StarMade news & patch notes

Java 21 Migration

For Server Owners / Providers

Fleets & AI

Fleet Reconnaissance

• Fleets can be given a RECON command with a list of target sectors and an entity filter (all / root-only / docked).
• The fleet moves through each sector, dwells to scan, and records FleetReconLog entries, while avoiding direct combat.
• Completed recon runs produce saved reports viewable from the Fleet Options GUI via a new View Reports button.
• Patrol missions now also generate recon-style logs when engagements occur and produce a summary report at cycle end.

AI Collision Avoidance & Sector Arrival

• AI ships now actively avoid collisions with other ships during travel using a dedicated avoidance steering layer.
• Sector arrival detection was fixed to prevent ships from overshooting their destination.
• Ship AI braking behavior corrected: ships now smoothly decelerate when approaching targets instead of ramming.
• Ships with at least one warhead block and no weapons will now attempt to ram enemies with their warhead, after which, they will automatically disable their ai module to prevent continued ramming with no warhead.

Patrol & Trade Improvements

• Patrol state bug fixes including integrated fleet logging for patrol reports.
• Player trade fleet movement target assignment streamlined; cargo deep-copied on fleet clone operations.

AI Changes

• Fleet membership is now cleared from an entity after a reboot to prevent automatic order reassignment.
• Sector coordinate validation added to fleet movement commands.
• AI config constants centralized into VoidElementManager for easier tuning.
• Default AI aiming accuracy raised to 3000 (improved targeting at range).

Fleet Stealth Commands

• Fleet Stealth command calls have been fixed, so players should now be able to have their fleets jam / unjam, and cloak / uncloak properly.

Graphics & Rendering

Improved Graphics Presets

• Added more options to existing graphics presets, and a new "auto" setting that will automatically detect the user's system specs. Scores the system (0-100) based on VRAM (40pts), system RAM (25pts), CPU cores (25pts), available OpenGL version (10pts), etc., and maps the score to: Ultra (85+), VeryHigh (73+), High (60+), Medium (45+), Low (30+), VeryLow (<30)

Block Model Visual-State Framework

• BlockVisualStateDef: data class defining a visual state with versioning.
• BlockVisualStateAPI: API surface with state versioning, cache invalidation, and authoritative token management via LodStateTokenStore.
• BlockVisualStateDefDialog: in-editor dialog for creating and editing model visual state definitions.

Framebuffer & Resource Improvements

• FBO depth buffers are now reset on re-creation to prevent stale state artifacts.
• Non-critical GL errors from framebuffer operations are logged rather than thrown, improving resilience.
• Shader unloading methods converted to use unloadWithoutExit for safer resource cleanup.

Segment Upload Throttling and Lighting System Improvements

• GPU segment uploads are now throttled per frame (default: 15 uploads/frame) to prevent single-frame CPU/GPU spikes (stuttering) when large entities enter render range. Configurable via a new G_SEGMENT_UPLOADS_PER_FRAME engine setting.
• Added a new setting G_LIGHTING_THREAD_COUNT to configure how many CPU threads to use for calculating segment lighting (default: 4 threads).
• Overhauled internal lighting calculation resource usage to alleviate GC pressure.

Modding API

StarLoader Mixin Integration

• StarMixinService, StarMixinServiceBootstrap, and StarMixinGlobalPropertyService implement the SpongePowered Mixin service interfaces.
• StarMixinAgent, StarMixinAuditTrail, and MixinClassTransformer wire Mixin class transformations into the launch class loader with full diagnostics.
• Mods can declare Mixin configuration JSON files that are automatically registered and applied at load time.
• SMModLoader propagates mixin configs from virtual mods into their ModSkeleton.
• The old class replacement system has been removed entirely.

Per-Block Custom JSON Metadata

• SegmentController stores block custom data in a deduplicated pool (blockCustomDataPool) indexed per block, with full save/load serialization.
• EditableSendableSegmentController accepts pendingBlockCustomData and applies it on block placement (including symmetry mirrors).
• /give_item_data gives a player an item with specified custom data.
• /set_item_data allows modifying the custom data of the player's current item.
• /set_item_slot_data allows modifying the custom data of a specific inventory slot.
• ManagerContainer can read custom block data tags for use in factory/refinery logic.

Inventory System Extensions

• inventoryType and inventorySlotsLimit fields added to block configuration and ElementInformation, enabling mods to define custom inventory-capable blocks.
• SavedInventory: new class for persisting custom item storage per-player in creative mode, with panel UI.
• Custom data preserved when updating inventory slots; InventorySlotContainer interface introduced for improved modularity.

Factory / Refinery API

• registerRefinery(...) and registerFactory(...) methods added to the public API.
• Legacy newRefinery and newFactory methods deprecated.
• factoryStandardControlledBy and factoryStandardControlling fields made public for broader API access.

