Cargo Feeder structure hitbox being scaled incorrectly. - Fixed exception when collecting after-action report on dedicated servers. - Fixed a case where server would stall at "IN PROGRESS" even if all players had disconnected. - Fixed firing cooldown UI visuals not being timed correctly for buffed ewar modules. - Fixed subscribed workshop ship templates not appearing in the ship template list. - Fixed disconnect caused by having a teammate's ship selected when they disconnect and the selected ship is transferred to you. - Fixed disabled (red) modules not removing their stat modifiers if receiving power. - Fixed plasma focusing component damage into one component instead of spreading. - Fixed Self-Screening Jammer spawning as a cone instead of a sphere. - Fixed missile with cruise guidance not doing terminal maneuvers when using a direction-only seeker. - Fixed rocket turrets being stuck in bearing to target state when extremely close to their target. - Fixed missile engine sounds not being affected by volume controls.
Devlog #29: The Strategic Level
Here is the long-awaited devlog covering the first stretch of the development of our next major update, Conquest! This covers the design process, new game setup and faction creation, and and introduction to some of the strategic map mechanics. Check it out below:
Patch Notes - 0.3.1.16:230424-0026
In the last week we've had two minor patches to address issues discovered since the release of the dedicated servers update. You can find the notes for both of them below.
Patch Notes - 0.3.1.16:230418-1140
Bug Fixes: - Fixed server chat commands not being enabled by default. - Fixed multiplayer match list formatting. - Fixed both Raider drives thrust bonus being equalized to 20% when they should be 30%. - Fixed fleet file path being formatted wrong when designating a fleet for a server bot. - Fixed match list refresh sometimes never stopping. - Fixed filters not being applied to dedicated servers. - Fixed games played on dedicated servers not contributing to rank progress. - Fixed dedicated servers not applying map default settings if the map is the first selected. - Fixed server admins not retaining permissions when returning to the lobby after a game completes. - Fixed NullReferenceException in game start causing some disconnects in P2P games.
Patch Notes - 0.3.1.16:230424-0026
Changes/Features: - Changing a map will now revert scenario settings to defaults before applying map preferences. - Changed default sorting order in multiplayer match browser to give preference to populated, not-in-progress games. - When hovering over a dedicated server's mod list icon (green wrenches) only mods which affect fleets (hulls/components/munitions) will be listed. - Fleets can no longer be dragged to new folders when selecting fleets in the lobby.
Bug Fixes: - Fixed exceptions when receiving end-of-game message causing disconnects. - Fixed multiple fires being able to spread to the same component. - Fixed several edge cases which could cause a dedicated server to stall and never return to the lobby. - Fixed player action dropdown menu being behind the window in the abbreviated battle report screen.
Update 0.3.1.16 - Dedicated Servers
One of our most-requested features is finally here: dedicated servers! The patch notes below are huge and the culmination of several months of work that began before the end of last year. It required major rewrites of a lot of the netcode but it was definitely worth it both for the current skirmish game and as a stepping stone for Conquest in the future. And don't worry, the peer-to-peer hosted games you're used to will still be around.
There's a lot here, almost like a mini-major-update, so let's get started:
Dedicated Servers
Dedicated servers provide a persistent hosted game which players can use without having to host it on their own computer. This provides a lot of benefits such as improved performance and a more reliable network connection. Most importantly, you don't need to worry about your host ragequitting because their BB ate a dozen hybrids. The new server build of the game can be hosted on any computer, but a dedicated host is best.
You can recognize a dedicated server by the special icon in front of the name in the multiplayer match browser.
These server games will loop continuously between lobby, battle, debriefing and back to the lobby. You don't need to exit the debriefing to go to your next game, just click the ready button.
There will be 6 official server instances to begin with. We're also in the process of getting the server binaries available both through a Steam Tool installation and through a hosting provider so you can host your own easily. Unfortunately, this is a man-in-the-loop process and will take time to coordinate with these providers. In the meantime, if you're interested in setting up your own server you can contact me on our official Discord via the ModMail bot and I'd be happy to send you the server build for use.
You can find the guide on setting up your own dedicated server here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2963605370
CPU Armor Model
There has been a known issue for a while where players running older computer with Windows 7 had issues with our GPU-based armor damage system. If one of these players was hosting a multiplayer game then armor shredding mechanics simply didn't work. Because servers don't usually have GPUs I have implemented a secondary version of the armor system that runs on the CPU. If your computer is running Windows 7 it will automatically fall back to this CPU system. You will not see damage effects on the hulls (which you probably didn't anyway), but at least armor damage will work properly.
If you do want to see damage effects, you can enable a special setting in the graphics settings menu which will periodically copy the armor damage to a texture. This is extremely slow and you will experience a significant performance impact, so it is disabled by default.
New Player Experience Improvements
The two most common roadblocks for new players are TF Ash and Tutorial 6.
Because Ash starts with an A, it is the first fleet automatically selected for new players. It is also one of the hardest fleets to play. Starter fleets now have a special sorting mechanism by their difficulty, so Oak is now the default fleet if you have only starters.
Tutorial 6, the Advanced Missile Tactics tutorial, has turned many a midshipman's face red with frustration. What's worse, missile pathing is not a commonly used tool except by the most dedicated missile players. To help remove this roadblock we've separated the missile-specific tutorials into their own set of advanced tutorials so they will not interrupt the basic tutorials with a difficulty cliff.
