Icarus Week 119 Update | Grow, harvest and deploy the new Bramble Defenses

Welcome to Week 119, with the spiky introduction of Brambles.

These homegrown deployable defenses provide an environmentally friendly way to defend your base, being able to be grown from seeds and harvested before being deployed around your base.

We’ve also got news on our next big update and paid content pack, Laika and the Creature Comforts DLC.

Also included are some more balance fixes for Networks and Batteries and info on next week's update.

Jump in and have a read.

Notable Improvements:

• Improved performance of T3 Spawn Blocker by significantly reducing the number of times it will update the spawn blocker area. It now only updates when adding or running out of fuel
  
• Updated modifier effectiveness display, scaling around 100% instead of positive or negative effect. This better shows that less effective modifiers only have X% effect. Eg a 20% effectiveness modifier shows as 20% instead of -80%, a 150% modifier shows as 150% instead of +50%.
  
• Updated many UI elements to prevent small box next to device inventory when modifiers are not present
  
• NOMAD: Fixed quest not progressing after completing side objective

This week: Brambles
This week we’re adding a new deployable defense to the game - Brambles.

Unlike hedgehogs, these aren’t crafted, but grown before being harvested and deployed. Bramble Seeds can be bought from the orbital workshop in packs of 5 for 20 ren (after a 50 ren unlock cost) and grown on the surface. Each seed when grown and nurtured will grant a few deployable defenses and a chance to return seeds (just like other crops). However, they do have a higher fatigue modifier and require more regular reseeding than other more sturdy crops.

Bramble Seeds can also be gathered from native Brambles on Prometheus, which previously would give Fiber seeds when harvested.

When placed as a defense, Brambles can’t be moved after that point, but are very lightweight so won’t provide much burden when stacked. We’ve also taken this time to provide a balance overpass of other deployable defenses and halved the self-damage taken by hedgehogs while doubling the self-damage taken by fortification spikes (this effectively is deterioration when impaling enemies).

With this change, we’ve adjusted some of the details of the mission DISPATCH. This has a challenging horde mode, which we’ve adjusted by reducing the spawn count of foes to match the increased self-damage of fortification spikes. The event should have a similar level of challenge but increased performance.

We’re also working on more automated deployable defenses in the future, and this will mean more balancing of the existing ones.



This week: Batteries & Networks Continued
We’ve got more fixes and balance improvements to our Resource Networks and Batteries update from two weeks ago, as we continue to get feedback from the community.

Fixes:

• Missions ABYSS, ALCAZAR and others requiring powered deployables have been fixed to work with the update. In ALCAZAR, we’ve fixed the Biofuel composter not registering on the network when not processing and also fixed other missions requiring powered processors. In ABYSS, we’ve fixed the research station quest step and the filling the generator step
  
• Fixed the Wind Turbine audio looping incorrectly
  
• Fixed certain inspected devices (such as the water pump) not showing the modifiers and networks UI, resulting in an empty screen
  
• Fixed clients only seeing the electrical network when opening the resource network inspector via the flow meter
  
• Improved the spline connection logic to provide smoother connections to other splines. This prevents cases where splines would wrap around existing pucks to enter from certain angles to new pucks/spline nodes. Affects both the water and power network piping

Balance:

• Wind Turbine damage has been modified to provide a smoother degradation through storms
  
• We have been monitoring feedback and acknowledge that some do not like the added maintenance but most enjoy the extra weather effects. We’re still keen to hear and see feedback as always

Future: Laika - The Animal Companions Update
We’ve quietly been working on our next big update for a couple of months now, and are excited to let you know the details, now that Networks and Batteries are released.

Laika is our Animal Companions Update, which is well into development and entering its final stages now.

This is an update focused on improving player experience with tamed creatures, including the all-important ability to be able to pet your animals.

This update will also include the ability to bring your tamed creatures to orbit and be called to a planet as needed, the same as workshop gear, now that we’ve established a reliable customs department.

We’re adding Talent Trees for each mount with the ability for mounts to gain experience just as you do.

There will also be 2 new tamed creatures (exclusively ordered from orbit) with their own gatherable resources, new Tier 3 and 4 water and food troughs, and more.

Next week, we'll have even more details to share with you on what to expect.



Next Week: Water Purification
Next week we’ll be adding a new survival dynamic to water - purification. Water throughout the game will provide additional bonuses based on the cleanliness of it, with devices throughout the different tiers providing different methods of purifying water.

