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The Citadel Update - 1.2

Welcome to the Citadel. This is our largest update since launching on Quest, and this is only the beginning of what we have planned. This update adds a social hub where players can gather before matches, a brand new revolver, several new weapon sights, jumping in all game modes, and prestige level 2: ORIGINS.

[h2]CITADEL[/h2]
The Citadel is a brand new social space where players can gather before jumping into the regular game. It features a 1v1 arena, combat arena, mini-golf, marketplace, and more for you to discover. This is a first iteration of the Citadel, which we plan on expanding with more features and content in future updates.



Located on forgotten outlands, The Citadel is a trading outpost controlled by the Amani as a neutral territory. Its location holds both spiritual and economic significance, having been built upon an ancient temple with historical importance. While the main area serves as a market and recreational space, the depths of The Citadel are used by the Amani for extracting precious resources to power their operations. This allows the Amani to sustain their pivotal role in the balance of power, as they supply both factions with weapons, resources, data, and mercenaries.

To go to the Citadel, simply press the new Social Hub button in the main menu to start Matchmaking.

Upon entering the Citadel to the right you’ll find the mini-golf courses. The Citadel features 5 mini-golf courses, a couple of drawing boards for keeping score, and of course golf clubs and balls. When you pickup a golf ball, it is owned by you and nobody else can hit or grab it. And while you can technically place it anywhere and play golf anywhere, if you hit a hole in one from each course’s starting mat, you might see something cool.

Past the golf courses, you’ll see the Face Off arena. Here you can queue up for a 1v1, see who else is queued up, see who has the most 1v1 wins in that server, and gather inside of the arena to watch ongoing matches. Once it’s your turn to compete you’ll be teleported to the holographic arena where you’ll be given a random weapon with a random sight. Each match is played in rounds, with the first person to win 3 rounds winning the match. Currently we have eight different 1v1 maps that will appear randomly with every match, and in future updates we’ll continue to add more so that every match is unique.

Moving on from there, you’ll see the quarry, which features a rather large and difficult obstacle course. Scattered around the quarry are random weapon spawns, with some of the best weapons spawning at the top of the obstacle course. This is a great area to get used to the new jumping mechanics, or just shoot your friends before they can get to the top.

Elsewhere in the Citadel you’ll see a marketplace, shooting range, and we’ll continue building onto the Citadel adding more things to do in future updates.

[h2]NXS HAMMER (REVOLVER)[/h2]
One of our most requested features is finally here: introducing the NXS Hammer, an 8-shot revolver based on a .357 magnum. This new weapon is a powerful handgun complete with individual bullet reloading, a variety of sight options, and of course gun spinning.

The NXS Hammer is a completely new class of weapon that functions completely differently from any other weapon in VAIL. It features a slight delay when shooting, which is designed to mimic how it feels to pull the trigger of a double-action revolver which has a heavier trigger pull as it pulls back the hammer before firing.

To reload, press the mag eject button which allows you to open the cylinder with a slight flick of the wrists. Pointing the gun up with the cylinder open will drop empty bullet casings first, then regular bullets after a slight delay. After refilling the revolver one bullet at a time, just flick the cylinder back in and you’re ready to fire.



[h2]NEW WEAPON SIGHTS[/h2]
We added new sight variations that combine multiple different sights and scopes together for some unique combinations. These are designed to allow you to seamlessly switch between a normal sight and a magnified scope without changing your loadout.
  • The G33 is a new magnifier sight that you can flip on and off. Currently you can get it with the EXPS3 or the SRS sights.
  • Canted SRO sights have been added to the SpecterOS scope. There’s a left and a right variant, allowing you to simply rotate the gun to switch between a normal sight and a magnified scope.
  • We’ve combined an ACOG with an RMR sight in a configuration similar to the existing HAMR sight.




[h2]JUMPING[/h2]
This update brings jumping to all of VAIL’s game modes. This new style of jumping is designed to be immersive while retaining our game’s competitive integrity. By holding the button to jump, you’ll now crouch down slightly as you get ready to jump and letting go will of course launch you into the air. If you want to jump even higher, you can swing your arms up similar to how you swing your arms in real life to jump higher.

