First 48 Hours After the Rebuild Merge | Patch Notes 2025.11.9.2

[p]The rebuild is now the default version of Cepheus Protocol, and the first 48 hours gave us exactly what we needed: a real stress test at scale.[/p][p]Discord playtests help, internal testing helps, but nothing compares to thousands of players stress testing the game in every possible way. That’s how you find the edge cases you never see in controlled sessions.[/p][p]The good news is we’ve already reproduced and fixed several of the biggest issues being reported, and we’re pushing those changes live right now.[/p][hr][/hr][h3]What We Learned (First 48 Hours)[/h3]

• [p]The rebuild foundation is holding up well, but community play testing immediately exposed edge cases, mainly around vehicles, navigation, and some UI flow.[/p]
• [p]A lot of confusion is still coming from missing systems (Civilian Evac, dynamic civilians, etc)[/p][p] See the FAQ below![/p]
• [p]UI overlapping issues were resolved[/p]

[hr][/hr][hr][/hr][h2]Hotfix Live Now (Vehicle + Gate Fixes)[/h2][p]This post is going live at the same time as the latest fixes.[/p][p]Two issues were big enough that we wanted them fixed immediately.[/p][h3]What’s Fixed in This Update[/h3]

• [p]Vehicle structure detection and ramming edge cases[/p]
  • [p]We found scenarios where vehicles could mis-detect or fail to detect player structures depending on the situation.[/p]
  • [p]Result: vehicles could repeatedly crash into jersey barriers, walls, and certain player structures/landscape actors instead of treating them as solid obstacles.[/p]
  • [p]This has been corrected so vehicles properly respect those structures and stop “brute forcing” into them.[/p]
• [p]Gate navigation update bug[/p]
  • [p]We reproduced a bug reported on Discord involving gates not updating navigation correctly.[/p]
  • [p]If a gate was set to Auto, then swapped to Manual mode while opened and then closed, there were cases where the nav state would not refresh. Till you toggled that gate back to Auto and let a unit walk past it to "reset" the state[/p]
  • [p]Result: units would still attempt to path through a gate that was visibly closed.[/p]
  • [p]This is now fixed and gates properly update navigation when their state changes.[/p]
• [p]Fixed Vehicle Turrets when fired to "empty" would fail to properly work after resupplied[/p]
• [p]World Buildings (the preplaced structures) Nav Weight would confuse CERC into thinking they could squeeze through them making Path finding freak out. Like say you built a CERC wall and built it into a structure/building. Units would incorrectly still try to path find along the edges of that structure. Context[/p]
• [p]Various Texture Optimizations across the project to further optimization Streaming / Out of memory warnings(Still ongoing!)[/p]
• [p]Resolved a discord reported crash[/p]
• [p]Fixed some assets in HMB (Half Moon) that weren't rag dolling when hit with a vehicle[/p]
• [p]Fixed Shawnee not rolling on turns properly.[/p]
• [p]Improvements to helicopter height-check handling to more reliably go up when helicopters otherwise would get stuck[/p]
• [p]Fixes to BaseGarrisonComponent to resolve fast roping units failing to actually 'remove' themselves from their seats (which cause issues on the helicopter after first fast rope success)[/p]
• [p]Speculative improvements to stuck detection for chaos vehicles[/p]
• [p]Adjustments to helicopter-only formation movement to reduce chances of 'stuttering' from Formation Actor not moving far enough ahead[/p]
• [p]Locked off the VisionGrid DeferredVisionUpdateTimedOut debug behind a cvar (VisionGrid.DeferredTimeoutDebug). Stops the draw debug text from appearing while play[/p]
• [p]Fixed a Turret issue that would only occur for Vehicles where they would fail to initialize their eyes properly making it so low level objects could block their ability to shoot. [/p]
• [p]Superheavy treaded vehicles tuned to have better steering and performance, including custom steering curve(Abrams, Atlas, MLRS & Bradley)[/p]
• [p]Updated PauseMenu to properly treat the level selection subwidgets (for both Pandemic+Horde maps) as part of the Base_PlayerController's menustack, so ESC while in one of these menus will properly go back[/p]
• [p]Fixed some collision logic issues relating to Gates not being responsive at certain angles/distances for their auto open feature[/p]
• [p]Fixed a case where Exploding rounds would sometimes incorrectly damage the unit that fired them https://discord.com/channels/469412014427602944/1458836944325709914/1458836944325709914[/p]
• [p]Minor fix for Mortar smoke trail.[/p]
• [p]Merlin can air drop and pickup vehicles again! The Abrams, Bradley and MLRS are restricted because of their weight[/p]
• [p]Updated Localizations for all languages [/p]
• [p]Fixed a call in Move To task that bypassed construction safeties for Engineers which resulted in them doing some stupid move orders in certain cases.[/p]
• [p]Lowered Mule resupply limit to 3k[/p]
• [p]Fixed night time being inconsistent on lower GlobalIlluminationQuality settings. Will be Dark at all times now across settings[/p]
• [p]MLRS, Cerberus Motor, Tow, SMAW, MGL friendly fire now. [/p]
• [p]Fixed Some physics reliably issues for Juggernauts and Vehicles for ramming [/p]
• [p]Fixed Large Helipad not resupplying [/p]
• [p]Juggernauts not moving bug fixed[/p]
• [p]Fixed a typo on main menu[/p]
• [p]Fixed a bug where after a CERC structure was destroyed units would sometimes fail to see units on the other side because of an aggressive optimization check[/p]
• [p]Added Logistics cost for resupplying weapons in the game[/p]
• [p]Added "Supply" to the game. Which means everything that uses ammo/gas costs to resupply at the Motor Pool, Helipad, Ammo Tents etc. Its not just can i buy X unit its also can i afford to resupply X unit. As units like the MLRS and other super units cost a lot to resupply.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h3]What We’re Still Hunting[/h3][p]These are the kinds of issues that don’t always appear during internal testing, but show up immediately once the community gets hands-on.[/p][p]If you run into anything weird with:[/p]