Mod Loading Improvements

• Dependencies are now loaded before mod instantiation, preventing class-not-found errors at mod init.
• Loading screen now shows detailed per-phase progress during mod loading and initialization.
• Mods are now properly reloaded on relog, so players no longer have to restart their client when relogging.

Build Mode & UI

Control Scheme Presets & Key Remapping

• New CONTROL_SCHEME_PRESET engine setting with New and Classic options.
• KeyboardMappings.applyControlSchemePreset(...) remaps ship controls to match the selected scheme when settings are committed.

Build Mode Help

• Build mode help text is now only shown in advanced mode to reduce HUD clutter for new players.

Catalog Upload and Template Selection Dropdown Improvements

• Added a search bar for the catalog upload and template selection dropdown, to make finding a particular blueprint or template easier. Additionally, the catalog system now uses Java's parallel streams API for faster loading.

Markdown Renderer

• Lists: both ordered and unordered with proper indentation and bullet styles.
• Code Blocks: fenced code blocks.
• Tables: full grid layout with header rows.
• Blockquotes: indented/styled quote blocks.
• Block Sprites (!): renders an inline 3D block icon.
• SVG fenced code blocks: rendered via JSVG into a GL texture (graceful fallback to plain code block on failure).
• Images: .png images can be displayed from local storage or online.
• Links ((url)), strikethrough (~~text~~), inline code, and all 6 heading levels.

In-Game Guides

• Added an in-game guide system to replace the old video tutorials, compiled from https://github.com/StarMade-Community/StarMade-Guides. Players are encouraged to contribute to these guides via PR, as not all the documentation is up-to-date or completed yet.

Gameplay & Mechanics

New Display Module Features

• Display Modules can now have multiple tags to change style properties for different text sections.
• Added a new rot option to rotate display module text in degrees.
• Display modules can now be used to override Rail Rotators to specific angles in degrees. Simply place the display module with the desired angle adjacent to the activation module that activates the rotation.
• Sensor Output: Connect a sensor to one display module and one probed block (e.g. shields, power, rail rotator). The sensor will write the probed value to the display module.
  • For rail rotators/turrets, the current rotation angle in degrees (0-360) is the output.
  • For other blocks, the sensor's measured value is the output.

Logic Beams

• Added Logic Beams - A new block that can be used to quickly transmit logic signals across entities using an activation beam.

Faction Map Color Picker

• Factions can now select what color they want their territory to appear as on the map, and the bug causing the colors to slowly revert has been fixed.

Tractor Beam Improvements

• Ships being tractored now have their state synced to clients; the server temporarily takes position authority while the beam is active to prevent jitter.
• Tractor beam config now uses thrust ratio instead of mass ratio.

Weapon Damage Performance Overhaul

• Updated code paths in all three weapon types to reuse objects and optimize code to avoid unnecessary allocations and paths. In particular, explosion and acid calculations were causing significant GC pressure by allocating large numbers of temporary objects every tick.
• In the acid damage propagation code specifically, toPropagate.removeLong(0) on every iteration was shifting the entire array, making the propagation loop O(n^2). By reading entries by index (getLong(i)) during the loop, then bulk-removing all processed entries with a single removeElements(0, count) at the end, we were able to reduce the removal cost from O(n) per iteration to O(n) total. For a propagation wave hitting 500 blocks with 2000 entries in the queue, the old code would perform roughly 1,000,000 element shifts. The new code should perform only around 2000 total for the same scenario.

Targeting Display Changes

• Added an additional display underneath the target distance indicator that displays the distance the projectile (cannons and missiles only) will have to travel to hit the target, based on the target's current heading and velocity.

Astrotech System Fixes

• Astrotech systems can now properly repair links between blocks.
• Implemented substantial performance improvements and optimizations for repair handling code to heavily reduce object allocation and relieve GC pressure.
• Improved Repair command handling for AI Fleets.

Shield System

• Major shield hits are now broadcast more often to nearby clients for visual feedback, reducing shield desync.
• Client-side shield recalculation disabled for remote ships to prevent overwriting network-synced values.

Warhead Changes

• Warheads will now explode as a single group rather than many smaller explosions, and explosion calculations in general should now be far more performant.

Fixes for Build Shape Tools Radial Menu ( ` )

• Several fixes have been implemented for the Build Shape Tools Radial Menu ( ` ), so the tools should now be more visually and functionally consistent.

Thrust Sharing Bug Fix

• The long-standing docked thrust sharing bug has finally been fixed, so docked thrusters no longer provide huge amounts of thrust.

Mod Mappings Fix

• Some ships with modded blocks were having their mappings incorrectly parsed, causing blocks to randomly swap between different worlds and mod installations. This should now be fixed.

Server & Stability

Crash Detection & Reporting

• CrashLogger atomically captures the first unhandled server exception and writes a detailed crash report to ./logs/crash-report-{timestamp}.log.
• Report includes system info, JVM arguments, graphics info, full stack trace, cause chain, and a thread dump.
• Subsequent cascading exceptions after the first are suppressed to keep the log readable.
• New ServerCrashEvent fired via StarLoader so mods can react to crashes.

