Star Traders: Frontiers News

Update #207 launches a new starting ship, improvements to story pacing, rebalanced Talents, and a bundle of fixes and improvements gathered from another active week with the community. We owe a huge thanks to all of the captains for play, posting feedback and leaving reviews! While things have been a bit slowed down here, we still have a big roadmap ahead of us for the year -- so let's keep grinding together!



[h2]New Starting Ship D[/h2]
Update #207 adds a new option for your starting ships in the "D" priority. At $200,000 the Reach Vindex isn't a dream ship but it does have its advantages among the slot and gives more options for those captains wanting to start in a lighter, less expensive ship that allows them to focus on other priorities. The Reach Vindex is a minimalist hull designed for long range operations in deep space. Equipped with extensive shielding and massive fuel tanks, the Reach Vindex is popular with long-haul Star Traders.



[h2]Late Game Era[/h2]
Based on some great feedback from the community, we found a mistake in the timing rules for the late game Eras and how they proc'd into the galaxy. We've now adjusted the rules to account for the fact that there are now 3 late game Eras (Plague, Brood, Buried Demons) and to ensure there is some delay between them so that they don't back-to-back without any rest.

We've also fixed a long running bug with Estelle giving an erroneous offer in the Buried Demons after it was complete.

[h2]Recruit Timing[/h2]
Update #206 added a 1 turn requirement to recruit any new crew member. It also added 1 turn requirement review-and-dismiss them. Taking the community feedback into account, we've removed the 1 turn cost if you dismiss them directly while reviewing-and-recruiting. However, we have now adjusted general Dismiss to increase its cost to 1 turn. Leaving an offworlder on a grav world is not something done quickly, and it requires the time of the captain and officers. It is a rare event and now outside of the recruit-and-review loop which was where the timing got egregious.


[h2]Mission Adjustments[/h2]
We've fixed an issue where sometimes using Flash Charge in some missions would skip the mission completion or failure screen that would follow. In a continued effort to balance mission pricing and duration, we've made some more tweaks to the pricing calculations per type and per jump for long, short and medium length missions.

Finally, for those Salvagers using the "Entropic Estimate" Talent from Mechanics, the results of that Talent are now lodged in the Event Log which makes it easier to reference after leaving the Salvage screen.

[h2]v3.0.55 - 4/13/2020[/h2]
- New Starting Ship: 3400M Reach Vindex ($200K, Minimalist Scout Starter)
- Access Reach Vindex with "Salvage Contractor" Unlock
- Dismiss after reviewing a recruit no longer requires a few hours (1 Turn)
- Dismissing a crew from crew list now requires a few hours (1 Turn)
- Improved timing delay between late game Eras -- Plague, Buried Demons, Jyeeta Brood
- Adjusted balance of Blade Dancer "Forbidden Edge" Talent -- less Armor Piercing, More Bleeding
- Adjusted prices on short, mid and long distance missions
- Fixed issues with Flash Charge in missions -- Talent not going on cool down, sometimes post mission screen not appearing
- Mechanic Talent "Entropic Estimate" adds a event log to make prediction of Rumor length more clear
- Fixed story issue with Buried Demons where Estelle could be told about the events after events happened

Update #206 lifts off from the starport with new ship components, rebalances for existing components and level 5 and 6 ship weapons as well as clarified descriptions for all orbital ops components. We've also adjusted the rules for the time spent recruiting, the prices during short, mid and long range missions and fixed a number of issues reported by the community.

The updates must flow, and if you like the steady stream of new and improved -- please leave a review!

[h2]Peak Velocity Matrix[/h2]
A longstanding favorite medium slot component, the Peak Velocity Matrix has always lacked a progression of improvements. With Update #206, we've added a PVM 2 and PVM 3 to give your highly range change focused ships more options with their build. This has naturally come with a downtick in the abilities of the starting PVM 1, reducing its Range Change bonus a bit to help it fit into the progression better.


[h2]Orbital Ops Clarification[/h2]
Orbital Ops components do not stack their effects. If have two Spying components installed that both increase Intel, only the better one will work. This is now clearly indicated in the components description ("does not stack"). In addition, whenever these ops components are called in to use they suffer Damage which is now also noted in the description ("damage on use").


