Build history
Release log
What changed for commanders - patches and releases that affect how you play.
Patch 0.36.21
- Play and manage your account in seventeen languages, including Portuguese, Dutch, Italian, Romanian, Bulgarian, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Arabic, Russian, Ukrainian, and Chinese
- Language picker and account settings save any of those languages for the full game UI
- Early-access clearance emails send in your language when available
Patch 0.36.20
- French, Spanish, and Polish game UI no longer shows missing or English-only strings for recent features
- Press kit language list and creator notes are translated on marketing sites
- Spanish docs include the full space occupation guide
Patch 0.36.19
- Research that needs refined materials now shows the real cost and deducts stock correctly
- Small hull design and similar techs are no longer free to upgrade
Patch 0.36.18
- Browse every research, building, and ship component in the docs with requirements and costs
- Refinery guides make clear that higher-tier materials power better combat, shields, and fast travel
Patch 0.36.17
- Marketing emails include a one-click unsubscribe link
- Alpha round prep messages are ready for commanders ahead of the next cohort
Patch 0.36.11
- Early mines ramp more slowly so peak homeworld mining takes real investment
- Unnamed worlds show catalog codes instead of orbit slot and geology class
- Scanned planets show when you last explored them
- Ship design research now also needs orizin
Patch 0.36.10
- Ship decay alerts and pushes show hours idle and ship/fleet names correctly
- Missing error translations no longer flash raw message ids on the map
- Spanish, French, and Polish game errors catch up with English keys
Patch 0.36.9
- New honors for colonizing planets, delivering supplies to colonies, and assembling a small nuclear-powered ship
- Universe firsts for the first colony and for delivering 100 million resources to another planet
Patch 0.36.8
- Without a clearance code, commanders can join an early-access waiting list from sign-in
- Command can invite those waitlisted people with a clearance code when ready
Patch 0.36.7
- Merge nearby fleets on the star map when they sit next to each other
- Plan longer fleet journeys in hops when you unlock the Astrogation Sequencer
- Browse the public site in Czech, Hungarian, or Turkish
- Read the July update plus new guides on space occupation, fleet fuel, and decay
- Blog posts turn docs links into clickable paths
Patch 0.36.6
- Push alert when a fleet begins hull decay after sitting idle (toggle in notification settings)
- Account settings scroll correctly on mobile so you can reach all notification toggles
- Long-range fleet moves in sector view land where you click instead of a random tile in the sector
Patch 0.36.5
- Spanish, Polish, Dutch, Italian, and Romanian marketing pages now read in the correct language
- Chinese is available on the public site with translated homepage, guides, blog, and docs
Patch 0.36.4
- Deploy and build-cost checks now respect liquid vs solid stock — e.g. phase-bath buildings no longer show ready when only the wrong phase is stored
- Colony resource chips and requirement lists distinguish liquid and solid when the same compound appears twice
- Resource flow detail shows only processes that actually use that material phase
- Requirement planner paths follow the correct refinement phase for native liquids like frubin
Patch 0.36.3
- New reference doc explains refinement tiers and matter states with an interactive diagram
- Requirement trees no longer show misleading solid-to-liquid steps for liquid-phase compounds
- Liquid phase bath now correctly costs liquid frubin at tier 2
Patch 0.36.2
- Small hull, nuclear-thermal engine, and colonization module are now in the component catalog for round-two expansion
- Small hull design research unlocks the first proper warship hull beyond scouts
- Occupation tint overlays on the star map render more cleanly without stacked darkening
Patch 0.36.1
- Open a Beacons list from the star map header to see every deployed occupation beacon, fuel level, and status
- Filter beacons by active or dormant; tap a row to pan the map to that tile
- Beacon coverage zones on the map now show as filled occupation disks
Release 0.36.0
- Deploy space occupation beacons from orbiting fleets fitted with beacon modules
- Link beacons into networks to claim open map tiles between worlds
- Refuel deployed beacons from your fleet using the familiar cargo transfer dialog
- New research: Space occupation and beacon deployment tiers I–V
- New ship components: occupation beacon modules with longer range at higher tiers
- Beacon pins show on the galaxy map when you zoom in; planter notes on your beacons
- New honours for claiming occupation territory across the map
Patch 0.35.5