Player Spawn Distance Check

• Added a maximum distance check when spawning players in; clients should no longer stall waiting for distant controller loads.

Performance Improvements

• Object allocation and CPU pressure significantly reduced in many hot-paths.
• Diagonal neighbor handling and neighbor counting logic optimized for segment processing in ElementCollectionMesh.
• BlockBuffer and RepairBeamHandler refactored for improved clarity and reduced overhead.
• Segment Updates (when not caused by player action) and Element Collection processing are now done using batch processing rather than as soon as possible. This will improve performance on both client and server at the cost of slightly delayed lighting and segment updates. By default, both are set to process every 1000ms (1 second), and can be tuned as needed in configs.

Platform / OS Fixes

• Linux: Fixed saved credentials not persisting across computer restarts.
• Intel Mac: Fixed crash where NSWindow.setStyleMask was called off the AppKit main thread when exiting fullscreen.
• Intel Mac: Fixed startup crash when loading AquaLookAndFeel fails (graceful fallback).
• All platforms: Fixed NPE in getCurrentDisplay() when a monitor's name does not match any known display entry.

Known Issues

• Unfortunately, the reported shadow issues have proven difficult to fix on certain GPUs, so they have been temporarily disabled until a proper solution can be found. Expect a follow up fix for these.
• ARM Macs are not supported by this build currently due to the limitations of LWJGL2. We hope to be able to support them in a future update however.

StarMade Launcher v4 Beta

Greetings Citizens,

In preparation for the next release update coming in the following days, we are putting out a beta for the new StarMade Launcher v4. This new launcher is a multi-platform electron-based application designed to be as robust as possible. We are asking people to help test it by selecting the launcherbeta option in the Game Versions & Betas section in Steam.

It features multi-instance management, account management, news, mods, blueprint catalog, templates, and even a server panel. Please note, the server panel feature is still WIP, and we are still working on adding more remote providers for it.

This launcher will be required to run the next major update once it's released. The next update introduces huge performance improvements, a move to Java 21, an updated tutorial / guide system, and much more, so be sure to stay tuned!

Important: The v4 Launcher should automatically autodetect and import legacy installs, but in case it fails, you can manually add installs in the launcher settings.

Our goal is to make this transition as seamless as possible, so please report any bugs in the Development Discord!

Note for Server Owners / Providers

The next major release build will require Java 21 to run, as well as the following JVM arguments:

-javaagent:StarMade.jar

--add-opens=java.base/jdk.internal.ref=ALL-UNNAMED

--add-opens=java.base/java.nio=ALL-UNNAMED

--add-opens=java.base/jdk.internal.misc=ALL-UNNAMED

With this, your server's full launch arguments might look something like:

-javaagent:StarMade.jar

--add-opens=java.base/jdk.internal.ref=ALL-UNNAMED

--add-opens=java.base/java.nio=ALL-UNNAMED

--add-opens=java.base/jdk.internal.misc=ALL-UNNAMED

-Xmx8g -jar StarMade.jar -server

We highly encourage owners / hosters to reach out on Discord if they have any questions.

Note for ARM Macs

While the v4 launcher is available for ARM Macs, current dev builds, and the upcoming release build are not playable on ARM Macs due to the technical limitations of legacy LWJGL2 support on MacOS.

The New Foundations builds (game versions >= 0.400.0) in the pre branch will work on ARM Macs, as they use LWJGL3, which can run on Apple silicon via an OpenGL -> Metal translation layer. So if you happen to be on an ARM Mac, and want to play the game, you will have to use the pre branch builds for now.

Please note however, support from ARM Macs is still highly experimental, and has some issues still, notably significant performance issues on lower-end systems due to the overhead of translating OpenGL draw commands to Metal.

Update on New Foundations (Universe Update)

Progress is still being made on the future New Foundations update, and there are WIP builds in the pre branch. These builds are still being worked on, so expect bugs!

And, as always, thank you for playing StarMade.

StarMade Discord: https://discord.gg/VKmWdtBQPj

Development and Modding Discord: https://discord.gg/MhtShemdYN

• The old build helpers have been replaced by a new and enhanced system using a radial menu. This menu can be opened in build mode using the new Open/Close Build Tools menu binding (grave ~ key by default). It contains the following build modes:
• Single Mode (Default): Standard placement mode already present in the game.
• Line Mode: Places a line of blocks from point A to B. {AS, AR, HW, BD}
• Box Mode: Places a 3D area from point A to B. {HW}
• Curve Mode: Similar in function to Line mode, but has an extra step where you can determine the intensity of the curve. {AS, AR, HW, BD}
• Circle Mode: Builds in a circle shape. {AS, AR, HW, BD}
• Cylinder Mode: Works like Circle mode, but has an extra step to determine the height of the cylinder. {AS, AR, HW, BD}
• Ellipsoid Mode: Creates a 3D ellipsoid shape, has similar controls to box mode. {HW}
• Polygon Mode: Define up to 8 different points, and the algorithm will attempt to create a shape between them. {HW, BD}
• {AS}: Supports 45 degree angle snapping by holding down Left Shift.
• {AR}: Supports Axis Restriction Mode (Auto, XY, XZ, YZ) by using the Mouse Wheel.
• {HW}: Supports hollow placement mode toggle.
• {BD}: Supports using the current build dimensions for more dynamic shaping.
• All of these modes also work with templates and the player can toggle automatic spacing via a checkbox in the build dimension settings.

