This release introduces some ship balance changes to the heavier ships. The light ships need to be revisited again, we know, but for the moment this update focuses on the Prometheus and the Centaur. Both are greatly increased in Mass (10,000kg on the Prom, upwards of 15,000kg on the Centaur) but also greatly increased in thrust (650N on even the basic Prometheus). The rationale being that we can now create a somewhat-maneuverable heavy ship, which may not match up to a light ship in pure combat, can handle heavier addons and cargo without as much impact on the ship's performance. Next to get this treatment will be the Ragnarok and, to a lesser extent, the Atlas. The SkyCommand is also up to 22,000hp again.

In addition, I also altered the Mining Marauder (a hotly debated topic) to increase cargo capacity to 60 and turbo thrust to 250N (from 180).. so it will reach its top speed (still 180M/s) relatively quickly, even with a full load. It is still not a fighter craft, and is not designed to be.

The Centurion IBG had some typos fixed that make it on part with the Rev C. Both ships may need adjustment in the future, like I said, we're going to revisit the light ships again shortly.

A few weapons were lightly adjusted. Flechette Canons now use less energy. Swarm missiles are now slightly less maneuverable and time out more quickly.

The next balance update will be on Monday, so please check out the changes and constructively post your thoughts on the messageboard. I have some reservations about the Centaur maybe being a bit too powerful now, but we'll see how it goes. Thanks again to everyone for their patience with these ongoing changes.

-john