Cyber Knights: Flashpoint News

Knights of New Boston - this one is a patch to catch up on some bugs that snuck in about prisoner handling. We're working on some new and exciting story levels with cool happenings, but this caused an issue where prisoners were appearing out of their cell or not at all. We've also further pushed the Sells Cyberdeck service out to levels 5 and 6 and correctly aligned all the Power Level decks out to that point. And finally, we fixed a few lingering issues that could occur with Legwork and the new recruits from Era '31.


[h2]Prisoners Escaped![/h2]
If you started a level with a goal to save a prisoner but discovered that prisoner was either (1) not visible at all or (2) standing right in the middle of your crew ... this is the bug. In all the F10 cases we've seen, fixed and tested this is unfortunate, silly look but you can still play out the entire level. Just be aware, if you free the prisoner by opening their cell, they will become active right where they are standing, they will not move to the cell.

If you do have a hung game or you can't restart the mission after this patch, please reach out to us and we can help.

[h2]Sells Cyberdeck[/h2]
First up, we made a mistake in the service name for Sells Cyberdeck last update. Suddenly a "Sells Milspec Cyberdeck (4)" appeared on your Ghostwire contacts, and that has now been corrected to "Sells Cyberdecks (4)".

In addition to that, we've slotted the Jupiter Victus and the UltraTek Galaxy decks into their respective - and new - service levels at 5 and 6. Your Ghostwire contacts and anyone else willing to sell you a cracked deck now have one of the longest service ladders in the game, so keep the happy, feed them Favors and accounts and see if you can get your way up to those high level decks.

[h2]Era '31 Fixes[/h2]
When Era '31 came out there were a few bugs we missed - that you could put assign a Potential Recruit to a Legwork, and that 2 of the same proc-gen Legworks could end up running at the same time. Both of these happened to players and while we closed the bugs allowing them to happen, there was possible downstream data corruption that we've cleaned up in this update.

1. If you assigned a Potential Recruit to a Legwork, when that Legwork finished it would get stuck at 0h. Fixed!
   
2. It was possible to end up with a character who had run one of the doubled Legworks who is permanently stuck "On Legwork" even though there is no Legwork anymore. Fixed!
   

[h2]v1.8.133 - 10/16/2024 [/h2]
- Fixed critical bug where prisoners were not appearing in their cells - reach out if you have a hung game and can't restart mission
- Adjusted power Levels of Cyberdecks Jupiter Victus and UltraTek Galaxy to 5 and 6
- Expanded Sells Cyberdecks for Contacts up to level 6, allowing sale of Victus and Galaxy decks
- Fixed bug where Ghostwire service for selling Cyberdecks appeared twice as "Sells Cyberdecks" and "Sells Milspec Cyberdecks"
- Fixed aftermath bugs of legwork bugs that existed right after ERA '31 story release - 2 bugs that could hang legwork or character on invisible legwork

Tonight's update is a quick one, so I will keep this quick as well. We've made some important updates to the feedback form for Steam Deck and controller support, added a 4th service level for Program Sellers with new program options, reduced IO Size for Deception II and Disarm II and fixed Decoy (HOT) not coming out fully hot.

Let's dive right into this small update -

[h2]F10s from Steam Deck[/h2]
Forever, we've lovingly called the in-game feedback and bug reporting system "F10s". We've got a bug moji on our Discord and everything. But that has left a key feature off Steam Deck (as you couldn't submit or get the keyboard up in the form) or if you're playing with a controller.

With Update #159, we've finished rebinding the default Steam deck / controller config to let you submit Feedback (aka F10!) with the left stick click. This can now be seen from all the HUDs and main menu as well, so fire away with info about how we can make your experience better.

This has also required us to rewrite the feedback form using the game's widgets and styles, which may have impacts on keyboard players as well. Please let us know if there are issues or where we can further improve.

