Ultimate Admiral: Dreadnoughts News

Alpha-8 HotFix Patch

Hello admirals,
Today we release a small update that aims to address some of your recently reported issues. More of those issues are going to be fixed in the coming weeks as new programmers are added into our development team. We decided to not include yet a richer set of our planned features and improvements, since they were still risky and might have caused problems in your otherwise positive gameplay experience.
[h2]Ultimate Admiral: Dreadnoughts Alpha-8 v76[/h2]

[h3]BALANCES[/h3]

Gun rebalance: The smaller guns from 9-inches and lower are now reloading slightly slower and with more desynchronization. Their damage became accordingly higher. Damage now will be more meaningful per caliber and guns below 7-inch will clearly be more useful against Destroyers.
Targeting rebalance: The “Targeting penalty due to speed” has been reduced significantly but the dynamic targeting that utilizes target bearing and range rate became intensified. As a result, ships moving fast at a straight line will no longer be so hard to aim at. Maneuvers, though, became more impactful to targeting. In any case, when ships are at close distance, the hitting rate will be more consistent.
Base deceleration of ships slightly decreased, addressing cases where some ships could turn too sharp. The base “rudder shift time” is slightly increased to compensate for this change.
CSS Virginia’s guns became slightly stronger, as it was too weak compared to the Monitor.
Triple and Multiple expansion steam engines have slightly increased weight, so that older pre-dreadnoughts cannot easily exceed the 20 knots speed.

[h3]AI[/h3]

AI will maneuver more often according to enemy strength and battle situation. You will notice AI ships to approach or retreat at sharper angles, while keeping an effective broadside. Issue of torpedo boats not approaching close enough to launch short-range torpedoes should be resolved.
AI targeting improved, affecting AI opponent and friendly ships. You will notice guns to be more effective in switching to the nearest threat or distributing gun groups against multiple targets.
AI screening behaviour improved. The main fleet and the screen ships will operate closer to each other and keep a more effective formation. There are known issues of formations, which are still evident, especially when AI has to handle a large formation of different ship types. We will address all formation issues gradually on next updates.

[h3]FIXES[/h3]

Fixed potential bug that sometimes made transport ships to be auto-designed without any funnel.
Fixed issues with ramming. Previously, the smaller ship caused more damage. Now when ships ram each other, the damage will be more consistent and flooding should occur with more probability. There are remaining problems on ramming that we will address in a next update.
Fixed a problem with ship evasion logic which previously made ships to react at a shorter distance, and thus collide with a friendly or enemy ship with more probability. As a result, ships will be harder to ram at. We will later further improve the evasion system and ramming might become a tactical choice for the player, if he wishes, with a special control option.

[h3]Warning:[/h3]
Mission difficulty setting is a work in progress and currently has no effect.

Share your feedback in our forums:

Alpha-7 v75 hotfix

Hello all,

A hotfix has just become available:

[h2]Alpha-7 v75[/h2]
[h3]BALANCES[/h3]

Improved Auto-Design and balanced ship weights/costs further for even better designs.
Note: This change might make some of your old designs overweight, but you should be able to repair them by lowering speed, armor or other settings.
Ship design tonnage step reduced from 100 to 50 tons (provides more design flexibility, especially for smaller ships plus makes Auto-Design to be more effective).
Improved AI auto-targeting, so that it switches target to nearest threats more actively.
When shells hit strong armor at an angle they have bigger chance to cause at least partial penetration instead of zero-damage ricochets.
Reduced dispersion of shells. Problem of too low accuracy at short ranges should be resolved. Destroyers need to operate at safer ranges but will still be dangerous and useful.
Increased slightly the potential damage of detonations/flash fires. Their impact will become even more critical.
Reduced maximum torpedo ammo to be from 2 to 4 rounds per tube, according to design setting.
Torpedo reload time increased +25%.
Engine repairs became somewhat faster according to type of engine (Fully flooded or damaged engine sections are not repairable).
Improved the Hull form statistics of the modern Russian destroyers to aid them achieving higher speeds. The Destroyer leader hull shape has improved.
Increased detection bonus of Sonar, so that it can trace electric torpedoes or other stealthy types, more effectively. Cost of Sonar has been increased.
Fine tunings in base ship maneuvering characteristics (addressing issues that could cause slow ships to stall and become very unwieldy).