• By holding the Advanced Build Mode binding in Copy Selection mode, you can select two points using the mouse similarly to how the Box Build tool controls.
• Replaced the unused placement locking feature with a Cut mode toggle.

• Implemented mass and entity limit settings for NPC factions, where they will stop building if they are over or approaching this limit.
• Implemented max system count settings for NPC factions, where they will abandon their least valuable system when attempting to expand if they are over or approaching this limit.
• Implemented an NPC system control loss ratio setting, so that if an NPC faction loses greater than or equal amount of assets in a system to this setting, they will lose it. The old system always required 100% loss of all assets, which was very difficult to get to in practice.
• Implemented setting to control whether NPC home systems can be seized when they meet the criteria for losing a system.

• Added a new Experimental Features section for server config.
• Added a setting for allowing player assigned fleets to handle trade delivery (experimental, off by default). To do this, the one initiating the transaction must have an available fleet assigned to the Trade Delivery command, and also have a faction owned shop on their homebase. Once the trade is completed, the faction owned shop will receive the delivery tax, and the trade fleet will attempt to return to a sector near their faction's homebase before flagging themselves as ready to trade again. Note: If you're interested in testing, the following sections should be focused on specifically:
• Ensure the delivery fleets actually get the blocks and items loaded onto them properly. This is important, as it would allow other players to intercept and seize cargo.
• Automatic order cancelling if a fleet changes assignment or is otherwise unable to fulfill the task. The cargo the fleet is carrying should also be returned to the shop, the credits returned, and the relevant parties should be notified.
• If no fleets are available for delivery, the system will attempt to use the Traders NPC Faction to deliver the goods. If this fails, it will just virtualize the delivery.

• Implemented a new batched renderer for template preview drawing, which significantly improves performance when pasting templates. The old system rendered each block individually, which was slow and inefficient.

• Updated rail command descriptions and added a "Reset Rail" command for Command Modules.
• Reintegrated client-side plume updates.
• Readded Reactor Stabilizer Stream Nodes as Decorative Nodes.
• Renamed multiple block entries to clarify they are decorative, including all variants of Energy Cell, Energy Pylon, and Power Core blocks. For example, Energy Cell (Blue) is now Decorative Energy Cell (Blue).
• Made field ID mappings for Network Objects start at Byte.MIN_VALUE (-128), effectively doubling the amount of fields that can be serialized. This should fix some ping issues that were stalling servers due to some network objects having more fields than the system could serialize.
• Added hotkey for resetting turrets (Period key . by default.)

• Resolved a ClassCastException in GameServerState.
• Fixed AI Turret toggle hotkey sometimes not working.
• Removed unnecessary calls to Display.setLocation and Display.setResizable in GraphicsContext.java that was causing issues on Windows when the Monitor Setting was changed.
• Clarified description for Fleet Patrol command and reworked behavior.
• Removed a config entry for an old debugging model that was causing issues on some clients.
• Resolved an NPE when checking thrust dampening.

Changelog

Important Note

Thruster Plume Changes

• RCS Plumes added — Thrusters now emit visual plumes when moving directionally.

  Plumes scale with thruster block group dimensions:

  • Width scales with X-axis size

  • Height scales with Y-axis size

  • Length scales with Z-axis size

• Plumes render once per group, centered and oriented correctly.

• Orientation-aware: Works in all directions, including sideways and vertical thrust.

• Group shapes matter: T-shaped and wide groups produce longer/wider plumes.

• Block config defines min/max size for visual scaling.

Blueprint Upload Speed

• The default upload speed for blueprints has been greatly increased from 256 to 2048, so blueprints should upload much faster now. Additionally, this field is now a server config setting, so servers can set the speed even faster if they want.

New Chat Features

• ALLOW_CHAT_COLOR_CODES - If enabled, players will be able to add color formatting to their chat messages using a new color formatting system. This system works differently than the one present in display modules, as the old system only allows for one color per message. This new system allows for multicolored messages. To use it, prefix your message with one of the following codes:

  • &wh - White

  • &lg - Grey

  • &dg - Dark Grey

  • &bk - Black

  • &bw - Brown

  • &be - Beige

  • &pr - Purple

  • &pk - Pink

  • &br - Burgundy

  • &rd - Red

  • &og - Orange

  • &yw - Yellow

  • &gr - Green

  • &or - Orange

  • &ol - Olive

  • &cy - Cyan

  • &bl - Blue

  • &in - Indigo

  You can view a list of these codes via the new HELP button in the chat panel.

