Greetings, commander! Starkku, from Phobos, has recently published Phobos Build 43. For those unfamiliar with it, Phobos extends the modding features from Red Alert 2: Yuri's Revenge and, unlike Ares, is completely open-source. Here are the updates from Phobos Build 43:

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Disclaimer: development builds are inherently unstable and may contain improvements that will be changed and adjusted before the stable release (as well as bugs), with fewer stability guarantees.

Phobos development build 43 is up!

Changes compared to build 42:

Migration info:

  • Digital display Offset and Offset.ShieldDelta Y-axis coordinates now work in an inverted fashion (negative goes up, positive goes down) to be consistent with how pixel offsets work elsewhere in the game.

New features:

  • Allow restricting how many times per frame a single radiation site can damage a building (by Starkku)
  • Allow explicitly setting the superweapons AI uses for Chronoshift script actions (by Starkku)
  • Allow customizing Aircraft weapon strafing regardless of ROT and Strafing.Shots values beyond 5 (by Trsdy)
  • Allow strafing weapons to deduct ammo per shot instead of per strafing run (by Starkku)
  • Allow CloakVisible=true laser trails optionally be seen only if a unit is detected (by Starkku)
  • Customizing whether passengers are kicked out when an aircraft fires (by ststl)
  • Shield hit flash (by Starkku)
  • Option to scatter Anim/SplashList animations around impact coordinates (by Starkku)
  • Customizable wake anim (by TwinkleStar)
  • AI script action to jump back to the previous script after picking a random script (by handama)
  • Insignias visibility and position adjustments (by Fryone)
  • Promotion animation (by Fryone)
  • Allow different technos to share build limit in a group (by ststl & Ollerus)
  • Map events 604-605 for checking if a specific Techno enters in a cell (by FS-21)
  • Waypoint path is drawn for all units, even those not under player control if DebugKeysEnabled=yes (by Trsdy)
  • RemoveDisguise now works on vehicle disguises (by Trsdy)

Vanilla fixes:

  • Air units are now reliably included by target scan with large range and Warhead detonation by large CellSpread (by Starkku)

Phobos fixes:

  • Fixed radiation site damage not taking the radiation level reduction into accord (by Starkku)
  • Correctly update laser trail position while techno is cloaked even if the trail is not drawn (by Starkku)
  • Fixed a crash/freeze that would occur if AttachEffect ExpireWeapon added/removed AttachEffects on the AttachEffect's owner (by Starkku)
  • Fixed a potential crash on transfering non-Cumulative AttachEffects from one object to another (by Starkku)
  • Fixed a potential crash caused by AI script action 10104 Chronoshift to Enemy Base (by Starkku)
  • Fixed a potential desync caused by BehavesLike=Fire ParticleSystems with AdjustTargetCoordsOnRotation=true (by Starkku)
  • Landed AircraftTypes are no longer explicitly excluded from using Interceptor logic (by Starkku)
  • Fix for the potentially wrong time shown on SuperWeapon tooltips (by Trsdy)
  • Some code optimizations (by Trsdy)


You can check more information about Phobos by visiting the Topic at PPM Forums, Official Website, and Discord Channel at C&C Mod Haven. Download Phobos Here. And that's all regarding Phobos for now. Stay tuned at PPM for more news about Phobos!

One vision, one purpose! Version 0.59 of Chrono Divide is now playable on their website. For those unaware of what is being written here, Chrono Divide is a web browser recreation of Command & Conquer Red Alert 2 made by fans. It features Allies and Soviets, allowing you to play skirmish and multiplayer matches. Despite being a browser game, it can be modded. The changes from Chrono Divide Version 0.59 were announced with the following words:

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Version 0.59
8 July, 2024

               
Bug fixes
  • Harvesters should no longer be distracted from their mining operations by enemy units found in close proximity immediately after being spawned
  • Fixed an issue preventing faster units from overtaking slower units when moving in a straight line
  • Corrected voice feedback for Attack-Move orders
  • Fixed an error causing the "Ready" button to be disabled when joining a multiplayer game

               
               
Features and improvements
  • Better detection of maps using unsupported engine features
  • Singleplayer games should be paused when opening the game menu
  • Remember selected bot difficulty, position, and team in singleplayer games


You can learn more about Chrono Divide by visiting the Official Website, and Discord Channel. Play the latest version of Chrono Divide by clicking Here. And this is all for today! Enjoy Chrono Divide and provide your feedback about it so it can get better.

