[FEEDBACK] Patch Notes - 1.4.38 - 01-DEC-2015

Thread in 'MechWarrior Online' started by Durandal, Nov 30, 2015.

  1. Durandal

    Durandal Min-Max Maniac

    2,202
    692
    94
    This is a big one, so some links here at the top, then everything goes into spoiler block. Here is the link to the new quirks.

    Ok, that said:

    Change Log

    Balance Pass

    Quirk and 'Mech Adjustments

    A complete rundown on all Quirk and 'Mech changes can be found in the Excel and PDF documents linked below.

    Excel Document
    PDF Document

    Important notes regarding the above documents:

    All Armor Strength percentage Quirks have been replaced with Additional Armor L/R value Quirks.• Example: "Armor Strength (LA) +50%" becomes "Additional Armor (LA) +6"


    In many cases, distinct Quirks for the same weapon type have been merged into a single Quirk.• Example: "Medium Laser Range +25%" and "Energy Range +25%" simply becomes "Energy Range +50%"


    Document Color Legend

    Original Values column

    Red text denotes a Quirk that has been either removed or reduced in this patch.
    Green text denotes a Quirk that has been increased in this patch.
    Blue text denotes a Quirk that has not been changed, or denotes Quirks that been merged with another Quirk in this patch.

    New Values column

    Red text denotes that the value of this Quirk has been reduced from its original. Red text does not indicate that the Quirk is a negative Quirk!
    Green text denotes an existing Quirk that has either been increased in value, or denotes the addition of a new Quirk.
    Blue text denotes either a Quirk that has not changed, or denotes a Quirk that has been merged with another.

    AutoCannons

    • IS LB10-X AutoCannon ammunition count increased to 20 (up from 15) to match the AutoCannon10 ammo count.
    • All Gauss Rifles have had their cooldowns increased from 4.0s to 5.5s.
    • IS and Clan AutoCannon/2s and Clan Ultra AutoCannon/2s have had their base heat reduced to 0.8 (down from 1.0).
    • IS and Clan AutoCannon/2s and Clan Ultra AutoCannon/2s have been given a crit chance equal to that of Machine Guns (the crit damage multiplier for AutoCannon/2s and Clan Ultra Autocannon/2s is still 1.0).

    Missiles

    • IS LRM20 spread reduced to 6.2m (down from 7.0m). Cooldown of the weapon from 4.75s to 5.5s.
    • IS LRM15 spread reduced to 5.2m (down from 5.7m). Cooldown of the weapon from 4.25s to 4.75s.
    • IS LRM10 spread reduced to 4.2m (down from 4.3m). Cooldown of the weapon from 3.75s to 4.0s.
    • Clan LRM20 spread reduced to 6.2m (down from 7.0m). Cooldown of the weapon from 5.0s to 6.5s.
    • Clan LRM15 spread reduced to 5.2m (down from 5.7m). Cooldown of the weapon from 4.5s to 5.5s.
    • Clan LRM10 spread reduced to 4.2m (down from 4.3m). Cooldown of the weapon from 4.0s to 4.5s.
    • All IS/Clan SRMs have had their base speed increased from 300 to 400m/s.
    • All IS Streak SRMs have had their base speed increased from 200 to 250m/s.
    • All Clan Streak SRMs have had their base speed increased from 180 to 230m/s.
    • IS SRM/2 spread reduced from 4.8 to 2.5m.
    • IS SRM/2 heat scale maxfiring threshold increased from 4 to 6. *Note: Maxfiring is the number of launchers you can fire simultaneously free of heat scale.
    • IS SRM/4 spread reduced from 5.2 to 3.5m.
    • IS SRM/4 heat scale maxfiring threshold increased from 3 to 4.
    • IS SRM/6 spread reduced from 5.7 to 4.5m.
    • IS SRM/6 heat scale maxfiring threshold increased from 3 to 4.
    • Clan SRM/2 spread reduced from 5.0 to 3.0m.
    • Clan SRM/2 heat scale maxfiring threshold increased from 4 to 6.
    • Clan SRM/4 spread reduced from 5.4 to 4.0m.
    • Clan SRM/4 heat scale maxfiring threshold increased from 3 to 4.
    • Clan SRM/6 spread reduced from 5.9 to 5.0m.
    • Clan SRM/6 heat scale maxfiring threshold increased from 3 to 4.

