Empires News

[p]We're happy to announce version 2.39.4 which is live on Steam right now. Changelog below and also on our Website

Come join us on Discord!
Don't forget to check our Discord events to see the date and time of when games are played.

[/p][h2][/h2][h2]Bugfixes[/h2]

• [p]Fixed a server crash caused by players repairing tanks that have been parented to other entities.[/p]

[h2]Script/Game Balance[/h2][h3]Infantry[/h3][p]Weapons[/p]

• [p]Northern Faction’s .50cal Rifle[/p]
  • [p]Increased Cycle Time from 0.25 to 0.3[/p]
• [p]Brenodi Empires’ Burst Rifle[/p]
  • [p]Reduced Cycle Time from 0.5 to 0.4[/p]

[h3]Vehicles[/h3][p]Armor[/p]

• [p]Transferred Absorbant Heat Dissipation property to Ablative[/p]
  • [p]Increased Absorbant’s Damage to Heat Absorbed from -0.15 to 0.01[/p]
  • [p]Reduced Ablative’s Damage to Heat Absorbed from 0.01 to -0.15[/p]
• [p]Increased Ablative’s Regeneration from 1 hp/s to 2 hp/s[/p]

[p]Chassis[/p]

• [p]Artillery[/p]
  • [p]Reduced Cost from 775 to 650[/p]
  • [p]Increased available Weight from 255 to 270[/p]

[p]Engine[/p]

• [p]Changed Engine Heat Zones to have better defined identities ( See https://git.neoony.com/empires_public/empires_scripts/-/merge_requests/327 )[/p]
  • [p]Standard Engine: Low, Medium and High Heat Zones are equal, and critical is small[/p]
  • [p]3 Phase: Smaller High Heat Zone, and Smaller Critical Heat Zone[/p]
  • [p]Fission: Larger High Heat Zone, and Larger Critical Heat Zone[/p]
  • [p]Bio Diesel: Larger Medium Heat Zone[/p]
  • [p]Adv. Coolant: Much Larger Low Heat Zone, Much Smaller High Heat Zone, and Much Smaller Critical Heat Zone[/p]
  • [p]Gas Turbine: Larger Low Heat Zone, and Smaller Medium Heat Zone[/p]

[p]Weapons[/p]

• [p]Railgun[/p]
  • [p]Reduced Damage from 130 to 120[/p]
• [p]TOW Guided Missile Launcher[/p]
  • [p]Reduced Cycletime from 1.25 to 1.1[/p]

[p]We're happy to announce version 2.39.3 which is live on Steam right now. Changelog below and also on our Website

Come join us on Discord!
Don't forget to check our Discord events to see the date and time of when games are played.

[/p][h2]Bugfixes[/h2]

• [p]Minor optimizations to the visibility system.[/p]
• [p]Minor fixes to the layout of the vehicle weapon HUD.[/p]
• [p]Vehicle weapon reload is now properly telegraphed via the vehicle HUD. Previously, no progress bar would display if reloading a weapon.[/p]
• [p]Fixed an issue with prop_static entities not blocking explosion damage as intended.[/p]
• [p]Fixed a regression that allowed players using hide to be spotted by other players.[/p]
• [p]Fixed a bug where players could detect enemy commanders in the command interface using the scout’s enhanced senses skill.[/p]
• [p]Improved mine defusal while inside buildings.[/p]
• [p]The player camera angles are now snapped to the vehicle turret position when entering the driver seat.[/p]
• [p]Speculative fix to prevent spotting diamonds appearing on the HUD where they shouldn’t.[/p]
• [p]Speculative fix for a client crash while using the research menu.[/p]

[h2]Script/Game Balance[/h2][h3]Vehicles[/h3][p]Armor[/p]

• [p]Increased Deflective Angle Modifier from 0.8 to 1[/p]

[p]Engine[/p]

• [p]Increased Fission Reactor’s cooling at max from -3 to -4[/p]

[p]Weapons[/p]

• [p]Medium Chain gun[/p]
  • [p]Projectile Spread decreased from 0.0275 to 0.0225[/p]
  • [p]FalloffEnd increased from 1250 to 2000[/p]
• [p]Nuclear Missile Launcher[/p]
  • [p]Changed ammo pool to be 10 clips of 1 missile. This allows the reload sound to play when ready to fire again.[/p]

It’s that special time of year again when we all cozy up, grab some cocoa, and load into Empires Mod to experience the best of the worst.

