“Turning the Tables” Mission Playthrough Video

Well, I finally beat the combat UI into reasonable shape, and was able to record a full playthrough of one of the earlier (and definitely easier) missions. The fleets are comparatively small, and so is the map, making for faster-paced action.

The mission briefing, to set the mood:

The independent prospector ISS Hamatsu is coming back from a tech mining expedition on a decivilized world. The haul is good, and the Hamatsu’s captain has retained a mercenary ship to provide protection en route to market at the Hegemony worlds.

It turns out the captain’s worries were justified. Coming out of hyperspace for a routine refueling stop in the Corvus system, the ships are attacked by a suspected Cult of Lud task force. The Ludii blame technology for humanty’s ills, and will do anything to prevent the Hamatsu and its high-tech cargo from reaching Hegemony space.

After a brief conference, the captains of the Hamatsu and the mercenary ISS Black Star conclude that a counterattack offers the best chance of success – retreat is not a viable option as the Hamatsu is running low on fuel.

The ISS Black Star is under your command.

This is the first look at a continuous slice of Starfarer gameplay. Enjoy!

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The State Of Affairs

The Now is what the ancients would call “year 3126.” We do not call it that anymore. It is pointless to cite large numbers that remind us how far we had come, and how far we have fallen. Since we do not even know where Old Earth is anymore, and cannot reach it – we use a new way of telling time, the sector cycle. In our sector of space, it is cycle 206.

Not much is known about the ancient past. What we know is what survivors recorded or told us. They described a vast galactic nation – the Domain of Man. Spanning hundreds of thousands of worlds in the Milky Way, ruled by the Ecumenical Benevolent Council, with its seat at Old Earth… It is told that one could travel the stars in the blink of an eye through gates constructed by the men of the Domain. Resources were nearly limitless, growth was not bound. Our sector was relatively new on the scene. Some worlds in it had only been settled for 20 or so cycles before the great calamity. The populations of the planets in our sector were still giddy with the initial excitement that every new venture brings. The sector was truly a heaven that we can now only dream of, hoping we go to a place like it when we die.

No one knows for sure what caused the end of this paradise. The records and stories only tell us bits and pieces. Exactly 206 cycles ago, all gates in our sector went dead at once. All communication links to the Domain were severed. Initially, there was no great disturbance in the daily lives of the colonists, it was assumed the gates would be reopened by the Domain, and communications reestablished. So they waited. But the gates were silent.

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