tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91106438153543435502024-03-12T16:16:54.371-07:00CosmoteerDevelopment blog for Cosmoteer!Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.comBlogger102125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-82811838362109235672022-10-21T14:17:00.001-07:002022-10-21T14:17:15.475-07:00Cosmoteer news is moving to Steam...<p>I am not planning to post any more news about Cosmoteer to this blog. Future news <a href="https://steamcommunity.com/app/799600/allnews/">will be posted on Steam</a>. To get further news about Cosmoteer, please <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/799600/Cosmoteer_Starship_Architect__Commander/">follow Cosmoteer</a> on Steam.</p><p><br /></p>Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-14862515138001264472022-09-08T15:44:00.000-07:002022-09-08T15:44:44.387-07:00Faction Introduction: The Fringe Systems Resistance<p><i>This is the fourth and final of the posts introducing each of the four main non-player factions in Cosmoteer. You can read the first post about the Monolith Cooperative <a href="https://blog.cosmoteer.net/2022/08/faction-introduction-monolith.html">here</a>, the second post about the Cabal of Sol <a href="https://blog.cosmoteer.net/2022/08/faction-introduction-cabal-of-sol.html">here</a>, and the third about the Centauri Imperium <a href="https://blog.cosmoteer.net/2022/08/faction-introduction-centauri-imperium.html">here</a>.</i></p><div><h2 style="text-align: center;">History</h2><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNXbJbNupPZ756-iEiRh8Vk--FM5PYpgtOGi6eVGRUX_-kflEkNFLGo3JcMS5Ptw2HqcgUG6f-Si-WyfOCDwQwgzUQK8ujWQMCpGqlwLCgV6ZdknarU8JwVLNBbPk35BD14qdxpgUndML_K6ex3J1ZHusKdPq_9osUmvdNDFh1NgSEwxgDMAD1lw/s128/fringe.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="128" data-original-width="128" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNXbJbNupPZ756-iEiRh8Vk--FM5PYpgtOGi6eVGRUX_-kflEkNFLGo3JcMS5Ptw2HqcgUG6f-Si-WyfOCDwQwgzUQK8ujWQMCpGqlwLCgV6ZdknarU8JwVLNBbPk35BD14qdxpgUndML_K6ex3J1ZHusKdPq_9osUmvdNDFh1NgSEwxgDMAD1lw/s1600/fringe.png" width="128" /></a></div><div>The Fringe Systems Resistance is a loose conglomeration of independent star systems united only by the common desire to survive and remain independent.</div><br />The "Fringe" star systems are those that lie on the edge of the known galaxy or between the territories of the major factions. They are generally sparsely populated and have a low standard of living. While there is a strong code of honor among inhabitants of the Fringe, there is no common government or system of laws beyond the borders that can be enforced by each individual settlement or station. As such, the Fringe systems tend to attract a "rough and ready" type of personality, and piracy runs rampant.<br /><br />There are no formal cooperation agreements between any of the Fringe systems, so the extent to which they can be called "unified" is based on a mutual hatred of the other major factions and an understanding that they can better defend their independence working (begrudgingly) together than apart. Despite this cooperation, the Fringe systems are no match for the full might of any of the major factions, and thus are fighting a doomed battle, losing their independence one-by-one.</div><div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: center;">Ship Design</h2><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKhZ6i-vtkgGv8S6B8Y-J5m-ZugLbMrYfdHc8A8OAySoWyJHfJAoULHAXoscDFzturE97qDM7dLTXL_m5rxAl0-D5d3ptO9KMnAkZ7SYnflW7fpg2ycu47dv04zHUpZM2Jbrx6doJaEvlXf-JRK0cZsukiGpzDD12u3NRUuKeDpIbqKiP-jOeoaw/s1920/fringe.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKhZ6i-vtkgGv8S6B8Y-J5m-ZugLbMrYfdHc8A8OAySoWyJHfJAoULHAXoscDFzturE97qDM7dLTXL_m5rxAl0-D5d3ptO9KMnAkZ7SYnflW7fpg2ycu47dv04zHUpZM2Jbrx6doJaEvlXf-JRK0cZsukiGpzDD12u3NRUuKeDpIbqKiP-jOeoaw/w400-h225/fringe.png" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>The ships of the Fringe are typically ships from the other factions that have been salvaged, repaired, and repurposed, pieced together from multiple such ships, or constructed and expanded over time on an ad-hoc, as-needed basis. As such, Fringe ships are generally considered to be poorly "designed" (if that word can even be applied), with little rhyme or reason, often appearing misshapen or even "organic". Their paint is typically left over from however the original ships were painted, albeit more scuffed and faded, and often with additional markings (clan symbols, kill counters, etc...) applied. To the extent to which there is any commonality in their design, it is out of shared circumstance and not coordination.<br /><br />Fringe ships have no preference for type of weaponry or defenses but are greatly limited by the resources at hand; they will happily use whatever they can get their hands on. Thus, Fringe ships tend to be outfitted with an eclectic assortment of lower-tier equipment such as lasers, cannons, disruptors (electro-bolters), point defenses, small shields, and armor. More advanced weapons and defenses are much less common but can still be occasionally spotted.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Don't forget to <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/799600/Cosmoteer_Starship_Architect__Commander/">add Cosmoteer to your Steam wishlist</a> so that you get notified when it launches!</i></div>Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-15097557469163485562022-08-26T17:27:00.001-07:002022-08-26T17:27:34.616-07:00Faction Introduction: The Centauri Imperium<p><i>This is the third of a four-part series of posts introducing each of the four main non-player factions in Cosmoteer. You can read the first post about the Monolith Cooperative <a href="https://blog.cosmoteer.net/2022/08/faction-introduction-monolith.html">here</a> and the second post about the Cabal of Sol <a href="https://blog.cosmoteer.net/2022/08/faction-introduction-cabal-of-sol.html">here</a>.</i></p><div><h2 style="text-align: center;">History</h2><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiWpjk9tZC5A5fN5YYi-EU1fpplYLmda2PbDbyw39Pq_c8wSFmi_u6gATmq5teevDOtqyaLW1ldk-4IjDowWCtFE9GdN-OJVVkVsCUQ23YwO0LzLhizTT89thE0gIlon5n4Xdw6Y-LQDbUztlw1uejSfzsFqCHfrtdvi3zFshCuaVW-QAW_o1dpw/s128/imperium.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="128" data-original-width="128" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiWpjk9tZC5A5fN5YYi-EU1fpplYLmda2PbDbyw39Pq_c8wSFmi_u6gATmq5teevDOtqyaLW1ldk-4IjDowWCtFE9GdN-OJVVkVsCUQ23YwO0LzLhizTT89thE0gIlon5n4Xdw6Y-LQDbUztlw1uejSfzsFqCHfrtdvi3zFshCuaVW-QAW_o1dpw/s1600/imperium.png" width="128" /></a></div>The Centauri Imperium is a young but ruthlessly-ambitious military empire originating in the Centaurus Constellation.<br /><br />The systems of the Centaurus Constellation were originally governed by the Terran Union headquartered on Earth, but with the destruction of the whole Sol system fifty years ago, the Centaurus Constellation found itself suddenly independent with a galactic power vacuum in need of filling. After a brief ideological civil war within the Centaurus Constellation, the new Centauri Imperium emerged triumphant and quickly expanded its domain into the surrounding systems by conquest and intimidation. In just fifty short years, the Centauri Imperium has become the most powerful military force in the galaxy, controlling nearly half of all known systems and poised to soon conquer the rest.<br /><br />The Centauri Imperium is uniquely flat in its organizational structures, both civilian and military. As a true direct democracy, every citizen of the core Centaurus systems above the age of 12 EY is entitled to propose laws and vote on every piece of legislation, a process which is handled via faster-than-light communications and a distributed public blockchain. Even the most important decisions, such as whether to accept the terms of surrender of the latest conquered star system, can be made in minutes by instantly notifying the entire citizenry of an impending vote. As such, most Centauri citizens feel an extreme responsibility to stay informed of the various issues facing the Imperium, and civic engagement is very high. There is no single "head of state", and to the extent to which there is any concentration of power, it is in celebrities who are able to influence their followers to vote a particular way.<br /><br />The Centauri military is only slightly more hierarchical than its civilian government. Because being able to make instant decisions during combat is critical, most ships do have a captain, but one that is elected by its crew and can be replaced by popular vote at any time. Each ship is an independent entity with the freedom to make its own tactical decisions, constrained only by the few rules of engagement mandated by the Imperium's citizens. (And those citizens have deemed that almost any means are acceptable as long as the ends bring further wealth and prosperity to the core Centaurus systems.) This decentralized "almost anything goes" approach makes the Imperium's military nimble and ruthless. Larger strategic objectives are coordinated using bounties authorized by the citizenry, such as a reward for forcing the surrender of a particular star system. In order to accomplish these larger strategic objectives, individual ships will often form ad-hoc fleets that will then disband once the objective is accomplished. In some cases, multiple fleets will form to compete for the same bounty, which is allowed and encouraged as a healthy aspect of the "military free market", though direct combat between Centauri ships or fleets is strictly forbidden and punishable by "death by destruction bounty". In cases where multiple ships or fleets lay claim to the same bounty, it is, as always, the Centauri citizenry who act as final arbiter.</div><div><br />Citizenship is only granted to those individuals who were either living within the core Centaurus systems when the Imperium was formed or are children whose parents are both Centauri citizens. The only exceptions must be approved by the whole citizenry, making naturalized citizens extremely rare. (Generally only individuals who have been of great service to the Imperium are given the honor.) As a result, the vast majority of subjects living outside the core systems are not Centauri citizens and thus do not enjoy any semblance of autonomy or self-governance. For all their talk of democracy and equality, the core systems impose a harsh double-standard on the conquered territories, ruling them with an iron fist.<div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: center;">Ship Design</h2><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpSFmx8mpT2rv5YqFkUoZnIlxYzQPZrb1h4a8H6-FdbPK9UXl0eMsQJeA_aUjUTRiq_Xai7g0iyDVTZLyekKwN9WaeWo7wijFVsLNwl5FDGUD4bCUNL8XqMFr9pHbUeBDeX16T746yrReIsZhFL0_niyhvorFwVvMAA9k3ULHswP_46di9I097Rw/s1920/unknown%20(6).png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpSFmx8mpT2rv5YqFkUoZnIlxYzQPZrb1h4a8H6-FdbPK9UXl0eMsQJeA_aUjUTRiq_Xai7g0iyDVTZLyekKwN9WaeWo7wijFVsLNwl5FDGUD4bCUNL8XqMFr9pHbUeBDeX16T746yrReIsZhFL0_niyhvorFwVvMAA9k3ULHswP_46di9I097Rw/w400-h225/unknown%20(6).png" width="400" /></a></div><br />The Centauri are inarguably the best military ship designers in the galaxy. Their ships are designed to first visually intimidate their enemies into submission and then, if that fails, to annihilate them with ruthless efficiency. Most Centauri ships are constructed "diagonally" relative to the galactic standard construction grid to maximize the available space for offensive firepower and minimize the profile presented to the enemy. They feature a balanced variety of weapons and defenses, making use of all available technologies depending on the combat role of the ship. (Notably, the Centauri are the only major faction to make common use of nukes.) Thanks to the vast wealth gained from the looting of the conquered territories, construction cost is typically not an issue for the Centauri. The main limiting factor is the number of crew; since only Centauri citizens can serve aboard military vessels, there are a limited number of sailors willing to serve in the all-volunteer Centauri starforce, and the military is stretched a little thin.<br /><br />Aesthetically, Centauri ships are designed to scare the enemy into submission, with intimidating shapes and sharp angles. They are typically painted black, red, and dark gray colors.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Don't forget to <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/799600/Cosmoteer_Starship_Architect__Commander/">add Cosmoteer to your Steam wishlist</a> so that you get notified when it launches!</i></div>Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-57586252054240099522022-08-21T11:08:00.004-07:002022-08-21T11:08:58.859-07:00Faction Introduction: The Cabal of Sol<p><i>This is the second of a four-part series of posts introducing each of the four main non-player factions in Cosmoteer. You can read the first post about the Monolith Cooperative <a href="https://blog.cosmoteer.net/2022/08/faction-introduction-monolith.html">here</a>.</i></p><div><h2 style="text-align: center;">History</h2><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fXAFKPxWar5y4cPpH-fHOSVY5PBdHEE4O1uAfE2kvfz23OgPvHcNPRIHd62xOfq7UG3EVNNieqlP8eb5zxVemCBFL8C5vpq4CVttzccy5fjORljeOlyaAifyRg1Uu_utNVobMSOBt--ZPd7Fag23eI9X4VEUZs3pBy4gP8DPHc4McQA5AJw0EQ/s128/cabal.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="128" data-original-width="128" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fXAFKPxWar5y4cPpH-fHOSVY5PBdHEE4O1uAfE2kvfz23OgPvHcNPRIHd62xOfq7UG3EVNNieqlP8eb5zxVemCBFL8C5vpq4CVttzccy5fjORljeOlyaAifyRg1Uu_utNVobMSOBt--ZPd7Fag23eI9X4VEUZs3pBy4gP8DPHc4McQA5AJw0EQ/s1600/cabal.png" width="128" /></a></div>The Cabal of Sol is a religious and scientific organization that worshipped Sol (Earth's star) until its destruction fifty years ago and now endeavors to "reincarnate" its dead God through scientific research.<br /><br />Although it is not known precisely when the Cabal was founded, it has existed in some form for at least several hundred years. Originally a secretive cult, it is now a massive, mainstream religion and powerful galactic nation-state. Its adherents believe that each star is, in effect, a God; creator of planets and moons and giver of the energies that sustain life. Although they believe that every star is a God, the Cabal of Sol specifically worships Earth's star Sol as the creator of not just Humanity but also the ancient civilization that created the hyperjump gates and left behind the Armstrong Monolith.