Upgrades Upgraded

In my last report I outlined some details regarding changes that are being made to the Upgrades System for all items.

I’m pleased to announce that today we’ve completed Phase 1 of this project.

What does this mean for you? Simple. The upgrading mechanism is unchanged. You buy and slot the upgrade into the desired vehicle. However, starting today, for all Land Vehicles and Starships, rarity of upgrade is no longer tied to the Rarity of the to-be-upgraded vehicle. If your heart desires it, you can now put Legendary upgrades onto Uncommon vessels. Basically, it operates just how upgrades for Crafting Corvettes. You're free to upgrade away.

Here is how it works: All Vehicles will have a single slot for upgrades. (No more, this goes here and that goes there) It's all in one area. It appears on the vehicle as “Upgraded Components”. In that slot, you may put any upgrade from the upgrades that are available for purchase. If you want two system upgrades, you can do that. If you want two Advanced Enhancements, go for it! The only thing that is limited is Large Hardpoints, which presently are for light freighters and assault ships only.

The Slot Size, or number of upgrades that can be applied, does still correspond to the Rarity of the base item. In short, if you spend more money on a Vessel, it should still have some perks to spending the extra cash. This is how we maintain that perk. We have also expanded what rarity of Vessels can be upgraded to include Common Items. Below is the full breakdown of slots.

Rarity	Slot Size (Number of Upgrades)
Common	1
Uncommon	2
Rare	3
Epic	4
Legendary	4

For now, Legendary items have a slot size of 4. Based on the Rarity Policy, Legendary items are “Preupgraded” and upgrading them further would be difficult based on how unique the objects are to begin with. In the past, Legendary items got the same number of upgrades as Epic, they just had access to a higher tier. So, there isn't a major discrepancy here. Additionally, we don’t have very many legendary items that will be negatively impacted.

With no limits on what you can equip, you will have tons and tons of options! The stores are back open, so have at it!

Remember: Once you have selected the upgrades you’d like, purchase them from the appropriate store. Then navigate to your Possessions admin, located on your Admin menu. Slot the items and presto!

Here’s an example of what your new vessel could look like!

Have fun dreaming up new combinations! I will have more updates when we move into phase 2.

NOTE: WITH THIS CHANGE YOU MAY NEED TO GO IN AND RESLOT PREVIOUSLY PURCHASED UPGRADES - SOME MAY HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM YOUR VESSELS

Ascent Emporium Limited Closes!

Per the Seasons Guidelines, the Limited Store has closed after 1 month operating past the end of Cycle 1 of Parabellum.

Fear not. It will be opening again soon! It will re-open, stocked with new items, on release of the next Cycle! Keep your eyes and ears peeled for Cycle 2 news.

As a reminder, after a few months the items that were featured in this store will be released for general purchase. So you’ll have the opportunity to pick them up again later.

Crafting Updates(ish)

“From hell's heart I stab at thee; for hate's sake I spit my last breath at thee. Ye damned whale.” - Captain Ahab.

Crafting. My old nemesis. We meet again.

We’ve made some progress on the back end of crafting. But, there is still mountains of work to do. Truth be told I don’t have a whole lot to share with you at this time, but we keep pressing forward. I promise that in the future I will have a more substantial update. Until then, this is just a reminder that we're working on it!

Return of Item Releases

In the coming months, my team and I will be working on getting back to the regularly scheduled booster packs. These probably will not drop until summertime, since we’re caught up in a few other things at the moment.

We have a few new Star Wars Media releases this year and that should help us to find new things to add.

Changelog

\== Member Space Vehicles \==

All Prototypes:  
\- removed all existing sub-item slots  
\- added new “Upgraded Components” slot, with slot size dependant on item rarity

\== Member Land Vehicles \==

All Prototypes:  
\- removed all existing sub-item slots  
\- added new “Upgraded Components” slot, with slot size dependant on item rarity

That is all until next time!

Important Links:
* Item Research
* Item Stores
* Item Aspect Approval Policy
* Item Prototype Approval Policy
* Regent Suggestion Box
* Item Error Reporting Box

-The Usurper