Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak v1.0.2 By Rebecca Smith, 18 Feb 2016 CommentsA new update for Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak will be rolling out the afternoon of February 17, 2016. This update contains Region Filtering and balance updates.Patch 1.0.2 Release NotesNew ContentRegion Filtering/Ping:• For custom games there is now a region drop-down option that will toggle between Local and Worldwide filtering options for available games.• In the lobbies, each user will now have a visual representation of their network connection (ping). This is displayed as a coloured icon as well as a ping time value. Balance UpdatesTo incentivize players to go for artifacts, even early in the game, both factions will now start with a baserunner.• Coalition and Gaalsien will now have a free baserunner at the start of a match. Coalition Heavy ArmorAdjustments were made on the price of the Coalition Heavy Armor upgrades to better reflect the gameplay advantage they provide.• Level 1, 2 and 3 CU Price increases from 100/200/300 to 550/550/550 CUs. ProbesOne of our focuses in this patch was to provide scouting tools. While still fragile, the probe will now be an effective scouting unit in the Coalition arsenal.• A probe deployed by the baserunner will now be controllable and is considered an air unit.• The price for the Launch Probe ability has increased from 50 to 100 CUs.• The cooldown time for the Launch Probe ability has decreased from 120 to 30 seconds.• Probe Sensor Radius has increased from 200 to 1000.• Probe Health has increased from 10 to 100.• The Probe will remain in the field until destroyed. Coalition Carrier Repair SystemWhile we still want the Coalition Carrier Repair System to be a powerful support option, its effectiveness was decreased so that there is an incentive to produce combat units early in the game. Before, late in the game, Repair Level 5 heal rate was equivalent to the heal rate of 12 Support Cruisers, negating even enemy Railgun fire at times.Repair System Changes;• Level 1: Heal Rate from 50 hull points/s to 30.• Level 2: Heal Rate from 100 hull points/s to 45.• Level 3: Heal Rate from 150 hull points/s to 60.• Level 4: Heal Rate from 200 hull points/s to 90.• Level 5: Heal Rate from 250 hull points/s to 120. SandskimmerTo compensate for the fact that Gaalsien players can easily use their production cruisers offensively, specifically in the early game, some adjustments were made to the Sandskimmer’s build time and self-repair ability.• Build time has increased from 8 to 11 seconds.• Out of Combat timer has increased from 1 second to 3.5 seconds on its self-repair ability. BaserunnerJust like on the Coalition side, we want the Gaalsien baserunner to be one of the key scouting units in the game. We’ve added a new ability that deploys a vision scanner from a distance, enabling Gaalsien players to either use it offensively or defensively.• Repair ability on the Baserunner is now equally effective at all ranges. (Max range 400)• Will now be able to deploy vision scanners from a distance.• Repair ability AOE falloff type has changed from Linear to None. Assault ShipThe Assault Ship is supposed to be one of the key units when an enemy player is massing Light Attack Vehicles or Sandskimmers. We felt that this unit usually did not successfully serve its purpose; several tweaks were made in order to address this issue.• Maximum Speed has decreased from 85 to 70.• Price has increased from 220/35 to 220/40• Turn Acceleration has increased from 5 to 10.• Weapon Rate of Fire has increased from 2 to 5.• Max Range has increased from 600 to 700m.• Minimum Burst Time length has decreased from 1 to 0.8 seconds.• Reload Time has decreased from 2 to 1.25 secondsMore Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak stories: Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak Update Rolling Out Feb. 23, 2016 Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak Now Available Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak Developer Diary Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak Pre-Purchase Now WindowsGame Patch Written by Rebecca SmithRebecca is the Newshound Manager at TrueSteamAchievements, TrueAchievements and TrueTrophies. She has been contributing articles since 2010, especially those that involve intimidatingly long lists. When not writing news, she can usually be found sharpening her very, VERY, pointy grammar stick in anticipation of its imminent use. Outside of TSA, TA and TT, she works in an independent game shop so that she can spend all day talking about games too. At home, with a variety of PCs and consoles on hand from which to choose, starting with a ZX Spectrum, games are never far away there either. However, as you're not supposed to have an unhealthy obsession with just a single subject, she also likes to read and dream about owning her own tribe of minions. She'll occasionally go outside.