More Optimizations
Another pass on optimization was done for this update, specifically on cutting down unnecessary memory allocations and frequent HUD updates when gaining and losing lots of sensor tracks in a short period of time. The time it takes to start the game from your desktop has also been massively reduced.
Point Defense Exploits
Some of our players figured out that looping large missiles like containers in circles around a target, but outside its PD range, could exploit the PD Controller's prioritization logic and prevent it from shooting at smaller missiles like S2s. This has been fixed with a rework to the priority logic: the PD Controller now groups missiles into buckets based on their time to impact, and then sorts by other metrics inside those buckets. You should no longer watch helplessly as your PDTs stay pointed at the S3 missile outside of range while a dozen S2s crash into your hull.
OSP Weapons
With the help of the remaining OSP testers we did another pass on plasma balancing. Plasma's armor damage has been increased to 60cm BUT it now experiences a cooling in flight, so it will have its highest damage potential up close and rapidly deteriorate down to 30cm of damage at its max range. This makes plasma excellent at close range but not able to wreck all of your armor instantly at 8 km.
We've also changed the firing rates of some weapons. The T81 plasma turret is still a burst fire weapon, but the C81 plasma casemate is now oriented towards providing sustained-fire: one shot with a much shorter reload time. The base rate of fire is unchanged, but it now receives increased benefit from Energy Regulators. The C60 has also been changed to a sutained-fire paradigm to differentiate it from the C65, which previously was strictly better in all cases where it could be taken. There is now a choice between fitting your lineship to provide massive alpha damage or sustained damage.
Community Moderation Tools
With control of some games now moving out of the hands of a lobby host, we've added some additional tools to help with community moderation. The first of these is a voting system which can be used to not only change maps but also to kick players who are being belligerent. You can access all of these commands in chat (type !help for information).
Additionally, we've added a Report Player feature which allows players to report violations of community standards to our official database. Players who have more than a certain number of reports in the last 30 day rolling window will be flagged in the lobby with a yellow name. Our multiplayer terms of service have been updated and you will see it again the next time to open the multiplayer browser.
As always, full patch notes follow.
See you in the Battlespace, - The NEBULOUS Team
Consolidated Patch Notes - 0.3.1.16
Changes/Features: - Added dedicated server support. - Added chat command processing system, available on dedicated servers only. Use "!help" to see all commands. - Added a system to vote kick players from a dedicated server. Kicked players cannot rejoin until the next round. - Added prompt for reporting players for bad conduct. - Added dedicated server listing to the multiplayer match browser. - Added multiplayer match browser filters for P2P and Server games. - Match browser list is now sorted alphabetically by default, with dedicated servers at the top. - Double-clicking in the campaign list now opens the selected item. - Starter fleets are now sorted by their difficulty for new players. - Added ability for modded factions to unlock an entire faction's equipment by adding that faction's key to the definition asset. - Added authentication ticket processing for connecting clients. - Added "IN DEBRIEFING" tag to lobbies which have are at the after-action report. - Changed lobby ready lamp to purple when a player is in the fleet editor. - Remaining players are now re-validated when a player leaves the lobby. - Updated loading screen with new images, and added dark background to tip text. - Added "permanent" flag to some stat modifiers like illuminator RCS increase so they aren't removed when power is lost. - Increased map boundary radius of Caltrop. - Updated Caltrop textures to be slightly darker and reduced opacity of trail particles. - Increased Caltrop player count to 4 (was 3). - Brought F and G points on Canyon, and their corresponding rocks, closer to the center. - Re-organized tutorials into beginner basics and an advanced set for missiles. - Kicking a player from a lobby will now show a "You have been kicked" message instead of connection lost. - Optimized HUD updating when large numbers of tracks are being gained or lost. - Optimized some common non-game-object data structure allocations with instance pooling. - Lost tracks will now show as the Pending icon instead of reverting to a Ship icon for one frame. - Split stock asset bundle into five smaller bundles to load in parallel and decrease update size. - Added preferred scenario settings to maps. - Canyon's default Victory Points for Control is now 1500. - P2P lobby hosts and dedicated server admins will now show a badge next to their name in the lobby. - Impact effects are now positioned relative to the hit ship, so slight position lag on clients will not show impacts offset in space. - PD Controller threat priority sorting is now based on time-to-impact buckets, with threats in each bucket sorted by size. - Plasma damage changed to be falloff-based. Damage is 60cm immediately after firing and falls off to 30cm at max range. - Plasma shots will now fade to blue as they age. - Changed C81 Plasma Cannon to fire 1 round every 12 seconds (was 4 rounds every 52 seconds). - Increased accuracy of C81 and T81 Plasma Cannons. - Changed C60 Cannon to fire 1 round every 18 seconds (was 4 rounds every 72 seconds). - Changed name of Mk550 Mass Driver to Mk550 Railgun. - Players running Windows 7 or earlier will now have the CPU armor system used as a fallback for the GPU version. - Added new graphics option to enable copying of damage masks to the GPU if using the CPU system, with significant performance cost. Only visible if fallback system is necessary, and disabled by default. - Updated multiplayer terms of service. - Power generation stats now show percent change instead of percent difference, to match modifiers.