Greetings, Commander! Updates of Rise of The Reds have been shared recently by SWR Productions covering one of the new factions of the mod: the European Continental Alliance. Rise of The Reds is a classic and popular modification for C&C Generals: Zero Hour that adds two completely new factions: the tank-heavy Russian Federation and the defense-oriented European Continental Alliance. It also greatly expands the three original factions with several new units, buildings, powers, and abilities to explore and combine with your in-game tactics. Here is what you need to know about the progress on Rise of The Reds:

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Good morning everybody! As usual, we hope you've all had a great week and that things are going well for you all. This week, we are jumping into some of the new changes to the ECA's support unit roster.

To understand why the Light Excavator (affectionately called the 'Bobcat" by the testing team) was created, we need to understand what it is intended to replace. Since the introduction of the ECA in 1.8, the Tear Gas Strike Generals Power has been a staple for the faction. It was intended to be a useful and reliable way of leveraging the ECA's inherent slow production times with an effective debuff power that could give the ECA units a fighting chance against more typical factions. As beloved and useful as the power was, unfortunately, the overlapping damage types needed to make the Tear Gas Strike work was one of the most consistent causes of game crashes in multiplayer.

As such, the decision was made to scrap the power and spread tear gas utility throughout the remaining unit roster, with units like the Heavy Sniper and Lynx receiving tear gas-based abilities to try and fill the hole that resulted from the removal of the old Generals Power.

However, this left ECA with a Generals Power slot that now needed filling. Whilst a huge emphasis has been placed on making ECA more reliable, aggressive, and unit-focused in 1.9, we still wanted to explore new ways that we could support defensive playstyles - after all, they are still a major focus for the ECA faction, even if it is in a more unit focused way now.

This has led to the creation of a new Generals Power, 'Combat Engineering'. This Power allows ECA engineering units like Engineers, Warhound AVREs, and Pioneers additional construction options to help build more defenses on a larger scale than ever before. It also allows them to call down a new unit, the ECA Light Excavator.



During Operation Nemesis, European forces in North and West Africa frequently had to contend with severely degraded or outright non-existent infrastructure in various GLA-controlled countries. As a result, military engineering resources for the construction of operating bases and lines of communication were spread thin. This led to the formation of a new doctrine where local commands would pool these resources as an on-call reserve that could be airlifted to any engineering element in the field as needed. As the stranglehold of the GLA receded and European control of the region expanded, these same engineering assets would also see increasing use in the construction of new infrastructure for the civilian populace.

Once authorized by the commanding general, European Engineers, Combat Pioneers, and Warhound AVRE commanders can requisition a 'Bobcat' Light Excavator to be para-dropped to their location by an A400M transport. Like its larger-sized cousin, the Light Excavator is a construction vehicle capable of erecting the standard assortment of European facilities and providing repair support. This allows forward forces to rapidly consolidate their position with defenses and establish new facilities without the delay and risk associated with driving a slow, vulnerable Excavator all the way from the base through potentially unsafe territory.

Early into the Russo-European War, many continental members of the European Alliance lost most of their air assets to an onslaught of air strikes, missile bombardment, and sabotage action. It was not until the decisive turn-around of Operation Pandora and the United States' entry into the war that the European air forces once again took to the skies with greater confidence, launching from secure bases on the British Isles, the Iberian Peninsula, and North Africa. It was from this point onwards that the same successful tactic of air-lifted engineering support would be used to greatly affect the liberation of France and the Low Countries.

