Update 0.6.2 - Introducing Classic mode

Hi everyone,

Here are the patch notes for the latest update which contains new features, more content, more game balancing revisions and several bug fixes that have been reported by the community. As always, thank you very much to our amazing TerraTech Worlds community for all the invaluable bug reports being posted via Discord.

This update contains a key new feature specifically aimed at players who want TerraTech Worlds to offer an experience more like the original TerraTech game: the Classic settings preset.

Game configuration options are now more prominent, so it's obvious when starting a new game that you have a range of different play styles to choose from. We have reorganised the Presets, renaming them and rebalancing a bit to offer a clearer choice.

• The "Prospector" preset, which represents the 'vanilla', as-designed TerraTech Worlds vision, is now named Balanced
• The "Explorer" preset, offering a calmer, less constrained game flow, is renamed to Relaxed
• And "Pioneer" and "1st Wave" (which were a bit confusing) have been combined into a single Intense preset, for players who know the ropes and want a more challenging experience.
  

And now there is a new one to try out: Classic adds a slate of new options specifically designed to alter some of the design changes that original TerraTech fans didn’t like. The reactor limit can be disabled completely, and block licensing is not required (every block you find is fully yours, straight away). Ammunition is no longer needed for any weapon, and you can rebuild from your full block collection, wherever you are in the world.

And don’t forget, you don’t have to stick with the exact Presets as we have defined them! All the options can be mixed and matched as you like, and your alterations are stored in a Custom preset that’s remembered between game starts. Enjoy!

If you have any feedback, please share your thoughts with us.

[h2]Introducing the Classic Preset[/h2]

• A collection of new options specifically designed to offer a much more traditional TT1-like experience.
  
• This includes the following options:
  • No reactor limit
    
  • No block licensing
    
  • No ammo requirements
    
  • Access your block collection anywhere (not just at the Tech Yard)
• With block licensing turned off, all blocks are effectively licensed immediately on collection, which means you’re allowed to sell them at your Tech Yard and to the Traders.
  
• When ammo requirements are turned off, enemy Techs will no longer drop ammo when they're destroyed.
  
• When some settings are changed from the default (e.g. block licensing, block collection access and ammo requirements off) several tutorial messages and objectives are skipped as they're no longer relevant (further updates are planned to remove and hide other irrelevant elements based on settings choices).

[h2]Other Planet Settings Updates[/h2]

• Changed preset names:
  
  • Explorer is now Relaxed
  • Prospector is now Balanced
  • 1st Wave is now Intense
  • Removed the Pioneer preset
    
• Increased the reactor limit for the Relaxed preset.
  
• Decreased the number of repair charges for the Intense preset and increased the respawn rate for enemies.
  

[h2]UI[/h2]

• Blocks will be sent straight to Tech Yard storage when picked up (classic mode only).
  
• Reduced repetition of the following warning hint messages from infinite to a maximum of 10 repeats:
  • "Your reactor is nearing its capacity. Overloading the reactor will make your Tech non-operational."
    
  • "Your Tech has been heavily damaged. Press to use a Repair Charge."
    
  • "Repair at Tech Yard or Respawn from build mode."
    
  • "...This gun needs ammunition. Press {X} to fire it."
    
  • "...Out of {X}. One or more of your blocks require a consumable resource to activate."
    

[h2]Tech Hot Swapping[/h2]

• You can now quickly switch between multiple Tech builds - on the fly and anywhere in the world.
  
  • Craft a Hot Swap Module (after meeting the Ocean Trader) and attach it to your Tech Yard to enable Hot Swapping.
    
  • You need all your blocks to Hot Swap, so use a repair charge first if you are missing blocks!
    
  • First, set up the Tech that appears in each Hot Swap slot at your Tech Yard and then Hot Swap between them by holding R (or controller Y) for a radial menu or using the number keys for specific slots.
    
  • Instantly switch from car to boat to plane wherever you are (for example).
    
  • Unlock additional slots by crafting the higher tier modules.
    
  • Snapshotting a Tech doesn’t require a Tech Yard module anymore.
    
    • That block is being removed from the game so we have coloured it magenta.
      

[h2]Onboarding[/h2]

• If you are already familiar with the game you can now turn off all the popup hints.
  
• Added an introduction to scanning using the Scanner Mk I to the initial tutorial.
  
