Beta 2 is in development, and we wanted to share what players can look forward to:

• Multiplayer- You can now play against your friends, or former friends (if they play Mimots) in Multiplayer. Players can choose to play in several game modes.
  • Arena- This is the preferred method for MP. Two human players, locked at war with each other. Only one survives.
  • Agenda- The goal of the game is randomly determined. It could be to be the first person to claim and hold 5 Precursor Relics. Build when you have to, fight when you have to, but keep your eye on the goal of the game if you want to win.
  • Survival- In this mode the Humans can work together (or backstab if they prefer). But they are both locked at war with the AI and the AI gets more powerful as the game goes on. The humans will die. The winner is the one who dies last.
• New Galactic Achievements
  • There have been five new Galactic Achievements added (Halls of Unity, Infinite Archive, Astrolab of the Arnor, Grand Menagerie, New Eden) that all require the player to spend a lot of resources to construct a galactic wonder. But once the challenge is begun other players will attempt it as well, and only the first person to complete it will earn the Prestige for having it.
  • Dread Fleet- There are strange readings coming from a point in space where dimensions intersect. Your advisors warn that you should leave it alone. But you have never backed away from a challenge before...
• New Events
  • Ambassadors Ship- The ship of another civilizations ambassador has been destroyed while orbiting one of your worlds. They are accusing you of being behind it. How will you respond?
  • Fragile Rift- Another civilization is at risk of bringing something horrible into this dimension and they are asking for your help to stop it. 
• Krynn Commanders- All Krynn Commanders are sacred to the Way and dramatically boost the influence of worlds they are near. The higher their level, the more Influence is boosted.
  • Missionary- Infinite range allows this ship to spread the message of the way to the farthest edge of the galaxy.
  • Monitor- A strong survey ship.
  • Crusader- A warship for engaging in early battles.
  • Sword of the Way- A powerful warship that generates control for every victorious battle.
  • Shield of the Way- A defensive ship that repairs all nearby allies.
  • Memory of Rosalind- Not only does this ship boost Influence based on level but provides an additional huge base Influence bonus as well.
  • Divine Judgement- A powerful missile ship that is able to destroy enemy fleets from far away.
• Iconian Commanders- All Iconian commanders get huge attack bonuses when they are within their own borders, making them formidable at home, and vulnerable in deep space.
  • Demodae- A fast warship whose moves increase with level.
  • Eclipse- A survey ship that generates bonus Research when surveying anomalies.
  • Watcher- A warship with a big sensor range that gets even larger as it levels.
  • Iso's Shadow- A powerful beam warship.
  • Ringvault- A kinetic warship that boosts the research of nearby worlds.
  • Maranna- A defensive ship that boosts both the Approval and the Growth of nearby worlds.
  • Dustbringer- A powerful missile ship.
• Onyx Hive Commanders- Unlike other Onyx Hive ships their commanders have access to Promethion Chambers, which allow them to sacrifice Promethion to fully repair their fleet (though this is a costly endeavor as the Hive's growth rate is based on their stored Promethion). All of the Hive Commanders are formidable but slow, making them tough to defeat, but weak to finesse (ie: be careful getting them too far from your core worlds).
  • Arkose- A powerful Missile ship
  • Jaspillite- A powerful Kinetic ship.
  • Breccia- A powerful Beam ship.
  • Lamprophye- A powerful missile warship that provides Point Defense for its entire fleet.
  • Nephelinite- A powerful kinetic warship that converts defeated enemies into Promethion.
  • Hornfels- A beam ship that boosts the production of nearby worlds.
  • Blueschist- A missile ship that boosts the Approval and Influence of nearby worlds.
• Map Markers- A map marker is left at the site of the defeat so players can investigate what happened and where it happened.

Check out the FULL changelog here...