Jumping this way is designed to be used as a utility for traversing maps. While you can, of course, jump in the middle of combat, the crouch before jumping will slow you down and swinging your arms while jumping will impact your aim. There’s also increased recoil and added bloom when in the air, which will affect your ability to hit your shots while jumping. In other words, don’t worry; bunny hopping will not work in VAIL.

This is a new feature that radically changes how VAIL is played, and we believe it can make gameplay more interesting and engaging. That said, we fully expect for there to be bugs and we ask for your help to report in our Discord any bugs or exploits related to jumping.



[h2]GENERAL CHANGES[/h2]
  • Added prestige level 2: Origins
  • Updated the banner in armory for the new VAIL 2024 champions: R.E.K.T.
  • Added spatialized voice chat to Shuttle and Citadel
  • Changed respawn invulnerability from 3.5 to 2.5 seconds to prevent players from spawning and traversing too far to gain an advantage over other players
  • Adjusted misc. reticles per player feedback
  • Made milk bottle easier to throw and break
  • Added SRO sights to Pistols

[h2]BUG FIXES[/h2]
  • Fixed Artifact scanner sometimes flying away when grabbing it
  • Fixed impact grenades not doing damage if dropped by a dead player
  • Fixed Heaven lighting using the wrong lighting scenario
  • Fixed server browser not showing server regions
  • Fixed a crash related to jump pads
  • Fixed CTO hologram bubble going into Tron mode
  • Fixed SKZ using team chat instead of global chat
  • Fixed pillars on Khidi having no collision
  • Fixed launchpads on Nine occasionally causing the player to stutter
  • Fixed misc. jump exploits on various maps
  • Possible fix for servers shutting down after a period of time
If you have any feedback on this update, be sure to let us know in our Discord. See you all in-game! AEXLAB

VAIL Patch 1.1.2

This small update prepares us for our next major content update, which is coming sooner than later. But in the meantime, here’s what’s new in this update!

[h2]RETICLE OPTIONS[/h2]
Listening to your feedback, we realized that many PC players wanted to be able to use the simpler sights similar to what’s available on Quest. In our last update, we obliged; but this meant that we had to sacrifice the realism of the previous reticles that our technical artists painstakingly designed based on real sights we own and used as a reference.

In this update, we bring back the realism and now offer new reticle options to customize your experience. These options can be found in the loadouts page and now allow you to adjust the scale and brightness of the reticles, in addition to the color.

[h2]GENERAL CHANGES[/h2]
  • Misc. improvements to vote to kick. Players are now notified when a vote to kick starts. The button to vote to kick was moved from the scoreboard to the player's profile.
  • Updated the look of all map interactables including ziplines, jump pads, and ladders
  • Disabled enemy highlights in Shuttle
  • Jumping in Scoutzknivez now has a crouch animation and requires swinging your hands to reach max height
  • Store refresh timer now shows DAYS and shows in the Tablet as well as the physical marketplace
  • Made the basketball in Armory easier to throw
  • Added knife respawning for all game modes. A knife will now respawn 5 seconds after it has been dropped. It will only respawn if no other melee weapon is held or holstered.
  • Made Shuttle an option in custom games and set it as the default when making a new custom game
  • G17 rear iron sight dots reduced in size, for easier aiming
  • Fixed issue with iron sight color bleeding into other parts of the gun on APC9Pro and M2 Shotgun
  • Patreon Skins visuals improved. We had to disable a master material change for their release in that hotfix, so they will look tons better in this update
  • MK23 and D. Eagle finally have their hammer's pulled back, more functionality to come
  • All firearms Quest graphics slightly improved and optimized
  • All marketplace gun visuals now are all visually unloaded to prevent accidents and follow standard safety procedures
  • Ammo art upgraded (shotgun ammo to come at a later date)
  • Made shell insertion easier for the M2 Shotgun to match previous improvements to the STF12
  • Migrated to a new server infrastructure

[h2]BUG FIXES[/h2]
  • Fixed respawn countdown timer not animating correctly
  • Fixed Este balcony glass not having bullet penetration
  • Fixed being able to walk up slanted beam on scaffolding in Suna
  • Fixed Artifact scanner not teleporting back only for the person that threw it out of bounds
  • Fixed Quest standalone skipping input in the Void
  • Fixed post match progression screen not showing correctly previous XP, new XP growth, and next unlock
  • Fixed music not playing for ScoutzKnivez
  • Fixed announcer audio being cut off early in Gun Game and One in the Chamber
  • Fixed Vector45 safety being completely rotated wrong
  • Fixed a hole on Khidi in the landscape near A site

See you all in-game!
AEXLAB

Patch v1.1.1

Just a small patch as we get ready for our next major update, 1.2!

