Dear Commanders, Update 1.3 is finally here! This update introduces a new unit and a new Tournament type, along with significant adjustments to the 4-Player Brawl mechanics. Additionally, we've implemented major balance adjustments. This update will be carried out at 10:30 AM on February 20, 2025, UTC time. At that time, the server will undergo update maintenance for approximately 4 hours.
New Unit: Hound
Hounds are mechanical dogs that move in packs, specializing in fighting other light units at medium range. They can even clear acid and fire on the ground if equipped with the right Tech.
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Developer's Note: The introduction of Hound marks the first addition of a 100-supply chaff unit in the past seven years of Mechabellum development. Hound is likely to create ripple effects in the game's unit counter dynamics. We will anticipate additional adjustments to Hound over the coming weeks.
New Tournament Mode: 2v2 Tournament
The new 2v2 tournament will allow players to team up and compete in tournaments. The 2v2 tournaments are held every Sunday with 16 players per group (8 teams).
4-Player Brawl Changes
Due to the expansion of the development team, we now have enough resources to develop more content for the 4-Player Brawl mode. The following changes are the first step in a series of adjustments for the 4-Player Brawl mode.
- Now in 4-Player Brawl players can choose two reinforcements per round, one for equipment, unit modification, or battlefield powers, and one for unit reinforcements.
- Now destroying units belonging to the leading player will earn extra points and supplies.
- The Boss units of rounds 3 and 6 will now start off from the center of the map.
- Boss units in rounds 7-10 were removed.
- Another [Inefficient Recovery] has been added to the Research Center.
- The [Redeployment] originally in the R&D Center is now usable by default. Developer's Note: The goal of these adjustments is to provide players with more means of board transition in later rounds, increase build variety, and at the same time reduce the pressure of leading players created by Boss units while making it easier for other players to catch up.
Balance Adjustments
Unlock cost adjustment
- Sledgehammer's unlock cost decreased from 50 to 0.
- Steel Ball's unlock cost decreased from 50 to 0.
- Stormcaller's unlock cost decreased from 50 to 0.
- Tarantula's unlock cost decreased from 50 to 0.
- Mustang's unlock cost decreased from 50 to 0.
- Sabertooth's unlock cost decreased from 50 to 0.
- Wraith's unlock cost decreased from 100 to 50.
- Scorpion's unlock cost decreased from 100 to 50. Developer's note: The unlocking cost of all units that can appear at the beginning of the game has been adjusted to 0, which will greatly increase strategy varieties of the early rounds. These changes will likely bring big challenges to the balance of the game. We don't know the exact impact of these changes on the balance yet, but we will likely continue to make balance adjustments in the coming weeks.
Fortress
- The production quantity for every batch decreased from 12 to 10, and the production interval increased from 30 seconds to 32 seconds. Developer's note: Fortress' [Fang Production] was relatively strong in the last patch, so we have slightly nerfed it.
Vulcan
- ATK increased from 88 to 90 (2% increase). Developer's Note: Vulcan has a lower win rate compared to other giants. By increasing Vulcan's ATK, We hope to provide players with more options to fight against light units.
Rhino
- ATK increased from 3297 to 3560 (8% increase). Developer's Note: Unlike most other ground units that cost 200 supplies, Rhino still has an unlock cost of 50 supplies. We hope to slightly improve Rhino's situation through a small ATK increase.
Overlord
- The HP of Overlord's missiles has increased by 10%. Developer's Note: This adjustment will help Overlord to perform better against missile interceptions.
Hacker
- The price of [Barrier] has increased from 300 to 400, and the HP of the shield has decreased from 20,000 per level to 16,000 per level.
Wraith
- The price of [Degeneration Beam] has dropped from 250 to 200.
Tarantula
- The EXP required for rank-up has increased by 23%.
- ATK decreased from 550 to 534 (3% decrease). Developer's note: In the last patch, Tarantula were quite strong, especially those that reached level 2 or above early on, and they even performed pretty well against high-HP enemies. These adjustments aim to slow down Tarantula's rank-up speed while also weakening its performance against high-HP enemies.
Raiden
- The price of [Fork] has dropped from 250 to 200.
War Factory
- The price of [Armor Enhancement] has been increased from 100 to 200.
Phantom Ray
- [Stealth Cloak] now will not dodge bullets fired by enemies before Phantom Ray becomes invisible.
Initial Unit
- Steel Ball and Arclight opening's HP bonus decreased from 400 to 100.
- Tarantula and Fang opening's HP bonus decreased from 200 to 0.
Variant
- [Mass-Produced Fortress]'s ATK and HP reduction increased from 30% to 40%.
- [Improved Tarantula] no longer increases ATK, and now increases movement speed by 3 instead of 5.
- [Extended Range Phantom Ray] now increases range by 30 instead of 20.
Other
- [Elite Recruitment] will now increase the rank of all units that can be purchased by 1.
- Now matches in the lobby will be ordered by MMR by default.
The 1.3 update contains a lot of content and will have a huge impact on the balance. According to our plan, we will release several small patches in the coming weeks to tweak the balance further. Commanders, thank you for the continued support, and we hope that everyone can remain patient during the upcoming adjustments.