Hello Polytopians! Weve been listening to your feedback on the recent Path of the Ocean update, both good and bad, and were making some changes that we hope youll like in this new beta! This patch should help simplify the experience, removing some bloat and streamlining how things are used. So, without further ado, lets talk about whats changing!

Weve Removed Aqua Crops and Adjusted the Fishing Tech

Yes, you heard us right, despite them only being in the game for a few months, we felt that Aqua Crops (and Aqua Farms) were ultimately unnecessary and clogging up the coastlines. Of course, without Aqua Crops in the water anymore, there should be more fish spawns overall, which is good because the Fishing Tech has, once again, become the first tech on the naval branch and also includes Ports. So, now you can start harvesting fish and getting on the water as early as possible again.

Markets Have Been Streamlined

A common complaint with the Path of the Ocean update was the clunkiness of the new Markets compared with the power and flexibility of the old Custom Houses. So, weve streamlined them a lot and made them much more intuitive to use. Now, instead of getting stars based on the types of buildings next to them, theyll inherit the levels of all the Windmills, Sawmills, and Forges next to them, making +1 star per level. This should make it easier to use them and remove the need to get multiple T3 technologies. Weve also removed their interactions with Ports, so you dont have to keep your Markets next to a coast tile to get the most out of them. Weve also capped their level to 8, which means +8 stars maximum, which isnt too shabby if you place them right.

Coastal Tiles Have Gotten a Makeover

To make Bridges more useful, weve not only lowered their cost to 5 stars but have allowed you to place them to connecting land in the fog. But, if you cant see the land in the fog, then does that mean we have to tap every single tile to see if you can place a bridge? That doesnt sound fun. We dont think so, either, reader, so we have given each coastal tile a faint light-blue coastline that will stick out of the fog, telling you that there is land under that tile (without revealing the tile, itself). Now you can know where you can place a bridge, and dont have to play a guessing game.

Weve Adjusted Lighthouses

So, we ran into an interesting interaction that we werent expecting - the single population you can get from finding a Lighthouse was unfairly tipping corner spawns to be very powerful, especially with tribes who can upgrade their Capitals on the first turn. Bardur is already strong, but they can be even more powerful with the starting population! We tried removing the free population from the Lighthouse, but then players wouldnt want to find them without the incentive, so were put into a predicament. We couldnt leave it but also couldnt remove the population, so we compromised. Now, all Lighthouses will be hidden in a fog tile, even if you have a corner spawn and should be able to see them from the start. Delaying the population for a turn or two seems to be the proper solution, and we look forward to hearing what you think.

Bombers Have Been Nerfed

We understood that Bombers were far too oppressive and very difficult to fight, so we looked into making some changes. We discussed a wide array of ways to nerf them and settled on something simple - Bomber damage has been reduced from 43. Their range and their splash ability help define them as a unit and allow them to perform their job, so reducing their damage should make them less oppressive and a little less appealing to build all the time. Well be keeping an eye on them and listening to your feedback.

Other Changes

Here are some other small changes that you should be aware of: - Temples now upgrade every 2 turns, not 3, which should also make them more useful in Glory - Perfection score multiplier based on the number of opponents has been reduced - The Burn Forest and Destroy abilities have swapped places, into Construction and Chivalry, respectively - Starfish harvest income reduced from 108 stars - Youll now get a Veteran Rammer instead of a Veteran Bomber out of water ruins - AI have been improved and should make smarter decisions, including Cloak spawn rate being reduced and better use of city improvements

How Do I Test the New Beta?

If you havent done so already, youre always able to get into the Steam beta by following these steps: 1. Right-Click Polytopia in Steam 2. Click Properties on the dropdown 3. Head to Betas in the new popup that appears 4. Use the code polytopiabetatesters to get into the beta!
Android and iOS users can find links to their respective beta programs on our Discord, which you can get to with this link

Update 2.8.5.11904 Changelog

- Removed Aqua Crop and Aqua Farms - Tech tree: moved Fishing to become the first tech in that branch and it includes Port improvement - Simplified Markets: 1* for each level of each nearby production building. Removed doubling for ports. New graphics. - Markets are capped at level 8 - Tech tree: moved Burn Forest to Construction, and Destroy to Chivalry - Cheaper bridges, now 5* - Lower Starfish income, now 8* - Lower Bomber attack value, 3 instead of 4 - Allow bridges to be built even if one of the tiles are in fog - Added shorelines to hint if a bridge can be placed on a water tile that leads into the fog - Get Veteran Rammer instead of Bomber from water ruins - Score bonus for opponent count is lower in Perfection game mode - Temples grow quicker, reduced from 3 turns2 - Improved AI, better at picking what unit to train, better at improving cities - Lighthouses always start covered in fog, even if it is close to your capital - Fixed crash when starting a game from a notification