Sins of a Solar Empire II News

As the galaxy trembles under the weight of interstellar conflict, players are thrust into the heart of chaos with the Vasari, a faction steeped in lore and technological prowess. Welcome to Sins of a Solar Empire II, where the Vasari come with war before them and terror behind.

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[h2]A Brief History of the Vasari[/h2]
The Vasari were once the rulers of a vast and ancient empire, a civilization that spanned countless worlds, maintained through a mix of peaceful subjugation and harsh enslavement. However, their empire crumbled 10,000 years ago when an enigmatic and unstoppable force began consuming their colonies, including their homeworld.

In a desperate bid for survival, the Vasari transformed into a nomadic race, perpetually on the move, conquering, exploiting, and abandoning star systems in their relentless quest for safety. This journey led them into conflict with the Trade Order, the precursor to the Terran Empire Coalition (TEC), and soon after, the psionically-gifted Advent entered the fray, igniting a prolonged and brutal war.

Faced with powerful adversaries, the Vasari found themselves divided into two factions with starkly different ideologies: the Vasari Exodus and the Vasari Alliance. The Exodus clung to the old strategy of "Evacuate, Siphon, Run," prioritizing survival through relentless conquest. In contrast, the Alliance sought cooperation with the TEC and Advent, believing that unity was the key to facing the impending threat.

[h2]Unique Mechanics: The Power of Phase Space[/h2]
What sets the Vasari apart in Sins of a Solar Empire II is their mastery of phase space. They can construct Phase Gates, allowing fleets to jump across vast distances in a single leap, bypassing the lengthy phase-lane jumps that their rivals must endure. This unparalleled strategic maneuverability enables the Vasari to strike swiftly and unexpectedly, making them formidable raiders.

Additionally, the Vasari can develop advanced phase-space detection sensors, granting them an information advantage that reveals all interstellar transit traffic within explored regions. This ability to track enemy movements transforms the Vasari into a nightmare for their foes, as they can anticipate and counter enemy strategies with precision.

The Resonance resource, generated by the Phase Resonator orbital structure, further enhances their capabilities. By investing Resonance points, players can activate and upgrade abilities that boost mobility, combat performance, and even regenerate Antimatter for ship special abilities. A Vasari empire that effectively utilizes Phase Resonance becomes a force to be reckoned with, capable of executing devastating hit-and-run tactics.

[h2]The Vasari Exodus: A Ruthless Approach[/h2]
The Vasari Exodus embodies a brutal methodology aimed at swift victories. Their Debris Reclamation Centre automatically harvests resources from destroyed ships, feeding the war machine with the remnants of conflict. They employ slave labor to expedite planetary development and resource extraction, pushing their subjects to the brink to fuel their war efforts.

One of their most terrifying tools is the Core Stripper, which can devastate a planet, permanently ruining it for the sake of resource extraction. This scorched earth tactic allows the Vasari Exodus to leave nothing of value behind, ensuring that their enemies are left crippled in their wake.

The Mobile Rulership technology allows the Exodus to continue their fight even if their homeworld is destroyed, maintaining their nomadic existence aboard giant colony vessels. Their most powerful warship, the Vorastra Titan, can execute tactical phase-jumps, making it a fearsome presence on the battlefield.

[h2]The Vasari Alliance: Unity in the Face of Adversity[/h2]
In contrast, the Vasari Alliance champions cooperation and diplomacy. They can build Xeno Settlements and Xeno Embassies, granting them significant Influence that allows them to access powerful abilities and items from Minor Factions. This capability enables them to dominate rival factions in auctions and quickly rise in reputation, gaining access to valuable boons.

The Alliance can also establish **Intercultural Exchanges**, fostering genuine diplomatic relations with native populations and generating credits for their war efforts. Unique technologies like Xeno Defense and Nanomedicine Outreach bolster their defenses and planetary resilience, allowing them to withstand sieges longer than their rivals.

Their flagship, the Kultorask Titan, bristles with advanced weaponry and can support allied capital ships while also regenerating its own health. This combination of offense and defense makes the Vasari Alliance a formidable force on the battlefield.

[h2]Vasari Combat Capabilities: A Tactical Nightmare[/h2]
While the Vasari may not boast the numbers of their rivals, their ships are often more powerful and equipped with advanced regeneration technology. The **Phase Missile**, a hallmark of Vasari weaponry, can bypass enemy shields, making it particularly deadly against shield-heavy factions like the Advent.

