Once more, a Clockwork Empires appears, but be sure that you –

This update will go live to every Clockwork Empires player via Steam!

We have also updated our Clockwork Empires: Development Progress report!

(Don’t own the game? Clockwork Empires can be purchased on ClockworkEmpires.com via Humble or from Steam.)

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Patch Notes:

Clockwork Empires v37

Major Features

lots of engine, rendering, and AI optimizations

new character skill system (& character models set by highest skill)

revamped resource harvesting UI

lots of new cult & bandit events

icon added for single bottle of rum

The Engine

optimization: removed unnecessary matrix calculations from renderer backend

optimization: Rewrote all code for handling of static props to use flat arrays for cache efficiency

FIXED: zone decals (farms, graveyards, roads, ???) now correctly render in screen space as volumetric decals

Human Characters

Added middle-class character skills: resource collection carpentry smithing cooking science farming construction & repair

added a skill progression system (though job time reduction based on skill level is not yet fully implemented – it’s on workshop jobs, resource collection, and construction & repair so far.)

related: a whole mess of profession-specific character models have been hooked up (these change based on workcrew overseer’s primary skill)

optimization: characters won’t attempt to fulfill dependencies they don’t need (stowing tools when they don’t need to, fleeing from monsters when none are around, etc.)

FIXED: invite to cult feedback said it was trying to form a new cult (+ made text description more informative)

cults: if a cult doesn’t have a shrine and has >= 3 members, it will attempt to build a shrine

colonists will now be woken up by gunshots, melee fighting, and explosions based on distance from source of sound (rather than damage target)

“embrace eldritch visions” action now plays a variety of animations

weighted down the appeal of “admire painting/fine machinery/implements of science” jobs

medicinals (Laudanum, Sulphur Tonic) have a chance to remove the desire to form a cult from maddened colonists

FIXED: colonists inspired to start a cult already in a cult won’t start a new cult

cults: cult will select most hardcore member to be a new leader if their old leader dies

cults: a cult will end if all members are dead

cults: cultists will attempt to worship at cult shrines each night

cults: non-cultists witnessing cult worship will become upset; cultists witnessing cult worship will become happy

cults: cultists will become irrationally happy if they do any sort of cult things

cults: a colonist’s religion description string will update if they join a cult (as minion or leader)

cults: occult murder re-activated; occult murderers won’t flee from justice (they serve a higher law)

cults: a cult will request permission to build a shrine the first time, allowing player to tolerate or persecute cult shrines

cults: shrines can be destroyed by any damage source & cultists will be angered if their shrine is destroyed (by any means)

added more character names (call me Ishmael)

FIXED: stockpile hauling jobs utility would tank due to distance calculation

Combat & Military

optimization: improved speed of time soldiers spend checking alarm queries

optimization: improved speed of time spent checking for hostiles

balance: doubled reload time for characters w/o military training

made fishguns unusable by humans (because they’re both terrible and would ruin the gun economy)

soldiers will attack cult shrines if policy is set to persecute cults

Non-Human Characters (Animals, Monsters, Vehicles)

overhaul of bandits in-progress (and yes, bandits technically fall under the “monsters” category) improved feedback for various decisions made by bandits (setting up camp, attacking player) bandits will form gangs (like workcrews, but for crime!); bandit gangs get their own names

bandit combat behaviour improved (won’t ignore gunfire to steal stuff, usually; entire gang will retreat if > 50% of squad is fleeing, etc.)

balance: made fishpeople less excited about attacking gabions

polished minor issues with fox pack-hunting behaviour

Buildings & Building Creation

colonists using a stockpile will now always prefer the closet stockpile square

FIXED: characters would drop tools in any old stockpile

FIXED: game would crash sometimes when cancelling an assignment, cancelling jobs, and picking up a job that was cancelled on the same frame

balance: increased interrupt value of “repair module” and “gather building materials for repairing module”

balance: doubled output of farms, halved hunger/starvation time

added correct description to Chicha (an alcoholic beverage brewed from maize!)

FIXED: chalkboards now have a 1×3 footprint

the macroscope is no longer backwards

FIXED: modules not individually selectable after save/load

FIXED: modules sometimes not getting correct tooltips selected and still always displaying module costs

FIXED: modules not having correct bounding box set in object grid after save/load

FIXED: misspelling of “fibrous” in Flax Straw description

combined the Refinery, Arsenal, and Metalworks into the Metalworks building

added “Upgrade Musket To Carbine” job; basic single-shot weapons (musket, pistol) can now be upgraded to multi-shot weapons

Multiplayer

work on determinism

work on tools to debug determinism

Events, Metagame, & The Overworld

balance: criminal favour gives random 1-3 criminals rather than always 3

balance: redcoats favour gives one fewer soldiers

added a number of new events based on population and traits, as well as a fun bonus one for mining

allowing too many cult shrines to be built may trigger an investigation

added “how to use a workshop” contextual tutorial

“Research Family Tree” event now has consequences

“Lord Palmerstoke’s Science Crate” event has been completely revamped and is ridiculous

“Ominous Dreams” event now actually fires and adds madness to its victim

FIXED: events w/o consequences (ie. many new memories made in response to player decisions)

balance: made supply drop really rare & take a long time

UI/UX

added icon for bottle of rum

added descriptive text of madness level to character info panel

shortened tutorial tooltips (they were overflowing their background)

added game website to title menu just because

added sound effects to a lot of UI elements

added line placer for clicking and dragging out gabions and other rows of elements

added feedback for building demolition orders (clicking the button now closes the UI, reopening it shows an alert that it’s slated for removal)

added new assignment beacon system for resource collection jobs

added “assignment zones “drawn around new assignment beacon areas when their control icon is moused over

added contact note on launcher

revised some icons to show ceramics kilns vs. smelter modules

finished the graveyard icon, finally

Have fun and let us (but not the Ministry) know through our portal or forum if anything goes wrong!

HOTFIX 37A

Oh hey, there’s a hotfix on Steam as of March 20, it does this:

FIXED: error in jobs/assignments which could break jobs system

FIXED: game crash when saving a job system thus broken

These are good things to have fixed. Carry on!