Star Traders: Frontiers News

Let's start the week off with a bang! Update #159 comes straight from the community -- requests for quality of life improvements, suggestions for missing Talents, improved balance, improvements to the mission generation system -- and more, all directly dialed in by our players. So, this one goes out to you, captains! Thanks for posting, writing, joining our Discord and leaving reviews!


We've added a new blade attack Talent for Zealots at rank 1 -- "Incensed Strikes." This new ability pushes Zealot's possibilities, making it more valuable as a combat class and enables crew Zealots to have more fighting options, especially early on. Incensed Strikes costs 1.5X your weapon's Initiative, but it has a rare debuff to enemy Initiative as well as clearing their buffs!

We've also added a new Doctor rank 5 Talent "Healer's Intuition." With the constant care of the crew's health, it is only natural that a Doctor comes to know his or her crew very well. This insight can reveal a Trait when the crew is paid and has a moment to truly relax.

Based on player feedback, we've also improved the handling of Talents when paying crew to ensure that Talents with a % chance to activate don't block other Talents from firing. And finally, in this area we've fixed a bug with the Diplomat Talent "Hand that Feeds" which was prevent the Talent from activating correctly.




We've adjusted the system that helps a Contact pick the mission they request to increase the focus of Contact's on their core areas. Those Contacts giving Merchant missions are going to be more likely to dish out cargo missions, stash missions and the like while Prison Wardens are far more likely to send you on capture bounties and prisoner transports. This extra level of focus will increase your captain's ability to cleave to a type of career by cleaving to a type of Contact.

Beyond the mission-giver type, we've also strengthened the effect of Conflicts upon mission selection. Those Contacts who respond to certain types of Conflicts are going to be even *more* likely to give missions focused on the core Conflict. For example, those Contacts giving Spy missions are going to go all in on spying during an Info War while Duel of Assassins is going to turn up more Edict and death warrant missions than before.


Two Talents have come up in player feedback often -- the Mechanic's "Thrown Wrench" and Gunner's "Disarming Sabotage" where neither provided enough specifics in their description or in the details after they were used to let captains make an informed decision about their value. In both cases, we have adjusted their rules to be more powerful as these are rarer Talents -- in both cases you need to be either boarding at range 1 or have a unique Job combination on an Officer to make these available at longer range. In addition to buffing their power level, we've made their exact rules clear in their description as well as improving their in-game feedback upon use so that it is clear exactly what components or weapons were damaged and for how much.


The on-map tooltip over wild zones now displays Richness, Danger and Explore ratings giving those adventurous and brave explorers faster access to critical data as they browse a quadrant, looking for the best targets to set down and go hunting.

Good luck and avoid those xeno cards! Unless ... you're looking for them!


For a time, in ship combat victory there has been an unfair disparity between the XP granted to those taking a more peaceful route Ransoming a ship and those taking a destructive route to destroy and then salvage a ship. In order to help balance this out, we've added a minor XP bonus to the Ransom action as well as making it clear with all 3 action types -- Ransom, Destroy, Salvage -- exactly how much XP is gained for taking the action.


- Added new rank 1 Zealot Talent "Incensed Strikes" as additional blade attack option
- Added new rank 5 Doctor Talent "Healer's Intuition" which can reveal a crew members Trait on payday
- Improved rules for Talents running while paying crew -- Talents with a % to fire that do not no longer block other Talents from running
- Fixed issue with Diplomat "Hand that Feeds" Talent that was not activating while paying crew
- Added Richness, Explore and Danger rating to map hover for wild zones
- Improved rules for Mechanic's boarding Talent "Thrown Wrench" and added result that explains exact ship damage dealt
- Improved rules for Gunner's boarding Talent "Disarming Sabotage" and improved result to include full detail of what weapons are damaged
- Now gain minor Experience bonus when you Ransom a ship, exact Experience gain for destroying a ship is now displayed
- Adjusted weights for all Contact mission giver types to be more focused on their core area (Merchants > Cargo missions, Wardens > Capture bounties)
- Adjusted weights of mission givers during Conflicts to be more focused on the core Conflict (Info War > Spy missions, Duel of Assassins > Edict missions)
- Improved details of Intel sale to be clear when maximum Personal or Faction Rep has been achieved
- Slightly increased the maximum caps for Personal Rep when selling Intel
- Clarified text for all Flight Plan Talents as 4 turns such as "(launch, close, bomb, land)"
- Fixed bug with Wing Commando's "Grandiose Arrival" Talent always granting a $0 bonus
- Fixed bug allowing too much gain of Personal Rep through sale of Intel
- Fixed bug with Talent "Redemption Purge" that was allowing it to repair 5 components instead of 2-4
- Fixed text description of "Exposed Shot" to indicate you are causing a self-debuff that can be purged
- Fixed bug that could place High Prince Contacts "on vacation" on indie worlds
- Improved some screens when using UI scaling to increase visual size of elements
- Clarified rules for Exo-Scout "Keen Senses" Talent -- only rerolls risk cards

