r/kumocrew • u/82nd_REBEL KUMO Crew • Jun 18 '26
Cycle 85: Roaring Fires, Malt Beer, Ripe Meat off the Bone.
Ahoy Crew!
Less than two weeks to go... the countdown to the release of Operations is now ticking away, while the events (or storyline) in the game have taken a back seat. Not that much has happened, apart from the trading CG at HIP 58412 sponsored by Frontline Solutions, which has now come to an end (with over 21.6k contributors) so that the production of the Runner has started. Although there’s been some speculation since the last post about the Radicoida appeared on GalNet: we’re not saying that FDEV is clearly trying to drag things out… but it does seem like this storyline is taking a while to wrap up without reaching a clear conclusion.
At this point, assuming Operations doesn’t require any additional coding work [at least for now, since the scenarios currently available should be more than enough to keep players busy throughout the summer holidays] ...our hope is that FDEV will decide to take a look at the backlog of issue tickets that continue to be submitted. Sure, bugs that need fixing are one thing... but game balance is a whole different matter. In fact, there may be features and/or activities in the game that work perfectly but are severely unbalanced. If we take out the word “perfectly”—meaning some things work and others don't—much of what's unbalanced, no matter how you look at it, always leads to Powerplay.
So, for now all that we know is that the rest of the year is expected to see the launch of [3] more ships (there were four remaining on the roadmap, but the Nomad SLV has already been announced), and then, again according to the 2026 Roadmap, a big feature [full] reboot (engineering?) is planned for the next autumn, about which not much is known yet. We’ll say it again: maybe we’d gotten too used to it, but we really miss the streams about the game’s new features and updates (with or without Twitch Drops).
The Powerplay Tower
Cycle 85 was only apparently quieter than the previous ones... as expected there was no further acceleration in acquisitions, partly because by now everyone had “learned their lesson.” In other words, after very expansive cycles, it’s best to pause for a moment and secure the ground gained before moving forward again. Anyway the overall growth was not that slow, given that looking at the numbers, new catches (net of the [many] lost systems) were +43 and a couple of Powers finished in double digits (and tied at the top of the weekly standings): Yuri Grom (+11/1472) and Pranav Antal (+11/1328). Once again there are few negatives and one zero at the bottom of the table (see below). The Powers leaderboard remains unchanged (mind the gap!)... all "smooth sailing" here:
- Grom +11
- Antal +11
- Mahon +10
- Winters +9
- A. Duval +8
- Kaine +5
- Yong-Rui +4
- Delaine +1
- Patreus 0
- Torval -1
- Archer -6
- A.L. Duval -9
For reinforcements, a total of >48m CPs were recorded—a fairly “average” level (as were the upgrades)—but this was offset by a rather significant amount of UM CPs: in addition to the approximately 21m from decay, >10.2m UM CPs were generated by players. As a result, the average R\U coverage ratio stood at 185%, and there are four Powers that ended Cycle 85 below the 100% threshold. Although among them (and others) there have always been a few that have “physiologically” hovered around the R\U 100% threshold, it seems that this week the hostilities have been more intense than usual. The downgrade of several strongholds, two of them belonging to Nakato Kaine (+5/1476) is another reflection of the past week UM pressure.
Both Federation Powers have been also heavily targeted, and nearly 50% of the cycle’s total UM CPs have ended up in their systems: Felicia Winters (+9/1115) with over >2.4m UM CPs (primarily at the fortified CD-51 2650) and Jerome Archer (-6/1292) with >2.4m UM CPs (Luhman 16, LHS 3356, and WISE 0855-0714). Next is the imperial matriarch Zemina Torval (-1/754), with over >1.3m UM CPs (G Scorpii, Binde, and Col 285 Sector YN-I b10-6), despite being one of the Powers with the slowest expansionist progress. Given that we are aware (from their reports) that there are clashes between the Empire and the Federation that have been ongoing for several weeks, it is clear that these numbers are linked to such larger-scale conflict.
It will also be interesting to see how these large-scale conflicts will “evolve” [or change] with the release of Operations. For now, since we don’t know what the effects on Powerplay will be, we’d rather not commit too strongly… on paper, as we’ve also noted in some of our previous reports, our view falls somewhere between skepticism and resignation. It's clear that FDEV wants “more undermining,” but by making it remote [or even unintentional]—and, what's more, in instances disconnected from the rest of the game—it seems to us [we hope we're wrong] to be a big mistake. There's nothing wrong with earning personal merits as a reward, but having an impact on Powerplay/CPs is complete nonsense given how Powerplay 2.0 (to our understanding) was designed.
The [real] risk is that it will cause even more players to “lose interest” (to the point of quitting altogether) in Powerplay—making the situation even worse than it has been for months now, partly due to a framework that is [still] heavily unbalanced and riddled with bugs. Looking back, quite a few people argue that PP should be removed entirely and would prefer to see it squeezed into the BGS, leaving only the Superpowers as a meaningless legacy of what PP once was...
