Steel Swarm: APOCALYPSE News

🧰 Mechanics Updates

- Fast Laner Gear has been reworked into a Support Kit:
- Grants movement speed in base.
- When you last-hit a lane minion, a portion of the earned Xalium is shared with the nearest XBT without a Support Kit, and you receive 20% bonus Xalium.
- If the nearest XBT last-hits the minion, you receive 20% of their Xalium as bonus.
- If no ally is nearby, Xalium gain proceeds as normal.

- Teleportation system updated:
- “Teleport to Portal Drone” can now only be used on your own drone.
- Power Jumper item activated (allows teleportation to teammate’s Portal Drone).
- Teleport to Base and Teleport to Portal Drone cast times increased from 5s → 7s.
- If the target Portal Drone dies during cast time, the teleport is interrupted immediately.

- Fog of War system added to the game.

🔧 General Fixes & Improvements
- Fixed an issue where effects (such as damage) could incorrectly transfer to similar entities upon death.

💬 Launcher Features
- Added direct messaging between players in the launcher.

🎯 Upgrade Adjustments
- In the Permanent Upgrade system, 20% of the damage from the Defender path has been shifted to the Fast Attacker path.

⚙️ Buff & Stat Adjustments
- Jet Fuel (0–15 minutes): Duration reduced to 5 seconds.
- Jet Fuel (15+ minutes): Duration is 10 seconds, effect reduced to 10%.

🔁 Respawn Adjustments
- Respawn modifiers at 35 and 40 minutes have been removed.
- Maximum respawn time is now capped at 92 seconds.

SSA TEAM

At Clay Token, our software development engineer Mehmet Kardaş shares the challenges he faced while developing Steel Swarm: Apocalypse, the best advice he received in software engineering, and how he stepped out of his comfort zone during the project.

🔹Can you briefly introduce yourself?
I am a Software Engineer at Clay Token. I love making games as much as playing them. I also write sci-fi short fiction.

🔹What music genres and bands do you listen to while developing?
I usually listen to soundtracks, epic, or electronic music. Anything atmospheric with minimal vocals is my vibe. Less distractions, the better.

🔹What is the best piece of advice you’ve received about software development?
I had so much good advice, but nothing comes to mind as the best. Still looking for one.

🔹What was the most challenging bug you encountered in this project, and how did you solve it? What was your last "developer panic moment," and how did you handle it?
There was a particular bug with Sphinx. When its plasma charge exploded and multiple minions were killed, sometimes unrelated minions elsewhere (in another lane, or just spawned) would die.
It took a full workday to solve. The issue was that damage was being applied to entities that would die that frame, causing a chain reaction of unintended deaths in the next frame.

🔹What’s something you did in this project that pushed you out of your comfort zone, and you’re glad you did?
Probably the first time I contributed something substantial to the project. Understanding the structure and how things worked was tough at first—but once it clicked, it made so much sense.

🔹What are you currently learning? How do you prioritize your "next things to learn" list?
I’m interested in all things game development. Currently, I’m working on improving my sound design skills and learning some shader magic.

🔹How many cups of coffee do you drink per day?
I don’t drink much coffee or tea, actually. Water is the way to go!

🔹What advice would you give to a newly graduated developer?
Find what you're genuinely interested in. Think about how you could improve or innovate in that space. Build things—create solutions—and learn along the way.

🔹Among the features you developed in this project, which one makes you the proudest and why?
The mission system. It was incredibly fun to build. While it’s not heavily used in the current game, it’s very modular and can be adapted for other purposes.
We could probably make a full RPG with complex quests using it.

https://steelswarm.net/news/developer-spotlight-mehmet.html SSA TEAM

🤖 Bots can now purchase gear.

🕒 Death time increases at specific moments during the match:
At minute 20, death time increases by 5%.
At minute 25, it increases by 10%.
At minute 30, it increases by 15%.
At minute 35, it increases by 20%.
At minute 40, it increases by 25%.

🛠️ Fixed an issue where bots wouldn't buy anything at the start of a match.

🎓 Fixed an issue preventing Tutorial 3 from opening.

📣 Fixed problems related to gear and upgrade announcements.