• ALLOW_CHAT_ASCII_EXTRA - If enabled, players will be able to use extended ascii characters in their chat messages (char values > 127). If disabled, these characters will be stripped from the message.

Weapon Tweaks

• Nerfed Cannon/Beam flight speed slightly.

• Nerfed Beam/Beam damage falloff range so that optimal range should be the same as standard beams.

• Nerfed Beam/Beam damage falloff from 40% to 25% at max range.

• Nerf Missile/Beam flight speed slightly, giving AMS more chances to hit.

• Increased Beam base damage by ~30%.

Shipyard Changes

• Shipyard Computers will now output a sensor value based on the status of their current order. If a real ship is docked, the health percentage of that ship will be output instead.

• Shipyard Computers can now be forced to undock / unload a ship via logic signal.

• You can now spawn entities on turret docks in shipyard design mode without needing to be an admin as long as the target dock is valid and unblocked.

• You can now remove docked entities on a shipyard design by simply deleting the core of that docked entity, and the server will move your player up the docking chain automatically and remove the targeted entity.

  • This also works on the main entity of a shipyard design, and will instead just unload the design and will attempt to move your player to the first enterable build block or ship core it can find on the root entity.

Command Module

• Added a new block, the Command Module, which can be used to save a specific command or function to execute on a connected system via logic. The command module can be used to control the following systems:

  • Shipyard Computers

  • AI Modules

  • Warp Gate Computers

  • Rails

  • Reactors

  Support for more systems will be added in future updates.

Factory Manager

• Added a new Factory Manager block, which can be used to automatically request and fulfill orders from Factories, Storages, and Shipyards by acting as an intermediary between a parent (controlling), and one or more child (controlled) systems. The Factory Manager will automatically calculate the inputs needed by it's controller and delegate those tasks to the appropriate system that it controls.

General System Changes

• The popular ScalarMining mod has been ported to vanilla, so now salvage beams will benefit greatly from larger output groups. The more salvagers you have, the bigger the radius, with the max radius being 10 (configurable in block behavior config).

  • The salvage radius formula is capped at a radius of 10 and follows a logarithmic scale:

    8 modules = 1 radius

    16 modules = 2 radius

    32 modules = 3 radius

    64 modules = 4 radius

    etc.

• Re-enabled Scan Report functionality.

Pirate Ships Update

• The default Isanth Type Zero variants have been upgraded to 3 new versions of the Isanth, known as the Isanth Type PNR (designed by Nauvran, with systems by Lecic), with each variant having its own weapon type and visual differences. In future updates, we want to add additional pirate ships, such as pirate cruisers and the like, as well as update the pirate stations with newer systems and features.

• Additionally, the folder structure for the NPC blueprints has changed, so now NPC blueprints are stored in the blueprints-npc folder rather than the blueprints-stations folder, and stores both ships and stations. Note: We are referring to the old NPC system for pirates and trading guild, NOT the “new” NPC factions system. In a future update, both systems will be redone / consolidated!

Building

• Added a new Color Finder feature for Advanced Build mode that allows you to select a color and find blocks that match that color.

• Added a new Block Mixer feature for Advanced Build mode that allows you to select up to 10 blocks to create a random pattern / gradient.

• Added ability to manually offset templates while in template place mode using Left Alt + Arrow Keys and Page Up / Page Down.

• Added a Lock Placement function for templates which will lock the placement of a template to it’s current position. You can toggle this by pressing the “Lock Placement” button next to the Paste button or by using the Right Control Key.

• Fixed saving and loading of Build Hotbars in creative mode, and you can now easily scroll through them using Left Alt + Scroll Wheel, or Left Alt + Any Number Key (Note: Number Key feature will only work for the first 10 saved hotbars).

• Made Advanced Armor variants slightly darker / desaturated to differentiate them from Standard Armor better.

• Adjusted Green Standard Armor coloring slightly to be closer to Green Basic Armor.

• Added Beige Light Blocks and Beige Crystal Armor.

• Added Indigo, Olive, and Burgundy Armor variants, as well as Crystal Armor and Light Blocks for each respective color.

• Added Orange Decorative Cascade blocks.

Display Modules

• Toggle background drawing:

  You can turn off the display module background using:

• Different colored backgrounds: You can change the color of the display module background like so:

  The following backgrounds are available: blue, purple, yellow, green, red

• Text offset:

  You can offset the text position of display modules up to 10 blocks in any direction like so:

• Toggle Holographic effect:

  You can turn off the holographic text effect for a more painted look:

• Larger fonts:

  The font size setting now goes up to 7 to allow for larger text displays.

• Increased Character and Line Limit:

  The line and character limit for displays has been greatly increased to allow for things like ascii art.

• New Text Replacement Tags:

  • \ - Inserts the faction name of the entity.

