Cyber Knights: Flashpoint News

Welcome to Update #63, a nice quality of life update in the breather before more content piles on. We've got some really nice QoL improvements with new hovers for weapons, mods, armor, items, cyber and cyberdecks as well as +11 new lore files to check out and nice tweak to the default filter settings in inventory to make it easier to for everyone. Check it out below!

Thanks to everyone playing and posting up a review :hype:! Remember, if you think we're heading the right direction, you can post a review now and edit it later.


[h2]Flexible Equipment & Cyber Hovers[/h2]
One of the main even for Update #63 is the addition of flexible hovers capable of showing a wide range of complicated details - weapons, weapon mods, armors, items, cyberdecks and implants. These hovers are featured on the main roster screen as a rapid way to check stats and as a way to see cybernetic implant stats. In addition, within the mission if you double click on a character on the Initiative timeline, you'll bring up their status screen and you can now hover on their weapons, armor or items there to see all the details. The items are new add, they were previously not shown but thit is a nice place to check the exact Talent stats without unpacking them first.

Also, all hovers of all types got a nice yellow border to help them stand out from what they are hovering over. Ahh, nice!


These aren't perfect yet - there is still some overkill information in the cybernetics ones, for example - but we're excited to get this into your hands to gather feedback.


[h2]Inventory Default Filters[/h2]
We've improved the inventory default filters to only show what is really in the team's inventory and carried by mercs. The situation where weapons carried by other mercs were filling half the inventory screen - even though they aren't in the armory - was confusing and now resolved. We've also fixed a few bugs with those available filters not being remembered when switching tabs which was making inventory harder to use.

We're still looking for the right name for the filter, perhaps "on the shelf" when it comes to the inventory.


[h2]More Lore Files[/h2]
We've added 11 new lore entries that will appear in files. Four of these are in Civic Dossiers of any faction while the other 7 are locked by specific faction. It's exciting to inject another set of lore into the game, including some snippets about the Quiet Wars of the last 22nd century, space achievements and the sweeping history nanotech in Cyber Knight's lore.

We're going to keep working this angle until all the files have something interesting to read about, so stay tuned for more!

[h2]Story Fixes[/h2]
We've also hammered out a number of small but troublesome issues in the Sibling Breakout storyline. There was a case where the dialog could hang if you made choices that stressed out the main sibling (like delaying or refusing to recruit). In addition, there has been an issue (reported oh so many times!) of the sibling talking to themselves if you escaped the prison. This was caused by taking an unexpected route through the level that didn't trigger the dialog where the prisoner sees you for the first time until the prisoner has escaped and often triggers it themself :facepalm: Fixed!
 
[h2]v1.4.35 - 3/20/2024[/h2]
- Added hovers to weapons, armor, items, implants and cyberdeck from main roster page or from character status during mission
- Improved default filters for inventory to only show what is on-the-shelf and hiding what is held by merc
- Fixed bug where availability filters were not remembered between tabs in inventory
- Added +10 new lore entries including files about Quiet Wars, Arthur Pell, space age achievements, Nanotech Research Archives 2, 3 and 4
- Fixed issues in Sibling Breakout that could result in sibling talking to themselves
- Fixed bug that could hang story dialog if you choose not to recruit sibling after Sibling Breakout
- Fixed bug where Tox Cloud could be in the wrong position after retrying a turn
- Fixed missing paragraph about Water Desalination in journal

With the Spring Sale still on, we're working on a few more updates before the discount wraps up. So Update #62 is a big one, following hot on the heels of the MAGNITUDE update and its more-than-doubling of proc-gen mission variety. We've fixed the final trickle of bugs reported about these new proc-gen combos, added +4 more tattoos, +25 unique and faction-specific of faction-type-specific lore blocks to your looted digital files, added a heap of new lore Journal entries, rebuilt the proc-gen looting system, finalized the fixes with moving short vs. long distances, and fixed a heaping mountain of F10s reported by the player base.

As we keep dropping updates, a big thanks goes out to everyone playing and posting up a review as we near 200 👍 ! If you like the direction we're heading, a review now goes an extra long way to help us getting there and you can always edit it later.


[h2]+4 New Tattoos[/h2]
We've added another 4 tattoos after we received a request for some more horizontal designs. These new designs include nice variations of the under-eye stripe, giving you some choices about the thickness of the stripe, length and positioning.