<br /><br />The Cabal of Sol is a highly-organized religion that claims more than a fifth of the known galaxy as its own territory, making it one of the largest galactic nation-states. Within Cabal territory, religion and government are inseparable. A hereditary council of twelve High Priests of Sol make the laws, and a complex hierarchy of priests and other clerics administer the functions of government with unusual strictness and harshness. But for those willing to live under the edicts of the Council, life can be good thanks to the extensive social services and a universal basic income provided by the Cabal. And many people from across the galaxy do indeed choose to brave the trip to Cabal space to take advantage, thanks to the Cabal's open immigration policy that welcomes all—as long as they profess a belief in Sol and renounce all other religions.<br /><br />For the Cabal, religion and scientific research are not antithetical, but instead go hand-in-hand, with the desire to know more about the Gods motivating unprecedented scientific research into how stars are formed and function. Most of the galaxy's preeminent cosmic researchers are also devout worshippers of Sol and members of the Cabal. As a byproduct of this intense focus on scientific research into stars, the Cabal have become the galaxy's clear masters of energy manipulation technology.<br /><br />Although unproven, rumors persist that Cabal scientists were directly involved in the accidental destruction of Sol and its star system. According to the rumors, Cabal scientists were working to develop hyperjump and shield technologies so advanced that a ship could jump directly into the core of a star, where its most elusive secrets would be revealed. But when this was attempted with Sol, according to the rumors, the result was not the hoped-for scientific and religious revelation, but the destruction of the entire Sol system, costing billions of lives and setting back human advancement by thousands of years. Any involvement in the destruction of Sol is, of course, denied by Cabal officials, but conspiracy theorists claim that their involvement could be proven if only the Cabal would open its vault of secret documents to the public—something which the Cabal has thus far refused to do.<br /><br />Regardless of whether they were involved or not, their current motivation is very clear: The Cabal seeks to reignite Sol's dead core and reincarnate their dead God. Nearly all of the Cabal's formidable scientific might for the past fifty years has become singularly focused on this goal.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: center;">Ship Design</h2><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ7-GoeNZvL3eIA6TxP7CeRiy6HokgubhPCTf0kZtIHJapvsIyAnPbETkukjpX65f3phHymoSmQrBeyioBB0VbuCqIcqkaX360XfFaO4F6k8oXS-7CmHMKhIkKGzW8UqmE5PaEcdQHttOalrrUI4GSLAED72fDMD5kAGbd-uVpSnuXYL0x1vy2tw/s3840/2022-08-21%2011_05_38.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2160" data-original-width="3840" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ7-GoeNZvL3eIA6TxP7CeRiy6HokgubhPCTf0kZtIHJapvsIyAnPbETkukjpX65f3phHymoSmQrBeyioBB0VbuCqIcqkaX360XfFaO4F6k8oXS-7CmHMKhIkKGzW8UqmE5PaEcdQHttOalrrUI4GSLAED72fDMD5kAGbd-uVpSnuXYL0x1vy2tw/w400-h225/2022-08-21%2011_05_38.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Cabal ships, both military and civilian, are considered to be among the most beautifully-designed in the Galaxy, and Cabal ship architects, known as Sculptors, think of themselves as master artists. For the Cabal, every ship is a tribute to the grandeur of Sol, with form being at least as important as function. Cabal ships are often irregular and asymmetrical, playing creatively with curves, rays, and other interesting shapes. They are usually painted brightly with yellows and oranges, and sometimes greens, purples, and blues as well.<br /><br />As masters of energy manipulation, Cabal ships generally favor energy-based weapons and defenses. On offense this includes lasers, disruptors (electro-bolters), ion beams + prisms, and railguns. For defense, the Cabal primarily relies on speed and shields, rarely spending much mass on armor. Cannons and flak are almost unheard of on Cabal ships. Despite their prowess at harnessing energy, Cabal ships typically have less efficient hyperdrives, and tractor beams are not particularly common.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Don't forget to <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/799600/Cosmoteer_Starship_Architect__Commander/">add Cosmoteer to your Steam wishlist</a> so that you get notified when it launches!</i></div>Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-21066372731709772762022-08-13T14:29:00.004-07:002022-08-13T14:29:43.597-07:00Faction Introduction: The Monolith Cooperative<i>This is the first in what will be a four-part series of posts introducing each of the four main non-player factions in Cosmoteer.</i><div><i><br /></i><h2 style="text-align: center;">History</h2><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhm_km9pICXQRtXoQDK94E7beLrbhjAfu1J3VZ6m6HxRGwkEL5dsMlahQ-RZ7QlBwGkwGVobN3rFXvy5moczStlM-OTH03_yXZ3YidTrBIdlin2KtqEqaYwrsjBJc0Bbt4msweZe85aLLJXDXo_HH4f8TFlUZcN6llu8hkqZe77vWIssW2Xy3f2dQ" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="128" data-original-width="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhm_km9pICXQRtXoQDK94E7beLrbhjAfu1J3VZ6m6HxRGwkEL5dsMlahQ-RZ7QlBwGkwGVobN3rFXvy5moczStlM-OTH03_yXZ3YidTrBIdlin2KtqEqaYwrsjBJc0Bbt4msweZe85aLLJXDXo_HH4f8TFlUZcN6llu8hkqZe77vWIssW2Xy3f2dQ=s16000" /></a></div>The Monolith Cooperative is a massive mining, manufacturing, and transport company that dominates galactic trade and economics with near-monopolistic power.</div><div><br />Originally branded as the "Armstrong Mining Cooperative" in the pre-hyperdrive era, the company had the remarkable good fortune of being the first to discover what is now known as the "Armstrong Monolith" hidden deep within the Sol (Earth) system's asteroid belt. The Armstrong Monolith was the last remnant of an ancient civilization that made its home on the planet which, before its destruction, orbited between Mars and Jupiter. The monolith itself was a technological archive that, once decoded, was discovered to contain blueprints for hyperdrive technology and the ability to detect and use the vast network of hyperjump relays built by the civilization long ago. Although there is some debate, it is commonly assumed that the destruction of their planet was caused by a misuse of hyperjump technology similar in hubris to that which led humanity to destroy the whole Sol system. No biological remains of this civilization, nor any evidence of their physical form, have ever been found, leading to much speculation about whether they were truly alien or a precursor to humanity.<br /><br />After the discovery of the Armstrong Monolith, it took only two years for the Armstrong Mining Cooperative to recreate rudimentary hyperdrive technology, and then only another five to make it robust enough for commercial use. Although at first the company successfully guarded the technology as the most important trade secret of all time, the fundamentals of hyperdrive technology eventually leaked a couple years later and quickly spread throughout the solar system. Even still, those couple years gave the company (now known as the Monolith Cooperative) enough of a head start to dominate its competitors and eventually become the largest industrial powerhouse in the history of humankind.<br /><br />Although not overtly imperial in ambition, Monolith has gradually built one of the galaxy's largest military forces over the two-hundred years since the discovery of the Armstrong Monolith. At first this was out of necessity to defend its own transport routes and mining and manufacturing hubs, but as the might of its military hammer grew, well, as the saying goes, all its problems started looking like nails. Middle managers tasked with convincing reluctant colonies to pay exorbitant prices for life-sustaining necessities would often use their ostensibly "defensive" fleets to blockade competitors and coerce the colonies into signing unfair trade contracts. As the space-high prices of basic goods bankrupted the local governments, Monolith was only happy to step in and sell its own administrative and police services at a discount—in exchange for a hefty percentage tax on the colony's gross income, of course. Although claiming no actual territory, the Monolith Cooperative is now the de facto government of almost a quarter of the known galaxy.<br /><br />The "Cooperative" part of its name comes from the fact that the Monolith Cooperative is and always has been fully employee-owned. No single person owns more than 0.1% of the company, and no shares of Monolith have ever been sold either publicly or privately. Instead, every full employee of Monolith (not including contractors) owns a very small percentage of the company (the exact amount depending on rank and length of employment) and as such is entitled to a proportional share of the company's profits in addition to their base salary. Since the company is ultimately subservient to its own employees, those who are lucky enough to be counted among them, from the middlest manager to the lowliest janitor, enjoy good pay, fair treatment, and a general quality of life far in excess of the galactic average, making the typical employee extremely loyal to the company. But due to their desire not to dilute their own shares, the employees of Monolith have mandated hiring standards so strict that only about 5% of the population under Monolith's governance are actual employees, many of whom only become so out of nepotism. Much of the remaining population lives in extreme poverty, and Monolith-governed colonies have by far the highest wealth inequality of anywhere in the galaxy.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: center;">Ship Design</h2><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZwkdTCpfIHrNZeg_dj2IPWvP1A_m4cUqIv1_cPTba8VHGCFDvbLeVXjQDrvwts2aaiSAxI2qLoaMBH0wF7X89cJ0u0c8rSe56g0HAnMoOh6IP-tAp8mKzw3a52XjLzS57VWlKnix79dBbHKTBJ1R8To6PiEpICCEn9-e7CE2jk5QNwKH3pwRtgQ/s1920/monolith%20ships.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZwkdTCpfIHrNZeg_dj2IPWvP1A_m4cUqIv1_cPTba8VHGCFDvbLeVXjQDrvwts2aaiSAxI2qLoaMBH0wF7X89cJ0u0c8rSe56g0HAnMoOh6IP-tAp8mKzw3a52XjLzS57VWlKnix79dBbHKTBJ1R8To6PiEpICCEn9-e7CE2jk5QNwKH3pwRtgQ/w400-h225/monolith%20ships.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div>Monolith ships are generally very utilitarian in design. Military and transport ships are generally boxy with 90- and 45-degree angles. Mining and construction ships sometimes have more interesting shapes, but always because they are engineered to solve a specific problem, not for any artistic or expressive reason. The paint and finish of mining and construction ships tends to be grays and browns, often with a lot of wear and tear. Transport ships on the other hand, because they are seen more frequently by the general public, tend to be painted shades of gray and white with generally better exterior upkeep. Military vessels, intended to project a sense of wealth, competence, and authority, are usually a spotless white and blue.</div><br />Unsurprisingly given its status as an industrial powerhouse, Monolith military ships usually favor weapons and defenses that use a lot of materials. This primarily means cannons, railguns, high-explosive missiles, mines, flak, point defenses, and armor. Due to their expertise in mining, Monolith ships also often have ion beams (though almost never with prisms) and mining beam lasers. Due to their frequent need to fight more energy-focused ships from other factions, larger Monolith ships are also frequently armed with EMP missiles. Other low-tech, energy-based systems such as lasers and shields are less common but not unheard of. When used, shields tend to be of the "large" variant, and Monolith ship designers are full of hubris and thus usually poor at protecting them, rarely ever layering them behind small shields and only occasionally protecting them with strategically-placed armor. Monolith military ships always come with ample storage for their munitions, and larger ships usually have the capability to rapidly manufacture more.<br /><br />Monolith ships of all varieties also tend to be larger than similar-class ships of other factions, favoring size and storage capacity over speed, often relying on their strong hyperdrive capabilities to escape situations where they would otherwise be too slow. Boost thrusters are rarely used. Tractor Beams, originally developed for hauling asteroids, have always been common on Monolith mining vessels and have more recently become common on larger military ships as well.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Don't forget to <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/799600/Cosmoteer_Starship_Architect__Commander/">add Cosmoteer to your Steam wishlist</a> so that you get notified when it launches!</i></div>Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-78418690758021149172022-08-06T14:36:00.003-07:002022-08-12T17:17:43.124-07:00Cosmoteer Feature Preview: Career Mode<p>Greetings, Cosmoteers!</p><p>This is the first in what will be a series of "Feature Preview" posts about new features coming to Cosmoteer when it launches on Steam later this year. The first new feature I want to tell you about is also the <i>biggest: </i>A brand new "Career Mode".</p><p>Players of "Cosmoteer Classic" (a.k.a. "the free version" or "the demo") will doubtless be familiar with Bounty Hunter, a simple single-player mode in which you destroy enemy ships to earn money and then use that money to upgrade your own ship. While fun at first, I think most players would agree that its simplicity makes it become repetitive pretty quickly.</p><p>Career Mode takes the basic loop of Bounty Hunter (fight so that you can get stronger and take on tougher enemies) and greatly expands it within missions, factions, salvaging, mining, trading, and multiplayer co-op.</p><p>As in Bounty Hunter, you start the game with a small scout ship with only a few weapons and a handful of crew.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0rf_u_dWoIootMYqkbgBC8gG6EJOJghfVEY0gNXHoUcTGj247DlapjUtP45TMx8fBhuwC2mJSa4pngag1ThHm4VYMMltcgitlaqnGv3Pb5GDiEv4pKraBAPQHGNtDLFKcvKQ3JdNxJNmsQaO9gcB2dCjxqeHCfV-L39KjZ5FNAqUYeMGBcaKiOw/s2560/2022-08-06%2013_49_51.