PTS Game Update – 11/29

PTS will be coming down this evening for an update. The following changes will be introduced:

PerformanceZone Server Performance Fixes

Medical Kits and Restoration KitsBoth now have a 0.5sec. cooldown between uses; this change forces the player to re-equip the device if they would like to use more than one in succession.
MedKits have also been adjusted to provide a set amount of health instantly, instead of over a short amount of time. The intention behind this change is a speculative fix for MedKits not restoring health during times of high server stress.
Restoration Kits healing duration has also increased from 9sec. to 12sec.

Elysium Spawn Tube VulnerabilityElysium Spawn Tube small arms (and similar bullet-based projectiles) resistance from 100% to 92%.
Elysium Spawn Tube grenade resistance from 100% to 70%.
UI camera adjustments for various construction items.

Tech PlantsAll Tech Plant upper platforms no longer harbor Anti-Vehicle Turrets.

Engineer Changes
Engineer's Hardlight Barriers no longer display massive particles on impact.
Engineer's Hardlight Barriers should no longer be able to block spawn tubes.

MAX Changes
Charge
Has been removed and certs have been refunded
Emergency Repair ability has been added to all MAXes

Emergency Repair
Activate to repair 20% of a MAX's health over 12 seconds.
Rank 1: Can be activated once every 60 seconds.
Rank 2: Can be activated once every 57 seconds.
Rank 3: Can be activated once every 54 seconds.
Rank 4: Can be activated once every 51 seconds.
Rank 5: Can be activated once every 48 seconds.
Rank 6: Can be activated once every 45 seconds.

Vehicle Tuning
Sunderer's Proximity Repair cert line now repairs friendly Sunderers at a reduced rate.
Rank 1: Repair from 25 to 12.5 per second on friendly Sunderers.
Rank 2: Repair from 75 to 37.5 per second on friendly Sunderers.
Rank 3: Repair from 100 to 50 per second on friendly Sunderers.
Rank 4: Repair from 125 to 62.5 per second on friendly Sunderers.
Rank 5: Repair from 150 to 75 per second on friendly Sunderers.

Weapon Tuning
The following weapons have had their damage and falloff range adjustments reverted from a previous PTS update (https://www.reddit.com/r/Planetside/comments/57818g/pts_patch_notes_10122016/).
· TORQ-9
· NS-11A
· CME
· Equinox VE2
· NS-15M
· Corvus VA55
· Ursa
· T32 Bull
· Reaper DMR
· A-TROSS
· NC6 Gauss SAW
· NC6S Gauss SAW S
Shotgun Balance adjustments
The intention behind the following changes are to increase the value of skillful aim while slightly extending the effective range of these weapons. In the case of the semi-auto shotguns, we’ve retained the weapons’ two-shot kill potential, but narrowed the margin of error by requiring more pellets to land on a target to achieve it. The three basic semi-auto shotguns should now also have a different feel from one another; directive shotguns will now all have their own empire specific leanings; and the NC’s Jackhammer will now be more capable of sustained fire.

Mauler S6 (Quick Reload)
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@5m
Min damage from 50@18m to 84@20m
Magazine size from 6 to 8
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
ADS pellet spread from 3 to 2.75
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.8
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.5
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8

The Brawler (Auraxium Mauler S6)
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@5m
Min damage from 50@18m to 84@20m
Magazine size from 6 to 8
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.8
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.5
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8

NC12 Sweeper (High Capacity)
Weapon uses new magazine model.
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@8m
Min damage from 50@18m to 67@20m
Magazine size from 8 to 10
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 70
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire Pellet spread from 3.5 to 3
ADS pellet spread from 3.5 to 2.8
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.5
Recoil angle from 0/0 to 12/12
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.65
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

AF-57 Piston (Automatic)
Weapon now uses different model (WIP.)
Max damage from 125@8m to 125@5m
Min damage from 45@18m to 50@20m
Magazine size from 6 to 8
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
ADS pellet spread from 4 to 3.75
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Projectile velocity from 300 to 275
Vertical recoil from 1.5 to 2
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.95
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

GD-66 Claw (Quick Pump)
Max damage from 130@8m to 125@5m
Magazine size from 4 to 5
Ammo capacity from 28 to 35
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

LA39 Bruiser (Heavy Pump)
Max damage from 130@8m to 125@8m
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

NC05 Jackhammer (Heavy Weapon)
Max damage from 112@10m to 100@5m
Magazine size from 9 to 15
Ammo capacity from 54 to 75
Pellets from 6 to 5
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
First shot multiplier from 1 to 2
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.4
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 2
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8
Equip time from 750ms to 1000ms
Hipfire crosshairs now accurately represent the actual pellet spread

Thanatos VE70 (Quick Reload)
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@5m
Min damage from 50@18m to 84@20m
Magazine size from 6 to 8
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
ADS pellet spread from 3 to 2.75
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.8
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.5
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8

