Steam 1.0 · Tactical Economy Dossier
In Quasimorph 1.0, the real battle is fought in the balance sheet. Amassing wealth without understanding Faction Power vs. Technology Level (TL) dynamics creates unkillable corporate juggernauts. Meanwhile, hoarding heavy scrap triggers the lethal Negative Dodge trap, turning your clone into an immobile, 2 AP-per-tile target. Mastering the Elevator Staging Cache, exploiting door-blocking AP denial, and prioritizing ship upgrade modules guarantees long-term mercenary dominance.
Macro-Economics
The planetary simulation tracks two distinct corporate metrics: Power (territorial station control and fleet presence) and Technology Level (TL 1 – 10) (equipment tier deployed by station guards and stocked in barter stores). Understanding their divergence is critical to campaign longevity.
| Technology Tier | Equipment Deployed in Station Armories | Barter Store Unlocks | Combat Threat Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| TL 1 – 2 (Basic) | Service pistols, 9mm SMGs, low-tier ballistic vests, Dataminer | Basic medical splints, common ammo boxes, basic tools | Low Risk |
| TL 3 (The Milestone) | Taiga-24 shotguns, Buffalo DMR, Military Rucksacks | Buffalo Backpack (RealWare 40+ slots), 7.97mm crates | Moderate |
| TL 6 (High-Tech) | Combat assault rifles, 7.97 API armor-piercing rounds | Cybernetic implants, Mind Chips, Class Chips | Elevated |
| TL 7 – 8 (Elite) | Carnage Pattern body armor, Beast heavy machine guns | High-grade repair nanites, advanced cybernetics | Extreme |
| TL 9 – 10 (Endgame) | Titan Warlord exoskeletons, H.F.C. plasma cutters, heavy shields | Masterwork military crates, arch-demon pact fragments | Catastrophic Monolith |
Contract tunnel vision is the most common strategic failure in Quasimorph. If an operative relentlessly supports RealWare to farm Dignitas credits, RealWare reaches TL 9 while competitors linger at TL 2. When mandatory story missions require raiding RealWare installations, your operative will face dozens of unkillable Titan Exoskeletons.
Encumbrance Mechanics
Patch 1.0.4 upgraded the character statistics display to 0.1% decimal precision, revealing the brutal truth behind over-encumbrance. Carrying excessive weight does not simply reduce your mobility—it drags your dodge rating below zero, directly augmenting enemy weapon accuracy.
Effective Dodge % = Base Agility Dodge - [ (Current Weight - Max Carry Capacity) / 2 kg × 1.0% ] A baseline operative (5 Strength) possesses 32.5 kg Max Carry Capacity. Equipping an empty Buffalo Backpack (6.8 kg tare weight, -6.0% passive dodge) and heavy plate cuirass (15 kg) leaves only 10.7 kg of capacity before encumbrance penalties begin deducting from Agility dodge.
Visualizing the transition from agile evasion into the lethal Negative Dodge zone and the 2 AP-per-tile movement penalty cliff.
| Overweight Tier | Effective Dodge Penalty | Movement AP Cost | Hostile Combat Consequence |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 kg (Light Loadout) | 0.0% deduction | 1 AP per tile | Full evasion active (30% – 50% dodge); enemy bullets frequently miss |
| 0.1 – 4.9 kg (Minor) | -0.1% to -2.4% | 1 AP per tile | Negligible agility loss; safe for combat looting |
| 5.0 – 14.9 kg (Moderate) | -2.5% to -7.4% | 1 AP per tile | Dodge drops near zero; hostiles land nearly all shots |
| ≥ 15.0 kg (Severe Overweight) | ≥ -7.5% (Negative Dodge Trap) | 2 AP PER TILE! | Catastrophic. Enemies receive >100% accuracy (guaranteed critical hits). Clone expends 2 AP to step 1 tile, gifting hostiles double turns! |
Every point allocated to an operative's Strength attribute adds exactly +3.5 kg to Max Carry Capacity:
Field Logistics
The most reliable survival technique practiced by veteran PMCs is separating the exploration phase from the extraction haul. Traversing hostile hallways while weighed down by 40 slots of salvage guarantees lethal encounters.
Exit the elevator, eliminate any immediate sentries in the landing room, and right-click to close all blast doors leading into side corridors.
Drop reserve ammunition crates, surgical splints, repair nanites, and bulky trade commodities directly onto the elevator landing floor tiles.
Explore the floor carrying only 1 firearm, 2 magazines, and 1 hemostatic bandage. Enjoy full 40%+ dodge and 1 AP per tile traversal.
