Patch 1.2.0 "Meat Maker Marinade" Now Live
The patch we announced in our
State of the Frozen Union address is here!
Wasteland 3 Patch 1.2.0 "Meat Maker Marinade"
- Balance changes have adjusted some core systems to ensure a true wasteland experience. Developer commentary is included below from David Rogers to help explain the thought process and intentions behind the changes.
- We finally resolved the issue that could cause the two starting Rangers' attributes to go into the negative. Thanks to everyone who had to deal with this for your patience.
- We resolved a few progression blockers which were giving some of you grief, including the Yuma County Speedway door and Little Hell gondola.
- The incredibly annoying slamming-into-cover issue is now addressed! If you still want your controller to vibrate endlessly we hear there are apps for that.
- [PC/Xbox] Brazilian Portuguese and Italian subtitles are now available!
- Note: These additional subtitles are expected to be available on PlayStation by early next year.
[...]
Balance
- The XP needed to level up has been adjusted. XP requirements for levels 8 through 20 have been only slightly increased, while XP requirements from 20-30 have been greatly increased. This brings the functional max level down to around 27, from around 29.
- "Critical hit chance was getting much higher than we wanted, and was having an outsized impact on combat. Enemies were critically hitting players too often, which didn't feel good, and player critical hit chance was getting up too high, particularly for characters who weren't necessarily even trying to build for crit chance. These new changes target bringing overall crit chances down, mostly for characters who aren't consciously building for crit chance. We did this rather than bringing down the maximum crit damage. We like big damage numbers, they feel good, but we want them to be the exception, not the norm."
- "The goal with these two changes is to buff the assault rifle, but also to give it a different use-case vs. the SMG. While the SMG is about heavy damage and high risk flanking maneuvers, the assault rifle should be a reliable work-horse that can deliver consistent damage when it's needed while staying safe behind cover."
- Characters who have been stunned will gain a "Stun Protection" status effect after it wears off, stopping any character from being stunned two turns in a row.
- Tier 4 and 5 loot crates have a reduced chance to drop above-tier gear, making tier 5 and 6 weapons rarer earlier in the game.
- Shotguns and flamethrowers have had their Torrent Strike damage reduced to 200% of weapon damage, down from 300%.
- Pistol Pete will no longer use the Trick Shot ability.
- Weapons and armor now display their level, making it easier to compare items and understand if your gear is at the appropriate level for your characters.
- Sniper rifles have had their bonus strike rate reduced. Low level sniper rifles have no bonus strike rate, but will start to gain the stat at higher levels.
- High level sniper rifles now cost 7 AP to fire, up from 6.
- "We saw a dominant strategy form in which lots of low-level animal companions were being taken, along with many of the followers, which resulted in them having too large an impact on combat (namely in how much damage they soaked up). We know people love their animals and generally will reload their save game until they survive the fight, so rather than killing your furry friends off, we're limiting how much the enemies are shooting them vs. your own Rangers. This, combined with reduced follower tanking will hopefully put a larger emphasis on debuffs at higher difficulties."
- Deployables now have a maximum level they'll scale to, stopping them from being overly impactful in the late game. The most notable change is that Machine turrets will stop getting better after level 14, while laser turrets will scale up to lvl 20.
- The skill needed to install a Razor Box weapon mod has been reduced to 6, from 10.
- Satoshi's case is now more valuable to vendors.
- Rocket launchers now cost 4 AP to reload, up from 2.
- Cheebus now sells Tier 5 gear, down from Tier 6.
- Jackhammer shotgun's AP to fire is increased to 5, up from 3.
- Food items are now more expensive (AP) to eat in combat.
- Pre-order bonus weapons have had their vendor value lowered, so if they're sold they do not dramatically impact the intended economy.
As for the Sniper ap cost increase to 7, I can't say I'm a fan. Sniper rifles were already middle of the pack (aka mostly balanced) at the prior cost.