Finally, for big picture mode or Steam Deck, you'll get the nice on-screen virtual keyboard which is one of the key requirements we had to hit on our road to Steam Deck Verified. We've got one last big item to tackle - which is UI scale and font size! Let's go!


[h2]Decoy (HOT)[/h2]
Last update missed a step to finalize the link of the new HOT effect to the new Decoy (HOT) programs. now you'll really get your bonus IO.


[h2]Sells Programs 4 + Attack IV[/h2]
We've also expanded the Sells Programs services from Contacts to have a 4th level you can reach via Limit Break. This level is rare air and offers Decoy III (not HOT) and a new program Attack IV. This massive attack program is very one-hit-kills with the amount of Damage it is dealing, and combined with a higher charge count makes a powerful tool to smash IC in a node when the time comes.
 
[h2]v1.8.131 - 10/14/2024[/h2]
- Upgraded Contact Sells Program service to have a 4th level, now selling Attack IV (one-hit-kill) and Decoy III (not HOT)
- Reduced IO size for Deception II and Disarm II to 100 qb
- Relinked Decoy (HOT) to the correct bonuses, now grant +IO Speed qbps
- Updated F10 feedback form so it can be used by controllers and Steam Deck
- Updated default keybindings for controllers and Steam Deck so that left stick click brings up feedback form

Welcome to the dusk of the weekend in New Boston! We're continuing the tour of second-round balance and improvements and tonight are hitting on pricing in the weapons, mods and armor categories. We've also added a sick new map - the burnt out floor of a flophouse in a street habstack - for proc-gen rotation, improved coherence for Cyberdeck sales, upgraded some Decoy programs to Decoy (HOT) and improved the Hype, Stress (etc!) affects of boosting and burning merc and contact relationships.

We always love rolling out something new and this is a key balance patch for the game's early economy. More will be following! if you are enjoy the game and our dedication to continued adds and improvements during Early Access, please take a minute to leave us a review. Remember, you can always edit it later!


[h2]Major Power Level 1-4 Price Drops[/h2]
With this update, we're catching up on some much needed price rebalancing for Power Level 1 to 4 weapons, weapon mods and armor. The old pricing baselines came from a time in the game when there were few other things to spend money on and so the prices fit better. But now with the competition for safehouse upgrades, cyberdecks, programs, more cybernetic implants and more - these prices were due a big drop.

Weapons dropped the most, ranging from 25% to 50% drop for some early game upgrades. Weapon Mods were already modestly price and dropped a bit, mostly around Power Level 2 and 3. Armors also had some modest reductions in the earlier Power Levels to help make those first upgrades easier to afford.

Items on the other hand got modest gains, where the baseline prices for a Power Level 2 and 3 Item jumped by 10-20%. Item prices of course are small potatoes ($8K became $10K) and these price adjustments also boost the sale value for Item Blueprints on the far side, so this has its benefits as well.

We are still working on a package of upgrades for weapons to help reinforce and boost the stat differences between the levels to further justify the expense to upgrade, but this price drop should help.


[h2]New Proc-Gen Map: Blown Out Flat[/h2]
We've added a new map to the proc-gen rotation for the Battle Strike objective and anticipate adding it to other objective types throughout next week. This Blown Out Flat is a destroyed floor of a cheap habstack, utterly abandoned and dilapidated. The best kind of place for criminal dealings, gang warfare and hiding valuable illegal loot. The Blown Out Flat is on the smaller, more compact side of missions, so it is lovely to roll out additional variety in map types.


[h2]Cyberdeck Service to Power Levels[/h2]
We've made some adjustments Contact services for selling Cyberdecks. We've extended the service ladder to having 4 levels and adjusted the placement of the Cyberdecks sold within those levels so that their is a clear and consistent match of Service Level to Power Level. This has moved one deck between levels and also another deck that was previously rated as Power Level 5 has been downgraded to Power Level 4.

Get those limit breaks with your deck sellers and get back up to the latest!