- Refineries resume at normal speed after long stalls instead of burning through the whole backlog at once
- Raw resource details now show stored amount, storage capacity, and maximum extraction rate
- Ship blueprint fitting bays are easier to use with clearer edit controls
Patch 0.35.4
- Request alpha clearance before a round opens — reserve a slot by email, confirm within one hour, then receive your clearance code
- Pre-registration countdown on the site when the next alpha wave is approaching
- Clearance signup links on the homepage and marketing header
- Branded 404 and error pages when something goes wrong
Patch 0.35.3
- Dutch visitors see fuller localized marketing homepage and navigation text
- French and Dutch play-style guide pages read more naturally in those languages
Patch 0.35.2
- Marketing site and homepage are now available in every supported language
- New guide pages explain what you can build, how you might play, and what a session should feel like
- Press kit page for streamers, creators, and journalists
- Optional analytics cookies with a clear accept/decline banner; no tracking when Do Not Track is on
- Homepage copy and stats updated, including 99 distinct world types in the economy overview
Patch 0.35.1
- Zoomed-out fleet move on mobile no longer shows a stray blue box inside the sector grid
- Sector reachability highlights stay aligned with the 3×3 grid when panning the star map
Release 0.35.0
- Second alpha opens 25 July; pre-registration for 10 commander slots starts Sunday 11 July at 14:00 CEST on xwars.net
- Blueprint missions reduce ship-building busywork - queue a schematic and let the colony run the pipeline
- Colony screen on mobile: redesigned ops board, detail sheets, and tap-first flows
- Phase matter conversion moves one step at a time; new late-game buildings can liquefy gas and neutralize plasma
- Poorer mining worlds gain industrial bonuses so every planet stays strategically useful
- Round two preview on the blog: richer star-map play, colonisation, system flags, and early contact with other commanders
Patch 0.34.10
- Ship factory opens on a new custom blueprint with a clearer layout and required blueprint name
- Orbital inventory shows labeled, sorted components in the production tab
- Colony ship missions keep their plan steadier and advance steps in order
Patch 0.34.9
- Blueprint missions add missing launch steps when components are still queued on the launchpad
- Colony mission overview shows when the build plan was adjusted
- Mission retry returns immediately instead of blocking while the queue runs
- Page language stays correct when switching locale
Patch 0.34.8
- Blueprint missions waiting for materials show a steady countdown instead of reloading every few seconds
- Orbit logistics stays quiet while a mission is blocked on resources or fuel
- Archive and restore your ship blueprints from ship production
- Clearer mission progress with scheduled step hints in colony overview
Patch 0.34.7
- Next-round countdown is visible to everyone, including visitors who are not signed in
- Honors hall shows last round achievements and leaderboards again during intermission
- Guests can open the honors page while waiting for the next round to start
Patch 0.34.6
- Planets stay clickable on the star map while a fleet is selected — use the action bar to view, focus, or transfer
- Opening a colony or scan from the fleet dock no longer snaps back to the map
- Planet scans from a fleet now show the countdown and dossier overlay correctly
Patch 0.34.5
- Blueprint missions for your own ship designs now automatically schedule missing component builds instead of stalling on "missing components"
- Stuck missions recover on retry or within a few seconds without manual intervention
- Launch and assembly steps show clearer wait times while parts are still being produced
Patch 0.34.4
- Blueprint missions show when a blocked step is scheduled to run again, with a live countdown
- Components reserved for an active blueprint mission are marked on planetary storage so manual use is visible
- Missions recover more reliably when resources arrive late or parts are used elsewhere before launch
Patch 0.34.3
- Inspect raw resources or refined stock to see animated flow graphs of where material goes and how it is made
- Top consumers are highlighted with per-second rates on downstream views
Patch 0.34.2
- Refinery panels show a visual two-input flow; tap any node to change inputs or the output recipe
- New resource picker dialog for choosing stacks and output targets on mobile and desktop
Patch 0.34.1
- Component factory on mobile is easier to use with many factories — tighter layout and tap-to-select with build always at hand
- Accidental pinch-zoom on menus and panels no longer traps the HUD; map and colony zoom still works as before
Release 0.34.0
- Component factories, launchpads, and ship yards share one reliable per-colony work queue so builds, cargo flights, and assembly finish in order
