Battlestar Galactica Online – Closed Beta 1.3 Release Notes
15th December 2010
NEW KNOWN ISSUES[]
The following issues are introduced in the Closed Beta 1.3 build. We are aware of them and are working to fix them for the next build:
- Missiles are in the process of a major revision, which is not yet complete. At the present time, all missiles have the same agility and turn rates, which means that some Launcher systems are more powerful than intended
Some other minor issues are mentioned in the notes themselves, below.
ECONOMY[]
Main updates in Closed Beta 1.3:
Asteroid & Industrial Mining[]
- Resource frequencies have been revised across all star systems in the Veil Sector:
- The frequency of asteroids containing resources has been slightly increased in all star systems
- The proportion of asteroids containing Titanium has been increased in all star systems
- The proportion of asteroids containing Water has been slightly increased in lower Threat Level star systems
- The average resource yields of asteroids has been revised based on the changes to frequencies and data from previous builds
Loot & Rewards[]
- 'Trash Loot' items now have a colour-coded outline to indicate their approximate rarity and value
- Rewards from completed Assignments should now be placed directly into your Hold, rather than your Locker
GAMEPLAY[]
Main updates in Closed Beta 1.3:
Star Systems[]
- The NPC spawns, jump-in locations and other elements of the following star systems have been revised and updated (the rest of the star systems will be revised in future builds):
- Beta Antini
- 103 Heleb
- Tau Nehmet
- 101 Crucis
- Epsilon Krau
- Fenris
- Balent
- 69 Otaan
- Sigma Lyraes
- 74 Imsida
- 71 Duneyrr
- Denebol
- Alpha Extigens
- Tau Carinai
- Anachron
- Omicron Percei
- Spectris
- Wegelin
- Omicron Decimus
- 84 Cerbero
- Epsilon Iordiani
- Tau Altaar
- 51 Bonamist
- Zeidian
- 276 Exrun
- Planetoid numbers have been adjusted in all star systems
- A few star systems have had their Threat Levels adjusted slightly
- The 'dynamic spawn' system (when an enemy jumps in to attack you) has been revised to avoid overly frequent or rare attacks
Assignments[]
- Objectives and rewards for all Assignments have been revised
Outposts[]
- Outpost ships should now make more effective use of their weapons to defend themselves, and should no longer ignore enemies until they attack
- Outpost ships have been increased in size
- The rate at which Outpost progress decays has been slightly reduced
Durability[]
- Repairs to System Durability should now register immediately, rather than not showing up until you have undocked
- The Titanium cost to repair lost hull and system Durability has been reduced to 1 Titanium per 10 Durability points
- It is now possible to repair Hull and System Durability directly with Cubits, rather than having to purchase Titanium with Cubits, then use it to repair Durability
- Ships at 20% or less Hull Durability will suffer the following penalties until their Hull Durability is increased to above 20%:
- Maximum Hull Points will be reduced by 50%
- One Weapon slot will become inoperable
- One other system slot will become inoperable, according to the ship's role (Engine for Interceptors, Hull for Assaults and Computer for Commands)
- Upgrading a system to a higher level will automatically repair it to full Durability
- Upgrading a ship to the Advanced model will automatically repair it to its new, increased Durability value
Skills[]
- The FTL Spooling skill has been changed to Reactor Management, and now reduces the Tylium cost for FTL jumps
- All three Armored Combat skills have been revised:
- Armored Combat will now increase your ship's Critical Defense rating, reducing its chances to suffer critical hits in combat
- Inertia Management has been changed to Defensive Positioning, and will reduce the Durability loss suffered in combat
(Note that this skill bonus is not functioning in 1.3, but will be fixed in a future build) - Momentum Control has been changed to Emergency Procedures and will increase your ship's Hull Points
Home Fleets[]
- The range restriction on docking with your faction's flagship has been removed
Reclaimed Bases[]
- Each faction's reclaimed base should now act as a valid respawn location for friendly players defeated in combat close to it
COMBAT, SHIPS & SYSTEMS[]
Main updates in Closed Beta 1.3:
Combat[]
- A system to prevent 'kill stealing' has been implemented:
- The first player or group to attack an enemy NPC or mine an asteroid will 'tag' that enemy or asteroid for themselves
- When an enemy is defeated or an asteroid breaks up, the player or group that has 'tagged' it will receive the XP rewards and loot
- 'Tags' last for a few seconds – continuing to attack the target will reapply the tag, but if a few seconds pass without an attack or hostile ability being used, the target can be tagged by the next player or group that attacks it
- Note that 'tags' only count between members of the same faction
- XP rewards for defeating NPC and PvP opponents have been revised – in general, the rewards for lower level opponents have not changed, but the rewards for defeating higher level opponents have been reduced
- Scanning asteroids or mining them will no longer place you 'in combat' and prevent your Hull Points from recovering
- The 'in combat' multiplier for FTL jumps has been increased to x3 (it will now take three times as long to spin up for a jump while in combat)
- The speed component of the Follow Friendly Target option has been removed – in order to match speed with a followed target, you should use the Match Speed option
Player Ships[]
- The pitch restrictions on Strike ships have been removed – Strike ships can now perform loops and similar maneuvers when using the keyboard controls
- When a ship is 'upside down', releasing all movement keys will cause your pilot to quickly roll back 'upright'
- The maximum pitch achievable by Escorts and Line ships has been increased
- Strike ships will now only receive the benefits of their full Avoidance value when travelling at high speeds (close to their base Flank Speed) - when travelling at lower speeds, their Avoidance values will be temporarily reduced in proportion to their speed, making them easier to hit with cannons
NPC Ships[]
- Fixed a bug that was causing all NPC ships to turn much faster than intended
Weapon Systems[]