The Vasari excel in hit-and-run tactics, leveraging their mobility to isolate and destroy enemy fleets. Their Tosurak Raiders can inflict crippling damage on infrastructure and resources, disappearing before their enemies can mount a counterattack. The Jusotra Fabricator Cruiser ensures that losses can be quickly replaced, allowing Vasari fleets to operate far from home without logistical concerns.

However, the Vasari are not without weaknesses. Their lack of numerical superiority means they can struggle against overwhelming swarms of enemy strikecraft and missiles, particularly in the early game.



The Vasari may lack the sheer numbers of their foes, but their advanced technology and mastery of phase space grant them a significant edge in Sins of a Solar Empire II. Whether you choose to push for dominance through the ruthless tactics of the Vasari Exodus or forge alliances with the Vasari Alliance, the fate of the galaxy rests in your hands. Will you crush your rivals or stand united against the encroaching darkness? The choice is yours!

Since the Steam release of Sins of a Solar Empire II, we’ve been closely monitoring community feedback to guide our updates. This latest patch reflects our commitment to enhancing the player experience based on your input.

[h2]Featured changes in this update:[/h2]

• Improved Game Window Layouts: Enhanced layouts for the lobby window and escape menu as part of our long-term UI update plans.
  
• Expanded Key Binding Options: Increased possibilities for key bindings, including support for extra mouse buttons, responding directly to player requests.
  
• Resolved Repetitive VO Lines: Restored player sanity by fixing the annoying repeated voice lines from phase jump inhibitors.
  
• Initial Settings Overhaul: Introduced new settings for camera pan speed, zoom, shadow quality, and more, paving the way for future enhancements.
  
• Visual Optimizations: A slew of visual tweaks aimed at improving general performance across a variety of hardware configurations.
  
• Community-Driven Adjustments: A host of new bug fixes and balance changes addressing early community reports to ensure a smoother gameplay experience.
  

This update is just the beginning, and we look forward to continuing to refine Sins of a Solar Empire II with your feedback in mind.

Note: You will need to re-subscribe to all mods for this update. We apologize for the hassle; this will be a one-time thing.

This update will break save games and replays! You can still play them by using the previous version (see below).

[h3]Previous Version Instructions[/h3]
If you wish to finish up your game on the previous version, do the following:

1. Select ‘Sins of a Solar Empire II’ in your Steam Library.
   
2. Click the gear icon in the upper right.
   
3. Select Properties → Betas
   
4. Select 'previous_edition' from the Beta Participation dropdown.
   
5. Steam will update you to the latest files.
   
6. To switch to latest repeat step 4 and select ‘None’
   

[h2]View the full changelog here[/h2]

A huge amount of gratitude to all of the Sinners who’ve joined our community! To say that we’ve been blown away by the amount of support is an understatement.

We’ve prepared a modest update from feedback we’ve gotten from the community, bug reports and more. Look for a larger update in the coming month or so.

Note: You will need to re-subscribe to all mods for this update. We apologize for the hassle; this will be a one-time thing.

This update will break save games and replays! You can still play them by using the previous version (see below).

[h3]Previous Version Instructions[/h3]
If you wish to finish up your game on the previous version, do the following:

1. Select ‘Sins of a Solar Empire II’ in your Steam Library.
   
2. Click the gear icon in the upper right.
   
3. Select Properties → Betas
   
4. Select 'previous_edition' from the Beta Participation dropdown.
   
5. Steam will update you to the latest files.
   
6. To switch to latest repeat step 4 and select ‘None’
   

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Sanity

• Our fleet has arrived at a phase jump inhibitor and is now trapped!
  
• Our fleet has arrived at a phase jump inhibitor and is now trapped!
  
• Our fleet has arrived at a phase jump inhibitor and is now trapped!
  
• Our fleet has arrived at a phase jump inhibitor and is now trapped!
  
• Our fleet has arrived at a phase jump inhibitor and is now trapped!
  
• FIXED!
  

Settings

• Added camera rotate and pan speed settings.
  
• Added camera zoom speed settings.
  
• Added shadow quality setting.
  Reduce this if you are having memory problems.
• Added clip cursor to window setting.
  
