Category: News

This is mainly a release to fix muffa’s unit transfer crash but it also comes with a few features that have been in the works.

Balance:
* Mace range 370 -> 355
* Scalpel projectile slightly faster and with less acceleration

Added hovering unit state icons:
* Icons hover over units when shift is held to indicate firestate, movestate and armorstate.
* Configure icon activation and size though “Settings -> Interface -> Hovering Icons”
* Free Factory and Low Power icons are integrated into the system so prevent overlaps.

Terraform:
* Changed extra cost function from area to perimter.
* Thin wall cost is unchanged, large areas are cheaper.
* Leveler, Banisher and Goliath projectiles smooth terrain.

Bugs:
* Fixed missing debris for Gunship Factory.
* Fixed state update upon unit transfer between teams.
* Fixed core selector crash.
* Possibly fixed occasional extra commander on rejoin.

Added a nice looking exit menu to workaround muffa’s crash that could be triggered with the default engine exit menu.

Mobile Cloaker and Shield now flee enemies. As with all unit AI use hold position to enabled it only for the fight command and click the light bulb to always disable it.

Catapult can now target gunships.

Replaced extremely powerful CAI commanders with commanders that players could feasibly start a game with.

Version number++ because the number bloat was getting really silly.

General
* Fixed smart retargeting of slow weapons
* Fixed marker placement when units are transfered due to lag/AFK
* Fixed solars closing and “under attack” sounds playing when “hit” by a friendly Outlaw
* Aircraft factories float rather than resting on seafloor
* Chicken: Replaced egg AI selections with a single egg modoption

Balance
* Fixed an issue where missile cruiser had considerably lower stats than intended
* Fixed torpedo frigates not having sonar
* Fixed EMP missile homing when it should not
* Screamer missiles are free to stockpile
* Scorpion has a new multi-stunner special attack

GUI
* Jumpjet GUI is drawn for queued orders even if the last order in the queue is such that the start position of jump is not precisely known (construction, area orders)
* Removed the massively annoying blinking of point tracker
* Initial States includes gunship strafe

Graphics
* Bigger Jack model

Quite a few balance changes in this version. Some nerfs to Kodiachi and Pyro which seemed to dominate the raider game. Thug and Outlaw tweaks to improve their role.

Kodiachi. Attempted to make it worse vs Raiders and Riots and a bit easier to use.
* Doubled turret turn speed.
* Turnrate 616 -> 750.
* Damage 300 -> 120.
* Groundfire duration 200 -> 300 (a static unit should receive the same damage
as before).
* Range 250 -> 225

Outlaw. More range and slow to make it better vs the longer ranged raiders.
* AOE: 512 -> 600 (this is diameter)
* Wavefront speed reduced 40%. This makes it worse against fast low hp things
so it doesn’t completely WTFOMG them.
* Damage 100 -> 75
* EdgeEffectiveness 0.75 -> 0.95 (better damage at range)
* Reload Time: 0.9 -> 0.85
* Slow Damage: 36 -> 55

Pyro. Was probably accidentally buffed with engine and prediction change.
* Range 280 -> 260
* DPS reduced 15%

Thug. Increased weight by ~12.5%
* Cost: 160 -> 180
* HP: 850 -> 960
* Shield: 1100 -> 1250
* Regen: 15 -> 18
* Starting power 650 -> 850 (I think 2/3 starting sounds nice).
* Damage 150 -> 170

Felon:
* Starting power 600 -> 800 (for consistent 2/3 with Thug)

Firestorm:
* Health 580 -> 660 (to survive 1/2 Hacksaw)

Banisher:
* Reverted Double ROF
* Range 400 /> 460 instead

Back with more infrastructure improvements in the quest to cut your game waiting times and improve satisfaction 🙂

There are now specialed managed hosts – they have a star in the lobby.
=====================================

* TEAMS – makes 2 team games,pick maps based on player counts

* 1v1 – for 1v1 battles,picks 1v1 maps

* FFA – for free for all – they pick ffa map based on player count, balance ffa

* COOP – for Chikens and CAI fights – pick chicken maps, balances for 1 vs bots and add its own normal chicken if players dont

All of those managed hosts auto balance on !start and are prefered way to play now.

Please use them instead of hosting your own, because only those participate in another addition:

The Player Juggler
==================
Player juggler is a way to merge classical matchmaking with normal battleroom based gaming.
Its a system that moves waiting people together based on their preferences.

Each person can set his/her prefences on home page.
Juggler takes into account things like player preferences, current battle, elo, clan to make suitable changes.