  • This happens when you’ve been asked to craft a Block Storage Module and need to find Silicate for the first time.
    
  • Also upgraded the starting Tech that you are given if you skip the tutorial to include a Scanner Mk I (as you get that block in the tutorial now).
    

[h2]Fire Groups and Channels[/h2]

• There are now Fire Channels that save your fire group setups, so you can change channels and gain a completely separate assignment to the 4 fire group buttons.
  
• Select the channel in the Weapons & Equipment tab and assign keys to devices as normal. These will be the activations used when that channel is active.
  
• Swap channels by using the F1-F10 keys on the keyboard or bring up a radial selector on the controller by holding D-pad Left and the right stick to select and change the current fire group.
  
• Hold F on keyboard to access a radial menu for switching fire channels.
  

[h2]Swamp Progression and Bastion[/h2]

• Added a set of objectives that guide you through the Swamp continent.
  
• Added a Bastion structure to complete in the Swamp continent.
  

[h2]Power Updates[/h2]

• New hydroponics structure that generates Organics from Saline Canisters and power.
  
• Fuelled generators on a power grid now all activate at once and share the work evenly between them. Diesel generators will be used with priority over other types of generator.
  
• Rebalanced Power Cells to be more functionally consistent.
  
  • They have a smaller charge rate - the amount of power they can pull from a system to charge the cell.
    
  • The discharge rate increases as the size grows.
    
  • These rates can be seen in the structure description.
    
  • Max stored power has been changed to reflect the new structure balance.
    
• Power Cells will pull from power systems based on their charge rate regardless of the source of power.
  

[h2]Scanners[/h2]

• Scanners now only reveal relevant resources for the area where you get them.
  
  • This makes it easier to find new resources in the Swamp (for example) instead of being overwhelmed with Lithium dots from all the needleberry plants.
    
  • See the descriptions for each scanner block for details on which specific resources are revealed by each one:
    
    • Scanner Mk I shows resources that are present in the Forest
      
    • Scanner Mk III reveals resources that are first encountered in the Swamp
      
    • Scanner Mk. IV for resources first encountered in the Polar region
      
    • Scanner Mk V for resources first encountered in the Desert
      
    • Scanner (Mk II is a placeholder for Ocean resources, but we don’t have them yet)
      
    • Oil can also now be found with Scanners Mk III, IV and V
      

[h2]Blocks[/h2]

• Added several new connector blocks:
  • 4-Way Band Connector - a one-block with 4 APs
    
  • 4-Way Cup Connector - a one-block with 4 differently arranged APs
    
  • 8-Way Long Blank Connector - a two-block with 8 APs
    
  • 8-Way Long Symmetrical Connector - a two-block with 8 differently arranged APs
    
  • These new blocks now feature heavily at the start of the game, all the early enemies feature them as well as your starting Tech. They have been grouped up with all the other Connector Blocks of the same size into Block variant sets too.
• Added several modifiers to EXP and PRD Hull blocks:
  • EXP Medium Explorer Hull Blocks now give +1 Armour to all connected blocks
    
  • EXP Large Explorer Hull Blocks now give +2 Armour to all connected blocks
    
  • PRD Medium Six Hull Blocks now give +1 Super Conductor to all connected blocks
    
  • PRD Medium Seven Hull Seven Hull Blocks now give +1 Recycle to all connected blocks
    
  • PRD Three Plank Hull Block now gives +1 Turbo to all connected blocks
    
  • PRD Large Ten Hull Blocks now give +1 Amplify to all connected blocks
    
  • PRD Large Twelve Hull Blocks now give +2 Amplify to all connected blocks
    
  • PRD Four T Hull Block now gives +3 Amplify to all connected blocks
    
  • PRD L Side Panel Hull Block now gives +2 Armour to all connected blocks
    
  • PRD Z Strut Hull Block now gives +2 Repair to all connected blocks
    
  • And increased the health of all of those blocks too.
• Added several front-mounted variants to some of the smaller weapon blocks:
  • Front-mounted Resource Laser
    
  • Front-mounted M-18F 'Vindur'
    
  • Front-mounted M-8F 'Hail Storm' Machine Gun
    
  • Front-mounted AMP-F 'Sirocco' Laser
    
  • Front-mounted MA-1F 'Archer' Auto Gun
• Updated all cab block descriptions and made minor balance updates to some cab modifiers and variables
  
