PROJECT ENTROPIA VERSION UPDATE 5.1

2003-06-13

*** PLEASE READ THIS DOCUMENT IF YOU FIND SOMETHING STRANGE
IN PROJECT ENTROPIA! IT MIGHT PROVIDE THE INFO YOU NEED BEFORE
CONTACTING PROJECT ENTROPIA SUPPORT! ***

Welcome!
The Version Update 5.1 ("VU 5.1") for Project Entropia
is a major step in the development of Project Entropia. Information
about the content of the version update is located in this document.

We are still heavy at work with the mission to reduce lag and
increase performance. In the upcoming VU 5.2 the new Item Management
System will be in place, and once it is, we envision that all problems
correlating to items will be solved once and for all. This release will
make way to this major upgrade. Please check the Known Issues section
in the Support section on the Project Entropia web site for current
issues. Also, the best place for up to date info about what is going on
is the Project Entropia Developer's Post forum on the Project Entropia
web site.

VU 5.1 is expected to arrive around the 20:th of June. The date may change though.

VERSION UPDATE FEATURES

Attachment crafting level 6-10
Attachment
crafting on level 6-10 is in, together with the associated components
needed. At the moment none of these designs require Lysterium. ,-)

The Project Entropia Newcomer Shuttle Port
Just
south of Port Atlantis the Federal Empire has built a Shuttle Port,
where all newcomers arrive when coming to Calypso. This area has
information booths available, giving the basics of Project Entropia.

Project Entropia Transfer Center


The old Project Entropia Bank is replaced by the new Project Entropia Transfer Center.

New deposit option
For those who do not have a
credit card a new pay-by-phone option is implemented in the new Project
Entropia Transfer Center. Just pick up the phone, dial a number, and
you get PED to your avatar, while your phone bill is charged.

Avatar Trivia and Avatar Background

The avatar has the possibility to make a personal presentation of
himself in the Avatar Interface that will be visible to other Avatars.

Rebalance success rates while crafting and mining

Generally you will succeed with your action more often, but the output value is reduced.

Rebalanced skill advancement
Several skills now
have a higher increase rate, mostly those that have less skill checks
per time frame. This mostly affects mining and crafting, and does not
affect hunting much.

Rebalanced attribute advancement

The attributes now increase in greater steps than before, especially at lower levels.

Possibility to learn from mistake

When failing using a skill the avatar still has a small chance of raising the skill.

Dynamic XP message

The XP gain messages have been updated somewhat.

Society in target square


When targeting an avatar the society the avatar is a member of will show in the target square.

Feedback on 15% Condition
When an item is
deteriorated to 15% of its full Condition a message will tell the
participant it's a good time to consider repairing the item.

Recharge delay bar on melee weapons

When using a melee weapon a delay bar will show when the weapon is ready for use again.

What killed the avatar?

When being killed the avatar will get a message in the chat window that says what killed the avatar.

Trader NPC's have "uniforms"
All the trader
NPC's (Technician, Auctioneer, etc) have similar clothes as other NPC's
of the same kind, to distinguish them more easily.

Change of stock in the Trade Terminal

The Trade Terminal will have new weapons available, the Omegaton M2200 and the Sollomate Busho.

New weapons

New weapons are added.

New tools

New tools are added.

New armors

New armors are added. Shadow is no longer king of the hill. ,-)

Updated component names

Several components have name updates, mostly the word "Parts" have been added.

NPC's are talkative

Several NPC's have a lot more to say.

New NPC's / Monsters


New species will inhabit the continent.

Tougher NPC's / Monsters

Bigger, meaner and more dangerous forms of already existing npc's will appear.

More NPC's / Monsters

Despite all hunting the numbers of existing monsters is steadily growing

The NPC's / Monsters will make more sounds

Several new sounds have been implemented on the NPC's / Monsters.

NPC / Monster AI is optimized

Several of the Monsters have new AI controlling them. Expect less passive monsters.

Lost ruins
Somewhere on the continent a ruined
city has been found. Unfortunately the coordinates to its location were
lost in the transmission.

Minopolis
The new city of Minopolis founded,
located some distance north of Nymphtown. This is a city designed in a
new way, with a more distinct look than the old outposts.

Added facilities to outposts

Storage terminals and auctioneers will be present in more outposts than today.

New looks of the old outposts

Several outposts have new looks.

Changing skies
The first step in the future
Weather system is in place - the sky will change depending on where you
are on the Eudoria continent.

Items in auction

The avatars will always see the items they select.

Healing is reduced when moving

If you are trying to heal using a medkit when moving the result will be diminished to about a quarter of the normal heal rate.

Deterioration per use

Weapon attachments now have the correct "deteriorate per use" set.

New animations and sounds when dying

The avatar can now be killed in more varied ways than before.

New animations and sounds when using melee weapons

New animations and sounds added to a variety of melee weapons, most notable on the powerfists.

Leader becomes founder


Prior, the founder of a society was titled "Leader". This is changed to "Founder".

None becomes Freelancer

Prior, an avatar not a member of a society had society rank "None". This is changed to him or her being "Freelancer" instead.

New music

A lot of new ambient music has been added.

Skill management system changed
The skill
management code has been optimized to increase performance. This will
decrease the strain on the systems, and will reduce the login and
logoff times.

Several performance / lag fixes
Many steps have
been taken to increase performance and to reduce lag. We are still in
the process of making several heavy upgrades, which will come in VU 5.2.

Audio system

The audio system is optimized.

Database
The database is optimized. This will
help performance, until the major re-write of the item management
system is implemented in VU 5.2.

ADDED: Gamma selection

You will be able to select your Gamma setting, making those with dark monitors see better.

SPECIAL

The below is currently tentative, and might not make it to VU 5.1.

Teams
You have the opportunity to form
temporary groups with other avatars. You will see the other team
member's health status. A series of click-commands are also in place.
Loot distribution is automatic within the group, and every member has
full insight on what is going on. Items will be distributed randomly
among the members, while stackable items are split as evenly as
possible throughout the group.

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Mini Patches

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