Render Description MARS2588


The following 2 units have been in the game since 1.86, but never previously received much attention due to their rather minimal impact on the unit roster. Originally intended to be a late-game use for Supply Tracks, both the Medic Track and Engineer Track have been remade from scratch to be dedicated units with their own quirks and abilities.

A popular choice of many European militaries is the Bandvagn family of Swedish all-terrain vehicles, whose unique articulated design gives them exceptional mobility in snow, swamp, desert, and mountain environments. Besides the many combat-oriented variants, such as the Lynx personnel carrier and the Fenris cryogenic weapons carrier, the simple Supply Tracks play a key role in the logistical sustainment of ECA operations and can be converted into medical or repair support vehicles as needed or ordered directly from a Field Command Post as such.



The Medic Track houses an emergency stabilization and treatment facility to heal wounded European infantry in the field. The Third World War produced an extensive list of highly distinguished medical personnel of whom some examples shall be provided:

Meryl Mitchell of the British Army fought in the defence of Ramsgate in 2047 and later deployed to the European mainland. When her medical post was caught in the path of a Russian breakout attempt near Utrecht, she operated a heavy machine gun under fire, thwarting the attack at the cost of her own life.

In late 2048, European and American forces liberated northern Italy. Amidst fighting in Cremona, a US Marine recon element was shattered by an ambush. Arriving in response, Bruno Husseini of the Italian Army ran 80 meters ahead of his unit under enemy fire to aid a wounded Marine before his comrades caught up and repelled the attackers.

During the liberation of Germany in early 2049, Dutch Army medical officer Hendrik Mulder stood his ground against armed members of an extremist resistance group that tried to force him to surrender wounded Russian soldiers under his care, saving them from deadly reprisal. The group was arrested by military police.

Render Description MARS2588



The Engineer Track is equipped with a bulldozer blade and a utility crane to repair European hardware in the field. The Third World War produced an extensive list of highly distinguished engineering personnel of whom some examples shall be provided:

During the Russian invasion of the Baltic countries in the summer of 2045, Vladimir Cernavskis of the Latvian Army repaired a broken detonator while under fire to complete the destruction of a critical motorway bridge that bought additional time for the evacuation of Riga, sacrificing his own life in the act.

After the fall of Berlin and surrender of the German government in 2046, the Bundeswehr fought on, including Tobias Liang, whose unit was repairing battle-damaged tanks on the French side of the Rhine when a vanguard of Russian paratroopers attacked. The small engineer detachment held on for a half hour until reinforcements arrived.

During the counter-offensives of 2048, European forces had to clear thousands of unexploded munitions, including one dramatic instance where a thermobaric bomb was found near a historic church. Instead of detonating it safely, French Army specialist Gabriel Baron chose to dismantle it alone in a tense operation.

Render Description MARS2588 & ThiccestRicc

We hope you've enjoyed this peek into some of the more personal stories of the more humble ECA support units. They may not be the units shooting the shells and destroying targets directly, but having these units in your army compositions is going to often be the decisive factor in whether you survive or perish.

That's all for this week. We will see you at the next one!


For further information about Rise of The Reds, visit the Official Website, Forums, ModDB Profile, Discord Channel, and YouTube Video Channel. And that's all regarding Rise of The Reds for now. Stay tuned at PPM for more news about Rise of The Reds!

Welcome back, visitors! The developers from and Contra have recently shared a first view of the Chinese Nuclear Facility. For those unaware, Contra is a modification for Command & Conquer Generals: Zero Hour that redefines the experience of the game with new units, new graphics and adds general's superpowers. It adds 3 new generals, improves the AI greatly, and introduces super units, among many other gameplay changes, balance changes, and bug fixes. Here is what you need to know about the progress on Contra:

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Hi all,

we are bringing another update, and this time, we have rewarded Nuclear general with a special structure "Nuclear Facility"

As you might guess, this structure is available at rank3.
It has several unique abilities, which makes it very important for this general.

The most obvious one is that it produces a great amount of power. This power will be required for Nuclear Storm, which now comes without GP and is unlocked with Nuclear Facility. This decision will make Nuclear Storm more accessible in the game, but since power consumption will depend on Nuclear Facility, it will be easier to sabotage Nuclear Storm. We believe that this will spice up the game.