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0rf_u_dWoIootMYqkbgBC8gG6EJOJghfVEY0gNXHoUcTGj247DlapjUtP45TMx8fBhuwC2mJSa4pngag1ThHm4VYMMltcgitlaqnGv3Pb5GDiEv4pKraBAPQHGNtDLFKcvKQ3JdNxJNmsQaO9gcB2dCjxqeHCfV-L39KjZ5FNAqUYeMGBcaKiOw/w400-h225/2022-08-06%2013_49_51.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><p>Looking around, and you quickly spot a nearby civilian space station under the control of the Fringe Systems Resistance. You hail it with your comms and immediately see a list of mission contracts posted by the Fringe and other factions within the star system. Many are "bounty" contracts, tasking you to hunt down and destroy specific enemies, but there are also other types of missions, such as rescues, resource delivery requests, and exploration missions.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHjSl6vq5g2Da7ubLkh_7EG16olXTr25ZNcVz90chddzAeH-q_6xLIGDbJoDpAWh9u8cw-aBNzej2asrZdt5plkzblnDBxpR4IuC_OHMOODA9LzSknEeEjcSP36e8j8yJEAiqdRJr0qTAM7QvaGfmbgi6rMMvn-614bJCxIaccTjbygxBBAHEL6Q/s2560/2022-08-06%2013_50_37.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHjSl6vq5g2Da7ubLkh_7EG16olXTr25ZNcVz90chddzAeH-q_6xLIGDbJoDpAWh9u8cw-aBNzej2asrZdt5plkzblnDBxpR4IuC_OHMOODA9LzSknEeEjcSP36e8j8yJEAiqdRJr0qTAM7QvaGfmbgi6rMMvn-614bJCxIaccTjbygxBBAHEL6Q/w400-h225/2022-08-06%2013_50_37.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><p>Upon accepting your first bounty contract, you fly to its last-known location and soon spot your target. You close in for the kill and--as it is merely a level [1] target--have little trouble defeating it. (But beware, higher-level enemies are dramatically more dangerous!)</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh8Jg7Kyk37TlyEdEGkzrH0w2TSC1TA06QLFtUzO_A6QcN7PaQMuunal7VS89eZ1ts0DXpuuhLEsf4OOLZBTHrke4Q_Za-DcbuP58iG3PJyHYj6-hIk6IGDbIFUbFXBexabLZUYqTSp9FjDY1KxCcgVB-Sa1R-VHZciqHf8i72zO1TOGpLgbuoQQ/s2560/2022-08-06%2013_52_09.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh8Jg7Kyk37TlyEdEGkzrH0w2TSC1TA06QLFtUzO_A6QcN7PaQMuunal7VS89eZ1ts0DXpuuhLEsf4OOLZBTHrke4Q_Za-DcbuP58iG3PJyHYj6-hIk6IGDbIFUbFXBexabLZUYqTSp9FjDY1KxCcgVB-Sa1R-VHZciqHf8i72zO1TOGpLgbuoQQ/w400-h225/2022-08-06%2013_52_09.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><p>The enemy ship has been destroyed, but don't leave quite yet! Its wreckage contains valuable materials that you'll need to repair and upgrade your own ship. You send your crew out to salvage the enemy ship, who carefully break apart what's left of it into basic construction materials and carry them back to your own ship, storing them in your cargo bays.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCTAHOmsvC3S1IYjoKbzaAdnYQaqyOyq7KGzXEqumtarjKZF26E2Ro9Q8BwfQqKcaEkUmUqGeX1iMO-8E1q9uRgSM28BS4avUflqaQHGEJIS3_MvBEbjbCdWiRDjbVc01o_1XTYV1uNstLiN8HmchhrKO2OR9GzvQnOyvZ8zn8tayzyAOOR4H9MA/s2560/2022-08-06%2014_19_17.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCTAHOmsvC3S1IYjoKbzaAdnYQaqyOyq7KGzXEqumtarjKZF26E2Ro9Q8BwfQqKcaEkUmUqGeX1iMO-8E1q9uRgSM28BS4avUflqaQHGEJIS3_MvBEbjbCdWiRDjbVc01o_1XTYV1uNstLiN8HmchhrKO2OR9GzvQnOyvZ8zn8tayzyAOOR4H9MA/w400-h225/2022-08-06%2014_19_17.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><p>Using the materials salvaged from the enemy, you repair the damage it did to your ship, and you even have enough materials left over to construct a new Laser Blaster!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrC9YOgBvP7CoH-ge3K-Gs6LtVw_mY0iejjnVh6YZCA6gSXqCuHUZ6gFbTY_qWDDjy1lDsO4PY9YIL4a7o931nzo5v2ZdYtm_SMrYHuQVJtukDE71-Vg3uez6Nf_z4VAWCY71gVO4HtIC0XSzZlghoM-ghbqfbeI_E9VzNUgbuCzE65yQmcJKidQ/s2560/2022-08-06%2014_22_46.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrC9YOgBvP7CoH-ge3K-Gs6LtVw_mY0iejjnVh6YZCA6gSXqCuHUZ6gFbTY_qWDDjy1lDsO4PY9YIL4a7o931nzo5v2ZdYtm_SMrYHuQVJtukDE71-Vg3uez6Nf_z4VAWCY71gVO4HtIC0XSzZlghoM-ghbqfbeI_E9VzNUgbuCzE65yQmcJKidQ/w400-h225/2022-08-06%2014_22_46.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><p>You start heading back to the station to collect the bounty reward, but on your way you spot a <b>?</b> icon on your radar, indicating the presence of an unknown signal nearby. You take a detour to investigate and discover a large asteroid field! Many of the asteroids contain iron and copper and a few have even more valuable ores which can either be sold at space stations or smelted by factories into usable construction materials. You have a bit of extra room in your cargo bays, so you send your crew out to mine some copper from a nearby asteroid.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuya9ruWQzVmE0Ry1fnhI4gpmYvjsYQkDmLrOh76YMh7pRM0N_sgeAWHLLZanZFkFXrrsHhAZfaBXYZ-qV4q4g4ubt-0MQmMbkrYZSQ9UDvNdOpq2mL-sFfOrNjTbMjeHZ3HEg1KtO8Zc0RZQZTGn7vM5vfKqYXGhgxxiTatwbc8mIKHsC6rie0g/s2560/2022-08-06%2014_23_57.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuya9ruWQzVmE0Ry1fnhI4gpmYvjsYQkDmLrOh76YMh7pRM0N_sgeAWHLLZanZFkFXrrsHhAZfaBXYZ-qV4q4g4ubt-0MQmMbkrYZSQ9UDvNdOpq2mL-sFfOrNjTbMjeHZ3HEg1KtO8Zc0RZQZTGn7vM5vfKqYXGhgxxiTatwbc8mIKHsC6rie0g/w400-h225/2022-08-06%2014_23_57.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><p>Returning to the space station, you hail it again to collect the bounty payment and sell the copper you mined for a tidy profit. You also earn a few fame points as word of your accomplishment spreads, which will convince more people to join your crew. The Fringe Systems Resistance also makes note of how you helped the cause.</p><p>Using the money you earned, you replace your existing storage bays with larger ones, add another crew's quarters, and hire 2 more crew. You didn't actually have enough materials on board to build the larger storage bays and crew's quarters, but that's okay because the missing materials were automatically purchased from the station.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpBlixBEfXTxFnjzuc1EWF_X6BREU2myFaqIoLOzr5OB6RKMk1jnvuhQcmTPg2ESWppAis9W-a7cQyI8m2SEMEtWdyk0VcylCqZwizfZdQdjyNSQPoIQIJP26iiA3trxAuSV5Key8tGmb2E4XuoAqwMDpwsWt7-4E2TuWYTVzFYwQE4y8Bc_pFaw/s2560/2022-08-06%2014_25_50.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpBlixBEfXTxFnjzuc1EWF_X6BREU2myFaqIoLOzr5OB6RKMk1jnvuhQcmTPg2ESWppAis9W-a7cQyI8m2SEMEtWdyk0VcylCqZwizfZdQdjyNSQPoIQIJP26iiA3trxAuSV5Key8tGmb2E4XuoAqwMDpwsWt7-4E2TuWYTVzFYwQE4y8Bc_pFaw/w400-h225/2022-08-06%2014_25_50.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><p>Using the little money you have left over, you purchase the blueprint plans for a Small Shield Generator, which will help reduce the damage your ship takes and save you materials on repairs in the long run.</p><p>Just when you are thinking about where you should add the shield generator, you receive a Discord message from a friend! She's playing Cosmoteer too and wants to know if you want to play co-op together. Of course you do! So you save your game, quit to the menu, and host a multiplayer game for her to join. You load up your save file, and the two of you continue playing from where you left off. She's the best pilot and combat tactician you know, so you mostly leave that up to her, whereas you're an ace ship designer, so you handle most of the building. You've set it up so that you both share control of the same ship, though you could have also started a new game where you each control your own ships.</p><p>Over many hours, the two of you explore dozens of star systems while traveling across the galaxy.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYCgbcxqO4ZCz76GAKIPPojCbVlq1ULMzKR6rQvAmypVstgOOTca75n1OIVJVV1C5qiHxoyJXBCHTUG9gTrQXw0BriPO_CJQBsZEhw79wxRoHKnOVggzyAIN8tC4IiSWNOdjGXcHiaeQRDXTZszLk8oMjiYqdzd2DfWmFZAkVBEDkb-g0S1ktqOQ/s3840/5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2160" data-original-width="3840" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYCgbcxqO4ZCz76GAKIPPojCbVlq1ULMzKR6rQvAmypVstgOOTca75n1OIVJVV1C5qiHxoyJXBCHTUG9gTrQXw0BriPO_CJQBsZEhw79wxRoHKnOVggzyAIN8tC4IiSWNOdjGXcHiaeQRDXTZszLk8oMjiYqdzd2DfWmFZAkVBEDkb-g0S1ktqOQ/w200-h113/5.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwsrsXwvfEHQd6VndSdrStSkTyQfTALmaYmx_1Co89IAJpgpE4ArS9cYhpMAq_7em0Fnaor5frNEPlCQPJuxpa8DBam8d1VaCUzCdCiiazQPkjpn_2dG0pszeq550poZaABF9POqDhtRy6CUqYqP0xLZzeB15jQX8YSBDUoF5mPu9kBCCNdc4TWw/s3840/6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2160" data-original-width="3840" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwsrsXwvfEHQd6VndSdrStSkTyQfTALmaYmx_1Co89IAJpgpE4ArS9cYhpMAq_7em0Fnaor5frNEPlCQPJuxpa8DBam8d1VaCUzCdCiiazQPkjpn_2dG0pszeq550poZaABF9POqDhtRy6CUqYqP0xLZzeB15jQX8YSBDUoF5mPu9kBCCNdc4TWw/w200-h113/6.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>After dozens of missions and more than a few close calls, you and your friend finally reach the pinnacle of fame. With a fame score of 10000 and the title of "LEGENDARY", no one in the galaxy will ever forget your accomplishments. Along the way, you have become the revered champion of the Fringe Systems Resistance and the loathed nemesis of the other factions.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtJeyqjDN9qudUlDBs0mv6rJ_GTTvjimoYfjMROfui1VGFNbrji847cDQGqP5ze4YSY7k0wWwPKeZSTnQN0X4xPdN1xsGn3UbN435o_DBH9up4ujUocndKoPhDKB-NoJ62cheXnQZHgoqR2n3LkTDLk93rEyVQMRxxH3gvxTmaq-zRdnmZi_Hm7Q/s2560/2022-08-06%2014_30_47.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtJeyqjDN9qudUlDBs0mv6rJ_GTTvjimoYfjMROfui1VGFNbrji847cDQGqP5ze4YSY7k0wWwPKeZSTnQN0X4xPdN1xsGn3UbN435o_DBH9up4ujUocndKoPhDKB-NoJ62cheXnQZHgoqR2n3LkTDLk93rEyVQMRxxH3gvxTmaq-zRdnmZi_Hm7Q/w400-h225/2022-08-06%2014_30_47.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><p>"Do you want to play again?" asks your friend.</p><p><br /></p><p>Stay tuned for future feature previews, including lore histories and ship design philosophies for each of the four major factions: the Fringe Systems Resistance, the Monolith Cooperative, the Cabal of Sol, and the Centauri Imperium.</p>Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-54101499506913695562022-07-29T13:45:00.003-07:002022-07-29T14:41:33.666-07:00New Cosmoteer Trailer!Ahoy Cosmoteers! It's been a really long time since you've heard from me, but that's because I've been laser-focused working on an updated version of Cosmoteer that will be launching on Steam. I'm pleased to finally be able to show off what I've been working on in an awesome new trailer, and to announce that Cosmoteer will finally be launching on Steam later this year!<br/><br/>
Check our this awesome new trailer!
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6pyG2i6fA2g" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe><br/><br/>
This new version will be by far the most massive Cosmoteer update ever, including:
<ul>
<li>Completely overhauled graphics, which you can see in the trailer above and in <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/799600/Cosmoteer_Starship_Architect__Commander/">Cosmoteer's new Steam page</a></li>
<li>A brand new "Career Mode" with missions, factions, and mining. (It also supports co-op multiplayer!)</li>
<li>A "resource system" that allows resources to be salvaged from defeated ships or mined from asteroids, which can then be stored on your own ship, refined into more useful resources in factories, and used for construction of ship modules and munitions.</li>
<li>Various new ship building parts including a large shield generator, a mining laser, and new resource factories.</li>
</ul><br/>
If you haven't already, please tell Steam that you're excited to play Cosmoteer by adding it to your wishlist!<br/><br/>
<iframe src="https://store.steampowered.com/widget/799600/" frameborder="0" width="646" height="190"></iframe><br/>
Stay tuned for more updates as we get closer to launch!</div>Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-23852878221588263642020-02-05T13:24:00.001-08:002020-02-05T13:24:56.358-08:00Plans for the future of CosmoteerGreetings Cosmoteers!<br />
<br />
I want to bring you up-to-speed on my plans for Cosmoteer from now until it launches on Steam Early Access. I wrote <a href="https://forum.cosmoteer.net/d/10756-my-plans-for-the-future-of-cosmoteer">a long forum post</a> detailing those plans which I encourage you to read, but here's the TL;DR version:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>There won't be any major updates for a while because I'm focused on creating a new singleplayer campaign mode.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>I have hired an artist (longtime Cosmoteer modder "Kroom") to improve Cosmoteer's graphics. Check out a sample of his new graphics below!</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>The recent 0.15.6 update will likely be the last major "free forever" update. Future major updates will require you to buy the game on Steam. (But any version you've already downloaded will keep working.)</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>There will probably be a free BETA before Cosmoteer launches on Steam Early Access. Keep an eye out for news about that, hopefully later this year!</li>
</ul>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O5yQrdSzFfs/Xjst5hWi25I/AAAAAAAANhM/I3r2XiD55wciMIzTkzuEnIveLpyxW9FzQCEwYBhgL/s1600/unknown.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="712" height="358" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O5yQrdSzFfs/Xjst5hWi25I/AAAAAAAANhM/I3r2XiD55wciMIzTkzuEnIveLpyxW9FzQCEwYBhgL/s400/unknown.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />Cosmoteer's new graphics coming soon...ish!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br />In the meantime, I hope you will keep enjoying the free version of Cosmoteer!</div>
Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-39023101150737254842019-11-08T14:06:00.000-08:002019-11-08T14:06:20.547-08:00Cosmoteer 0.15.5 - Performance Improvements & New LanguagesCosmoteer update 0.15.5 has been released! This update significantly improves performance in many situations, especially large battles. It also adds three new community-created translations for Brazilian Portuguese, Dutch, and Latin-American Spanish.<div>
<br /></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
What's New</h2>
<h3>