[h3]MISSIONS[/h3]

Increased time and reduced AI techs for mission: "Battleship vs Torpedo Boats".
Added two Destroyer escorts and increased distance of AI reinforcements in mission: "The US Super Battleship". Tech level of AI opponent reduced. Now you need to destroy only 3 Battleships (instead of 4).
Expanded time limit for mission: "Destroyers vs Torpedo Boats".
Changed objectives of "Contest in the Black Sea" so now you need to sink 60% of enemies (instead of sinking the Battleship and Battlecruiser which was very difficult).
Changed objective of mission: "The Modern Battleship" so that to win you need to sink 70% of enemies, instead of 100%.
In mission "Destroy a Full Fleet" the enemy AI fleet has now less advanced tech level. Objective has changed so that now you need to sink half of enemy fleet but also protect half of your own fleet (instead of sinking 70% of enemy ships).
Increased time and funds for mission: "Undefended Convoy".
Other minor fund changes to some missions.

[h3]MINOR FIXES[/h3]

Fixed secondary cage mast not having adequate placeholder to fit in a USA battleship of 1899.
Fixed issue of French “Semi-Armored Cruiser” of the 1890s that did not allow 2-inches guns to fit in casemates while no larger guns fitted.

As always, you can share your feedback in our forums:

Enjoy!

Alpha-7 "Gameplay Optimizations"

Hello admirals,

Our next patch mainly addresses an issue regarding mission win rates. Some missions were almost unwinnable and had less than 5% win rates across all players. Our next significant improvement is in the AI Auto-Design algorithm that previously generated, quite often, ships that were unrealistically fast or not sufficiently protected according to armament.

Often the "AI Auto-Design" will build ships balanced in protection and firepower, such as this Japanese Large Cruiser

Even when the new Auto-Design exaggerates with the main armament, the designed ships should be well protected

A third important improvement comes on the dynamic targeting mechanics. The gun aiming procedure that assesses target bearing and range is much more sensitive to maneuvers and this makes more comfortable the controls of fast but lightly protected ships, because now they can avoid shots more consistently when you make effective maneuvers. Lastly, several minor fixes were made according to your reports.

Please read below the changes of our new update:

[h2]Ultimate Admiral: Dreadnoughts Alpha-7[/h2]

BALANCES

Targeting became more dynamic, affecting mainly fast moving ships, such as destroyers, which should have more chances in evading shots when they maneuver.
Flash Fire chance reduced for smaller guns ammo, especially those found in Destroyers.
Fine tuned ship maneuverability/steering mechanics.
Early tech torpedoes are now having smaller range and are slower. This makes the impact and evolution of torpedoes more historically accurate.
Sonar/Hydro equipment is now available for CA, BB, BC, making capital ships much more aware against torpedo threats. Stealth and torpedo detection levels have been rebalanced accordingly.
"Fast Mode" of torpedoes rebalanced. Range penalty is less but accuracy is reduced further.
Minor adjustment to auto-design algorithm for improved designs.
Optimizations of Destroyers' engine weights.
Optimizations of all other hull types' engine weights.
Two more barbette variants for large guns, giving more flexibility in handling gun arrangements.
Balances of costs/weights for various ship parts.
Early tech engines received a small boost in horsepower, so that early pre-dreadnoughts are not overly slow (needed with new changes in weights).
Several mission rebalances (Long List of changes HERE).

*Note:* Some mission changes will take effect only if you delete all previous mission saved designs.