[h2]Decoy Utilities go HOT[/h2]
HOT is one of the designations for program variations. All HOT programs include IO buffer bonuses. With Update #158, we've upgraded the Decoy programs available from any Contact who offers the special Utility Program service to be Decoy I to III with the HOT designation. So, in addition to volunteering to be the first unloaded, these programs can now buff your IO. Some of you will find - depending on where you bought your Decoy programs before - that you now have these upgraded programs in your Inventory or already installed on your decks.

[h2]Improved Hype / Stress or Influence / Exposure Changes[/h2]
We are prepare for the relationship flows of Hype, Stress, Loyalty, Discontent and for Contacts Influence and Exposure. This coming upgrade will cause relationships from merc to merc or Contact to merc to be more powerful, as big changes maybe ripple outward. If a merc likes a Contact and you treat that Contact badly, the merc may Stress over it.

But that's all coming soon, in the next few updates. For now, the change in Update #158 is to further reinforce the changes to all of these values for your story actions. If you Burn or Boost a merc or contact by a story choice, the hit is going to be stronger. You'll get over all more Hype or Stress, or suffer more Discontent, Exposure etc, where some of these story choices were not feeling so impactful (+10% Exposure or +10% Stress was just not ... enough).

Going along with this, we fixed a bug where helping the UNA hacker could result in a Burn with your Face's relationship instead of a Boost (as queued by the dialog).

And, on that subject as well, we fixed Hype and Stress sorts for Roster, as they were backwards. If you sort by Stress, you probably want the high Stress characters at the top, right?

[h2]v1.8.129 - #158: Markdown Flat - 10/13/2024[/h2]
- Major price reduction for Weapons, Mods, Armor for Power Level 1-4, from 10% to 50% reduction
- Added new proc-gen map "Blown Out Flat": destroyed floor of street habstack with starting Objective Battle Striker
- Aligned Cyberdeck Power Levels with Sells Cyberdeck service levels, new Service Level 4 now added to sell most powerful decks
- Upgraded Decoy programs sold by Utility Program service to Decoy (HOT) with bonus IO
- Improved Stress/Hype/Loyalty/Discontent and Influence/Exposure changes for Burning / Boosting relationships with story actions
- Fixed bug where refusing to hire the UNA Hacker could cause Loyalty loss with your Face instead of (correct) gain
- Fixed issue where Haven Smokeout Wireghost could be invisible, not spawn or refuse to flee
- Fixed ERA story bug where Scourge recruit oddly started at level 1
- Fixed sort in Roster for Hype and Stress so that highest Hype or Stress is at the top

Knights of New Boston - we've got another update here for you with further improvements to the matrix, fixing up a few small bugs in the recent glut of new matrix maps, a new scheme for how ignored / dismissed Recruits are handled, a fix for anyone with a stuck Scourge recruit, improved consistency of Hacking tags on missions and more.

A big thanks to everyone playing, posting and hitting F10 this week! We've seen a huge wave of new players come onboard so it is so helpful to get fresh eyes on Early Access. Keep an eye on this page, more updates and more good things are coming.

If you enjoy the game and our special way of doing Early Access, please take a moment to leave a review! Remember you can always edit it later.


[h2]Spiked Nodes React![/h2]
This has been a visual goal for a while but with the addition of the new Access Gate it is more important than ever to be able to see the status of the node while you're planning your path. There are a few other places we need to have the UI and visual react to spiking - like the pop out node description to the left of the node - but we're excited to take this first enhancement and run with it.

CPUs that have been spiked become more unstable, reddish and stretch and distort as the quantum structure struggles to maintain coherence after the spike. Access Gates and APU - now defeated and lifeless - become gray and lit only by flickering light, their security functions now extinguished.