- Blueprint colony missions continue to run through the same queue with clearer progress timing
Patch 0.33.3
- Map header and HUD stay pinned on mobile while scrolling overlays and requirement sheets
- Upgrade and resource requirement sheets show a clearer production dependency tree
- Deploy and research pickers use a consistent swipe stepper on mobile
- Planet surface zoom feels smoother on trackpad and pinch gestures
Patch 0.33.2
- Building tiles no longer show a warning while waiting for a free parallel build slot
- Compact map markers skip the attention badge when a queued upgrade already has its materials
- Upgrade timer shows BLOCKED instead of QUEUE when resources are missing even at the parallel cap
Patch 0.33.1
- Fix planet surface upgrade dependency hints when refined materials are missing
Release 0.33.0
- Large colonies stay responsive when zoomed out; compact tiles show upgrade progress and attention markers
- Headquarters and other buildings show missing refined materials with a clickable dependency breakdown
- Component factory and blueprint builds show clearer errors when queues are busy instead of a generic failure
Release 0.32.0
- Colony surface map stays smooth when zoomed out on large bases — buildings show as color blocks until you zoom in or select a pad
Release 0.31.0
- Launchpad to-orbit aborts restore cargo even when planet waste storage is full, so launches no longer stay stuck
- If a launch abort cannot restore cargo, the launchpad unlocks and you see a clear warning instead of a frozen slot
Release 0.30.0
- Star map pinch and pan no longer lock up on phones and tablets
- Maximum zoom on mobile is capped so the map stays responsive during touch navigation
- Double-tap zoom and pan momentum are disabled on touch layouts to reduce accidental zoom
- Pinch gestures on mobile use a tighter zoom step for smoother camera motion
Release 0.29.0
- Star map pinch and pan no longer freeze after aggressive zoom on mobile
- Smoother star map camera motion while pinching or dragging
- Star map recovers cleanly when a touch gesture is interrupted or cancelled
Release 0.28.0
- Star map zooms through multiple detail levels as you zoom out, with clustered sun markers at macro scale
- Star map minimap shows your position in the galaxy; tap it to pan; separate zoom buttons removed
- Pinch-to-zoom, double-tap zoom, and pan momentum on touch devices when navigating the star map
- Colony ops list uses a responsive card grid on wider screens
- Blueprint ship missions confirm faster with a starting overlay instead of waiting on the server
Patch 0.27.1
- Support can restore access to your commanders after the alpha round ends when your account is approved to continue
Release 0.27.0
- Colony resource ticks pause when you switch browser tabs or close the planet view, reducing background CPU use
- Mobile colony HUD shows when stocks last synced and offers a manual refresh
- Refined compounds browser on mobile adds a back-to-list control when viewing one compound
- Command can email you when a private support relay thread is opened on your account, with a link to reply in-game
- Research and colony stock timers respect tab visibility so progress UI does not advance while the tab is hidden
Patch 0.26.1
- Open Command relay from the honors hall after the alpha round ends
- Support reply notifications open the relay desk instead of the sealed map
Release 0.26.0
- Build and upgrade panels show a unified materials summary with a magnifier for full processing pipelines and dependencies
- Colony HUD: tap raw resource bars or active refined stock chips to inspect live resource flow on that planet
- Planet build grid includes a minimap to jump the camera while panning and zooming the surface
- Colony overview adds a flow diagram toggle alongside ops list and surface grid views
- Phase converters list only valid recipe inputs and explain research or stock blockers before you start a run
- Deploy picker and factory panels use the same requirement affordance as construction upgrades
- Launchpad cargo slots, per-slot capacity, and transit times scale with launchpad level
- New achievements for phase transitions, first refined output at each tier, and being first in the universe to reach tier 5
- Headquarters upgrades from level 6 onward draw on escalating refined material tiers in addition to raw ore costs
Patch 0.25.3
- Deploy and building catalog show which refinery type can produce missing refined materials
- Blocked deploy messages explain liquid, gas, or plasma recipes and input pairs instead of generic tier-3 plasma text
- Refined material cost lines include a production hint when you are short on stock
Patch 0.25.2
- Honors page includes the full highscore hall next to your achievement record after the alpha round
- Open browser tabs pick up new production deploys automatically without a manual hard refresh
