Overview
The Step No Man's Sky Guide is for users who would like an enhanced, vanilla feel. The Guide provides gameplay that is still true to the spirit of the game while enhancing aspects that are somewhat (or a lot) lacking. The Guide also favors a more relaxed exploration and gameplay style that was the original game before a great deal of combat and other elements were introduced. As such, adjustments are made toward that end, but never completely removed. This means many annoyances are reduced without completely nullifying any gameplay elements.

The scope of the Guide is to combine desired changes from various mods and our Resource Files. The Resource Files make up a large portion of the Guide and stem from over 200 hours of extended gameplay. They cover and combine what would be a wide range of individual mods into one source.

Important Links
-> Step Modification Forums
-> Current Changelog
-> Feedback & Bug Reports
-> Facebook

Disclaimer:
The Guide is aimed toward PC players with higher-tier systems. Mid-tier systems can likely run the Guide with some sacrifice to visual quality. However, users with low-end systems may find some performance issues.


Guide Features
Following are more details about what features this Guide provides, whether by mod or our Resource Files:

Optional Files

StepNMS-Darker Space
This originated from CSO's Darker Space. Within our option, Step has tweaked the parameters to make space even darker while keeping nebulae and storms balanced to the darker space environment; specifically, space and fog colors are darken by 80%, nebulae colors by 30% and nebula cloud colors by 50%. This is optional because the changes deviate from vanilla; however, Step believes these changes provide a truer representation of space for those that desire it.


Resource Files

AI Spaceship Globals

• Decreased minimum circle time before landing
• Decreased chance of broken inventory and tech slots on broken ships to 50%
• Decreased the angle the ship will tip back while landing
• Increased the speed the ship rotates while docking
  

Environment Globals

• Clouds have been slowed down by 50%
• New cloud generation to prevent cloud columns; keeping them more flat
• Creature, Flora, and Terrain fade times adjusted to be a bit faster
  

Gameplay Globals

• Refiners are 20x faster vs vanilla
• Ship interaction range increased from 50u to 500u
• Freighter battles (when exiting warp) happen 50% less often vs vanilla
• Reduced flashlight/torch strength to reduce blowout when close to objects
• Moved torch more in front of the player to reduced it lighting the back of the head as easily
• Terrain Resource compass and scanner ranges increased
• Binocular Zoom levels increased by 50%
• Binoculars will scan further away and complete the scan faster
• Mining and Terrain beam distances increased to mine further away
• Survey scanners will scan further away and complete the scan faster
• Number of creature baiting and feeding for the tutorial reduced by 50%
  

Graphics Globals

• Forcing the loading of uncached terrain, which aids in the stopping of cached terrain issues
• Increased planet particle render range by 50%
• Increased distance shadows are drawn on freighters, planets, and space station by 50%
• Increased anisotropic filtering by one level for each game setting (low=4 / med=8 / high=16 / ultra=16)
• Increased the amount of terrain blocks loaded per frame by +1x1grid for each game setting (low= 5x5 grid / med= 6x6 / high=8x8 /
  ultra= 9x9 grid)

Hazard Table
It's all too common for new players to try to take on a planet only to die before they can even find enough resources to survive the first storm! Since players are guaranteed to start on a hazardous planet, Step found the default hazard protections severely lacking in good judgement and balance. Our logic for our changes takes into account that one possesses the technology to travel the stars. Combine that with the significantly high chances of hazardous planets, and it would be logical to think the player would be better equipped vs vanilla. Overall, these adjustments will allow players to survive more comfortably in harsher environments:

• Increased the protection time for all hazards to 900; default=540
• Rebalanced the hazard damages to shields and life support. All damages without a shield are slightly higher than damages to a shield.
  