[h2]Digital File Lore Injection[/h2]
With Update #62, every digital file that you pick up will have some lore text description what it contains once decrypted. These shorter blurbs cover every type of file but are heavily reused (all Personnel File III's use the same text regardless of faction). On top of the more common text, we've also added 25 larger chunks of lore details to the files, sometimes linked to a faction class (Patient Dossiers I made by a megacorp is a compilation of medical records about individuals exposed to nano-radiation) while other files are linked to a specific faction (UltraTek Patient Dossier's I is about a census of the 400+ retroviruses active in the population of New Boston).

it is an exciting new angle to feed the world's deep lore into the game and the new file sets cover topics like - space race, quants, retroviruses, the merger of Mars Corp and Vintago Energy to create Jupiter Group, McKellen Heavy Industry's relationship to gang leadership and more. This is going to a growing area of the game, so enjoy browsing and checking out the lore found in the files as you acquire and find more!


[h2]New Journal Entries[/h2]
We've completed a push of new journal entry content, focusing on wrapping up the Places category. With new entries for Downtown, the 4 major Avenues below Downtown, Water Desalination entry and a new entry under tech covering the modern combat armor - Adaptive Armor - it's a solid expansion to the long-form lore content available in the journal today. Next, we'll be drilling in on each of the factions.

[h2]Proc-Gen Loot Rebuild + new Research Files[/h2]
With Update #62, we've torn down the old setup for how loot was assigned for proc-gen missions and rebuilt it based on the objective type you're running and the faction you're running against. This new set of data is driving more exciting and valuable loot in proc-gen plays with a lot more variety between runs. It makes the biggest difference on Scavenger missions but loot is a constant source of side income even on the other types of jobs you're pulling off.
 
Keep an eye out of the new Research Report files and the lore they contain as well!


[h2]Movement Tuning[/h2]
In Update #61 there was a mix up and bad merge of code that failed to fix the movement issue we've been tracking where you could squeeze a bit of extra movement out of your AP if you broke it up into many short 1 AP movements. This was not fun to do but could yield some extra meters if you took the time and clicks for it. The same bug also resulted in the AP dots (the larger blue dots in your movement) to not sync correctly to the AP cost of your movement.

With this update we've corrected the math so no AP is worth more than another AP, regardless of how far or short you are moving and the dots are always correctly positioned at the point where an extra AP is charged.


[h2]Accuracy in Hover[/h2]
Update #62 fixes a long-term sneaky bug that was hanging around with the accuracy shown when hovering over an enemy. This Accuracy never took Optimal Range into account and was also calculated from your current position instead of correctly calculated from your movement destination, if you had one set.

Overall, the accuracy in the hover is now significantly more correct. In testing we found cases where the real Accuracy could be 0% but the hover would show 96% (sniper rifles !!!).

[h2]Talent Fixes[/h2]
We've fixed an issue where using Vanguard's Bodybag would cause the corpse to start lying about when its body timer would expire, suddenly claiming it would pop "next Turn." We've also fixed the description of the Scourge' Detonation Talent to be more clear - it will only activate when an enemy enters the radius, but as it is an explosion anyone inside the area, including friends, is damaged.

[h2]Map and Story Fixes[/h2]
We've resolved issues with proc-gen missions. With the Slumroad Junction map + Q-Gap Spike objective, you could start with extremely high Sec Tally per Turn - now resolved. There was still one case where Sewers + Scavenger mission could result in auto-fail - now resolved. We improved the Cube Run introductory dialog to be in the right order and make sense.

And more, more, more - check the full changelog below.

[h2]v1.4.33 - 3/18/2024[/h2]
- Added new Research Report group of files (1 to 7) which are high value and rarer
- Lore injection - added lore entries for 25 files based on faction or faction type (megacorp, syndicate)
- All files now show a short description of their contents, even if not yet paired with extended lore piece
- Added journal entries for Downtown, the Avenues, Water Desalination, and Adaptive Armor - the modern combat armor of 2231
- Added 4 new tattoos including horizontal styles and cleaned up / improved some other tattoos
- Rebuilt loot rollers for all proc-gen mission by faction and faction class, much better loot and more clearly linked to faction
- Fixed issue with gaining advantage by making small moves (for real this time), AP dots are now accurate in move planning
- Fixed issue with Accuracy shown in hover over enemy did not take Optimal Range into account when previewing a move
- Fixed issue where Vangaurd's Bodybag Talent would always cause body hover to state the body timer would expire next Turn
- Fixed description for Scourge's Detonation Talent - only enemies trigger the corpse explosion but anyone nearby is damaged
- Fixed issue where Slumroad Junction map + Q-Gap Spike objective started with Tally Per Turn too high
- Fixed issue with Corner Holdout map + Scavenger objective leading to auto Defeat; return to safehouse and play forward
- Fixed mission victory could show character Injury Time at stage victory instead of full victory
- Fixed Cube Run mission ordering for intro dialog and objective highlighting
- Fixed issue with all save slots showing the same last event data incorrectly
- Fixed issue where cursor could disappear even with "Disable all Controllers" if you have controllers plugged in
- Improved message on loading save slot from load game which will overwrite current game progress