Welcome to Shitmaps #9, the annual holiday tradition where mapmakers crawl out of their Hammer dungeons to unleash questionable masterpieces upon the community. Expect some great ideas and many not so, and maybe even a few good maps.

This year’s Shitmaps hopes to be even better than ever, with some new shitastic ideas.

Mark your calendars:
Saturday, January 31st, 2026 at 19:00 CET / 18:00 GMT / 13:00 EST / 12:00 CST / 10:00 PST / 21:00 MSK!

[h2]🔥 Hype Yourself Up[/h2]
Check out the official Shitmaps 9 trailer here: Watch the Trailer

Want even more chaos?
Relive the madness from previous Shitmaps: Watch Shitmaps 2025 Playlist (Bill Nye)

[h2]🎉 Embrace the Disaster[/h2]
Show up with low expectations and high spirits. Bring a friend, bring a squad, or just bring your best confused scream when the spawn opens into a broom closet.
One night only: cursed layouts, accidental masterpieces, and community chaos the way it was meant to be.

Happy Shitmaps, everyone!

[p]We're happy to announce version 2.39.2 which is live on Steam right now. Changelog below and also on our Website

Come join us on Discord!
Don't forget to check our Discord events to see the date and time of when games are played.

[/p][h2]Features[/h2]

• [p]Further adjustments to the visibility system introduced in 2.39.0:[/p]
  • [p]Optimized functionality of the visibility manager game system.[/p]
    • [p]Implemented a console variable on the server to control the update rate of the visibility manager processing. emp_sv_vis_manager_update_interval - This is in seconds and the default value is 0.01 (update per frame if running at 100 tickrate).[/p]
    • [p]Various improvements to speed of processing, reducing the processing of detectable components where possible.[/p]
• [p]Remaining vehicle carcass recycle amounts are now shown on the full screen mini-map (default key bind = M).[/p]
  • [p]This may be subject to change or be removed but this has been added for testing purposes. It may be disabled by default in a future update, with an option to enable it in the multiplayer options menu.[/p]

[h2]Bugfixes[/h2]

• [p]Speculative fix to prevent spotting diamonds appearing on the HUD where they shouldn’t.[/p]

[h2]Script/Game Balance[/h2][h3]Infantry[/h3][p]Weapons[/p][p]Increased ammo reserves after reviewing & testing the recent changes in 2.39.1.[/p][p]Engineer:[/p]

• [p]Increased reserve ammo from 2 clips per weapon to 3 for most weapons.[/p]
  • [p]Shotgun ammo increased from 16 to 18[/p]
  • [p]SMG1 ammo increased from 70 to 105[/p]
  • [p]SMG2 ammo increased from 80 to 120[/p]
  • [p]Machine Pistol ammo increased from 30 to 45[/p]
  • [p]Pistol 1 ammo increased from 28 to 36[/p]
  • [p]BE Pistol 2 ammo increased from 14 to 21[/p]
  • [p]NF Shotgun Pistol ammo remains at 8[/p]

[p]Grenadier:[/p]

• [p]No changes to reserve ammo values.[/p]

[p]Rifleman:[/p]

• [p]Increased reserve ammo from 3 clips per weapon to 4 for most weapons. 1 extra seismic grenade.[/p]
  • [p]NF Assault Rifle ammo increased from 120 to 150 (5 clips)[/p]
  • [p]Burst Rifle ammo increased from 120 to 150 (5 clips)[/p]
  • [p]BE Heavy Rifle ammo increased from 120 to 160[/p]
  • [p]Machine Pistol ammo increased from 45 to 60[/p]
  • [p]Pistol 1 ammo increased from 36 to 48[/p]
  • [p]BE Pistol 2 ammo increased from 21 to 28[/p]
  • [p]Seismic Grenade ammo increased from 3 to 4[/p]

[p]Scout:[/p]

