Release notes/20131112

Solanae Dyson Sphere Adventure Zone

 * Travel through the Tau Dewa Sector Block to a gate near the Jouret system.
 * Travel through the gate requires a level 50 character and completion of "Sphere of Influence".
 * Sphere space is divided into two major zones:
 * Allied Zone
 * Joint Command Operations hold sway here and conduct scientific and military missions to defend their territory and shut down the sphere’s dangerous operations.
 * Contested Zone
 * Allies and Voth battle back and forth for control of strategically important towers which control the sphere’s energy distribution network.
 * Each zone is made up of Regions.
 * Each region has a dedicated mission giver that will grant the player a single thematically appropriate mission.
 * These missions are randomly selected from a pool of available missions.
 * Throughout the zone are small found missions that will randomly appear and give the player the opportunity to learn, fight, or explore the sphere.
 * Captains can only be on one found mission at a time.
 * Zones also contain a number of events that will randomly appear, prompting everyone in the map to coordinate for a given task.
 * Rewards are based on scoreboard participation.
 * You will be rewarded with Dyson Marks to use with the Dyson Joint Command Reputation.
 * In addition to these rewards, you will also have the chance to find unique short missions, earn exploration accolades, and find rare or very rare duty officers that further tell the story of the sphere, its builders, and their mysterious disappearance.
 * A Dyson Joint Command Commendation can also be earned. Please see the "Dyson Joint Command Reputation" section below for more information.
 * More information about the Solanae Dyson Sphere Adventure Zone can be found in this Dev Blog: http://sto.perfectworld.com/blog/?p=1009591

Solanae Dyson Sphere Battlezone

 * A battlezone is a persistent ground combat zone where players battle enemy NPC’s for control of the map.
 * Players can beam down to this zone via the "Battlezone" area in the Contested Zone of the Solanae Dyson Sphere Adventure Zone, via the entrance near the large Gateway in the Allied Zone, or via a NPC in Joint Command.
 * The battlezone is intended for level 50 players and can hold up to twenty players per instance.
 * Each player can bring two bridge officers and can team with up to five players without losing them.
 * Meaning a team of 5 players will total 15 including bridge officers.
 * The team UI will show your two bridge officers and your player teammates but no their bridge officers.
 * Each capture point scales to the number of players that are around it, starting from 1 and capping at 5.
 * The goal of the zone is to capture and maintain 18 out of 21 points on the map. This will trigger the final stage, where players must defeat at least one of the three boss fights to succeed. After this, the zone will go into a cooldown state before resetting the capture points to begin again.
 * Players can earn dilithium for the daily missions and Voth Marks by participating in capturing points.
 * A Dyson Joint Command Commendation can also be earned. Please see the "Dyson Joint Command Reputation" section below for more information.
 * More information about the Solanae Dyson Sphere Battlezone can be found in this Dev Blog: http://sto.perfectworld.com/blog/?p=1010561

Storming the Spire

 * This is a new five-captain, 15 minute event that is available from the queue at any time.
 * The event is playable by mixed Starfleet, Klingon Defense Force, and Romulan Republic captains.
 * This event is designed for teams of level 50 characters and has both Normal and Elite Difficulty.
 * The Voth have started an assault on an unclaimed Spire that Dyson Command has been studying, their goal is to steal Omega particles from the spire. The players are tasked with stopping the assault while allied troops retake the spire.
 * Players will need to destroy Voth Troop Transports while protecting their Allied Troop Transports.
 * After a period of time the Voth will try to escape with the Omega particles.
 * During this phase, a dreadnought will be beaming the technology aboard while shuttles carrying Omega particles will try to escape on the opposite side of the spire.
 * This event rewards a choice of Fleet Marks or Dyson Sphere marks based off:
 * The percentage of friendly troops on the base.
 * How many shuttles were stopped.
 * If the dreadnaught was destroyed.
 * A Dyson Joint Command Commendation can also be earned. Please see the "Dyson Joint Command Reputation" section below for more information.
 * More information about the "Storming the Spire" event can be found in this Dev Blog: http://sto.perfectworld.com/blog/?p=1024401