Update #61 follows hot on the heels of the big MAGNITUDE update and its veritable explosion of proc-gen mission variety. We've fixed all reported bugs with the new mission combinations, added +11 new tattoos, finished the rebuild of the Load Game screen and fixed your bugs and F10s. We're excited to celebrate a big sale week with a lot of updates, so let's keep this thing moving!

Thanks to everyone playing and posting up a review as we near 200 👍 ! If you like the direction we're heading, a review now goes an extra long way to help us getting there and you can always edit it later.


[h2]Because we needed some neck tattoos[/h2]
We've introduced +11 new tattoos (because we had to outdo +10 new proc-gen combos!) with this update. This includes a few variations of neck tattoos, some tribal tattoos and other cool new designs. Check out the new ink for your squad, and if these aren't in your wheelhouse than be sure that many more will be coming as we keep building out the full set of looks.

We also improved a few of the existing tattoos to help make them stick out more or clean up odd bits.


[h2]Updated Load Game Screen[/h2]
With Update #61, we've updated one of the last old screens in the game - the Load Game screen to match the UX design we've been marching too. You can now see your Knight's by their face, name and last real-world time they were played. When selected, you can see the AUTOSAVE (your currently game) and all saved slots associated with it. You can load any you wish but will be warned on deciding to load a save slot that your AUTOSAVE will be overwritten.

It's a wealth of new details about each saved game that should help us all keep our piles and piles of games straight :D

If you are missing portraits for any of the games, our apologies - we couldn't cover every single case back to the start of Early Access. In that case, load the game, pick your Knight from the Roster and go to the Appearance tab. You'll be all set, everything gets updated.


[h2]Movement Improvements[/h2]
We've fixed an old but important issue where you could squeeze a bit of extra movement out of your AP if you broke it up into individual 1 AP movement. This was not fun to do but the need to maximize can be pretty strong. We've resolved the issue and corrected the math so no AP is worth more than another AP, regardless of how far or short you are moving.
 
Within the HUD, we've ensured that the movement waypoint widget rises to the top of the stack when you're previewing movement so it doesn't get stuck behind other elements or character hovers. This is especially helpful for melee characters who are often charging in close to enemies.


[h2]Don't Shrap Yourself![/h2]
We fixed an issue with the Scourge's Aero-Shrap Shell Talent where sometimes one of the resulting shrapnel areas could land right on top of the Scourge and smack you with some damage as payback for your awesome Talent use. This is now fixed, Scourge never gets hit.

[h2]Proc-Gen Fixes[/h2]
A few issues have been reported with the proc-gen combos that we added in MAGNITUDE and we hit most of them last night in a series of rapid-fire hotfixes. We've cleaned up all remaining issues reported with today's patch. A BioScan Field near the starting area, a captain on a Kill 3 mission inside an inaccessible building, unhackable terminals in Trucker HQ + Q-Gap Spike and Sewers Scavenger missions auto-failing.

[h2]v1.4.31 - 3/15/2024[/h2]
- All new load game screen - access all save slots, main save, see portraits and event details
- Added 11 new tattoos designs
- Fixed issue with gaining advantage by making small moves
- Improved HUD layering to ensure that movement waypoint is shown over top of hovers
- Fixed issue with Scourge's Aero-Shrap Shell sometimes hitting the Scourge
- Fixed issues unable to hack matrix hosts in Trucker HQ and Req Site
- Fixed issue with BioScan right at starting position in Truck HQ Q-Gap Spike
- Fixed issue with Sewers Scavenger mission is auto-failure; return to safehouse and play forward
- Fixed Slumroad Junction map issues where sometimes enemy could end up inside a building
- Fixed issue with characters standing in Extraction zone when it turns on

It's a boom economy for Cyber Knights. With this update we have now doubled the amount of proc-gen missions available, creating 10 more combinations between existing maps and proc-gen objectives. Combined with a milestone we hit in January doubling the amount of unique story missions (many of which are multi-stage), there's more opportunities than ever for your crew to earn some serious credits.

