Beta 15 "0bPrime"

The epic conclusion to the UFD expansion is here, bringing with it a major new map, 100 new items, and Cogmind's 10th unique ending!

Within you'll also find a huge range of other updates, notably including Extermination and Assault squads without free tracking to Cogmind?!

As usual I'll be avoiding content spoilers (and there are a heck of a lot of surprises to spoil), but following the changelog below will be describing and demonstrating some of other the new features, while also providing some useful background info before you get started.

Changelog

Cogmind Beta 15 "0bPrime" (250505) changelog (excerpt):

-----( HIGHLIGHTS )-----

• NEW: Branch map "[redacted]"
• NEW: 100 new items
• NEW: 1 new ending (total = 10)
• NEW: Additional optional boss and alternative extended challenge
• MOD: Extermination/assault squads no longer automatically track directly to Cogmind's position
• MOD: Optimized rendering gives significant FPS boost to 4K and other high resolutions [Luigi]

-----( CONTENT )-----

• NEW: 8 new encounters
• NEW: 12 new robot variants
• NEW: 2 new robot classes
• NEW: 3 new robot tiles
• NEW: 2 new major events
• NEW: 1 more major NPC
• NEW: 1 new unauthorized hack
• NEW: 40 new lore entries
• NEW: 81 new sound effects (total = 1339)
• MOD: Several nearly-"guaranteed" encounters in certain maps now actually fully guaranteed (includes A7, 4L-MR0, -8/MAT GAR and more)
• MOD: Main Warlord cache moved to its own room
• MOD: Approaching S7 with FarCom causes entrance lockdown

-----( QOL / UI )-----

• NEW: Reverse info comparison between two items via new REVERSE button (or 'r' key)
• NEW: Info page for individual allies shows damage and kill tallies
• NEW: HUD borders animated in purple while under effect of Stasis Trap or Containment Facilitator
• MOD: Special manual Terminal hacks, including persistent ones not listed in menus, now accepted without "\\" prefix (IAMDERELICT!)

-----( MECHANICS / ITEMS )-----

• NEW: Successful Fedlink also locates all Recycling Units on current map
• NEW: PSU Rigger capable of toggling manual timer for rigged power source detonation, akin to Sapper Charges
• NEW: Encrypted Comm Array detects and labels nearby friendly ambush traps, even from inventory
• NEW: Repair Station with repair in progress may drop the part upon being disabled
• MOD: Multiple exterminations can no longer be dispatched across a very short period
• MOD: Natural influence decay applied more gradually over time, rather than in large chunks at greater intervals
• MOD: Removed Sensor Arrays and Signal Interpreters from Watchers (available from new TF Nodes)
• MOD: Dropped heat of most kinetic cannons by 15%
• MOD: Increased average kinetic cannon coverage by 10%, integrity by 20%
• MOD: Transmission Jammers have a small chance to fail to block transmissions
• MOD: Active Sensor Suite coverage halved, integrity increased
• MOD: Hybrid power sources have significantly decreased coverage
• MOD: Retrieved drones with damaged parts or core are repaired using the bay's integrity as a resource
• MOD: Main maps also have spawn protection against Behemoths being stationed immediately nearby
• MOD: Siege mode accuracy bonus reduced to +15%/25% for Standard/High siege
• MOD: Fully transitioning into/out of siege mode requires 7 turns instead of 5
• MOD: "Siege" stat listed in part info replaced with more generic "Special" for treads/legs to accommodate new alternative mechanics
• MOD: Restarting a disrupted ally via bumping always succeeds
• MOD: Allied Mechanics no longer arm Cogmind if any weapon slot already contains a functional non-backup part
• MOD: Combat Programmers cannot be hacked, only parsed
• MOD: Relay Coupler [Swarmer] base value reduced from 28 to normal (20)
• MOD: Index(Terminals) and equivalents exclude limited-access door control Terminals
• MOD: Jammed Operators can still lock DSFs directly upon reaching their Terminal to call reinforcements
• MOD: In Rogue mode, destroying a Garrison Access point attracts two assault squads instead of one
• MOD: Cogmind parts no longer inherently immune to disruption (constructs always immune, and part shielding/Dynamic Insulation systems prevent it)