The Breach

 * This is a new five-captain, 25-30 minute event that is available from the queue at any time.
 * The event is playable by mixed Starfleet, Klingon Defense Force, and Romulan Republic captains.
 * This event is designed for teams of level 50 characters and has both Normal and Elite Difficulty.
 * Captains will attack the Voth Fortress Ship, an enemy ship on a scale never before seen.
 * The attacks will focus on destroying Integrity nodes located around the hull.
 * Along the way, captains can destroy hull hard points to further increase the progress of the assault.
 * Once enough damage has been done to the Voth Fortress Ship players will be able to blow a hole in the side of the ship allowing them to enter it.
 * When the captains are inside they will face Voth ships and automated defense systems that will try to keep the captains from destroying the main power source.
 * This event rewards Dyson Sphere Marks or Fleet marks with bonuses for saving captured ships and escaping the fortress ship at the end.
 * A Dyson Joint Command Commendation can also be earned. Please see the "Dyson Joint Command Reputation" section below for more information.
 * More information about the "The Breach" event can be found in this Dev Blog: http://sto.perfectworld.com/blog/?p=1024771

Updated Federation Tutorial

 * The Tutorial when creating new Federation characters has been redesigned. New characters now start their career at Starfleet Academy as a graduating cadet awaiting assignment to a ship for their first "Training Cruise".
 * Existing characters are not able to play this tutorial as this is for new Federation characters only.
 * The mission flow following the tutorial has been adjusted to match.
 * There are two missions following the new tutorial before entering Earth Spacedock: "Guiding Light" and "Assimilation of the Innocence".
 * While existing Federation Captains are unable to replay the tutorial, they will be able to invite Elisa Flores to join their crew by speaking with the contact at Starfleet Academy near Lt. Ferra.
 * More information about the updated Federation tutorial can be found in this Dev Blog: http://sto.perfectworld.com/blog/?p=1029071

Fleet Spire Outpost

 * The fleet system has been expanded and players have access to a new Spire Outpost.
 * Fleet Members can contribute to fleet projects to earn XP for their Spire and unlock new tiers, just like with the Embassy and Dilithium Mine holdings.
 * Can be compared to Embassy and Dilithium Mine for time to progress.
 * The Spire consists of a space map and an interior map. This holding is located in the Solanae Dyson Sphere.
 * Completing Tiers in the Spire’s main track will cause both maps’ visuals to become enhanced.
 * Like the Embassy and Dilithium Mine, the Spire has three tracks:
 * Spire (main track)
 * This track gains XP and progresses by completing tiers from the two sub-tracks below.
 * Research (sub-track)
 * The Research sub-track gains XP by completing repeatable fleet projects. Once enough XP has been earned, you will be given an Upgrade special project to unlock the next Research tier. Completing this Upgrade project will grant XP for the Spire main track.
 * Operations (sub-track)
 * The Operations sub-track gains XP by completing repeatable fleet projects. Once enough XP has been earned, you will be given an Upgrade special project to unlock the next Operations tier. Completing this Upgrade project will grant XP for the Spire main track.
 * Provisioning
 * There is a single provisioning type for each sub-track (Operations and Research) as opposed to several types found in the Starbase and Embassy holdings. These Provisions are earned by completing fleet projects. Below are items that can be purchased with the two types of Provisioning:
 * Research Personal Requisition Provisioning
 * (Rare) Obelisk Swarmers (Hangar Pet) – Equippable in any starship hangar bay
 * (Very Rare) Advanced Obelisk Swarmers (Hangar Pet) – Equippable in any starship hangar bay
 * (Ultra-Rare) Elite Obelisk Swarmers (Hangar Pet) – Equippable in any starship hangar bay
 * (Ultra-Rare) Advanced Spire Warp Cores
 * (Ultra-Rare) Advanced Spire Singularity Cores
 * (Ultra-Rare) Elite Spire Warp Cores
 * (Ultra-Rare) Elite Spire Singularity Cores
 * (Ultra-Rare) Advanced Tactical Consoles Mk XI to XII
 * Operations Personal Requisition Provisioning
 * (Ultra-Rare) Personal Ground Kits Mk XI to Mk XII
 * Special standard starships and fleet starships become unlocked as you progress through the main Spire track. These must be purchased using Fleet Credits, Fleet Modules and Military Personal Requisition Provisioning from your Starbase. Below are the starships that can be earned and at which Tier they become available:
 * Spire Tier 1
 * Standard Obelisk Carrier – Available to all factions
 * Spire Tier 2
 * Fleet Peghqu’ Heavy Destroyer – KDF Only*
 * Fleet Chimera Heavy Destroyer – Starfleet Only*
 * Fleet Daeinos Heavy Destroyer – Romulan Republic Only*
 * NOTE: The above Fleet Ships require that the player owns the existing non-fleet version of the Veteran Ships (1000-day veteran/ Lifetime Subscriber) to be able to purchase them.
 * Spire Tier 3
 * Fleet Kar’fi Battle Carrier – KDF Only
 * Fleet Caitian Atrox Carrier – Starfleet Only
 * Fleet Ar’Kif Tactical Warbird Retrofit – Romulan Republic Only
 * Non-Provisioned Rewards
 * The Spire holding offers a number of rewards that require no personal requisition provisioning and instead only require Fleet Credits. Below is a list of these rewards:
 * Spire (Main Track)
 * Discount on Command Credit costs in the Dyson Sphere's ground battle zone
 * Reduction in Spire Atmospheric Full Impulse speed debuff in the Dyson Sphere's space adventure zone
 * Reinforcement Capture Bonus in Dyson Sphere's space adventure zone
 * Operations (Sub-Track)
 * Uncommon to Very Rare Voth Science Duty Officers
 * +1 Ground Duty Officer Active Roster Slot
 * May unlock 1 per character
 * +1 Space Duty Officer Active Roster Slot
 * May unlock 1 per character
 * More information about the Fleet Spire Outpost can be found in this Dev Blog:http://sto.perfectworld.com/blog/?p=1012601