Performance Improvements</h3>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Since the 0.15.4 update, I've spent most of my time digging deep into Cosmoteer's code, measuring its performance, and optimizing wherever I can, including better utilizing all of the available CPU cores by rewriting certain algorithms to run in multiple parallel threads. This update is just the beginning, and there's more work to be done, but already I have made very significant performance improvements to audio/visual effects, ship A.I., and general gameplay code. I haven't even done any work optimizing physics or crew A.I., and already players are reporting great improvements in framerates, especially in large battles and with large ships.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Another improvement I made, which is not technically an <i>optimization</i> per se but should still improve the game's overall framerate, is that now the game will automatically slow down the game simulation when the framerate falls below a certain number. (By default 30 FPS, but you can change it to 60 FPS or disable it entirely.) While this feature isn't perfect and you may still experience framerates lower than 30 FPS, falling below 30 FPS should no longer cause the framerate to plummet all the way down to 4 FPS.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Lastly, for those of you with laptops that have both integrated Intel and dedicated Nvidia graphics, this update should now make the game use the dedicated Nvidia graphics by default, improving performance in graphics-bottlenecked situations such as when running at a very high resolution.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
New Language Translations</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The 0.15.4 update introduced the <a href="https://forum.cosmoteer.net/d/10208-cosmoteer-translation-project">Cosmoteer Translation Project</a>, which is a community-driven effort to translate Cosmoteer from English into as many other languages as possible. This project has proven hugely successful in a very short period of time, initially introducing German, Spanish, French, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese translations. And this update adds Brazilian Portuguese, Dutch, and Latin-American Spanish translations, as well as improvements to the already-existing translations.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If you would like to help translate Cosmoteer into your language or find an error that you'd like to help fix, please head over to the <a href="https://forum.cosmoteer.net/d/10208-cosmoteer-translation-project">Cosmoteer Translation Project</a> and lend a hand!</div>
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<h3>
... And more!</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
This update also has a handful of other fixes and improvements, which you can read about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.</div>
Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-56401749304637238012019-10-18T17:41:00.000-07:002019-10-18T17:41:24.408-07:00Cosmoteer 0.15.4 - Crew Diversity, Language Translations, & Tech ImprovementsCosmoteer update 0.15.4 is now available for <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.15.4%20Setup.exe">direct download</a> and auto-update via Steam! This update makes the crew a lot more visually diverse with a variety of skin colors, hair colors, and hair styles. It also adds community-created language translations for German, Russian, French, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese. And lastly, it upgrades the underlying technology powering Cosmoteer, which should improve performance and make it possible for players with 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems to play multiplayer with each other.<br /><br /><h2 style="text-align: center;">
What's New</h2>
<h3>
Crew Diversity</h3>
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<br /></div>
<div>
For many years, the people who have inhabited Cosmoteer's ships have all looked like clones of the same light-skinned, short brown-haired, male-looking person. Honestly, as someone who believes in the value of diversity, I've been pretty embarrassed by how homogeneous Cosmoteer's crew are. Science fiction media like Star Trek and Star Wars, which Cosmoteer is obviously very inspired by, have long portrayed a more diverse future as an ideal that we should strive for. Cosmoteer has for a very long time failed to live up to that ideal.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
I hope that this latest update is a significant step towards living up to that ideal of a more diverse future. While still nameless and with identical abilities, the people that crew Cosmoteer's ships now appear more visually diverse with a variety of skin tones, hair colors, and hair styles. And while Cosmoteer does not have any explicit notion of "gender" coded into the game, some of the hair styles evoke traditional male or female sensibilities, at least by our early 21st century standards. (But who's to really say how fashion will have changed hundreds of years from now.)</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E7Gfnv3P9lo/XaomUMBaAEI/AAAAAAAANO8/8Wdh8eK_NXkrbZvuuwppS5XbhK1X2wfkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/unknown.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="395" data-original-width="587" height="215" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E7Gfnv3P9lo/XaomUMBaAEI/AAAAAAAANO8/8Wdh8eK_NXkrbZvuuwppS5XbhK1X2wfkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/unknown.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
Language Translations</h3>
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<br /></div>
<div>
This is the first update to include translations created by Cosmoteer players as part of the Cosmoteer Translation Project. This is a community-driven effort to translate Cosmoteer from English into as many languages as possible. Initially with this update, Cosmoteer can now be played in German, Russian, French, Spanish, and both simplified and traditional Chinese. These translations are very much a work-in-progress and may contain errors and omissions. If you want to help translate Cosmoteer into your language, head over to the <a href="https://forum.cosmoteer.net/d/10208-cosmoteer-translation-project">Cosmoteer Translation Project</a> to read more about it.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x62abw-Ez1o/XaooTHeFLsI/AAAAAAAANPI/EwACo9W1vXcMrXY44djMnTr23VV_LhuqQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/2019-10-18%2B14_01_24.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="632" data-original-width="992" height="253" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x62abw-Ez1o/XaooTHeFLsI/AAAAAAAANPI/EwACo9W1vXcMrXY44djMnTr23VV_LhuqQCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/2019-10-18%2B14_01_24.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
Tech Upgrade</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
Cosmoteer is coded in C#, a programming language created by Microsoft. C# itself runs on top of a technology platform they also created called the ".NET Framework". Although it still works great and has been updated many times over the years, the .NET Framework is fundamentally a pretty old technology, having been around since 2001. Over the past few years, Microsoft has been working on a successor to .NET Framework called ".NET Core", a more modern and much improved technology. Earlier this year, Microsoft announced that further development of .NET Framework was being stopped in favor of concentrating on .NET Core. And just a few weeks ago .NET Core 3.0 was released and included all the features needed for Cosmoteer, which finally allowed me to switch to it from .NET Framework.<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
There were a lot of advantages to switching to .NET Core:</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>The most immediately noticeable advantage is that performance has been significantly improved. In some situations you might see framerate as much as double.</li>
<li>.NET Core doesn't require a separate framework to be installed on the player's computer, which took time and was prone to errors. </li>
<li>.NET Core allows players using 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems to play with each other, which was not possible under .NET Framework.</li>
<li>.NET Core paves the way for supporting Mac OS and Linux. Cosmoteer doesn't support those yet, but .NET Core brings the game one big step closer to that future.</li>
</ul>
<div>
The only major disadvantage to .NET Core is that now Cosmoteer's download and installation size is much larger, because it no longer installs the .NET Framework separately and has to include everything it needs to run within the application itself. The new installer is about 200 MB, more than twice as big as the old installer.</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
... And more!</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
This update also has a handful of other fixes and improvements, which you can read about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-60921410740677005382019-10-04T16:17:00.000-07:002019-10-05T06:51:26.899-07:00Cosmoteer 0.15.3 - Medium & Large ReactorsCosmoteer update 0.15.3 is now available for <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.15.3%20Setup.exe">direct download</a> and auto-update via Steam! This update adds two larger reactor sizes, a 3x3 "Medium" reactor and a 4x4 "Large" reactor, in addition to the existing 2x2 "Small" reactor.<br />
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<br /></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
What's New</h2>
<h3>
Medium & Large Reactors</h3>
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<br /></div>
<div>
The Medium Reactor is a larger 3x3 variant of the existing 2x2 "Small" Reactor. It costs twice as much but produces three times as much power, making it overall more cost-effective than an equivalent number of Small Reactors.</div>
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<div>
The Large Reactor is an even larger 4x4 version. It costs four times as much as the Small Reactor but produces <i>nine</i> times as much power, making it by far the more cost-effective option for large ships.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FdCfRen5YfQ/XZfOfIlznzI/AAAAAAAANKc/kNMnmiw9rmsHGhuep7xwN7hLD5ZkPVa3wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/reactor.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="361" height="318" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FdCfRen5YfQ/XZfOfIlznzI/AAAAAAAANKc/kNMnmiw9rmsHGhuep7xwN7hLD5ZkPVa3wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/reactor.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div>
In addition to producing power more rapidly, these new reactors also make <i>bigger</i> batteries. The Medium Reactor produces batteries that are twice the size compared to the Small Reactor, and the Large Reactor makes batteries three times the size of the Small Reactor. This allows crew to carry much more power per trip, further cutting down on the overall cost of using Medium and Large reactors compared to using multiple Small Reactors.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
These new reactors have their own downsides, though. Most importantly, the Medium and Large Reactors have <i>much</i> larger explosions when they are destroyed, so you'll need to be very careful about protecting them. Here's an example of a Large Reactor exploding:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oIcIthWnXVo/XZfQTFNPwaI/AAAAAAAANKo/5fbKpes4WqITuaWOJP7M-ceTwaFXhvoHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/reactor_boom.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="415" data-original-width="413" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oIcIthWnXVo/XZfQTFNPwaI/AAAAAAAANKo/5fbKpes4WqITuaWOJP7M-ceTwaFXhvoHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/reactor_boom.gif" width="318" /></a></div>
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<div>
Additionally, when crew pick up batteries from a Medium or Large reactor, it takes a small amount of time to fill the batteries. A Medium Reactor battery takes 0.5 seconds to fill, and a Large Reactor battery takes a full second to fill. (Small Reactor batteries still fill instantly.) This makes Medium and Large reactors less useful for directly supplying power-hungry systems like Shields and Ion Beams than the Small Reactor.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
The most effective way to utilize Medium and Large reactors is to have them in central locations relatively far from the weapons and other systems that need their power, but to have closer Power Storage rooms to quickly supply power. Your crew will pick up power from the Medium or Large Reactor and carry it to the Power Storage (ideally utilizing Moving Walkways for maximum speed) where, upon delivery, the double- or triple-size battery will "split" into multiple single-size batteries, ready for quick delivery to the nearby systems. You can use the crew A.I. customization tools added in the previous updates to setup smart "supply chains" between reactors and storages.</div>
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<h3>
... And More!</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
This update also has a handful of other fixes and improvements, which you can read about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-77882805008238568622019-09-20T18:30:00.000-07:002019-09-20T18:30:49.559-07:00Cosmoteer 0.15.2 - Reactor & Factory AssignmentsCosmoteer update 0.15.2 is now available for <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.15.2%20Setup.exe">direct download</a> and auto-update via Steam! This update allows you to assign reactors, factories, and storages to supply other parts on your ship, prioritizing supplying ammo or power to those parts and preventing them from supplying any other parts. It also improves the camera by adding auto-tracking of on-screen ships, plus a handful of other improvements and fixes.<div>
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
What's New</h2>
<h3>
<br /></h3>
<h3>
Reactor & Factory Assignment</h3>
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<br /></div>
<div>
The previous update, 0.15.1, added the ability to assign squads of crew to exclusively prioritize specific weapons and other ship systems. Now, the 0.15.2 update brings a similar feature to reactors, factories, and storages:</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