Originally posted by author: If you like what we’re doing with Icarus, and want to support our continued development, consider purchasing one of our DLCs for a few dollars, it would mean a lot to us.

https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/36462/Icarus_Architecture_Bundle/

https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/35727/Icarus_Complete_the_Set/

Changelog v2.1.22.120409
New Content
[expand type=details]

• Brambles in the wild now give bramble seeds instead of fiber seeds
  
• Unlocked growable Brambles, including deployable and workshop seed packet
  
• Unlocking other Farming Seeds to allow brambles to be unlocked, as without them the seeds after them grant incorrect seed type (by ID)

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Fixed
[expand type=details]

• Fixed crash when InventoryContainerManager isn't able to be found
  
• Updated BLD_Stairs_Brick and APEX destructibles
  
• Fixed a number of typos in item text
  
• Allow Brutalist Lamp to stack on 1 object, such as being placed on a table
  
• Styx and Prometheus Exploration missions now grant their talent unlock on completion, like Olympus. This is mainly to prevent any issues if these blueprint trees are reorganized
  
• Added failsafes to Wind Turbine self damage due to overcharge
  
• Increased damage to wind turbines, as previously they would cap to a very high health where storms would have negligible impact. They are still unable to be destroyed by storms, but will eventually result in 0% base production
  
• Fixed clients only seeing the electrical network when opening the resource network inspector via the flow meter
  
• Resaved datatable to resolve build issue
  
• Fixed certain inspected devices (such as the water pump) not showing the modifiers and networks UI, resulting in an empty screen
  
• Halved the damage hedgehogs deal themselves when spiking enemies, doubled the damage fortifications deal themselves when spiking enemies (don't worry, they're still much stronger than hedgehogs)
  
• Wind Turbine damage taken is more consistent at different health levels
  
• Fixed Wind Turbine audio from looping incorrectly
  
• Improve spline connection logic to provide smoother connections to other splines
  
• Update modifier effectiveness display, scaling around 100% instead of positive or negative effect. This better shows that less effective modifiers only have X% effect
  
• Updated Spawn Blocker check for fuel to reduce number of times it will update the spawn blocker system, notably T3 updated each tick of the jerrycan, now only updates when adding or running out of fuel
  
• Updated many UI elements to prevent small box next to device inventory when modifiers are not present
  
• ALCAZAR: Fixed Biofuel composter not registering when not processing, also fixes other missions requiring powered processors
  
• ABYSS: Fixed research station quest step and filling generator

[/expand]

Future Content
[expand type=details]

• Adding in Kiwi Idle and Death audio and data table setups
  
• Adding ful base setup for the ghost croc including corpse setup, anims to dupe for when audio requires and copy of nornal crocodile stats used for base pass awaiting proper design pass
  
• Adding New Animal Beds and Setup into project
  
• Cleaned up Field Guide Item Section UI
  
• Added addition Animal Bed variations, DEP_Animal_Bed_Royal_Var02, Animal_Bed_Fur_Var01, Var02, Var03 and Var04
  
• Setting up T4 Water Trough so it filters the water
  
• Adding shears cutting audio, impact event, item data table setup, items static data table setup
  
• Dev Cheat SetResourcesOnFocusItem: Increased maximum resources allowed
  
• Implemented Shengong Sickle stats and costs
  
• Added text for black wolf armor
  
• Edited text for nine of diamonds shield
  
• Adding T4 water trough start loop and end audio. Currently hooked up to event running and stopping which starts automatically
  
• Added bestiary text for Chicken
  
• Feature Locked Bestiary entries for unreleased creatures
  
• Adding blueprint info for trail beacon tool to play activation audio on linked trail beacon
  
• Adding base setup for swamp ape, awaiting behavior tree setup for movement and attacks and death anim in corpse setup etc
  
• Added text for trail beacons
  
• Updated text for black and white LM armor sets
  
• Adding activate trail beacon audio. Not hooked up yet
  
• Updated animal bed sizes and fur variants
  
• Prototype tree respawn
  
• Renaming Liaka -> Laika
  
• Added desert tracker saddle art assets for the moa, horse, and buffalo
  
• Updating audio for beacon beep, adding BP behavior to play beep on beacon
  
• Tweaked IceSheets (new Prometheus arctic area) fog density to give a better sense of scale

[/expand]

A lil somethin somethin: You can find the details for this event on the announcement page here.