Bug Fixes: - Fixed skirmish lobby being broken after being disconnected from a game by an error. - Fixed modular missile bodies not being shareable with modded factions. - Fixed hulls not being shareable with modded factions. - Fixed badges being converted back into PNGs for transmission sometimes exceeding the 32kb limit. - Fixed missiles spamming log with look rotation warnings after impact. - Fixed component debug gizmos not being drawn when Nebulous.DLL was imported into editor for modding. - Fixed collider error with Cargo Feeder hull causing some portions of the bow to not take damage. - Fixed RPF rounds teleporting into asteroids when they trigger. - Fixed components not removing their stat modifiers when losing power. - Fixed EO seekers not rejecting decoys when used as a validator. - Fixed Whiplash description to match changed stats. - Fixed linear thrust bonus discrepancy between FM280 and FM580 drivers. - Fixed geometry error on Pillars D rock. - Fixed cruise guidance missiles resetting their flight time accumulator when switching from travel to search phase. - Fixed cold gas bottle applying its affects for the entire duration of flight. - Fixed semi-active seekers being able to see illumination from behind the target. - Fixed PD Controller assigning weapons to high priority targets that are out of range instead of closer, in-range lower priority targets. - Fixed discrete weapon stat report showing "UNUSED" if switching to a new ammo type on a target that has already been engaged. - Fixed THE CYLINDER.
Balance Patch Notes - 0.3.0.57:230323-2011
We've just crossed the one month birthday for the Protectorate Update, and to celebrate we've got some balance changes to address the biggest issues that have been brought to our attention. We tested the major update for quite some time with a broad range of testers, but there are always going to be some issues that slip through the cracks in a game with this many moving parts, so thank you for bearing with us.
All three of the primary areas of changes have a significant overlap, but I'll try to cover them individually here.
NEBULOUS: Drift Command
In hindsight, it was probably a bad idea to balance plasma around the ability of the highly maneuverable AN ships to dodge in the hands of a skilled player. This opened up a pretty major skill gap between players who knew dodging was possible and those who didn't. The primary culprits in this were linear acceleration buffs from the Raider drive and the fact that FLANK throttle gives an additional 1.5x boost to acceleration. Throttles were only ever intended to get you somewhere faster, not to have combat dodging implications.
We've rebalanced some of the Alliance drives to reduce these buffs and increase their negative effects. Additionally, FLANK throttle will still provide its 1.5x top speed bonus in all directions but the linear thrust bonus will only apply in the forward direction. Finally, in order to help close that skill gap, the EVADE maneuvering posture will cause ships that are stationary to randomly translate around their stopped position.
Capital Survivability
While these drive changes seem like a nerf to the Alliance (they are, but mostly for frigates, which we'll talk about in a second), having a more narrow skill gap between dodging and not dodging allows us to better balance Plasma.
Originally, we made plasma hits devastating because they were so slow and easy to dodge with certain engine configurations. With the reigning in of dodging, we've reduced the armor damage of plasma so it will not strip the armor off a huge area of a CH or BB in one hit. We've also improved the splashing logic to create a more even spread and not apply damage to the same spot twice. Plasma also originally had very long range so you could soften targets before getting into 100mm range, but once again this created a punishing micro gap where players who were traveling in a straight line would take the full brunt of plasma salvos at 12km while players dodging would not be hit at all.
We've also reduced the armor penetration of rockets so that leakers getting through capital PD will not immediately do devastating damage and knock the PD offline so a second salvo can finish the ship off.
In all, these changes should significantly increase Alliance capital survivability and reduce micro load.
Frigate Blobs
The most frustrating problem brought to our attention by players was the trend towards fleets of 10 frigates, which were just not fun to play against (or really to play as). They're a small target, they're highly maneuverable, and they have excellent redundancy because hits to one ship won't reduce the effectiveness of others. The drive changes above were a big component of making these fleets more vulnerable, so they can't just set a tight perpendicular orbit and dodge every shot at more than 4km. Removing the power output from the small Raider variant also prevents them from being stacked on smaller ships without creating power concerns.
One of the big strengths of these fleets was their ability to rely on RPF to cover their PD needs. The volume of RPF in use often led to them being invulnerable to missile salvos in addition to dodging every shell. The probability of RPF doing damage to missiles has been reduced in order to force more build sacrifices in these fleets by creating a tradeoff between DPS and dedicated PD.
Full patch notes follow:
Changes/Features: - Flank speed 1.5x linear thrust bonus now only applies in the forward direction, top speed in all directions is unchanged. - Increased FM280 and RM580 Raider Drive's flank damage to +50% (was -30%). - Decreased FM280 and FM580 Raider Drive's linear motor bonus to 30% (was 40%). - Decreased FM280 Raider Drive's power generation to 0 (was 300). - Decreased FM230 and FM530 Whiplash Drive's flank damage to -15% (was 25% and 35% respectively). - Decreased 400mm Plasma Ampoule armor damage to 30cm (was 45cm) and range to 8.4km (was 12km). - Smoothed out armor damage of splashing damage slugs (e.g. Plasma) to prevent double application. - Decreased R-2 Piranha Rocket armor damage to 38cm (was 70cm) and increased armor damage radius to 4 (was 3). - Ships holding position while set to EVADE will shift laterally in random directions. - Reduced airburst damage probability of 120mm and 250mm RPF to 50% (was 80%).
Bug Fixes: - Fixed thrusters receiving flank damage when only turning the ship and not providing any lateral thrust. - Fixed Focusing Element Misaligned debuff being triggered by battleshort damage.
Patch Notes - 0.3.0.56:230309-1200
After many tens of hours of meticulous testing, repeating reproduction steps, and forehead bruising, this patch brings fixes to two critical bugs (and a few other minor ones). The first is a long-standing but extremely rare case causing track numbers to desync between the client and server, preventing players from issuing orders against those tracks because the server does not recognize the track number. The second is the more recent but extremely frustrating issue of projectiles and missiles phasing through ships under certain conditions. I could probably do an entire devlog on tracking down the causes of both of those 2 bugs, but the important thing is that they should haunt us no longer.
