Cyber Knights: Flashpoint

Cyber Knights: Flashpoint Update #118: Bodyguards and VIPs

Version
Update #118: Bodyguards and VIPs
Version Date
July 31, 2024
Links

Patch Notes

Update #118: Bodyguards and VIPs


The New Boston streets have never been so dangerous - because your Knight and your mercs about to to get paid to go hunting. With Update #118, we're rolling out new proc-gen map, new proc-gen objective and new cybernetics screen with a ton of fixes and features that were previously missing, such as removing a cyber class you accidentally multi-classed.

We've hammered through a huge number of major milestones in June and July and we've got 2 more just slipping out of July into early August - Reactive Music and Hacking Tutorial are days away from landing. And now begins the late-summer content binge - let's do it!

If you're enjoying the pace of updates and improvements to the game, please consider leaving a review as a way to thank our small team and push us to keep going!


New Proc-Gen Objective and Map


With Update #118, we're excited to be back on the new map train! The H Interchange map is now released with a new proc-gen objective of assassination. You've been offered a high priority hit but the target is only at risk for a very short window - you need to get into position, be patient and then hit hard before they can escape.

With a new map and a new objective now added, our next proc-gen step will be to add another new map with the assassination objective and then to circle back to bring everyone into the fold - adding assassination objectives to existing maps and adding existing objectives to these new maps. We'll rampage through a short cycle here, hopefully making some big waves in the amount of proc-gen playable content before pivoting to stories, recruits and contacts.

Improved Bodyguard & VIP Behavior


With this update, we've also put extra hours into rigging up the behaviors for bodyguards and VIPs so that they are more actively taking their rolls. VIPs will move quickly at a walk toward their extraction point until they become alerted, at which point they will run. Bodyguards aim to never be caught flat footed, so they run and move quickly to keep up with asset and take tactical advantageous positions nearby.


Upgraded Cybernetics Screen


Update #118 brings a complete revamp to the cybernetics screen for your mercs. Before, the screen was presented in a pretty dry inventory of 6 slots you can fill with cybernetics. Now we've upgraded the screen to present you with the 12 possible slot types (arms, legs, deep-brain, fast-brain, heart, etc) that can be augmented with cybernetics.


We've also improved the language and clarity for all the conflict and fail case pop-ups to be more clear. Some of the messages were just plain wrong (saying the implant would conflict with another implant you had when really it was blocked by requiring to train a 3rd class, etc).


Also, implants that provide a new multi-class cyber class are tagged to be more obvious within the lists.


Remove Cybernetics for Limited Respec


With Update #118, we've also added a highly requested ability to undo class training in a cyber class that has a cybernetic requirement, such as Vanguard or Scourge. Now you can select any implant and simply uninstall it. We skip over the gross procedure and getting the vat grown replacements and just get you back to the game. If your Cyber Knight doesn't want that Dermal Plating - pull it. If you regret multi-classing your Hacker into Agent EX, pull the Nano-Hive and bingo, you're clean slate Hacker again.

This uninstall procedure does not require a SimStream Trainer token as it is only a partial respec, only removing the class nodes trained from the specific tree of the class you're removing.

We discussed making this cost money, a week, and a cyber surgery bed at with a Contac but - for now - have opted for free and instant. You've already paid a hefty price to get that implant installed, so our team found this feature is mostly used to undo mistakes as there is very little or no gameplay advantage from doing it.

And if your starting class came with an implant -such as Emille starting with a Chameleon Sheathe and Vanguard - you cannot remove it.


Upgrade to Matrix Link 2


We've fixed the conflict bug that was preventing the upgrades of required cyber class implants, such as Matrix Link 1 to Matrix Link 2. Get your hacker, get your fistful of cash and get yourself to the clinic now!


Proc-Gen Name Upgrade


We've really enjoyed all the players posting the best mission names to the Best Mission Names threads on our Discord, the names that everyone helped suggest and the generator has done an amazing job of creating some cool stuff. We've gone back into this little content engine with a new round of updates, better expanding the set and letting both the map and the objective have more of an impact. We hope you post up the new results too :D

Improved Stun vs. Security Tally


We've fixed a number of issues related to Stunned enemies reporting to the Sec AI, that Security Tally would still appear in yellow in the HUD even if they were Stunned and that some types of events could still end up being reported. All of this is now cleaned up and we've standardized the handling of Stunned as a priority status across the stack so that the Sec AI and the individual agent intelligence adhere to the rules everyone would expect.

v1.8.35 - 7/30/2024


- Added new proc-gen mission objective for Assassination
- Added new proc-gen map "H-Interchange"
- Improved behavior for VIPs and bodyguards - much better in Snitch Snuff mission too
- All new cyber surgery screen makes slot options much clearer
- Now uninstall any implant from cybernetic screen, including cyber-class implants to remove that class training
- Fixed conflict preventing Hackers from upgrading from Matrix Link 1 to Matrix Link
- Improved and clarified text in all cybernetic surgery conflict tags, added Multi-Class tag to highlight those
- Improved Tally display and Sec AI reporting rules for stunned enemies - they do not see, they do not report
- Widened range of custom/flexible difficultly, opening up ranges for those locked at 75-125% to 50-150%
- Fixed issue with helper extraction dialog playing at the end of every hack only mission, now plays first time only
- Fixed issues with landed hovertrucks not correctly blocking sight lines