• Changed the name of Trailblazer Axle to Versatile Axle Five and rebalanced the stats
  
• Added new two-wide and seven-wide EXP Axles and new variants of the Hopper and Tactical Axles and then paired all axles up odds and evens as block variants so that they can either be used on odd width or even width Techs interchangeably
  
• Added a +2 Speed modifier to the Hopper Axles to attached blocks
  
• Reduced the mass of the five scanner blocks (Mk. I, II, III, IV and V)
  
• Increased the brightness and range of all of the EXP light blocks and the PRD Light Pole structure
  
• Added lights to all cabs that were missing them (two COM cabs and all SKY and SEA cabs)
  
• Added conduit APs all around the base of the SI3 Silo (the large one)
  
• Renamed the larger 'Heavy Hauler Cab' to the 'Juggernaut Cab.'
  
• Rebalanced the health and mass of all cab blocks to scale relative to each other based on corporation and size.
  

[h2]New Structure Blocks[/h2]

• These are available from the platform fabricator:
  
  • Railings
    
  • Posts
    
  • Panels
    
  • Fins
    
  • Large Platform - Window
    
  • Rugged Light
    

[h2]Enemies[/h2]

• Added more enemy Techs to the starting area of the game, specifically on the islands nearby - for all modes.
  
• Added enemy marker dots to highlight nearby enemy locations in screenspace or as edge markers to show which direction enemies are when offscreen. Nearby enemies now also automatically appear on the map.
  
• Added enemy spawn in planetfall/dropship effects to highlight when enemies spawn nearby.
  
• Added dynamic enemy spawns that trigger nearby if you've not encountered an enemy for a while.
  
• An optional forest miniboss has been added near the northern Cooling Fin Bastion Block.
  
• Enemies are no longer aggressively attacking you at your base or chasing you over long distances.
  

[h2]Game Balancing[/h2]

• Increased the Tech size limit to 64x64x64 units.
  
• Increased storage for Medium and Large Silos:
  
  • Medium Silo now has 64 storage slots, up from 32.
    
  • Large Silo now has 96 storage slots, up from 64.
    
    • The Large Silo still needs further storage increases to match the capacity relative to block size, but 8x12 is the current maximum for silo storage without adding scrolling or additional pages to make the storage fit on screen - we’re working on options for that.
      
    • As a temporary measure to get the value of Large Silos nearer to where they should be, you now get two Large Silos each time you craft one.
      
• Reduced the recipe costs for Small, Medium and Large silos:
  
  • Small Silo is now 3x Iron and 6x Organics
    
  • Medium Silo is now 6x Iron Ingots and 3x Carbon Fibre
    
  • Large Silo is now 12x Iron Ingots and 6x Carbon Fibre (and you get two Large Silos each time you craft it, for now, as noted above)
    
• Reduced Extractor power needs.
  
• Increased Organics and Syncoal power generation lifetime.
  
• Reduced crafting recipe of all girder structure blocks types to 1 x Iron Ingot.
  
• Reduced knockback for B-22 'Meteor' Turret, IDR-7 'Quake' Grenade Launcher, DU-120 'After Shock' Mounted Rifle, T12 Coaxial Cannon and the IDR-33 'Bolas' Grenade Launcher.
  
• Updated Heater Fuel recipe to 1x SynCoal and 1x Petroleum Barrel.
  
• Added a few more oil fields to the polar biome.
  
• The Fragmenter has bigger output pockets to hold more resources
  
• Increased the temperature of the polar thermal areas during storms, making them pockets of safety without heaters during both day and night even when storms are blowing.
  
• Tactical Axle now correctly discounts the Reactor Load of attached wheels.
  
• Tweaked the flight model in an attempt to make it more realistic.
  
• Reduced recipe costs for all Reserve Power Cells:
  • Reserve Power Cell S1: 12x Silicon Wafer, 20x Copper Wiring
    
  • Reserve Power Cell M2: 10x Titanium Ingot, 15x Chlorine Ampule, 5x Synthetic Polymer
    
  • Reserve Power Cell L3: 8x Photovoltaic, 18x Titanium Ingot, 6x Charging Cell
• Reduced the health of several resource givers; Hematite (Iron), Quartz (Silicate), Bauxite (Aluminium), Wolframite (Titanium) and Trees.
  
