Parabellum - Version 11.0.0

SCP: Secret Laboratory's biggest and most impactful update to date is now fully released. Version 11.0, also known as Parabellum, revamps a huge number of the game's core features. From a complete update of gunplay to the reimagining of the universe's most iconic character, no stone was left unturned in bringing this update to life.

If you've participated in the lengthy public beta, you'll have a good idea of what to expect. If you haven't, or you want to see the full extent of what Parabellum includes, read on.

SCP-173 Rework

SCP-173 is, in fact, the oldest part of the game that still exists today. When the game was in its infancy, there were two classes: Class-D and SCP-173. The Sculpture itself was the first class added to the game. Moving forward, it was a natural choice to include a revamp of the game’s oldest class.

We've discussed our reasons behind the rework and the path we chose for certain things more in a dedicated Steam announcement.

We're extremely pleased with the overwhelming support from the community, especially 173 and how the rework has been received. A lot of work has been poured into every aspect of the new Sculpture; from its artistically terrifying model to the ability kit itself (which may be the most revised part of the game we've ever had).

We're really proud of it, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Inventory Rework

Although it's a huge part of the update, SCP-173 was introduced into Parabellum after its other flagship feature was already well underway: the inventory and weapon rework. The inventory system is a key part of any human player's round, but in spite of that, it's been largely unchanged since its original inception — the interface has received some adjustment, and item limits were added, but the actual system and user experience was mostly the same. With version 11.0, we decided it was time to fix that!

In Parabellum, SCP: Secret Laboratory's inventory system was rewritten. Virtually none of the old code remains, and the result is an inventory that's snappier and more polished than its previous iterations. Every item in the game has received a new appearance, sounds, animations, and in some cases, new features.

You can see a full list of the changes we've brought to the inventory in the Patch Notes section, but some highlights include:

• A context-sensitive hotkey system that allows you to equip keycards, medical items, and weapons at the press of a button — without having to open your inventory.
• The ability to throw any item in the game, which will damage windows based on the item's weight.
• Class-specific arm appearances.
• New animations for all items.

Gunplay Rework

The most significant part of the Parabellum update is the complete rework of the game's gun mechanics.

Like the inventory, guns were very old, especially script-wise. We've taken the time to upgrade the appearances of each gun in the game, as well as adding several new ones. Old weapons, such as the P90 and USP, were replaced with modern, original variants. From the humble LCZ pistol to the fearsome Logicer, every weapon in the game feels better to use.

A full list of changes can be found in the Patch Notes, but here are some highlights:

• The addition of body armor. Military classes have armor vests that provide protection from bullets instead of having increased health to simulate this armor. Civilian classes can loot and wear body armor but will have increased penalties to stamina and movement speed when doing so. Armor has also replaced class-specific weapon and ammo limits.
• Each weapon now has a set recoil pattern. These can be predicted, controlled, and mastered.
• Accuracy depends on movement speed. Move slow and aim down your sights for the best results, or run and jump to spray a hail of bullets down a hallway.
• Every firearm in the game now has attachments, including the Logicer, which previously lacked them.
• The Chaos Insurgency has subclasses. The Logicer has been restored to its fearsome, former glory (but only a few CI in each wave will have them)!

Patch Notes

If you'd like to read the full patch notes for this update, or you're a plugin developer, this section is for you. Below, you can find the complete list of changes made in version 11.0.0.

SCP-173 Rework

• SCP-173 has received a new model, and their ability kit has been redesigned from scratch. Expect a completely different experience playing with, as, and against the Sculpture.