    Lasers

    • Clan ER Small Laser Max Range reduced to 360 (400).
    • Clan ER Medium Laser Max Range reduced to 688 (810).
    • Clan Small Pulse Laser Max Range reduced to 297.
    • Clan Medium Pulse Laser Max Range reduced to 561.
    • Heat Scale has been properly added to the Inner Sphere Medium Pulse Lasers. The values have been set to the same as a normal IS Medium Laser. You can fire 6 at once with no heat penalty. Multiplier is set to 1.0.

    Equipment

    • ECM protective range will be reduced from 180m to 90m.
    • IS Single Heat Sinks is having its cooling rate increased from 0.10 to 0.12.
    • IS Single Heat Sinks that are inside the engine will have their cooling increased from 0.1 to 0.11.
    • IS Single Heat Sinks will have their heat capacity will be increased from -1.0 to -1.2. This is increasing the maximum heat value for a 'Mech before it shuts down, not the speed at which it cools off.
    • IS Double Heat Sink has its heat capacity increased from -1.4 to -1.5. This is increasing the maximum heat value for a 'Mech before it shuts down, not the speed at which it cools off.
    • Clan Double Heat Sink cooling rate increased from 0.14 to 0.15.
    • Clan Double Heat Sink capacity will be reduced from -1.4 to -1.1. This is reducing the maximum heat value for a 'Mech before it shuts down, not the speed at which it cools off.

    Clan XL Engines

    • When a Clan 'Mech loses a Side Torso, its Engine power is now reduced by 20% for the rest of the match. This reduction applies to all factors affected by the Engine, such as turn rate, torso twist, and top speed.

    Revised Skill Tree values

    Kinetic Burst

    7.5%

    Twist X

    2.5%

    Hard Brake

    7.5%

    Twist Speed

    2.5%

    Arm Reflex

    2.5%

    Anchor Turn

    2.5%

    Speed Tweak

    7.5%

    All unlisted Skill Tree values are unchanged.


    New Cockpit Monitors

    This patch features a long-awaited improvement to the 'Mech Cockpit Monitors. These new monitor screens provide us with a good starting point for making further improvements to the Cockpit Monitor system, with more dynamic content options possible in the future.

    • 1 Dynamic Kill Count Screen type that keeps track of your kills.
    • 3 Animated Screen types that are applied to the remaining monitors.
    • Can be toggled On/Off in Options.
    • Distinct color schemes for Inner Sphere and Clan.

    Clan Color Scheme

    [​IMG]


    Inner Sphere Color Scheme

    [​IMG]


    New Cockpit Item Screen

    This patch sees the release of our newly redesigned Cockpit Item screen, featuring a continuation of the aesthetic and organizational changes seen in our recent redesign of the Camo Spec screen.

    The premier feature of this new Cockpit Item screen is the ability to preview any dynamic aspects of a particular Cockpit Item by equipping it and clicking the new Preview button. For example, using this feature players can now listen to a War Horn before deciding on a purchase, or view animations for items that may react after the player has achieved a kill.

    Please note that the new Cockpit Monitor screens do not display inside the Cockpit Item screen.

