Equipment Check - Arsenal Update Dev Letter

Discussion in 'Official News Feedback' started by Mithril, Mar 16, 2022.

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  1. Mithril Community Manager

    Hey there, folks. We've been working on the Arsenal Update, a heavily gameplay-focused update that expands customization options for infantry weapons, uplifts some of the less-used faction weapons, and touches a fair amount of game balance on the infantry and vehicle side at the same time. There's a lot to go through, and you won't see all the details until the patch notes hit later this week, but we'll break down some of the larger beats in this dev note.
    [IMG]
    New Angled Forward Grips, for all factions.
    Weapon Attachments

    Let's talk about where the majority of work has gone in for this update: attachments. At the time of writing this, we've added 829 new attachments between 241 weapons with more in progress. You'll see a handful of new mainstays, like an Angled Forward Grip that heavily reduces first shot recoil, or a Heavy Barrel that reduces cone of fire bloom while aiming down sights, and there have been plenty of adjustments to existing attachments as well. Compensators, for example, were made more powerful, and attachments that didn't affect weapons much were swapped with something different (Forward Grips on Sniper Rifles, for example.) You'll also be seeing more weapons with extended magazines, barrel, and ammo options, and directive weapons will now all be able to equip attachments as well. Speaking of which...

    Directive Weapons

    We're taking a pass at directive weapons again to make them something you want to play with. Now that directive weapons will be capable of equipping attachments, some of the "baked in" attachment benefits and detriments will be going away, especially the ones that tried to push a weapon outside of the roles it would otherwise excel in (directive SMGs with built-in HVA and forward grips, are a good example of this.) Some weapons will expand on faction flavor, (for example: TR's Havoc shotgun will go fully automatic,) while others will emphasize class strengths (carbines will have new underbarrel Impulse Launchers.) Not every weapon will be quirky, but they will all be more worthwhile additions to your current weapon lineup. Lastly, directive weapons will be able to be used alongside A.S.P. benefits that give you access to weapons from another class, or be put into another loadout slot.
    [IMG]

    FL-34 and SPRK-33 have some new digs in the Sanctuary.
    Balance in General

    With the Arsenal Update, we'll be making some noteworthy balance changes in the realm of infantry and vehicles, and will be iterating on previous experiments. For example, some of the less-used weapons will receive additional tuning beyond the attachment changes; Nanoweave's small arms resistance will be moved to a sniper rifle resistance, and the movement speed penalty will be removed; Adrenaline Shield's energy recovery will be reeled in a bit; Nano-Armor Cloak loses its passive 100 shield benefit; Power Knives move to a two-bodyshot kill; shotguns are overhauled to become more consistent to use. In the realm of vehicles, the Chimera will gain some added health and main cannon damage, while the Valkyrie will gain some speed, damage output, and ammo capacity for most of its weapons. None of this is final, but it will be a part of what goes with our first test build, which we'll talk about later.

    Empire-Specific Basilisks

    New top guns will be defaulted to each empire's main battle tank (with the exception of NSO,) and Sunderers, Harassers, and ANTs will have access to these new weapons as optional unlocks. I'm referring to these weapons as "Basilisks" in that each weapon fits the "jack of all trades" mentality that the common pool Basilisk uses as an introduction to the game. However, each of these weapons have unique statistics, along with audio and visuals. Chimera's forward guns will receive slight stat adjustments as well, to differentiate it from the common pool Basilisk. All of this is an attempt to push our faction flavor a little bit further whenever we can, and create more opportunities for new art.
    [IMG]
    The new M18 Palisade on a Terran Republic Sunderer.

    Mines, Grenades, and More


    Along with the new vehicle weapons, we're also introducing some infantry deployables. Empire-specific mines (Concussion/EMP/Flash/Havoc,) and class-specific grenades (Cleansing/Havoc/Timed EMP/Impulse,) will make their way into the mix. The ANT will get a new "Deliverer Module," allowing it to become a spawn point wherever it can deploy (which is not in no-construction zones,) and provide vehicle ammunition in an area. The Galaxy will be offered the Lodestar Module as well, providing a deploy shield, and the ability to spawn in allies like the campaign's Prototype Lodestar currently has access to. Lastly, there's a new Black Market directive tree, so you can put all those Black Market weapons to good use. You'll see at least a couple of new Black Market weapons making their way to the store as well, and you will be able to purchase them with Daybreak Cash in addition to the A7 currency.