[h2]Ship Weapons 5 & 6[/h2]
The on-going rebalance of ship weapons has now moved down into the level 5 range with big price increases coming across the board. We've completed this additional sweep of rebalance along with testing out the changes to the AI's ability to purchase these upgrades. More powerful ship weaponry at level 5 is now in line with the prices of 6, 7 and 8th level weaponry.

[h2]Recruiting Hours[/h2]
Every recruit and dismissal now takes 1 turn, a feature that has been too long overlooked. While you won't burn a ton of time recruiting, its important that meeting a pool of recruits -- or individual from a Contact -- chew up some game time.

[h2]Other Improvements[/h2]
We've rebalanced prices on missions focusing on the different classes of short, mid and long distance missions as we look at their prices. Update #206 also includes a fix for the Trade War warning that went into Sell All last update, what we added was basically the inverse of what it needed to be. Finally, Talents like "Unfaltering Ire" and other purging debuffs now properly knock an enemy out of Stealth.

[h2]v3.0.53 - 3/29/2020[/h2]
- Added two new ship components, Peak Velocity Matrix 2 and 3, rebalanced existing Peak Velocity Matrix
- Added note to description of orbital ops and exploration components -- "does not stack, damaged on use"
- Rebalanced ship weapons and increased costs at Level 5 and 6
- Recruiting and Dismissing recruits now takes a few hours (1 Turn) each
- Adjusted prices on short, mid and long distance missions
- Fixed issue where Talents like "Unfaltering Ire" were not purging Stealth buffs from target
- Fixed warning for "Sell All" option in Exchange about Trade Wars being inverse of correct warning
- Prevented Templar zones from getting certain Rumors that do not fit

Update #205 executes a clean sweep on some of the most recent and pressing requests for enhancements as well as bug reports. As we keep crafting more storylines and doing the prep work for map seeds v2, we're working hard to keep up with new community ideas, feedback and improvement suggestions. Update #205 is the result of that and includes a definite fan-favorite request -- to ensure that your Starting Contacts end up in the best seats of power. We've also added a new Alta Mesa only story-driven ship component, improved craft buying requirements, expanded the Sell All warning support to include Trade Wars and more.

Before we dig into the details, we do have some exciting news --


We are excited to share that Star Traders: Frontiers made the list of "Best 20 Space Games on PC" on Rock, Paper Shotgun! It's a list full of amazing titles and we're proud to have been selected to stand in their ranks, stare into the void and contemplate where we will all go next.


[h2]Starting Contact Locations[/h2]
With Update #205, we've made some changes to the rules of how Starting Contacts pick their starting zones and allowed them to focus on the most powerful zones in each quadrant. This is a huge help to not only place your Contacts places where you might find lucrative trade and excellent orbital op chances, but also so that their services and discounts will be most effective. While the change does not guarantee that a Contact with a medical discount will always be able to provide one, it massively increases the chance that they will be able to if there are such locations in the quadrant.

In addition, for those Contacts who have some services based of the zone's attributes -- such as Military Rank, Permit, etc -- this change helps ensure they can offer those services to the fullest.

[h2]Ship Components, Craft Requirements[/h2]
During the United Coalition "Buried Demons" story Era, one of the branches can lead to the Alta Mesa unlocking the Battle Bridge 2 component. To further extend the usefulness of that branch and the bridge type, that story event now also unlocks the much more expensive but more versatile Battle Bridge 3, once again only sold under the Alta Mesa flag. Such ship builders of legends can install some of the most powerful bridge command centers, for a price.

We've also modified some of the purchasing requirements for craft, reducing Economy and Military to no higher than 12 in order to ensure that every craft type is purchaseable on the default map.

[h2]Sell All into Trade Wars[/h2]
During a Trade War, you may not be able to sell your goods, but for those you can you may still incur Reputation bonuses. Sell All in the Exchange now includes a warning of not only Trade Bans but Trade Wars as well.


[h2]Clean Sweep![/h2]
This update list is long with a lot of other improvements and fixes as well, so be sure to check the full list. We've improved the display of Era recruiting bonuses so that you can see exactly what the bonus is, not just the sum of the level bonuses. If you were reviewing recruits from Contacts, the click pattern is now better to avoid dropping you back to the Contact's main services list.

