V0.25.3

**Patch Notes** **◆** ****V0.25.3****

## Major Changes

* The exp curve has been smoothed out. The climb to level 20 is a bit slower, and the average player should be able to reach a maximum of about 5 levels higher than before
* The game text was given a sweeping overhaul, adjusting grammar, readability, spelling, and consistency. Localization efforts can now ramp up!
* Changed many game terms in minor ways. For instance, Hull Strength is now Hull, Shield Durability is now Shields

## Balance Changes

* : Blades not generated by the player no longer collide with enemy projectiles
* : 1/s -> .8/s rate of fire. Player assembled Blades bypass this restriction
* now works properly with , gaining the appropriate number of projectiles from  and other sources
* Blades no longer collide with enemy projectiles
* Blades now use the 3 prong blade graphic
* : Now adds additional time before projectiles begin degenerating
* Armor Stacks no longer require damage to "hit" in order to generate. Any damage taken will do. Damage to proc an armor stack is accumulated fractionally
* Stacks can now be gradually applied by burn damage (not damage from ignited enemies). Hits still generate 1 stack per hit
* has been reworked for clarity: When you damage an enemy, store 1.5% of your damage as Essence. Essence causes your hull to recover over time. You recover hull from Essence at a rate of 7% of your maximum hull /s. The amount of stored Essence cannot exceed 7% of your maximum hull
* : +4% -> +3% damage taken from enemies
* : 10 -> 11 self damage /s. (To compensate for constantly having Armor Stacks)
* : ~+20% maximum recovery rate (achieved at minimum shields)
* : Adds even more damage and velocity with charge time. In many cases, this is now actually a DPS increase
* : +4% Stockpile rate for each additional projectile
* : Stockpile rate now correctly uses rate of fire (this was a long-standing bug)
* : Low and high damage have been lowered by 10%
* : Barrage now extends the time before projectiles begin to degenerate, compensating for some of the range lost to projectile size
* : -20% -> -15% blast radius and total projectile damage. +20% spread -> +15%
* now considers 10 stockpile worth 1 projectile for the purpose of calculating self-damage, instead of 5
* : self-damage has been reduced by 10%
* Adjusted the degeneration system, making it more consistent across different weapons
* : Base damage 155 -> 165
* : Fussed with the effective range in light of degeneration changes
* : 50 -> 25 base damage
* : -2.5% -> -2.0% thrust per your max construct assembly
* : 15% -> 50% Splash damage from base damage. This isn't intended to do more than provide quality of life
* Drones & Allies: Improved avoidance of dangers. This works with and without
* Changed the logic for whether weapons are offered with . If you have Overseer, they're now offered only if you have  or , but not
* orbs and  orbs now ramp up to their full damage over 1 second. Because these are spammed, this helps with being "insta-gibbed" by them if they're spawned on top of you
* uses the new beam-lance artwork from , turns a little faster, maintains its beam a little longer, and can spawn more Beamcasters a little more frequently
* Increased some enemy base hull values. Beamcasters: 150 > 175. Tentacles: 60 > 75. Serpents: 140 > 160
* Reduced  core base hull 750 > 700
* Cargo boxes can now screen wrap for 2 seconds after their creation

## Input Improvements

* Improved directional steering behavior for game pad
* Fixed the odd "jerking" motion when starting to turn
* Turn intensity compensates for the size of the dead zone
* Refactored and minimized a bunch of the player input code
* Player input handling now performs directional strafe logic
* Directional steering mode allows arbitrary strafe/blink angle

## Bug Fixes

* now recalculates by refreshing the loadout, which fixes some problems with it. This appears to also solve the weird Research-Banish interaction
* Gamepad Controls tutorial now shows the correct right stick used for steering
* Fixed a bug where small orbs could not screen wrap