• Increased the range at which Bastion blocks can be taken from cargo and built away from the Bastion SEED from 100m to 200m.
  
• Added battery blocks for sale at the traders:
  • The Forest Trader sells 3x Small Batteries
    
  • The Swamp Trader sells 3x Medium Batteries
    
  • The Polar Trader sells 3x Large Batteries
• Set all needleberry plants to target the player and outlaw Techs, when the player is nearby.
  
• Added some obstacles to act as cover in the Gargoyle (forest boss) arena and reduced Gargoyle's aiming skill.
  

[h2]Bug Fixes[/h2]

• Changed the required resource in Expert Delivery Mission 12 from Refined Tantalum (which is no longer available) to FerroSteel.
  
• Updated descriptions for Scanners Mk III and IV - removed resources that are no longer present in the game or are only secondary ones that do not show up when scanning (as the primary resource shows in their place eg. Niobium in Tantalite, which appears as Tantalum - the primary).
  
• Updated the objectives that prompt players to raid bases and steal their Gold Wiring to trade for the Lightning Rod. These objectives now make more sense and flow when they play in different orders.
  
• Fixed crash on a dedicated server when using a Fragmenter.
  
• Fixed graphic issue when flipping the Hydroponics Labs.
  
• Fixed issue with the pole structure block that stopped you using the attach point on top.
  
• Fixed issue with increased the fuel burn time of generators under certain workloads.
  
• Fixed issue where some players were unable to access the forest trader.
  
• Fixed issue with the mobile pulse heater. They will no longer heat your Tech until it bursts in the flames and destroys itself.
  
• Fixed an issue where you could mine under the Traders and destroy them.
  
• Added a third output slot to the Fragmenter to stop it getting blocked.
  
• Added the Terrain Tool to the Swamp Trader's inventory. It is unlocked for purchase after defeating the Swamp Boss, Gator.
  
• Modifiers for all Harvesting cabs now applying to all blocks.
  
• Gold can now be dug up and removed with a tractor beam.
  
• Wind turbines aren't tripped when loading into a new game.
  
• Q and E should work with the tractor beam again.
  
• Heater fuel being consumed when loading into a game has been fixed.
  
• Heater fuel is now consumed at a reasonable rate when exploring the polar.
  
• Fixed keybinds randomly switching.
  
• Fixed the issue where pressing Q and detaching a block will rotate the Tech indefinitely in build beam.
  
• Fixed a bug where the small cargo block wasn't dropping from enemies.
  
• Fixed scanner flickering in multiplayer
  
• Distance markers have been given distance on the minimap again.
  
• The two missing flight corporation blocks (Wide Cab and Skid) are now available from the swamp trader.
  
• Fixed issue where the recipe for Beacon Towers had two separate Iron Ingot recipe requirements. Combined the two separate ones into a single allowance of 52 Iron Ingots.
  
• Set up the Forest and Swamp Bastion objectives to skip the 'power the bastion' step at the end if structure power requirements are switched off.
  
• Fixed issue where you can discover the polar biome by climbing the mountain in the forest biome.
  
• Fixed the Trader music not being controlled by the music volume slider.
  
• Fixed an issue where the combat music was playing before you even saw the enemy Tech that triggers it.
  
• Fixed an issue where blocks would sometimes go missing when repairing in multiplayer.
  
• Fixed a complex crafting/conduit crash found by "Arch the Proto."
  
• Fixed issue causing the game to crash when trying to use the scanner in a particular part of the swamps.
  
• Fixed a crash when you hotswapped with a powered Flatbed.
  
• Updated scanner descriptions - Removed misleading endings for all scanner descriptions to avoid confusion over what they scan for.
  
• Fixed an issue where collected blocks weren't being converted to their base variant when being picked up.
  
• Fixed an issue where the enemy respawn rate on planet settings wasn’t reducing their spawn amounts.
  
• Fixed an issue where the hot swap radial menu was still active during combat mode even when players are not able to hot swap.
  
• Fixed an issue where the client gets stuck after Basic Fabricator onboarding objectives in multiplayer classic mode if the host skips the onboarding first.
  
• Fixed issue where the client does not receive the scanner block during onboarding in Classic mode.
  
• If you’re using a Pulse Furnace in the polar biome, then you open and close your Tech Cargo, the Pulse Furnace’s heating effect no longer incorrectly wears off.