Last week we found out that WAR's next patch, 1.3.4, may hit the Public Test Server in early February. Yesterday, Mythic's Andy Belford posted some details about the upcoming changes in the 1.3.4 patch. So what do we know now?
First up, a disclaimer. These details are subject to change and are not complete. We still don't have a full picture of the patch.
"We will be introducing an entire new line of weapons earned via RvR (this is the "feature players have been asking for"). These weapons will be purchasable via a vendor and will not be bought using medallions or crests, instead utilizing an entirely new currency system earned via Scenario gameplay from tiers 1-4. More information about these new items and how they're earned will be forthcoming in a Dev Diary with Developer Sean Bosshardt."This is great news, weapons obtained via RvR is something players have wanted for a while. On IRC, Andy gave a bit more details about the weapons which will be available. It seems that they will range in quality all the way up to Sovereign level. I'm very happy to see this change.
Of course, this addition is not without controversy. More specifically, the fact you will earn the new currency from Scenarios only. We don't know whether we get them from winning, losing or what yet. There is fear that this will lead to premades dominating scenarios even more now. There is also concern this will take the emphasis away from open RvR. This topic alone deserves its own post.
"We are completely reworking the current structure of Scenarios by removing some of the less popular and streamlining the tiering of Scenarios. There will be more details upcoming in a Dev Diary from Content/RvR Lead Mike Wyatt next month. "I actually like all of the scenarios, so I'm disappointed that some will be removed. As for tier changes, this will probably be a good idea. Since we don't know the details it is hard to say for sure. I'm still hoping for renown rank brackets which may help with the premade issue.
The last tidbit is a change to the way that the campaign functions. Starting with 1.3.4, once a Contested City flips into the Captured state (otherwise called "Stage 2") the Open RvR Campaign will now restart, leaving the realm sieging their enemies city with a tough decision: Stay in the city, possibly defeating your opponent's King, or retreat back to the open field to defend your realm?This change seems like a good idea. It only happens when a city is captured (not contested). It may give the defeated realm a chance to gain the upper hand in the campaign while the other realm is busy. As I have never been online during Stage 2, I'm not too concerned.
It is great to see some details finally revealed. I think that overall this will be a very nice patch and can't wait for February.
