Dev Log #37: Institute of Tchort

[Styg]

Hey guys. The team's working hard on the new areas and quests which are all related to the next step in the main story line - the Institute of Tchort. Here are some teaser screenshots:























One major mechanical change I made since the last update is concerning the psi pool. Instead of functioning like a "mana" resource, the psi was changed to more of pre-alpha state when it functioned like an "energy" resource. Every character with Psi Empathy feat now has 100 psi points and regenerates 20 points per turn (or per 5 seconds in real time). Psi boosters now instantly restore 75 psi.

These changes were done for two reasons which tie into the same problem. One - they were meant to make the psi cost more relevant when choosing what to invoke. The cost of the psi abilities have been re-balanced accordingly - those abilities that were meant to be used as primary attacks, such as neural overload, cryokinesis and electrokinesis, have a low cost and can be spammed without running out of psi. However, those high impact abilities, such as bilocation and cryostasis can run you out of psi quickly.

The second reason, which is related to the first one, is to curb the multi-disciplined psi build. As it stands in the release version, builds that go for full psi can generally invest into all three schools of psi without much trouble because they all rely on the same base stat and also share a number of beneficial feats. This grants the player access to a large amount of crowd-control and AoE abilities that they can invoke in short 1-2 turn burst which makes most encounters a breeze. Now, however, the limited psi pool will keep that in check. You will still be able to spec in all the schools if you wish, but you won't be able to bring down the full power of all of them at the same time.

Another happy consequence of this change is that the psi builds will have easier time in early game because they won't have to worry about psi boosters as much. Now keep in mind that the numbers stated above are not set in stone. We haven't still done any extensive testing of this change so tweaks are likely to happen. Also, I'll probably introduce a couple of feats in the future that will allow the player to slightly expand the psi pool or increase the psi regeneration.

In other news, I've been working on various things related to crafting. Most of the planned components have been added to the standard blueprints. While I'll be adding more components before the game is released as well as some utility and consumable blueprints, there are no plans to add more general blueprints, such as those for a new type of weapon or armor. Keep in in mind that all the crafting stuff added here is crafting-only; that is - it does not appear in randomly generated loot. Also, most of these changes are not retroactive, so already obtained items in running games will be mostly unchanged. Anyway, here's the list:

• Items
• Added components for creating a cryoliquid blob pistol
• Added components for creating an incendiary blob pistol
• Added components for creating a cryoliquid blob trap
• Added components for creating an incendiary blob trap
• Added new firearm enhancements
• Added blueprints for special bullet type for each caliber
• Added shaded visor component that can craft metal helmet that make you immune to blinding effects (flashbang)
• Added two new types of padding foam
• Added infused variants of all leathers which can be obtained in acertain way and can get to very high quality; these leathers all grant various bonuses when used in crafting; the bonuses also vary from blueprint to blueprint
• Added two new fabric types
• Added two new carrier vests
• Added one new ballistic armor plate
• Added one new ballistic panel
• Added one new special metal type
• Tweaks
• You now always fire 2 extra shots with Full Auto feat
• Bipod precision bonus changed to 10% (up from 5%)
• You now have 30% chance to receive the bullet case after firing a bullet (you can use these for crafting)
• Tweaked some on-hit effects so they can now be appropriately mitigated when the damage of the attack that causes them is fully resisted/shielded
• Aluminized cloth now grants immunity to burning when used in armor suit crafting
• Increased the amount of stealth penalty applied by aluminized cloth
• Regenerative vest no longer appears as a component of generated items
• Metal helmets now provide slightly more damage resistance and also provide damage threshold proportionally
• Metal boots now also provide damage threshold proportionally and grant immunity to caltrops
• Stuff made from ancient rathound leather now also grants 5% mechanical damage taken reduction
• High-density padding foam melee protection bonus now scales with component quality
• Tabi boots now increase the chance to get critically hit on the toes
• Super string will no longer appear on generated crossbows
• Leather armors will no longer be generated from leathers better than those naturally occurring
• Mechanical resistance and threshold lowered for certain leather armors
• Feats
• Disassemble - Grants you a blueprint that allows you retrieve some or all components from a disassemble-able items (such as weapons, armors, etc). This works both on the items you made and those you've just found. Existing items in running games will not be dis-assemblable.
• Bugs
• Visual effects will no longer appear on the invisible imported character during the opening cutscene
• Fixed the problem with the final Arena fight not starting properly
• Fixed the bug that caused some traps to not properly trigger faction hostilities in controlled areas
• You should no longer be able to invoke psi abilities if you're... not human
• You can no longer use Locus of Control while driving, it's just not safe
• Quick Tinkering will now properly mitigate the AP cost of setting traps in combat
• Armor modifiers (such as bonus vs bullets/melee) will now only apply to resistance values of the item with those modifiers instead of globally
• 0% negative armor penalty fixed for realz now (maybe)
• Armor penalty is now correctly called that (instead of 'encumbrance') in combat stats window
• Corrected the bug that caused passive things like cameras to de-stealth you when you perform transgressions in their vicinity
• Fixed the bug that caused the hostilities in Foundry prison to escalate to the entire city even if you killed all the witnesses and erased the footage
• Fixed various minor quest and map bugs

