Directive ST-11 (September 11, 2026) is the largest maintenance directive Pax Autocratica has received since Early Access launch, and it came with a statement about the future: bigger updates, less often. This page organizes everything the official announcement contains by theme. For the running version-by-version log, see the patch notes guide.
Quick answer
ST-11 ships loading-stability fixes, hauling drones for the Resource Transfer Station, batch dismantling, the unlockable Salute the Leader interaction, wide combat and interface passes, and a developer statement that development now shifts toward the larger Early Access goals: deeper colony simulation, co-op, and new systems.
Base systems
- Loading optimization: fixes for loading processes getting stuck or failing, which had prevented some players from entering the game.
- Transfer drones: the Resource Transfer Station unlocks hauling drones at level 2, and the Ore Refinery and Wood Processing Plant join the transfer system. The dedicated transfer station guide tracks what is and is not documented.
- Batch dismantling: foundations and decorative buildings can now be dismantled in batches.
- Size and collision: human and Scourgeborn soldier sizes were adjusted to fix proportions, and soldier collision was reworked so allies block the Leader less and enemies are harder to shove through.
New interactions
- Salute the Leader: once the directive is unlocked, soldiers salute as the Leader passes by. Known issue at release: some soldiers may fail to salute in certain situations.
- Paid Time Off off-switch: an option to cancel soldiers' Paid Time Off.
- Mechanical soldier animations: mechanical soldiers gained sleep and charging animations.
Combat changes
- Unsuitable enemy-leader affixes were removed from Infested Nest battles, where narrow terrain made them unfair.
- Victory chest drop placement improved.
- Capture invulnerability on failure cut from 10 seconds to 5 seconds, a direct buff to capture-centric play; the advanced capture pods from AG-14 still set the baseline odds.
- Void Detonation and Toxic Fog core effects improved, alongside the Sattleri Warrior blink strike visuals.
- A map zoom scale setting and Command Mode text layout improvements.
Balance
- The shared cooldown for allied affixes drops from 15 seconds to 5 seconds.
- Five named characters received combat power increases: Barbara Kosmos, Athena Thayer, Levia Brooks, Natalia Kandack, and Miralisse Novarin.
- Sector 3 battles gained an additional Shattered Core chest.
Interface, visuals, and fixes
The interface pass is long: hover details for soldier classes, merged duplicate pickup messages, a Second Chances reminder before expeditions, crafting guidance text, ultrawide base visuals, and controller fixes including LT hiding tooltips and Steam Deck input handling. Visual and audio work ranges from missile explosions to Toxic Fog effects. Beyond the list, the patch lowers VRAM usage, caps the menu frame rate, and fixes crashes on exit and during The Terminal Bastion: Descent scene transitions. Notable gameplay fixes include the Sub-Healthy sudden-death bug, shotguns firing mid-reload, and soldiers continuing to age after reaching adulthood.
The cadence statement
The announcement closed with a developer statement: until now the small team prioritized the most severe stability issues and urgent community reports. With that foundation in place, development shifts toward the launch-named Early Access goals, deeper colony simulation, co-op, and new systems, and updates will arrive fewer and larger rather than as frequent small patches. Read it as a cadence commitment, not new dates for specific features; the roadmap guide tracks what remains announced and unshipped.
Sources and verification
- Primary source: Directive ST-11 announcement, September 11, 2026, via the Steam news feed. Every feature listed above is summarized from its text.
- Auroria Day #1 announcement, September 10, 2026, via the same feed: the anniversary context around the patch week.
- Store page: Pax Autocratica on Steam.
- Verified Sep 14, 2026.