"It’s no use, ma’am…

We’ve staged three separate attacks on the Containment Shield in the space of two days, but the CDA have already started repairs.

Unless we attack every single pylon at once, that thing is going to hold. MercSERV don’t have enough contacts on British soil, and we can’t afford an army…

*We’re running out of… Sorry? A Holo-*what?"

The End of Execution

Objective and Stopwatch modes have always been our bread and butter, the ultimate realization of what makes a Splash Damage game great. Ever since its release in 2015, Execution Mode hasn’t fully gelled with our fast-paced, multiple objective-based vision, and so it’s with a heavy heart that we’ve decided to remove it from Dirty Bomb. You can read more about this decision in a forum post here.

Execution will be in the game until the 22nd of August. To round it off with a bang, we’re taking things back to where they all began:

Final Assault Event

When Execution was launched, we introduced our first Limited Edition Loadout Cards: Containment War cards.
To celebrate the mode’s last hurrah, we’re introducing Second Edition Containment War cards, including some small changes to the skins and cards.

From now until Tuesday 22 August, you’ll be able to get your hands on them in a couple of ways:

Final Assault Equipment Cases

Every Equipment Case in the game has been replaced with a Final Assault variant, giving you a 2% chance of getting a Second Edition Containment War card.

These drop at the end of matches, and are purchasable with Credits in the Store.

Final Assault Event Cases

You can also pick up Elite Case bundles, which come with bonus Final Assault Event Cases that guarantee you a Second Edition Containment War card.

Event Duration

• London (BST): 11:00 Thursday, August 10 - 11:00 Tuesday, August 22
• Los Angeles (PDT): 3:00 AM Thursday, August 10 - 3:00 AM Tuesday, August 22
• Sydney (AEST): 8:00 PM Thursday, August 10 - 8:00 PM Tuesday, August 22

Phantom Obsidian Operative

As if Phantom didn’t think he was cool enough, he’s had a full makeover with a brand new, super-suave skin available until August 22nd.

This includes a carbon-fiber katana skin; the first melee weapon to receive this treatment.

Pick up one of three Loadouts available in the store, or snag them all with the Merc himself before they disappear.

Daily Play Bonuses

This update sees Daily Play bonuses being completely reworked. This new system rewards simply playing a single match, meaning you can play the modes you enjoy without players intentionally unbalancing matches to try to get a win.

Get rewards simply for logging in, playing a single match and then claiming your bonus - The more consecutive days you play over a 7-day period, the better your chances of unboxing a higher-rarity Loadout Card become.

Proxy Cyber-Eye Case Unlock

Turtle’s work is complete! Proxy’s new CoreSEC cyber eye is ready, and she’s ready to go back to being binocular.
If you purchased a Cyber Eye case during the Shell Shock event, it will now be unlocked in your Barracks and ready to open.

Merc Balance Improvements

After an extended hiatus, we’re diving back into tweaking Merc balance to improve the game. These changes are the first of many we’ll be implementing in the coming months - As always, we’d love to hear your feedback on these and potential future changes.

Aimee

To bring Aimee’s SNITCH Device closer to the effectiveness of Vassili or Redeyes abilities, we’ve made a slight improvement.

• Reduced detection time to 0.3s (from 0.6s) This means that the SNITCH Device will detect players much more quickly when they come into line of sight

Aura

We’ve fixed a bug that prevents the Potent Packs Augment from improving the Healing Station. To compensate for that, we’ve reduced the base healing rates so that with the Potent Packs the Healing Station heals at almost exactly the same rates as before.

• Reduced base healing rate to 26hp/s (from 31hp/s)
• Reduce base self-healing rate to 24hp/s (from 28hp/s)
• Fixed bug where Potent Packs Augment didn’t improve Healing Station’s rate

Bushwhacker

While effective at guarding routes and weakening the enemy, Bushwhackers Turret was still too easy to destroy, so we’re making it slightly tougher and quicker to replace.

• Increase Turret HP to 120hp (from 110hp)
• Reduced Turret Cooldown to 30s (from 35s)

Fletcher

We’ve made some changes to make Fletcher’s Sticky Bombs less spammy, while still rewarding direct hits.
Increased Sticky Bomb cooldown to 9s (from 8s)

• Reduced maximum radial damage to 75 (from 85)
• Direct hit bonus damage remains at 15

Phoenix

Phoenix’s Self-Revive is something that isn’t be used nearly often enough, as vigilant players will make sure to finish him. While we don’t want to make the ability more powerful directly, we do want to allow more opportunities to use it.

• Reduced Self Revive Cooldown to 25s (from 60s)

Stoker

While Stoker’s Molotov is very effective at area-denial, we’ve tweaked it to become more effective when used offensively.

• Increased Molotov fire damage by ~10%

Thunder

With Thunder continuing to be overly effective in combat, we’ve reduced his overall health pool and marginally reduced the impact of his Concussion Grenades once more.

• Reduced health pool to 160hp from (170hp)
• Reduced maximum blind and stun duration by 0.5s

Turtle

Considering how long it takes to destroy Turtle’s Shield, we felt that Turtle could too quickly spin up a replacement.

• Increased Shield cooldown to 30s (from 25s)
• Extender Augment now increases Shield size by 25% (from 20%)

Arty / Skyhammer / Sawbonez / Sparks

So that Health and Ammo Packs can be picked up by the next spawn wave if missed, we’ve increased the amount of time it takes for Packs to de-spawn once dropped.