-----( SCORESHEET / DATA )-----

• NEW: Scoresheet includes more specific breakdown of alert sources
• NEW: Scoresheet Intel section includes infowar usage breakdown
• NEW: Scoresheet records number of average and unused spare parts
• NEW: Scoresheet lists Repaired parts in centralized format as well, as with Fabricated objects

-----( BUGS )-----

• FIX: Under certain circumstances, machine intel markers may autodeactivate on acquiring new intel [R-26 Lightspeed]
• FIX: Some known branch entrances may appear as stairs instead of doors under certain circumstances [R-26 Lightspeed, Mr Goldstein, RNGesus]
• FIX: Mak. Microdissipator Network causing final ablative damage to multislot construct destroyed it outright instead of downsizing [Darby, Cracklepappy]
• FIX: Active Sensor Suite description did not mention its inability to overcome Scan Cloak 5 [aoemica]
• FIX: Inventory(Components) and Inventory(Prototypes) did not include all relevant stockpiles [aoemica]
• FIX: Non-overweight flight-capable bots had become blocked from using their ability to jump bots if too close to Cogmind, or on sensors [Plexion]
• FIX: Tech Extrapolator provided schematic for Structural Scanner instead of DSS [Hermelin]
• FIX: Influence for off-turn spotting still applied even if Cogmind visible on AI's next turn, especially relevant when fighting Sentries [DDarkray]
• FIX: Adventurer mode showed cargo convoy path automatically (normally only given in Explorer mode) [8fpsbossfight]
• FIX: Properly stop the potential infinite typing sound at Terminals under conditions such as retrieving a manifest longer than the output display area
• FIX: Squads will no longer split up as much due to being blocked in narrow corridors under certain circumstances (behavior introduced in Beta 14)
• FIX: Addressed several situations where it might be possible to display the left half of an inventory item tile twice instead of the entire tile
• FIX: Main Access Shell may not always open automatically even if door properly hacked
• FIX: Mechanics could not repair allies during W assault
• FIX: Red line could appear over top-left of map area after map transitions in modal UI layout

Extended Beta 15 changelog including additional categorized minor details for advanced players...

>>>: CONTENT

• NEW: Additional Garrison layouts
• NEW: Looping Garrisons without RIF increases chance of exits from other Garrisons at same depth leading to a different area
• NEW: Entering Garrisons increases Programmer support within other Garrisons at same depth
• NEW: Using a certain route enables Scrap Engine theft without angering UFD
• NEW: Culmination of the large-scale -2/Research event gives access to Cave Seal Controls
• NEW: [Player 2 mode] Player 2 included in ending animation
• MOD: Updated lore to reflect new extermination/assault squad behavior
• MOD: Slightly increased possible Recycling Unit count in Factory/Research
• MOD: Security Level 3 type Recycling Units less common
• MOD: Data Miner responds more naturally to more types of potential hostilities
• MOD: Exiles also discover theft in Storage if reached before Factory
• MOD: Increased frequency of multiple rare Zion dialogues
• MOD: Adjusted a few Scraptown areas to accommodate new content
• MOD: Scraptown response to hostility updated to account for new content
• MOD: UI border color lost if disowned by UFD
• MOD: Increased armor of Botcube Storage access door
• MOD: Botcubes have their own robot class
• MOD: Decramped some prefab areas containing salvageable robots or scrap to streamline salvaging process
• MOD: Allies from Ambush Traps switched from generic purple to W faction
• MOD: "D-Prototypes" static terminal target renamed to Protocatalog for more generic use
• MOD: Siege-capable treads contribute towards TANK designation for build classification