Nuclear Facility will contain some important upgrades too. Testing will decide which upgrades will be better and more appropriate than in Propaganda.

Lastly, this structure grants the ability to give Nuclear Weapons to selected units on maps. It means that Battle Masters will have a nuclear shot (which we remember from previous Contra versions). Other units will benefit from nuclear shots as well. Time will tell how much damage and which units will be affected, but this ability will surely improve your units when needed.



Stay tuned for more updates as we are heading toward release, and thank you for supporting us. It means a lot!


You can learn more about Contra by visiting the Official Website, Forums at Revora, ModDB Profile, and Discord Channel. That's all, folks! Stay tuned at PPM for more news coverage on Contra!

Greetings, commander! patrickwieth has posted a new version of YouMustConstructAdditional.. called YouMustConstructAdditional v0.95.33. For those who are not acquainted with it, YouMustConstructAdditional.. is a Real-Time-Strategy game that uses the OpenRA engine. It forks Combined Arms, and it strives to create massive battles with GDI, Nod, Scrin, Allies, Soviet, and China. Here is the official announcement from YouMustConstructAdditional..'s staff about YouMustConstructAdditional v0.95.33:

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0.95.31:

New Features

  • Double MCV mode added. In this mode, players start with 2 MCVs instead of one. Combined with the Nukular mode, both MCVs are Nukular. The game is lost when both are gone.
  • New random faction baskets added. This allows one to get a random pick from more specific groups than just any faction. Examples: TD faction, RA faction, Good faction, Evil faction, Air faction, Tank faction, etc.
  • Allied Rifle Infantry is now Light Infantry with a new sprite.

Balancing

  • Chinese Bulldozer build range increased

Bug Fixes

  • Fix Hover Mammoth Palette


For further information about YouMustConstructAdditional.., visit the Official Website, and Discord Channel. Grab the latest version of YouMustConstructAdditional.. by clicking Here. And this is all for today! Enjoy YouMustConstructAdditional.. and provide your feedback about it so it can get better.

Greetings, Comrade General! Updates of Rise of The Reds has been shared recently by SWR Productions. For those unfamiliar with it, Rise of The Reds is a classic and popular modification for C&C Generals: Zero Hour that adds two completely new factions: the tank-heavy Russian Federation and the defense-oriented European Continental Alliance. It also greatly expands the three original factions with several new units, buildings, powers, and abilities to explore and combine with your in-game tactics. Here is the official announcement from Rise of The Reds:

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Hello Generals!
How has your week been?
We've had a productive one with many continued code optimizations and bug fixes coming to fruition. We also have these shiny new toys we'd like to present to you all, the new Mishka kits.

The humble Mishka has always been a player favorite since its original introduction and has gone through a plethora of changes and role adjustments over the years. Being a basic scout unit it has always been a consistent sight on the battlefield, providing reliable vision and information to players as well as assistance in clearing out pesky minefields and explosive ordinances. There have been many attempts to find an extra 'role' for the Mishka and help it find more prevalence in the mid-late game environment - usually with it gaining some level of fireport-based combat ability. In 1.87, this eventuated with a meta of Mishkas becoming the primary combat unit for Russia, filled with RPG conscripts, Shock Troopers, and Iglas drilling over the map and through opponents' bases before they had a chance to respond. Although we love to see people's enthusiasm for the Mishka in combat, one thing we never want is a single unit invalidating the remaining unit roster, such as in this instance. Although the community balance patches both made changes to this to mitigate the impact and refocus the Russian meta within their own gameplay environments, for 1.9, we decided that rather than directly nerf the Mishka, why not explore how its role could be expanded upon and refocus the unit so it would not invalidate the other units, but support them directly?

Coincidentally, at the same time we began redeveloping the Mishka, a gameplay decision was made to allow all factions to start the game with radar by default. However, seeing as Russia was the only faction that needed a separate building-based radar that was not attached to their Command Centre equivalent, the idea was floated to combine the issues into one streamlined, drill-equipped solution.

