Patch V520.12 - Tameable Dolphins, Coffee, and Balance Changes

Ahoy Pathfinders!

We hope you all have had a wonderful start to the New Year so far! ATLAS’ first patch of the year is now here and we thank you for your patience!

Since we have renewed the ATLAS journey last Summer, there have been many changes and we are continuing to further develop the features and mechanics that are starting to take shape. Farmhouses, Warehouses, Markets, and the Trading system will continue to be tweaked and refined. We have plenty in store for the specialized ships within the Ships for Gold system as players will be able to customize these ships as more are released and the system becomes more sophisticated. 

We are still testing a new claim system and Tradewinds are still on our agenda. We also have a few new things on the horizon for ATLAS. Not to mention, we are continuing to work on optimization and server improvements in the background! We hope you stick with us, it’s gonna be an exciting ride!

      New this Patch 

Tameable Dolphins
Tired of travelling by ship? Dolphin riding is now an alternate form of water traversal! Dolphins are the first underwater creature that can be tamed and bred by unlocking the new Underwater Taming skill in the Beastmastery tree. They can be tamed passively by feeding them meat, in particular, the new Squid Tentacle which can be obtained by defeating Squids. As part of an overall initiative to revamp and bring new purpose to tames, Dolphins are the first of a slate of new underwater tames that will have specialized functions. Afterall, as a pirate game, we would expect there to be more interactions with creatures at sea. Pathfinders can expect small changes to tames and breeding to slowly roll out in tow with some patches. We hope to elevate the taming system in ATLAS to be more viable and fun as other mechanics may change how some tames were used before.

Seed Vendor and Coffee

Business is booming, and a new vendor has set up shop at the Freeports! Working on your farm and looking for a particular crop? The Seed Vendor is your one stop shop! Most seeds can be purchased at a rate of 10 gold for 5 seeds. 

With new business, also comes a new crop! Coffee Seeds can be purchased from the Sea Vendor at 20 gold for 5 seeds. Fight away sleep in real life and in game! Coffee Beans can be brewed to create Coffee! Drinking coffee will give pirates the new buff, Caffeinated, which reduces incoming torpor damage. 

Embrace the power of coffee! Do we smell a Starfishbucks empire coming up?

      Farmhouse Variants 

Last patch we introduced the Lumberyard, the first of the new Farmhouse variants as we continue to refine the Farmhouse system.  These variants are specialized Farmhouses that will gather certain resources at a faster rate. We are now introducing the Mine - a farm that will only gather Metals and Gems, and the Quarry - a farm that will only gather Stone, Crystal, Salt and Flint. They both share the same placement restrictions as other Farmhouses, but require different resources to craft as detailed in the Patch Notes. 

All Farmhouses are undergoing changes in preparation for adding Blueprints. Gather rates have temporarily been normalized at a lower rate across all types. Quality Blueprints with stats will increase this in a future patch. Other changes made to Farmhouses include base inventory size and base inventory slots increase. Based on feedback, decay time of Farmhouses has been changed to 10 days. 
 

      Balancing and Tweaks 

Through our observations, conversations, and feedback from players, Patch 520.12 also includes some balance changes and tweaks that should help to mitigate some of the issues we were seeing.

Bolas are a versatile tool that can be used on creatures and players. While great to use for taming and fun to use on others, there was little that could be done to counter the mechanic when a player is caught. We have reduced the duration of Bola entrapment from 5.5 to 2.5 seconds and after recovering from entrapments, players cannot be entrapped by a Bola for 10 seconds. Another change we’ve made is that players can no longer stand while entrapped by a Bola.

Explosive Barrels have been a hot topic and we are continuing to work out a good balance for them to fit within the mechanics of the game. Cannons, Large Cannons, Swivel Guns, and Ballistas are now immune to AOE damage from Explosive Barrels. Damage from Explosive barrels to players and creatures has also been reduced. 

We are also continuing to make changes to the Ramming Galley and both Ship systems as we prepare to rollout the rest of the upcoming Ships for Gold. The Ramming Galley has received a few quality of life upgrades - an increase in number of additional structures that can be placed, and an increase in turn speed with rowers active. An adjustment to the leak rate when damaged has been made as well. In general, we have also added the option to purchase ship levels 56-60. Ship Gold cost will also now scale with Ship Quality and we will continue to take a look at the prices and adjust accordingly to balance with future changes and mechanics to both ship systems.

Please see the full changelog below for more details and additional changes related to combat, horse rear kick attack, rabbits, and more!
 

      Released Patch Notes 

v520.12

New Structure: Mine
The Mine is a farm that only gathers Metal and Gems. It can be crafted at the Smithy after learning the Advanced Automation skill in the Construction & Mercantilism tree.

• Shares placement restrictions with other Farmhouses
• Crafting Resources: 800 Wood, 600 Thatch, 320 Fiber, 280 Metal, 100 Hide
   

New Structure: Quarry
The Quarry is a farm that only gathers Stone, Crystal, Salt, and Flint. It can be crafted at the Smithy after learning the Advanced Automation skill in the Construction & Mercantilism tree.

• Shares placement restrictions with other Farmhouses
• Crafting Resources: 800 Wood, 600 Thatch, 320 Fiber, 280 Metal, 100 Hide
   

New Shop: Seed Vendor
A new vendor has arrived! The Seed Vendor can be found in Freeports and provides all the seeds required for your farming needs.