[h2]Changes & Fixes[/h2]
  • Significant improvements to the STF12 pump action shotgun. The pump will now lock in place while a shell is chambered and ready to fire. Other improvements to the overall feel.
  • Significant improvements to the MR96 bolt and grips. It is now much harder to accidentally grab the magazine when reaching for the grip or bolt.
  • Added a message of the day that appears once every play session until it is dismissed.
  • Possible fix for the Hardpoint timer getting stuck.
  • Visual improvements to Este's vista and misc. assets throughout the map.
  • Misc. bug fixes and optimizations

See you all in-game!
AEXLAB

The Prestige Update - 1.1

Welcome to our first major content update, The Prestige Update. This update introduces two new game modes, new maps for other game modes, new unlockable skins, prestige, and many more bug fixes and improvements.

[h2]PRESTIGE[/h2]
If you’ve reached max level in VAIL already, then you’re ready to enter prestige. Entering prestige rewards the most dedicated players with new legendary character skins, a unique animated emblem, and secret lore content. Every single prestige we’ll reveal a little bit more about the lore of VAIL through it’s name and unlockable content. This first prestige is called Cyberwarfare and for now, it’s the only prestige level available, but we’ll keep adding more every major update.

To enter prestige you of course have to already be max level. You also have to be in a matchmaking server in the shuttle between games to enter prestige.



[h2]GUN GAME[/h2]
We finally added one of our favorite game modes: Gun Game, and it is available on all of our free-for-all maps. In Gun Game, you start with an AK12 and with every elimination you get promoted to a new weapon. The first person to kill an enemy with every weapon, including a final knife kill, wins the match. This is a great game mode to try new weapons and new sights even if you don’t have them unlocked, and if you’re particularly skilled with the knife you can demote players by killing them with melee.



[h2]ONE IN THE CHAMBER[/h2]
This update introduces One in the Chamber as one of our newest game modes. You start with one bullet in the chamber, a knife, and only three lives. With every kill you get an extra bullet and the last one alive wins. This mode is available on all of our free-for-all maps and it’s a great way to improve your pistol and knife throwing aim. If you throw your knife and lose it, it will respawn on your tac rig after a couple of seconds so that you always have a way to defend yourself and get a bullet back.



[h2]NEW HARDPOINT MAPS[/h2]
One of our favorite modes, Hardpoint, has been pretty limited since it was only available on a few smaller maps. But this update brings hardpoint to two of our biggest maps: Khidi and Maar. In these two new maps, you’ll now fight over the objective in locations where you wouldn’t see that much action in other game modes, such as the museum in Khidi. Jump in now, try it out, let us know what you think, and tell us if there’s any other maps where you want to see Hardpoint added.



[h2]KANTO PROGRESSION[/h2]
Congratulations to M4p13 for being the first to unlock all of the cosmetics in the weapon progression, but now we have a new challenge: to be the first to unlock all of the new knife skins in the Kanto knife progression. The knife now has 20 skins available to unlock with up to 1000 knife kills to the head to unlock the final 24Karat skin. We rewarded M4p13 with our largest pack of GEL, and we’ll have a similar reward waiting for the first person to unlock all knife skins. If that’s you, just reach out to us in our Discord when you’ve reached 1000 headshot kills.



[h2]RECENTLY PLAYED[/h2]
To make it easier to add new friends in VAIL, we added a recently played tab. This will show everyone that you’ve played with recently in any matchmaking server, allowing you to quickly add some of the cooler people that you meet. From this tab you can click on people’s profiles, and check out some of their stats to see if their KDA is even high enough for you to even want to add them.