>>>: QOL / UI

• NEW: HUD displays Encrypted Comm Array modifier while appropriate
• NEW: HUD gains "UFD Traitor" label to reflect that faction status where appropriate
• NEW: On-map item label category filters also reset when using keyboard mass labeling command or corresponding Scan window mouse button
• NEW: Mouse wheel also capable of cycling on-map item categories while items mass labeled
• NEW: In keyboard mode, 'r' may be held as a modifier to jump the examine/targeting cursor in combination with vi-keys/arrows/numpad, as with Shift-Numpad
• NEW: Interactive machine data obtained indirectly via terrain scanning, Derelicts logs, etc. added to intel
• NEW: Some types of intel markers darken after a while has passed since first learned, especially for those representing former positions of mobile objects
• NEW: Additional details provided in effect description of a certain unique Exoskeleton
• NEW: Animation and audio feedback in parts list for forced removal due to causes such as blast/sever/sunder crits and Segregators, Tearclaws, etc
• NEW: Unique audio feedback for skim results
• NEW: Evolution interface supports arrow/numpad/hjkl key control
• NEW: F2 for toggling keyboard mode also works in machine hacking window
• NEW: Context tutorial message explaining difference between gray and green '?' for dialogue markers (previously only in manual)
• NEW: Option to display total move time required to reach destination while highlighting path via Ctrl-Alt (advanced.cfg: dynamicPathDistanceTime)
• NEW: Options to automatically mark discovered stationary Heavies/Behemoths/Sentries via map comments (advanced.cfg: autocomment options)
• NEW: Option to also show map-specific turn count in HUD (advanced.cfg: hudMapTurnCount)
• NEW: Option to override the longer temporary movement block duration when warned of extremely slow movement (advanced.cfg: extremeSlowMoveSpeedBlockTime)
• NEW: Option to override timeout duration while drag-dropping an item via mouse (advanced.cfg: dragDropTimeout)
• NEW: Option enabling custom input methods to rebind the continuous "running" movement modifier (advanced.cfg: runCommandModKey)
• NEW: Option to stream entire combat log to an external file as messages are generated (advanced.cfg: combatLogStreaming)
• MOD: Warnings and intermap transfer when followed by multitile allies at exits consider all ally-occupied positions rather than top-left corner
• MOD: Prototype non-controllable allies appear light purple instead of retaining crimson override color
• MOD: Significantly decreased audio range of Micro-nuke detonation
• MOD: Using a Datajack to quick boot an ally or accelerate assimilation does not restore as default manual target for next fire action
• MOD: Flashing characters for on-map siege mode activation now red instead of yellow
• MOD: Scrap Shield delivery ignores those in temporary slots, regardless of integrity, so long as have another in inventory
• MOD: Volley window weapon reference letters listed in alphabetical order
• MOD: Added second exception for coupler autoreplacement when one is more damaged but has higher value, consistently preferring the latter
• MOD: More position-specific dialogue messages accompanied by on-map indicators
• MOD: Most scene messages from log also reflected at bottom of map view
• MOD: Direct mouse access to map robot info blocked while any status screen list open (was only sometimes possible in non-modal layout)
• MOD: condenseSlotTypeHeaders/alwaysCondenseSlotTypeHeaders renamed to "[...]PartCategoryHeaders," reset for everyone, and disabled by default
• MOD: Options menu Keyboard Mode value now stored in user/system.cfg rather than options.cfg, to prevent transfer across systems by Steam Cloud
• MOD: deferredAudioLoading setting moved from advanced.cfg to system.cfg, to prevent transfer across systems by Steam Cloud
• MOD: Map particle rendering order inverted, may impact some animations