Battleships without quick-firing secondaries will have serious trouble to defend against torpedo boats

REPAIRS

Fixed secondary guns that could fire over their maximum range and cause the "Too many threads" crash
Fixed torpedo tubes that could not fire at very sharp angles.
Fixed a generic Mark-3 102mm (4-inch) single barrel turret that appeared with two barrel model.
Fixed issue that made Transport ships too slow in maneuvering, stalling their formations.
Fixed some Italian towers of Italian heavy cruisers, that were not fitting on the deck (due to a bug fix that previously allowed overlap of towers out of the deck).
Fixes/rescales in some old-type Destroyer hulls.
Repaired some issues with USA cage masts, that either did not fit in hulls or where not available.
Rescales in casemate guns (fixing some overlapping issues).
Various other minor fixes in hulls, where it was applicable (thank you for the continued reports, we address what is possible for the given time)

After this patch we would like to invite you to play again the missions that you could not pass and tell us if things have improved. Your opinion about the better auto-designed ships will be much appreciated too.

As always, you can share your feedback in our forums:

Alpha-6 v73 hotfix

Hello everyone,

We have just deployed a hotfix including the following:

[h2]Alpha-6 v73[/h2]

Fixed a rare bug which happened when you clicked on "secondary guns mode" on a ship with main guns, torpedoes, and no sec guns.
Destroyers' top speed should not be so easily capped to max. theoretical level.
Fixed too slow acceleration of transport ships which caused them to stall when turning.

We are currently investigating any potential issues that could cause game lag. If you anticipate fps drops, please report to us when it has happened during gameplay.

In our offical forums:
https://forum.game-labs.net/topic/35737-performance-drop-since-alpha-6-please-post-your-issue-here/

Steam forum:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/1069660/discussions/0/4594180031247665726/

Alpha-6 with "Flash Fires" and many new Destroyers

Dear Admirals,

Our next large update is rich including not only new features but also a lot of new ships, as well as improvements in gameplay.

We introduce realistic "Flash Fire" mechanics that simulate the real need of protecting sufficiently your heavily armed ships, in order to not have similar fate with the British battlecruisers in the Battle of Jutland.

We added 33x more Destroyers and 4x more cruisers in the game's tech tree, while several other hulls have been improved in various ways. Six new missions dedicated to Destroyer tactics will surely test your skills and the overall gameplay has been optimized based on your recent feedback.

Your battles will become even more immersive due to the new combat music which changes dynamically according to the battle situation. Read all about these and many more in the full changelog.

[h2]Ultimate Admiral: Dreadnoughts Alpha-6[/h2]
[h3]SPECIAL NEW FEATURES[/h3]

Flash Fires: If the main guns (or the sections below them containing the magazines) are penetrated then uncontrollable flash fires may swiftly spread, ignite the propellant containers and cause catastrophic explosions, blowing away one or more turrets of the ship with a spectacular new visual effect.

So, now detonations will not only occur after a direct penetrating hit reaching to the ammo storage but also due to the impact of flash fires, just as it happened for the British Battlecruisers in the Battle of Jutland.

In consequence, you must now be extra careful when you design your ships, especially your battleships and battlecruisers which carry heavy armament, because if they lack the necessary armor protection or other safety measures, they will be very vulnerable to flash fires that can blow them apart.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
Detailed Combat Statistics: Now you can evaluate with precision the combat effectiveness of your ships by monitoring their hit percentage, damage and penetration power against the enemy ships. By selecting your own ships you have access to their detailed logs of damage, either in summary or per gun type.

When your targets are identified, you can also select them to view their combat stats, while the fleet damage statistics are accessible as previously at the top right corner with increased information when you hover on each icon.

Hover your cursor on the new icons to show overall damage info for your fleet...

... and the enemy fleet.

The previous damage icons are showing detailed info when you hover on them.

You can also view detailed statistics about the damage received and inflicted for each of your ships....

... even for each of your weapons, and understand which are more effective.

The same level of information is available for the fully identified enemy targets, when you select them.

Additional ship details are revealed in new icons about protection, engine and installed components.
Epic Combat Music: Many new music soundtracks enrich the combat experience during or after a battle. Immerse yourself by hearing the new atmospheric music that switches according to the tension of combat.