  • \ - Inserts the name of the current system.

  • \ - Inserts the name of the the entity currently docked to.

  • \ - Inserts the name of the root entity currently docked to.

  • \ - Inserts the maximum speed of the current entity.

  • \ - Inserts the thrust to mass ratio of the current entity.

  • \ - Inserts the level of the currently active reactor.

  • \ - Inserts the block count of the specified reactor. (For example, \ for the first reactor)

  • \ - Inserts the level of the specified reactor. (For example, \ for the first reactor)

  • \ - Inserts the HP percentage of the specified reactor. (For example, \ for the first reactor)

  • \ - Inserts the total HP of all active shields.

  • \ - Inserts the total Max HP of all active shields.

  • \ - Inserts the total shield HP percentage of all active shields.

  • \ - Inserts the total shield recharge rate of all active shields.

  • \ - Inserts the total shield upkeep of all active shields.

  • \ - Inserts the recharge rate of the specified shield. (For example, \ for the first shield)

  • \ - Inserts the upkeep of the specified shield. (For example, \ for the first shield)

  You can view the full list in the newly reworked Display Module help menu.

Fleets

• Added a Combined Targeting setting for fleets, which will make all fleet members target the same entity that the flagship is targeting when enabled.

Faction Config Changes

• Added a new Faction config setting, LoseHBProtectionWhenNegativeFP, which can enable or disable the loss of home base protection when a faction is in negative FP.

Misc. Changes

• Adjusted normal map textures for some blocks slightly.

• Adjusted coloring for hazard armor to better match their respective standard armor colors.

• Added loading screens and background music to the Main Menu.

• Admin Teleport (F1 + F8) will now also work for stations as long as there is an empty Build Block available.

• Added / adjusted various block editor functions for improved usability.

• Re-added the color picker for light source color in the block editor (no idea why it was removed, but it works fine now).

• Moved game difficulty setting and added new rule types to check for and change the difficulty setting. Using the new rulesets, servers can now buff or debuff enemy ships based on the game difficulty.

• Added Inventory Tab groups for creative mode.

• Adjusted inventory tooltips and added better info display.

• Added a “Reset Turrets” button to the left hand Stats menu under Docks.

Back-End / Technical Changes

• A lot of GLSL shader code had to be updated to compensate for a new texture sheet (t003) being added. While these changes have been tested extensively, there is always the possibility of issues being created by this, so please report any new issues in the Discord.

Performance Optimizations

• SegmentDrawer and related classes have been optimized to reduce memory allocations and speed up segment drawing.

• Mod data from SMD is now cached in a json file and then updated asynchronously, rather than blocking the main thread like before. This should significantly improve startup times when using mods.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed various mismatched case issues and adjusted some menu titles.

• Black hole gravity should now be negated by anti gravity effects.

• Disabled old unused reactor orientation menus and drawables.

• Fixed multiple shader issues that occurred on Linux machines.

• Added a fallback for Desktop API calls on Linux machines.

• Added a fallback for Credentials not storing correctly on Linux machines. This issue forced some Linux players to authenticate with SMD every time they started the game, and should now be fixed.

• Removed an unused GUI that was somehow causing a Seg Fault in the C standard library on Linux machines (no idea how this is even possible, but its been fixed now).

• Fixed bug that caused the Overwrite Template and Overwrite Blueprint dialogs to not close when selecting “OK”.

• Fixed some nullpointers with the SMD Content downloader.

• Fixed issue where Build Hotbars would scroll with any mouse movement and not just scroll wheel.

• Fixed an issue where dragging an inventory slot over another in creative mode would replace the underlying slot.

• Fixed an issue where Fleets would sometimes not correctly persist their orders when their owner logged out.

API Changes

• Modded blocks will now use the 255 extra block ids (1792 - 2047) that were previously allocated for custom blocks rather than any id the system could find. This should prevent future any future conflicts with modded block ids.

Known Issues

• Shadow Drawing seems to be broken on some systems, so we advise players to turn them off if they are having issues.

• Inventory Icons seem to not display tooltips when hovering over them except for in the build hotbar.

• Looking at a block on a station doesn't show the block at the bottom like it does on a ship

• There is a known bug on Linux & Wayland when using multiple monitors that causes Mouse input to click on other windows. This has been an issue for some time, and unfortunately there is no easy fix for it in Release version due to Release not using GLFW. While the bug can be fixed in the Universe Update as it uses GLFW, we can’t fix this in Release right now. For now, affected Linux users may have to run the game in Windows mode using Steam’s Proton software.

• The Advanced Build Mode Color Finder feature may not be 100% accurate, and may sometimes produce strange results at some specific narrow color ranges. We experimented with a few algorithms for this and would like to hear feedback on which one players prefer:

  • Scale-Down Mode (Default): Each block texture is scaled down from 64x64 to 1x1 and then the remaining color is sampled as that block’s primary color.