• Added setting to disable zooming to cursor attaching to strike craft or missiles. This is now default behavior.
  
• Moved DPI setting to User Interface.
  
• Updated Settings screen design.
  
• More to come!
  

Gameplay

• Fixed and improved auto-cast for single target burst damage abilities. They should now activate properly and favor targeting capital ships, starbases and titans (e.g., Ragnarov’s Piercing Shot).
  
• Fixed non-unit-targeted abilities not auto-casting correctly (e.g., Sova’s Deploy Missile Battery).
  
• Fixed point defense weapons to prevent overkill.
  
• Fixed being able to change home planet if the planet’s home planet bonus civilian or military slots are in use.
  
• Changed establishing a new home planet to transition after a delay, rather than instantly.
  
• Improved Novalith Cannon auto-cast target selection.
  
• Improved fleet factory distribution logic.
  
• Updated Unity Recall target filter to ignore construction vessels.
  
• Fixed units and wreckage getting instead of stars (and thus unable to claim wreckage).
  
• Fixed estimated incoming damage with Armor points.
  
• Fixed max linear speed possibly growing to infinity and beyond if using faster ship move speed option.
  
• Fixed pathfinding not calculating travel time between stars properly.
  
• Fixed starting home planet buff not always getting applied to gravity wells 2 jumps away.
  
• Fixed Vasari carrier moving to attack logic.
  
• Fixed units being able to ignore movement speed debuffs by being in a formation.
  
• Unity abilities now properly handle changes to the Advent player’s home planet.
  
• Fixed refund exotic exploit (you know who you were…).
  

Balance

• Advent Deliverance Engine:
  
  • Moved to Tier 4 Harmony research.
    
  • Four new techs (2 per faction) added to unlock faction specific Deliverance abilities and upgrades.
    
  • Deliverance Engine cooldown increased from 180 to 300 seconds.
    
• Rebalanced excessive Psi Boost ratios: decreased Psi Power ratio for Guidance, Vertigo and Malice.
  
• Rebalanced Minor Faction raids:
  
  • Range increased from 25 AU to 30 AU.
    
  • Raids no longer require line-of-sight to use.
    
• Rebalanced Pirate Boarding Crew:
  
  • Influence cost increased from 1 to 2.
    
  • Charges increased from 2 to 3.
    
  • Purchase cooldown increased from 180 to 240 seconds.
    
• Rebalanced Point Defense:
  
  • Point defense has been rebalanced to account for the overkill bug fix mentioned above. Point defense units will now scale far more effectively with the number of units.
    
• Rebalanced Proselytize:
  
  • Now required dominant culture in a gravity well to be used. This will prevent the ability from being used to trivially place Advent culture anywhere on the map if uncontested; instead temporarily augment an existing culture push. This should also remove early game Proselytize/Conversion rush strategies that were proving dominant and difficult to counter. We will continue to monitor Unity abilities for use case and power level.
    
• Rebalanced Sanctify cooldown from 300/180/90 to 300/210/120 seconds.
  
• Rebalanced Tempest Vessel:
  
  • Light Swarm missile rate of fire increased from 6.5 to 8.5 seconds.
    
  • Decreased missile salvo density from 0.3 seconds to launch all missiles to 0.75 seconds.
    
  • Decreased range from 8000 to 7500km to make kiting slightly riskier and to ensure it never outranges defense platforms.
    
  • Build time increased from 22 to 25 seconds to make it harder to mass-up early on and to ensure the Disciple keeps its build time advantage.
    
• Rebalanced Temple of Pilgrimage - can now be built on all planet types as intended.
  
• Rebalanced Vasari Mobile Rulership - this Item has been temporarily restricted to the Vorastra titan.
  
• Fixed Vasari factions from losing planet item slots at max logistics level on Ferrous, Ice and Volcanic planets.
  
• Rebalanced all missiles speed, grouping and lifetimes.
  

AI

• Numerous AI improvements.
  
• Decreased the jump in difficulty from Hard to Unfair AI.
  

User Interface

• Added key bindings to hold zoom in and out (simulating mouse wheel with keyboard).
  
• Added ability to bind extra mouse buttons (but not left or right).
  
• Fixed selection group hotkey press from focusing on hotkey group when not wanted. Now needs to be double pressed within time tolerance.
  