• Coffee Seeds: 20 Gold for 5 Seeds
• All other Seeds: 10 Gold for 5 Seeds
   

New Drink: Coffee
Coffee can be brewed at either the Cooking Pot or Grill after learning the Intermediate Recipes skill in the Cooking & Farming tree. After drinking, pirates are given a new buff, Caffeinated, which reduces incoming torpor damage.

• Incoming torpor damage reduced by 15%
• Buff lasts for 10 minutes
• Ingredients: 1 Water, 30 Coffee Beans
   

New Vegetable: Coffee Bean
Since Coffee Beans are not native to the Atlas, they can only be grown from seeds. Pirates who prefer adventuring over sleep will always want to keep Coffee Beans on hand!


New Seed: Coffee Seed
Coffee Seeds can only be purchased from the Seed Vendor. They are required for growing Coffee Beans.

• Can be planted in Tropical, Temperate, and Equatorial environments
   

New Tame: Dolphin
Dolphins can be tamed passively by hand feeding them meat. In particular, they enjoy fresh Squid Tentacles, Fish Meat, and Crustacean Meat. By grabbing hold of their dorsal fin, pathfinders can ride them as they speed and jump through the ocean.

• Favorite Food: Squid Tentacles
• Taming Style: Passive
• Saddle: None
• Primary Attack: Bite
• Secondary Ability: Jump
  • Gives nearby pathfinders the Dolphin Intellect buff
  • Increases intelligence stat for 10 minutes
     

New Meat: Squid Tentacle
Squid Tentacles are a new type of meat that can be obtained by defeating Squids. They can be eaten raw and don't spoil. Instead, they dry out over time and remain safe to eat!

Dried Squid Tentacles will soon have a special use, so you may want to start collecting them now!


Bola

• Players can no longer stand while entrapped by a Bola
• Duration of player Bola entrapment reduced from 5.5 to 2.5 seconds
• After recovering from entrapment, players cannot be entrapped by a Bola for 10 seconds
   

Combat

• Headshot multiplier reduced from 2x to 1.5x
• Bug Fix: Critical Strike can no longer be used with weapons other than the Sword
   

Explosive Barrels

• Cannons, Large Cannons, Swivels Guns, and Ballistas are now immune to AOE damage from Explosive Barrels
  • NOTE: These weapons can still be damaged by a direct hit from an Explosive Barrel fired from a Catapult
• Explosive Barrel damage to players and creatures greatly reduced
  • Deals 120 damage to pathfinders
  • Deals 135 damage to creatures
     

Farmhouse Variants

• All farmhouse variants are undergoing iteration in preparation for adding Blueprints
  • Stats changed and inventories wiped at restart
  • You can cheat spawn high quality variants with better stats (bigger inventory and faster gathering)
• Base Inventory Size has been increased from 8k to 10k
• Base Inventory Slots have been increased
• Decay time changed to 10 days
• Gather Rates have temporarily been normalized at a lower rate across all types
  • Quality Blueprints with stats will increase this in a future patch.
     

Ramming Galley

• Increased number of additional structures that can be placed on the ship from 8 to 40
• While turning, only one side of rowers will row, increasing the Ramming Galley's turn speed when rowers are active
• The leak rate of damaged ship components now increases as the component's health decreases
  • Leaking begins at 25% health and the leak rate increases until the component reaches 0 health
  • The maximum leak rate has not changed
• Bug Fix: Fixed an issue where the prompt for opening the command wheel would appear on parts of the ship after they had already been demolished
   

Ships

• Added the option to purchase ship levels 56-60 at a rate of 75 Gold per 1,000 XP
  • Levels can be purchased when viewing the ship's stat menu
  • NOTE: Ships can still reach max level by earning XP normally
• Ship Gold cost now scales with ship quality
• Minimum price is used for ships constructed at 100% durability Shipyards and maximum price is used for ships constructed at 225% durability Shipyards
• Price Ranges
  • Schooner: 5,000 to 10,000 Gold
  • Brigantine: 18,000 to 36,000 Gold
  • Galleon: 50,000 to 100,000 Gold
     

Tames

• Torpor damage from Horse's rear kick attack reduced by 40%
• Rabbits can now equip hats
• Bears and Rabbits now only receive 10% of the stat bonus from equipped hats
   

Misc

• Increased Grill ship structure weight from 1 kg to 12 kg
• Wood Doors, Wood Pillars, Wood Staircases, Wood Fence Supports, and Wood Ladders can now be crafted at the Smithy
• Winter Event items are no longer craftable at the Smithy or purchasable from the Cosmetic Vendor
• Fixed some cases where Trade Routes get reset or modified
• Bug Fix: Fence Supports can no longer be placed without a connection to the ground
  • NOTE: Any floating Fence Supports placed prior to the patch will be destroyed
• Some Crashes Fixed
   

Known Issues

• Levels 46-50 can be purchased on ships with a level cap of 50
• Trade Route Range was increased between patches to include nearby servers. These farther routes are getting reset on server restarts and may be having other issues.
• Riding a Dolphin at or near the surface will occasionally cause it to die
• Tamed Dolphins may no longer be able to jump after crossing grids
• Farm Variants have floating fires near them

      Final Note 

Again, we would like to emphasize that ATLAS is still in Early Access, meaning many things can and will likely continue to drastically change - even in the middle of development. Anything discussed is only up to date as of the moment it is posted. Features and changes that ultimately make it to the next patch, as well as timing, may be different from what was previously discussed. 

As always, we appreciate the suggestions and feedback from the community. Please keep them coming! Thank you for all of your support!

 

Happy Sailing,

- ATLAS Crew

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