NOVA v0.17.0

What's New

Try NOVA — a solo practice game

• New to NOVA? A Try NOVA option now appears on your games list and the Join screen. It opens a short explainer and then drops you into a private practice game against a single, passive opponent — no other players, no waiting.
• The practice game is the whole game in miniature: send fleets, capture stars, build factories, and defeat the opponent to win. You start with a generous treasury and the clock runs fast, so you can try everything without a long wait.

Combat is simpler and fairer

• Battles now follow one easy rule: the defender always has a slight home-field edge, no matter how big the two fleets are. There are no size brackets to remember, and the odds no longer swing around from round to round.
• To win an even fight, bring about 25% more ships than the defender — so attacking is less punishing than before, while a well-defended world still holds against equal numbers.

Smarter scouting and intelligence

• A spy probe blocked by a probe shield no longer reports misleading "0 ships, 0 factories." It now shows those details as unknown while still telling you the star carries a probe shield.
• Attacking a star now reveals only the size of its defending fleet — not its factories, wealth, or shields. A single ship is no longer a cheap substitute for a real spy probe.

Command panel improvements

• The fleet upgrade buttons (speed, range, power) now sit below the Launch button, with your current speed, range, and power shown right there and updated as you buy — so the primary Launch action is always front and centre.
• The travel-time readout in a fleet order is more compact.
• Your empire's total ship count is now clearly labelled Ships.
• Speed upgrades cost a little more, keeping a fast fleet a meaningful investment rather than a cheap runaway.