- Flak cannons and basic flak ammo are now available for Line ships
- Flak cannons create a hemispherical 'flak field' in the direction of the weapon slot they are installed in, which has a chance of damaging anything that enters the area
(Please note that the current stats for Flak cannons should be considered temporary, and will be rebalanced in a future build)
- Flak cannons create a hemispherical 'flak field' in the direction of the weapon slot they are installed in, which has a chance of damaging anything that enters the area
- Missiles should now launch from the appropriate weapon battery on Escort and Line ships
- Missiles from side batteries should now launch in the appropriate direction
- Missiles should now launch in the appropriate direction when fired while using the RCS – Slide system
- Nuclear warheads have been significantly increased in price, reflecting both their power and the limited supplies available to both factions
Hull Systems[]
- Decoy Launcher systems should now function correctly – when activated, there is a chance for the closest incoming enemy missile to switch to targeting the decoy. This chance is determined by the upgrade level of the Decoy Launcher system and the quality of decoy used
- Hull Plating systems have been revised – their Hull Point bonuses have been slightly reduced and their maneuverability penalties have been significantly reduced
Computer Systems[]
- The effects of Electronic Warfare and Electronic Support systems should now increase with upgrade level as intended
- The Power cost of Mineral Analysis systems should now be reduced with upgrade level
INTERFACE[]
Main updates in Closed Beta 1.3:
Cameras[]
- The Nose Cam mode is now accessed via a button, like the other three camera modes
Store[]
- Cylon items now have the correct names
- The item lists for the Store, Hold and Locker have been revised to be easier to read and understand
- The details and upgrade windows for all items now provide full statistic information, including the benefits of upgrading systems
- The upgrade costs for systems should now be displayed correctly
- When buying or selling items, it is now possible to click on the amount and type in a value
- The Hold and Locker should no longer display stacks of 0 items
Heads Up Display (HUD)[]
- A Fleet Messaging display ('ticker') has been added to the bottom of the HUD and will automatically display important messages received by the player
- Up to 10 messages will be stored, and each message will remain for 15 minutes after they are received
- Several new messages have been added to better inform you of status updates and important events across the Sector
- The name of the current star system and your faction's Outpost progress in the system have been added to the top of the HUD
- Outpost progress is increased by defeating enemies and mining resources in a star system and decays slowly over time
- When your faction's progress reaches 100% in a star system, a friendly Outpost will be assigned to the system
- An optional Assignment progress summary has been added to the upper right of the HUD – it can be opened and closed by clicking the Assignments button
- Electronic Warfare and Support effects on a target should now be displayed as icons underneath the target info box
- The level, Hull Point and Power Point displays for members of a Squadron (group) should now update correctly
- It should now be possible to leave a Squadron (group) by right-clicking on your target info box and selecting the 'leave group' option
- Short timers have been added to group and friend invites in order to prevent 'spamming' and other malicious use
- Players will now be able to choose whether or not someone can add them as a friend
- A 'clear target' icon has been added to the HUD, below the DRADIS display
- The colors of the 'target enemy' and 'target friendly' icons have been updated for Cylon players ('target enemy' is now blue, and 'target friendly' is now red)
- Tooltips for items in the loot window have been updated and improved
- The 'show info' option that can be selected by right-clicking the target info box for another player should now show correct, up to date information
- Newly installed weapon systems should now be automatically loaded with available ammunition
- Normal cannon weapons will now default to 'activate' – they can be deactivated and reactivated by clicking on their icons on the HUD or pressing the appropriate hotkey as normal
Pilot Log[]
- Your pilot's rank should now update correctly when you are promoted
- The skill training timer display should no longer reset when logging out and back into the game
- Boosters in your Hold can now be activated by selecting them then clicking the Activate button that appears
Sector Map[]
- The Sector Map 'filters' have been removed, and the information they displayed is now shown on the Sector Map at all times:
- The locations of Outposts are displayed by colored discs
- The locations of Mining Ships are displayed by triple-circle icons
- Recent PvP activity is displayed by expanding 'blips'
- A Sector Control display has been added to the upper left of the Sector Map
- The Sector Control bar displays the relative standing of each faction in the struggle to control the resources of the Veil Sector
- Factions earn Sector Control from active Outposts and Mining Ships
- The names of star systems have been added to the Sector Map
Chat[]
- Chat is now available when docked
- Hitting [ENTER] or [RETURN] on an empty line will now shift focus out of chat
- The Combat Log has been improved, but please note that several more improvements are being worked on
GRAPHICS & EFFECTS[]
Main updates in Closed Beta 1.3:
- The appearance of many star systems has been revised and updated
- Nebula 'fog' effects have been improved
- Active mining ships should now throw up clouds of crushed rock as they extract resources from planetoids
- Larger explosions have been improved
- The FTL jump effect has been improved
SOUND & MUSIC[]
Main updates in Closed Beta 1.3:
- The cycling and selection of music has been improved and expanded
- The missile warning sound now correctly plays once, when an enemy launch is detected, instead of looping constantly
- Selecting targets now has a sound effect
- Escort and Line cannon fire is now louder
- Explosion sound effects should now be muted by distance
Game Content |
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