• [p]Vehicles doing something dumb[/p]
• [p]Units ignoring obvious navigation[/p]
• [p]UI menus acting strange[/p]

[p]A short clip or a quick Discord screenshare helps us reproduce and eliminate it fast. Feel free to hop on discord and we can jump into a voice call. Anything helps! As we are seeking to knock out the remaining pathing issues pronto![/p][hr][/hr][h2]New Feature Added Tonight[/h2]

• [p]Chinook transport is now in[/p]
  • [p]The Chinook can now ferry Light-Medium Vehicles.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h2]Tonight’s Work (In Progress)[/h2][p]We’re also actively working on several high-impact systems that affect moment-to-moment gameplay:[/p]

• [p]Engineer repair behavior for vehicles[/p]
• [p]Engineer Auto-repair for structures and vehicles[/p]
• [p]Per zone Guard towers & Turrets restrictions instead of the global pool[/p][p][/p]

[hr][/hr][h2]Next Big Goal: Doctrines + Airstrikes (Targeting Next Week)[/h2][p]We’re shifting back to the next major pillar of the rebuild.[/p][p]Our goal is to get Doctrines back in and bring Airstrikes back with the full set of related systems and support options by next week.[/p][p]That’s the next big step toward restoring long-term progression and replayability in the rebuild.[/p][hr][/hr][h2]Balance Passes (Ongoing)[/h2][p]Balance is still being tuned every day as more players jump in and we get real data.[/p][p]Michael is actively monitoring feedback and adjusting:[/p]

• [p]Weapons[/p]
• [p]Turrets[/p]
• [p]Vehicles[/p]

[p]This is an ongoing process and we will keep tightening it as the rebuild stabilizes.[/p][hr][/hr][h2]If You’re Confused, Read These First (Pinned)[/h2][h3]Haven’t Played in a While? Start Here[/h3][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][h2]What Still Needs To Be Finished[/h2][p]Here is the consolidated list, in one place, so there is no confusion.[/p][h3]Missing Or In Progress Systems[/h3]

