PU Monthly Report for October: Liberator and Galaxy Pass Final Review, Banu Merchantman Revived (November 5, 2026)
The PU Monthly Report for October, published November 4, states that the Anvil Liberator and RSI Galaxy have passed their final review. It also announces two artists assigned to the Banu Merchantman and more than 300 contracts planned for Nyx I.
In the PU Monthly Report for October, published November 4 on the official Comm-Link, CIG details the progress of each team. On the ship front, two milestones stand out: the final reviews of the Liberator and the Galaxy, and the revival of the Banu Merchantman. The report also covers Nyx I contracts, time-to-kill balancing tools, and several technical projects.
Ships: Liberator, Galaxy, Kraken and Banu Merchantman
In the United Kingdom, the Anvil Liberator has passed its final review ahead of its release at the IAE. The RSI Galaxy has also completed its own. It comes with a new control panel interface, which is expected to be rolled out to other ships. In North America, the RSI Constellation and the Skylark have been finalized.
The Kraken has completed its LOD0 phase and is due for a review in mid-November.
Two artists have been assigned to the Banu Merchantman to restart its development and adapt it to the latest player-to-player trading design.
Several unannounced vehicles are progressing, from greybox to entering production for one of them. This one is designed to offer solo progression, without depending on large multi-crew ships. Its name has not been disclosed.
The Ship Pipeline Tracker has also been updated for November. One ship has been removed from it after its development was completely halted.
Content: Nyx I, Contracts and Time-to-Kill
The Mission Design team states that more than 300 contracts are already planned for Nyx I. They were produced in 15% of the time spent on Pyro's initial release. The Core Gameplay team specifies that contract generation for Starchitect missions is roughly 15 times faster.
Contract Boards are being enhanced with rank and faction icons, statuses, rewards and sorting. Starchitect Contract Boards also aim to reduce dependence on quantum travel.
The Vanduul Incursion pack is presented as endgame combat, designed to test coordination between groups.
Core Gameplay is also introducing the first time-to-kill balancing tools. Other points include Persistent Hangars adapted to the updated instancing, improved cargo elevators, and the restored option to pay an impound fee.
Technical: Hex 4.0 and Cloud Rendering
The Online Technology team reports that Hex 4.0 has completed its pre-release testing, covering chat, group management and role-based controls. The rebuild of the Bootstrap client has started. The network claims system is progressing to better assign servers, and Procedural Entity Creation is complete.
The R&D team has optimized cloud raymarching to reduce rendering costs. Sky lighting now follows cloud coverage more accurately, thanks to a new setting called Cloud Patch Size. A cloud coverage map is in development for an atmospheric lighting pass scheduled before the end of the year.
The Context
The Banu Merchantman has been the subject of speculation since late October. On October 29, a large, non-animated hologram of the ship was spotted in the IAE entrance hall. On November 3, a video featuring an interview with vehicle art director Ben Curtis and senior designer Mark Gibson, Is the Banu Merchantman FINALLY Coming Off the Shelf?, reported their intention to release the ship "finished" rather than rushed. At that point, they confirmed neither active development nor a date.
The presence of the Liberator at the IAE had meanwhile been flagged on October 29 by datminers, without confirmation from CIG. The Monthly Report now refers to its release at the IAE.
The same day, the Roadmap Roundup of November 4 moved the Vehicle Combat Balance Pass map to Tentative status and confirmed the transition from Alpha 4.11 to Alpha 5.0.
What We Still Don't Know
Several points remain unanswered. No release date has been given for the Banu Merchantman. The unannounced solo vehicle has not been named, and the ship removed from the Ship Pipeline Tracker has not been identified.
The next signal to watch is the Kraken review planned for mid-November, followed by CIG's communication as the IAE approaches, where the Liberator is expected.