Hi everyone,

We’re releasing a new Beta, and this update focuses mainly on bug fixes and expanding the nuclear component of the game.

The general idea behind the Conquest game mode is that conflicts should evolve over time. Wars begin as smaller regional struggles focused on land grabbing, but gradually escalate as factions deploy increasingly powerful weapons. Early on, conflicts rely on conventional forces. As tensions rise, chemical weapons may begin to appear, followed by tactical nuclear weapons, and eventually strategic nuclear strikes.

During the early conventional phase, conflicts can last for quite some time, with factions gradually reinforcing the frontlines and maneuvering for advantage. However, the late stages are meant to become far more brutal. At that point, a rapid exchange of nuclear strikes can quickly decide the outcome, potentially leaving one side devastated and unable to resist the invasion of its irradiated territory.

Up until Beta 4, this “nuclear escalation” aspect was largely missing because the AI did not properly understand when and how to build nuclear assets and defenses.

This update addresses that problem.

The AI can now switch between conventional and nuclear-focused production depending on the overall strategic situation and rising global tensions. As a result, if you push too aggressively during the later stages of the game - especially once advanced technologies become available - you should expect the possibility of a nuclear response.

This also means the balance of power can shift very quickly. Nuclear weapons tend to eliminate long-preserved assets in a very short time, dramatically reshaping the battlefield.

Another significant set of changes affects diplomacy, particularly interactions with allies.

Allied factions should now feel more like true allies. They evaluate diplomatic proposals using different criteria and are less likely to betray you compared to previous versions.

Several broader diplomacy issues have also been addressed. For example, factions are now less likely to quickly sign peace treaties immediately after exchanging a few strikes, which previously led to unrealistic situations.

Thanks to the save files, bug reports, and feedback many of you provided, a large number of internal issues have been resolved.

As a result, Beta 4 should be noticeably more stable and solid than Beta 3.

As this is the first Beta that introduces the nuclear build mechanics, some systems are still under development and not yet in their final form. Please keep the following known issues in mind:

• When global pollution reaches around 10%, the AI may occasionally enter a “hate everyone” mode and begin declaring war on multiple factions indiscriminately.

• The AI still does not fully calculate the strategic impact of nuclear weapons. In some situations, it may threaten nuclear-capable factions or make territorial demands without having a sufficient nuclear arsenal of its own.

• Nuclear reconnaissance and defense systems are still being developed and may currently lag behind offensive nuclear capabilities.

• The AI may sometimes be indiscriminate in selecting targets for nuclear strikes, resulting in less strategic targeting than intended.

These systems are still being actively worked on and will continue to improve in future updates.

The next update will focus on refining AI strategies and introducing greater variety in AI behavior.

At the moment, all AI factions effectively use the same strategic approach. This will change. Different factions will adopt different strategic preferences - for example:

• Some factions may prioritize missile silos

• Others may focus more heavily on submarines

• Others may rely more on air power

This should make the game feel more dynamic and reduce the predictability of AI behavior.

Another important task is integrating late-game technologies into AI strategies. Currently, the AI does not properly account for systems such as laser defense complexes or DEW satellites. Addressing this is one of the final steps before the AI rework is complete.

Once again, thank you for your continued support. I hope you enjoy the changes in this update.

1.1.2 beta 4

• Fixed the problem with Naval Stations not being possible to order replenishing its helicopters

• Fixed the problem with units sometimes entering two AI plans the same time

• Fixed a crash related to simultaneous handling logistics of different AI factions

• Fixed a crash related to releasing of graphical objects in secondary thread 

• Fixed a crash related to voting during AI execution

• Fixed a crash related to region ownership change during AI execution

• Fixed a crash related to storing a killed target in AI plans

• Fixed the AI being "stuck" while building certain units that require complex build order

• Fixed some variants of the AI "overbuilding" different kinds of units

• Fixed the AI incorrectly estimated the threat from the factions it has peace treaty with

• Fixed the AI not attacking enemy units in some cases

• Fixed the AI being too willing to agree on ceasefire even when it could steamroll the enemy

• Fixed some diplomacy issues when dealing with allies

• Fixed diplomacy screen buttons overflowing faction info

• Carriers are no more left alone by AI

• No more drawing points on the cities when the selected unit with nuclear weapon cannot attack cities

• AI now tends to groups its navy 

• Added initial Nuclear strategy for the AI

• No countdown timer for Conquest mode by default

Beta 3 is finally ready. This update primarily focuses on optimization and general improvements based on your feedback.