Dyson Joint Command Reputation

 * This new Reputation has been designed based on player feedback and features some quality of life improvements:
 * Features three progression assets, each with a specific purpose:
 * Dyson Joint Command Commendations
 * This asset is earned by completing your first daily mission each day in the Solanae Dyson Sphere.
 * A single Commendation can be used to kick off a large reputation XP project once every 20 hours. This can be compared to the large XP project found in other reputations. It doesn’t require marks or any other resource, only a single Commendation.
 * Dyson Sphere Marks
 * These marks are earned by completing repeatable content in the Solanae Dyson Sphere including the ground assault map, space adventure zone and Dyson-themed queued events.
 * These marks are used for equipment projects that award very high quality pieces of equipment.
 * These marks can also be used to kick off a small reputation XP project once every hour.
 * Voth Cybernetic Implants
 * These are earned by completing challenging queued events and by completing the ground assault map.
 * Voth Cybernetic Implants are used to complete equipment projects for very high quality ground and space set items.
 * Additionally, these can be used to complete a project that awards a large amount of Dilithium Ore.
 * A very large amount of reputation experience can be earned per day by completing a single daily reputation project that requires a single Dyson Joint Command Commendation.
 * Reputation Store Unlocks no longer require a project to be unlocked. Instead, a new store will be unlocked automatically each time a Tier within the reputation is completed.
 * Completing projects that award reputation XP will immediately also grant a Dyson Equipment Requisition box. These boxes contain a random item that is normal only available from the stores mentioned above.
 * All Equipment Projects found in the Dyson Joint Command reputation award Mk XII Very Rare items. This means there are no equipment projects for Mk X or Mk XI items. Only the highest quality of items are awarded from these equipment projects.
 * These high quality equipment projects are available at all tiers of the reputation instead of being locked behind tiers 4 and 5.
 * This new reputation is available in your Reputations panel of your character status window (default key "U").
 * Like the Nukara Strikeforce, New Romulus and Omega Force Reputations, this end game feature allows you to earn high-end rewards for max level characters.
 * The Reputation system unlocks at level 50.
 * Earn new ground and space powers.
 * Earn Dyson Joint Command Commendations and Dyson Sphere Marks to progress through the Dyson Joint Command Reputation and obtain powerful items.
 * Earn Dyson Joint Command Commendations upon completing your first Daily Mission/ Dyson themed event every 20 hours:
 * The Breach
 * Storming the Spire
 * Various Dailys can be found in the:
 * Solanae Dyson Sphere Adventure Zone
 * Solanae Dyson Sphere Battlezone
 * To support players who tend to play in long, but in infrequent play sessions, there is a project that requires 350 Dyson Sphere Marks and will output 5 Dyson Joint Command Commendations.
 * This allows players to stockpile commendations for the rest of the week when they cannot actively play.
 * Earn Dyson Sphere Marks by completing the following:
 * Repeatable missions in the Solanae Dyson Sphere
 * Queued events in the Solanae Dyson Sphere
 * More information about the Dyson Joint Command Reputation system can be found in this Dev Blog: http://sto.perfectworld.com/blog/?p=1017171