Gunplay Rework

• Implemented new models, sounds, and statistics for every gun in the game.
• Firearms have a defined recoil pattern as they fire through their magazine.
• Firearm accuracy varies, depending on movement speed, whether you're in the air, how much you've fired in a short period of time, etc.
• Firearms use a more complex system for damage calculations. It includes penetration values, falloff, and more.
• Workstations no longer require a weapon manager tablet to use.
• Firearm attachments can be configured as a spectator by pressing your inventory key.
• Added body armor, which reduces the damage dealt to certain body parts by guns. All military classes spawn with body armor. It can also be found in the facility's armories and weapon lockers. Civilian classes can wear body armor, but will experience the downsides more severely.
• The Chaos Insurgency has subclasses, each with different armor and weapons.
• Added the Revolver.
• Added the AK.
• Added the Shotgun.
• Replaced the P90 with the Crossvec.
• Replaced the USP with the COM-18.
• Replaced the MP7 with the FSP-9.
• Redesigned the MTF-E11-SR, COM-15, and Logicer.
• New models, animations, sounds, and stats for all guns.

Inventory Rework

• Implemented a hotkey system to draw keycards, medical items, etc. without having to open the inventory.
• Items can be manually sorted in the inventory by dragging and dropping.
• You can drop items from the inventory by dragging them outside of the interface's circle.
• The weapon manager tablet has been removed from the game. SCP-079's generators have a big old-fashioned knife switch instead of a tablet slot.
• With the removal of the weapon manager tablet, ammo is now dropped and viewed directly in the inventory.
• All items in the game have received new models and, where applicable, sounds.
• The visual appearance of your hands while holding items now varies depending on your class.
• You can throw any item in the game by pressing the T key. Items have different functions; heavy items can shatter windows, while keycards can be thrown at door panels to open them from a distance. This key can be rebound.
• The disarming functionality has been moved to the guns themselves. Another player can be disarmed by using your interaction key on said player. As a result, disarmers have been removed from the game.
• Added some coin spawns throughout the map. You can flip the coin by activating it, which will result in a heads or tails result.
• Firearms can be inspected using the I key, showing a short visual animation that shows off their model. This key can be rebound. Some items, like SCP-018 and the MicroHID, will automatically be inspected when first equipped.
• Note: As a result of the Inspect feature, the new default keybind for noclip is Left Alt. This can be changed in the keybindings menu. It shouldn't override your existing settings and will only affect new players or people who clear their preferences.
• Note: Inspecting any item will not prevent using it, as activating it will immediately exit the animation.

Gameplay Changes

• Added a new skybox and lighting to the Surface Zone.
• First aid cabinets may spawn with adrenaline shots in addition to first aid kits. These cabinets will have blue symbols, instead of green ones.
• Blood and other decals should be far more efficient, preventing your performance from tanking.
• Blood darkens over time, depending on how old it is.
• Tesla gates deal less damage. This change primarily affects SCPs.
• Players can see if they've been muted by a moderator when trying to speak with voice chat.
• Post-processing has been revamped across the board and can be configured in the options menu.
• Completely remade the system the game uses to cull level geometry, resulting in much better performance across the board.
• All classes feature unique first-person death animations. Humans will see the perspective of their ragdoll, while classes like SCP-096 will show off unique animations. SCP-106 sinks into the floor instead of becoming a ragdoll and leaves a splotch of corrosion behind. It's not really dead, after all...
• Ragdolls have force applied to them in certain conditions. For instance, SCP-096's attacks will send humans tumbling when killed. Fun fact: we called this the "regular attack yeet" in our code.
• Verified servers can be reported from the server browser. Misuse of this system may result in restrictions being placed on your account.
• Health bars show exact numbers by default. Percentage values remain available in the gameplay settings, as before.
• The key used to hide the HUD can now be rebound.
• While in noclip, you can hide fog by pressing the O key.
• The Retro main menu theme has been reintroduced to the existing list of selectable menu music.
• Added a new effect for players that are underground when the Alpha Warhead detonates.
• Adjusted the shaders and reflection probes used for glass and other glossy materials.
• SCP-106's portal will be removed if it was underground during the Alpha Warhead detonation. They can still freely move it on the Surface Zone after this happens.
• Added some environmental storytelling throughout the facility, most notably in the evac shelter found in the Entrance Zone.
• SCP-939 now has proper ragdolls.
• SCP-106 found his jacket again.
• Added cloth physics to SCP-049's robe and SCP-106's jacket.
• Added visible bullet hole decals.
• Refactored the spectator system. Most post-processing effects on players are visible to the people spectating them as well.
• The flashlight can be toggled on and off by activating it.
• Removed a gray banner that would appear on the death screen with the name of the class that killed you. It made it harder to see the new death cams, and didn't fit the current aesthetic of the game.
• Implemented new particles for LCZ decontamination.
• Added reflection probes throughout the facility. This means that you'll see reflections in glass, on the surfaces of some guns, etc.
• Added several new map layouts to the HCZ and the EZ.
• 4-way intersections and straight hallways may now be randomly rotated.

