The Division 2 is Nerfing Its Rarest Weapon in Update 6 from GameRant.

The Division 2 is Nerfing Its Rarest Weapon in Update 6

• by Anthony Taormina
  
• – on Sep 17, 2019
  
• in Gaming News
  

Over the last few weeks, The Division 2 has struggled to offer its players an experience that is challenging, rewarding, and worth returning to. The hope is that the upcoming Title Update 6 will bring excitement back to the game, but first developer Massive Entertainment wants to put the patch through its paces with another PTS.
This week, Massive revealed its plans for The Division 2’s Update 6 PTS including what changes are being made in the test realm. It’s a lot of smart tweaks to the game and changes that should improve the appeal, but there is one change that has caused controversy within the community.

RELATED: How to Beat the Razorback Fight in Division 2's Raid.In the Title Update 6 PTS patch notes, Massive reveals plans to nerf the Eagle Bearer Exotic Assault rifle by 15%. It’s a change that makes sense in the context of how the weapon is used but there are other factors that make this Division 2 nerf a big head-scratcher.In order to get the Eagle Bearer, Division 2 players need to complete the Operation Dark Hours raid. The weapon is a random (and rare) drop from the final Razorback encounter, which is challenging in and of itself. However, getting Eagle Bearer becomes extra difficult because it only drops from the non-matchmade version of the Operation Dark Hours raid.

If players turn the Discovery difficulty on, which allows for matchmaking and lowers the difficulty, then Eagle Bearer cannot drop. It is one of the exclusive items that can only be obtained by a pre-made raid team.


 

Given the amount of work necessary for the average player to get the Eagle Bearer in Division 2, it then doesn’t make sense for Massive Entertainment to nerf the weapon. For all intents and purposes this is one of, if not the rarest items in the game and now those that were lucky enough to get it are deflated. Not to mention those that are still grinding the raid in the hopes of getting Eagle Bearer are discouraged from trying.

Admittedly, the Eagle Bearer is strong and the reward matches the rarity, but in the Dark Zone it is a little too overpowered. Unfortunately, getting the weapon back to a manageable state means ruining the fun in PvE. Balancing PvP without ruining the experience in PvE was a problem that Division 1 had and now Division 2 is struggling with it too.

But fear not, as this change is only part of The Division 2 PTS right now. Massive will take in feedback from players and determine whether the nerfs and changes are too harsh. Prior PTS sessions have resulted in Massive dialing back its planned changes, so hopefully, it finds a middle ground that doesn’t nerf one of the rarest guns in the game.

PvP & Dark Zone changes coming in Episode 2


27 September 2019


With Title Update 6, Episode 2 will arrive in The Division 2. As previously mentioned, in Title Update 6 we're offering you new ways to target specific loot. With that, we're also planning to change and improve several areas for our PvP communities in the Dark Zones of Washington D.C. and Conflict.

DARK ZONES

Gear Normalization

First off, we're going to change normalization in all Dark Zones and Conflict.

With TU6, all player stats will no longer be modified, and agents will receive their full recalibration bonuses at end game. For players below Gear Score 500, we will still apply normalization to boost them up to that level, to allow an easier entry into the Dark Zone and organized PvP.

Talents will still have a PVE and PVP version and the normalization toggle in the UI will now change the talent text to reflect how these work differently in and outside of normalized PvP.

Alongside this, all PvP modifiers will be displayed in the UI for better clarity.

Supply Drops

We're also making changes to the Supply drops in Dark Zones by changing their variety and increasing the locations in each zone where drops can happen.

Supply drops in Episode 2 can drop in landmarks that are not active and the fights for these can feature multiple bosses or factions. This will not only raise the difficulty, but it will bring more variety into the game loop and makes the drops less predictable. Also, more bosses and factions mean a higher chance or contaminated loot, so fighting for these drops will be more lucrative.

For the Occupied Dark Zones, we'll be adding supply drops that are guarded by Black Tusk soldiers, offering some more challenges to players and a chance for more loot!




Updated Thieves Den Vendor

We want to give more importance to the Thieves Den vendor, which now has a proper vendor store where it accepts DZ resources.

Like a regular vendor, the Thieves Den Vendor stock will rotate regularly. We will share more information on what the Thieves Den Vendor will sell later.

There will be an indicator on the world map which will display the specific DZ where the Thieves Den Vendor is located. At end game, the Thieves Den vendor will move between the two non-occupied Dark Zones.

Additionally, the normal vendors outside each Dark Zone's main gate will accept DZ Resources and will have their stock reworked.

Dark Zone Server Transfer

In the past, one of our biggest goals with the DZ was for it to always feel like a fully seamless experience with the open world.  This led players, depending on which server they were assigned to, going into empty DZ phases. 

In Episode 2, we now try to place you onto a server that will help ensure you're playing in a full zone.  The server transfer can happen when players first walk into a DZ checkpoint.

A Few Other Changes to the Dark Zone

We want to keep things spicy in the Dark Zone. In Title Update 6, you might get ambushed by NPC's while extracting your precious loot.

Another change we're introducing in TU6 is that hacking a DZ terminal will temporarily highlight boxes containing loot around you. You will be encouraged to hack more terminals, considering that the updated Thieves Den Vendor now accepts DZ resources.

CONFLICT

New Game Mode: Team Elimination

In Episode 2, a new game mode will join the Conflict playlist, Team Elimination. Designed to encourage a more tactical approach and promote team play. Team Elimination is a 4 versus 4 mode where the first team to score 4 rounds on a total of 7, wins the match.

Team Elimination features new boosts, such as team revive or motion sensor boosts. These might change the flow of the match and give you the chance to be those decisive players that can potentially save the team or finish all the opponents!

This new mode will be coming to the Episode 2 PTS Tuesday, September 24th! We'll make sure to get you the exact timing as soon as possible. Let us know what you think sharing your feedback on our PTS Forums!

End of Match Rewards

Players will now always earn a reward for playing in Conflict, regardless of winning or losing the match. You will still earn additional rewards for ranking up and winning.

We felt Conflict reward pacing was not on par with the rest of the game, therefore we hope these changes will incentivize you to get in a match and get more gear for your time and efforts.

PvP Projects

We're introducing PvP projects to Conflict. The daily Dark Zone project now rotates between a Conflict and a DZ project. Each day, when you log in, this project should steer you towards taking part in a different experience.

Loadout Selection During Map Voting

Once you have voted for which map to play on, you will have the chance to swap to any of your pre-built loadouts directly from the map voting screen. We believe this allows you to be ready to fight even before starting a match. However, you will still be able to change your loadout while being in a match.

We hope you're excited about the upcoming changes with Episode 2. In case you've missed it, here you can find the State of the Game for the changes to the loot and PvP.

See you in D.C., Agents!

/The Division Team: https://tomclancy-thedivision.ubisoft.com/game/en-gb/news-updates/356517/pvp-dark-zone-changes-coming-episode-2