Dev Update: Bounty Overhaul & Combat Mechanic

Greetings, Commanders!
We have some exciting updates heading to the Frontier soon in patch 3.18. Before they launch, however, we want to share some additional insights into several of the changes.

Currently, all Bounties scale from stage 1 (Boss level 1) to 15 (Boss level 125), and although we are happy with this start and endpoint of the progression curve, there are several points of friction caused by large steps in difficulty that we’d like to address. Therefore, as of patch 3.18, Bounties shall have smaller steps between floors, scaling from stage 1 (Boss level 1) to 32 (Boss level 124). The result of this means that the endpoint (formerly 15, soon to be 32) shall be marginally easier to reach, but the journey there should feel like a much smoother increase of difficulty.

In addition to the level scaling, there are a few other key changes occurring within the Bounty ecosystem:

Throughout progression, Affinities are something we would like to have a greater impact on player choices and is a system we are currently reviewing. As such, the first step toward this is that bounties shall now feature a rotation of affinities. Every four levels, the affinity of the boss and any of its henchmen will rotate. This rotation ensures that the final 4 stages (28-32) will land on the current permanent affinity of that floor. We intend for this change to create a clear pathway for overcoming progression sticking points.

With the increase in stages, there is also a need for modifying how rewards are scaled. Every stage shall feature an increase in credit gain, ensuring that it is always beneficial to fight the highest possible bounty you can. Equipment rewards, however, shall now scale slightly differently. The first 3 stages of any affinity (levels 1-3, 5-7, 9-11… 29-31) shall have the same drop rates, whilst the final stage of an affinity (levels 4, 8, 12, 16, 20…32) will see an increase. The end result is that level 32 will now also see an increase in drop rates when compared to the current level 15. Happy farming!

What about my current progression?
To ease the transition, on your first login after the patch has been released, the highest stage you previously reached of each bounty shall be migrated directly into the new system to the nearest level equivalent, preventing a need to re-clear a mass of lower floors.

What about my Background Battle reward tiers?
The above migration shall also bring your reward tiers for the bounties levels with it.

How will Abyssal Bounties unlock?
Abyssal Bounties shall now be unlocked upon defeating level 32

How will credit gain be affected?
Base credits gained per level are now displayed in the level selection screen. They start and end at the same points, however, they now have a much more stable curve that ensures an increase in energy cost for a level still results in greater credits gained per energy spent. This is to reduce the desire to farm a lower level than you are up to in order to retain efficiency.

As of 3.18, we shall be making some changes to how incoming damage increases and reductions are processed. This change shall only impact the order of operations, and aims to take steps towards streamlining the combat system in order to provide better combat readability and reduce skill knowledge fatigue.
Multiple sources of incoming damage reduction, such as the passive of Iridium, Anemone, Voron, etc alongside equipables like the ultimate implant Hyperion Gaze, and buffs like ‘Incoming Damage Down’ among many others, have a series of unique rules on how they operate in conjunction with each other.
Moving forward in 3.18, we shall be relaxing unique rules and instead transitioning into these 3 standardized rules:

1. Incoming Damage increase/reduction from the same source will stack additively.
Two different buffs giving 10% each, will be 20% reduction

2. Incoming Damage increase/reduction from a different source will stack multiplicatively.
An implant giving 20% reduction, followed by a buff granting 20%. The implant reduction will be calculated, then the buff reduction will be applied to the new running total after the implant reduction.

3. Player obtainable units' incoming damage reduction total will be hard-capped at 70%.
The combined total after all additive/multiplicative calculations are computed cannot exceed 70% for player obtainable units. Unique boss mechanics are currently still exempt from this rule.

Sources of reduction and increase are the following categories, listed from top to bottom in the order of operations they are processed in.

• Global Modifiers (Such as Arena or Void breach modifier)
  
• Squad Leader benefits
  
• Implants
  
• Equipment Sets
  
• Buffs/Debuffs
  
• Unit Skills
  

What about existing skills that state they cannot stack?
These shall now stack, additively within their sources, and multiplicatively across sources.

How will this impact my current boss teams?
As this change impacts incoming damage only, and unique boss mechanics are still exempt. You should see no change to how your teams perform in existing content.