Originally, the plan was to emphasize the “nuclear” aspect of the game more heavily. However, smoothing out the game “stuttering” caused by the significantly increased CPU demands of the updated AI required far more effort than anticipated. While working on the planned optimization steps - and thanks to the save files many of you sent - I discovered additional opportunities to further improve performance, especially in the late game. As a result, I decided to prioritize performance improvements for this update.

I genuinely hope you’ll feel the difference.

That said, because the changes to the underlying execution engine are substantial, there is unfortunately a higher risk of occasional crashes. If you encounter one, please follow these steps:

1. Go to Documents → My Games → ICBM-Escalation

2. Locate the file Fatal.txt and any crash dump files (something like crashinfo_ver. 1.1.2 beta 3_2026.02.16__13.20.51.dmp)

3. Compress them into an archive (.zip, .rar  -  any format works)

4. Post the archive along with a description of the issue on the game’s Discord server[discord.gg] or email it to vufnarovsky at gmail 

If you are able to reliably reproduce a crash, that would be enormously helpful.

Another major focus of Beta 3 was AI aggressiveness - while also improving its ability to understand the overall strategic situation.

In this version, the AI is once again “more fun”, behaving closer to Beta 1 in how it pushes advantages. When an invasion succeeds, it now continues the offensive instead of stopping after capturing a single region.

Beta 2 introduced an issue that made the AI overly cautious when initiating invasions. It treated all non-friendly assets as hostile - not just the factions it intended to attack. This caused the AI to delay invasions until it was strong enough to handle not just one opponent, but all potential enemies combined. This clearly limited its effectiveness. That behavior has now been corrected.

The AI in Beta 3 is more flexible in choosing what to build. As example, it may now construct a full airbase instead of a tactical one if aircraft range would otherwise be insufficient to support an invasion. It also evaluates the “efficiency” of different units for specific roles, for example, sometimes preferring MRBM TELs over SRBMs, Cruiser over Destroyer, and vice versa, depending on the situation.

For the first time, the AI tracks the history of various events and incorporates that data into diplomatic decisions.

One practical improvement is that it should be less repetitive and less likely to spam the same diplomatic requests. More importantly, it now performs a linear regression analysis of military strength trends among factions. This allows it to assess whether it is gaining or losing momentum in a conflict.

Additionally, the AI now distinguishes between a faction’s conventional forces and its nuclear capabilities. It attempts to estimate the probability of full-scale nuclear war and adjusts its evaluation of overall faction power accordingly - depending on whether it expects the conflict to remain conventional or escalate.

With much of the foundational work now in place, Beta 4 will focus heavily on the nuclear dimension of the game.

My hope is that Beta 3 strikes the right balance between “too aggressive” and “too cautious,” setting the stage for Beta 4 to deepen the AI’s focus on mid-to-late-game missile defense and nuclear deterrence.

Here below you can find the latest changelog:

1.1.2 beta 3

• Fixed the problem with too many Ballistic Missile Sites/SRBMs built-in,

• Fixed the problem with the AI being too cautions with invasions,

• Fixed the problem with the AI agreeing on ceasefire too quickly even when winning,

• Fixed the game "stuttering" when the AI builds logistics routes,

• Fixed the game "stuttering" when the AI analyses the overall map and adjusts its strategy,

• Fixed the game "stuttering" when the AI was deleting its dynamic plans,

• Fixed a problem with the AI being able to start war during peace time,

• Generally increased the game performance,

• "Priority research complete" journal event is now triggered only when the research queue becomes empt,

• The AI is now less prone to "spam" player with the same requests,

• Changes the way AI evaluates the faction's strength,

• The AI now tracks the war progress and takes decisions based on the overall success instead of the momentary force distribution