If you open Crew mode and click on the "behavior" tab, you will now be able to select a supplier (reactor, factory, or storage) by left-clicking on it and then right-click on another weapon or ship system you want that you want to supply. The targeted weapon or system will then prefer to get its power or ammo from that supplier whenever possible, and the reactor, factory, or storage itself will then never supply anything else which it isn't targeting.</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wxU2NijravE/XYV5PM-xrUI/AAAAAAAANJY/ytNJUXwQF2QgYpmlrB7NiQPL4VULs6sPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/assignment.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="1138" height="253" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wxU2NijravE/XYV5PM-xrUI/AAAAAAAANJY/ytNJUXwQF2QgYpmlrB7NiQPL4VULs6sPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/assignment.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div>
You can use this feature to further optimize your ships. For example, if you want to make sure your crew will never go to a farther reactor to pick up power for a laser blaster, then you can simply assign the closest reactor to that laser blaster and then any crew picking up power for it will only ever pick up power from the assigned reactor. You can even use this to create "storage chains", such as assigning a factory to a storage, that storage to another storage, and so forth, reducing the distance that any single crew has to walk across your ship.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Related to this feature is a change to the behavior of when you assign a crew squad to a factory. In the previous update, a crew squad assigned to a factory would only ever pick up power for that factory and would <i>not</i> pick up ammo <i>from</i> that factory to deliver to other weapons, unless the squad was also assigned to those weapons. But in this update, a crew squad assigned to a factory (or reactor or storage) will now also pick up ammo or power from it and deliver to any weapons or other systems, even if they aren't specifically assigned to those. If you don't want the crew to either supply power to, or pick up ammo from, a factory, then you can simply disable those jobs in the crew's role's job priorities.</div>
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<br /></div>
<h3>
Camera Auto-Tracking</h3>
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<br /></div>
<div>
One of the big things I learned <a href="https://blog.cosmoteer.net/2019/09/cosmoteer-pax-west-0151.html">playtesting Cosmoteer at PAX West</a> was that new players often struggle to control the game's camera, especially during combat as the ships are almost always moving. Yes, the game for a long time has had various features for locking the camera on ships, but it takes a while to learn how to use those features, and until you do, trying to keep the ships on screen can be pretty frustrating.</div>
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<div>
So in order to make the game less frustrating for new players, this update also adds a simple "auto tracking" feature to the player's camera. Basically, unless you have specifically locked the camera on a ship or the eye icon, the camera will now automatically match the velocity of and move with any ship on the screen, keeping it in the same relative location. If there are multiple ships on screen, it will simply match the average velocity of all of the ships. This feature should greatly reduce the need to use the other camera-locking features (which of course are still available), but if you don't like it, you can simply turn it off in the camera settings.</div>
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<h3>
... And more!</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
This update also has a handful of other fixes and improvements, which you can read about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-13506290913131743692019-09-07T14:51:00.002-07:002019-09-07T15:13:33.327-07:00Cosmoteer @ PAX West & Update 0.15.1Last weekend I attended <a href="https://west.paxsite.com/">PAX West</a> in Seattle to showcase Cosmoteer as part of <a href="https://indiemegabooth.com/">Indie Megabooth</a>. PAX was a ton of fun, and working with Indie Megabooth made the experience so much easier than if I had to do everything myself, so I am greatly appreciative of all the effort they put in to making PAX a success for Cosmoteer! I estimate that about a hundred people got to play the game on the expo floor, and the reception seemed overwhelmingly positive, making me more optimistic than ever about Cosmoteer's future success!<br />
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Here are a couple photos of my booth at PAX:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RbaQN5s9mXo/XXQhuP9tbwI/AAAAAAAANF4/zVXdSWEJuDg6tqxhhCHv40bH1Q7rsDaAwCLcBGAs/s1600/MVIMG_20190830_084017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RbaQN5s9mXo/XXQhuP9tbwI/AAAAAAAANF4/zVXdSWEJuDg6tqxhhCHv40bH1Q7rsDaAwCLcBGAs/s320/MVIMG_20190830_084017.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-knC0yRGM9yM/XXQhxj5EbdI/AAAAAAAANGA/VLYwxZQl8fs3FEcdOvpZ20x-kXF46nY0gCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_20190830_141306.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-knC0yRGM9yM/XXQhxj5EbdI/AAAAAAAANGA/VLYwxZQl8fs3FEcdOvpZ20x-kXF46nY0gCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_20190830_141306.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
If you're interested, I also gave a couple interviews about Cosmoteer. I didn't announce anything new that active followers of Cosmoteer don't already know about, but if you've ever wondered how I sound and look, here you go:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJ3Lmh7K-mo">GeekGamer.tv</a> (video)</li>
<li><a href="https://www.spreaker.com/user/gamehounds/pax-west-19-cosmoteer">GameHounds</a> (podcast)</li>
</ul>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Cosmoteer 0.15.1</h2>
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<br /></div>
<div>
In other news, Cosmoteer update 0.15.1 is now available for <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.15.1a%20Setup.exe">direct download</a> and auto-update via Steam! (This news actually comes about a week late since the update was released last weekend while I was still at PAX, and I didn't have time to write up a new post, but better late than never!)</div>
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<div>
Like most updates, 0.15.1 has a variety of improvements and fixes, but the major new feature is the ability to "assign" crew squads to do jobs for specific weapons and other ship parts. To do this, select the squad's bedroom and then right-click on the weapon or part you want to assign them to. While assigned, crew will prioritize doing jobs for the assigned part and will <i>not</i> do jobs for <i>any</i> other parts. This will override any custom 1-10 priorities that have been set. (To assign a squad to multiple parts, hold Shift while right-clicking. Role priorities will still be used to choose between multiple assigned parts.)</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1qdnx-J8ZH8/XXQlcWq4-JI/AAAAAAAANGQ/NhcASHl9s9Q0KviP2JABnPnCwNbSvDpQACLcBGAs/s1600/Annotation%2B2019-09-07%2B144700.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="311" data-original-width="537" height="185" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1qdnx-J8ZH8/XXQlcWq4-JI/AAAAAAAANGQ/NhcASHl9s9Q0KviP2JABnPnCwNbSvDpQACLcBGAs/s320/Annotation%2B2019-09-07%2B144700.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div>
You can use this feature to optimize your crew's efficiency and to prevent them from wandering off to other parts of your ship without having to resort to compartmentalization.</div>
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Read about all the other improvements and fixes in this update in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-88733676731112211532019-08-16T13:21:00.000-07:002019-08-16T13:21:44.732-07:00Cosmoteer 0.15.0 - Crew Squads, Roles, and Priority CustomizationCosmoteer update 0.15.0 is now available for <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.15.0%20Setup.exe">direct download</a> and auto-update via Steam! This is a major update that adds crew squads, roles, and job priority customization. Here's how it works:<div>
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Crew are organized into "squads" of 2 or 6, where every crew bunk or quarters is a squad. If you want, you can manually move individual crew between squads by going into the crew U.I., selecting the "CREW" tab, selecting the individual crew, and right-clicking on the bunk or quarters you want to move them to.<div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RZil5Mwoocg/XVcLl3fcHWI/AAAAAAAANAk/Bh95qJccx_UoDcTL-kXyjkNx089_srGuQCLcBGAs/s1600/Annotation%2B2019-08-16%2B130109.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="432" data-original-width="812" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RZil5Mwoocg/XVcLl3fcHWI/AAAAAAAANAk/Bh95qJccx_UoDcTL-kXyjkNx089_srGuQCLcBGAs/s400/Annotation%2B2019-08-16%2B130109.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Your ship also has one or more "roles" for its crew. Each squad is assigned a role for the entire squad, which you can do in the crew U.I. in the "ROLES" tab by selecting the bunk/quarters and then clicking the button for the desired role. Each role can have a custom name, shirt color (which is also the color of their bedsheets!), and set of job priorities. You can create up to 20 roles per ship.<div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sq__OJNyEIg/XVcNmMx_YWI/AAAAAAAANAw/5pvoV9-y4P4d-USLLIPWTmS1gjf06aYGgCLcBGAs/s1600/2019-08-16%2B13_09_43.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="649" data-original-width="998" height="260" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sq__OJNyEIg/XVcNmMx_YWI/AAAAAAAANAw/5pvoV9-y4P4d-USLLIPWTmS1gjf06aYGgCLcBGAs/s400/2019-08-16%2B13_09_43.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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To customize the name, color, or job priorities for a role, click the little "hamburger" menu button in the corner of the big role button and select "Edit Role". This will open up a window allowing you to customize the role. To customize the role's job priorities, click on the "Job Priorities" tab, which will allow you to set the priority of each job for each ship part. Each job can be set to a priority between 1 and 10, where a higher priority number will take precedence over a lower priority number (i.e., crew will do a priority 10 job before doing a priority 1 job). You can also click the "no" sign to disable that job completely for that role, so crew with that role will never do that job.<div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JkLIsFguK1E/XVcO3iPmOPI/AAAAAAAANA8/GQZ6gqI-Wkop4Ea0u4MZZ4NzSi3SGphewCLcBGAs/s1600/Annotation%2B2019-08-16%2B131507.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="498" data-original-width="552" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JkLIsFguK1E/XVcO3iPmOPI/AAAAAAAANA8/GQZ6gqI-Wkop4Ea0u4MZZ4NzSi3SGphewCLcBGAs/s400/Annotation%2B2019-08-16%2B131507.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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As a side-effect of switching to this new customizable priority system, the A.I. logic that controls the crew has actually been significantly simplified. Before, the A.I. would make complicated calculations to determine the priority of a given task, taking into consideration things like how much power/ammo a part already had. But that's all gone. Now, if a part needs 3 batteries, 3 "supply battery" jobs will be created, each with the same 1-10 priority (whatever priority you set that job to). Hopefully this change should make it easier to understand why your crew are doing the things that they are doing.<div>
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You can read about all the other improvements and fixes in this update in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.</div>
Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-91886325252126984442019-07-26T11:29:00.004-07:002019-07-26T11:29:48.303-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.15 - Bug Fixes & Balance TweaksCosmoteer update 0.14.14 is now available for <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.15%20Setup.exe">direct download</a> and auto-update via Steam. This is a small update that fixes a handful of bugs and tweaks Tractor Beam balance.<div>
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Tractor Beams now take 5 seconds to ramp up to full power after firing, including when switching from pull to push or vice-versa. They also now rotate much more slowly, making it a lot more difficult to stay focused on a moving target without shutting down. These changes were made because Tractor Beams had proven too powerful at spinning and effectively disabling enemy ships in multiplayer.</div>
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You can read about all the changes and fixes in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-21841930320314782752019-07-05T15:36:00.000-07:002019-07-05T15:36:42.715-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.14 - "Aim Assist" + Download Free on Steam!Cosmoteer update 0.14.14 is now available for <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.14b%20Setup.exe">direct download</a> and, for the first time ever, can also be downloaded on Steam, still for free! This is a small update that adds an optional "Aim Assist" to Direct Control Mode and fixes a handful of bugs.<br />
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What's New</h2>
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"Aim Assist" in Direct Control Mode</h3>
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The recent 0.14.12 update added the much-requested "Direct Control Mode" that allows players to manually fly ships with the keyboard and aim & fire weapons using the mouse. While the ability to fly your ship with the keyboard was well-received, many players found aiming weapons using the mouse to be too difficult, putting them at a big disadvantage.</div>
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This latest update seeks to address that problem by adding an "Aim Assist" feature. Basically, your weapons will automatically try to figure out what you're aiming at and target that thing while taking into consideration projectile speed and the target's velocity, just like they already do when you're not using Direct Control Mode.</div>
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In this GIF, we can see how the laser blasters are automatically targeting the parts of the enemy ship closest to the mouse cursor instead of firing directly at the cursor's location:</div>