Chaos (Auraxium Thanatos VE70)
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@5m
Min damage from 50@18m to 84@20m
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
Shot reload from 2.1sec. to 1.68sec.
Long reload from 3.22sec. to 3.54sec.
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.8
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.5
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8

Nova (High Capacity)
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@8m
Min damage from 50@18m to 67@20m
Magazine size from 8 to 10
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 70
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire Pellet spread from 3.5 to 3
ADS pellet spread from 3.5 to 2.8
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.5
Recoil angle from 0/0 to 12/12
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.65
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

Pandora VX25 (Automatic)
Max damage from 125@8m to 125@5m
Min damage from 45@18m to 50@20m
Magazine size from 6 to 8
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
Projectile velocity from 300 to 275
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
ADS pellet spread from 4 to 3.75
Vertical recoil from 1.5 to 2
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.95
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

Phobos VX86 (Quick Pump)
Max damage from 130@8m to 125@5m
Magazine size from 4 to 5
Ammo capacity from 28 to 35
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

Deimos VA29 (Heavy Pump)
Max damage from 130@8m to 125@8m
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

FA1 Barrage (Quick Reload)
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@5m
Min damage from 50@18m to 84@20m
Magazine size from 6 to 8
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
ADS pellet spread from 3 to 2.75
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.8
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.5
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8

Havoc (Auraxium FA1 Barrage)
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@5m
Min damage from 50@18m to 84@20m
Magazine from 8 to 10
Ammo capacity from 48 to 50
Long reload from 3.22sec. to 3.54sec.
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.8
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.5
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8

TS4 Haymaker (High Capacity)
Weapon uses new magazine model.
Muzzle break removed.
Max damage from 130@8m to 100@8m
Min damage from 50@18m to 67@20m
Magazine size from 8 to 10
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 70
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire Pellet spread from 3.5 to 3
ADS pellet spread from 3.5 to 2.8
Vertical recoil from 1.3 to 2.5
Recoil angle from 0/0 to 12/12
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.65
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

AS16 NightHawk (Automatic)
Max damage from 125@8m to 125@5m
Min damage from 45@18m to 50@20m
Projectile velocity from 300 to 275
Magazine size from 6 to 8
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
ADS pellet spread from 4 to 3.75
Vertical recoil from 1.5 to 2
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.95
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

TRS-12 Uppercut (Quick Pump)
Max damage from 130@8m to 125@5m
Magazine size from 4 to 5
Ammo capacity from 28 to 35
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

TAS-16 Blackjack (Heavy Pump)
Max damage from 130@8m to 125@8m
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 12 to 8

NS Baron G5
Max damage from 100@10m to 84@15m
Min damage from 60@30m to 67@30m
Magazine size from 6 to 8
Ammo capacity from 48 to 56
Ext. Mags bonus from 4 to 2
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
ADS pellet spread from 2.5 to 2.25
Vertical recoil from 1 to 2.2
Recoil angle from -5.8 to -12
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.45
Horizontal tolerance from 0.4 to 1.5
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8


Carnage AR and Terminus VX9Min damage from 100 to 112
Min damage range partial reversion from 80m to 60m
NSX NaginataMin damage from 125 to 112
T32 BullRate of fire from 652 to 659
H-V45, TAR, Cycler TRV, GR-22Min damage range reverted from 80m to 60m
AF-18 Stalker, SOAS-20
Projectile velocity from 500 to 550

Artemis VX26
Projectile velocity from 500 to 530

NSX Tomoe
Magazine size from 16 to 22
Ammo capacity from 304 to 286
Long reload from 2.1sec. to 2.9sec.

Rocklet Rifle
Locklet ammunition is now unlockable outside of VR training.
Mag-dump feature while Locklets are equipped has been removed.

All Carbines
Hipfire minimum cone of fire while airborne now uses the same minimum hipfire cone of fire as a player who is walking.
For the Serpent VE92, VX6-7, LC2 Lynx, LC3 Jaguar, GD-7F, and AF-4A Bandit, these values are slightly larger.

Additional hipfire bloom adjustments
Hipfire bloom from 0.1 to 0.06

• T5 AMC
• Solstice SF
• NS-11C

Hipfire Bloom from 0.1 to 0.08

• Solstice
• Eclipse
• TRAC-5 S

Hipfire Bloom from 0.12 to 0.1

• Gauss Compact S

AF-4A Bandit
Airborne CoF from 2 to 1.75

LC2 Lynx
ADS CoF bloom from 0.05 to 0.045
Hipfire CoF bloom from 0.1 to 0.09

Bug FixesMAX units will no longer be able to access light air terminals.
Light air terminals will now properly show interaction prompt.
Fixed DMR-99 4x optic showing also iron sights when equipped.
Fixed a typo in the Quick-Recharge Fuel Tanks.
Rumble seats should once again allow players to fire from them.