>>>: MECHANICS / ITEMS

• NEW: Concussive RPG blasts also push items on ground
• NEW: Added full description to Compactor
• NEW: Junk Cannon description expanded to include warning about automated recycling at 0 ammo even while inactive
• NEW: Several teleportation technology effect descriptions include additional details
• NEW: Master Drone Bay description now implies possibility of failure to survive destruction of host
• NEW: Multitool gives explicit feedback if attempt use on non-Terminal interactive machine
• NEW: Resource container effect description explicit about inability to retrieve resources from inside while item corrupted
• NEW: Core reset effect also marks redacted exoskeleton position with hypermatrix surge
• NEW: Controllable Mechanics now list current remaining integrity repair "Supplies" among their inventory
• NEW: Watchers gain explicit Sensor Jamming trait to retain original jamming functionality
• MOD: Reduced predictability of extermination dispatches
• MOD: Removed relay_feed robot hack (no longer applicable)
• MOD: Increased damage of some Linear Accelerators
• MOD: Diametric Drive energy cost reduced from 1 to 0.5
• MOD: Diametric Drive, Cld. Cesium-ion Thruster integrity increased
• MOD: Heart of Steel coverage and integrity increased significantly, but destroyed on removal
• MOD: Matter Drive size/energy decreased, coverage increased, now fragile
• MOD: Alien consumables reduced to 0 coverage, given differentiated integrity values
• MOD: Renamed "Point Defense Array" and "Antimissile System" to types of Point Defense Systems
• MOD: "Recoil Nullifier" renamed "Adv. Recoil Stabilizer"
• MOD: All EM Disruption Fields renamed to corresponding EM Shields, highest rating increased to 9
• MOD: Energy Mantles merged into single new "Adv. Remote Force Field"
• MOD: Imp. Remote Force Field rating lowered from 8 to 7
• MOD: Exp. Force Field removed from general item spawning pool
• MOD: Major NPC's Beam Splitter replaced with Thermal Barrier, difference added as innate resistance
• MOD: Scatter Rocket Array radius increased to 4
• MOD: Rocket Array matter cost increased to 30
• MOD: Unique Pitchfork and Trident weapons have attack delay
• MOD: Siege Articulator effect increased from 2 to 3
• MOD: Updated descriptions of all Concussive RPGs to better reflect their mechanics
• MOD: Thermal Lance explicitly indicates unique heat transfer property in description
• MOD: Mechanic combat repair block extended from 5 to 12 turns
• MOD: Mechanics no longer arm Strikers using a melee weapon
• MOD: Botcubes capable of using Expert System
• MOD: Hacking Drone innate heat dissipation increased by 2
• MOD: Microwarp Drive size increased to three slots
• MOD: Vmp. Broadsword integrity and mass increased
• MOD: Field Manipulator cost to Stasis Trap reduced from 5% to 3%
• MOD: Cannot store resources in corrupted resource containers
• MOD: Engineers building machines displace items in designated area, or destroy them if no available space
• MOD: Armed mutual allies capable of swapping with one another in more circumstances
• MOD: Temporary part disabled status removed when traveling between maps

>>>: SCORESHEET / DATA

• NEW: No more than 60 of a single robot class contribute to score in a single map, though total kill data still recorded in scoresheet records
• NEW: Expanded scoresheet "Hostile Shots Fired" records with more possible stats
• NEW: Scoresheet records Encrypted Comm Array modifier values for entire run until behavior is no longer compatible with faction
• NEW: Scoresheet includes relevant Membrane/ITN/NEM data in status summary
• NEW: Scoresheet includes robot disruption stats
• NEW: Scoresheet movement data includes travel through potential cave-in locations
• NEW: A-bots destroyed specifically via DC code also recorded among NPC kills in scoresheet, as is GM if explosion triggered via hack
• NEW: Gallery export data includes Fragile trait
• MOD: Attacks on controllable or temporary allies don't count as Friendly Fire for scoring purposes
• MOD: Parts Attached section of scoresheet only counts each unique part once even if reattached

>>>: MISC

• NEW: All patron and Alpha supporter names registered since Beta 14 added to in-game list (see Credits menu and item collection gallery)

For the complete changelog including all bug fixes, see the latest iteration packaged with the game or online here.