Update #158 sees 4 new Talents slot into spots across 3 Jobs, a new De Valtos only Luxury Suite, some rebalance to the new Sig Dampeners and Xeno crew combat defense as well as a big sweep of fixes based on community feedback. As always, new Talents expand the already expansive field of possible builds and make some crew build outs more possible.

If you're enjoying the pace of updates please be sure to leave a review and tell a friend.

A huge thanks goes out to the community members posting suggestions, bug reports and feedback.


The Pistoleer combat Job has gained 2 new useful, high rank Talents with Update #158.

With "Exposed Shot" you can now take aim at a target in any slot in the enemy's line up granting all new flexibility for a Pistoleer. The shot requires deadly aim but may not do as much damage, but its value is in the sheer flexibility. However, for stepping so into the open you'll suffer a small Defense and Dodge bonus for the next few turns.

With "Confounding Gunplay" you have an immediately available attack that can drop 50% Stun and a small Accuracy debuff on an enemy at only 1.5X the Initiative cost of your pistol. This rank 15 Talent comes with some nice punching power and will be a foundation of high-end Pistoleer builds for centuries to come.


Bounty Hunters are finally getting into the prize ship game with "Realm's Justice", capable of claiming a ship during a Conflict for a faction. As the edict-carrying enforces of a faction, they take the ship for 50% of the cost and one of the higher Rep damages in the set. You may be making enemies but you've gained a ship and struck a might blow in the Conflict. Be the hand of "Realm's Justice" and capture a ship today.


Diplomats have gained a new rank 8 Talent "Unyielding Force" granting an Intimidation save to match their rank 1 Negotiation save. As a non-combat class, this utility is especially key and it can help narrow the required build of a ship crew. Where you may have needed more specialists to cover Intimidation -- such as a Pirate -- now your diplomatic corp can keep that on the lock.


With this update, we've tweaked the stats for the new Sig Dampeners to ensure that they are fairly in line with other competitive long range and escape focused components. We've also fixed a bug that was introduced where a list of components gained different bonuses like +8 Void Resist accidentally. These have now been removed.

All Luxury Suites and Cabins now have minimum economy ratings in order to install.

And, if you're looking for your Ship Encounter reduction rate you can see it now on the ship status screen.


- Added new rank 15 Bounty Hunter Talent "Realm's Justice" allows the BH to capture a prize ship under standard rules
- Added new rank 11 Pistoleer Talent "Exposed Shot" which allows targeting backline enemies at a penalty
- Added new rank 15 Pistoleer Talent "Confounding Gunplay" which debuffs with 50% Stun
- Added new rank 8 Diplomat Talent "Unyielding Force" saves against Intimidate skill failures
- Added new De Valtos only ship component "Grand Luxury Suites" which grants a +22% bonus per passenger
- Reduced crew combat evasion for Terrox Xeno by 10-20% based on type
- Rebalanced bonuses from slightly overpowered set of Sig Dampener Components
- Ship Encounter rate reduction now shown on main ship status screen
- Fixed bug with Reinforced Medical Chamber, Sensor Array 1, Storage Cache, Reinforced Officer Cabin, M2400 Void Engine: Traveler all accidentally getting incorrect extra bonuses
- Added minimum Economy requirements for all Luxury Cabin types
- Fixed issue allowing Wing Bomber's Talent "Intimidating Fly Over" to take effect in wild zones
- Switched names for Elo Tech Talents "Hunt and Seek" and "ECCM Surge"

Update #157 adds a exciting new function capability of ship components, 5 new ship components, new rules to help keep Interdictors competitive, new rules to help keep your active wing specialist pilots up to level, a major balance improvement for On Init crew combat Talents, a big wave of component rebalance and more.

It's another big update from our HQ to you -- if you're enjoying the constant stream of new content, please be sure to leave a review and rave to a friend :P


With this update, we've added a new capability for ship components -- that of reducing deep space encounters -- with the Sig Dampener and Signal Concealment Field components. Joining the existing small slot Sig Dampener are the small slot Sig Dampener 2 and 3 and the Rychart-only Sig Veil Field. For a medium slot option, the Sig Concealment Field packs a higher reduction rate of 10% but is a larger slot investment.