• Added a second keybinding for scrub future orbits. Tilde [`] not standard on some keyboards.
• Added fix for mouse movement through Remote Desktop.
  
• Fixed inverted mouse deltas on absolute (Virtual Desktop) code path.
  

Tooltips

• Fixed Magnetic Singularity buff tooltip rendering the incorrect slow modifier value.
  
• Fixed buff tooltip lines in Essence Reservoir, Nanite Armor and Strength of the Fallen that did not render stack scaling correctly.
  
• Fixed Novalith ability description.
  

Optimizations

• Numerous optimizations for mesh, shadow, and particle rendering, etc. Some of these will be significant on certain hardware combinations.
  

Modding

• Added scenario drop in folder. Makes authoring and playing custom scenarios much easier. No more having to create mods for them.
  
• Fixed Mod.io list box corruption on scrolling.
  
• Fixed Apply Mod changes not refreshing window areas.
  
• Fixed asserts if no skybox setup in scenario.
  
• Fixed modding Apply button always enabled on game startup. Should only be enabled when any changes have been made to be applied.
  
• Fixed mixed mod uniform merging creating duplicates of values. For example, if a mod had a scenario of the same name, the scenario would be duplicated in the front-end scenario list.
  
• Fixed lobby not handling scenarios from mods that only the host has.
  

Misc.

• Added new planet name, Solon.
  
• Updated red beacon color on the upper-right of planet icons (enemy phase jump inhibitor).
  
• Updated numerous strings.
  
• Updated game credits.
  
• Updated player guide link.
  
• Updated Vasari Subspace Rupture vfx.
  
• Fixed larger units not being able to travel through wormholes.
  
• Fixed duplicate phase lane crash.
  
• Fixed Mod.io login bug.
  

Misc. Bug Fixes

• Fixed multiplayer sync error.
  
• Fixed multiplayer last used game settings not being saved.
  
• Fixed polling input actions getting stuck as ‘down’ if mapped to duplicate keys.
  
• Fixed quotes in Steam player names breaking multiplayer logins.
  
• Fixed Trader planet item naming issue.
  
• Fixed some Tutorial bugs.
  
• Fixed error in Exotics tutorial - Exotic Refinery is Tier 2, not Tier 3.
  
• Fixed Advent Culture Suppression research icon.
  
• Fixed lobby options not being applied properly.
  
• Fixed play point effect not showing up on newly created buff agents.
  

Game Windows

• Added new brush for list box item hover.
  
• Fixed popup purchase item background window not being wide enough.
  
• Improved Escape menu layout.
  
• Improved lobby window layout.
  
• Improved new/load front-end screen layout.
  
• Removed random player icons from lobby.
  
• Added new front-end watermarks.
  
• Fixed margins on planet window.
  

Misc. Crashes and Asserts

• Fixed assert if Minor Faction player colonizes planet without simple planet level.
  
• Fixed crashing issues with save games.
  
• Removed alert on load save games with divergent frameworks.
  
• Suppressed setting JSON read errors.
  

[h2]In Sins 2's Space, Rich Audio Reigns Supreme
by Unlock Audio’s Jon Ruse[/h2]

When Ironclad Games first reached out to Unlock Audio for sound design support, I had no idea just how deeply our creative collaboration would channel my lifelong love of science fiction media.

I've worked on audio for sci-fi games previously, but teaming with Ironclad on "Sins of a Solar Empire II" has been particularly inspiring to both the kid in me who obsessed over the sonic charge of Jango Fett's ship in "The Phantom Menace" and the adult who dwells on every detail in "Mass Effect" and "Returnal." Needless to say, I felt an instant and natural connection to the Sins developers' own love of cinematic sci-fi, and I hope gamers make similar connections the moment they launch "Sins of a Solar Empire II" - available on Steam.

With the full PC game happening just the other week, I'm excited to share a some of the creativity that went into developing the signature soundscape for this long-awaited sequel to the acclaimed 2008 real-time strategy (RTS) classic.

[h3]A Collaboration with Cosmic Possibilities[/h3]
If video games were bound to the laws of the realistic universe, my job as a sound designer would be pretty limited. As the infamous tagline from "Alien" goes, "In space no one can hear you scream." Luckily, science fiction gives us the creative freedom to be extrasensory and cinematic and let explosions be explosive — even in a cosmic vacuum.

