1

Alpha 4.7.2 is now live with nearly 100 new contracts across 13 archetypes including courier, delivery, ship bounties, bombing runs, and paid salvage missions in the Nyx system.

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Alpha 4.8 remains in EvoCarti testing with delays caused by stability issues and problems integrating the vehicle loadout/item recovery update; BoredGamer expects a live release in early-to-mid May before Drake DefenseCon.

3

The vehicle command module mechanic is confirmed for 4.8: a smaller command ship (parasite) docks to a host ship like the Drake Caterpillar, triggering a System Migration Procedure (SMP) that transfers full piloting control to the parasite pilot.

4

Fleet Week is rebranded as Drake DefenseCon, running May 14-27 at Area 18, featuring new Drake ships including the Drake Ironclad, Ironclad Assault, and a new battle cruiser.

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Item Recovery Tier 1 progress continues via vehicle loadouts, which snapshot a ship for recovery but brick items on the source ship to prevent duping; Genesis tech combining StarArchitech, Plate Tech V5, and Dynamic Weather is reportedly making excellent progress.

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The new ship-to-ship docking keybind is Right Alt + N (replacing Alt + N, which is reserved for ATC requests) — players should update their bindings before 4.8 goes live.

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During the SMP docking phase, both the parasite and host ships are fully non-functional with no thrusters or weapons, making the pairing window a tactical vulnerability to plan around.

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The Drake DefenseCon window (May 14-27) is the likely target for Alpha 4.8 to go live, so players wanting to test 4.8 content before the event should watch for Wave 1 PTU access in early May.

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