Balance Changes

With the revamp of the game's gunplay and one of the universe's most iconic SCPs, we felt like it was an opportune time to run a set of sweeping balance changes as well. We've made these after a lot of public and internal testing, and we're optimistic that they will help the game in the long-term, and make room for further improvements as development continues.

SCP-079

• Can no longer lock down a room within 5 seconds of an existing lockdown ending.
• Number of generators decreased from 5 – 3.
• Time to activate a generator increased from 1:30 – 2:05.
• Since weapon manager tablets have been removed, generators don't require an item to activate them anymore. You'll still need a keycard to open the access panel.
• SCP-079's containment chamber is locked down by default, and cannot be unlocked by SCP-079 themselves.
• Generator activation no longer immediately recontains SCP-079. Instead, it locks open the doors to SCP-079's chamber. A button can be found inside the chamber's control room that recontains SCP-079.
• Added a selection of items to SCP-079's containment chamber as an additional reward for completing the generator power-up sequence.

SCP-939

• Max health decreased from 2200 – 1800.
• Has a 600-point Hume Shield. It regenerates at 20/s after 7 seconds of no damage taken.
• Bite damage reduced from 65 – 50, but bypasses all armor.
• Can now destroy glass with bites. Chomp.

SCP-096

• Max health increased from 1500 – 2000.
• Hume Shield increased from 350 – 1000.
• Hume Shield no longer increases and decreases. It will always have a maximum of 1000.
• Hume Shield regeneration rate increased from 5/s – 40/s.
• Hume Shield regeneration delay increased from 10s – 25s.
• Additional rage time is only granted by acquiring targets in the calm and enraging states —new targets while fully enraged do not give bonus time.
• Charge cooldown reduced to 5 seconds.
• If a kill is landed using Charge, it will reduce the cooldown of the next use by 3.5 seconds. The base cooldown time will increase by 1 second. This resets when SCP-096 exits rage. If a Charge kills multiple people, only one stack of the cooldown penalty is applied.
• SCP-096 no longer instantly kills non-targets with Charge, but deals 40 damage instead.
• SCP-096 will see the glowing outlines of targets much earlier. They will become visible immediately after receiving a target.
• Added an audio cue to SCP-096's player when they receive their first target.
• Hume Shield particles are no longer visible while using Try Not to Cry.

Spawning Tickets

The following changes have been made to spawning tickets:

• NTF gain +1 ticket for every 4 CI killed.
• CI gain +1 ticket for every NTF killed.
• SCPs award 2 tickets on death — one to account for the 25% damage dealt, and one extra as a reward for the kill.
• The first respawn wave is no longer random, and is instead based on the team with a higher number of tickets.
• SCP-268 only grants a ticket for the Chaos Insurgency on its first use.
• SCP items created through SCP-914 no longer reward spawn tickets when used.

Other

Finally, the following miscellaneous balance changes have been applied:

• SCP-049: Max health increased from 1700 – 2500.
• SCP-049-2: Max health increased from 300 – 500.
• SCP-106: Max health increased from 650 – 850 (damage resistance still applies).
• Adrenaline no longer restores HP on its own. Classes that previously only spawned with adrenaline now spawn with a first aid kit to prevent them from having no source of healing.
• SCP-096's hits are registered by the client and not by the server. The server still verifies each hit before causing damage, but 096's basic attack should overall feel much more consistent than before.