- Select-player no longer clears your active commander on every revisit when the round is locked
Patch 0.25.1
- After the alpha round closes, signed-in players land on a dedicated Honors page with achievements and the debrief survey
- Alpha countdown and round-end redirects go to Honors instead of a locked select-player screen
- Deployment modal remembers your last building schematic within each category
- Colony blueprint mission overview shows clearer labels for individual build and launch steps
- Star map camera stays aligned when switching between galaxy view and planet overlays
Release 0.25.0
- Colony blueprint missions track each component slot individually for clearer build and launch steps
- Map overlays and colony panels sit below the full header when the alpha countdown row is visible on mobile
- Fleet move orders open as a fullscreen dialog on mobile
- Star map colony dock adds an Open colony button beside Jump to your homeworld
- Orbit panel tabs are easier to read and tap on small screens
Patch 0.24.2
- Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Release 0.24.0
- Colony blueprint missions run end-to-end: plan steps, watch progress, pause, resume, or stop from the colony board
- Failed mission steps can be retried when prerequisites are ready again
- Alpha round countdown on select-player; short feedback survey after the round closes for regular players
- In-game UI available in French, Spanish, and Polish (choose language in account settings)
- Map links keep more of your open panels and tabs when shared or bookmarked
- Clearer launchpad and orbit cargo views while batches queue and lift off
Patch 0.23.5
- Building on very large colonies should feel faster and show Sync instead of Uplink while orders catch up
- Fewer colony-busy warnings when several build orders overlap
Patch 0.23.4
- New short blog post explaining no large deploy today and previewing colony queues and blueprint missions still in testing
Patch 0.23.3
- Support page keeps the command relay header at full height on desktop
Patch 0.23.2
- Colony strip stays visible at the bottom of the map even when you have no fleets deployed
- Fleet briefing shows ship hull integrity decay when idle away from maintenance
- Support tickets can be opened from shareable links that restore the right tab and ticket
Patch 0.23.1
- Double-tap a fleet or planet on the star map to jump the camera to it
- Single tap still selects without moving the map view
Release 0.22.0
- Fleet panel lists your colonies and lets you scan nearby planets from a selected fleet
- Clearer fleet command dock on mobile when switching between fleet and planet focus
- More reliable planet construction upgrades and fleet ship assignments on the map
Release 0.21.0
- New week-one blog post on mobile orbit improvements and recent fixes
- Load fleet fuel from the orbital hangar with a tap on mobile devices
Patch 0.20.4
- Ship factory shows a full assembly progress view while a hull is being built
- Fleet cargo exchange dialogs work better on mobile
- Fleet command panel is more compact on small screens
Patch 0.20.3
- Upgrading an orbital launchpad now adds cargo bays, larger loads, and faster transits
- Launch fuel base rises slightly with pad level; heavier payloads still cost more frurozin
- Higher launchpad upgrade tiers cost significantly more resources
Patch 0.20.2
- Disbanding a hangar fleet returns its cargo to the colony; recall deployed fleets first
- Component factory and launchpad panels adapt layout for mobile vs desktop
- Launchpad cargo staging scrolls more reliably on smaller screens
Patch 0.20.1
- Ships on the map no longer appear as unassigned in orbit hangars
- Hidden Eagle Eye achievement for players who report critical bugs
- Energy cap dialog shows colony grid impact and other structures affected by power changes
- Launchpad to-orbit transfers deduct components and resources from the planet correctly
Release 0.20.0
- On phones, the component factory and launchpad use dedicated mobile layouts — browse stock, pick schematics, fill cargo bays, and launch without the desktop drag board
- The research tree on mobile opens a swipeable detail sheet that follows the same left-to-right tech order as the graph
Patch 0.19.3
- Fleet Wishes (public support): any commander can read, comment, and vote
- New world-first achievement for collecting 100,000 waste
Patch 0.19.2
- Planet surface building images load reliably while panning and zooming the colony grid
Patch 0.19.1
- Account settings: choose which push alerts you receive (builds, research, components, orbit cargo, ship assembly, support replies, achievements, warnings, and errors).
- PWA push respects those toggles and fires on matching timer completions.
- Upgrading a power plant or storage depot asks for confirmation and shows simulated impact (grid supply, extraction, depot capacity, and possible stock loss).
