Star Citizen – Banu Merchantman Progress – Coramor & Hover Quad Sale

We have a load of star citizen news for you today… love is in the air with Coramor, the HoverQuad is finally released and a we have a very meaty Sprint Report that highlighted work on locations, the banu merchantman among other ships and much more.

Let’s start with that development sprint report from Inside Star Citizen: Sprint Stint

Derelict and Wreck work has continued with various modular pieces being made to add life and variants to them. They are building and breaking lots of these wrecks with Starfarer parts at the moment… they are basically build and derelict asset database or zoo then they can edit and drop them in game.

Outlaw space stations will have various exploration and traversal opportunities.

You might find some interesting vents or be able to get up in the ceiling, under the floor or on a catwalk… there may be loots and secrets.

Hangars are being built out for the rings in Space Stations adding a bit more cool and functionality to them.

The Reputation System and it’s UI continues to evolve and they are exploring icons for various career paths were looked at… ones for kidnapping, hauling, smuggling & theft…

And they showed more on salvage, emergency response, espionage, security, courier, racing, mining, medicine, bounty hunting and more. They have big plans for the Rep system and careers / missions to support it.

They’ve done a pass on the mantis cockpit, updating it to look better while also being more performant.

They are building out some executive offices at Orison, you’ll see them at some of the raised landing platforms. We may see these tied to missions in the future too.

They showed the final art phase for the Vulture Light Salvager, it’s nearly done. They confirmed that salvage and the Vulture are still intended to release later this year.

The MISC Hull A is even more done… and should be ready for 3.17. They are trying to refine that expanding / contracting cargo grid too.

Ahh… the Banu Merchantman continues to see air time it’s in it’s whitebox and they are fully mapping it out before it goes to greybox.

They main bridge is pretty massive and we can see part of it and a staircase that leads to a turret room above.

The Engineering section focus is to make sure everything is to the correct metric. They have opened the room up more.

The habitation area has a banu shrine.

They also showed a very unique turret access point… it’s big and alien.

You can see up to the turret from below and the turret with suck you up into it apparently and then raises up..

They are concepting “old” and ancient outposts… ones that have been abandoned or entirely destroyed… these are like ruins that we might come across. They are also building out the zoo for outposts, derelict or otherwise. These will be handplaced to start with BUT might see some procedurally assisted generation in the future too. You can expect to see these adding to the gameplay in the Pyro System.

It’s Coramor in Star Citizen more tangibly this means there is a ship sale on with pink paints.

You can grab the Nomad, Ares AND finally released HoverQuad all with metallic pink paints.

The Hornet Heart Seeker which is a Super Hornet with a different loadout and paint scheme is also on sale as is a discounted upgrade for the ship. 

Let’s talk about that HoverQuad now that it’s actually been released and is flyable in game now as well as on sale on the RSI Website.

It’s a relatively cheap single seater civilian transport and exploration hover bike from Consolidated Outland. It’s supposed to be a very stable, comfortable and reliable ride and has a little cargo space but it has now weapons or shields.

It’s pretty small at .5m long, 2.5 wide and 1.1 high.

It has a max speed of 600m/s in space 200m/s on a planet.

It’s available to buy from $25 warbond, $30 store credit.

I think the wardbond version will sell very well as it comes with LTI and is suitable for a token to then upgrade to a different ship that will then get the LTI of the package.

It also pairs perfectly with the Nomad and can fit in the rear section of the ship. And there is a package on sale reflecting that bundle.

You can buy a variety of different skins for the HoverQuad currently in addition to that pink one, there is an Orange/Yellow one, Black one with red accents and a white one with copper accents. It appears the sale is going quite well as SC pulled in over $700k in funding yesterday.

We had the Q&A for the HoverQuad at the same time:

Is it the same grav-lev tech as other vehicles in game?

The HoverQuad uses the same technology as all the other grav-lev vehicles.

What ships/vehicles can the HoverQuad fit into?

The HoverQuad was designed to comfortably fit in the back of the Nomad as a companion vehicle. Its compatibility with other vehicles isn’t guaranteed but it’s small enough to fit in quite a few. If you can fit a PTV greycat buggy in a vehicle, it’s likely the HoverQuad will also fit.

How do its speed, handling, and overall size compare to bikes like the Nox and Dragonfly?

The Nox and Dragonfly have the HoverQuad beaten on straight-line acceleration, but the HoverQuad excels in handling and turning agility.

Does the Hoverquad have any storage for weapons, equipment, or cargo?

The only onboard storage is a personal storage area for transporting small items. There are no other dedicated cargo racks or weapon storage as your back remains free when seated… so you can have the guns you carry with you.

Does the HoverQuad have upgradable components?

The HoverQuad utilizes standard Size 0/vehicle components that can be upgraded or changed like any other vehicle.

How does the HoverQuad handle rough terrain in comparison to its competitors?

Much better! It has a tighter turning radius and at speed is much more nimble. It’s also much tougher in terms of the amount of damage it can withstand.

What are the advantages/disadvantages of hover vehicles versus wheeled bikes like the Tumbril Ranger?

Hover vehicles naturally avoid any low-lying objects that can cause collision damage. However, as they’re not touching the ground, they’re going to be much more susceptible to external forces such as wind.

How fast can the HoverQuad travel over terrain?

It varies depending on the planet’s atmosphere and gravity and the height it’s ridden at. Like all grav-lev vehicles, the max is currently around 200m/s on a planet’s surface, which is similar to the bikes. However, the bikes have much sharper acceleration curves so reach maximum speed much quicker than the HoverQuad. All grav-lev vehicles can travel faster in space.

Where did Consolidated Outland get this hover tech from, and how does it compare with other alien tech?

Silas Koerner and the engineers at Consolidated Outland looked to the Xi’an to get a better understanding of how they integrate grav-lev into their vehicles. So, it’s heavily influenced by their designs but received the standard Consolidated Outland attempt at innovation.

Do the hover pads retract if the engines are turned off to conserve space when stored on ships?

There is no dedicated “compact storage” mode like the Dragonfly is intended to have. The HoverQuad’s nacelles are planned to rotate and adjust during movement but this is not functional for the initial release.

Please remember that XenoThreat is on until the 14th of Feb, so get involved if you haven’t already and there is a FreeFly event starting on the 17th of February too.

And there was a little hotfix which should solve missions that weren’t appearing on the mobiglas.

Boom, that’s your Star Citizen News Update and sprint Summary.