[DEVBLOG#305] Vanilla Furniture Expanded - Security

We’ve got some awesome news about the planned overhaul of Vanilla Furniture Expanded - Security!

We’re stoked to announce that the massive design phase for this update is now officially complete, and we are moving full steam ahead into the development phase!

As we mentioned before, this mod was one of the first in the Vanilla Expanded collection, and honestly, some parts, from balance to art, were starting to look pretty old. The design document is finalized now, and I’m very proud of what we have cooked.

A big focus for this overhaul was the visuals. When Vanilla Furniture Expanded - Security first dropped, there weren't many official art references for security structures since most of the modern DLCs weren't out yet.

With all the official content we’ve gotten since then, we decided it was time to bring the mod's look closer to existing assets. We’ve done an art uplift for everything in the mod to make sure it does what Vanilla Expanded is best at: seamlessly integrating into the existing RimWorld art style. Say goodbye to anything that looks out of place, your defenses will now look like they belong right in the core game or official DLCs.

Below you can see some examples of the redesigns. In many cases, these redesigns now more accurately portray the capabilities of the turret: for example, the military turret no longer has two barrels, as it no longer fires bursts of 4 shots! It is a lot more accurate now and I had a feeling two separate barrels didn’t really give the impression of accuracy. For the images below, the ones on the left are the new assets, while the ones on the right are the old ones. No, there will not be an option to switch to the old art.

Besides the art, the core gameplay of VFE - Security has been totally rebalanced and redesigned. Our goal was to bring every turret and defense structure in line with the base game’s security assets. We want to make sure nothing is outright overpowered, and that everything has a unique use.

We paid close attention to community feedback. For example, we noticed a lot of players were completely replacing the base game's autocannons with our Double Autocannon Turret. To fix this and keep the vanilla asset relevant, the double autocannon is rebalanced: while it shoots a lot of bullets (Burst Count), it is now less accurate and has a slightly shorter range than the vanilla autocannon. This means you’ll have a strategic choice: do you need a high rate of fire for big groups, or the better accuracy and range of the base game autocannon for precise defense?

This idea applies everywhere, from the medieval siege gear to the Spacer-tech pulse-charged defenses. Everything should now feel like a smart option, not just something better than what came before.

We’ve also introduced a significant amount of brand-new content, focusing on areas where the original mod felt lacking.

For instance, we've added the Armored Turret, a much-requested, durable alternative to the standard Mini-Turret and the new Military Turret. This turret has extra armor plating, giving it significantly more HP and cover effectiveness (55%). It doesn't explode when damaged, making it a reliable, long-term defensive asset, though its range and accuracy leave a lot to be desired.

For close-quarters defense, we’ve introduced the Shotgun Turret. This is a compact, automatic turret designed to fire a powerful shotgun blast at short range. While its DPS is moderate (~5.3), its high stopping power (3.0) makes it excellent for stagger-locking unarmored melee threats trying to breach your defenses.

In the mid-game, the Trench Warfare research project now unlocks a suite of new defensive structures inspired by WWI-era defenses.

• The Dugout is a basic ditch that gives occupants a substantial defense bonus (30% reduced chance to be hit by ranged attacks) and 50% resistance to bomb damage, but reduces their weapon range by 30%. It’s cheap to build but fragile (100 HP) and takes double damage from explosions. The benefit of the dugout is that it costs no resources, making it viable to dig out fox holes when you go somewhere and need defenses.

  

• The Trench is the reinforced version. It offers the same defensive benefits as the Dugout but boasts much higher HP (500) and does not take increased damage from explosives, making it the superior, more durable static defense.

  

• The Platform is the opposite: it gives a 30% bonus to weapon range, perfect for snipers, but increases the chance for the occupant to be hit by 30%. This trade-off allows players to customize their defensive lines based on the engagement range they prefer.

For manned fire support, the Minigun Complex (unlocked via Multi-Barrel Weaponry) offers an enormous volume of fire. As with all complexes, it needs to be manned by a colonist. It has higher accuracy than handheld minigun, but fires only 12 shots instead of 24 in a burst.

We also addressed the threat from above with the Anti-Air Turret, which you loved in the original VFE-Ancients. This specialized 2x2 structure, also unlocked via Multi-Barrel Weaponry, functions purely as a defensive screen. It cannot shoot ground targets but automatically targets and attempts to intercept incoming explosive projectiles (like mortars or rockets) and hostile drop pods within a 19.9 tile radius. It uses a lot of steel for ammunition.

As an alternative to autocannon, we have now also introduced a Minigun turret. This large, 2x2 turret fires semi-accurate bursts of low armor-piercing projectiles. Perfect for suppressive fire while your autocannons rip enemies to shreds.

The original EMP Cannon has been replaced by the Tesla Blaster (Electromagnetic Pulse research). This large, powerful turret only targets mechanoids and fires an electrical bolt that chain-stuns up to three targets. Using the successful bounce mechanism from Vanilla Factions Expanded - Mechanoids, the Tesla Blaster is now a primary, powerful anti-mech defense tool.

To complement the Tesla Blaster, the Shockmine is a new, hidden, high-tech trap that instantly detonates with a small EMP blast and a little burn damage. Critically, it does not destroy itself upon detonation but instead enters a cooldown period, after which it automatically resets and can be triggered again.

Finally, we’ve added two structures to fill other utility gaps:

The Automated Mortar (Mortars + Microelectronics research) is a 2x2 mortar that requires no colonist to man, automatically firing HE shells at the player’s designated target. It has a slightly better accuracy (Miss Radius 7) than a standard mortar, providing reliable, remote fire support.

The Non-Lethal Turret (Non-lethal weapons from our Non-lethal mod + Gun Turrets research) is a small, low-power turret designed specifically to fire rubber bullets (Blunt damage). It’s perfect for suppressing prison breaks or controlling unruly guests without the risk of lethal injury, integrating with the Vanilla Weapons Expanded - Non-Lethal mod.

We are incredibly excited to finally bring this much needed remake update to you. Our commitment to continuously refining and perfecting the Vanilla Expanded experience means tackling older mods that no longer meet our current standards for balance, integration, and art. I hope the community appreciates this effort to remake and modernize some of our mods, even if it slows down development of brand new releases.