Release 0.19.0
- Support replies and community tickets render Markdown (bold, lists, links).
- Attach short videos to support tickets alongside screenshots.
- Solid refineries produce at most half a tier-upgraded stack per two inputs at
- early levels; waste is fractional and scales with refinery level.
- New blog post: early alpha week-one update (21 June dispatch follow-up).
Patch 0.18.1
- Colony HUD on phones is more compact — energy stays readable at three digits
- and raw resource rows show stock/cap with tap-for-breakdown tooltips.
- Support tickets can include short video attachments when reporting bugs.
- Achievement celebrations should flicker less on Android.
- Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Release 0.18.0
- Choose or create your commander on a redesigned select-player screen — pick a race
- portrait, read the rim-world backstory, and see whether a name is already taken
- before you launch.
- Zoom far out on the star map to see the 100×100 sector grid, system suns, and
- in-transit fleet routes; long-range fleets can target whole sectors when the map
- is zoomed out enough.
- Planet scan dossiers now show the occupying commander’s name when your intel
- includes an owner.
- Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Release 0.17.0
- Raw and refined stock now respects matter state — liquid frubin no longer feeds a
- solid refinery; tier-0 stacks can be converted across phases at dedicated
- converter buildings with a new surface panel.
- Scout ships carry frurozin in the engine’s plasma tank; fit plasma storage modules
- to expand fuel or cargo lanes by matter class.
- Component factories share a planetary storage limit — build component vaults to
- hold more crafted parts before shipping them to orbit.
- Early solid refinement runs slower while scout part costs drop, keeping the ~2-hour
- first-scout path without flooding tier-1 stock.
- Optional email magic-link sign-in joins Google, Discord, and Twitch on login and
- clearance when Resend is configured.
- Achievement medals toast above map overlays and stay dismissible across reloads.
Release 0.16.0
- The star-map fleet panel is now a command dock — rename your fleet, expand a full
- briefing, watch transit progress, and reach move/scan/transfer actions from a
- compact action strip.
- Craft a Long-range comms module and Signal transmission research to order scout
- hops up to 100 tiles across empty space (beyond the scout engine’s local range).
- Precision component assembly unlocks choosing refined material tier when crafting
- tier-variable modules at your surface factory.
- Fleets that sit idle on the map slowly lose ships; deploy an orbital maintenance
- factory near a friendly world to halt decay within five tiles.
- Early progression is tuned so a focused homeworld can reach its first scout recon
- ship in about two hours, while late espionage and multi-state refinement stay costly.
- The research overlay now lists what a technology needs and what it unlocks beside
- the interactive tech tree.
Patch 0.15.1
- Sentry sourcemap uploads.
- Marketing site adds blog posts, legal pages, and SEO metadata for
- discoverability.
Release 0.15.0
- New accounts require a one-time invitation code — share `/clearance` privately and
- Profile pictures and support screenshots are now served through the game server so
- storage credentials stay off the client.
- Production builds integrate Sentry error tracking for the web app and background
- workers, making crashes and failed jobs easier to diagnose.
Release 0.14.0
- Support threads now update live — open tickets in two tabs and see new admin replies
- and read-state sync without refreshing.
- The marketing homepage is available in 13 languages; in-game UI stays English or German.
- Upload a custom commander portrait in account settings (when S3 is configured).
- Ionisation research now requires building a Scout engine first, matching classic
- propulsion progression.
Release 0.13.0
- Open Command relay from your commander profile on the map or visit `/support` to file
- tickets, reply in threads, attach screenshots, and browse the public community board.
- The Honors overlay now includes a Highscores hall — ranked by weighted resource spend
- across planets, fleets, and research (not raw stockpiles).
- The map header is cleaner: your commander name opens a menu to switch characters,
- open settings (including rename), reach support, or sign out.
Release 0.12.0
- Map panels and dialogs now stack properly — open research from the factory, or
- metrics from a ship, and Escape closes only the top layer instead of everything.
- Overlays sit above the map with consistent framing and no z-index fights between
- factory, launchpad, orbit, refinement, and fleet dialogs.
- Switching planets or clicking the same planet again closes colony panels so you
- are not left with stale factory or launchpad UI from the previous selection.
Release 0.11.0
- The game is now available in English and German — switch language from login, player
- selection, or the new account settings panel on the map.
