Welcome to Inside the Vault!
This week we have some exciting news to share about our next major update which expands our map deep into the wooded heartland of Skyline Valley!
Starting today, Vault Dwellers on Steam will be able to start testing this new update in our Public Test Server (PTS) and providing feedback on their experience in our community Discord (which you should join to stay up-to-date on all Fallout 76 news).
Read on to learn more about what’s currently being tested.
Public Test Server - Skyline Valley
The PTS for the Skyline Valley update will happen in two parts, Part 1 launches this afternoon and will allow you to get acquainted with the new region, participate in a public event, and stake your claim on the land by placing down C.A.M.P.s. Part 2 will release in May and will introduce you to the all-new main questline.
The new public event that you will be testing is called Dangerous Pastimes. In this event, you will help thrill-seeking storm chasers get the best picture of the storm by protecting them from the elements, the Lost, and nearby Charged creatures.
To help you plan around what to test, we’ve prepared a special outline of when events will be happening throughout the PTS period. We invite you to join and provide feedback on these events.
Public Event Testing Schedule (Please Note: These Dates Are Subject to Change)
April 18
- Once PTS is open, the new public event, Dangerous Pastimes, will be running every 20 minutes.
April 27
- Dangerous Pastimes event will be replaced by Fasnacht as we test some changes around the event. Primarily, the changes will be focused on the performance and pacing of the event. Fasnacht will be running at the top of the hour.
April 29
- Dangerous Pastimes replaces Fasnacht.
Along with testing the public events, we want to specifically request that you all nuke the region while playing. Maybe something will happen, maybe nothing. Probably nothing... right?
Keep an eye on our Discord for updates on when all these events are active and for feedback threads where you can share all of your thoughts and report issues you may run into.
Combat Rebalance Work
Starting with the Skyline Valley Update, we are beginning a series of combat updates that are aimed to improve your experience. Our goal is for these changes to have positive effects on combat throughout the game. These will be tested during PTS.
To help set expectations, we expect these changes to take effect in a variety of places (Weapons, Creatures, etc.) across multiple patches. Giving you all a lot of time to provide feedback on the adjustments being made to ensure we’re moving in a positive direction.
To start things off, we’re adjusting the following creatures:
- Angler
- Cave Cricket
- Floaters
- Gulper
- Mutant Hound
- Protectron
We have also improved how we calculate the falloff for weapon damage at range. We expect this to smooth out the falloff damage for weapons that historically lost most of their damage right away. All ranged weapons benefit from this, but it should be most visible with Shotguns and Pipe Guns, as well as when fighting larger creatures such as Deathclaws.
How to Participate in the PTS
All players who own a copy of Fallout 76 on Steam can participate in our PTS. Please note that progress from the PTS does not carry over into the live game. The Atomic Shop is also disabled during this testing period.
To install the PTS, open your Steam library, and install “Fallout 76 Public Test Server”.
Known Issues
- Trees Around Dark Hollow Manor – When viewing Dark Hollow Manor from a distance, a large section of trees around the manor appears invisible.
- The Lost – When a Lost Engineer is decapitated, orange glass remains visible and attached to the body.
- **Slumber Mill Hotel River** – Water under the bridge near Slumber Mill Hotel will appear unmoving.
- Neurological Warfare – Door Prompt – When attempting to enter boss event area during the waiting period, players will see a pop-up saying “Unlock [Requires Terminal]”. Players will need to wait for the timer to run to 0.
- Reward Names (C.A.M.P. Objects, Outfits) - All new C.A.M.P. and Outfit rewards unlockable in Dangerous Pastimes and Neurological Warfare should be considered as temporary names. Final names will appear in the next PTS update.
- Reward Functionality – New C.A.M.P. rewards may display issues with destructibility in C.A.M.P.s, tradability with vendors, destructibility on drop, stashing in non-stash containers, and/or being unlocked prematurely in workshops.
- Reward Preview in Workshop Menu – Thumbnails of new rewards may appear over zoomed in when viewing them in workshop menu.
- Neurological Warfare – Collision on Balcony – When waiting for Neurological Warfare to start in the “Robot Testing Waiting Area”, players can jump through part of ceiling asset on the balcony.
- Neurological Warfare – Lighting on Balcony – While waiting for Neurological Warefare to start in the “Robot Testing Waiting Area”, lighting may flicker along the west of the balcony.
- Neurological Warfare – Event Image – Placeholder loading screen is present when players join event from map.
- Dangerous Pastimes – Rewards Information - Dangerous Pastimes event has no potential rewards listed in the event information tooltip.
- Camp Liberty – Graphical Issues – Players may be able to see enemies and environmental assets appearing in and out inconsistently when looking inside the main camp building. This has been reported when viewing from the north or eastern sides.