Player Globals

• The player swims, walks, and runs faster
• Jetpack & Rocket Boots are faster and last longer
• Jetpack has more forward thrust to use it more easily for travel
• Increased "Low G" environment character speeds (e.g., derelict freighters, dead planets)
• Jetpack's drain on Life Support has been reduced
• Probability of flyby Pirate attacks reduced by 50%
  

Sky Globals

• Increased length of time for the warning before a storm occurs
• Increased length of time that it takes for storms to transition
• Removed fog from planets without an atmosphere
  

Solar Generation Globals
The asteroid fields have been completely overhauled. Overall the fields will be more sparse vs vanilla. The asteroid orientation has been changed, as well. Players will find smaller asteroids nearer orbital bodies with the larger asteroids starting to appear further out. Keep in mind that each system's generation will still be unique so some systems may have more or fewer asteroids than others. Other changes include: 

• Mined resources are increased by 2x
• Space between planets and asteroid fields is doubled
• Chances to find Capital Ships during scans increased and chances for Pirates decreased
• Probability of finding empty systems in Blue, Green, and Red stars decreased
• Probability of finding Pirate systems in Red and Yellow stars decreased
  

Benefits from the Mod List

Bases and Buildings

• Increased base and base building radii
• Base item limits and restrictions have been removed for most items
• Most build-able items can now be rotated, scaled, change color, and change material
• Removing most base items will no longer remove attached items (prevents rework)
• Increased the minimum and maximum buildings the ship will scan for
• Unknown buildings and icon range increased
  

Scanners

• Clear binocular view (no vanilla tint)
  

Environmental
Planet
Other changes include:

• Improved and expanded water colors
  

Gameplay & Miscellaneous

• Customized camera shakes (many have been disabled, others reduced)
  

Ships & Vehicles
A significant bit of testing and tuning went into reworking the ship controls. The goal was to separate the ships a bit more by weight class for all settings vs vanilla, which solely relies on thrusts and brakes as the only differences. The "Normal" weight class was set and used as the median between the Lightweight and Heavyweight classes. The lightweight ships should feel lighter and faster. Likewise on the other side that scale, the heavyweight ships should feel heavier and slower than their normal and lightweight counterparts.

This weight class deviation was already somewhat implemented in vanilla between lightweight and normal ships; however, the heavyweight ships had nearly the same controls as the normal class. What Step has done is taken what the developers executed between lightweight and normal ships and expanded upon it. This was accomplished by adding equivalent negative adjustments to the heavyweight class. All three weight classes should feel more distinct now.

• Land, Boost, Pulse, Space, and Warp speeds are faster
• Narrowed the tracking for Pulse auto-aim.
• Pulse will exit closer to Space Stations
• Ships can now hover on planets and come to a full-stop and reverse in space
  

The Step Guide Mandate

Step Modding Guides
Step Modifications offers complete, stand-alone mod-build guides (aka, "Game Guides) for supported games. The Step Guides provide step-by-step instructions, resulting in Step's vision of an enhanced, vanilla gameplay experience. Furthermore, the guides offer optional 'ModGroups' and patches, allowing the Step build to be used as an extensible foundation for further customization.

Step Guides are about ...

• ... bug fixes and corrections to malfunctioning aspects of the vanilla games.
• ... HD asset replacements in the style of the vanilla game (or as close a representation as possible).
• ... improvements to existing content that increase the consistency of the vanilla game.
• ... interface mods that improve the menus and UI for the PC.
• ... tweaks that improve consistency in gameplay or meet realistic expectations of intended game features.
• ... new content, assets, and effects that are consistent with the game's style and lore, as established by Bethesda's creators
• ... continuity and qualitative consistency of all in-game behaviors and assets (i.e., sounds, textures, models, gameplay, etc.)
  

Step Guides are NOT about ...

• ... sex mods, body replacement mods, or beauty mods that unrealistically affect or digress from the ambiance and style of the vanilla game.
• ... sound replacement mods that digress from the game's vanilla ambience.
• ... texture mods that significantly deviate from the game's original visual style.
• ... mods that are only required for a specific user base (i.e., a mod that fixes UI issues but only for users running at 4K)
  

User Contributions
How YOU Can Help

Step Modifications is always looking for volunteers willing to help out. We need help at many levels from mod suggestions and testing to forums management and release coordination. Please jump over to the Step Community forums and DM any of the staff there ... or just jump into the mix and help out as you are able.