Reputation Sponsorship

 * Players have long requested that we make progressing through reputations easier when playing multiple characters. This feature is intended to address that and applies to ALL reputations, not just the Dyson Joint Command Reputation.
 * Characters that have reached Tier 5 in a specific Reputation will see a new project available in that Reputation: "Begin Sponsorship Procedures for Upcoming Officer".
 * This project costs 100 Marks from the applicable Reputation, and completes in ~5 seconds.
 * Completing this Project will reward that T5 Character with a Sponsorship Token applicable to that Reputation.
 * This Token is Bind-to-Account-on-Pickup, and is designed to be traded to other characters on your account via your Account Shared Bank.
 * This project can be repeated as many times as necessary.
 * All characters will see a new Tier 1 Project in each specific reputation: "Claim Sponsorship"
 * This project may not be immediately visible until a character interacts with the Reputation System in some way.
 * Even something as simple as slotting any project then canceling it will trigger the projects to appear.
 * Even though this is a T1 Project, it can be run by any character of any reputation tier other than Tier 5.
 * This project requires just one Sponsorship Token (no other inputs) and completes in ~5 seconds.
 * Completing this project will reward that character with Double Reputation XP in that specific Reputation, for the remainder of that character's lifetime.
 * This means that the Projects that previously rewarded 2000xp and 800xp (or 2500xp and 150xp for the Dyson Joint Command Reputation) will now give 4000xp and 1600xp (or 5000xp and 300xp for the Dyson Joint Command Reputation).
 * Inputs for these projects remain the same.

AFK Penalty
- – - – -
 * Captains that AFK in a queued map will now receive the following penalty:
 * 0 rewards for the event.
 * 2 hour cooldown on the ability to queue for any event.
 * These changes are implemented into the following queued events in normal and elite mode where applicable:
 * Atmosphere Assault
 * Breaking the Planet
 * Colony Invasion
 * Crystalline Cataclysm
 * Defend Rh’ihho Station
 * Federation Fleet Alert
 * Federation Starbase Blockade
 * Federation Starbase Incursion
 * Gorn Minefield
 * Hive Onslaught
 * Infected: The Conduit
 * Infected: Manus
 * Into the Hive
 * Khitomer in Stasis
 * Khitomer Vortex
 * Klingon Scout Force
 * Mine Trap
 * No Win Scenario
 * Nukara Prime
 * Starbase 24
 * Starbase Fleet Defense
 * The Big Dig
 * The Cure Applied
 * The Cure Found
 * The Vault: Ensnared
 * Vault Shuttle Event

General

 * "What's New In Season 8" information window in Help and Support has been updated to include all information about Season 8 "The Sphere".
 * A faction-specific EV suit has been added to the Veteran Rewards program at the 500-day mark.
 * This can also be obtained by Lifetime Subscribers.
 * The EV suit can be claimed at the same console interact in each capitol city where the 300-day firework reward is found.
 * Captains can obtain as many of these EV suits as they need for their bridge officers.
 * They are bound-on-pickup.
 * The C-Store version of this EV suit will no longer be available to purchase.
 * The Fleet Excelsior Retrofit hull windows no longer use the wrong model and windows are no longer floating.
 * Added a matte material variant to Caitian Atrox.
 * Added a matte material variant to Caitian Stalker.
 * Added a matte material variant to all Andorian ships.
 * Wintercoat belts have been taken out of the Formal wear category.
 * Updated art on some in-game Federation monitors, viewscreens, etc. with art more faithful to the IP.

