Gameplay Updates & Announcements
Hello commander,
Missed us? We sure missed you! We have a bunch of news to share with you today, so sit down, strap in, and enjoy the ride.
What can you find in today’s post? A couple of interesting announcements and more details on two important gameplay changes coming to Steel Division 2 in the not-too-distant future.
Keep on reading to discover more!
[h2]Burning Baltics Launches April 29th [/h2]
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1418231/Steel_Division_2__Burning_Baltics/
First off, we have a release date for our upcoming new History Expansion Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics which will be yours to play on April 29th.
What will Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics offer?
Be sure to check out various articles that go in-depth into all of Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics’ new features, including detailed breakdowns of all the upcoming Divisions.
[h2]Combat Ranges Rework[/h2]
On to the gameplay updates coming soon. One of the elements we have been working on for a while is an overhaul of the Combat Ranges. We detailed some of our earlier thoughts in this October blog post here, but we are now ready to show you some more. Yet, remember work is still in progress, and changes may still occur.
In the current version, most of our guns (tank, anti-tank, etc.) fire at a 2000m max range. The reason for this design choice was for every type of player (from new to history aficionado) to be able to understand quickly a whole variety of WWII weaponry at a glance. However, by allowing a unifying 2000m max range, some guns were firing beyond their real-life capabilities, at which they become ineffective in-game and at best waste ammo, and at worst, get obliterated by their target in an immediate counter-attack.
The main driver behind the Combat Ranges Rework is to make tank and anti-tank engagements more effective, and more gritty, allowing this type of combat to mimic reality closer. What is the change?
We have spread AP rounds from our myriad of tank and anti-tank guns, ranging from 20mm to 152mm, across six different max range settings.
As everyone knows: wherever there are rules, there are exceptions. Outstanding guns in their caliber category may be moved up, such as the US “long” 37mm compared to the punny German 37mm. Likewise, others keep their max range at 2000m, including the 17-pdr (76,2mm), Kwk 42 (Panther) and Resita 75mm. On the other hand, short-barreled or low-velocity guns (such as howitzers’ AP rounds) might be moved a step down.
APCR and HEAT rounds usually have a shorter range than their corresponding AP counterparts, although, once again, there are a few exceptions with certain APCR rounds.
Penetration drop-off has been adjusted for each range set to give more realistic results, and the more a gun has lost in range (compared to the current “vanilla” setting) the more accuracy it will gain. Guns reduced in range will have their chance to hit improved. i.e. those reduced to 1000m will have their accuracy increased by an average of 10-15%, for instance.
Example: Pak 38 50mm in the current & beta versions:
What does this mean? Previously, light AT guns firing at 2000m had little chance to hit and hardly any chance to deal damage. With the new Combat Range Rework, these guns will fire at a much shorter range, but when they do, will be more likely to hit on their first shot and have a higher chance to penetrate the target’s armor.
We know that these new ranges is a big change, including the actual combat effectiveness and firepower of a unit. That’s why certain unit prices will be reconsidered, especially for those tank and anti-tank guns which retain a 2000m maximum range.
[h2]New Efficient Shot[/h2]
Hand in hand with our Combat Ranges Rework, we are also tackling our Efficient Shot mechanic. We have completely redesigned this feature to make it more intuitive and powerful to use. Again, remember work is still in progress, and changes may still occur.
Efficient Shot only works for penetrating weapons, designed to defeat their target’s armor. The new Efficient Shot only considers the chances of penetrating armor while the old mechanic also took into account the chance of hitting a target. The reason for this change was because a gun gains precision with any additional shot fired, and what matters to the player is if you have a real chance of penetrating the heavy armor in front of you.
The new Efficient Shot now features five distinct values, with each percentage indicating the threshold to penetrate the enemy’s armor. These values are 20%, 40%, 60% and 80%. If you set it at 20%, your gun will fire when it reaches this value or higher. This granularity gives you much better control of when a gun will fire, and if your weapon is going to be effective or not.
Depending on the percentage value chosen, the game will also show you the distance needed for your weapon to be effective.