[h2]Ignored and Rejected Recruits[/h2]
In the original setup for recruits, if you ignored or rejected them they would be purged from the game, completed removed. There were exceptions to this in the plan, like the sibling from the KEMCO Salvage storyline who would transition back to a character known to be living on the streets of New Boston, a relation to one of your mercs and a potential story character for future arcs.

We've now upgraded all non-Underground Hub recruits to work this way. Any recruit that you encounter and decide not to accept is moved into the Dismissed state, which leaves them (hidden unless you filter) on your Roster, and marks them as great story pickup for future story arcs.


This helps build up your history of characters in the city who you've been in contact with and who might someday be a better fit for your team. While you can't go back to them today and re-request the option to recruit them, that is way we are heading. This set of dismissed mercs will become your backup pool (assuming they aren't picked up by some story first).

Notably, Underworld Hub has a slightly different setup where an ignored recruit simply goes on a long cooldown and then will recur in the Hub. So, we did not change that process with this update.

This is a rare type of update that only affects games from this point forward. We can't do anything to fix the issue that in older games these recruits were purged. It isn't damaging to games, and all new added recruits will fill into this pool in old and new games, so it has some impact but will be long-term minor and is currently no impact (as you can't re-recruit these folks).

[h2]Stuck Scourge[/h2]
If you happened to ignore the Scourge recruit during the recently added ERA storylines and let the timeline expire without interacting with it, a bug occurred where instead of getting the final recruit prompt and being forced into making a Yes/No decision, the Scourge just quietly stuck around as a Recruit but with no further way to interact.

The next time you load your game the issue will be resolved and the recruit option will be back.


[h2]Missions Missing Hacking Tag[/h2]
There were a number of missions missing the Hacking tags, which would let you know it could be valuable to bring a Hacker along. We've done a sweep of these and believe they are fixed across the board.

[h2]Reload issues[/h2]
We're grinding down any F10s right now that are reported as reload issues- where something isn't quite right if you go back to the main menu and reload your game. This update fixes an issue where VIPs using the Vita-Shield buff (invulnerability) would get the buff back even if you had shot it down.


[h2]The River inDusted Hover-Evac[/h2]
We fixed a map issue that was preventing anyone - player or enemy - from seeing across the bridge or river in the back of the Dusted Hover-Evac level.

[h2]v1.8.127 - #157: Lights Out - 10/11/2024[/h2]
- Matrix CPU, APU and Gates now visually respond to being spiked, changing their node appearance
- Fixed issues with 2 of the new hosts having disconnected data nodes (thanks for the F10s!)
- Improved some of the routing and pathing options in the new hosts after review
- Fixed bug where ignoring the recruit of the ERA storyline Scourge could result in a hung state - option to recruit will reappear now
- Improved scheme for ignoring / dismissing story or timeline recruits - new Dismissed Recruit status allows them to appear in future stories or repeat recruit offerings
- Fixed some invisible walls blocking sight over river / bridge in Dusted Hover-Evac
- Fixed multiple missions missing the Hacking flag that have matrix terminals
- Fixed duplicated victory/defeat text at the end of HEARTBREAK RUSH job
- Fixed issue reloading level with VIP shield returning unfairly
- Fixed issues with expensive / cheapest sort in cold storage, inventory and market when categories were mixed

Welcome all new Knights from Steam Turn-based RPG fest! We're here working hard on Early Access with a constant stream of updates. There is a lot left to do to wrap up our Early Access roadmap but it is more content and smaller feature sets than huge milestones now. We've been excited in these last few updates to be doing "rounds" in the game, hitting a wide spectrum of areas for balance, improvement and expansion. With Update #156, we've come around to matrix hacking to add a new node type and a big blast of new matrix host templates to explore. We've also removed the clickability of characters from the safehouse, fixed a bug with the ERA Hacker recruit if you chose to Delay the recruit and more.

Thanks to everyone playing, posting and leaving a review! We're running hot with an update every 2.3 days, so send us feedback and any bugs you hit and we are working hard to improve constantly. If you like the style, please leave a review!