I apologize to those of you with slow internet because even though this is just bug fixes it is still a full-size patch. Fixing the SGM-H-2 issue required a rebuild of the archive storing all of our game assets.
Changes/Features: - Added line to DC locker stat cards showing whether the provided teams can perform restores.
Bug Fixes: - Fixed tracks not updating to the correct identifier in rare desync cases, preventing players from firing on them. - Fixed ship collider position in the physics engine desyncing from position of the ship object in the scene graph, causing shots to phase through. - Fixed SGM-H-2 sprint stage warhead/engine tradeoff not being correctly linked, allowing incorrect total size. - Fixed initial formations ship list in fleet editor being sorted incorrectly when ship 10 was formed with ship 1 as guide. - Fixed discrete weapons with an autoloader size of 1 showing recycle time which is not used.
Patch Notes - 0.3.0.55:230305-0740
The Protectorate Update has been out for just under a week and we've been blown away by the reception! As is to be expected with any major update which changes huge parts of the game, there are a few bugs that were not caught in testing. Thank you all for the reports. This patch should fix the majority of the issues that have been brought to our attention.
Additionally, there is a known issue with missiles and projectiles phasing through ships under some circumstances which has not yet been fixed. This bug is extremely illusive and we haven't been able to nail down the cause just yet. If you have any additional information or can provide reproduction steps, please don't hesitate to contact us!
Changes/Features: - R400 and R550 sensors are no longer controlled by the RADAR button, so they can be operated when normal search radar is off. - Added difficulty level to starter fleet descriptions. - Added better icons for decoy containers. - Reduced reporting of component overkill damage. - Updated Azurite Squadron starter fleet to not have a power deficit on the Ocello.
Bug Fixes: - Fixed point defense weapons sometimes sitting idle if their assigned target was destroyed. - Fixed NullReferenceException sometimes occurring at end of tutorial missions. - Fixed R400 and R550 always drawing power. - Fixed orderable radars not showing as Active in the mount status display. - Residual weapon groups from upgraded pre-missile-update fleets which had their MLS launchers replaced will be skipped, preventing errors from starting the battle. - Fixed gap in attachment point of Bulker Stern A. - Fixed backwards triangle on Tug clipper hull. - Corrected salvo size in MLS-3 description reading 3 instead of 2. - Fixed error caused by entering parentheses into fleet list search bar. - Fixed missiles with increased warhead/engine max size not having the extra size used without editing. Extra available size will be allocated to the engine automatically, to prevent cost from changing. - Fixed AI bots not making movement orders until an enemy unit is detected in certain game modes. - Fixed missing collider segment from Bulker Core C collider sampler. - Fixed ASMD tutorial point defense turrets being enabled despite LT Hazel saying she has turned them off. - Fixed serialization error when saving a skirmish game with missiles using the SSJ/BSSJ module. - Removed mention of 3-round burst from Mk550 description. - Fixed exploit allowing OSP fleets to use hybrid missiles. - Fixed NullReferenceException when trying to focus the camera on objective points. - Fixed exception when loading a station capture game. - Fixed DC teams not obeying player priority for Low priority parts like thrusters. - Fixed missile failure rate stat showing positive values in green. - Fixed Self-Screening Jammer module showing beam angle even though it is a sphere. - Fixed mine seekers detecting and engaging lifeboats. - Fixed spelling mistakes in some descriptions and lore blocks.
The Protectorate Update + Midweek Madness 25% Discount
Hello Spacers!
The battle for control of Elshout's Spur, and the future of the Alliance as a whole, has begun. The second major update for NEBULOUS: Fleet Command, the Protectorate Update, is here! If you haven't seen it yet, be sure to watch the trailer below:
We are also thrilled to announce that NEBULOUS will be featured on the Steam homepage for a Midweek Madness discount starting today, where you’ll be able to pick up the game for 25% off. If you (or your friends) have been on the fence about jumping into NEBULOUS, now’s a great time to check it out!
Today's update adds a second faction to the game, called the Outlying Systems Protectorate. Their fleet is comprised of commandeered and refit civilian ships and play completely distinctly from what you're used to with the game's current faction, the Shelter Alliance. If you're interested in the nitty-gritty details of the balancing process we went through for this faction, you can find more information in the latest devlog here:
Rimmy Downunder was kind enough to let us broadcast his video of the update on the store page, do check out his channel and consider subscribing!
Here is an overview of the major features in the update:
New Faction Ships
The Protectorate faction features six all new hulls to build your fleet from. They range from mothballed Alliance cruisers, to the mighty Lineships which OSP bases its fleet around, to the hardy but slow Monitors, and finally the two small and maneuverable Clippers.
In order to help convey the truly cobbled-together nature of the Protectorate Navy, we've even implemented a randomized hull layout system which makes no two lineships look exactly the same. Mount placement is roughly the same between all possible layouts, with only slight variations in secondary mount positions, and socket counts are always consistent.
Mastering the OSP and besting the Alliance with their fleets will require outside-the-box thinking and use of their unique tools to counter their superior enemy. This faction is not the most new-player-friendly, but our testers have provided five battle-tested example fleets to help you get started.