The new Efficient Shot mechanic can be set individually or for your whole battlegroup. Not only that, depending on the value chosen, a different color icon will be displayed on top of your unit’s icon. And remember, you can always deactivate this mechanic, if you don’t feel like using it.
[h2]A new blog post schedule[/h2]
You might have noticed the absence of our regular post last week. There is a reason behind this. At Eugen, we have been hard at work to develop a new expansion for your other favorite game - Wargame Red Dragon.
To shine a light on the new Wargame Red Dragon - Nation Pack: SADF, we’ll alternate each week between the two titles. This means you’ll get Steel Division 2 post one week, and the other one we dive deep into an exciting new aspect of Wargame’s new Nation Pack or other upcoming contents. After Wargame Red Dragon - Nation Pack: SADF releases, we’ll return to our original schedule.
[h2]See you in two weeks![/h2]
If you want to reach out to us, you can do this through our Steam forums and Eugen forums, or check our (Facebook and Twitter). Looking for an online game? Visit the kick-ass Discord server or Reddit page.
See you on the battlefield, commander!Welcome back, commander.
Missed us? We sure missed you! We have a bunch of news to share with you today, so sit down, strap in, and enjoy the ride.
What can you find in today’s post? A couple of interesting announcements and more details on two important gameplay changes coming to Steel Division 2 in the not-too-distant future.
Keep on reading to discover more!
[h2]Burning Baltics Launches April 29th [/h2]
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1418231/Steel_Division_2__Burning_Baltics/
First off, we have a release date for our upcoming new History Expansion Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics which will be yours to play on April 29th.
What will Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics offer?
- 1 massive new Army General campaign set in the Baltics during Operation Doppelkopf, allowing you to take command of either the attacking Axis 3. Panzerarmee or the defending Allied 1st Baltic Front.
- 8 new Divisions, playable solo, coop, or in multiplayer, including 6 which took part during Doppelkopf and 2 divisions from Army Group North’s theater of operations.
- 120+ new units, including a variety of new models such as Aufklärungspanzer 38(t) recon tank, Ar 196 A-3 floatplane, Soviet MT-13 160mm super-heavy mortar and the BS-3 100mm heavy AT gun.
- 2 new Nations: Lithuania (Axis) and Estonia (Allies) and 2 new Aces.
Be sure to check out various articles that go in-depth into all of Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics’ new features, including detailed breakdowns of all the upcoming Divisions.
- The first Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics Versus looks at the two Armored battlegroups: the Panzerverband Strachwitzcheck and the 19-y Tank Corpus.
- The second Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics Versus dives deep into the two Mechanized battlegroups: Panzergrenadier-Division “Grossdeutschland” and Rezerv 43-y Armii.
- The third Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics Versus puts the spotlight on the Infantry battlegroups with the 52. Sicherungs-Division z.b.V. and the Podv. Gruppa Fedyunkin.
- The ultimate Steel Division 2: Burning Baltics Versus highlights two special battlegroups from Army Group North theater of operations: the 11. SS-Freiwilligen Panzergrenadier-Division “Nordland” and the 7. Eesti Laskurdiviis (7th Estonian Rifle Division).
- Check out the new Aces, which will ship out with the expansion in this detailed blog post here.
- Be sure to read up on the new massive Army General Campaign centered on Nazi Germany’s last successful strategic counter-offensive, Operation Doppelkopf.
[h2]Combat Ranges Rework[/h2]
On to the gameplay updates coming soon. One of the elements we have been working on for a while is an overhaul of the Combat Ranges. We detailed some of our earlier thoughts in this October blog post here, but we are now ready to show you some more. Yet, remember work is still in progress, and changes may still occur.
In the current version, most of our guns (tank, anti-tank, etc.) fire at a 2000m max range. The reason for this design choice was for every type of player (from new to history aficionado) to be able to understand quickly a whole variety of WWII weaponry at a glance. However, by allowing a unifying 2000m max range, some guns were firing beyond their real-life capabilities, at which they become ineffective in-game and at best waste ammo, and at worst, get obliterated by their target in an immediate counter-attack.