• [p]Increased reserve ammo from 3 clips per weapon to 4 for most weapons.[/p]
  • [p]SMG2 ammo increased from 120 to 160[/p]
  • [p]SMG3 ammo increased from 42 to 56[/p]
  • [p]Machine Pistol ammo increased from 45 to 60[/p]
  • [p]Pistol 1 ammo increased from 36 to 48[/p]
  • [p]BE Pistol 2 ammo increased from 21 to 28[/p]

[p]We're happy to announce version 2.39.1 which is live on Steam right now. Changelog below and also on our Website

Come join us on Discord!
Don't forget to check our Discord events to see the date and time of when games are played.

[/p][h2]Features[/h2]

• [p]Further adjustments to the visibility system introduced in 2.39.0:[/p]
  • [p]Commander visibility tweak: Commanders can now see entities within 5000 units of any friendly player, regardless of spotting status. (Also fixes an issue that caused some entities to be hidden from the commander.)[/p]
  • [p]Dead player visibility restored: Visibility for dead players has been reverted to the previous behavior, allowing them to see nearby entities. Entities that are visible only to the dead player are not shared to teammates.[/p]
  • [p]The mini-map is now disabled for the unassigned team.[/p]

[h2]Bugfixes[/h2]

• [p]Fixed vehicle damage hit-ticks not displaying.[/p]

[h2]Script/Game Balance[/h2][h3]Infantry[/h3]

• [p]Damage resistance against biological damage over time effects have been removed.[/p]
  • [p]Grenadier reduced from 0.1 to 0[/p]
  • [p]Rifleman reduced from 0.05 to 0[/p]
  • [p]Scout reduced from 0.1 to 0[/p]

[p]Weapons[/p][p]Rebalanced ammo capacities across all classes to better reflect their combat roles.[/p][p]Scout: Receives additional reserve ammo for extended combat longevity, allowing for sustained engagements while maintaining mobility.[/p]

• [p]SMG2 ammo decreased from 200 to 120[/p]
• [p]SMG3 ammo decreased from 60 to 42[/p]
• [p]BE Pistol 2 ammo decreased from 28 to 21[/p]
• [p]NF Shotgun Pistol ammo decreased from 12 to 10[/p]
• [p]Machine Pistol ammo decreased from 72 to 45[/p]

[p]Rifleman: Receives additional reserve ammo for fighting longevity, befitting their role as the primary combat class.[/p]

• [p]BE Heavy Rifle ammo decreased from 160 to 120[/p]
• [p]BE Pistol 2 ammo decreased from 28 to 21[/p]
• [p]NF Shotgun Pistol ammo decreased from 12 to 10[/p]
• [p]Machine Pistol ammo decreased from 72 to 45[/p]
• [p]Seismic Grenade ammo decreased from 5 to 3[/p]

[p]Grenadier: Receives extra pistol ammo as it’s their only ballistic weapon choice, compensating for their focus on explosive ordnance.[/p]

• [p]Pistol 1 ammo decreased from 72 to 60[/p]
• [p]BE Pistol 2 ammo decreased from 56 to 35[/p]
• [p]NF Shotgun Pistol ammo increased from 12 to 14[/p]
• [p]Machine Pistol ammo increased from 72 to 75[/p]

[p]Engineer: Receives less reserve ammo as they carry ammo crates and can resupply themselves and teammates, reducing the need for large starting reserves.[/p]

• [p]SMG1 ammo decreased from 140 to 70[/p]
• [p]SMG2 ammo decreased from 160 to 80[/p]
• [p]SMG3 ammo decreased from 48 to 28[/p]
• [p]Pistol 1 ammo decreased from 36 to 28[/p]
• [p]BE Pistol 2 ammo decreased from 28 to 14[/p]
• [p]NF Shotgun Pistol ammo decreased from 12 to 8[/p]
• [p]Shotgun ammo decreased from 24 to 16[/p]
• [p]Machine Pistol ammo decreased from 54 to 30[/p]

[h3]Vehicle[/h3][p]Weapons[/p]

• [p]Railgun[/p]
  • [p]Armor penetration damage reduced from 20% to 15%.[/p]