New Weapons
This update also features a slew of not only new weapon components, but entirely unique weapon paradigms previously unseen in the game. These weapons range from standard small caliber cannons to massive fixed casemates, plasma-throwing coilguns, missiles made from shipping containers, unguided rocket turrets, and mines.
The OSP also has access to some unique deception techniques in the form of decoy missiles, which mimic the electronic signature of a ship and even generate a random name that the enemy will see next to the track.
Long Range Sensors
The civilian sensor suites found on OSP ships are naturally inferior to the dedicated military radars of their opponent. To make up the difference, this faction relies on clever employment of special long range directional sensors which allow them not only to scan the battlespace with wide, inaccurate beams but also develop a tight track on a single target using a special narrow beam.
Unlike the general purpose search radars currently found in the game which scan a full sphere at all times, these systems must be manually directed into an area of space in order to begin searching, and can be found under the EW weapon menu.
Missile & Point Defense Improvements
Missiles and point defenses have also received a lot of attention in this update, and the effectiveness of both has never been higher.
On the missile side, we've made numerous adjustments to seeker costs and missile body values. The biggest change is to validation seekers, which now assume the field of view and range of the primary seeker, meaning you no longer have to worry about cone compatibility with your primary seeker. Validator combinations saw regular, effective use on the test branch and they are now well worth their cost. Other missile penetration aids, such as decoy launchers and terminal maneuvers, also received improvements.
For point defenses, the ballistic lead solver has been vastly improved and the Defender can be seen regularly shooting down hybrid missiles coming straight in. Defensive weapons also now have the ability to know when they've destroyed their target and can ask the Point Defense Controller for a new target immediately instead of waiting for the next update cycle. The Stonewall and Sarissa also received significant buffs in the form of a new burst-fire targeting method, and the PD Controller is now capable of using fire-control radars and illuminators to supplement its existing capabilities.
Performance
A number of significant optimizations have been made as well as removal of unnecessary additional processing left in to either support cut features or assist with debugging. Overall, most players should experience huge performance improvements in large battles. Missile processing time was also significantly improved, and large numbers of missiles should no longer cause significant lag or frame stuttering.
In the worst testing scenarios we ran, which dragged the game down to as little as 6 FPS, we can now see a steady 60 FPS after the optimizations.
There are also dozens of other quality of life improvements and new features, which you can find a full list of in the consolidated patch notes below. All in all, we hope all of you have as much fun with the update as our testers have been having for the last few months, and we're so excited to finally get it into the hands of all of our players!
Finally, we'd love to hear your feedback and reviews of NEBULOUS - positive or negative - especially on how you feel Early Access is going. All reviews and feedback are deeply appreciated and enormously helpful to guide our development. Thank you!
See you in the battlespace, - The NEBULOUS Team
Consolidated Patch Notes, v0.3.0.54
Ships: - NEW: Added new faction Outlying Systems Protectorate. - NEW: Added randomized modular hull system. - NEW: Added Bulk Freighter class Lineship. - NEW: Added Container Liner class Lineship. - NEW: Added Cargo Feeder class Monitor. - NEW: Added Tug class Clipper. - NEW: Added Shuttle class Clipper. - NEW: Added Emergency Reactor Shutdown button to the damage control board. - CHG: Decreased hull-componentdr stat max value to 50%. - CHG: Increased Vauxhall Light Cruiser angular motor power to increase turning speed by roughly 33%. - CHG: Updated ship roll priorities to account for side-mounted fixed weapons. - CHG: Increased size of Raines frigate compartment 5 to be 4x1x6 (was 3x1x5, not found anywhere else). - CHG: Increased armor thickness of Sprinter corvette to 8cm (was 5). - CHG: Reduced DC Priority of all thrusters to Low (was Medium). - FIX: Fixed damage effect scaling on Solomon BB, so they are consistent with other hulls. - FIX: Eliminated phantom roll forces causing ships to roll off target when turning. - FIX: Fixed structure break stat modifiers making crew less vulnerable to damage instead of more. - FIX: Fixed ship thruster power not varying with direction. All ship thruster values adjusted for balance. - FIX: Fixed integrated comms antennas not receiving stat modifiers. - FIX: Ships with high top speeds will no longer appear to get stuck in space when directly approaching an asteroid. - FIX: Fixed ships not being able to approach extremely close to asteroids.