• [p]January Goals[/p]
  • [p]Remaining Vehicle Abilities And Behaviors[/p]
    • [p]Bradley TOW[/p]
  • [p]Doctrines[/p]
  • [p]Save System for Pandemic[/p]
  • [p]BUGS, BUGS and Bugs! We still are hunting down desyncs and bugs as they are reported![/p]
  • [p]Game Balance - Is still ongoing and being tweaked. Michael is monitoring Steam/Discord for feedback[/p]
• [p]February Goals[/p]
  • [p]Any Remaining Bugs/Performance Tweaks/QOL Adjustments based on community feedback[/p]
  • [p]Remaining Enemy Roster Needed For Angel to be unlocked[/p]
    • [p]Leviathan[/p]
    • [p]Birds[/p]
  • [p]Additional Pandemic Regions Locked Until The Above Is Complete[/p]
    • [p]Angel Island[/p]
    • [p]San Francisco North[/p]
• [p]TBD[/p][p]We are committed to not rushing to the "end" to ensure everything prior is working correctly. These are the ones currently in limbo that we will be tackling once the above list is "completely" done.[/p]
  • [p]LHA6 & LCAC[/p]
• [p]Civilian Evacuation & Dynamic Civilian Groups[/p]
  • [p]We made two pinned threads so we can centralize answers and stop misinformation:[/p]
    • [p]Rebuild vs Legacy: which version you’re on, what’s missing, what to play (link)[/p]
    • [p]Civilian Evac 2.0 + Dynamic Civilians plan: why it’s delayed and what’s changing (link)[/p]
    [p]If you’re asking: “where is evac” “where are civilians” “what build am I on” Start there.[/p]

[p]That is the remaining gap we are closing through Q1. Anything else will be discussed only after the current list above is done.[/p][hr][/hr][h2]Q1 2026 Target[/h2][p]Our target through Q1 2026 is to bring back the remaining missing pillars and have the rebuilt version fully represent the complete Cepheus Protocol experience again, but better.[/p][p]That means:[/p]

• [p]More stability and performance[/p]
• [p]Larger scale gameplay[/p]
• [p]More and better maps[/p]
• [p]Complete Pandemic mode pillars[/p]
• [p]Operators expanding toward Doctrines[/p]

[hr][/hr][h2]Public Campaigns[/h2][p]A few times each week, our developers host public multiplayer sessions where we jump into the chaos ourselves—testing, refining, and showcasing the true state of the game. These sessions are open for everyone to join, chat, and experience the evolving sandbox that Cepheus Protocol Multiplayer and Single player has become.[/p][h3]Our Last Dev Campaigns:[/h3][p]📖 Operation: Island Sweep – Treasure Island Playtest Recap[/p][p]In one of our first large-scale playtests for Treasure Island, CERC forces deployed from the carrier deck and immediately split into two coordinated fireteams. One team moved quickly to secure the bridge linking Yerba Buena Island to the main landmass, establishing a forward barricade to stem any early infected movement. Meanwhile, the second team advanced on the military base, fortifying it as a staging area for deeper incursions into the city.[/p][p]Operators were dispatched on foot for reconnaissance, sweeping through nearby districts to identify infected activity and relay positions back to RTS players. These early scouts faced brutal resistance—several near-wipeouts forced emergency retreats to fallback outposts, where teams regrouped before launching counteroffensives.[/p][p]As intel solidified, CERC forces began a methodical push toward the carnival grounds, establishing forward operating bases (FOBs) block by block. Each zone cleared became a new resupply and logistics hub, allowing the team to maintain pressure and steadily expand their perimeter. The fighting intensified near the construction site and hospital district, where infected forces attempted multiple breakouts—but each was repelled by quick RTS responses and layered defenses.[/p][p]Key tactical strikes were launched against newly emerged gas towers, which the infected had built to irradiate CERC positions and force retreats. These were neutralized in time, allowing squads to resume their advance. The operation culminated in a coordinated sweep through the hospital zone, ending with the elimination of Chelsey after a protracted urban engagement.[/p][p]In a final act of desperation, the infected launched a last-ditch assault to retake the military base. It was shut down by a precision Blackhawk strafing run—securing victory and leaving only isolated remnants, which were tracked down and eliminated by roaming patrols and air support.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p][p][/p]