    [​IMG]


    New Cockpit Items

    • C-Bill Medallion (Hanging Item)
    • Phoenix with Amber (Hanging Item)
    • Phoenix War Horn (Mounted Item)
    • Phoenix (Standing Item)
    • Gas Mask (Standing Item)
    • Bonsai Tree (Standing Item)
    • Locket (Hanging Item)
    • Country Flags (Standing Items)

    • Argentina• Belarus• Chile• Croatia• Cuba• Hungary• Indonesia• Lithuania• Malaysia• Northern Ireland• Philippines• Singapore• Slovenia• Thailand• Uruguay• Wales



    New 'Mechs

    [​IMG]
    Pictured variant: MAD-3R
    Marauder (Heavy)

    One of the first designs to embrace a non-humanoid configuration, the Marauder was hailed as the pinnacle of BattleMech design when it was unveiled in 2612. As with the Warhammer, the Marauder quickly became a heavy BattleMech of choice across the Star League Defense Force. Its battlefield performance—along with its unusual, menacing outline—even gave birth to the belief that claiming a kill against a Marauder was a hallmark of personal prominence.

    Release date for MC: March 15th 2016
    Release date for C-Bills: April 19th 2016

    Loadout details and discussion of these new 'Mechs can be found in a dedicated post here.


    'Mechs now Available for MC

    Crab

    • CRB-27: 1,520 MC
    • CRB-20: 1,485 MC
    • CRB-27B: 1,700 MC
    • CRB-27SL: 2,860 MC

    Loadout details for the Crab can be found in a dedicated post here.


    Map Fixes and Changes

    • Boreal Vault: Fix for a bad building LoD.
    • Forest Colony: Fix for an issue where 'Mech reflections in the water wouldn't be blocked by rock pillars.
    • Emerald Taiga: Fix for an issue where 'Mechs could fall out of the world.


    'Mech Fixes and Changes

    Hitboxes have again been adjusted for the following 'Mechs, blending the changes from last patch with their original states. These changes reduce the expansion of Side Torso exposure introduced in last patch.

    • Catapult
    • Nova
    • Jenner


    Voting Screen Changes

    • Timer has been increased to 20 seconds (from 15 seconds).
    • Audio cues will now play at the 3-2-1 and 0 marks.


    Other Fixes and Changes

    • Improvements made to the Spectate Commentator HUD performance.
    • Improvements made to the 'Mech HUD performance and rendering.
    • Fixed an issue where 'Mech names would sometimes not appear on the scoreboard and/or EoR screen.
    • The original Resistance 1 Skull-style Badges have been provided to eligible Resistance 1 owners.
    • New accounts will now start in Tier 5 instead of Tier 4.
    • Added a new Master Volume slider.
    • Various fixes and changes to loading screen tips.
    • Select 'Mech and Store: Hovering over a Champion, Hero, or Special 'Mech portrait card will flip the portrait and display that 'Mechs associated boost.
    • Faction Play: A one-time introductory pop-up has been added when accessing Faction Play for the first time, describing the game type and stressing its high skill ceiling.• Faction Play: Fixed an issue where groups of 11 members were unable to launch into a match.• Faction Play: Fixed an issue where the oldest player or group in queue would sometimes not be used to form a strike team.
    • Fixed an issue where the UI will display 'Quick Play' instead of 'Rejoin' when a player has left or been disconnected from a match.
    • Fixed an issue where players were unable to ready up their Trial 'Mech within a public group.
    • Fixed an issue where players were unable to exit the 'Edit Consumables' in a private lobby or group.
    • Fixed an issue where the social info pop-up would keep appearing when the player returns to a lobby.
    • Fixed a crash users could experience when closing the client.
    • The Cadet Bonus received over the first 25 matches of a new account has been increased to a grand total of 12,500,000 C-Bills (up from the previous total of 7,983,000 C-Bills).



    Known Issues

    • MechWarrior Academy: The new Cockpit Monitors will appear disabled when first entering the Academy. Power-cycling your 'Mech will activate the monitors correctly. This will be fixed next patch.

    No official reactions from me yet, need to actually get the patch and test live. A lot of this worked well in PTS4 though. Expect a huge meta shift, especially since Clan mechs do not have as much of an upper limit in terms of heat gen after the patch (but they cool off faster than before). SHS also are slightly better, but DHS is still king for most mechs. Gauss nerf will change things a bit, we'll see how heavy an impact it has though...damage is still 15 pinpoint, so the cooldown change won't make it crap.