Saves from earlier versions are incompatible with Beta 15, but even if you're on Steam and Cogmind automatically updates, Beta 14 is still available via its own legacy branch and you can roll back to finish a run in progress first if you like. Cogmind will remind you which branch to use if it finds an old save, and your old save won't be deleted or affected by the update.

United Federation of Who Now?

The UFD sees you making fun of them. What could this hodgepodge group of robots hailing from an obsolete complex ever hope to accomplish? It's time for the UFD to take it to the next level.

For those who've forgotten or were not yet aware, Cogmind's previous release (Beta 14) was only the first half of the so-called "UFD arc." We needed a content cutoff somewhere, and that cutoff happened to require leaving out even some of the Scraptown experience itself. Although the UFD of Beta 14 brought much in the way of new tech and ideas (lore!), and could come in handy as allies or a source of resources supporting new build styles, if you weren't impressed before you may be more interested in their full offering...

To see what's new, join up and visit the previously empty council room to meet a famous fellow you may have already heard of. Note there were originally a couple Terminals in that room which you likely read if you've been there before, but it's probably important to remind yourself what's on them (also a third one has been added). "Fedlink" matters now, in ways you'll discover as you go (it wasn't strongly integrated into the game yet due to the aforementioned cutoff). This new plot line will eventually lead you all the way to a new ending, one quite different from any of the others.

You may also encounter some new more direct routes to reach Scraptown in the first place.

Good luck :)

Main Science

Not to be outdone by lowly scrap-loving Derelicts, MAIN.C has been working on something new as well, very new. So new I can't tell you almost anything about it, or even where it is, but the UFD will help you.

Okay I will say 1) it's a new map that is 2) somewhere higher up in Complex 0b10. Although this may currently put it out of reach for some of you (both getting there and using it for any of its purposes is on the challenging side), you'll at least find that Scraptown itself (available earlier on) and plenty of other aspects of Beta 15 are quite accessible and ready to improve various aspects of your runs.

Balance

The biggest news you may have caught on to when first mentioned in the introduction is that Exterminations and Assaults will no longer come straight to Cogmind when dispatched! Yep it's a pretty big change with a number of implications, but gone are the days of new players believing it possible to just hide in a tiny room until they pass by or go away, only to discover it's always one or more Programmers hot on your tail for as long as it takes to reach your precise location. Yeah we had friendly contextual derelicts to help explain that mechanic (in addition to the lore behind it which could be read for further details), but it was clearly not great from a design standpoint, more of a necessity as one of the few "food clocks" to help add pressure to a run, and one that needed to be pretty direct to have a more meaningful effect. Well this many years later we're now in a world with even richer maps--more obstacles, more challenges, more variety than the one into which Exterminations were born (and by extension Assault dispatch behavior), so it's time to give them more realistic and interesting behavior to go with their roles.

From now on, rather than targeting you specifically, Exterminations and Assaults instead head to your general area to begin searching. If you're not there by the time they arrive, then it's possible to give them the slip (same goes for Assaults!), although over time they do expand their search radius and will continue looking for you, albeit via an increasingly inaccurate and slow process. Naturally having sensors and access to more nearby routes will make it easier to avoid them for as long as you need to.

Of course you may still run into them later, which might not be under ideal circumstances, but at least it's not an inevitability and you have even more options than before.

Extermination dispatch timing is also now much less predictable, but also gone are the days of multiple dispatches in quick succession.

If Programmers do find you, note that the disruption property of their weapons can now temporarily affect your parts--Cogmind was always inherently immune to that effect, but if you want that immunity now you'll need to use either part shielding (for specific part categories) or a Dynamic Insulation system for blanket protection.

The above is just one area in which the general "pressure" across normal floors is evolving. Aside from a bug fix related to spotting that should likely result in somewhat lower alert buildup overall, more directly you'll also see (if you have a way to see it :P) that alert decay is now applied gradually instead of in large chunks at greater intervals, resulting in a natural and smooth process but with the same ultimate effect as before.