    So When We Testing?

    This weekend we plan to get our first build to the Public Test Server, and will follow it up with another build the following week. The expectation between the first and second build is that there will still be a lot of cleanup and polish to take place, but much of the functionality in the update will be available to start getting eyes on with the first build. We will not be conducting wide-scale playtests for this particular update, as the changes are a bit too nuanced to pull focused feedback, but we encourage everyone to jump on and report their findings via forums or Reddit. Patch notes will be posted late Thursday or early Friday in full and... it's a lot.

    I hope this dev letter helps lend some insight on some of what we're currently working toward, and what you will be seeing and testing here very soon.
    Thanks all.
    -Wrel, Lead Designer

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    Let us know in the replies below what you think!
    • Up x 3
  2. Sumguy720

    Sounds like you folks have been up to a lot! I'm eager to see how these affect the game, and optimistic about it!

    Is it safe to assume that the NSO repair drone did not make the cut for prototypes -> reality? I really enjoy the flavor that faction specific utilities and weapons provide! I'm glad to see more of that coming. Asymmetry makes games like this very fun.
    • Up x 3
  3. BlackFox

    Most important question: Will the flashlight be able to uncover cloaked enemies on a constant level on all distances to the max. range?
  4. Mr. Turano

    I am so excited to see more Empire specific items.

    Some people may complain of balance, but StarCraft is a perfect example of how a game can be asymmetrical and balanced.

    Me and some of my outfit members are very confused about the power knife; Is it still going to one shot if you get a headshot? Will you be adding another strike to the other blades to make it worth having? Otherwise what’s the point of having that item.


    The grenades and mines are especially exciting to work with, as long as you give them good visuals so we can recognize what we are going up against.
    • Up x 1
  5. Stopper

    Great news ! But for attachments, we need two others things :

    1/ The game must tell us all the weapons stats (like first shot recoil), with an explanation of what it means / does (we shouldn't have to go to unofficial websites) ;

    2/ When we equip a specific weapon attachment, the informations provided by the game must show what it change (like the stat without the attachment in one color and the stat with the attachment in another color).

    And for mines, I would like to finally have something I am waiting for since the 2012 launch : the UI showing the number of mines still actives (not like now, through the map, but on the UI, like for directives...). In the first Planetside, we had this even with 30+ actives mines !

    Thanks a lot.
  6. RabidIBM

    I'm glad to see new content coming out, certainly it's great to not be in the "dead years" we had leading up to 2019.

    That said, I have an ask: Please take the time to revisit anything with unintended consequences or anything you weren't quite finished by the deadline. Please don't leave broken or unfinished content in the game because "MOVING ON!".
    • Up x 3
  7. Flense

    Please add an adjustment for type and Dorito size. I just can't see them well any more--too small.
  8. LiquidSleep

    This all seems super awesome to me and I'm really excited for the changed! New attachments sounds awesome, more useful directive weapons is also awesome, and I'm excited to see a world with no nano weave!
    Hopefully with the Chimera buff I'll start tanking again too!

    Thank you, keep up the good stuff!

    I cry for the basilisk as NS though, I'm guessing it would be too buggy/not make sense to let NS use faction specific stuff like that if their assigned to one of the three factions right?
    • Up x 1
  9. VV4LL3

    Could the Chimera really get a better look? It doesn't even have a utility/perk while other MBT's do... Functionality as well, such as main gun angle of attack/ attack azimuth be increased? This is a no-brainer... It literally does NOT have the basic capabilities as the Empire Specific MBT... Please fix.
  10. DiatomicClaw166

    I'm personally excited for the new faction specific turrets as it gets stale playing with the basilisk on my ANT and Sunderer. Anyone have any photos or notes of what NC or VS is bringing for their ES top gun?
  11. kerath

    Full auto shotgun... Because that is what the game needs an even stronger shotgun. Now TR Sundies will have basically dual Vulcans? Okay then...