    Just pay close attention to quirk changes. It guts some mechs (WVR-6K is much, much worse now) and improves others (holy Grasshopper agility, Batman!), but overall there's a lot of good changes in there. More in-depth review after tomorrow.
     
    Last edited: Nov 30, 2015
  2. RecklessFable

    RecklessFable Star Lord

    35
    0
    104
    Yeah, the math says that they've essentially put a nail in the coffin for clan wubs. Every time I come back to the game they've nerfed my biggest purchases. Yay. Feeling kinda bitter tonight. We'll see if my builds still work tomorrow.
     
  3. enileph

    enileph Star Lord

    4,203
    518
    201
    Can the animated features of the cockpit be disabled though?
    Less graphic overload for some machines.
     
  4. PyckenZot

    PyckenZot Benefactor

    1,029
    404
    89
    @Durandal What do you mean with the 6K being worse? I didn't try out that one on the PTS4, but reading the new quirks, it seems as if my beloved Wubverine is back. Did I miss something?
     
  5. Cpt Chattahah

    Cpt Chattahah Min-Max Maniac

    2,280
    303
    63
    So much yes. I might actually even be pulled back into the game with this one!
     
  6. anonymized1

    anonymized1 Dispossessed

    With the ammo boost for LBX, Ill be pulling the Illy out of retirement... power of three... engaged!
     
    Cpt Chattahah likes this.
  7. epikt

    epikt Benefactor

    2,511
    502
    104
    It's definitely worse for the standard LLas build because of the heat gen nerf (-10% instead of twice -12.5%).
    In the other hand the range quirk is made generic so it improves all the other builds, including the wubverine.
     
  8. Blagg Zear

    Blagg Zear Star Lord

    5,001
    578
    199
    i can't play atm... but this patch looks f*ing Awesome. ^_^
     
  9. Durandal

    Durandal Min-Max Maniac

    2,202
    692
    94
    Pretty much that. You can do a lot of builds, but losing over half the heat gen quirks means it runs VERY hot now in comparison, so it's not quite the powerhouse that it was.
     
  10. Michael

    Michael Grand Poobah

    4,835
    829
    234
    So here is my feedback; playing as a single player? Fine. Fun even.

    Playing with a friend in a group? Fucking disaster, horrible experience. Every time @Bolththrower and I dropped it was against 10 man 228ths or 8 man other groups against our 2 man + 2 man + maybe a 4 man + a couple of solo.

    That tells me there just aren't enough people playing this game to allow for 2 man teams.
     
  11. Durandal

    Durandal Min-Max Maniac

    2,202
    692
    94
    Well, you definitely didn't ever have solo players, since that's not possible in group queue still. But if you're against a 10-man, the outcome is likely already decided as is unless you're in a group of similar size. That's always been a given.
     
  12. Durandal

    Durandal Min-Max Maniac

    2,202
    692
    94
    So, further feedback...some people are saying that the AC2 is critting components through armor (and weapons), so expect a hotfix for that. Also, some quirks are...a bit stupid:

    [​IMG]

    Otherwise, it's pretty good so far ;)
     
  13. Michael

    Michael Grand Poobah

    4,835
    829
    234
    By solo players I mean unaffiliated people. They may have been in a group but without tags or with tags that arent the same.

    Group experience was quite bad over 4 drops. Sometimes took 5 minutes to find a match to fit a 2 man into.

    Solo play was alright.
     
  14. enileph

    enileph Star Lord

    4,203
    518
    201
    Either go solo or 10 man+.

    If you want to 2 man I suggest starting a group and call for people to join in. You have much faster matching with 5-6 people or more.
     
  15. epikt

    epikt Benefactor

    2,511
    502
    104
    To me, the sweet spot seams to be 6-8 players. If you're too many in the group the average tonnage is pretty low. You still can stack Cheetahs, BlackJacks and Stormcrows, but if you want heavy and assault mechs it forces you to huge compromises on the rest of the deck.

    (so far I like this system)
     
top-fast
top-fast
top-fast
top-fast