  • Average Mode (Alternative): The average color value of each 64x64 block texture is calculated and sampled as that block’s primary color. This mode seems to be more accurate, but also costs a significant amount of performance when calculating for the first time (the results are then cached in memory so we don’t have to run the algorithm again for that session). You can enable this mode by editing StarMade/settings.cfg and setting SECRET = colorfindermode1.

https://discord.gg/SXbkYpU

A Note on Development

https://discord.gg/z6acMKTkKp

Thank you all for playing StarMade, and thanks to the community for their amazing work bringing you this update,

- schema

• Refactored UI classes for modularity.
• Added launcher version label.
• Fixed potential memory leaks in the C portion of the launcher.

Energy Cells and Energy Pylons

Purple Forcefields

Carved Bricks and Tiles

Misc. Changes

Notes

0.301.101 - Universe Update (Pre-Release 3)

New Launcher Notice

• Via the new launch option on Steam
• Via the GitHub releases page

System Changes

New Tutorial System

New Shops

• Trade Station (Advanced Shop): Comes with docks and a shopkeep spawn block.
• Trade Outpost (Standard Shop): Does not have docks or a shopkeep, and is shorter than a Trade Station.

Misc. Changes

• Screenshots and Gifs are now saved in the StarMade/screenshots folder.
• Saved build hotbars can now be cycled through by holding Left-Alt and using the scroll wheel in creative mode.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed map waypoint icon selection.

Known Issues

• Some waypoint icon sprites are missing and need to be finished.
• The waypoint icon color picker “recent colors” palette doesn’t function properly.
• The Local Universe Advanced Settings panel doesn’t display correctly, and causes OpenGL errors.
• Templates can’t be loaded because the selection drop-down isn’t interactable.
• The weapon menu detail panes don’t display correctly.
• The new shops sometimes don’t spawn after a world is reloaded.
• Build Hotbars don’t load correctly in survival mode.

Feature Changelog:

• Warp Gates are active by default on placement, but can be deactivated with logic. Persistence appears to work but may need more testing.
• HUD selected ship stats in top left-hand corner now shows reactor level, power output, and power consumption rather than just the consumption percentage.
• Added brief wait before requesting synchronization, as this seems to make the login issue less frequent.
• Added better messages to login loading screen, so the game doesn't appear to be waiting for a config when it's actually already done receiving and processing the configs.
• Systems update rate limiter is now absolute regardless of what update threads are doing. The old method seems to have been causing lag at larger scales due to long queue clearing times.

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed a Fleet order persistence bug. - Note: Let us know if it still occurs, as it’s difficult to reproduce sometimes. At the very least, this fix should narrow down the cause of the issue.
• Fixed orientation mapping of Decorative Coil blocks.
• Added retry for synch-all packet if not received correctly; this was seemingly preventing people from logging in - BUG: Due to synchronization/threading shenanigans, activity logging inside of network commands appears to never get written to stderr. May have to move it to an internal command log that prints when the command is finished or times out.

Community Update

Feature Changelog:

• Reduced HP of Basic Hull from 400 HP to 200 HP.
• Replaced duplicate mod error with a less intrusive warning.
• AI now has internal support for unfocused fire.
• AI will now fire salvage beams unfocused during fleet mining, making it more efficient.

Bug Fixes:

• Gave Basic Hull 0.1 Armor value in order to fix an infinite penetration bug.
• Fixed severe bug that would cause asteroids to break a sector on modded servers sometimes when they were modified by players.
• Fix coil texture orientations.
• Partially fixed AI navigation issue when core is too far from center of mass (infinite spinning bug).

Feature Changelog:

• AI can now use Selected Target turrets by firing at the target of the main ship. AI can use Cannon-Missile weapons.
• Expanded AI firestate system under the hood, which should accommodate
• more complex conditional weapon operations if fancier things are added in the future.
• When using lock-on missiles (Missile/Beam combination), the locking function now prioritizes your selected target (default key: F).

System Balance Changes:

• Thruster blocks have had their individual mass reduced from 0.25 to 0.15 to match other system blocks.
• Beams have twice the tick rate and half the damage per tick, which should mitigate some of the Beam-Beam damage disparity against armor.
• Reduced Reactor Capacity cost for Top Speed Chamber levels to 8%/10%/12% respectively.
• Reduced Reactor Capacity cost for Thrust Blast Base chamber from 4% to 2%.
• Reduced Reactor Capacity cost for Thrust Blast Strength 1 chamber from 4% to 2%.
• Reduced Reactor Capacity cost for Thrust Blast Charge Speed 1 chamber from 4% to 2%.
• Reduced Reactor Capacity cost for Thrust Blast Multi-Charge 1 chamber from 4% to 2%.