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Also note the new faint-red dotted circle around the enemy ship. This indicates the ship that your weapons will aim at and is typically the ship closest to your mouse cursor. (Friendly ships will have a gray dotted circle, indicating that they are friendly and cannot be hurt.) You can also press the Alt key to lock-on to a ship, making your weapons always target that ship even if another ship is closer. Locking-on to a friendly ship will also turn on "friendly fire" against it, allowing your weapons to target and damage the friendly ship.</div>
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Aim Assist is an optional feature that is turned on by default but can be turned off in the gameplay settings.</div>
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Steam Downloads, Updates, and Cloud</h3>
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By popular demand, Cosmoteer can now be downloaded and updated using Steam, the most popular digital distribution platform for PC games! To download Cosmoteer on Steam, head over to <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/799600/Cosmoteer_Starship_Architect__Commander/">Cosmoteer's Steam page</a> and click the "Download Demo" button on the right hand side:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_52dRDaIHpo/XR_QFfAj92I/AAAAAAAAM6I/TY_V8rJjnBMHrgacH62cLN_CVucr3Ma6ACLcBGAs/s1600/Annotation%2B2019-07-05%2B153247.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="306" data-original-width="437" height="224" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_52dRDaIHpo/XR_QFfAj92I/AAAAAAAAM6I/TY_V8rJjnBMHrgacH62cLN_CVucr3Ma6ACLcBGAs/s320/Annotation%2B2019-07-05%2B153247.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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(Even though it's called a "Demo", it's really the full version of Cosmoteer and is not limited in any way. Making it a demo was simply the best option for allowing the game to be downloaded on Steam without giving away the paid version for free. Please note that the demo will likely be removed before Cosmoteer launches as a paid game.)</div>
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If you don't want to download Cosmoteer using Steam, that's fine, you can still download the "standalone" version like normal. But there are a couple big advantages to downloading Cosmoteer on Steam:</div>
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First, Steam will automatically keep Cosmoteer updated, and Steam's smart patching software will only download the portions of the game that have changed instead of having to download the whole game with every update, saving you time and bandwidth.</div>
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And second, Cosmoteer supports the Steam Cloud for saved game and saved ship files, automatically backing up your games and ships and syncing them across all your computers. You can store up to a whopping 10GB of saved games and ships on the Steam Cloud. That's about 60,000 saved ship files!</div>
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Cosmoteer will display how much space you're using when saving or loading a saved game or ship:</div>
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... And more!</h3>
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This update also has a handful of other fixes and improvements, which you can read about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-72323158593088272922019-06-21T14:42:00.000-07:002019-06-21T14:42:58.344-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.13 - Quality of Life ImprovementsCosmoteer update 0.14.13 is now <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.13%20Setup.exe">available for download</a>! This is a relatively small quality-of-life update that improves multiplayer latency (by adding support for "peer-to-peer" networking), adds an "auto" mode to Tractor Beams, tweaks mine balance, and fixes a handful of bugs.<br />
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What's New</h2>
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Peer-to-Peer Networking</h3>
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Prior to this latest update, playing Cosmoteer online (i.e., on a server as opposed to on a L.A.N.) required all network communications between players' computers to be routed through the server. This meant that every ship command, every gameplay update, every chat message, had to first be sent to the server, which would then forward the message to the other players. This basically worked, but created a lot of network latency (long response times to player commands) for players that were located far from the server (which is in New York, USA). For example, imagine two players in Sydney, Australia wanting to play multiplayer with each other: All of their network communications would have to travel halfway around the world to New York before coming right back to Sydney, which added a huge amount to their network latency. Wouldn't it be better if those player's computers just talked directly to each other?</div>
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It would! This is where "peer-to-peer" networking comes in: Instead of routing all network communications through the server, all the server does is help setup a direct connection between the host of the game and all the other players in it. If the players are close to each other or far from the server, this can greatly reduce latency and make multiplayer a better experience for everyone in the game!</div>
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For the most part this "just works" and you don't have to think about it at all. In some cases a peer-to-peer connection might not be able to be established, such as if you're playing on a restrictive school, work, or mobile network, or you have an unusually restrictive router. But even if a peer-to-peer connection can't be established, that won't stop you from playing, it will just mean that the network communications need to be sent through the server and you may experience more latency.</div>
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I am aware that some players may be wary of doing anything that could reveal their I.P. address to other players (especially streamers and others who may be at high risk for things like DDOS attacks and doxing). For that reason, there is also an option under the multiplayer settings to turn off peer-to-peer networking, which will force all network communications to be routed through the game server.</div>
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Multiplayer Game Searching, Sorting, & Filtering</h3>
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Since multiplayer support was added to Creative Mode in the previous update, the number of multiplayer games has nearly tripled! This is awesome, but it also makes finding the ideal game for <i>you</i> a bit more challenging!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hp6UDkhWpKY/XQ1IZAxKjZI/AAAAAAAAMy4/QPRK84NE32cZC_EaXTxwurOJu6mIDqYAgCLcBGAs/s1600/Annotation%2B2019-06-21%2B141300.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="637" height="216" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hp6UDkhWpKY/XQ1IZAxKjZI/AAAAAAAAMy4/QPRK84NE32cZC_EaXTxwurOJu6mIDqYAgCLcBGAs/s400/Annotation%2B2019-06-21%2B141300.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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And so, by popular request, this new update adds the ability to search, sort, and filter the list of multiplayer games. Typing in the search box will hide any games whose game name or host name don't match what you typed. You can also sort the list of games by various things like open status, ping, and credits. And you can filter the list of games, hiding those that are closed or don't match the desired game mode, credit range, or ping.</div>
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Tractor Beam "Auto" Mode</h3>
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Another commonly-requested feature was the ability to tell a tractor beam to automatically push or pull to keep the other ship at the desired distance. You can now do that! Selecting a Tractor Beam and clicking its mode button will now display a 3rd "auto" option:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aPjsbFCJEec/XQ1K9LrPvoI/AAAAAAAAMzE/Bj3xEYYDEts0GHuG-U4YXegrXS2RgrcogCLcBGAs/s1600/Annotation%2B2019-06-21%2B142317.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="199" data-original-width="202" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aPjsbFCJEec/XQ1K9LrPvoI/AAAAAAAAMzE/Bj3xEYYDEts0GHuG-U4YXegrXS2RgrcogCLcBGAs/s1600/Annotation%2B2019-06-21%2B142317.png" /></a></div>
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When this option is chosen, the Tractor Beam will <i>attempt</i> to keep the targeted ship at a specific distance, automatically switching to pull when the target is too far and switching to push when it is too near. The actual distance it tries to maintain is whatever distance you set when attacking or following the ship. (If you target the tractor beam on a ship that you aren't attacking or following, it will default to a distance of 125 meters.)</div>
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Improved Mines</h3>
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"Mines need a buff!", you say! I hear you loud and clear! And so they've received one: Mines now release twice the number of shrapnel, which now also flies twice as far, making it harder to avoid them:</div>
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... And more!</h3>
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This update also has a number of other fixes and minor improvements, which you can read about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.</div>
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Have fun!</div>
Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-83599681276463809642019-06-07T15:09:00.000-07:002019-06-07T15:09:41.183-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.12 - Play Creative Mode with your friends!Cosmoteer update 0.14.12 is now <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.12%20Setup.exe">available for download</a>! This update allows makes Creative Mode available in multiplayer so that you can build and battle ships with your friends. It also adds ship building and repairing to Domination mode, allows the game speed to be changed or paused in all multiplayer modes, and improves the game save/load menu.<br />
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What's New</h2>
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Multiplayer Creative Mode</h3>
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Creative Mode can now be selected in multiplayer games! Simply select "Creative Mode" under the Game Mode drop-down.</div>
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Multiplayer Creative Mode works almost exactly like the existing single-player Creative Mode. Players can spawn any ships from their own Ship Library or create a new ship from scratch. Multiple players can edit the same ship at the same time, allowing for collaborative ship designs. Ships can then be battled against each other or given an A.I. so you can sit back and watch the carnage. You can adjust the game speed and pause at any time, and you can even see the other player's mouse cursor to make communication and collaboration easier. </div>
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Multiplayer Creative Mode also supports saving and loading saved game files, so you can save an in-progress build session and then resume it later. All Creative Mode saved games can be loaded in both single-player and multiplayer regardless of where they were originally saved.</div>
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While most Creative Mode features are available in multiplayer, a few are not due to their low priority and difficulty making work over a network. Most notably this includes the galaxy map (multiplayer creative mode is limited to a single sector) and the battle helper.</div>
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You may also run into some issues when multiple people are building on the same ship at the same time. For example, if two players build something on the same spot at approximately the same time, one of the player's changes will overwrite the other's. Additionally, each player has their own Undo & Redo history so that when you press Undo you won't revert something that another player built, but this also means that it may run into situations where you can't undo a change you made because that change conflicts with a change that another player made.</div>
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Other Multiplayer Improvements</h3>
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Thanks to technology improvements that were implemented to support multiplayer Creative Mode, the other player-vs-player multiplayer game modes have also received a couple of small improvements.</div>
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First, all multiplayer modes now support pausing and changing the game speed during the battle, although this feature must be specifically turned on by the host. (By default, no one can pause or change the game speed, but the host has options to allow either anyone or only the host to pause change the game speed during the battle.)</div>
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And second, Domination mode now allows ships to be repaired and modified during the battle. Only ships that are within their own spawn areas can be repaired or modified. The host can turn off this new feature if desired.</div>
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Improved Saved Game Menu</h3>
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As a nice quality-of-life improvement, the menu for saving and loading games now shows a screenshot thumbnail of the saved game as well as the game mode (Bounty Hunter or Creative Mode) along with the existing name and date to make it easier to identify the particular save file you want to load, overwrite, or delete.</div>
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Note that while pre-0.14.12 saved game files are still supported, the screenshot thumbnail and game mode will not be displayed for them. (You can load and re-save to add those if you want.)</div>
