NOVA v0.18.0

What's New

Try NOVA tutorial

• Try NOVA — the solo practice game against a passive opponent — now has a built-in coach that walks you through the game one step at a time: read the star map, send a fleet, capture a star, build factories, send a diplomatic message, scout with a spy probe, defend a star, build a jump gate, launch a nova bomb, and set a standing order.
• The coach watches what you do and ticks each step off the moment you finish it, celebrates the win, then slides on to the next — no buttons to hunt for. You can page back through finished steps, jump ahead, minimize the coach, or reopen it any time.
• Every step links to the matching chapter of the player manual, so you can read more whenever you want.
• When you've learned the basics, the coach names your actual objective — capture or destroy the opposing commander's worlds to win the game.

Diplomacy

• A new Diplomacy chapter in the manual explains talking to other commanders and striking deals — global broadcasts, private threads, and credit contracts.
• Diplomacy is now always one tap away: open any star and choose "Message {owner}", or use the Diplomacy shortcut, to jump straight into a conversation.

Getting around

• Tapping a star now centres it in the open area of the map, above the details panel, so it's never hidden.
• When a match ends you get a clear "Return to the lobby" link alongside exploring the final map.
• When you have no games running, the app now points you straight to joining a game or creating a new one.
• The header is tidier (your commander name is no longer clipped), and the connection status only appears when there's actually a problem — a "Disconnected" strip — instead of always showing.