That's all for now. Let us know how you like the changes and if you like the looks of the new areas.

Cheers.

[LightningMonk]

Well the Institute of Tchort looks alot better than I was expecting. They certainly aren't living the paupers life.

I can't exactly argue against the changes toward psi; you were a powerhouse for most of the game hampered only by your psi pool.

I like how all the changes to crafting sound though it is a little sad to hear that disassemble is a feat rather than something available to all characters. It's still nice that it's finally here since regaining components and ammo crafting were the last few things crafting was missing for me.

What's with the tabi boots tweak. Does it mean your chance to get critically hit gets increased?

[Elhazzared]

The church looks good as the new content that acompanies it.

The new feat shouldn't be a feat. It doesn't makes sense that a character who wants to take up crafting has to waste one of the very few and precious feats to get the abillity to disasemble items. This should just be a normal blueprint sold in stores.

As for the PSI changes. I guess it's a good news, bad news case.

On one side we do finally get a regeneration just as many have always been asking. Not only does this makes more sense as it reduces the relliabillity on psi boosters.

On the other side we get a very low pool that is pretty much capped and does not increase with level, as such it means that it has no progression whatsoever aside perhaps a few feats and perks in the future which considering how many feats a psi user already needs right now makes this a very problematic thing. Let's not forget that psi builds are the most feat intensive already and this makes it even more feat intensive. To compare, most builds only really need a very small number of feats but psi builds actually need much more, probably twice as many as other builds if not more.

As far as the abillity to have 1 to 2 turns high CC spam per combat. Well this is true, but it is also true that psi builds need this! A psi build does not have have dodgeor high mitigation. The only reason why psi builds work is because they combine stealth (to initiate combat from an advantageous position) with a high CC burst. Their lack of health combined with lack of damage mitigation (because they also cannot wear heavy armor) makes them a class that relies purely on CC to be able to survive any encounter. You said psi builds breeze through combat. This to a degree is true, but i suppose it's more fair to say that a psi character will most of the times either die or come without a scratch, there is very little room for anything in between because of low health vs high damage and multiple opponents, no damage mitigation and no damage avoidance.

Of course I say this without knowing how much psi the skills will now cost but it appears as though they will cost far too much from what you say. Certainly it is true that without a one or two turn burst of CC things will be very grim to play a psi build. However I'll leave the test of that to others when the next version is released.

Lastly at least some existing psi feats will have to be tweeked. For example, shroomhead was already useless and now is even more useless than it was before. This one is not so much a case of tweek but a case of completly changing it. There was already feats to lower the cost of psi, but that came at a cost of lowering damage or increasing AP. Something I'm not sure anyone used because the beneficts in no way outweighted  penalties and the feats are supposed to be a boost, not lose something to gain something unless the loss is small and the benefict far too big to be given without a drawback.

Just some things to think about.

[Elhazzared]

I don't remember exactly all feats and am too lasy to go and check them all. I know there are feats with drawbacks like more AP costs or lower damage. I was almost sure that one of them was the one that lowered psi cost of abillities. At any rate is a good example of how these feats were done wrong, no one will accept such drawbacks on their psi abillities as the drawback is far worse than whatever benefict they gain from it.

[Eliasfrost]

Holy Neural Overload Batman! Those screencaps look gorgeous!

[MetaSieg]

The changes to Psi are a very welcome addition, though I imagine some tweaks to psi cost and the psi pool will be needed before a good balance is found. The Tchort areas are just amazing I'm drooling on my keyboard here. And please, pleeease tell me we can get those armored robes.

[Fenix]

YEAAAAAAH! translate - I like all of them.

The only thing I didn't uunderstand - "Existing items in running games will not be dis-assemblable".

What's with the tabi boots tweak. Does it mean your chance to get critically hit gets increased?

Don't know how it work, but I think you should get same penalty like if you step on caltrops.
It's more interesting (and logical) then just a "get a higher crit chance".

This to a degree is true, but i suppose it's more fair to say that a psi character will most of the times either die or come without a scratch, there is very little room for anything in between because of low health vs high damage and multiple opponents, no damage mitigation and no damage avoidance.

I can not argue with that.
However, I would expect battles start to be more challenging, instead of "things will be very grim to play a psi build", because before it was "bitches, I've come to kill you all".
Just my optimistic expectations.
Of course, this may require some balancing.
But for me it implies the following question "Where is the map, Billy, we need map!" (c) Treasure Island http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqVvAvhqEnQ

[middydj]

Looks great. Looking forward to this game.

[Elhazzared]

I don't see it becoming more challenging, I see it becoming really grim Fenix. But I do see these changes as step in the right direction.

But as they are intended, not allowing a 1 or 2 turn burst of CC they just do not work. If this is changed to allow the burst of CC then it also won't change the ubber CC which is the halmark of the psi user. In fact that is teh theme of the psi user if we really think about it. Other classes hit hard or are able to tank really well, the psi user has flexibillity and great CC with the spells, but definitly neither the capacity to tank nor huge amounts of damage.

So to change the way the CC works for them right now, either damage output has to be drasticly increased or some element of survivabillity has to be implemented specificly for psi users which also cannot be easly exploited by someone just dumping a few points into psi while not really being a psi build.

[Mindless]

Psi-changes are welcome but i think there must be some bonuses for pure psi-casters in psi-pool increase(higher will or/and higher lvl) and some psi feats must be rebalanced for new system(obviously).

The Institute of Tchort looks very cool and i'm looking forward to play it with my psi-caster =]

I like how all the changes to crafting sound though it is a little sad to hear that disassemble is a feat rather than something available to all characters.

Totally Agree with this.

Don't know how it work, but I think you should get same penalty like if you step on caltrops.
It's more interesting (and logical) then just a "get a higher crit chance".

Agree with this too. Higher chance to get critically hit on your feets is kinda weird oO

The only thing I didn't uunderstand - "Existing items in running games will not be dis-assemblable".

That means you can't disassemble items in your pre-patch  games(i think).

[Elhazzared]

Not exactly. What it means (if I am reaading it correctly) is that any items that have already been generated cannot be dismantled but items that are generated after the patch goes in will be able to be disassembled.

The reason here probably is to do with pre patch items not having the code in them that allows being disassembled but items that are generated after the patch will. So you don't need to start a new game to get items that you can disassemble, only the items that you have pre patch can't. This probably means that the current items in vendors won't be able to be dissambled also until the vendor re-stocks though there can be two cases here.

The first case is that only a few items changes and the others are items that were actually previously there. In this case the items that did not change will also not disassemble.

The second case is that despite keeping some of the items when it re-stocks it generates a new code for it, as in replacing the old item with a copy of a new and equal item but then it uses the new code and can be disassembled.

Course, starting a new game is always  the easiest way to have all items being able to be disassembled.

Also note that not all loot in the game is randomly generated. Some containers (many in fact) have specific loot associated with it. This means that items you get from such containers are probably created pre patch thus cannot be disassembled as well. But there is also the possibillity that while the loot is not randomised, the item is actually only created (despite not being randomised) when you open the container and if such is the case then it is created with the new code and can be disassembled.

This is of course some food for thought, theory crafting. At the end of the day it doesn't really matters because coming the new patch most people will start a new game to see all the changes (some of them are bound to only work with a new game) and as such there is no need to take any of this in consideration.

[Mindless]

Not exactly. What it means (if I am reaading it correctly) is that any items that have already been generated cannot be dismantled but items that are generated after the patch goes in will be able to be disassembled.

Oh my) This is not really important... + "Also, most of these changes are not retroactive, so already obtained items in running games will be mostly unchanged"

Hey guys. The team's working hard on the new areas and quests which are all related to the next step in the main story line - the Institute of Tchort.

Approximate release date for the Tchort content? 

[UnLimiTeD]

That looks absolutely gorgeous!
Also, just now, with all those stools and chairs and benches, did I notice no one ever sits in Underrail.
Love the Crafting- and Psi-Changes as well, balance obviously still hanging.
So, is there any new char I can try right now that I shouldn't wait with till next patch?^^

[hilf]

Those PSI changes are definitely something that needs to be tested. Looks like i'll be going back to my alpha tester duty.

I like how all the changes to crafting sound though it is a little sad to hear that disassemble is a feat rather than something available to all characters.

Totally Agree with this.

Yeah.