API Changelog:

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed lighting colors for crystal sub-shapes being only white. Weapon stats menu now displays correct power usage.
• Adjusted AI targeting priority of Reactor blocks from 15 to 30 to match the targeting
• priority of Chambers.
• Fixed bug causing vertically-placed missiles fired by AI turrets to be fired straight at the turret rather than from the correct direction.
• Missiles now check armor at the place they hit and reduce damage accordingly (except Bombs).
• Bombs and Warheads correctly deal self-damage again.
• Inventory transfer rails now only need the actual pulling storage to pull, not both, in order to work.
• Semi fix for downloading block behavior softlock (turns out it's just an indefinite wait for server response).
• Entities made entirely of Cargo Space, intangible rails, and/or their pickup areas will now auto overheat.
• Fleets assigned to Fleet Mining will no longer target “ghost asteroids”, which should allow them to function more reliably than before.

API Changelog:

• Deprecated old API hooks for block damage and destruction.

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed a salvage beam exploit.
• Fixed new block damage API hook not applying to missiles.
• Fixed mod error window potentially being larger than the monitor screen.

Feature Changelog:

API Changelog:

• Added an event for when an entity changes it’s faction.
• Added a new directory for locally installed mods that will take priority over downloaded ones. This should fix many of the duplicate mod issues that were present before.
• Added mod-specific logging so that each mod gets it’s own log (moddata/modname/logs/modname_log.0.log) writable through the StarMod class. We want to encourage developers to use this new logging system instead of outputting to the main console. This way, it will be easier to debug mod specific issues without having to comb through large global log files.
• Moved persistent object logging to it’s own file (moddata/modname/logs/persistent_objects.0.log) for each mod separate from the mod’s main log. This should cut down on the I/O spam issue that many servers had and reduce lag.

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed bug that caused AI turrets not to fire on targets even if set on “aim at selected” and they would only fire at entities from an enemy faction.
• Fixed transporters not being activatable by logic.
• Fixed transporters not being activatable by decorative consoles.
• Fixed normal and emissive textures for new blocks.
• Fixed icon outlines for new blocks.
• Fixed bug causing some icons for modded blocks to be mismatched.
• Fixed output width being ignored on cannon combinations without a conical damage pattern.
• Fixed coil blocks having incorrect orientations.
• Fixed gravity exit module being hidden in the creative menu.
• Fixed thruster blocks not being controllable through decorative consoles.

Known Issues:

• Temporarily disabled adjust cockpit feature due to a game breaking bug that would lock all other players out of their controls.
• Some normals still need adjustments, but we felt it was important to get these fixes out.

• Fixed icon mismatch issue
• Fixed mod block icon issue

Decor Update (Community update)

Features Changelog:

Gravity Logic:

Gravity Exit Unit:

Energy Pylons, Energy Cells, and Power Cores:

Coils:

Beige Hulls:

Additional Shapes:

• Carved Stones
• Ingots
• Crystals
• Ice

Features Changelog

• You can now sit in front of consoles without having to put them on a separate entity.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed crash caused by activating an unlinked console.
• Fixed spacedust particle error.
• Improved debug logging.
• Other bug fixes.

Features Changelog

New Functions for Decorative Consoles:

• Added ability for Decorative Consoles to control Thrusters.
• Added ability for Decorative Consoles to control Transporters.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed chunk-related issue causing Decorative Consoles to not activate properly when outside the core chunk.
• Fixed crash bug related to edge case casts.
• Fixed rare server crash related to entity tag saving.

Features Changelog

Decorative Console Functionality:

• Ship Core: Enters the Ship Core.
• Build Block: Enters the Build Block.
• Reactor Power: Opens the Reactor menu when activated.
• Shipyard Computer: Opens the Shipyard Computer menu.
• Faction Module: Opens the Faction Module.
• AI Module: Opens the AI Module.
• Shop Module: Opens the Shop menu.
• Display Module: Opens the Display Module for editing.
• You can also link it to Buttons and Activation modules for logic activation.

Personal Computer Mail:

• Personal Computer blocks can now be used to access user mail.

New Sounds for Doors and Forcefields:

• Door and Forcefield blocks now have an activation sound.

Bug Fixes

• Removed the WIP crew blocks that weren’t supposed to be included in release yet.

Features Changelog

Balance Changes

API Changelog

Bug Fixes

• Fixed bug preventing owners from making changes to their fleets while the ownership was set to shared.
• Fixed bug that prevented shared fleets from being used if the owner was offline.
• Fixed bug causing Fleet Patrol to only run the route once then revert back to idle.
• Fixed SegmentPieceKillEvent not firing soon enough.
• Fixed SegmentPieceDamageEvent not firing soon enough.

• Fixed AI leading beam shots
• Fixed the "Require authentication" being enabled by default, making people unable to log into single player without uplink.
• Made factory progress bars not factoring in the Factory Bake Time chamber
• New UI for the blueprint manager
• Effects and defenses now use a more straightforward formula, where the defense rating subtracts a percentage of incoming damage in the corresponding offensive effect type
• Fixed an issue where all defense ratings were multiplied by zero. Defensive effects (such as armor chambers and innate defenses from the BlockBehaviorConfig) are now functional.