Thus, the new Mishka kits were created to fill in 3 main holes within the Russian arsenal.
Firstly, a radar unit for the start of the game to allow Russian players to use their radar minimap whilst they tech up to their Radar Tower. Secondly, a unit that can act as a reliable support unit that can assist in combat without invalidating the rest of the roster with its fireports. Finally, a unit that can act as a Tier-1 bridge to give healing to Russian infantry should the player avoid the Infirmary tech route and focus on a Weapons Bunker. With these roles in mind, we set to work, and the new Mishka kits were created.



The MT-LB is a lightweight armored utility vehicle first introduced to the Soviet Army in the early 1970s. It was produced at the Kharkiv Tractor Plant in the Ukrainian Soviet Republic and licensed for further production in Bulgaria and Poland for an estimated total of 55.000, making it one of the most mass-produced military vehicles in existence. Used throughout the Warsaw Pact and many Soviet allies from Angola to Vietnam, it spawned a dazzling variety of variants made for every conceivable role, many of which would see service in conflicts far into the 21st century. In the 2030s, Russia introduced a new production series of vehicles featuring modern components, improved ergonomics, and a unique screw-based propulsion system. Optimized for amphibious operations and rough terrain from Arctic to marshland environments, the new MT-LB became a reliable favourite among the troops much like its predecessor, earning it the affectionate nickname of "Mishka". Like its predecessor, the Mishka spawned numerous variants available to commanders who requisition the necessary Assault Armaments to modify their vehicles in the field.

Although not designed as a combat vehicle, the Mishka often serves as a light assault carrier for Russian infantry, particularly with forward reconnaissance, expeditionary, and rear echelon security forces. In this configuration, the passenger hatches on the top side of the vehicle are opened and fortified with sandbags, plank covers, and other improvised elements for a degree of additional protection, allowing the infantry to fire their weapons on the move.

Render Description: MARS2588



For lightweight forces that cannot operate heavy artillery systems like howitzers or multi rocket launchers, portable mortars provide essential indirect fire support. The Mishka can be converted into a light mortar carrier and stocked with enough high-explosive shells to provide quick and effective supporting fire for infantry elements in early engagements when the bigger, more terrifying weapons of the legendary "God of War" cannot be brought to bear yet.

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Faced with a highly aged population and years of neglect in medical services, one major aspect of Russia's military reform was the improvement of safety standards and military healthcare. This led to the creation of new medical facilities, first aid training for all personnel, and the implementation of a reliable casualty evacuation system. Mishkas modified into mobile infirmaries play a key part in this, providing medical assistance to infantry in the field.

Render Description: MARS2588



A fourth, rarer variant of the Mishka is a radar carrier, which, according to doctrine, is to be deployed immediately at the beginning of combat operations to provide commanders with radar coverage prior to the construction of a dedicated facility. In addition, this variant benefits from extended vision compared to the default. It should be noted that only one of these "Radar Mishkas" can be deployed at any time as it is only intended as a temporary or fall-back option.

Render Description: MARS2588

That's all for this week. We wish you well and that your drills may be the drills that pierce the heavens.
We will be back next week with more exciting units and content to show you. Don't forget. Believe in yourself. Not in the you who believes in me. Not the me who believes in you. Believe in the you who believes in yourself. (10 points to anyone who gets the reference and what it has to do with Mishkas.)

Till next time, Generals!


You can find more information about Rise of The Reds by visiting the Official Website, Forums, ModDB Profile, Discord Channel, and YouTube Video Channel. That's all, folks! Stay tuned at PPM for more news coverage on Rise of The Reds!