Tesla Gate Refresh

• Tesla gates have new visuals and audio.
• Tesla gates visually and audibly activate when a player enters the room they're in, featuring sparks and a red light. The gate will not create a damaging blast until a player gets close to it.
• Tesla gate damage has been dramatically reduced. It will always instantly kill humans, but most SCPs can survive several blasts. This change is intended to allow for riskier plays, as well as preventing new players from dying instantly without realising what's happening.

Remote Admin 3.0 and server changes

• Remote Admin's next major version is here!
• Text-based RA has been revamped. It features command suggestions, nickname autocomplete, a better scroll bar, and much more.
• Visual RA features a nickname filter, role-based icons, and a broadcast menu, in addition to changes like better player list scrolling and visual fixes.
• Reimplemented the ci_on_start_percent config option. It's 10 by default.

API Changes

• Added a "clearcassie" command (or "cassieclear") that clears CASSIE's message queue.
• FlickerableLightController now has a "LightIntensityMultiplier" property to control a room's light intensity from the server.
• Added RAUtils — a new utility helper for Remote Admin. It contains the processing functions for tab-completed names, including the regex functions.
• All remote admin commands (except REQUEST_DATA) have been moved to an interface-based system, instead of being hardcoded into one function.
• Add IUsageInterface to support command usage. It's a string array that gets added to the properties of the commands that interface it.
• The IUsageInterface has 3 "special" values: (%player%, %role%, and %door%) that will tab-complete respectively in the RA GUI.
• Add fuzzy search for looking up partial commands from the commandField.
• Commands are synced when the client joins a server. This means any commands added to the RemoteAdminCommandHandler will be available for tab-completion in TBRA.
• The inventory has been completely remade. New scripts can be found in the InventorySystem namespace. Most items track their data via unique scripts that inherit from ItemBase.
• Reimplemented the decal system. We now use Decal Master instead of a very outdated version of Easy Decal.
• Remade the RoomInformation system — it is now called RoomIdentifier.
• Implemented a simple co-ordinate system that can fetch the room a player is in.
• Soft refactor of keybinds to use an enum (ActionName) instead of strings for action keys.
• Alpha Warhead lights are now server-side, and their color can be modified by plugins (or cruel admins) as a result.

Fixes

• Fixed SCP-096 being able to use Try Not To Cry in any direction by rapidly turning their mouse as soon as they activated the ability.
• SCP-106 no longer dies if they're using their sinkhole when the warhead goes off.
• Grenades can no longer be thrown through the ceiling in certain rooms.
• Direct Connect no longer skips hyphens.
• Rich presence for Steam and Discord correctly displays max player count, instead of being a flat 20.
• CASSIE now correctly pronounces numbers if the pitch is higher or lower than default.
• Fixed multiple font rendering issues that made the game very difficult to play with non-Latin based languages such as Chinese and Korean.
• Fixed an issue with the Steam markdown in the main menu.
• Players should always be correctly decontaminated.
• The ban command no longer fuzzy searches players.
• Introduced a rate limit for using medical items to prevent stacking their sounds multiple times per second with a macro. *zip*
• The laterjoin system no longer only spawns players as Class-D.
• Resolved a bunch of anticheat issues.
• The tutorial class has its own ragdoll.
• Players can correctly use global chat when the round has ended.
• Many, many, many more fixes that aren't included here.

What's Next?

With the development cycle of 11.0 finally at an end, we can take a breather and start looking forward to the future. There are several internal plans and we've already started working on the skeleton for the next patch. Halloween decorations will be making their return and we'll hopefully be having a special event for the spooky season this year. After that, well... we can't give away all our secrets, can we?

See you in the dark.

~ Northwood Studios