And a ton more -- check out the full list!

[h2]v3.0.51 - 3/20/2020[/h2]
- Improved starting Contact placement to prefer high economy / high population zones
- Reduced Economy requirement for high level craft to maximum of 12 to ensure playable on default map
- Alta Mesa's story-driven acquisition of Battle Bridge 2 component now includes Battle Bridge 3 as well -- even better, more expensive
- "Sell All" option in the Exchange now correctly warns of Trade Wars and potential Reputation loss
- Improved display of recruiting Era level boost -- always visible in Spice Hall and Contact recruit, just lists bonus (+3 bonus) instead of total level
- Improved description of Talents that push/pull friends and enemies to be more consistent
- Improved Boarding Victory Talents so that if they fail for any reason (Macabre Harvest but no cargo space) they do not consume a boarding action
- Improved description for "Trader's Reciprocity" Merchant Talent to be clear it is based on the Trade Permit of local faction (not Contact)
- Fixed click pattern with reviewing recruits from Contacts forcing reopen of recruit screen
- Fixed issue with UCF Emissary and Commander missions and resulting Contacts face/name mismatch
- Fixed issue with Contact "Learn Rumor" logs appearing in Ship Combat victory logs
- Fixed issue with Plasma, Fire and Radiation Damage Logging in Crew Combat
- Fixed issue with "Coalition Patrol" cards in orbital ops describing an encounter with a standard faction ship
- Fixed issues where Trade Ban icon was used instead of Trade War in some exchange screens

Update #204 arrives in the relative quiet after the end of our Cyber Knights: Flashpoint Kickstarter campaign. Things have been in a fury here at Trese Brothers HQ and we're excited to get back to regular order -- improving Star Traders: Frontiers and building Cyber Knights. As we gear up to tackle the next big set of improvements, we've rounded up some of the latest issues from the community and put them all to rest in #204, as well as adding a new Cadar-only ship and rebalancing large ship prices.


[h2]Cadar Reach Defender[/h2]
The Reach Defender (5000M) is a prestigious Cadar hull design dating from the early 200s that favors armor over shielding to maximize the ship's heavy duty superstructure. Built around a pair of M94 Cannons, the Reach Defender becomes more and more dangerous as it closes range. Using an advanced Cadar Battle Prow, the Reach Defender can soak incredible amounts of damage and continue fighting, a popular capacity among Cadar's elite military forces, bounty hunters and privateers.

[h2]Ship Pricing[/h2]
Across the board we've rebalanced 8000M and 9000M ship pricing making them more expensive to purchase. We're experimenting with some large ship designs (10K) mass and considering component pricing adjustments for large mass ships, including installation surcharges for oversized hulls. We'd love to hear your feedback on the new ship prices and how you'd balance the costs and advantages of new extra large hulls.


[h2]Sell All Ordering[/h2]
When you use the Sell All feature in the Exchange, it will now sell the cargo in order of the value of the cargo items. This will allow your Talents to run against the biggest sales and not get chewed up by smaller sales.

[h2]Resource Renames[/h2]
We've updated the names of two resources to be more clear and to help avoid players having confusion over Stashing missions. Usralite is now Refined Ursalite (as there is an Ursalite Ore) and Kambrinite is now Refined Kambrinite (as there is a Kambrinite Ore).

[h2]Other Fixes[/h2]
We fixed several reoccurring issues that plagued component repair cards and Talents in Explorer and Salvage. We've made several adjustments to standardize these and provide for consistently effective component selection and improved logging so you can more easily see how much and what was repaired.

