Beta 11 X7 Prerelease - Don't Get Cut (Patreon)

It's that time again, for Yet Another B11 Prerelease :)

This time we're focusing on QoL and new bots, primarily to finalize the Heavy class after gaining some experience playing with those game-changers. However, I haven't really gotten any feedback on the X6 Active Sensor paths yet, so didn't add those into the remaining maps yet.

I'll go over the big stuff in more detail further below after the changelog...

Changelog

The full changelog included within has been updated as usual, but for convenience here's a list of the changes since X6:

• NEW: 13 new items
• NEW: 1 new 0b10 combat bot class (3 variants)
• NEW: 4 new Specialist variants
• NEW: 6 new lore entries
• NEW: Transport Network Couplers also reveal active cargo Freighter path
• NEW: Warning on attempting to fire through terrain, as with robots
• NEW: Hovering examine cursor over a known Heavy position for a second highlights its sensor range
• NEW: Modal part management menus also allow use of numpad to reference inventory items
• NEW: Asset loading progress reported on screen during startup
• NEW: README now includes info about requiring restart on changes to desktop resolution or pixel scaling
• NEW: README includes troubleshooting entry referring to manual section on Custom Cursors for resolving cursor display issues
• MOD: Broadened variety of Specialist spawn pool at each depth
• MOD: X-72 Disruptor loadout updated
• MOD: Adv. Power Amplifier no longer a prototype, increased rating from 6 to 7
• MOD: Even Heavies stationed on exits will obey the range restriction from other exit-stationed Heavies
• MOD: Heavy reinforcement composition changed
• MOD: Heavy reinforcement ALERT specifies dispatched robot class
• MOD: Cargo convoys won't enter a map near Cogmind if possible
• MOD: Reduced frequency and number of cargo convoys, also varies by depth
• MOD: High alert within Garrisons does not trigger High/Max Security or Sterilization
• MOD: Garrison patrol composition adjusted in some cases
• MOD: Reworked Network Hub response event
• MOD: Advanced.cfg activeSensorPathsDuration time is automatically tripled while panning map view
• FIX: Siege stat context help still referenced treads accuracy bonus
• FIX: Potential crash on autonomous weapon destroying itself when firing under certain circumstances [GJ]
• FIX: Potential crash when using the Chronowheel [GJ]
• FIX: Potential rare UI crash due to item labeling [GJ]
• FIX: Crash if all members of a certain faction died in an extended map on same turn they want to become hostile to Cogmind [GJ]
• FIX: Penetrating weapons not properly highlighting likely obstacles/targets on line of fire in some scenarios [Maiker]
• FIX: Heavy reinforcements were also being tallied under Hauler Reinforcements in scoresheet

Heavy Resistance

0b10's new formidable roadblocks the Shepherd, Marshal, and Overseer were never truly completed, since purely for testing convenience the allies they'd call in were stock Grunts and Swarmers. Now they can even better server their role of area denial by calling in potentially nastier surprises ;)

If anything they'll at least help inject some unique encounters into the map, albeit semi-optional ones of course since you might try to navigate around them. But I imagine some of you might very well even be eager to trigger their dispatches in order to loot their new friends? A number of new parts were added specifically for these new bots and variants, all of which you can use yourself and which come with new mechanics or fill new niches--saws (ouch), AOE knockback (ohno), new legs (oooh), and a new type of thruster (???) .

Among these new bots is yet another new class of combat bot, the Cutter! There were even AI tweaks required for these little guys, so you know they're going to be Fun. Details to be provided by Cutters themselves, when they're doing a number on your build.

We can't leave all the fun to the fast movers, though... Heavies now respond to slower-moving suspicious blips on their sensors by sending out Specialists, and not just the three variants you might've seen so far--now we have seven! If they're going to be supporting Heavies, we definitely needed more than just a handful of types, and would also want to increase their variety even within a single depth so you can't always be sure what type will show up, so Specialists also got new spawning rules that allow them to pick from a wider range, potentially slightly weaker for the current floor, or even out of depth.

The ALERT message for a Heavy summons will also declare the class of bot they've called (Cutter or Specialist), mainly to help out newer players realize where these special classes are coming from (because you won't often see them otherwise).

I've also further refined the Heavy placement code to keep even exit-guarding Heavies from overlapping their sensor ranges with one another if possible (previously it was just those spawning in junctions which could do that check).

QoL

We've also got a range of QoL improvements, some suggested by prerelease players...

"Yaulers" (yellow haulers, i.e. Freighter convoys) will generally not arrive via an entrance too close to Cogmind if possible. Being ambushed by such a powerful group just when getting ready to leave a map could be a nasty experience, not really very fair.

Of course they might still ambush you elsewhere, but at least there are quite a few ways to avoid that possibility if desired. Actually yet another was just added in X7, since you can use a Transport Network Coupler to not only see where they're currently location, but even their intended path in order to set up your own ambush!

There are also fewer convoys dispatched in general, and their frequency was adjusted on a per-depth basis. Those values were not yet designed, but simply set at higher static values so we'd see more of them while testing. Now that we've got some experience with them, and with the addition of Heavies as well, we don't want to see them quite that often :P

I also finally got around to reworking the Hub experience--0b10's Network Hub response is much less chaotic now. I'm all for challenges, but due to the quick way it was implemented using the functionality I had available at the time, it could be downright unfair at times--variability should be much lower now.

I add some Heavy QoL as well, allowing you to recall a given Heavy's sensor range by highlighting it for a second:

I've also expanded the line of fire warning system to include blocking terrain and machines. I found several bugs with the highlighting and warning system there after a player pointed one of them out.

Get Beta 11 X7

On Steam, Beta 11 X7 is located on the new beta branch "beta_11_x7" accessible with the code "ThousandCuts", or if you don't have Steam and bought through FastSpring and would like to try the DRM-free version, send me an email at gridsagegames@gmail.com to be added to the Beta 11 cycle notification list. (Anyone already on the list will receive an email with a new link.)

Saves are not compatible with previous releases.

There's always the chance of another one or two small updates in the near term (for example if something goes wrong), which will be otherwise unannounced except to append a notice to this announcement on Patreon, and via an announcement on the #patron Discord channel. It's not uncommon due to the experimental nature of these releases, and if saves are compatible then the same branch is simply updated, otherwise a new branch is created and announced here.

Other news

Regarding the fabrication notes I shared last time, more design progress has been made on that front and I'll be sharing updates about that before long.

Also I recently streamed my first run of the newly released/1.0 Jupiter Hell, a roguelike you might want to check out assuming you like Cogmind (I'm guessing you do? :P). It's a fair bit simpler, but you'll recognize a number of similarities including a focus on ranged combat, hacking for intel and access to other functions, and a central progression route with optional branches (for extra challenges and rewards) but no backtracking. I won that first run, though the difficulty was just set to Medium, the default. Looks like I'll be getting back to playing some Cogmind again soon, now that X7 is out...