The main driver behind the Combat Ranges Rework is to make tank and anti-tank engagements more effective, and more gritty, allowing this type of combat to mimic reality closer. What is the change?
We have spread AP rounds from our myriad of tank and anti-tank guns, ranging from 20mm to 152mm, across six different max range settings.
- 750m:
- 1000m: 30-45mm
- 1250m: 45-47mm
- 1500m: 50-75mm
- 1750m: “long” 75 / 75-85mm
- 2000m: 88-122mm (plus ISU-152)
As everyone knows: wherever there are rules, there are exceptions. Outstanding guns in their caliber category may be moved up, such as the US “long” 37mm compared to the punny German 37mm. Likewise, others keep their max range at 2000m, including the 17-pdr (76,2mm), Kwk 42 (Panther) and Resita 75mm. On the other hand, short-barreled or low-velocity guns (such as howitzers’ AP rounds) might be moved a step down.
APCR and HEAT rounds usually have a shorter range than their corresponding AP counterparts, although, once again, there are a few exceptions with certain APCR rounds.
Penetration drop-off has been adjusted for each range set to give more realistic results, and the more a gun has lost in range (compared to the current “vanilla” setting) the more accuracy it will gain. Guns reduced in range will have their chance to hit improved. i.e. those reduced to 1000m will have their accuracy increased by an average of 10-15%, for instance.
Example: Pak 38 50mm in the current & beta versions:
What does this mean? Previously, light AT guns firing at 2000m had little chance to hit and hardly any chance to deal damage. With the new Combat Range Rework, these guns will fire at a much shorter range, but when they do, will be more likely to hit on their first shot and have a higher chance to penetrate the target’s armor.
We know that these new ranges is a big change, including the actual combat effectiveness and firepower of a unit. That’s why certain unit prices will be reconsidered, especially for those tank and anti-tank guns which retain a 2000m maximum range.
[h2]New Efficient Shot[/h2]
Hand in hand with our Combat Ranges Rework, we are also tackling our Efficient Shot mechanic. We have completely redesigned this feature to make it more intuitive and powerful to use. Again, remember work is still in progress, and changes may still occur.
Efficient Shot only works for penetrating weapons, designed to defeat their target’s armor. The new Efficient Shot only considers the chances of penetrating armor while the old mechanic also took into account the chance of hitting a target. The reason for this change was because a gun gains precision with any additional shot fired, and what matters to the player is if you have a real chance of penetrating the heavy armor in front of you.
The new Efficient Shot now features five distinct values, with each percentage indicating the threshold to penetrate the enemy’s armor. These values are 20%, 40%, 60% and 80%. If you set it at 20%, your gun will fire when it reaches this value or higher. This granularity gives you much better control of when a gun will fire, and if your weapon is going to be effective or not.
Depending on the percentage value chosen, the game will also show you the distance needed for your weapon to be effective.
The new Efficient Shot mechanic can be set individually or for your whole battlegroup. Not only that, depending on the value chosen, a different color icon will be displayed on top of your unit’s icon. And remember, you can always deactivate this mechanic, if you don’t feel like using it.
[h2]A new blog post schedule[/h2]
You might have noticed the absence of our regular post last week. There is a reason behind this. At Eugen, we have been hard at work to develop a new expansion for your other favorite game - Wargame Red Dragon.
To shine a light on the new Wargame Red Dragon - Nation Pack: SADF, we’ll alternate each week between the two titles. This means you’ll get Steel Division 2 post one week, and the other one we dive deep into an exciting new aspect of Wargame’s new Nation Pack or other upcoming contents. After Wargame Red Dragon - Nation Pack: SADF releases, we’ll return to our original schedule.
[h2]See you in two weeks![/h2]
If you want to reach out to us, you can do this through our Steam forums and Eugen forums, or check our (Facebook and Twitter). Looking for an online game? Visit the kick-ass Discord server or Reddit page.
See you on the battlefield, commander!Welcome back, commander.