[h2]GENERAL CHANGES[/h2]
  • Made it easier to get headshots with shotguns; now it will count as a headshot if any pellet hits the head.
  • Kanto knife can now stab wood
  • Adjusted reticle visibility for various sights
  • Improved the look of various cosmetics
  • Added a button to exit the game from the play tab
  • Add the two DLCs to be purchasable in the marketplace
  • Can now hover items in the marketplace that you already own and see the preview mesh
  • Visual and performance improvements to Volt, Este, Shuttle and Miru.
  • Removed ART_Este and ART_Cliffside for not playing well for Artifact. Better Artifact variations of these maps may be released in the future.


[h2]BUG FIXES[/h2]
  • Fixed music and voice-lines not playing correctly for some game modes
  • Fixed friends and leaderboards not working when you have more than 100 friends
  • Fixed players being able to block others from voting in shuttle by holding down the button
  • Fixed a couple of skins not showing outlines correctly
  • Fixed primary weapon skin applying to MR96 mags in SKZ. Knife and MR96 skins should work now in SKZ if you have at least one skin selected in your loadouts for both weapons.
  • Fixed G17 irons not being zeroed correctly
  • Fixed back slot not working correctly for left handed players
  • UI optimizations
  • General optimizations and bug fixes


If you have any feedback on this update, be sure to let us know in our Discord. See you all in-game! AEXLAB

VAIL Patch v1.0.5

Smaller download size, faster startup, improved observer mode, new player customization, and much more!

[h2]OBSERVER MODE[/h2]
We've done a full revamp of the VAIL observer mode (PC only). In addition to bringing back all of the old functionality, we've added some new features to the observer mode to make it easier to use for casting matches or creating content. To launch the observer mode through steam, simply right click on VAIL in your Steam library, select properties, go to the general tab, and add the following launch options: -nohmd -observer

We'll be posting a full tutorial and list of key binds soon, but in the meantime here's some useful options if you're new to the observer mode:
  • TAB to open the menu
  • H will toggle UI on or off
  • O will toggle player outlines that are visible through walls
  • M will switch between the small and large mini-map for maps that have it
  • Each number will let you follow the corresponding player
  • C will switch from first person to third person to free camera mode
  • B will switch back to free camera mode in any situation
  • G will make you spectate the player that last shot
  • And many more cool features which will be outlined on our website soon!

[h2]PLAYER CUSTOMIZATION[/h2]
We've finally removed the last remnants of the old tablet and replaced it with a new customization page for selecting character cosmetics. Along with selecting head, body, and hands for each faction; you can now see what cosmetics you're selecting with individual thumbnails and color-coded tiers for Mythic, Legendary, Rare, Uncommon, and Common skins. You can also see your full outfit on a mannequin on the right.

In the loadouts page, you'll also see cosmetics organized by the same color-coded tiers and the default (common) guns have thumbnails now. Additionally, we finally added Knife cosmetics, which means if you get the new Enigmia Pack you'll now be able to equip the very first knife cosmetic in VAIL.



[h2]CHANGES & FIXES[/h2]
  • Reduced game download size by a few GBs
  • Reduced shader complexity, improving game startup time
  • Improved visuals on all guns and gun cosmetics
  • Tac rig adjustments to make it easier to force grab items on the ground with a gun on your chest
  • Ivan woke up with a nightmare about crying Canadian children. So he made Hockey a little better...
  • Improved the look of the Artifact scanner defuse bar
  • GEL count now visible in the tablet
  • Experimental marketplace hidden in the armory
  • Increased max turn speed from 300 to 360
  • Friends list is now sorted between offline and online friends
  • Removed preset loadouts after unlocking custom loadouts
  • Health is no longer visible when at 100 (full health)
  • Steam can use PC keyboard to search for friends
  • Shuttle now has unlimited refreshes
  • Added Artifact scanner marker
  • Added CTO Objective markers (only objectives, no orbs yet)
  • Microphone at the bottom of tablet will now show microphone activity
  • Fixed hardpoint not delaying at the start of the match
  • Fixed player profile stats being named incorrectly and showing in the wrong formats


See you all in-game!
AEXLAB