Systems

 * Romulan Republic Reputation
 * Resolved an issue where the last item on the list in Tier IV's description was formatted incorrectly.
 * Fixed a typo in the Romulan Tier 5 Reputation power, Quantum Singularity Manipulation.
 * Task Force Omega Reputation
 * Completing the Tier 1 Upgrade project in this reputation now unlocks a Transwarp to Defera System Space.
 * Powers updates:
 * Diplomatic Immunity may now only be activated while in Sector Space.
 * Updated description for Diplomatic Immunity Buff which appears when you mouseover the buff icon.
 * Tuned Anti-Borg Device (from Defera) recharge reduced from 20s to 5s.
 * Resolved an issue where the +% Mine Weapon Damage enhancement from Variable Geometry Detonators would not increase Mine damage.
 * Gravimetric Torpedo Rifts
 * The initial Pull caused by Gravimetric Torpedo Rifts has been reduced.
 * Corrected the color of Gravimetric Rifts to match Photonic projectiles.
 * Torpedo Spreads using Gravimetric Photon Torpedo now only have a chance to create a Gravimetric Rift on the first hit.
 * High Yield Torpedoes using Gravimetric Photon Torpedo now only spawn a rift on the primary target they impact, instead of every target in the affected area.
 * Unequipping any kit will now instantly expire any buffs or debuffs granted by any power in that kit.
 * Accolades: Syndicate Boss now properly rewards its bonus damage vs. Orion ground NPCs, and will appear in the Passives menu.
 * Subspace Jump now makes the user unselectable for .5 seconds when activated, causing the user to break all current target locks on them when activated.
 * Buffs granted by Duty Officers proc powers no longer persist when the triggering power is unequipped.
 * Resolved an issue with Medical Tricorder III on Science Kits which was healing for less than intended.
 * Increased the Sonic Pulse III’s damage moderately.
 * Slightly decreased the effectiveness of Shield Generator Fabrication III’s shield healing.
 * Trait – Pirate
 * Resolved an issue where Bridge Officers with this power were not passing the power to their Captain.
 * The damage bonus of the Pirate trait stacks across multiple stationed Bridge Officers and a Captain, but the stealth bonus is limited to one copy and does not stack with any other trait-based Stealth bonus.
 * Trait – Medical Vanguard
 * Resolved an issue where this trait was triggered by Adaptation procs on Fleet Elite shields, causing Science officers to have much higher survivability than intended.
 * Medical Vanguard no longer affects passive powers at all.
 * Hangar Pets
 * Hangar Pets under the Escort command will behave far more intelligently, and more pro-actively seek out friendly targets and assist them if told to do so by their owner.
 * Hangar Pets under the Escort command will now refuse to stay beyond 20km from their owners. If this distance threshold is exceeded, they will fall back into Recall until they are within 7km of their owner, and then resume their Escort protocols.
 * All Hangar Pets will now disappear if they end up >50km from their owners. This will allow their owners to summon new Hangar Pets if their existing pets get stuck and cannot be retrieved.
 * Shield Repair Drones now behave less erratically, and will properly parse their owner's target when applicable.
 * Melee Weapons
 * Resolved an issue that was causing all Exploit-capable melee attacks to deal Unresistable Knockback on every attack.
 * The knockback from melee Exploit attacks now correctly only occurs when the target is Exposed.
 * The knockback from melee Exploit attacks now correctly can be resisted and respects immunities to knockback.
 * Increased the energy credit value of Mk X, XI and XII ground gear.
 * Mk X gear had its energy credit value multiplied by 2.
 * Mk XI gear had its energy credit value multiplied by 4.
 * Mk XII gear had its energy credit value multiplied by 5.
 * This increase in value does not translate to increase in dilithium store cost for items within this Mk range.

Foundry

 * Voth ground and space enemy groups have been added.
 * "Squirrels" are now referred to by their correct name, "Epohhs".
 * Author Tagging
 * When a UGC mission is completed by someone who is not the author the review screen pops up. There will now be a tags drop down button that you can click on that will allow you to select any number of tags. Clicking on one should show a check box on it without closing the drop down.
 * When you search for foundry missions, there will now be a histogram beneath the mission ratings that shows how many times a mission has been tagged with the various tags.
 * Finally, if you go to search for a mission, upon choosing 'Custom' from the drop down you will see three new search parameters at the bottom. These drop downs will have a list just like the one from when you reviewed a mission. One drop down is the list of tags that must be included in the histogram of the mission for it to show up, one drop down is the list of tags where at least one of the tags must show up, and one drop down is the list of tags to exclude from your search completely.

Known Issues

 * Foundry: There is lag between a review with tags being submitted and those tags being applied to a mission.
 * Foundry: The Clear button for Custom Foundry search does not clear tag selections.
 * The 7th costume of a captain cannot be accessed.
 * The Romulan EV suit light is in the wrong spot.
 * Video Settings: Cannot change "Half resolution" setting
 * Fleet Uniforms are not visible within the fleet page.
 * Male Remans cannot wear the Voth boots.
 * Dyson Sphere Marks do not appear in the Assets list.
 * They do appear in the new Dyson Joint Command reputation window.
 * There is some clipping with female legs and skirts.