[h2]v3.0.49 - 3/11/2020[/h2]
- New Ship: 5000M Reach Defender (Cadar Close Combat Cruiser)
- Rebalanced ship prices for 8000M and 9000M ships
- Improved "Sell All" Cargo Ordering to trigger Talents better
- Improved "Patchwork" Talent's Component Repair scheme
- Improved Orbital card "Wreck in Space" Component Repair scheme
- Fixed issues with Combat Logging of Parry Buffs
- Renamed Ursalite to "Refined Ursalite"
- Renamed Kambrinite to "Refined Kambrinite"
- Fixed issue with Contacts showing incorrect level when unable to recruit
- Fixed issue with being able to Spy on invalid worlds

As Blade Dancer came flying out in Update #202, a wave of more updates is certain to follow in the wake of the practitioner of one of the oldest art of the Star Traders people. Update #203 releases a new class of primary melee weapon -- the Straightblade -- improves a zone Rumor, adds custom window sizing for Linux

However, first we have a final call to action for our Cyber Knight: Flashpoint Kickstarter campaign!


[h2]Cyber Knights Kickstarter - Last Chance![/h2]
With 36 hours remaining for our Cyber Knights: Flashpoint Kickstarter, we are reaching out to ask for your support! If you have enjoyed Star Traders: Frontiers, its 6 major expansion packs of its 203 updates consider this an easy way to pay it forward and help us expand the funding for our next game with a $15 discounted pre-order copy.

Cyber Knights: Flashpoint can be summarized easily as a cyberpunk XCOM but this high level summary is missing all the details that make Cyber Knights so unique and exciting. Some check out the campaign and read about our flexible stealth model, the way hacking mixes into fighting back against the security system and how we're ripping out the tile-based approximations and going fully gridless. Come read about our heist mission system that focuses on preparation steps instead of just reading a mission brief. Come, bribe a Bravestar security officer to slow down the arrival of off-site security by 10 minutes. Come on, step into your criminal safe house and base build while managing your network of fixers, Yakuza, gang bosses and corrupt corporate leaders. Get a cybered war dog, pilot three drones at once, graft titanium to your skeleton and go full Wolverine with hand claws.

We have only a few hours left, come take a look at our campaign and know that we're going to build the game with the same dedication and passion we brought to Star Traders: Frontiers.
C'mon chumbo, pledge to Cyber Knights: Flashpoint Kickstarter
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tresebrothers/cyber-knights?ref=6n6pht

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]


[h2]Straightblades[/h2]
A very specific design and manufacturing process is used to create the straightblade, a lighter shorter weapon that is still used as the primary blade. All classes of Straightblades rely on Quickness over Strength for attack accuracy. Straightblades like the Stywrit and Crass are for sale from Contacts who sell weapons while other powerful Straightblades can be recovered from Orbital Salvage relic weapon cards. Aside from relying on Quickness for attack, Straightblades also feature higher Piercing %, lower Damage and a more balanced Accuracy and Parry set.

[h2]Recruiting during Starport Closed Rumor[/h2]
Many Rumors have impacts on recruiting availability or levels. Thanks to @Dr. Spendlove for the great suggestion to improve the generally negative Starport Closed Rumor with a recruiting bonus. With work halted at the starport, skilled mechanics are looking for other work and willing to go offworld to get it. Any Mechanic recruited in the hall or from Contacts gains +2 bonus levels.

[h2]Negative Jump Cost[/h2]
While there was a valid strat for a while to achieve a negative Jump cost for your ship and then generate Water-Fuel by hyperwarping -- this bug is now closed. Your jump cost will never drop below zero with Update #203.

[h2]Custom Window Sizing[/h2]
On Windows and Linux you can now use command line arguments to define your own window size. You can set these directly in the Steam client. There are 4 arguments used in order, such as:

winwidth 1820 winheight 900

These have been available on Windows for a while but are now available on Linux as well.

[h2]v3.0.47 - 3/3/2020[/h2]
- Added new type of primary blade weapon -- the Straightblade relies on Quickness instead of Strength
- Added 2 high level Straightblades for sale from weapon selling Contacts
- Added 2 high level Straightblades to the relic weapon card from Orbital Salvage
- Starport rumor increases level of Mechanic hired at Spice Hall by +2 levels
- Fixed: Negative Jump Cost can add Water-Fuel when jumping
- Fixed: Issues where "Brooding Jyeeta Spore" could generate too many artifacts
- Slight increase in Retrain Costs, fixed Custom Difficult Retrain Costs to equal "Hard"
- Added custom window size command line support for Linux (winwidth, winheight)
- Fixed typos with Blade Dancer Talents