For the detail-oriented player, scoresheets now also include a complete breakdown of all sources of alert/influence increase and decrease across a run. See the boxed section in this sample excerpt below:

Kinetic Cannons

Buffs! Everyone loves buffs, and if you're a KI cannon buff you'll really love this one. They've gotten a heat reduction across the board, as well as a coverage boost and even bigger integrity boost, meaning they're outright more efficient to run than before, and will last longer while simultaneously offering a bit of extra cover for your other parts. Remember to still carry surplus matter storage and/or consider employing a Tractor Beam so you can immediately suck up all the bits you blast off your targets.

Yes, Siege Mode is Still Amazing

Okay this one's a nerf, but an inevitable one just long in coming, and relatively minor in the bigger picture of siege superiority. In fact it might even save you some time :P

Who hasn't started sieging up to blast some incoming bots then finished them off so fast you barely even started getting any benefits from the mode only to have to unsiege before you can move again anyway? Well sieging now takes 7 turns to complete rather than 5, so not necessarily an immediate reaction for nearly all encounters. Remember that the entire time you're entering/exiting siege mode you're also at a disadvantage (due to immobility combined with a targeting bonus for your enemies), so some of those quick last-minute siege/unsiege situations often turn out to be pointless at best.

The siege mode targeting bonus is also somewhat reduced, but it's still quite good, with the reduction having a smaller proportional effect on Siege-type treads, leaving them with that extra edge--it's in the name :D

Sieging is likely to be a little more deliberate going forward, and is still just as great for all its same defensive benefits.

Note this change did not come in isolation, its timing was determined to coincide with the introduction of multiple new mechanics: more special propulsion modes! Be on the lookout for new types of legs on your travels, the result of patron voting as part of Beta 15 development. Leg-based assault, skirmisher, and melee builds all have something to look forward to.

Watchers Not Sensers

Watchers have been stripped down, doing the same old jobs as before but without the Sensor Array or Signal Interpreter. It was always kinda weird they never used them for remote sensing despite the original lore explanation, and now that we have other bots that do properly use sensors (in fact more than one now as of Beta 15), it was time to make these guys a little more realistic.

But you do need a convenient source for these useful parts! And you'll have one, albeit not from those annoying flighty dodgy guys. You'll see the new source pretty quickly, and there's some lore to explain those more, but attacking Watchers would be mainly to shut them up, or if you want their optics which are still nice to have.

Infinity Drones

Drones have always been fully repaired for free upon returning to a bay, though this was behavior from Cogmind's early days when there was just one type of drone, and just for exploration, whereas now there are drones with all kinds of functionality, including combat drones and some of them quite formidable in their own right.

Well giving them all free repairs is equivalent to infinite integrity if one is willing to baby them, so a change to that aspect was another long in coming, and just hadn't happened yet. Part of the delay is that my intent was to wait for a bigger drone update (more drones!) and do it together with that (since reconsidering some drone stats in this light would be a good idea), but Beta 15 introduces yet another combat drone, an incredibly powerful one, so I didn't want to wait on this any longer.

Drone repairs now drain the integrity of corresponding bays upon repair. The process is all automated and uses the best options available at the time, including inventory-based bays; the costs are also fairly lenient at the moment due to the lack of drone stat changes, so doesn't really have much impact on normal drone use, just getting that mechanic in there now.

QoL

It's a Cogmind release, of course there's tons of QoL!