Weapons: - NEW: Added C30 100mm Casemate. - NEW: Added T20 100mm Cannon Turret. - NEW: Added T30 100mm Cannon Turret. - NEW: Added 100mm AP, HE, HE-HC, and Grapeshot Shells. - NEW: Added C53 250mm Casemate. - NEW: Added C60 450mm Casemate. - NEW: Added C65 450mm Casemate. - NEW: Added C81 Plasma Casmate. - NEW: Added T87 Plasma Turret. - NEW: Added 400mm Plasma Ampoule. - NEW: Added TE45 Mass Driver. - NEW: Added 500mm Fracturing Block. - NEW: Added Mk65 250mm turret. - NEW: When a target is lost and there are no remaining roll drivers, the ship will issue itself a temporary ROL order to prevent remasking weapons. - CHG: Removed Mk82 Railgun turret. - CHG: Firing railgun weapons now temporarily increases the host ship's signature size. - Mk81 Railgun turret increases by 10x per turret for 18 seconds. - Mk550 Mass Driver increases by 12x for 18 seconds. - CHG: 300mm railgun sabots are no longer affected by component DR. - CHG: 300mm railgun sabots now have a 100% chance of causing a random event, but can no longer cause critical events (i.e. reactor overloads). They will also cause a random event in a random component if hitting only the structure hitbox, even if the ship is not structure-broken. - CHG: 300mm railgun sabots now iteratively apply their damage to each component with a falloff factor in all cases instead of spreading evenly or to only one component. - CHG: Increased 300mm railgun sabot random event multiplier to 100 (was 2), but disability ability to trigger critical events. - CHG: Doubled component search distance for 120mm and 250mm shells. - CHG: Refactored fixed weapon aiming logic to work cooperatively with multiple weapons. - CHG: Fixed weapons can now be grouped. - CHG: Added casemate controller logic for side mounted fixed weapons. - CHG: Reduced muzzle spread on Mk61 and Mk62 cannons to be 0.15 (was 0.25). - CHG: Increased 120mm HE-RPF ray damage to 8 (was 6). - CHG: Increased 120mm HE component damage to 50 (was 45). - CHG: Increased 120mm AP component damage to 30 (was 25). - CHG: Increased 250mm AP component damage to 70 (was 60) and lowered overpen multiplier to 0.45 (was 0.6). - CHG: Increased 250mm HE component damage to 80 (was 75). - CHG: Narrowed damage ray cone of 120mm RPF to be 5 degrees (was 7.5). - CHG: Narrowed damage ray cone of 250mm RPF to be 6 degrees (was 10). - CHG: Added component search distance override to 120mm and 250mm HE-RPF. - CHG: Reduced Mk550 Mass Driver autoloader capacity to 1 (was 3) and reload time to 15 (was 45 total, accounting for recycle time). - FIX: Capped explosive shell randomized sphere overlap position to never be greater than the distance between the entry and potential exit point. - FIX: Munitions with wide lookahead casts will no longer be triggered by the firing ship immediately upon spawning. - FIX: Ships will no longer spawn with components that are in their fleet file but cannot be used by their faction.
Missiles: - NEW: Re-added MLS-3 launcher. - NEW: Re-added MLS-2 launcher - NEW: Added Container Bank Launcher. - NEW: Added Container Stack Launcher. - NEW: Added CM-4 Container missile body. - NEW: Added Decoy Container (Line Ship). - NEW: Added Decoy Container (Clipper). - NEW: Added turreted missile launcher capability. - NEW: Added RL16 Rocket Turret. - NEW: Added RL32 Rocket Turret. - NEW: Added S1 Rocket, unguided rocket munition. - NEW: Added loitering missile type. - NEW: Added ML-9 Mine Launcher. - NEW: Added S3 Mine and S3 Cooperative Mine missiles. - NEW: Added S3 Sprint Mine missile. - NEW: Added Mine Container which deploys two mines at the end of its cruise path. - NEW: Added Rocket Container which delivers 4 S1 Rockets. - NEW: Added unique HUD icon for offboard decoy missiles. - NEW: Added unique HUD icons for mines for both active and inactive states. - NEW: When firing missiles from an MLS, salvo size for the targeting widgets is now based on magazine capacity for the selected launcher. - NEW: Missiles queued for launch will now be considered "reserved" from the magazine while the order is programming, but will be returned if cancelled. - CHG: Removed compounding cost from MLS launchers. - CHG: Reduced MLS-3 magazine capacity to 2 (was 3). - CHG: Increased MLS-2 socket size to C3. - CHG: Increased MLS ejection speed to 20m/s (was 10). - CHG: Added note to MLS launcher descriptions indicating they cannot be used to fire AMMs. - CHG: Added missile subtype to differentiate missiles of the same size number. - CHG: Validation seekers now assume the field of view of the primary seeker. - CHG: Validation seekers now roll once for reliability on launch, instead of every acquisition cycle, and will return results based on that reliability. Adjusted reliability for all seekers accordingly. - CHG: Tightened terminal maneuver envelopes to reduce misses significantly. - CHG: Increased missile decoy size to 4 (was 3) to increase priority. - CHG: PD Controller will now flag missile decoys as manual priority to prevent the PD Priority order from nullifying them. - CHG: Missile decoy penaids are now ejected at the max terminal speed of the missile, even if the sprint is still accelerating. - CHG: Set max fuzing trigger radius for blast frag warheads to be 50m instead of continuing to scale with larger warheads. - CHG: Reduced cost of WAKE validator to 1 point (was 2.5). - CHG: Reduced cost of ARAD seeker/validator to 2 in all-radars mode (was 4). - CHG: Increased radiated power of Boosted Self-Screening Jammer to 0.5 (was 0.3) and decreased cost to 10 (was 14). - CHG: Converted Self-Screening Jammer to a short-range omnidirectional jammer for countering radar AMMs. Reduced cost to 5 (was 7). - CHG: Added one additional increment to SGM-1 warhead/engine tradeoff slider for a total of 7 (was 6). - CHG: Added one additional increment to SGM-H-2 warhead/engine tradeoff slider for a total of 8 (was 7). - CHG: Doubled SGT-3 maneuverability envelope. - CHG: EO seekers will no longer track decoys of any kind, even when fired with no intel. - CHG: Fixed Cold Gas Bottle early turn rate bonus not being applied for hot-launched misiles. - FIX: MLS-2 and MLS-3 launchers can no longer be placed in the same group. - FIX: Fixed missile orders not always firing the correct count when different number of the same missile were present in different launchers. - FIX: Fixed blast fragmentation warhead not being scaled by the weighted socket size. - FIX: Fixed beam seeker conical scan not being displayed on clients.