Note: YouTubers must read the terms of using the game’s music in their videos. If you have any issue, please turn off the music while recording.
33x New Destroyers: Complete revamp of the Destroyer hulls. OId models have been optimized. Many new models have been added for all nations. Here is the list of changes:
- 4x Japanese special looking Destroyer models, available till the 1920s, making the Destroyers of Japan unique compared to other nations, having lighter, longer hulls that make them stealthier, faster, deadlier.
- 4x Modern Japanese Destroyer models available after the 1920s, following the unique design concepts of Japan, favouring speed and torpedo armament. These models are based on the detailed hull of the “Akizuki” Destroyer and several variants that can reproduce faithfully all late Destroyers of the Japanese Fleet, including the experimental design of “Shimakaze”.
- 13x Modern Destroyer models distributed to all nations with a selection of “Standard” and “Leader” type of destroyers. These destroyers are rather unique for each nation. For example, you are able to design and build very fast and powerful Destroyers similar to the French “Le Fantasque” and “Mogador” classes with role to overwhelm enemy Destroyers.
- 12x hull variants of Destroyers distributed for all nations from the 1900s till the 1920s. Most of those early ships are slight modifications with different hull size ratios, guns, funnels etc.
A Japanese modern destroyer based on the hull of "Akizuki".
4x Modern Cruisers: Some special cruisers have been added for Spain and Japan. These are:
- 1x Japanese Light Cruiser, inspired by the “Kuma-class” cruiser, a typical type of cruiser that serviced Japan from the 1920s till the 2nd World War.
- 1x Japanese Light Cruiser, inspired by the “Yubari-class” cruiser, a unique hybrid design that featured aspects of a Destroyer and a Cruiser.
- 2x Spanish Cruisers, inspired by the “Navarra” and “Canarias” classes, ships of the 1920s with a long active service till the Spanish Civil War.
All the existing, hundreds of hull variants accompanied by the new destroyers should be more than enough to cover the needs of the upcoming first campaign version, but we will continue to add more models in our next updates.

A German Destroyer of post WWI with the characteristic "break" in the bow, that was later adopted by the Japanese.

[h3]NEW MISSIONS[/h3]

Near Jutland: The British and Germans are concentrating their forces in the vicinity of Jutland and prepare for a major battle. Your task force led by two British battlecruisers has spotted three German capital ships heading to the location and plans to ambush them using the destroyers as spearhead of the attack.
Modern vs Old Destroyers: Design modern destroyers and combat versus numerous, less advanced rivals. The enemy force is commanded by an advanced ship, a type of “Destroyer Leader” which is particularly effective against smaller destroyers.
Torpedo Banzai: Feel the power of Japanese destroyers by leading an all-out torpedo attack against a large USA fleet. Your possible destroyer designs include a wide range of hull types and two specials: An experimental destroyer, which can achieve very high speeds and an experimental cruiser, which combines the benefits of a destroyer at a size of a cruiser.
Mission Impossible: A powerful Japanese battleship and its escorts attacks one of your convoys. The only defense are your destroyers. The most sensible action would be to escape while you can. But the High Command decided that you should stand and find an opportunity to sink the enemy battleship with your torpedoes. Only the best designed destroyers can succeed in such a mission.... with a bit of luck.
Battle of Destroyers: You will command a squadron of French destroyers against a Japanese destroyer squadron. The enemy force is led by a flotilla leader, a fast cruiser with many small guns and heavy torpedo armament that you should not try to confront at close range.
Contest in the Black Sea: The German naval forces in the Black Sea are scarce and do not include any battleships. The Russians possess more and heavier ships. Two of the remaining German cruisers need the support of your destroyers to attack and destroy the commanding Russian ships in the area, a refitted dreadnought and a modern battlecruiser.

French Destroyer Leader of almost 4,000 tons.

