Dev Blog | New Weapons and Combat Balance Adjustments for September

Dear Metas,

With the September 24 (PT) update, we'll be introducing new weapons and gear to Once Human, while also making some Cradle changes. This Dev Blog includes separate sections for Once Human's regular mode and Once Human: RaidZone.

Once Human (Regular Mode)

I. New Weapons

1. SKS - Pathfinder

▪ Guaranteed to trigger Frost Vortex on hit. Has a cooldown. Each hit reduces the cooldown.

▪ Chance to generate Deviant Particles on hit (picking them up puts you in a Charging state). Increases the maximum number of Charging stacks.

▪ While Charging, consume Deviant Particles to fire an ice spike that pierces enemies, dealing Frost Elemental Weapon DMG based on Attack (benefits from Frost Vortex bonus, reduced DMG against Metas).

▪ Increases Frost Elemental DMG. Each charged shot further increases Frost Elemental DMG.

2. PDW90 - Holographic Resonance

▪ Chance to apply The Bull's Eye on hit.

▪ Every few hits, triggers an explosion dealing Weapon DMG equal to a percentage of Attack to enemies within 8m (reduced DMG against Metas).

▪ Reloads some bullets when the explosion hits a target with The Bull's Eye.

▪ Increased Crit Rate against targets with The Bull's Eye.

II. New Gear

1. Snowdrift Top

▪ When picking up Deviant Particles, gains an additional charge stack and increased Weapon DMG and Status DMG.

2. Bloodstained Tracker Boots

When applying The Bull's Eye to an enemy already marked by The Bull's Eye, your Attack increases for some time, and The Bull's Eye spreads to one other nearby enemy.

III. Reworked Gear

Savior Set

1 piece: Medicine cooldown reduced.

2 pieces: When shielded, Weapon DMG and Status DMG increase.

3 pieces: Consumes a percentage of current HP on hit to generate a temporary shield equal to a percentage of Max HP, lasting some time. (Has a cooldown; does not trigger if Shield exceeds 40%.) When HP drops, Weapon DMG and Status DMG are increased for some time.

4 pieces: Automatically uses the least potent Activator in the backpack when HP is below 30% (has a cooldown).

IV. New Mods

Crescent Suffix Mods

Crit DMG increased, with extra Crit DMG based on Shield (triggers at 40% Shield).

Weapon DMG increased, with extra Weapon DMG based on Shield (triggers at 40% Shield).

Elemental DMG increased, with extra Elemental DMG based on Shield (triggers at 40% Shield).

Status DMG increased, with extra Status DMG based on Shield (triggers at 40% Shield).

V. Balance Adjustments

1. Cradle changes

Deviant Energy Defense: Summoning or handling Deviations grants a temporary shield. While the shield is active, Weapon DMG Reduction and Status DMG Reduction are increased. Has a cooldown.

Energy Surge: Deviations gradually recover Deviant Power at night.

Aerial Suppression replaced with Resilience: Shield takes less damage from Deviants.

Tactical Leap replaced with Shield Protection: When you have a certain amount of Shield, deal more DMG and receive less DMG against Deviants.

2. Mod changes

Once Human: RaidZone

I. New Weapons

1. Nail Gun

Submachine gun. Has a slow fire rate and short range, but it's cheap and easy to make, making it perfect for close-quarters combat in the early game.

This weapon can be unlocked with very few Memory Chips and crafted at a Primary Gear Workbench or better. Its Memetic is located below the Rusted Blade.

The Nail Gun uses exclusive ammunition, Nail Gun Bullets, that can be retrieved like arrows.

2. SKS

Sniper rifle that uses medium-caliber ammunition. High recoil but fast max Fire Rate, ideal for mid-range burst suppression.

Its Memetic is located below the MPS7. It can be crafted at an Intermediate Gear Workbench or better.

3. PDW90

Submachine gun that uses small-caliber ammunition. Boasts rapid fire and a large-capacity magazine, with a compact design perfect for close-quarters combat.

Its Memetic is located below the Tactical Rifle Scope. It can be crafted at an Advanced Gear Workbench or better.

II. Memetics Changes

1. Added the Nail Gun, SKS, and PDW90 Memetics.

2. Removed the SOCR Memetic. You can no longer craft SOCR weapons, but can still find them in the wilderness.

3. Moved the KAM Memetic below the PDW90, replacing the SOCR's role. Its rarity has been increased from Rare to Epic, and its DMG increased from 15 to 18. You can still use any KAM weapons you own.

III. Balance Adjustments

1. Weapon trajectory and spread adjustments

All weapons' OTS field of view +20%

All weapons' ADS field of view -10%

All weapons' bullet velocity (excluding sniper rifles) +20%

Currently, players prefer over-the-shoulder (OTS) aiming for mid-range combat as it has low bullet spread and a wider field of view. We want players to use different aiming methods based on distance, mixing and matching them with various weapon accessories and ammo types. Hence, we've increased the initial bullet velocity for all weapons (except sniper rifles) and adjusted the bullet spread for both OTS and ADS views.

In November, we'll introduce phased bullet trajectories. At close range, all weapons will fire in a straight line, providing more immediate feedback during close-range combat. At medium to long range, bullets will still have travel speed and bullet drop.

2. Light machine gun optimizations

Currently, light machine guns don't feel very different from assault rifles in combat, but have a larger bullet spread. This doesn't justify their high crafting cost. We want light machine guns to provide sustained suppression at medium to long range, synergizing with their high bullet velocity and large magazine capacity. Their bullet trajectory and recoil should also become more stable the longer you fire.

a) MG4

b) KVD - Boom! Boom!

3. Weapon Accessory Balance Adjustments

Similarly to the above changes, we want players to utilize scopes during medium to long-range combat. Therefore, we're changing the stat bonuses of low-magnification scopes to make them more useful.

4. Armor Balance Adjustments

We've optimized the defensive stat bonuses of the recently added non-set armors to make them more attractive for use.

That's the end of this Dev Blog. In future updates, we'll continue to monitor combat builds to assess if further adjustments are necessary. If you have any questions or suggestions, please let us know via the Co-Dev Feedback Platform or our official community channels. Thank you for your understanding and support!

Once Human Development Team