Point Defenses: - NEW: Added P11 Rotary Gun PDT. - NEW: Added P20 Rotary Flak PDT. - NEW: Added P60 Laser PDT. - NEW: Point defense weapons will now point in the direction of the last assigned threat when idle. - NEW: Added DEDI option to PDTRT to limit to dedicated PD weapons only. - CHG: Decreased cost of 20mm Slug to 1 point per 2000 (was 1 per 500). - CHG: Stonewall and P20 PDTs recycle stat now has the subtype "Belt". - CHG: Stonewall PDT now has a burst-fire targeting logic. It will fire a full magazine at its target, then swap to a new target. Reduced magazine size to 16 to support this change. - CHG: PD weapons will no longer count a target as "assigned" until it fires its first shot. - CHG: Radars which obey the LCK order can now be used by the PD Controller when not in use by the player. - CHG: PD Controller will now task available illuminators to PDMSL targets. - CHG: Added Dual-Purpose flag to all illuminators. - CHG: Added Dual-Purpose flag to Mk64 Cannon. - CHG: Increased Defender PDT cost to 20 (was 15). - CHG: Decreased Rebound PDT cost to 15 (was 20). - CHG: Increased 15mm Sandshot damage to 75 (was 65), increasing range to 8km (was 6.25km). - CHG: Increased Sarisa autoloader capacity to 3 (was 1) andchanged targeting assignment mode to burst-fire. - CHG: Adjusted Sarissa integrated FCR parameters to match new range. - CHG: Changed Sarissa reload stat subtype to "energy-coilgun" and reduced reload time to 6 seconds (was 8). - FIX: PD Weapons will not longer fire at invalidated tracks until told to stop by the PD Controller on the next cycle, reducing wasted ammo. - FIX: PD weapons assigned to target A, then B, then A again will now correctly show 2 targets assigned instead of 3. - FIX: Fixed PD Controller not firing AMMs when one of multiple types were exhausted.
Support Modules: - NEW: Added Rapid Cycle Cradle module, decreased recycle time between autoloader shots on most weapons. - NEW: Added new drive types: BW800, BW800-R, BW1500, BW1500-R, BW2000, CHI-777 Yard, Sundrive Racing Pro, CHI-9100 Long Haul, and CHI-6600 Drives. - NEW: Added new reactor types: Civilian Reactor, Light Civilian Reactor, and Boosted Reactor. - NEW: Added Large DC Storage locker, which provides no teams but holds additional restores. - CHG: Increased Auxiliary Steering compartment HP to 300 (was 15) and added reinforced flag. - CHG: Increased Small Workshop HP to 150 (was 75) and increased DT to 35 (was 25). - CHG: Increased Damage Control Central HP to 200 (was 125) and increased DT to 35 (was 15). - CHG: Increased size of Reinforced DC Locker to be 3x1x6 (was 3x1x3). - CHG: Decreased negative effects of Prowler drive to be max speed -15% (was -25%), linear motor -25% (was -40%) and angular motor -10% (was -30%).
Debuffs/Random Events: - NEW: Added badges to mount status display showing debuff condition. - NEW: Made debuff count for individual components more obvious on the DC Board. - NEW: Hovering over a component with debuffs in the DC board will show the cumulative stat effects. - NEW: Added Gyroscope Drift debuff, increasing muzzle spread by 75%. - NEW: Added Focusing Element Misaligned debuff for Mk600 and Mk610 beams, decreasing damage by 66%. - NEW: Added FC Waveguide Bent debuff for weapons with integrated FC, decreasing radiated power by 50%. - NEW: Added Heatsink Ruptured debuff for continuous weapon components that have a cooldown, increasing cooldown time by 75% and increasing BSHRT overheat probability by 90%. - CHG: Consolidated discrete weapon reload/recycle time debuffs into Ammunition Loader Jammed and increased effects to +75%. - CHG: Increased Bearing Surface Bent effects to slow turret traverse speed by 80%. - CHG: Increased Sensor Antenna Bent effect to reduce gain by 50%. - CHG: All Fire debufs (fire, mag cookoff, etc.) now do 5% of a component max HP every 30 seconds (was a flat 10 damage). - CHG: Reduced Fire crew vulnerability multiplier to 0.1 now that fires actually do significant damage. - CHG: Damage done to crew in a component is now proportional to the max HP of the component rather than a flat number. - CHG: The number of debuffs currently active on a ship (with a margin of error) is now shown in the intel report, i.e. "COND: 75% (15)". - CHG: Any non-critical debuff which is extremely dangerous (CanSpread or PeriodicDamage flags set) will have highest priority for repair immediately after critical events. - CHG: When a roll succeeds to add a debuff to a component, there is no longer a possibility of a debuff being selected which cannot be added. All successful rolls will now result in a debuff being added if there are any possible. - CHG: Reduced random effect probability multiplier for all non-rail weapons. - CHG: Components with Low DC priority will be placed in the secondary job queue, placing them behind debuffs to be fixed. - FIX: Fixed fires only having their periodic damage applied when another damage source caused the damage frame to be collected. - FIX: Fixed some debuffs not being applied.