Krita 5.2.3 has been released!
Jun 29, 2024 - 04:33
Hello everyone! We have news for you. Krita 5.2.3 was released moments ago by the crew of Krita fixing a bunch of bugs. For your information, Krita is a free and open-source graphics editor for digital art and 2D animation. It features an advanced brush engine, non-destructive layers and masks, group-based layer management, vector artwork support, color management support, and switchable customization profiles.  Here are the updates from Krita 5.2.3:

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Krita 5.2.3 is released after several weeks of testing of the beta. This is a bugfix release that primarily brings a complete overhaul of our build system, making it so that our CI system can now build for all 4 platforms (a Continuous Integration system basically builds a program after every change, runs some tests, and based on that helps us track down mistakes we made when changing Krita's code).

Beyond the rework of the build system, this release also has numerous fixes, particularly with regard to animated transform masks, jpeg-xl support, shortcut handling on Windows, and painting assistants.

In addition to the core team, special thanks go out to Freya Lupen, Grum 999, Mathias Wein, Nabil Maghfur Usman, Alvin Wong, Deif Lou, Maciej Jesionowski, and Rasyuqa A. H. for various fixes, as well as the first time contributors in this release cycle (Each mentioned after their contribution).

Changes since 5.2.3 beta:

  • Various fixes to tool canvas input shortcut behavior (Thanks, Aqaao)
  • Improved icons for Android (Bug 463043, thanks Jesse 205!)
  • Various fixes to how we use MLT for synchronizing audio to animation.
  • Python SIP type stub generation: this will help autocompletion in external Python editors that support using these stubs (Thanks, Kate Corcoran)
  • Crash fix with adding animation keyframe column on a locked layer (Bug 486893)
  • Fix update of the "read-only" state of the document when loading and saving (Bug 487544)
  • Ask to use PSD data in TIFF only if any was found (Bug 488024)
  • Reworked default FFmpeg profiles (Bug 455006, 450790, 429326, 485515, 485514, thanks Ralek Kolemios!)
  • Fix issue in KisMergeLabeledLayersCommand when masks where involved (Bug 486419)
  • Update batch exporter Python plugin to fix trim option issue (Bug 488343, thanks Nathan Lovato!)
  • Welcome Page: Fix "DEV BUILD" button going to a 404 (Thanks, Joshua Goins!)
  • Tablet Tester: Fix extreme lag with S Pen on Android (Thanks, Joshua Goins!)
  • Fix canvas fade-out when in 16-bit-uint mode on Angle (Bug 488126)
  • WEBP & JPEG-XL: preemptive check for animation (Bug 476761)
  • Fix copy-pasting selection of File Layer (Bug 459849)
  • Fix color sampler in wrap around mode (Bug 478190)
  • Replace old QML touch docker with QWidget-based touch docker to avoid problems on Android (Bug 476690)
  • Add support for XSIMD13
  • Redraw layers docker thumbnails if the canvas checkers color was changed
  • Fix animation playback freezes when pausing past the end of audio (Bug 487371 and 478185)


If you are curious about Krita, visit the Official Website to obtain further information about it. Grab the latest version of Krita by clicking Here. That's all, folks! Stay tuned at PPM for more news coverage on Krita!

Welcome back, visitors! ^Rampastein has released C&C World-Altering Editor v1.1.2 some days ago. Unfortunately, it came with a couple of bugs, which are now fixed in C&C World-Altering Editor v1.1.3. So, if you downloaded 1.1.2, we highly recommend you to download 1.1.3. For your information, C&C World-Altering Editor is a map editor for the Command & Conquer Tiberian Sun Red Alert 2, and its expansions. It originally started as a map editor for Dawn of the Tiberium Age. Here are the updates from C&C World-Altering Editor v1.1.3:

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There turned out to be a couple of bad bugs in the last release. This one fixes them.

  • Fixed a crash when modifying terrain height near the map border
  • Fixed a bug where cells in marble madness mode were affected by lighting on painting terrain
  • Fixed a bug where light posts affected freshly painted cells in "No Lighting" mode


For further information about C&C World-Altering Editor, visit the Topic at PPM Forums, Official Website, and Discord Channel at C&C Mod Haven. Grab the latest version of C&C World-Altering Editor by clicking Here. And that's all for now! Have fun and enjoy C&C World-Altering Editor!