📡 When a Portal Drone is destroyed, the notification will now only be sent to its owner.
Previously it was sent to all players.

🚀 Fixed an issue where the Super Ballistic Drone would not fire.

SSA TEAM

For the last two months, we've been working on transitioning SSA to a faster meta that keeps the player more engaged in the game without sacrificing gameplay enjoyment. We started this journey with the 2025_1_3 update, which we previously announced as “Drastic Meta Change?”

🎯 Our Goals:
Reduce average match time, increase average number of matches played
Increase the amount of time a player is actively in the game

🔍 Key Considerations:
Avoiding the snowball effect and making comebacks possible
Not compromising the game feel

After 9 updates in 2 months, we are proud to present a faster and more competitive SSA with version 2025_3_3!

Players who have been playing during this time have already witnessed the meta shift.

SSA is now faster…

📌 Changes Implemented

⏳ Increasing Player Engagement Time

Jump to Portal ability reworked:
Players can now teleport to any Portal Drone placed by their team!
This reduces travel times and enables more tactical gameplay.

XBT acceleration and reverse speed increased.
Certain slow XBTs now have better forward speed.

More upgrade options that improve speed & acceleration added.

Jet Fuel Buff added by the Spawn Zone.
Speeds up battlefield engagement.

Death Timer durations reduced.
Players now spend less time inactive.


⏳ Reducing Match Duration & Increasing Match Count
Minion HP & Vulcan damage reduced.
XBTs clear lanes faster.

Mantis buffs converted to offensive power.
Mantis now acts as a stronger finisher.

Minion damage to XBTs reduced.
Faster lane pushing.

Level XP requirements decreased.
Players reach max level faster!

Xalium distribution increased.
Faster upgrade completion.

Surrender option added.
Players can exit unbalanced matches earlier.


🎯 Avoiding Snowball & Encouraging Comebacks

More dynamic XBTs make early mistakes less punishing.

Lane pushing speed helps teams transition from defense to offense quicker.

Vulcan Armor Rework:
All Vulcans (except Tier 1) take significantly less damage from XBTs when minions aren’t nearby.
Prevents strong XBTs from ignoring waves and taking down Vulcans alone.
Gives losing teams a chance to defend their Vulcans.

With these changes, SSA now offers a gameplay experience where positioning and movement matter more than ever!

SSA will continue evolving rapidly. See you in future metas! 🚀

SSA TEAM

We're back with a new patch note!
In this update, we're introducing an important mechanic: assisting your teammates and setting up ganks is now much easier!
We believe this change will make a significant impact on the game's dynamics.

The Portal Drone mechanics have been redesigned!
You can now teleport to any Portal Drone placed by your team, significantly enhancing your mobility across the map and expanding your strategic options.

🌀 Portal Drone Adjustments

1. Portal Drone teleportation mechanics updated:
   
2. Players can now teleport to any Portal Drone placed by their team.
   
3. Players can select the desired Portal Drone from the minimap at any time.
   

⛽ Jet Fuel Buff Added

1. The Spawn Zone now applies a buff called Jet Fuel to all XBTs.
   
2. The buff is removed when an XBT takes damage or enters any "attacking" stance.
   

Buff Effects:

1. 0-15 minutes:
   
2. +20% Speed
   
3. +20% Acceleration
   
4. Duration: 30s
   

1. After 15 minutes:
   
2. +40% Speed
   
3. +40% Acceleration
   
4. Duration: 30s
   

🌿 Jungle Adjustments

1. Jungle XP values have been reduced.
   

🛠️ General Fixes & Improvements

1. Added an indicator on the minimap to show appropriate locations when Ballistic Drone is deployed in unsuitable areas.
   
2. Fixed incorrect attack warnings appearing on the minimap.
   
3. Fixed lock icons that were not disappearing when they should in the Upgrade Window.
   
4. Adjusted the color of certain text elements in the Upgrade Window.
   

🎯 Beginner Friendly Announcements Added

1. Added beginner-friendly announcements to improve the new player experience.
   

https://steelswarm.net/news/patch-notes-2025-3-3.html

SSA TEAM