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The Ironclad team truly embraced the opportunity for immersive creativity and encouraged us to go big on sounds from the start. Instead of anchoring Unlock to re-envisioning decade-old sounds from the first installment, the development team trusted us to understand the theory and spirit behind the original sound designs and expand on it in new ways with a modern production sense.

During our exploration, we ended up incorporating synth plugins that were born around the same time as the original game, such as Native Instruments' Absynth 5 — a subtle factor which may lend a nostalgic feel for players who enjoyed the first game of the series.

[h3]Signature Sounds for Every Faction[/h3]
"Sins of a Solar Empire II" centers on three key races, each with their own distinct style and lore. We strove to build a unique soundscape for each that reflected the creativity and polish of Ironclad's incredible animation and visual designs.

The TEC – While earthly civilization has long been destroyed, the Trader Emergency Coalition most closely resembled a future humanity resettled in space in my mind. The ship references provided for sound design were clearly metallic and angular, which inspired a more familiar mechanical palette of sounds.

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As you zoom close on a TEC ship, you'll hear collages of computerized and electrified components that feel akin to evolved earthen technology. Their munitions are more a blend of projectile and energy-based weaponry compared to their phase- and psi-heavy opponents. For this faction, many of the sounds will seem familiar with a bit of Sins-style processing for a fit in its futuristic, cosmic setting alongside the opposing factions.

The Vasari – As the dominant alien race in the "Sins of a Solar Empire" lore, this faction is defined by its phase and nanotechnology. Their ships are sleek with an intense sheen in a way that simply wouldn't feel right with the TEC engine sounds layered in. As such, my aim was to create an otherworldly sound palette by tapping into techniques from my early background in electronic drum & bass music to resample and manipulate sounds beyond recognition.

We layered together insect swarms and gaseous sounds then pitched them up with jittery volume effects and delays. In the case of the volatile nanites ability, these nano drone sounds gain a layer of battlefield sounds for a satisfying effect.

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The Advent – As outcasts of the TEC, the Advent have a bit of a vengeful motivation behind their use of psychic and cybernetic tech. As the pseudo-spiritualist group, their palette of sounds exudes an ominous, almost uncontainable energy. The Advent fleet also leans on otherworldly effects by warping sounds to where you could not immediately tell what the source was.

[h3]Sound Strengthens the Sense of Scale[/h3]
One thing I love about how sound is implemented throughout "Sins of a Solar Empire II" is that it emphasizes the player's godlike role of cosmic conqueror. You're not the captain of a single ship — you're the commander of a far-reaching fleet destined for confrontation across an entire planetary system.

As real-time matches transpire, your empire will grow to span multiple planets and have fleets engaging in active conflict in multiple corners of the system. As the ruling decision maker for your faction, you have the ability to view your domain all the way from the broad planetary system down to extreme close-ups of each beautifully rendered ship.

It's at these ship-level detail views where the immersive sound really shines through. Say you zoom in on a cultural center. The closer you are, the more clearly you'll hear a rich bed of lively activity, from chatter to onboard announcements on top of the constant thrum of station equipment. For a more industrious ship like the Vasari factory, you'll hear the constant pulsing of phase energy and constant clack of ship assembly.

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Even the weaponry bolsters the sense of scale, from ship-to-ship artillery fire to planet-destroying mega attacks. We wanted players to feel the ultimate power of these larger attacks after all the strategic research it takes to earn the abilities. For example, the TEC's Orbital Cannon delivers a long-distance world-ending shot right to the target planet with a swift roar followed by a beat of quiet which lets loose a low rumble as devastation takes hold. Similarly, the Vasari's Planet Drain begins with a warbling phase burst, followed by a beat of quiet as the energy reverses, giving way to a growing chorus of screams, crackling fires and quakes.

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Each ship and weapon ability in the game has a distinct vibe, but players are sure to discover subtle consistencies across each faction's entire fleet, whether it's a signature combination of filters or plugin effect that unifies the impression of their equipment being from a similar cosmic origin.

[h3]Command Your Fleet Loudly[/h3]
The rich variety of sound effects we've created across "Sins of a Solar Empire II's" trio of vast fleets is best experienced loudly. It's super gratifying to have seen early players already cranking up the volume and enjoying the immersion Unlock's soundscape supports.

We hope that even more players will dial up our sound effects when they dive into "Sins of a Solar Empire II's".