"The intention behind the following changes are to increase the value of skillful aim while slightly extending the effective range of these weapons."

Yeah! Because they didn't require enough aim as it is!
With the pelletspread still being what it is I don't see how the better damage falloff and lack of COF bloom is going to help much. Especially since shotguns now require even more pinpoint perfect accuracy to blow someone to pieces as you already have reduced the damage per shot with more than a full pellet (180 damage), meaning that at any point in time you are essentially missing a pellet and having RNG throw a pellet off-target is even more punishing as you'll be missing 280 damage in one shot! meaning the only way you'll be anywhere close to current shotgun performance is if you 100% aim at the perfect center of your opponent every. single. time.

If you wanted to nerf shotguns say so, but don't go parading it around as a buff.

Good to see long range guns staying long range, no clue about shotguns, getting on pts to tryem.

Will the requirements for the MAX directive change once charge is removed? Because not having charge will make it nearly impossible to get MAX punch kills.

Elysium change? I'm not sure this is a good thing. This might make bases far too easy to assault.

No AV turrets on techplants? Good, their area of effect was too large from their high vantage.

Sundy ball nerf? About goddamn time!

Long range infantry weapons reverted? Good. I was confused as to why a change that was supposed to make long range options better at ranged engagements nerfed the long ranged options' long range potential. Didn't make any sense.

Scout rifle velocity buff? Good, now they'll be a sidegrade to the Tomoe instead of a straight up downgrade.

Tomoe Magazine increase? Scratch what I just said about the other scout rifles. The tomoe is in an okay place right now. It rewards skill and punishes scrubs (exactly what you said you wanted). Giving it 22 in the magazine is just going to make bodyshotting people an option which completely negates the skill aspect of the weapon. I would have decreased the vertical recoil instead to make landing headshots a little easier.

Locklet mag dump feature disabled? Good, thanks for listening!

Carbine airborne CoF adjustments. This was a lot of fun on PTS but didn't seem to correlate with a combat effectiveness increase which gets a thumbs up from me! Increasing gameplay diversity without being OP is good.

I'll leave my judgment of the shotgun changes until after I've tested them.

Edit: I don't see any Amaterasu changes... no seriously... you guys need to buff this thing. Most weapons have some kind of redeeming quality. This has none.

for the sake of all that is holy, DO NOT NERF SHOTGUN DAMAGE.
horrible, horrible change.
i usually defend your changes because they usually have merit, but nerfing shotgun damage is a terrible idea.
completely random change, utterly terrible change.

Why is nerfing shotgun damage a terrible idea? (you never stated why)
The ttk difference between shotguns and other infantry weapons in cqc is ridiculous in ps2 which combined with the lack of skill required to be effective with them makes them horrendously broken. They also need a nerf to counter the range buff they are getting otherwise they would become even more powerful overall.

Because CQC is the ONLY area, where SGs are usable (without slugs). If they'll suck there too, then why do we need SGs in the game in the first place?

Sure, shotguns are meant to be stronger than other weapons in cqc. However as it stands they are insanely powerful in cqc situations relative to all other cqc weapons whilst requiring minimal skill to achieve effectiveness relative to other weapons. On top of this, most effective fights (point control fights) happen in cqc situations. As it stands, shotguns deal too much damage up close and need reeling in a little.

Uh, call me dumb but the only difference i see between them is the havoc has 50 ammo rounds on reserve instead of 56. And probably its a typing error. I'm beting the coffe machine broke on dbg, what in the world is this balancing? you will regret this,
we all know this wont hit live and if it does it will be it will be reverted in less than one month.
also, no amaterasu buff. k...
release the god damn LA patch, is the first thing we need now.
plus it's weird being able to mid air hipfire with carbines but not with pistols or smgs.
jesus do you even devs tried the shotgun in mid air? I guess not, its a damn shame.
I'll also tell you the way to make shotguns ES flavored, since you guys seem to not be capable of.
TR -> Rof
NC -> Dmg
VS -> Acc
You wellcome.

you must be playing a different game,
for a shotgun to win a cqc fight against pretty much any SMG/LMG/carbine or AR you need to get a 2 shot kill.
for that to happen you currently need 8 of the 12 pellets to hit the target,
if you don't land 8 of the 12 pellets on the target then all of the other weapons with vastly superior range, will outdps the shotgun in the shotguns only effective range.

this change requires that 10 of those 12 widely spread pellets hit the target to secure a 2 shot kill, and lets be honest, that is unlikely.

in simple terms, the majority of fights now will end with shotgun users getting outDPSed by LMGs/SMGs/ARs and carbines in the only range that shotguns are supposed to be effective.

incase you want the math, a 3 shot kill takes 0.52 seconds with the default shotguns.
almost all infantry weapons have faster TTKs.
as an example here is a big chunk of the NC armory.
cyclone: 0.4, blitz 0.5, GD7F: 0.42, SAW: 0.48, Anchor:0.5

Why are you comparing actual ttk of shotguns to theoretical ttk of other weapons. It's highly unlikely you will hit all your bullets with standard infantry weapons in cqc unless you ads. ads takes additional time which shotguns don't have to deal with because they are extremely effective when hip fired. If you apply the same individual accuracy logic to shotguns, they come out on top especially because they will deal damage even when your crosshair is not on the target unlike automatic weapons which will miss in those situations.

