Phoenix Point Update #14, $643,259 and Counting

The Fig campaign for Julian Gollop’s Phoenix Point is about to reach the $650k stretch goal with over 14 days left to go. This means drivable vehicles are almost a certainty. I expect the next update to talk about that.

But before that, the latest one brings us two new stories: Hanamaru Sushi, and Launch Codes. It also mentions a playable Demo version, and the currently planned soldier classes. Check it out:

Demo News

A number of you have asked about seeing more game play. The good news is that we are going to show some – but not until the end of the month. Why the long wait? Well, we want to show something that is a bit more distinctive – a battle against a monster – and it is not quite ready. You can rest assured that the team is working hard on it. It will show how body part targeting can be a crucial factor in the tactics you employ against large creatures, and how different body parts grant different abilities and have different weaknesses.

A Better Class of Soldier

There have been quite a few questions about character development in the game, specifically – do we have soldier classes and how do soldiers improve? Phoenix Point will use the concept of soldier classes, but they are not rigid classes, rather they are skill disciplines with certain types of specialisation.

There will be three ‘base’ classes in which all soldiers start:

• Marksman – tends to have good perception
• Assault – tends to have good mobility
• Heavy – tends to have good endurance

Then there will be five specialist classes. These represent more refined, interelated skill groups, although there may be some crossover with other classes. Any base class soldier may acquire a specialist class if the right training and technology is available. A specialist class will also offer at least one unique skill depending on the base class origin.

The Infiltrator

Here is an example of a specialist class we call the ‘infiltrator.’ The main abilities for this class involve stealth, evasion, reconnaissance, booby traps, target designation, close quarters combat and scaling difficult terrain. The infiltrator will normally be equipped with stealth weapons which include crossbows, silenced guns, blade weapons, gas grenades and proximity mines. The armour technology is built for evading detection and agility. Helmets tend to be the most sophisticated element, with 360 degree vision systems, rebreather apparatus and comms systems. Grappling gear, ultra-thin climbing lines and retractable climbing spikes on hands and feet allow for navigating highly vertical terrain. One possible loadout includes a ‘drone hive’ – a backpack loaded with miniature drones which can rapidly spread out in all directions for highly effective reconnaissance.

All of the main factions have technology that is relevant to build equipment and skills for an infiltrator, but Synedrion have the most advanced tech in this area. Disciples of Anu will have some mutations which can be highly beneficial to this role.