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... And more!</h3>
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This update also has a handful of other improvements and fixes, which you can read all about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.</div>
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Enjoy!</div>
Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-19006301513820225732019-05-24T14:54:00.000-07:002019-05-24T14:54:39.919-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.11 - "Arcade" Style Ship ControlsCosmoteer update 0.14.11 is now <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.11%20Setup.exe">available for download</a>! This update adds a "Direct Control Mode" which allows you to fly your ships "arcade" style using the keyboard and aim and fire weapons using the mouse. It also adds a handful of improvements to the regular tactical ship controls, makes balance changes to Domination mode, and has a bunch of other minor improvements and fixes.<br />
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What's New</h2>
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Direct Control Mode</h3>
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"Direct Control Mode" is a new mode that you can turn on that lets you fly your ship using the W, A, S, D, Q, and E keys (or the arrow keys) and aim and fire your weapons using the mouse.</div>
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To use Direct Control Mode, you simply have to enable it by pressing Ctrl+D or clicking its button:</div>
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Once enabled, you can use the W and A keys to move your ship forward and backwards, the A and D keys to rotate, and the Q and E keys to "strafe" from side to side. You can also use the mouse to aim and fire your weapons; simply move the mouse cursor to where you want your weapons to aim and click to fire.</div>
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By default, all turreted weapons like lasers and cannons are fired using the left mouse button, and all fixed-direction weapons like ion beams and railguns are fired using the right mouse button. But you can change what buttons fire which weapons by selecting the weapon, clicking its "extras" menu, and changing the binding:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h0Yy-BqboXo/XOhiiGfhu0I/AAAAAAAAMwY/zRP9h9-1dxA5F14Q6Ro9UahI5wj4BjJUgCLcBGAs/s1600/dc%2Bbinding.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="255" data-original-width="739" height="110" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h0Yy-BqboXo/XOhiiGfhu0I/AAAAAAAAMwY/zRP9h9-1dxA5F14Q6Ro9UahI5wj4BjJUgCLcBGAs/s320/dc%2Bbinding.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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There are also lots of options for customizing Direct Control Mode in the game settings. For example, if you want to fly your ship using the keyboard but want the A.I. to still aim and fire your weapons, you can disable direct weapons control. Of if you want your ship to automatically rotate to face the mouse cursor, you can turn that on too.</div>
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<h3>
Tactical Control Improvements</h3>
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For those of you who still prefer the existing "tactical" ship controls, don't worry, they haven't been forgotten about either! In fact, the existing ship controls have also received a couple of much-requested improvements!</div>
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First of all, the much-maligned collision avoidance is now optional on <i>all</i> ship commands, not just movement. To disable collision avoidance with any ship command, just hold the X key while issuing the command. Or if you'd prefer that to be the default, you can simply disable the "Enable Collision Avoidance" game setting. (The existing "Force Move" command has been removed since holding the X key while moving does the same thing.)</div>
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Another frequently-requested feature was a way to tell your ship to rotate to face an enemy ship <i>and stay rotated toward it</i> as it moves. This is now possible by using the "Rotate" command and clicking on another ship you want your own ship to stay facing toward. You can also face toward a specific <i>part</i> of another ship by holding the Ctrl key and clicking on that part.</div>
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<h3>
Domination Mode Balance Updates</h3>
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Those of you who enjoy the multiplayer side of Cosmoteer may appreciate some balance changes that have been made to Domination mode as a result of feedback after <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYVF4keo0fs">last weekend's PVP tournament</a>. Specifically, the mechanics of capturing control points have changed so that, if multiple players are contesting a control point, it will no longer revert to neutral and instead will have its capture progress temporarily frozen. Additionally, the time it takes to capture a control point has been increased, and the random map generator has been tweaked to favor less distance between control points and to have spawn areas closer to the edges.</div>
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... And More!</h3>
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This update also has a handful of other improvements and fixes, which you can read all about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.</div>
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Enjoy!Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-83286475123615222082019-05-10T15:41:00.000-07:002019-05-10T15:41:38.686-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.10 - Ion Beam PrismsCosmoteer update 0.14.10 is now <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.10%20Setup.exe">available for download</a>! This update enhances the existing Ion Beam Emitter weapon and makes it <i>WAY</i> cooler by adding the Ion Beam Prism. It also makes a significant change to the game mechanics of structure pieces, as well as a handful of other improvements and fixes.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
What's New</h2>
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Ion Beam Prism</h3>
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The Ion Beam Prism is a new 2x2 exterior ship component that combines and redirects any ion beams that are shot into it, resulting in a potentially far more powerful beam:</div>
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The Ion Beam Prism is mounted on a swiveling turret and can aim in a full 360 degrees, albeit very slowly. This feature alone makes the Ion Beam Emitter a much more versatile weapon, though at a significant cost increase.</div>
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But the real power of the Ion Beam Prism lies in its ability to combine multiple beams into a single, stronger beam. This makes it easier to focus all the power of multiple Ion Beam Emitters onto a single enemy target, as well as allowing the emitters to be housed within the interior of the ship while only exposing a single or small number of (ideally well-protected) Ion Beam Prisms to enemy fire.</div>
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Combining multiple beams is not without cost though, since each additional beam contributes 25% less power than the previous beam. To maximize the power of a single ion beam, it is optimal to combine exactly two same-sized beams per prism. Combining more than two beams in a single prism, or combining two beams of significantly different sizes in a single prism, will result in considerable power loss.</div>
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Ion Beam Prisms are also very fragile, and if they are destroyed while a beam is being shot through it, the resulting ion explosion can devastate the surrounding area as well.</div>
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To use an Ion Beam Prism, just build one in front of an Ion Beam Emitter, and the Emitter will be smart enough to shoot when the Prism is aiming at the enemy. You can also link multiple Ion Beam Prisms together to form a chain by selecting an individual Prism and clicking the "Link" button.</div>
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<h3>
"Structure" Mechanics Changes</h3>
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The "structure" pieces (those little girder tiles that hold the ship together) have also received a significant change to how they interact with the weapons on their own ship. Previously, structure pieces would block any weapons on their own or allied ships from firing over them, meaning you couldn't put any structure in front of your weapons without blocking them. But in this update the game mechanics have changed so that your own weapons can now shoot over your own structure pieces. This should make it easier to build and use Ion Beam Prisms, as well as make it easier in general to create clever ship designs.</div>
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The way that enemy weapons interact with structure pieces is unchanged (enemy weapons will still fly over them while damaging the first structure piece), with the exception of missiles, which will now fly over structure without exploding, <i>unless</i> the missiles were specifically targeting the structure.</div>
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<h3>
... And More!</h3>
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This update also has a handful of other improvements, fixes, and modding features, which you can read all about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.<br /><br />Enjoy!Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-51249089209004711012019-04-26T14:48:00.000-07:002019-04-26T14:58:54.269-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.9 - New Multiplayer "Domination" Game ModeCosmoteer update 0.14.9 is now <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.9%20Setup.exe">available for download</a>! This update adds a new multiplayer competitive game mode called "Domination".<br />
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In Domination games, players vie to capture "control points". These are large, circular areas that, once captured, provide steady streams of income for the players or teams who control them. Players can then use this income to warp in new ships during the battle. Capturing more control points than your opponent will give you the upper hand to eventually defeat them.<br />
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The battle starts with most control points already owned by a player or team. To capture an enemy's control point, you must first fly one of your ships into its circle, which will start contesting it and eventually convert it to "neutral", meaning it is not owned by any team. The speed at which a control point is neutralized depends on the size of your fleet within the circle compared to the enemy's fleet within the circle.<br />
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Once neutralized, a control point can be captured and made your own simply be eliminating all enemy ships within it and defending it for a few seconds while your own ships capture it.<br />
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Final victory is assured by either capturing all control points or owning more control points than your opponent once the timer ticks down to zero.<br />
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Before the battle, you will pre-select a "loadout" of up to five ship designs. During the battle, you can spend the money you've earned from your control points to warp in new ships using any of those five designs. (And in a pinch, you can also swap out any of those five designs for any other design in your library.)<br />
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The purpose of this new game mode is to provide a deeper challenge that emphasizes having a variety of ship designs for different situations, that allows you the opportunity to counter the ships that the enemy uses, and that requires you to make strategic and tactical decisions during the course of the battle.<br />
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This update also has a handful of other minor improvements and fixes, which you can read about in detail in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-19807579284606614252019-04-12T11:35:00.001-07:002019-04-12T11:49:59.769-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.8 - Tractor BeamsCosmoteer update 0.14.8 is now <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.8%20Setup.exe">available for download</a>! This update adds a new support "weapon" system, the Tractor Beam Emitter.<br />
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The Tractor Beam Emitter is a very large, very expensive system that fires a beam of gravitational energy at other ships and objects. It has two modes of operation, "pull" and "push", and uses considerable amounts of power in both modes.<br />
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In "pull" mode, the tractor beam can "tether" to any object within 200 meters and then slowly pull it in with a weak gravitational force. While useful for pulling in debris and inanimate objects, that force isn't strong enough to pull in an enemy ship that is resisting it with its thrusters. However, once attached, the beam can then stretch up to 200 additional meters, and as the beam stretches, both its gravitational strength and power usage increase greatly, making the beam act similarly to a rubber band.<br />
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In "push" mode, the tractor beam acts as more of a "spring", pushing away ships and objects with a strength depending on how close the target is; closer targets will be pushed away with more force and will use more power while doing so.<br />
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Once you add a Tractor Beam Emitter to your ship, new buttons will be displayed that allow you to target the tractor beam onto other ships:<br />
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By default, tractor beams will aim for the center of the targeted ship, but you can also aim them at a specific part by holding the Ctrl key while targeting. Tractor Beam Emitters also use "pull" mode by default, which you can change by selecting the Tractor Beam Emitter and toggling their mode to "push".<br />