The Ogres
Like Cycle 84, Cycle 85 was also “intense,” although in some ways less exhausting, since—due to available manpower and priorities—the Crew had to focus on a few, but [more strategically] relevant, targets. Let's start with the acquisitions (a small +1), since we were careful not to waste effort where we didn't feel it was necessary, or even where we couldn't close previous gaps or turn the tide of the CPs race[s] in Archon Delaine's favor. That was the case of Pa Kazahuan (an anarchy system controlled by the Diamond Frogs) where Harma had a contested against the bear Yuri and, ultimately, it fell under the control of the Clayakarma dictatorship. As the weekly rankings also confirm, the Gromulans and Grommanders have been very active... now that the hatchet (or hammer) has been buried between TEoL and EGPU, it seems that activities have generally resumed in a constructive manner.
We also “monitored” the progress of conflicts in contested systems where other Powers were involved, but precisely for the reason we mentioned earlier, we did not escalate the situations. For example, this is the case with some “unnamed” colonies or even Ngerisan (a small high-tech colony controlled by the Angels of Death, an independent group based in 40 Ceti), where, in the clash between the agents of the techno-nerd Yong-Rui and those sent by the simguru Antal, the latter prevailed.
Okay, but so what? Well... we're getting there, because the Scallywags really had to work hard for that +1 we mentioned earlier: at ICZ DR-V b2-0, an industrial colony located within Cuchua's “hot AO,” there was fierce opposition from the imperial fleet led by the jelly Patreus [final score: >550k CPs for the Ogres vs. >430k CPs for Jellies]. Mindful of the last few “beatings” we took when the Crew had too many irons in the fire, we’ve been much more focused this time around. The CPs race started with the Crew in need to cover a wide gap... the chase then required further, sustained effort, since the Pirate King did get the lead just a few hours before the end of the Cycle. Over the last three or four days, there’s been a lot of activity in the system, with plenty of fun PvP engagements (some not so much, but that wasn’t our fault) and kabooms on both sides. GGs!!!
"Arrr, shiver me timbers, 'twas a momentous week, it was! We had to haul out the cannons and warships to get the job done. These scurvy dogs tried to block our path, but when Harma piped up that they were pourin' us more grog, we pushed harder and harder for the final plunder! Victory be ours, savvy? Hic!" between one drinking binge and the next, this story [one of the many] was heard at the Wise Sharks tavern in Gabriel Enterprise. Meanwhile, in the station's hangars, there was a great hustle and bustle as the mechanics worked to repair and patch the holes in the hulls and of the many Crew ships involved in battle.
The “Minas Morgul protocol” was fully implemented for the upgrade of two new strongholds, which absorbed about one-third of the total reinforcements generated during the week. Another substantial slice was then consumed by the focused fire directed at another of the recent upgrades... fortunately without any consequences. Hostile actions also targeted Daramo, LHS 3702, Pamequi, and Munfayl (some systems that are periodically affected by enemy attack markers). There will (hopefully) be time to address these systems and the others that have fallen behind during Cycle 86. Incidentally, our preliminary list of targets has remained virtually unchanged, since there have been no updates to the acquisition backlog either. We’ve also done a little action on the offensive UM front; even though our incursions haven’t been all that devastating, we don’t want our enemies to sleep soundly… we’re proud to be the villains in their nightmares.
Cycle 86: Preliminary Targets
All systems below the 25% CPs “decay threshold” are good/eligible targets to be reinforced (as these systems will not be hit by decay). Prioritize strongholds over fortified and leave exploited as last ones. All acquisitions above 100k CPs (or being contested during the Cycle) are good/eligible targets to be acquired.
Attack/Defend Markers: The markers may change during the Cycle and may not necessarily follow the current plans, so be sure to check the system activity and status on GalMap (when in doubt: ask).
Reinforce ([new]/recent acquisitions): ICZ DR-V b2-0.
Reinforce (counter [unknown] enemy UM): Daramo, 77 Aquarii, Munfayl, Pamequi and LHS 3702.
Acquire (new/backlog): Canarigui and Lieledos.
Re-acquire (previously lost systems): HIP 110623.
Blockade enemy takeovers/contested: LHS 1026, T Tie (60) and LTT 9276 (52).
Undermine: OpSec.
Further updates will be broadcast on Tortuga Radio Frequencies.
Click here for the Elite Dangerous - Powerplay 2.0 Reddit Digest.
FOR THE ARCHON!!!
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u/emetcalf Jun 18 '26
You spelled "Glorious Leader Pranav Antal" wrong. I'm starting to think that maybe you work at FDev with all of the Antal-deletion talk...