    Are you guys going to ever touch Implants again? Because some of them need a rework.
    Cold Heart was an amazing implant not because it worked with VS heat based weapons. More so because it worked with Engie's repair guns. It also worked with base turrets. As it is now it's insanely niche and pretty much rarely touched. It's very useless now. Experimental Stims has been pretty useless for a long time and I have never seen anyone use it. Firewall is also niche as well and I haven't seen anyone use it in years.
    Phylactery was a fantastic implant but with it's recent changes it has become pretty meh. It's rarely used anymore because of how it now works.

    Salvage seems very niche and I rarely see it used. Don't think I have seen Heavyweight used in years. Mobility Mesh I also rarely seen used. Symbiote is pretty much useless.
  12. Ravenwolf Foxtrack

    So why are we not getting the loadstar function of old where it was a giant box that picked up and flew ground vehicles to other locations? This loadstar function of making the galaxy a spawn point is the function the galaxy had in beta testing back in 2012.
    • Up x 1
  13. JUSTCCTV

    This update will break many balance.
    1.The idea of weapon attachments is good,but it will give more benefit to some high rate fire weapon,that will make tr's weapon being overpowered.And tr's havoc shotgun can use at other camps.
    2.nanoweaves's small arms resistance should keep it up,because it already has a mature system,remove it will change so much gun's ttk,and i won't accept the change.Many new players will give up this game,because they dead so fast.
    3.Adrenaline Shield's energy recovery make soldiers high on kill enemy,i have no diea why weaken it.
    4.power knives are good,don't weaken it,this change will reduce much fun.
    5.nano-armor cloak's change would be acceptable.

    I hope you daybreak take some of my suggestions,this update would make so many changes.Many changes will affect the old players,please consider this further.
  14. BlackFox

    I think the TR infantry guns need an overhaul in that regard. They have the highest RoF and the highest horzintal recoil values - less accuracy with generic damage. That's why NS and 167 DMG guns dominate within the TR.

    I would swap out the high RoF and higher magazine capacity for a 0.75 ADS movement speed (like SMGs and NS guns have) and maybe slightly faster reloads, to reflect the drill and training of a professional soldier. (Compared to freedom fighters like the NC or the religious fanatics that the VS are)
  15. DeadMansShadow

    NSO wishlist:
    - Fix up the guns that are awful to use - ARs and LMGs for starters
    - Make Aurax guns interesting versions of THOSE updated guns
    - Make chimera relevant, and enjoyable to gun for - that turret is easily the most awful placement for any gunner in the game
    - Give an ESF that doesnt require a second person to be effective and doesnt feel like a valk/lib to fly
    - Give interesting customisation options so I got stuff to spend daybreak cash on
    - Fix aurax armours to coat more than a wristband worth of armour and to be coloured as per the faction you're currently playing for
    - Let MAX use NS weapons, especially bursters, and give them a relevant anti-vehicle weapon <-- by far the most important point here, as an NSO you currently cannot deal with enemy A2G ESFs, let alone libs, without pulling a vehicle, and in many cases that's not an option. Any ground vehicle that you cant sneak up on or hit with rocketlaunchers is also a no-go
  16. SteelBlood

    Please do NOT make the power knives require 2 body shots to kill. This will effectively kill the playstyle for people with lag issues, performance issues, and probably a fair amount of newer players that try it out.

    This game already has delay issues for some players, and these are amplified for those users when using knives as the knife will pass right through a player without hurting them. Forcing headshots will amplify that problem even further, I know for sure I won't be able to use that playstyle again.

    Not only that, but the 1 shot kill was really the only feature people even bought those knives for. If it was headshot only, you can bet a lot less people would've bought them. So you are kind of ripping off people who bought the knives purely for that purpose. It makes them barely better than regular knives.

    And as a disclaimer for people reading this thinking that I just missed, no. I do miss a fair bit, but I was recording at the time and rewatched multiple instances where the knife passed through my target. Plus using knives is not the only time I have delay issues, despite having a gaming rig and decent internet.
    • Up x 1
  17. Nighda Venesis

    Regarding the Archer & Shortbow changes: we don't need more ohk weapons in this game. Nobody likes getting one shot; it's not fun, it leaves no time for reaction in many cases.
    I fear the angled forward grip + autoclicker combo some people may start using.
    Thank you for stepping in the right direction with nanoweave. Resistance / hitpoint increases in general aren't healthy; things should be balanced at base values. This will certainly help with that.
    Also thank you for removing body shot ohk from power knives.
    • Up x 1
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