When stacked, these components can reduce ship encounters up to 25% maximum. Each of them has other bonuses, adding both strong Escape bonuses and primarily Electronics and secondarily Nav Skills with some light Void Resistance on the top end options.

For those ships looking to avoid encounters and escape in the case of being forced into an encounter, these new Sig Dampener components and feature are going to be a great boon.

As an all new area, they're likely to get some balancing up and down in some stats in the next release or two, so be sure to post your feedback!


Craft have gained two more important balance additions with this update. First, in order to reward their successful service, those wing specialist pilots who make a complete and successful Flight Plan during ship combat will gain Experience directly. This helps to keep your most active wing specialists pilots gaining XP for their flight duties, in the same way that crew combat gains XP for their battles.

Second, Interdictors have now joined Bombers and Shuttles in landing on the same turn that their flight plan ends. Previously, Interdictors would have a final turn where they were not blocking torpedoes but only focusing on landing the craft. Now, they land at the end of the last turn on which they will block incoming long range attacks, improving their flight plan efficiency by 20%.


Crew Combat Talents that fire "On Init" have gained a major upgrade as they now impart their Init bonuses on the turn they fire. As almost every On Init Talent gives a +Init bonus, this is a big boon and guarantees at least one of your combatants to get an Init bonus on the first round of combat (assuming you're wisely using these power talents) and then more bonuses to come if you have more Talents.

Of course, the enemy gets the same. And they are wise to use these Talents as well :D


A lot of balance changes have been rolled up into this release. A huge thanks to all the community members, including @prime_resistor for posting such great suggestions.

With Update #157, we've adjusted all Combat Hyperwarp drives to tweak their allocation of Skill Points, putting more into Navigation over Electronics. Smaller ship Combat HW Drives -- for Mass 2400 and 3400 hulls -- have gained additional Skill points.

The large slot Hull Plating components now add to Ship Ops as well as contributing better Electronics and Void and Radiation Resist. For such an investment in an armor-focused large slot, these components are now far more competitive and also have reduced Jump Cost across the boards.

The medium slot Deflector Arrays have gained improved Electronics Skill Pool as well as new Void Resist to help their long range defense contribution, shifting them into a more advantageous position within the Elo-defense meta.

Finally, we've added +15 Fuel Storage to Micro Launch Bays to help offset their Jump Cost.

There is always more! Be sure to check the full release notes below and leave a review!


- Added new component capability - reduce encounter rate in void travel by %, up to 25% maximum (starport "Ship" filter)
- Added new 2 new small slot Sig Dampener components (2, 3) to join original Sig Dampener in granting reduction in encounter rate, grant Elo, small Nav, Void Res
- Added new Rychart only small slot Sig Veil Field as top tier Sig Dampener type component
- Added new medium slot Sig Concealment Field which reduces encounter rate, grants Rad/Void Res, Elo/Nav Skill
- Wing specialist pilots now gain XP for each successful flight plan run keeping active wing pilots better leveled
- Interdictors on defensive flight plans now land after the final turn instead of waiting one last turn to only land (just like offensive flight plans)
- Big buff to all On Init Talents: now correctly granting the Initiative bonuses on the first Turn they are used
- Adjusted all size Combat Hyperwarp Drives to rebalance Electronics and Navigation, improved Skill Pools for Mass 2400 and Mass 3400 drives
- Adjusted large comp Hull Plating to include Ship Ops, better Electronics, moderate Void and Radiation Res on all tiers and lower jump cost
- Adjusted medium comp Deflector Array to give slightly better Electronics bonus and Void Res
- Added +15 Fuel Storage to Micro Launch bay
- Adjusted Wing Tech's "Recovery Pod" Talent to use Repair to determine health of saved wing pilot
- Improved language in ship encounter to explain current disposition / hostility versus base disposition / hostility
- Fixed some bugs with certain play loops causing game date to skip backwards
- Fixed bug with Wing Tech's "Hangar Triage" Talent not using Repair Skill correctly

Update #156 comes roaring to life with a new starting ship, new terrifying Steel Song ship components, a new section added to the Talent manifest, upgrades to the De Valtos faction ship and some down balance for Xeno and Void Contortions Crippling effect. And ... lots more too! Check the full release notes for everything and enjoy it!

If you're loving the relentless pace of updates and new content, please drop a review and tell a friend.


The new priority D ship weighs in at a clean $200,000 and is custom-fitted for long distance void travel and covert spying operations. Delivered with built-in spying components, a single weapon and a Longhaul engine, the Longbolt packs a crew of 24 for long distance trips. Locked behind the Big Network achievement, this new ship gives a traveler, spy and mission runner or any captain who is looking to use the Electronics meta and avoid combat, a new starting option in the D slot. You can see its starting configuration above, including its ridiculous fuel range and low jump cost thanks to the Water-Fuel Reclamation Tank. Watch out, it has very light weaponry.


