Ok folks, time for the full reveal...well as full as can be for preliminary notes, as always these are provisional notes, subject to change and many or may not make the final patch on the live servers...ok, disclaimer out the way onto the good stuff.
Test Live is being patched today with the first version of 15.9, and as such here are the provisional patch notes in full for that patch. Those with access to the test forums should check the threads that will be going up there are about the details of testing this content.
An important point to note before people get carried away with this first version is in relation to the SK quests. They are probably harder as it stands on the build going to test then we intend for live, the current build is not the final version of these quests but there is a lot to test in this patch and we felt it worthwhile to put the patch onto test live now so that whilst we tweak the SK quests internally (as well as getting feedback from test on them) we can start to test the various new changes, some of which, have not yet been announced, and we think you will like
Finally there is one significant change that players may see as negative and that is that the value of ingots in the Shadowlands has been lowered. We are aware that opinion will be split on this one, but we felt it was a necessary step in our overall evaluation of hunting in the Shadowlands.
We are though very excitied about this patch and feel it addresses many issues that are very important to our players.
For those with browser difficulties at work and such, I know you like the full version on the forums so here we go!
Preliminary Patch Notes 15.9
Alien Invasion Changes
- CRU Missions. Special missions will now be available for players to take to get a special CRU unit as the mission reward.
- There is a new boss encounter that you have a chance of encountering when entering the end room in alien ship encounters
- Bureaucrats can get access to a new style of pet at level 220
- In alien attacks, team members not in the organisation owning the city can become members of the spaceship boarding team.
- Cyberdeck nukes now do additional damage to targets who have Cellular Re-Structure, Poisoned Thorns, Frost Blades, Magma Covering, or Self Illumination running on them.
- Added feedback when you try to equip an item that requires a perk.
- Players can no longer change the colours of the text for their player shop terminals
- Removed some monsters from spawning inside city limits in Galway County
- Fixed an issue with monsters overrunning some cities in Belial Forest.
- The Rookie and the Unicorn guards and towers in the outzone playfields should now be invulnerable to aoe abilities
- Gates in the Sector 28 should no longer re-spawn behind you.
- Power of the Muscle now correctly modifies Body Development instead of Intelligence.
- Fuzzy Nano Input Hood now correctly modifies Matter Metamorphoses instead of Material Creation.
- Alien Healers should now no longer be able to infinitely chain heal
Shadowlands Changes
- New Shadowknowledge Quests The conflict between the redeemed and unredeemed has escalated and their agents are offering new quests for players over level 150 to access in Adonis, Penumbra and Inferno
-There will be solo and team versions, both will provide instanced indoor areas with an end boss
-There will be three difficulty levels available in each area allowing you to choose how challenging you would like it to be!
-The bosses will drop parts of special pocket boss patterns that can be used to summon projections of each areas Faction boss that can then be tackled for extra faction bonuses. The difficulty of the mission will effect the percentage drop of the pattern parts with the hardest difficulty ensuring a 100% drop of a pattern part
- Tier Armor Quests. Players will now be able to trade in other wills, advents, visions and fruitions with an NPC in Jobe to get the ones they need for their own armor processes. This will be at a 2:1 or 3:1 ratio (depending on the part) so for every two of the other item you trade in you will get one of the type you need.
- Updated the loot tables for chests in the Shadowlands indoor areas
- NPCs in ACG buildings in Shadowlands now give an XP bonus. (Note: this applies to all existing areas as well as the new quest areas)
- Using the Disassembler Tool on certain cyberdecks should no longer cause the requirements on the deck to change.
- Acolyte Gal Bela will talk to neutrals as well now.
- The value of some ingots has been reduced
- The duration of Affected by Reinforce Slugs has been extended to two minutes.
- Nightstick of the Slaughterer and Nightstick of the Butcher should now have the proper inventory icons.
- Added descriptions to the Reaver perk specials.
- Revised the Accumulator perk description to reflect that it only procs on ranged weapon attacks. (the way the attacks works has not been altered)
- The Beast’s bodyguards should now be more attentive to their master
- Moved the teleport location of the exit statue that leads from the Garden of Thrak to The Core to resolve the ‘double zoning’ issue
- Fixed several issues where monsters would spawn in areas outside players reach on the Penumbra brink.
- The duration of the snare effect from Full Frontal and the root effect from Confinement will now be lowered by items or effects which reduce the duration of roots/snares.
- Close Call can now be used properly by players who have only trained up to level 6 in the Embrace perk line.
- The NCU requirements for the Violence special have been lowered to 1, and the duration of the effect has been lowered to two minutes as listed in the description of the ability.
- Fixed the stacking order of the Fixer damage buffs.
- Several perk special icons which did not gray out when used are now working properly.
- Lost Imp should now be spawning correctly again
- Zealot's Armor Sleeves are no longer considered unique.
- Ceremonial Embrace can now be found in the Pandemonium Gardens.
- The disharmony perk proc no longer counts reflected damage
- Fixed inconsistencies between the execution requirements and the uploading requirements of several nanos in the Gallant Slave line:
-Gallant Slave: The Bitter Vassal is now QL 170
-Gallant Slave: The Incensed Subordinate is now QL 190.
Classic Changes
- Looking for Team Interface – New functionality added to provide an interface for searching for a team. Players will be able to flag themselves as ‘looking for team’ and a global interface will allow players to search for other players currently looking for a team
- There are several new quests available for new low-level players.
- Trader Skill Drains now affect NPCs offensive abilities.
- General improvements made to pet and mob pathing
- Pets should register commands better in built up situations (tower battles, large raids etc)
- The residents of the subway dungeons now drop a trendy new garment
- Metaphysic Energy Shields can now only be wielded in the right hand.
- River Series 6 weapons now require energy ammo
- Members of Omni-Tek and the Clans will no longer be able to use application forms issued by their own side.
- We have put some of the NPCs on a more healthy diet now so you will see variations in their weight
- Basic Refined Chest Implants no longer give any modifiers when worn.
- Patchwork Gladiatorbot has had its requirements adjusted to match the requirements on the robotic shell it summons.
- Removed the level restrictions on all basic mission terminals.
- Fixed the poison damage modifiers on Leader of the Pack.
- Faded Nanocluster of Nano Regeneration will no longer spawn below quality level 81.
- The bakeries of Rubi-Ka have made some new pies for all the pie fans out there
- Adjusted the description of the Personal Grid Converter
- Shockwave Slash now lists the damage type as melee in the description.
- Fixed descriptions on several Omni-Armed Forces items to correctly reflect the proper name of that division.
- Fixed a typo in the description of the Platinum Filigree Ring
- Updated the description of the NCU Hacker Interface.