While using the item name display feature, you can now also cycle through the categories with the mouse wheel, rather than just one of the keyboard options:

You can now reverse the comparison between two items' info--there's a nifty [REVERSE] button to click, or hit the 'r' key:

For some extra audiovisual reinforcement when a part is forcefully removed by some mechanic, there's new animation and SFX for that:

It's generally pretty obvious when it happens, and hard to forget, but now there's also a persistent HUD border animation to go along with being stuck in non-beam-type stasis effects:

When Terrain Scanners or other non-direct intel methods discover machine locations, they're added to your intel marker records as normal, rather than just being visible on the map:

For those of you who would like all known Heavy/Behemoth/Sentry guard positions to be autocommented on your map, there are separate settings for each of these in the user/advanced.cfg file (and the manual has more information about their behavior):

The new advanced dynamicPathDistanceTime option shows you the exact amount of time required to reach a given destination given your current speed while manually highlighting a path to a destination:

Here's a fun one--now you can see just how many kills and damage have been dealt out by your favorite Botcube, NPC ally, or random Hunter follower who just seems to be casually murdering all comers:

It's now possible to see the actual amount of integrity supplies remaining in your allied Mechanic to provide repairs--not that many people ever hit this limit (and no it's not some new restrictive limit so don't expect it to become a problem, it's always been there!), but a select few RIF-heads do indeed run into this (shown here with its context help copied from the manual):

Use any of the normal directional keys to control the evolution UI (arrows/vi/numpad), not just letters or mouse:

Among its new data entries the scoresheet includes multiple bigger new sections, including some pretty cool ones like a breakdown of all the infowar used across the run (17 types total! although this sample only shows 6 of them):

Like the Fabrication list we now also have a list of every repair performed and the item's original state:

And now we'll know just how many spare parts of each type people are carrying through their runs (extra replacement parts in inventory at a given time), and how many of those went completely unused/discarded later:

I'm sure these sections will provide some very interesting aggregate data to share later in the usual places!

Special status indicators from the HUD are also now reflected in the scoresheet's summary at the top--unique modifiers like Membrane/ITN/NEM...

A really important QoL update that I don't have an image for is actually a fix to a new bug introduced in Beta 14 while getting rid of the old issue of a combat AI sometimes hopping over another in an attempt to reach Cogmind (even around a corner or without flight capabilities). So that original issue was fixed, but in the process apparently introduced another unwanted behavior where groups of bots might block each other, and individuals rerouting as a result could sometimes even temporarily split up roaming patrols that were supposed to be working together. If you noticed more lone combat bots wandering around in Beta 14, that was likely the reason and the latest behavior updates should resolve that now.

Some other random demonstrative recordings from development, not necessarily QoL...

If you've ever tried the Inventory(Components) and Inventory(Prototypes) hacks before and were slightly (or enormously :P) underwhelmed, checking out this sample of the new behavior in a small area of this Research map might change your mind:

Concussive RPG explosions now push items away from the source:

For those of you who know what ECA is, there's a convenient reminder of your current level directly in the HUD, which will also update in real time so you can see the effect your actions are having on it:

Any PSU Rigger lovers out there? Of course there are! Well, you also now have the option to use your improvised proximity explosives as time bombs instead:

It's now possible to output the entire combat log as messages are generated, for any external realtime monitoring and processing needs (advanced.cfg: combatLogStreaming):

And there it is, I've said as much as I can without giving away any of the best bits--you'll just have to see for yourself!

I can't believe Beta 15 ended up adding even more items than Beta 14, which was already crazy xD

I originally thought we'd get maybe 40-50 new ones this time at most, but design needs present themselves when they do, same with adding new robots, new encounters, or generally any other content to improve the quality of the experience while aiming for a particular vision, and it had to be done :D

Thanks to all of you, and a special thanks to the patrons for your ongoing support of my work to help bring yet more content to everyone! With the epic reorganization of the 450-page TODO list that went into preparation for Beta 15 in particular, there's an even more refined list from which to pull in more features alongside the remaining planned expansions--the Unchained are coming, and much to the dismay of some inhabitants of Tau Ceti IV, the Merchants will follow...

The leaderboards will soon be archived and reset for our new version followed by stat analysis from our tens of thousands of runs submitted from Beta 14.