[h2]Matrix Access Gate[/h2]
The newest node type to join matrix hosts is the Access Gate - a quantum lock structure designed to allow unauthorized users to enter it but then never to leave. Gates appear as glowing rings, knotholes that you have to pass through if you plan to further infiltrate the host. They present mini-challenges along your path, requiring you to stop and Spike the gate in order to unlock it and enable node connection again.


Once you've entered the Access Gate, you cannot leave until all IC are destroyed, the node is Scan 2/2 and you execute a Gate Spike. While Access Gates have far less IC than the CPU, this can still present a challenge, and often requires a Hacker to stop short of the Gate to reload some programs set or end their Turn to refresh the IO. Since you cannot exit a Gate without spiking it, there is a heightened risk of ending your hacking run in a Hard Disconnect here - if some IC is blocking loading programs but you didn't get enough Attack loaded to take it out, for example. There is no option to decamp from the Gate and return when you're ready, you'll have to pull the plug.

Finally, we've started work on some upgrades to the matrix visuals that will allow nodes to show differently based on their internal state (Spiked, has Files, etc). So - this is coming, Gates that are unlocked with display different, Spiked CPUs will show that visually, etc.

[h2]Added 10 new Matrix Hosts[/h2]
The new matrix hosts are spread across the spectrum of different missions and sources - from those generated in your Safehouse, to CPU Spike missions to those showing up on the ground in missions holding SCU or RCU. All 10 of the new hosts feature one or more Access Gate, so you'll start to see this new node type filtering into your missions immediately now.


[h2]Treaty '31 Era Hacker: Delay Hung Recruit[/h2]
We had a bug with the Treaty '31 Hacker recruit - if you chose to delay their recruit from the Safehouse, then they would end up on your Roster as a permanent possible recruit without any way to move forward. After reloading your game in Update #156, this will be resolved the Hacker will be interested in talking again about recruitment - to accept, delay or reject.

We also fixed an issue where recruits who were previously dismissed could be selected for Legwork. Through this, it is possible that you might have recruited them if you picked this option ... that's one way to get on the team?


[h2]Safehouse Character Buttons[/h2]
Having chatted with enough players, we understand (and feel the same way) that the character buttons over the safehouse 3D is not helping. More clicks to these buttons are misclicks that intentional far. There will be a point where the characters animate, traverse the safehouse, take the elevator, so we've left the name labels in but we've removed character's function as a button. In the (currently rare) case that the character has a speech bubble overhead, you can click directly on the speech bubble (not the larger character) in order to pop up their messages.


[h2]Alerted Reinforcements, Hidden Team[/h2]
If you run into a situation where you team is fully hidden but the reinforcements who have just arrived are all Alerted and come after you, please hit F10. We found and fixed 2 of these misconfigurations thanks to some recent F10s about it. We appreciate all your hard work helping us improve the game daily!

And, as always we fixed some other smaller issues - see below -

[h2]v1.8.123 - #156: Quantum Access Gate - 10/7/2024[/h2]
- New matrix node type: Access Gate, a quantum lock structure that prevents unauthorized exit until spiked (go in, must spike before you leave)
- Added 10 new matrix hosts maps to templates across entire set (Spike CPU, File Hunt, SCU and RCU hosts) featuring Gates
- Fixed bug where delaying the recruit of the ERA storyline UNA Hacker could result in a hung state - option to recruit will reappear now
- Removed clickable character button from safehouse
- Fixed bug where recruits you dismissed or skipped could appear in Legwork offers
- Fixed bug where all enemy reinforcements could be coming out as aggressive in Wreckspire
- Fixed bug where one set of enemy reinforcements could be coming out as aggressive in Sewers level
- Fixed possible legwork mismatch for "Going Offworld" proc-gen Legwork story
- Fixed issue where Recoil could go negative on some weapons with the right weapon mods attached
- Fixed typos and name switches