With charge a MAX could prevent incoming damage or dodge incoming damage. Emergency repair is a vastly inferior replacement. Low mobility is the biggest weakness in this game. This is why lockdown and shield are unpopular. Although ZOE increases mobility it is not as good as dodge.

Sorry but... I wonder if whoever decided this actually every tried to use a shotgun in battle
Pump Action shotguns in particular already require an insane aim and amount of skill to kill targets. If you nerf them people will actually have no reason at all to use them.

In fact Max Units should have never had Charge as ability. The most tanky and powerful infantry unit shouldn't be allowed to move that fast.

shotguns @ 30% reduction in max damage

WTF???

I always thought that nerfs and buffs were a matter of "FINE TUNING" ????

Why is NOT nerfing them a terrible idea?

Hopefully these shotgun changes will be carried over to NC MAXs as well.

NC05 Jackhammer (Heavy Weapon)
Max damage from 112@10m to 100@5m
Magazine size from 9 to 15
Ammo capacity from 54 to 75
Pellets from 6 to 5
Cone of Fire bloom from 0.5 to 0
First shot multiplier from 1 to 2
Horizontal recoil from 0.2 to 0.4
Horizontal recoil tolerance from 0.4 to 2
Hipfire recoil recovery rate from 15 to 8
Equip time from 750ms to 1000ms
Hipfire crosshairs now accurately represent the actual pellet spread

Great job guys! You removed from this weapon is that it was really good, and it's damage at a distance ... Now this **** is no different from simple shotguns ... Or do you think that we could be interested in the National Assembly lower rate of fire, terrible precision, high-impact but a large supply of ammunition ? Anyone, even the most stupid VS or TR can be straightened in close combat against this crap with a carbine or gun ... So keep freaks!

As a person that drives or guns ground armor 97% of the time the sunderer nerf truly was not needed. I have easily spent over 30 hours running dual repair bus crews and they were not over powered. In actuality they are a great way to coordinate six people in to a highly efficient team that could pull off some amazing stuff. Lets see what coordination it takes...

1) Point driver - Lead Bus - watches out for mines, watches out for threats (one skillfully manned MBT can take out a Sunderer easily), aims for flat ground to allow trailing bus to always keep up in range, calls out all out repairs (everyone from bus jumps out and repairs), has to use his bus to block shots from trailing bus, navigate, and has to drive while doing all of the above.

2) Trailing driver - does pretty much most of what the lead does except navigate and deal with mines. His / her job is to keep in range and block.

3) Crew of four that needs to focus fire on armored targets to drop them quickly. Have an MBT at 50m, four Basilisk guns, maxed clip size or rank 3 (that is anywhere between 500-2500 certs in total) it will have a TTK (time to kill) of around 7-8 seconds. This is if all four gunners are focused, reloaded, no other targets are being dealt with and you have not been spotted on the map (remember, sunderers don't have stealth). That same MBT (a two man crew) could easily destroy a single bus in a shorter and possibly equal TTK as the six man sunderer crew.

I think my main point that Daybreak is not taking in to account here is that it takes six coordinated people to pull off a dual repair bus. I can easily coordinate (and have done) three harassers to do considerable more destruction than a dual repair bus crew. One smart harasser crew can just apply constant pressure while remaining at a safe distance and destroy a bus crew (just did it last night against FedEx) Just because the sunderers are healing themselves does not inherently make it overpowered, you actually have to manage that repair by blocks (bus pulling infront of incoming damage to other bus), driving in healing range while juggling many other things; this is high coordination. Those that don't like dual repair bus crews that destroy their armor / infantry, I would challenge them to get six coordinated people to come take on said bus crew and see how it pans out.

Six coordinated people > clumps of unorganized masses

Don't nerf coordination, don't nerf being a smart player, add more tools, training and community resources to help the masses coordinate.

Because how their damage models were is they won over short range weapons in close proximity. They had damage to do what they were designed to do but weak in every single other aspect. Thats how a shotgun is.

Now imagine, every single time you ever used a shotgun to take on a guy beyond 10 meters, 15, and none of the pellets connected just right and he killed you before your 4th shot. Shotgun DPS is being nerfed to that fourth shot. So not CQ weapons will often beat shotguns while engaging at long range.