After clearing a corridor wing, return to the elevator room and deposit collected weapon receivers, chips, and trade items into the cache.
When the objective is completed or Ecstasy summons a Baron, pack the highest Value-per-Slot items into your rucksack and extract immediately with 0 steps taken under severe overweight.
Items dropped on elevator landing room tiles NEVER despawn and CANNOT be looted by roaming hostile AI.
By contrast, items left in procedural corridor lockers or discarded on hallway tiles can be destroyed by stray grenades, incinerated by flamethrower napalm, or lost during floor transitions. The elevator room is your indestructible forward operating base.
Action Economy
Doors are the most powerful tactical tool in Quasimorph. Manipulating door states enables total control over hostile line of sight, projectile paths, and enemy turn economy.
Orbital Infrastructure
Investing scavenged components into your Magnum mobile PMC base yields permanent tactical advantages that survive clone fatalities. Focus salvage runs on specific station tilesets to acquire vital components.
| Ship Module | Required Components | Tactical In-Game Benefit | Target Station Tileset | Dominant Factions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tactical Scanner (Tier 1 Rush) | 2x Electrical Parts, 1x Radio Transceiver, 1x Microchip | Overlays floor geometry, elevator locations, and objective rooms through fog of war. Eliminates blind stumbling. | Network Centre, Server Array | AnCom, SBN, Sunlight Coven |
| Shuttle Cargo Hold (Tier 1 Rush) | 2x Welding Machine, 4x Titanium Alloy, 2x Hydraulic Parts | Expands dropship extraction hold. Items deposited here never drop upon clone death or mission wipe. | Factory, Heavy Industrial, Shipyard | RealWare, Coreward MG |
| Scavenger Bay (Tier 2 Stabilizer) | 1x Toolbox, 3x Steel Plates, 2x Electric Motors | Enables dismantling broken firearms and damaged armor into raw steel, titanium, and propellants. | Mining Colony, Maintenance Yard | Civil Resistance, Coreward MG |
| Genetic Weaver (Tier 3 Luxury) | 2x Cryo Coolant, 1x Bioprinter, 3x Neural Tissue Samples | Unlocks operative genome editing (boosting STR for carry capacity or AGI for evasion) and preserves perk memories. | Biochem Lab, Medical Complex | Daydream Chems, Farm & Cross |
Visual Field Intelligence
Detailed breakdown of inventory value density, bulk trading, and extraction discipline:
Field FAQ
If an operative exclusively completes contracts for a single corporation (such as RealWare), that faction rapidly ascends to Tech Level 7–10, equipping all personnel with impenetrable Warlord cuirasses, Beast heavy weaponry, and auto-shotguns. When rival contracts force you to fight them later, every enemy becomes an armored monolith. The Equalizer Strategy advocates rotating contracts: bring RealWare to TL3 to unlock the Buffalo Backpack, then shift contracts to AnCom for data chips and Civil Resistance for industrial raw materials, keeping interplanetary power balanced.
In Quasimorph 1.0, dodge is displayed to 0.1% precision and is penalized by -1.0% for every 2kg an operative carries above their Max Carry Capacity. When heavy backpacks like the Buffalo (6.8kg tare weight, -6.0% passive dodge) drag effective dodge below 0.0%, negative dodge acts as a flat accuracy bonus for hostiles. Enemy hit chances exceed 100%, converting glancing shots into guaranteed critical hits, severe bone fractures, and immediate arterial bleeds.
Whenever an operative's carry weight exceeds their Max Carry Capacity by 15.0kg or more (Severe Overweight), movement traversal cost doubles from 1 AP per tile to 2 AP per tile. In turn-based tactical combat, taking a single step expends 2 Action Points, effectively gifting hostile snipers, shotgunners, and turrets uninterrupted double turns against your clone.
Upon entering a floor, operatives clear the landing room and deposit non-essential survival gear, spare ammunition crates, and bulky trade commodities directly onto the elevator floor tiles. Items on elevator tiles never despawn, cannot be stolen by procedural enemy AI, and remain 1 step away from the extraction transition. The clone explores the floor lightweight (maintaining 35–45% dodge and 1 AP movement), returning only to pack high-density loot into their rucksack before evacuating.
Closing an open door costs exactly 1 AP by right-clicking the door frame. Closed doors completely block hostile line of sight and projectile paths. When an advancing enemy reaches the closed door, opening it consumes their Action Points or forces a stance change, denying them the ability to fire during that turn. In Sneak stance, interacting with doors costs 0 AP, enabling operatives to peek, fire with -40% scatter, and shut the door safely.