If you're enjoying the on-going updates and improvements for Early Access, remember you can leave a review now and always edit it later.


[h2]+10 Proc-Gen Combos[/h2]
The proc-gen mission system in Cyber Knights combines maps + objective types + enemy factions + a ton of other factors to create unique heist experiences. With Update #60, we've integrated 10 new map + objective combos, greatly increasing the amount of playable content in the proc-gen system.

You may have played bodyguard for a data courier before in the Slumroad Junction map, but now you can be paid by one of your Wireghost contacts to get a data courier through the Trucker HQ where the bridges are held against you by a bristling set of Blue Ox toughs, completely changing the pacing of the level as you need to hit the bridge guards hard and reach the extraction before things completely go off the rails.

You may have raided the Streets Palisade to hack a buried quantum data-bloc, slipping through or cutting down security to open the path for your hacker. But now your payday from the Blue Ox may rely on you slogging down into the sewers, battling in close quarters against the Que Milieu Syndicate to reach a really buried matrix host to spike before fighting your way out again.

Your mission choices are now feeding into the Influence of the Contacts you are choosing to work for, pushing them toward reaching 8+ Influence and being able to take actions in the simulation, mutate their positive Traits or even upgrade their underworld services to your benefit. And soon (not quite ready, still balancing), those you're working against will be suffering Exposure gains, pushing them to mutate negative Traits, downgrade their Power Level, taking negative actions in the story or increase their risk of death.

As your options for jobs explodes, who you work for is mattering even more.

[h2]Roadmap "Coming Soon"[/h2]
The team is working on multiple fronts back at Trese Brothers HQ - loading the game up with more content as well as finalizing a number of major roadmap items.

We are in testing, integration and final visual tweaks on a lighting engine and post-processing layer upgrade that will help play up the look of cyberpunk world of New Boston - gritty, dark but still vibrant and glowing.

[h3]Mac OS support[/h3]
We're very pleased to say we've cleared some challenging hurdles that have been blocking a working Mac version. With those out of the way, the new lighting engine is one of the last elements needed to finish it, so these two roadmap items will come nearly hand-in-hand. We know our Mac player community and Kickstarter backers are eagerly waiting to try out the game, so this will be a grand day.

[h3]Safehouse Base-Building[/h3]

Finally, we have completed the functional work for safehouse base building. There is a ton more work, testing and balance to get it player-ready, and some time needed for our own team to put it through its paces and complete a first round of tweaks, UI improvements and any minor functional changes. But it is clearly on the horizon now.

Due to the amount of content that will be coming in the release of base building, we're now marking this as a Q2 2024 item on the roadmap. This includes blueprint crafting in a safehouse workshop, giving you the ability to use the high-value blueprints you can find on missions. Being able to create your own weapons, armor and items will give you new options to avoid the expensive market and create uniquely rare and valuable items.

And the plan is that as blueprint crafting opens up, so will a set of contacts you can sell your blueprints for cash to, so you can sort through your stash and chose which you want to keep for nano-fab and which you want to sell for hard U-Duhs.

[h2]Motion Detector Warnings[/h2]
The movement alerts for motion detectors were not correctly taking Line of Sight into their warnings and posting up incorrect or too early warnings. This is now resolved and all checks include line of sight as well as your speed and distance to get the best results possible.


[h2]High Armor Targets![/h2]
If you happened to run into a Street Charger like this with 121% Armor, they stole some items from the lab. It was not intentionally, and they repaired their armor above the maximum rating. Some players figured out how to shred their armor or pile on the Pure Dmg until they were dead ... but now we've fixed this issue.

High armor targets are coming with higher level enemies, drones, etc. But not like this, not like this.

[h2]Inventory / Market Fixes[/h2]
We've fixed a number of small issues with the inventory and market.

First, if you had rescued the Wireghost in the Carnivore mission, after the latest round of updates to Contact Trust and Influence, he stopped selling cyberdecks and programs. We've resolved that minor bug!

Second, if you are checking out weapon mods with optimal range changes, the +/- are now included all the time so it is clearer if the mod is increase or decreasing your optimal range band.

Finally, we fixed a bug that could cause the UI to lock up if you were comparing weapons when buying or selling those weapons. Oops!