- Shareable map URLs stay the same (no `/de/` prefix); your language preference is
- saved to your account and remembered on return visits.
- In-game alerts, deploy blockers, fleet commands, planet scan dossiers, and the
- marketing homepage all display in your chosen language.
- API and worker errors now use translation keys so messages stay consistent across
- the HUD, toasts, and future locales.
Release 0.10.0
- Star map, planet overlay, and surface grid are reorganized under the hood — same gameplay,
- New exploration medals reward scanning planets, lifting fog, ranging far from home, and
- discovering systems at scale — including two universe-first prizes for the deepest explorers.
- Distance-from-homeworld and planet-scan milestones now track automatically as you deploy
- fleets and complete surveys.
Release 0.9.0
- Park a fleet next to an unexplored planet and run a planet scan — fuel is deducted,
- a countdown plays, and survey intel is saved to your empire dossier.
- Open scanned foreign worlds to read a travel-magazine survey report with class profile,
- physical stats, deposit grid, and seeded field notes.
- Intel modules now unlock in stages: system recon, planet scan, and deep observe each
- require their own research tier.
- Five-step power plant line from wind through fusion replaces the old single starter
- generator, with escalating output and research gates.
- Scout engines reach farther across the map and cruise faster based on fitted engine stats.
Release 0.8.0
- Compose hangar fleets in the Orbit panel — group assembled ships, load frurozin from
- your planet or factory, and deploy to adjacent map tiles to scout nearby space.
- Deployed fleets appear on the star map; recall them to regroup cargo and ships at home.
- Fog of war now uses a persistent exploration map that expands as your fleets deploy
- and reveal tiles around their destination.
- Raw resources carry correct matter states (solid ores, liquid frubin, gas orizin,
- plasma frurozin), matching depot storage lanes and refinement behavior.
Release 0.7.0
- Build an orbital launchpad to ship components and resources between your planet
- surface and orbit — component factories now focus on crafting only.
- Stage up to three cargo slots per launch with drag-and-drop; heavier payloads cost
- more frurozin fuel to reach orbit.
- Watch timed launch cinematics as rockets climb to orbit and factories deploy in space.
- Design and save custom ship blueprints in the orbit panel, then assemble them from
- factory stock; component stats show mass, energy, and fitting details in the catalog.
- New marketing homepage highlights game depth from live ruleset stats; legal imprint
- page added.
Release 0.6.0
- Each component factory on a planet now runs its own build and send queue —
- two factories can craft or ship parts in parallel instead of sharing one slot.
- The factory panel opens from the specific building you clicked and shows when
- your other factories are busy elsewhere on the same planet.
- New component catalog artwork for planet-scan/observe espionage modules and the
- ship-factory special component.
Release 0.5.0
- Build a component factory on your planet, craft scout parts from refined materials,
- and manage planet-side component stock from the new factory panel.
- Deploy an orbital ship factory, send components into orbit, and assemble a scout
- recon ship from the Orbit panel.
- Load frurozin fuel into your assembled ship and deploy it to an adjacent system to
- expand fog-of-war intel.
- Component factory and scout part artwork added; real-time updates push over
- WebSocket when builds, sends, and assembly complete.
Release 0.4.0
- Early game progression is rebalanced: a tighter starter colony, staged extractors
- and research gates, and enough starting stock to reach your first milestones
- without idle waiting.
- New structures deploy through a schematic modal that shows costs, blockers, and
- how many builds you can run at once; player-placed buildings now take time to
- finish construction.
- Buildings under construction or upgrade no longer draw power or produce resources
- until their timer completes.
- Achievements track your empire milestones — unlock medals from the map HUD, with
- toast notifications when you earn them.
- The research tree shows dedicated artwork per technology; login and player
- selection handle expired or stale sessions more reliably.
Release 0.3.1
- ` / `
Release 0.2.0
- Refinement and colony energy HUD improvements. Matter-state refineries
- (solid/liquid/gas/plasma) run continuously with recipes, waste, and compound
- discovery. The planet strip shows net raw rates (mining minus refinery draw),
- live refinement throughput, and per-structure energy sliders that update pig-iron
- and refinement output while you drag — including at partial caps like 9%. Map
- updates push over WebSocket instead of polling. Research lab and refinement
- panels are available from the surface grid.