Welcome to Outfit Wars
Outfit Wars is a tournament-based event where outfits (organized groups of players) compete against one another to show who is the most prepared, coordinated, and fearsome on the field of battle. Outfits will fight for leaderboard placement match after match in hopes of achieving rewards, recognition, and maybe some bragging rights. Below we'll walk through how Outfit Wars has changed in 2022, so that you can prepare to claim victory in the upcoming season.
Phases of War
There are four main phases in Outfit Wars (Enlistment, Qualifiers, Playoffs, and Championships) that take place over the course of seven weeks.
- Enlistment - When the Enlistment phase begins (Aug. 03,) any outfit with at least 48 players can sign up to participate after paying the resource entry fee. At that point, at least 48 players from that outfit must confirm their participation to verify the Enlistment. This is slightly different from last year, and is intended to reduce the amount of "ghost outfits" capable of signing up. While 48 members are required to validate the signup, they are not the only outfit members allowed to play. Any outfit member can jump into a match that has begun, provided their outfit rank has the "Outfit War" assigned. These privileges are determined by your outfit's leadership.
- Qualifiers - When the first week of Qualifiers begins, Enlisted outfits will immediately be assigned their upcoming match day and times. Matches take place once per week on a Friday or Saturday at 8pm or 8:30pm server time. When that week's matches are over, placements for the next week will be determined, and new match times will be assigned. This gives outfits an entire week to get organized and stock War Asset supplies as necessary.
- Playoffs - After four rounds of Qualifiers, the top eight outfits will make their way into the Playoffs. The first-round Playoff winners will then move into the final Playoffs matchup to determine who will match up against one another in the Championships.
- Championships - When the final Playoffs match is complete, their scores will determine the Gold/Silver and Bronze/Fourth place matchups. Placement in this last match determines the final winners in the Outfit Wars season. Championship games will take place exclusively on Saturday, with the Bronze/Fourth place battle starting at 12pm server time and the Silver/Gold matchup at 12:30pm server time.
The 1v1 Format
For the new season, outfits will be pitted against one another in one-versus-one combat on the battle island of Nexus.
- When a match begins two teams of up to 48 players can travel to their match on Nexus.
- Each match has a 20 minute preparation phase, during which players can enter the zone and start getting organized. Players are confined to the Warpgate during this time.
- When the preparation phase ends, a 45 minute match timer begins, and no other players will be allowed into the match.
- The Colossus and Bastion Fleet Carrier are unavailable on Nexus, though other War Assets are fair game.
- Construction is unavailable on Nexus as well, though ANTs are still available without terminal access.
- Continent lock benefits, and boosts to Nanite gains are not in effect on Nexus.
- The snowy battleground of Nexus is divided into two Warpgates and nine bases. The three center bases begin neutral, and the three bases nearest each Warpgate begin owned by their respective faction.
- When the alert begins, players will be released from their Warpgates, and be able to begin capturing and defending these bases.
- The team with the most controlled territory at the end of the alert, or the team who can connect their Warpgate to the opposing faction's Warpgate, will win the match.
Win/Loss and Bracket Points
At the end of each match cycle, outfits will be sorted into their next matchups based on who has the strongest win/loss record. When ties in win/loss record exist, Bracket Points determine who has the better overall standing.
Each match on Nexus has a pool of 500 points that outfits are capable of earning. Once per minute, two points from this pool are given to an outfit for each base they currently own. In the case of a dominating victory, and remaining points in the pool are given to the victorious outfit.
This mechanic is meant to incentivize aggressive play where scoring a decisive victory is going to be more beneficial than a long, drawn out encounter. It also helps more quickly segment outfits of varying skill levels throughout the Qualifiers.
Same Faction Fighting
For the first time, we will be allowing outfits from the same faction to fight one another whenever the matches line up that way. Each team will be assigned to either the Red or Blue team while on Nexus, and your tracer fire, abilities, and HUD indicators will be updated to follow suit. We've also made accommodations for setting your own HUD indicator colors while specifically on Nexus. Nanite Systems Operatives players who have chosen a home faction will now also be able to compete alongside their outfit.
Rewards
Outfit Wars rewards come in a few varieties, though the awards listed are subject to change:
- Each match on Nexus awards ISO-4 when the alert ends, for all participants.
- Any character that has ended at least one match on Nexus will be eligible for placement rewards.
- Placement rewards are made available for outfits who make it into the Playoffs and beyond.
- A special Outfit Wars profile banner is available for outfits in the top eight and higher, while unique Bronze, Silver, and Gold banner frames will be available for the top three outfits.
- When Outfit Wars ends, statues for the victorious outfits will remain visible in Sanctuary until the next season begins.