How to use it?
* First go and set your personal preferences. If you set something as dislike, juggler will never move you to disliked battle type.
* Next join the managed autohost of battle type you want to play – say FFA autohost.
* Wait,every 2 minutes juggler checks available people waiting on other managed autohosts (including those that joined running battle late) and if sensible games can be made from the people, it moves them together into games.

For details about inner workings check: http://code.google.com/p/zero-k/wiki/PlayerJuggler

Other minor additions
==========
* !map (no params) on autohosts picks next suitable map (managed only)
* TEAMS autohosts give extra comms to smaller team
* major springie rewrite with lots of changes

Hurray! No more need for pausing – intelligent lag monitor is here.
Laggy/afk people will be given to the most skilled person on team, and when they come back, their units will return instantly.

Gameplay changes:
* destroyer morphs to warlord
* hovercon brake rate and build distance improved
* behemoth has high trajectory
* banisher 2x rate of fire 1/2 damage

Other changes:
* voice commands improvements
* new pyro texture by smoth

Fixes/tweaks:
* endvote button to votes
* small nuke effects for water
* terraform slope detection fix

Yep, another fast update – this time with a new feature, voice commands. This one also contains a gameplay change though, so those who use ships or striders should take note.

General
* Added a voice command widget (Windows only)
* Implemented the Strider hub. This builds all the units previously exclusive to the Athena (from which they have been removed), as well as the missile sub, battleship and carrier (no longer buildable at the shipyard).
* (Re)added the Surfboard, a transport from which land units can fire
* Fixed Missile Silo not working properly

Modules
* Fixed aiming/firing issues with torpedo module

Chicken
* Fixed excessively fast teching in chicken
* Fixed chickens inappropriately going after human/CAI players on their team
* Chicken/burrow count rises less dramatically with playercount in large games
* Speed Queen has more health

Interface
* Playerlist is much slimmer now; uses icons instead of text for ping/CPU indicators. A numerical reading is still available from the mouseover tooltip. Also fixed some bugs with player display.
* Core Selector: default number of buttons reduced from 8 to 6 (can be changed in settings). Comm selection hotkey more responsive.

Several fixes for important bugs in this quick post-Christmas update. Changelog includes v0.9.5.1 changes.

Fixes
* Fixed bombers trying to attack with no ammo
* Fixed “Hadron collider” unit launching exploit. Buildings can no longer be placed in open factories.
* Fixed Strike Commanders always having cloak
* Jumping resets a unit’s velocity again
* Chicken: Fixed resetting of tech timer to its lowest possible value each time a burrow was killed
* Slowing weapons now affect construction speed
* Fixed Storage description
* Healthbars cannot show negative health values.

Interface
* Fixed Ctrl+C selection of commanders with more than one commander
* Commanders can now have their initial fire and move state set through the menu. Game -> Unit AI -> Initial States -> Misc
* Command menu tabs can be scrolled with [,] and [.]

Balance
* Flamethrower weapons now lead their targets more reliably (as a side effect, they may look odd with LuaShaders off)
* Catapult: cost 4000 -> 3500; AoE 96 -> 128; HP 4500 -> 4000
* Thug beefier: HP 800 -> 850; Shield 1000 -> 1100; Shield regen 14 -> 15
* Tick: Param time 30s -> 25s; Damage 4k -> 3.5k
* Behemoth: cost 3000 -> 2500
* Firewalker is more accurate
* Bandit turret turns 55% faster

Graphics
* Pyro has a new model/texture
* VR Grid no longer obscures weapon effects and the like
* Behemoth has a flashier weapon effect

Christmas comes early for good boys and girls! Santa’s bringing a new version, with lots of bugfixes and an awesome increase in framerate!

(Unfortunately, we also had to reset your widget settings and keybinds. Sorry about that. You should back up Documents/My Games/Spring/uikeys.txt if you modified it manually.)

Engine
Should no longer crash on default settings with Intel cards
Implemented a new terrain rendering system (much much faster)
Improved pathfinding

General
Added awards for building mexes and doing damage with commanders

Modules
Added a torpedo module

Balance
Felon: HP 1000 -> 1400, cost 700 -> 650
Dominatrix works faster on damaged units; cost 400 -> 420
Typhoon (corvette): HP 2400 -> 2200, damage per shot 11 -> 10
Shipyard HP increased 50% (4000 -> 6000)

Graphics
New Welder (tank constructor) model
Fixed missing subs and precision bomber weapon effects when hitting underwater targets
Improved Skeeter, Pillager and Crabe weapon FX
Krow corpse scaled down to fit unit

Interface
Fixed crashes in player list and unit XP display
Added Map category to widget list