RoVerse Development Newsletter #149

Hello everyone! Welcome to the 149th issue of the RoVerse Development Newsletter, where we keep you updated on the progress we've made over the past week.

This week, Idyllic and Lordrex continued the last few rounds of bug testing and patching as we march ever closer to the Capital Update Phase 1 public release. Now ticked off the list are the deploy button only working while a round is active, and disabled when during an intermission, several graphical fixes, a few errors involving weapons being replicated, and weapons not operating correctly.

Stats for every ship and weapon type have been copied over from our spreadsheet to the actual server files, so weapons do the damage they're supposed to, and ships have the health and shield they are designed to have.

37 ships, all lined up for battle

These stats represent an initial spread of combinations - some have more hull and less shields, a few more shield power than hull strength - and are liable to change with balancing both before and after Phase 1. The baseline for these stats is the Excalibur you know and love from the dogfight alpha - its stats are locked in and used to determine the stats of comparable ships. The same is true for weapons - the plasma turret from the dogfight will not change, but the others will in relation to it.

A feature or two was removed from the dogfight - specifically team-colored energy bolts, which were only marginally useful in the first place but worked for the arcade-style game of the original dogfight but as we move forward will become more of a hindrance. For identifying friendly vs enemy fire from now on, the best method will be custom faction weapon effects, either colors or particles.

Idyllic also experimented a bit more with the forcefield material, to create this interesting laser firing effect.

Boomerang bullets!

It still has the uncontrollable breathing effect, but all things considered it adds life to an otherwise static image. The method is the same as last week's explanation, with a cyan to red gradient being applied to a specific strip heading away from the ship's turrets. The shader takes care of the glow effect automatically, which is a plus.

​Each week we compile a Q&A section here whenever there are any new questions posted on the RoVerse Community group wall or in the Community Discord Server. Be sure to join if you have any questions about RoVerse:

ROBLOX Group: https://www.roblox.com/My/Groups.aspx?gid=2948290
Discord server: https://discord.gg/npxBGwJ

Q1: Will asteroid belts have a limited supply of minerals?

A1: Asteroid fields will have a limited supply of ores to be mined per unit of time - they will slowly recharge over a long period of time, to both keep up with long-term demand and allow areas to be 'mined out.' To the solo player, there will be ores anywhere they look, but for a faction setting up a mining station and strip mining the surrounding fields, they may have to push further and further over time.

Q2: What resources will cities need to have access to? Water? Air?

A2: We don't plan on cities requiring pipelines to the ocean or anything like that, mainly growth and repair through hard resources - metals, concrete, etc. used to construct buildings. The final resources list has yet to be compiled, so there may be other resources a faction needs to deliver to see colonies flourish. Air domes will probably be a part of underwater and moon-based cities, we'll let you know.

Q3: Could we have events that occur in 'pocket' systems on occasion throughout the galaxy?

A3: We set up the galaxy system to support the creation of temporary pocket systems to provide a space for any possible Roblox-sponsored events, but we all know how that went. Now, they'll see their use as neutral systems, and there is a very good chance that short-term events, like an invasion, could occur in these off-map areas, with the potential for exclusive rewards.

Q4: Is the water in RoVerse drinkable?

A4: I wouldn't feel confident speaking about all water in the galaxy, as there is certainly a lot of it, but I can personally vouch for the water available at the neutral system drinking fountains...

Q5: Will there be a self-destruct button on ships, to try and take out others nearby?

A5: Unlikely. Your best option will always be shooting at the enemy ships - if you end up in a situation where that doesn't work, better plan a new strategy that doesn't involve wasting weeks of faction efforts.

Q6: Is skinny still putting all the questions ever asked into one book?

A6: He's been really busy with life recently, but it's still in progress. So keep asking questions to give his future self more work.

Q7: How quickly can we fly into space?

A7: We'll perform accurate measurements when the time comes, and let you know. You could drive to space in an hour, if your car could drive vertically.

Q8: Will there be any special weapons, like bows, beam rifles, or grenade launchers?

A8: Ground combat is still quite a ways off, when that system is being developed we'll have official confirmation. Until then, we are planning on adding a wide variety of common sci-fi weaponry to satisfy every faction's desires and play-style and to keep combat interesting. Unofficially, if destiny has it, we'll probably do a version of it.

Q9: Can we rob people at laser-gun point?

A9: Potentially, your security forces could demand a portion of a cargo ship's cargo as payment for safe passage through faction-controlled space, which could be construed as robbery with threat of violence.

Q10: Do we need to build a larger shipyard or upgrade them to build larger ships?

A10: Shipyards are tiered by their host structure - outposts are smaller and can construct ships up to L at best, if you need bigger ships, make the investment in a full faction station, which can construct the largest classes either directly in a shipyard, or adjacent.

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​You can support us by joining our Community Group or Discord server! So far, the community has been absolutely amazing, supportive, and very friendly. We are very appreciative of all the support you guys show us!

If you want to catch any of our developers streaming, you can always follow our official Twitch channel here!

Remember, we are always looking for new, talented builders, scripters and artists! If you’d like to help us you can always get in touch with us through RoVerse_Official on the ROBLOX website, or by contacting an Administrator in the community Discord! Don’t worry, we don’t bite!