Sensors and EW: - NEW: Added Ithaca Bridgemaster search radar. - NEW: Added Bulwark Huntress search radar. - NEW: Added R550 Early Warning Radar, a manually steerable long range radar with poor accuracy. - NEW: Added R400 Long Range Tracking Radar, a fixed radar dish which provides accuracy tracks in a narrow cone at long range. - NEW: Added J15 radar jamming turret. - NEW: Added J360 omnidirectional radar jammer. - NEW: Added jamming capability for passive sensors. - NEW: Added L50 Laser Dazzler for jamming EO sensors. - NEW: Added E20 Illuminator. - NEW: Detected ELINT bearings or crossfixed will now show the general type of sensor (e.g. Search, Fire Control) when hovered over with the mouse. - NEW: Added signature blooming mechanic. Increasing signature size now decreases the perceived distance between the sensor and the signature, allowing detection at longer range. - NEW: Added a "Strobe" LOB track for all jamming sources. - NEW: Added Strobe Correlator module for increasing accuracy of jamming LOBs. - NEW: Added signature intel deception mechanics. - NEW: Added Track Quality calculation system. Hovering over a track will show [TQ##] next to the track number. Scale is 1-15, with 15 being best. - CHG: False tracks created by jamming will now appear as a yellow pending icon, rather than a randomized ship or missile icon. - CHG: Non-jammer EW weapons (illuminator, directional radar) now give a general acknowledgement callback instead of a jamming callback. - CHG: Decreased opacity for all EW area effects in tactical view. - FIX: Stacking radars of the same type on one ship is no longer exploitable for increased accuracy. - FIX: Fixed comms jamming not causing tracks to drop on clients.
Fleet Editor: - NEW: Added new slot magazine loadout panel for container bank launchers. - NEW: Hovering over a ship in the fleet editor list will show its cost breakdown in a tooltip. - FIX: Ship template list will no longer show ship templates from a different faction than the current fleet. - FIX: Fixed modifier list tooltips not showing modifiers from base stat type if the stat had a subtype. - FIX: Fleets are no longer draggable in the select list when starting a quick test battle, which caused an error. - FIX: Fixed exception in EditorShipController when exiting the fleet editor in some cases. - FIX: Fixed fleet editor warning you about an unsaved fleet when trying to start a test battle but allowing you to continue anyway and causing an error.
Optimization: - CHG: Optimized particle system use when not visible or not active. - CHG: Missile ejectors now use a pooled ejection effect instead of one per object to reduce VFX script count. - CHG: Reduced volume detection munition fixed update processing time by 97%. - CHG: Reduced missile fixed update processing time by 70%. - CHG: Improved shared LOD mesh optimization by sharing more materials.
AI: - NEW: AI can now identify standoff scouts with long range radars and use them. - NEW: AI will no longer fire on tracks with TQ <= 4 or that are only tracked via ELINT LOB. - NEW: AI will not deploy mines when arriving at a point it has been tasked to capture. - NEW: AI now understands how to pre-face fixed weapons on an expected enemy position.
Miscellaneous: - NEW: Added 5 starter fleets for the OSP faction. - NEW: Added four color scheme save slots to the player profile editor, with default ANS and OSPN colors initially. - NEW: Added "Uniform Faction" toggle to lobby settings, requiring all players on the same team to have fleets of the same faction when enabled. - NEW: Added epilepsy warning splash screen. - NEW: Added cancellation buttons for ROL and HDG commands individually. - NEW: Added minefield callout signal. - NEW: Spectators will now see the owning player's name when hovering over a ship icon, just as teammates do. - NEW: Added Container Bank Cookoff critical event. - NEW: Double clicking on a ship or track icon will now auto-focus the camera on it. - CHG: Updated all started fleets for AN faction. - CHG: Catastrophic internal explosion events no longer have a cap of damaging 20 components. - CHG: When hovering over non-track HUD icons, detailed information will be displayed with a fitting title rather than always being "INTEL". - CHG: Default bot prefix is now OSPN. - CHG: Changed default badge to Alliance Roundel. - CHG: Ships with their command disabled will no longer be able to contest a capture point. - FIX: Fixed turret controller aiming incorrect when aiming at high elevations on weapons with barrel offsets. - FIX: Fixed lead solver diverging from correct firing solution at high closing velocities. - FIX: Ships will no longer automatically return fire on tracks tagged as killed. - FIX: Fixed turret traversal sound volume not being scaled correctly. - FIX: Fixed disconnect error related to chat window when joining a lobby. - FIX: Fixed an exception being thrown when more than 20 jammers were affecting a single sensor. - FIX: Clients should now receive a correct velocity update for all ships at the end of the arrival cinematic. - FIX: Fixed input spinner for magazine ammo counts not resetting to the capped value when entering a large number when already at the max number. - FIX: Rebuilt Pillars navigation graph to provide missing AI routes through D-point.
Minor Update 0.2.2.39 - Return of Mod Syncing
Hello Spacers,
We have a very minor update to close out January, but one which I'm sure will be very welcome. The team and I have been fully focused on getting the OSP major update wrapped up, and there unfortunately hasn't been a lot of time to switch back to the main branch to get this done. But the update is going great and we're in the final balancing phase now, expect more news very soon!
As for what is in this update, we've improved the mod loader's safety by showing a list of all mods which you'll need to download in a prompt instead of just subscribing to them and downloading immediately after you click the Load Mods button. This will only be done for mods you're not already subscribed to, so as long as you're only playing with mods you're familiar with you should never actually run into it. All mods in the list will be shown with their name, creator, and star rating on the Steam Workshop. Clicking on the mod will take you to its Workshop page so you can see more details.
Patch notes follow:
Changes/Features: - Re-enabled automatic syncing of mods in multiplayer lobbies. - Mod loader will now prompt you with a list of mods that are in use which you are not subscribed to. - Clicking a mod in the list will take you to its Steam Workshop page.