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Unlike all other weapons currently in Cosmoteer, Tractor Beam Emitters are "roof mounted", meaning they do <i>not</i> need to be placed on the edge of your ship to function; instead, they fire the beam over-top their own ship. But you'll still need to be mindful of where you place the tractor beam because they exert an "equal and opposite" force on their own ship, potentially "yanking" your ship around and exposing a weak side. (Of course, you can also use tractor beams to "yank" enemies as well!)<br />
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While Tractor Beam Emitters are the main new feature of this update, there are also a number of additional balance changes, bug fixes, and modding features.<br />
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Enjoy!Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-38650024878874758322019-03-29T15:35:00.000-07:002019-03-29T15:47:15.159-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.7 - New backgrounds, balance changes, interface improvements, and more!Cosmoteer update 0.14.7 is now <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.7%20Setup.exe">available for download</a>! This update includes new space backgrounds and planets, balance changes, user interface improvements, new modding features for your favorite mods, and a bunch of other quality-of-life improvements and fixes.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
What's New</h2>
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<h3>
New Backgrounds & Planets</h3>
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All of the space backgrounds and planets have been updated to look a lot nicer! More importantly, they do a much better job at matching the game's overall visual style than the old backgrounds. Here are a few examples:</div>
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<h3>
Balance Updates</h3>
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This update also makes a number of signficant balance changes such as tweaking Cannons to emphasize short-range brawling, allowing Railgun Accelerators to increase Railgun range, making E.M.P. and Nuclear Missiles easier to shoot down, and overhauling Point Defenses to have a much longer range. You can read the detailed list of balance changes in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a>.</div>
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<h3>
User Interface Improvements</h3>
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First on a long list of interface improvements is a long-requested feature: a detailed list of weapon & part statistics, which can be viewed by hovering the mouse cursor over a part and holding the Alt key:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oFT3gGW8eRU/XJ6ZaFD_jzI/AAAAAAAAMlo/OtxW0BBl4ook-usBqFY-PJtEM2N9hLz8ACLcBGAs/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="279" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oFT3gGW8eRU/XJ6ZaFD_jzI/AAAAAAAAMlo/OtxW0BBl4ook-usBqFY-PJtEM2N9hLz8ACLcBGAs/s400/Capture.PNG" width="217" /></a></div>
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Another long-requested feature was the ability to give ships a "creator" name and custom lore or description, both of which have been added to this update. Hovering over a ship in the Ship Library will display its name as well as creator and description, if it has any.</div>
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New and lapsed players may appreciate a revamped tutorial system with less-intrusive tutorial popups and an easier-to-navigate "How to Play" manual:</div>
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Multiplayer has also has received a number of other frequently-requested interface improvements, such as the ability for the host to assign ships to players, a button to force-start the game even if other players aren't ready, features to mute and kick players during a match, and an always-on-screen list of each player's score in Arena games.</div>
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<h3>
... And more!</h3>
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There are a ton more features and fixes in this update that you can read about in <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">the changelog</a> that weren't big enough to mention here. (Things like multiplayer performance improvements, new title screens, and math equation support when modding data files.)</div>
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Have fun!</div>
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Walt</div>
Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-18623281425035927912019-02-06T13:29:00.001-08:002019-02-06T13:29:24.726-08:00Cosmoteer 0.14.5 - Nukes, E.M.P.s, Mines, Flak, and more!!!At long last, after months of work, I'm very happy to finally announce that Cosmoteer's 0.14.5 update, by far the largest ever, is now done and <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/downloads/Cosmoteer%200.14.5%20Setup.exe">available for download</a>!<br />
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What's New</h2>
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Tactical Nuclear Torpedoes</h3>
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Tactical Nuclear Torpedoes are a new type of super-missile that cause massive damage in a large area. Unlike the conventional High Explosive Missiles, Nukes are slow, short-range, and unguided, but if you can get in close and hit them with a salvo, you can lay waste to your enemies.</div>
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Nukes are launched from the same launcher as the conventional missiles, and you can change what type of munition the launcher fires at any time, even during battle. So one tactic might be to pummel your enemy from afar with the High Explosive missiles to weaken their defenses, switch to nukes, and then swoop in close to let off a devastating nuclear salvo.</div>
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Nuclear Missile parts are manufactured by a new factory, the new Nuclear Torpedo Factory. This is a large and very expensive module that produces Nuke parts very slowly, so you'll need to be choosy about when to fire off your Nukes.</div>
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Electromagnetic Pulse Missiles</h3>
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Electromagnetic Pulse Missiles, or "E.M.P.s" for short, are a new support weapon that, like Electro-Bolters, drains power from enemy systems, but does so from afar and with a large area of effect in which power gets drained. They are even faster and longer-ranged than the conventional High Explosive missiles, making them ideal for taking out the enemy's shields or disabling their engines from afar.</div>
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E.M.P.s do have an Achilles' Heel though, which is that armor will act as a "lightning rod", attracting some of the power-draining electrical bolts.</div>
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Like Nukes, E.M.P.s are fired from the regular missile launcher, which can be switched to fire E.M.P.s at any time. They are manufactured in their own factory, the E.M.P. Missile Factory.</div>
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Proximity Mines</h3>
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Proximity Mines are a tactical armament that can be used to punish enemy ships for intruding into your space, for slowing down enemies in pursuit, or even, in niche situations, as a direct offensive weapon. Once a mine is launched and deployed, they will wait silently until an enemy ship ventures too close and then detonate, shooting out deadly piercing shrapnel in all directions.</div>
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The main drawback of Mines is that they need to deploy before becoming a threat, and they can only be deployed once they slow down to a sufficiently low speed, making them difficult to use as an offensive weapon on fast-moving ships.</div>
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Like Nukes and E.M.P.s, Mines are actually also fired from the regular missile launcher, meaning that you can freely switch between High Explosive Missiles, E.M.P.s, Nukes, and Mines at any time, even during battle.</div>
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They are manufactured by the Mine Factory, which uses both power <i>and</i> cannon ammunition to produce the mines. Unlike the other missiles, a single crewmember can carry an entire mine, making them fast to load into the launcher and fire, but they're slow to produce, so you may want to stock up on mines for when you need a lot of them.</div>
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Flak Batteries</h3>
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The new Flak Battery is a large quad-barreled weapon that can fire at both enemy ships <i>and</i> enemy missiles, mines, projectiles, and lasers. It's a good all-around defensive system and a decent anti-ship weapon, but it's limited by its short range and very narrow arc of fire.</div>
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Like the Cannons and Railguns, the Flak Battery uses standard cannon ammunition manufactured by the Cannon Ammo Factory.</div>
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... And much more!</h3>
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Nukes, E.M.P.s, Mines, and Flak are just the beginning of this update! The <a href="https://cosmoteer.net/history.html">changelog</a> is by far the longest ever and includes new features like revised area explosion mechanics, user interface improvements like shield health bars, balance changes, crew A.I. enhancements, performance optimizations, bug fixes, and a ton of new modding tools to make your favorite mods even more awesome.</div>
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Have fun!</div>
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Walt</div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://cosmoteer.net/"><b>Download Cosmoteer 0.14.5</b></a></h3>
Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9110643815354343550.post-59458457334729208502018-09-06T14:08:00.000-07:002018-09-06T14:08:55.918-07:00Cosmoteer 0.14.4 - Multiplayer 'Arena' ModeCosmoteer update 0.14.4 is now available! This update adds a new multiplayer mode called "Arena" along with multiplayer "rulesets", plus a ton of other features and fixes.<br />
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<b>Arena Mode</b><br />
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The new "Arena" multiplayer mode is intended to address some of the deficiencies of the old "Last Player Standing" mode. (Which still exists but has been combined with Team vs Team into a single mode called "Elimination".)<br />
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The problem with Last Player Standing is that, when playing with three or more players, it creates a standoff situation where none of the players are incentivized to attack first because doing so is almost always a poor decision for either or all of the players who fight first. This is both unfair to those players and often delays the start of combat in those games.<br />
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The Arena mode solves that by changing the victory condition from "be the last player standing" to one that rewards players for being aggressive: specifically, by awarding points to players for damaging and destroying enemy ships, and by allowing them to respawn when their own ships are destroyed and keep fighting. The player or team at the end of the match with the highest number of points is declared the winner.<br />
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Holding the spacebar at any time during a multiplayer battle will show you the scoreboard:<br />
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Once all of a player's ships are destroyed, they can respawn with a whole new fleet and rejoin the battle. Players can also choose manually respawn before their ships are destroyed, but doing so will cost them 25% of the points that their remaining ships are worth, and their old ships will remain on the battlefield for other players to destroy and earn points from.<br />
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While waiting to respawn, players can also choose to change any ships in their fleet, allowing players to choose ships to better counter their opponents.<br />
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This new Arena mode can be played with up to four teams or as a free-for-all.<br />
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<b>Elimination Mode</b><br />
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Since the old Team vs Team and Last Player Standing multiplayer modes were so similar, they have been combined into a single mode called "Elimination". This new mode supports up to four teams and free-for-alls, and its options can be configured to exactly recreate the old Team vs Team and Last Player Standing modes.<br />
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<b>Multiplayer Rulesets</b><br />
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This update also adds "rulesets" for multiplayer games. Rulesets are simply pre-defined configurations of game options that the host can select from, though the host is still free to customize the individual options as they desire.<br />
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Each multiplayer mode has a handful of "official" built-in rulesets. Arena mode has five "Free For All"-style rulesets for five different fleet values: 100K, 250K, 500K, 1M, and 2M. Elimination mode has ten official rulesets: five that recreate the old Team vs Team mode, and five that recreate the old Last Player Standing mode, each at those five different fleet values. When playing with an official ruleset, the multiplayer lobby will display the ruleset being used next to the game mode icon:<br />
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Players can also save their own custom rulesets for their own convenience, although these will not be displayed next to the mode icon in the lobby.Walt Destlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09992341815994604747noreply@blogger.com4