[h2]v1.4.25 - 3/14/2023[/h2]
- Added 10 new proc-gen mission combinations, doubling amount of playable proc-gen missions
- SCU in Q-Gap Spike matrix terminal in Street Palisade map now controls multiple security cameras
- Added missing +/- signs to weapon mod changes to Optimal Range
- Fixed movement warnings for Motion Detectors to respect line of sight
- Added ability for hover to show hotkey associated with a button or action (i.e. ENTER shown on End Turn)
- Added helpful message to Legworks if there are no available characters
- Fixed issue where new Wireghost Contact from Carnivore was not selling new cyberdecks and programs correctly
- Fixed issue with invincible enemy who was using an item to increase their Armor Protection Points beyond max
- Fixed Matrix issue where you could Jam a device that the Sec AI hasn't woken up yet
- Fixed secondary objectives for "less than 3 Sec Level" to fail on 3 correctly
- Fixed controller issue that could cause the mouse cursor to disappear
- Fixed Damage and Bleeding out messages overlapping on screen to make them unreadable
- Fixed inventory and market issues that could lock the UI if buy/sell during compare
- Fixed issue where sometimes Blend's hologram styling could stay after buff ends
- Fixed issue where too much loot in a mission could break the formatter

As we round the bend before the next big content push, we've got another strong update full of bug fixes, balance improvements and tuning for the story and contact simulation. This one touches on preventing back-to-back reinforcements, improved new game contact stats, improving Scourge's Dissolve to be more flexible, avoiding some less than awesome combinations in Hype Limit Breaks and more.

If you're seeing progress in the right direction and like the foundation of the game we're rapidly filling in during Early Access, we hope that you will take a moment of leave a review!

[h2]Improving Sec AI Responses[/h2]
Update #59 includes another improvement to the choices the Sec AI can make, specifically throttling calls for reinforcements to help avoid the back-to-back arrivals of enemies leading to them stacking up on top of each other. We've added some capabilities here that will allow us to further flex the Sec AI's cool by creating specific requirements, ordering and chains of responses. More on that later, but for now we've made the first tuning in the area to avoid the less-than-nice reinforcements pile up.


[h2]Starting Contact Stats[/h2]
We've improved the Contact starting stats to correctly reflect the changes in Trust to being out of -100% to 100% and also the new Influence/Exposure stats. In addition, we've fixed an issue where you owed some odd characters one or more Obligations without any sensible cause, suchas the Syndicate Soldier Hartzek. As Zasha killed his son during a UKF fight, there shouldn't be any Obligations, only enmity.


[h2]Scourge's Dissolve and Dissolve Timing Fix[/h2]
For a while, there has a been an issue where corpses could stay around visually even if they were dissolved or bio-recycled. The corpse wouldn't really be there in the game, wasn't noticed by other enemies patrol and would disappear on reload but it was a confusing visual artifact. We've fixed the timing issue which was related to dissolving the corpse during its hand off from dying enemy to ragdoll to resting corpse.

Also, to give you as much flexibility as possible, we've removed the restriction from the Scourge's Dissolve that was blocking Dissolving already discovered bodies. A body will alert any guard who spots it, so even if one guard has seen it in the past it doesn't mean it might not be a thorn in your side again. Now, you can Dissolve at will.


[h2]Hype Limit Breaks: Stress Reduction[/h2]
We've improved the options that get selected for Hype Limit Breaks when you have high Stress to ensure that only one of Cut Stress (-5 Stress) and Flush Stress (reset Stress to 0%) appear in the list. There were cases where both were appearing which really limits the other cool options you should be able to pick from. Now only one spot can ever be dedicated to Stress reduction.


[h2]Cube Run Over-Achiever[/h2]
If you were regularly over-achieving in the Cube Run mission, you might have hit a few snags. As you only need 2/2 Terminals to enter the lab, those who went for 3/2 triggered a case that we hadn't tested well enough and the extraction point promptly disappeared. :facepalm: Now its fixed!

[h2]v1.4.23 - 3/12/2024[/h2]
- Adjusted all starting contact's Favor, Obligations, Trust % and starting Influence scores
- Improved Sec AI ability to throttle and chain certain security events - prevents back-to-back reinforcements
- Removed restriction on Scourge's Dissolve that prevent it from being used on already discovered bodies
- Fixed issue where sometimes bodies would not visually disappear if dissolved within 10 seconds of death
- Fixed issue where comparison color for Pure Dmg in weapon compare was flipped
- Fixed Hype Limit Break bug where both Flush Stress and Cut Stress could appear together
- Simplified intro to proc-gen Hack CPU missions after you've completed it once
- Removed incorrectly previewed extraction points on Heist CPU proc-gen level
- Fixed some pathing and prop issues in Streets Palisade
- Fixed bugs in Cube Run if you went for 3/3 terminals when you only need 2/2