Steel Song has a reputation to uphold, and its doing so with the newest round of new ship components. The medium slot Interrogation Chamber and the large slot Interrogation Ward both hold prisoners in special "luxury" care. When a new prisoner is taken aboard the ship and one of these Interrogation Cells is available, up to 10 Intel is immediately generated. De Valtos may have their luxury, but as the Song say -- maybe you'll come back as one of us.


With this update, we've slowed down the access of Terrox xeno to tier 2 and 3 components, and especially let difficulty take a bigger hand in this progression. Some of the up-balance of the xeno got ahead of where we wanted it to be and we've been listening to players and making tweaks over the weekend. We've also directly reduced the power -- especially Gunnery bonuses -- of some of the Terrox components.

Also, the Void Contortions Crippling Effect from torpedoes has received a nerf. For being a tier 1 type of Crippling Effect it was simply too strong and its -20% Defense and -20% Escape chance sounded the death knell for too many captains. We've dropped this to -10% Defense, -10% Escape, -10% Armor to ensure that it doesn't completely undo the buff you just dropped or the bonus your engine is granting in a single hit.


We've added a section covering both the legal and illegal Talents of trade. Quick reference can help you see what types of bonuses they offer and what is available at any given moment.


There is always more, these notes go on for a while!

Spice Hall Talent activation has been changed to ensure Talents with a % chance to run will not block other Talents from running if they fail. Over all, this will see an increase in Talents running during spicing.

We've fixed an issue with the "Distress Signal" card that was allowing you to get some $2 or $3 paybacks for helping to tow in a disabled ship.

We've also added 2 new art boards to the orbital card game for refuel and extorting bribes.

If you get a stash from winning a combat -- such as in Salvage -- the crew victory screen now includes the details.

Also, we fixed the coloration of the text in ship comparison to help avoid red-brown (gold) issues.


- Added 2 new Steel Song prison cells -- Interrogation Chamber and Interrogation Ward, each create up to 10 Intel when taking on a new prisoner during a mission
- Added new priority D starting ship, the Longbolt is 3400 Mass, fast travel and spy-ready ship, requires Big Network unlock
- Added new Exchange and Black Market section to the Talent manifest including all trading bonus and trade into conflict talents
- Improved De Valtos faction ship "Corsair Interceptor" -- upgraded to Cargo Hold 2, Nav Assist Module 2, added 13th small slot with Sensory Array 1
- Improved rules for how Spice Hall Talents run -- Talents with a % to fire that do not no longer block other Talents from running
- Reduce power of tier 1 Crippling Effect "Void Contortions" created by torps (now -10% Defense, -10% Escape, -10% Armor)
- Reduced power of some of the Terrox xeno tier 3 components
- Fixed Orbital Ops result of Distress Signal that could sometimes result in $2 or $3 credits when towing
- Improved description of stashes won via crew combat to include the type and count of the stashed resources
- Added new card art for orbital operations for extortion bribes and refueling
- Clarified rules description for both Wing Bomber's "Intimidating Fly Over" and Wing Commando's "Grandiose Arrival" -- both require piloting craft
- Reduce cool down for Wing Commando's "Grandiose Arrival" to 9 weeks
- Fixed bug where Talents that require character to be piloting a craft might not appear in ship or crew victory if there was one crew member out of a craft
- Updated font color in ship comparison tooltip and report to avoid red and gold looking to close
- Improved new game crew generator to ensure better number of starting crew dogs

Another community challenge has arisen from our Discord's STF channel (https://discord.gg/tresebrothers), and we're throwing it out there for the June challenge! Can you follow in the footsteps of the recently released famous Bounty Hunters and rise to legendary status?

Join in the discussion here!


In this challenge, you must start the game as a Bounty Hunter. You can start the game on any difficulty, but props clearly going to permadeath players.

During early play, you can do anything you want to accrue wealth and experience.

First, you must achieve Edict 9 with a faction of your choice. Then, you must complete a $500,000 mission kill or capture bounty mission which requires an Edict. To get that size of a payment for your Mission, you're likely to need your Edict, high Military rank, a Contact with the right Traits and/or a high power mission payment boosting Talent.

Please post in this discussion thread if you're picking up this challenge! Then post some screenshots and brag about your difficulty and at what date you completed your mission :D

If you missed the May Community Challenge: Small Ship to Prize Ship you may still want to jump in and join the fun.