• Increased lifespan of dropped Health Packs or Ammo Packs to 35s (from 25s)

Kira / Stoker

To make Ammo Stations more about good-placement than cooldown management, we’ve significantly reduced the cooldown for these Mercs.

• Reduced Ammo Station Cooldown to 15s (from 25s)

Bug Fixes

Ranked

• Fixed bug where players that failed to accept Ranked matches could get stuck in a broken party
• Fixed bug where it was possible to invite more than 5 people into a ranked party
• Fixed bug where players’ ranks were not initially visible when joining a party

General

• Fixed bug where explosive damage on mid-air players could cause instagibs
• Fixed bug where Molotovs weren’t dealing damage to Objectives
• Fixed bug where Obsidian Operative skins could first be visible as a basic skin when spawning

Gameplay

• Fixed bug where the katana spin animation was not interruptable, and improved the animation itself
• Fixed bug where shooting Turtle’s shield counted towards accuracy

Maps

• Fixed bug where doors and lifts would move off-center slightly after each interaction

UI

• Fixed bug where broken text was visible for the Taco Trinket in non-English languages
• Fixed bug where numbers were cut off in the Spectator Camera Speed options panel

Farewell execution.

Great stuff
Thank you

I actually feel so bad that they’re forced to remove Execution.

Where are the gen 3 cards?

And didn’t you guys said the cyber eye case would be Gen 3?

Why is mine gen 2?

@xHandymanx said:
Where are the gen 3 cards?

And didn’t you guys said the cyber eye case would be Gen 3?

Why is mine gen 2?

Third Edition cards don’t have a release date. Cyber Eye Case is Second Edition with the Proxy eye design which Third Edition cards will have.

@Eox said:
Farewell execution.

Well… it was fun while it lasted…

I guess earning the potential Game Mode XP got heavily nerfed.

@stayfreshshoe said:

@xHandymanx said:
Where are the gen 3 cards?

And didn’t you guys said the cyber eye case would be Gen 3?

Why is mine gen 2?

Third Edition cards don’t have a release date. Cyber Eye Case is Second Edition with the Proxy eye design which Third Edition cards will have.

Oh okay, thank you for clearing that up. I’m sorry for taking this the wrong way but the only thing kept me going was that you mentioned gen 3 cards a lot in the recent videos making me assume that they’re coming with the Cyber Eye case.

I guess i’ll take a month off DB, I can’t stop thinking about the Gen 3 cards and this really is a bummer for me. Hope people will have fun with the new Obsidian phantom

Finally a balance patch, and looks to be a good one. The Fletcher balance I think should see him in a much better place now. Thunder now… I understand 160hp, but the real problem was the stark, not the hp, and the reduction in duration of effects means nothing if they are dead before the effects end. He needs a longer fuse or cooking. Stoker will be much better too, and I also did not expect aura to be here but I do definitely appreciate the changes. Thanks SD.

Hopefully we’ll see a Phantom buff and a Redeye nerf in one of the upcoming balance updates

With execution gone, we have extra place for a game mode… GUN GAMEEEE! For real tho, that is one of the most fun gamemodes in FPS that I ever played. It could fit in DB and it would take place in execution maps maybe. It would be unique since it’s FFA. What do you think?

The bad thing about execution loss though is that it basically announces that SD will probably never pull out a proper king of the hill gamemode, as they are greatly focusing on OB/SW. Too bad.

I was really under the impression that we will get 3rd gen loadouts today. Nice patch but im also slightly dissapointed. It was the biggest thing i was looking for.

@Guziol said:
I was really under the impression that we will get 3rd gen loadouts today. Nice patch but im also slightly dissapointed. It was the biggest thing i was looking for.

I don’t now where some of you people got this idea that gen 3 cards were today. All shoe said in the video was that proxy’s new eye will be in all gen 3 cards. That’s it.

Balance changes are disappointing to say the least, at least the ones that we got are decent.
When can we expect burst rifles nerfs ? Since that is the most requested thing i am surprised that nothing have been done about them, or redeye, or shotguns (i get that this might not come since shotgunes arent overpowered and reworks are generally harder to do) or…

I was simply expecting a lot more =/

Yay, the lines of gradually disappearing just in front of you ammo packs as you spawn were funny but also annoying.

@ragnak Hopefully they rebalance weapons sometime this month, it may have been too short notice to balance weapons to what people requested.

So no more regular missions?

. This new system rewards simply playing a single match, meaning you can play the modes you enjoy without players intentionally unbalancing matches to try to get a win.

What exactly does it mean “without player intentionally unbalacing matches to try to get a win”?

Also Joining an “Ending Soon” Game isn’t really playing the Game, its just a short Grind while maybe even standing in Spawn and throwing Packs.

Maybe you can clear things up @stayfreshshoe

I like the Fletcher Nerf though, but Molotovs need really to be worked on, still no Damage to Enemy Mines etc.

@Eox said:
The bad thing about execution loss though is that it basically announces that SD will probably never pull out a proper king of the hill gamemode, as they are greatly focusing on OB/SW. Too bad.

They should have more gamemodes because OB and SW get boring after some time. It should be a gamemode that is just for fun where you just enjoy the game apart from it’s cometitive enviorment.

Or they could add special event on Halloween - like a zombie gamemode. Phantom with katana only vs a few other mercs and then he hunts them down. Afterwards they turn into phantom when they get killed.

Basically 2 modes just isn’t enough if they want more players :/. And these 2 modes are basically the same, just SW is a little longer.