[h3]COMBAT BALANCES[/h3]

Further improvements in ballistic trajectories. Shells follow a steeper, more realistic curve. Additionally, wave motion now affects the distribution of hits between deck and belt.
Horizontal penetration over very long distances is reduced. Previously, in certain circumstances, it could become overpowered against any deck armor, especially when using 18-inch Lyddite shells.
Lyddite and Cordite shells cause slightly more damage. Due to the new Flash Fire mechanics, these shells are even more risky to use but if your ship has adequate protection they will offer a distinct advantage.
Torpedoes will not cause so frequent ammo detonations, as previously, versus well protected ships. However, Flash fires may be ignited by an underwater fire caused by a torpedo hit.
AI is much more effective in aiming and keeping distance against its targets.
Maneuvering is now playing more dynamic role in targeting. You cannot make swift turns without significant loss of aim. Ships that make zig zags are more effective in avoiding shots. Ranging shots is easier against static or very slow targets.

[h3]SHIP DESIGN[/h3]

Weight limitations of all ship types rebalanced, so that ship speeds are more realistic according to technology era. You may still make an overly fast ship but it would be very weak in protection and armament. All ship saves are affected due to this change.
Turbine engine horse power is more pronounced according to type, so that early dreadnoughts and battlecruisers are not so fast compared to more advanced ships.
Diesel engines rebalanced to reflect better their bonuses. Diesel engines will be more important in campaign, but now can be useful in missions too, offering more reliable and cost-effective power plants.
New Hull Variant that can replicate accurately the HMS Invincible. It is a British Battlecruiser found in Custom battles between 1907-1917.
Optimized a Battlecruiser variant that is available for Britain, USA, France, in the period of 1912-1919.
Various hull fixes/improvements based on player reports.
Light Cruisers’ maximum belt armor is now 6 inches.
New visuals for the Japanese 3'', 4'', 5'' inch Mark 4/5 guns, found on their Destroyers and Light Cruisers.
New visuals for the USA/British 3'', 4'', 5'' inch Mark 4/5 guns, found on their Destroyers.
New visuals for Mark 4/5 8'' guns for British Battleships and Battlecruisers.

German Destroyer Leader in action, launching torpedoes.

[h3]SOUND EFFECTS[/h3]

Major improvement in sound mechanics. Issues of sound interruptions when there were many guns firing should not occur at all or can happen very rarely.
Various combat sound enhancements. Impacts should be heard louder and clearer. Partial penetration sounds improved, trails better synchronized and many other.

[h3]BUG FIXES[/h3]

Fixed an error of calculating Course Change Time, showing opposite effect (for example when you added auxiliary engines, the Rudder could steer more slowly). Now ships will steer even more realistically.
Fixed serious errors with gun rotations and overlapping of ship objects, that created unbuildable ships with the known error “Some parts are badly placed” or made guns not rotating during battle.
Fixed bug that -sometimes- stopped torpedo tubes from firing, although they were fully reloaded.
Fixed issue that caused torpedoes to hit your own ship.
Fixed bug that made -sometimes- Radar Generation 2 to not function during battle.
Fixed bug that did not update UI information about accuracy when we selected different rangefinders and other related components.
Fixed bug that made the secondary tower of a modern French Battleship to hang in the air, behind the stern.
Fixed issue that made big guns of smaller caliber to be grouped with secondary guns when player selected targets manually.

[h3]OTHER[/h3]

Memory optimizations: The error “Too many threads” should now be fixed or happen very rarely.
You are now able to observe the penetration power of enemies vs your ship. Select an identified enemy ship and hover the cursor over one of your own ships to open up the penetration tooltip.
Subtle new visual effect for over penetrations: The shell passes through the ship from the other side.
Battle UI improved by providing more information for the selected ship in a more compact window. When you hover on the respective icons you can see useful ship details, such as the armor zone protection scheme, components installed and various other.
Now you can click on any recent battle log report (bottom left corner) to zoom in to the affected ship.

As always, your ongoing feedback is helping us to make the game better. Share it with us in our forums: