Version 0.17

## v0.17.0　[2019/02/15]

This build focus toning down player-hostile mechanic and easing the difficulty curve for new players.

Minor Changes

* Added 3 invincibility frames following being hit by a projectile or explosion. This could have a larger impact on balance than I realize, so please share your findings

* As this makes enemies with very fast fire rates miss more than intended, increased the damage slightly of certain such enemies

* Doubled the texture atlas size, should improve performance. Possible side effects on old machines, or OSX?

* Added health bar flashing for low hull

* Reduced the frequency that the Minelayer shield's damaging pulse can trigger

* Warp Strike is nolonger offered with weapons that possess it innately

* Reworked the Regenerative Shields description to be clearer

* Improved various description syntax

* Updated the Learn menu with more tips

Balance Changes

* Turrets have been made more intelligent, nolonger firing at nothing

* Turrets now use an ammo count instead of a timer to decide when to reload (they have 64 rounds)

* Integrated Weaponry AI has been made more reliable and less wasteful, especially when used with Burst Fire

* Omni Shield now grants "hardened-subsystems": If your shield is in cooldown, taking additional damage does not incur a full cooldown reset

* Omni Shield grants less base shield durability to compensate 60\*> 40

* Overseer now only prevents non-weapon constructs from being used. The speed penalty still applies to Blade

* The Research body has been given power up and reroll buffs

* The Research body's exp bonus 15%\*> 20%

* The Battery body now combines a much smaller flat rate of fire penalty and a\*10% penalty rate of fire (nolonger totally hosing all fast firing weapons)

* The Battery body now adds +25% to projectile size

* The Stealth body self-damage resistance 20%\*> 25%

* The Hullbreaker body has had its crash reduction nerf rolled back 60%\*> 65% crash damage reduction

* The Charged Shot bonus lasts slightly longer (Salvo & Burst Fire rejoice)

* Charged Shot can now enhance charge-innate weapons, increasing the speed of both their charge rate and costs

* For weapons with innate multiple projectiles, Charged Shot now adds additional projectiles scaling with rate of fire and projectile count

* Siege Weaponry allows a slightly faster ceiling for rate of fire

* Essence Sap has been reworked to allow 10 stacks, and only caps the recovery value after the sum of the total stacks. Values have been made more generous

* Vortex nolonger penalizes degeneration for the number of Vortexes that exist on screen, and instead for your Vortex projectile count

* Various targetting mods have had their targeting values slightly decreased

* Split Shot has had its damage reduced 18\*> 16, and has been given slight size degredation over time, effectively limiting its range at small sizes

* Corrosion has had its burn damage reduced ~20% (This was causing one of the highest DPS in the game on top of being great crowd control)

* Corrosion weapon damage penalty\*20%\*>\*15%

* Temporal Shield durability 70\*> 65

* Temporal Shield Cooldown 7s\*> 8s

* Slightly reduced the damage of early enemy damage over time: Spitfire, Station Omega, Champion Serpent

Bug Fixes

* Fixed a problem with Integrated Weaponry failing when used with burst fire

* Fixed a bug involving Siege Weaponry and Burst Fire not applying spool up on all three shots

* Fixed a bug where Adrenal Module and Dying Star always considered the shield down for Bastion and Rapid Reconstruction

## v0.17.1　[2019/02/16]

This build focus toning down player-hostile mechanics and easing the difficulty curve for new players. Also game balance. And colors!

Minor Changes

* Added in-game tutorial elements to tricky gear
* Added a tutorial element to Station Omega's weak points
* You can nolonger find mega orbs before wave 10
* You can nolonger find large orbs before wave 5
* You nolonger can randomly encounter the Champion Hive before wave 41
* Increased the exp curve of account levelups (unlocks are slower, but still faster than release)
* Began the first of what will be many revisions to reclaim the color vibrancy the game lost when we changed blending tech, in addition to reducing how much effects occlude the player
* Adjusted many instances of screen flash being too bright
* Grenade has been touched up and made vibrant
* Common explosions and other blasts have been made vibrant
* Finessed explosions further

Balance Changes

* Last Stand now grants +100% experience instead of +400% score. After consideration, I don't want any one mod mandatory for competing on the score boards
* Rancor now works with Vortex (but prevents the self damage feedback loop)
* Rancor equation changed such that it has diminishing returns at higher charge values
* Rancor mobility penalty while charging 60%\*> 50%
* Antimatter Rounds self-damage formula has been adjusted to be slightly more linear, resulting in a greater cost for high projectile counts
* Antimatter Rounds now considers your Salvo stockpile count as projectiles (this isn't as bad as it sounds given how infrequently you fire)
* Omnishield base shield durability +40\*> +50
* Amp base velocity and damage +25%\*> +20%
* Warp Strike now has\*5% rate of fire, weapon size, total projectile velocity, and total weapon damage making it less of a must-have
* Split Shot degenerates ever so slightly faster
* Apotheosis shield and hull\*10%\*> 15%
* Leaf on the Wind max damage bonus 100%\*> 50% total, takes 90 seconds to max
* In light of its other buffs, reduced the initial damage increase that Charged Shot gives

## v0.17.3　[2019/02/24]

Major Changes

* Steam achievements are now enabled
* Steam scores are now enabled (though they may be impossible to access before launch)
* Added a box behind mouseover mod descriptions
* Implemented software cursor. (Thanks for the clutch support @Ultraken)

***What this means for mouse users:***
* You will no longer be able to accidentally click outside of the game
* You can aim in the magical area outside of the game space, even in windowed mode
* The aim jitter is gone
* Bastion will now auto-deploy, like a standard shield. It can no longer be selected on Gamepad. Only Architect can trigger it manually, to detonate. Note that with architect, this shield will automatically bust your other constructs when it deploys

Minor Changes

* Added more cases where Hyperboost makes rainbows
* Further adjusted flashing lights

Balance Changes

* Architect general construct buffs +45%\*> +40%
* Architect hull strength 100\*> 110 (This change was made to encourage its "ranger" play-style, reflect its large size, support shielded constructs, compensate for its relative lack of defense from constructs)
* Battery hull strength 115\*> 120
* Tempest Break cooldown +20%\*> +15%
* Emergency Systems duration can no longer exceed 35% of your shield cooldown
* Overseer has been reworked such that its construct assembly speed % is per construct limit, making it require investment in constructs for both of its benefits
* Champion beamcasters deal slightly less damage (though its still enough to melt you)

Bug Fixes

* Mines were counting against Support Specialist and Overseer, which was not intended
* Hidden Power no longer considers the construct count of things you can't build
* Fixed some problems with construct selection on Gamepad
* Various spelling errors

## v0.17.4　[2019/02/28]

Minor Changes

* Falling into a singularity no longer kills you, but will deal % damage to your remaining shield and hull until fading to black. After a few moments, you will warp into the scene again. Doing so also disables the singularity
* The player has slightly less Singularity pull resistance and Singularities pull all things slightly harder
* Gear and Basic mods have been given short descriptions for mouse over
* Volatile Shields has been given a rainbow effect for Hyperboost
* Continued changes made to facilitate the migration from GameMaker: Studio to GameMaker: 2
* The Scion is no longer allowed to spawn within 5 waves of its boss encounter

Balance Changes

* Hidden Power's defensive boosts have been slightly increased

Bug Fixes

* Fixed a bug where you could mouse over two hexes at once
* Mouse over boxes can nolonger be off-screen
* The Sonic Rainboom achievement is now possible (and 20% cooler)
* Fixed a bug where black holes could destroy your Vortex charge, leaving you with no way to release the weapon (and a violent death)
* Possibly fixed the notorious double music bug (once again)
* Fixed a bug where Railgun could splinter off of Scion orbs without killing them
* Fixed some errant text on the Assault Drones description

Known Issues

* Sometimes the game crashes on the High Score screen, game quit, or game restart. Hoping the engine migration solves these problems
* There may be issues with the software mouse and dual monitors. If you are experiencing this, it is possibly the culprit
* Sometimes saved high scores misrepresent your weapon. If this happens to you, send a screenshot, please

## v0.17.5　[2019/03/05]

Minor Changes

* The Scion (wave 60 boss) has been made a bit more fierce, turning and moving slightly faster
* The Scion now enhances any black holes present, causing them to draw in more asteroids
* The Scion now occasionally spawns 1-2 Beamcasters
* The Scion's black hole now lasts several seconds longer
* Windowed Mode is no longer borderless
* Damage numbers now have a slight gradiant to differentiate them from the explosions and from eachother
* Practice Mode has been disabled until Early Access begins
* Ramming with Bastion Shield now counts as a "crash" for the purposes of proccing Skirmish's buff
* Modifiers to generic crash damage now increase the ramming damage from Bastion (not Hullbreaker's body buff)
* Enemies that create other enemies or targets don't bother if you've already died
* Tweaked charged shot so projectile sizes aren't scaled linearly, preventing goofy-large artwork
* Further prep work for transitioning to GameMaker 2

Balance Changes

* The way Salvo interacted with Splinter Shot has been adjusted. Splinter Shot uses the size modifier and the projectile count to determine how many splinters are created. Multiple projectiles decrease the splinter count, and greater sizes increase it. Because Salvo is technically "one" projectile according to the code, it was disproportionately benefiting from Splinter Shot, especially when considering the likes of Charged Shot and Rancor. As a trial, Splinter Shot now considers Salvo to have a base projectile shot of 10 for the purposes of Splinter Shot, which means it almost always creates the floor value of 3 splinters. This may change to work more like Antimatter Rounds later, where it considers the missile barrage in the equation, but I wanted to try a solution that didn't include constantly refactoring the value, first
* Splinter Shot has been made more even across the board, resulting in slight nerfs in splinter count for most weapons and a minor buff for Blade
* Dying Star has a bit more range and damage, but not as much as it used to have. Determined the self-damage was acceptable after all, especially with the buffs to Hidden Power and Omni-Shield
* Rupture uses a square root value to determine its blast radius, preventing run-away sizes on tough enemies
* Ally's Double Team mod now provides it with an extra drone projectile to make it more of a worthwhile pick
* Ally base hull 150\*> 180
* Ally is now available at level 1
* Slightly reduced Rocket Drones blast radius

Bug Fixes

* Fixed a bug with Rancor dividing by a decimal at very low charge values, resulting in massive weaponry. I'm sorry
* Blade can now be fired if you switch to it after buying Overseer
* Singularities now properly drain Bastion Shield's hull
* Torrent uses its SFX and effects again
* Fixed the double music bug (again)

Up Next

* Showing Super Mod combos on the upgrade menu
* An auto deploy setting for Drones and Allies
* More mods that work together, like Charged Shot + Blade, Discharge / Tempest Break + Shielded Constructs, and Stealth cloaking + Bastion Shield
* Experimental branch for testing the GameMaker 2 build, which improves performance!

Known Issues

* Sometimes the game crashes on the High Score screen, game quit, or game restart. Hoping the engine migration solves these problems
* There may be issues with the software mouse and dual monitors. If you are experiencing this, it is possibly the culprit
* Sometimes saved high scores misrepresent your weapon. If this happens to you, send a screenshot, please

## v0.17.6　[2019/03/07]

Minor Changes

* Expert mode is gone. Instead, you are now able to decline the first 3 gear upgrades you are presented with by using "escape" or "start"
* For super mods that require a pair of mods to unlock, the recipe is shown when you select either mod or the super mod itself
* Added a new setting: Display Enemy Hull Bars. This will show the hull of the last enemy you damaged where the boss bar usually is. This is meant to be subdued to avoid screen clutter, but now you don't have to worry just how healthy that juggernaut is
* Added a new setting: Auto Drones
* Better behavior for Gamepad construct selection. If you aren't using the Architect gear, you can't select any constructs that automatically deploy
* Added a new setting: Restrained Mouse Aiming. For people who don't like the mouse being allowed in the "nega-space" outside of the game window
* Added a new setting: Disable Shake. If you're a streamer, I'll ask that you please leave this setting at default while showcasing the game
* Added a new setting: Disable Screen Flash. If you're a streamer, I'll ask that you please leave this setting at default while showcasing the game
* Added a placeholder setting for Assist Mode which will become available during the early access

Balance and Mechanics Changes

* If you're using the Stealth gear and Bastion Shield, the Bastion shield cloaks with you, no longer becoming a target for enemies
* You can now charge Blade Drone(!) if you have Charged Shot
* Blade Drone's secondary projectiles now partially scale with its size modifer
* Blade Drones now "ease" into their designated size after being deployed, instead of appearing larger or smaller while attached to you
* Blade Drone size uses a median value to prevent it from looking ridiculous at very high charge values. It's still getting the same size-scaling modifiers
* The Battery can now fire odd numbers of blades (but not one blade)
* The Scion now uses the smoother turning logic that Eclipses use, and turns faster.
* The Scion thermal lance has been enlongated and has a longer duration
* Snappers have 25% more hull strength

Bug Fixes

* Rounded the value of the window to avoid "pixel trash" displaying on the edges
* Fixed two Ally mods appearing if you used Rebirth
* Fixed a typo allowing "wild" Scions to spawn early
* Adjusted Scion's proclivity for getting itself killed in its own singularity
* Turret description has been corrected to display 1 assembly limit
* Fixed a rare crash involving shielded constructs and warp
* Fixed unlock mod inconsistencies with in-game trees
* Fixed inconsistant behavior with Bastion Shield and Architect while using Shielded Constructs. This is now as calamitous as you would expect

## v0.17.7　[2019/03/09]

Hotfix deployed on stable branch

* Super mod tips prevented from appearing if you have not unlocked the super mod
* Black hole size now scales its effects on you (fading black holes cause far less blackout)
* Fixed a pause menu display error

This shouldn't break anything, but it makes me nervous to deploy to stable. Please let me know if you've tested it.
PC only until my internet comes back up.