Electronic Arts’ community manager Apoc announced a Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars patch 1.05 for the PC RTS game. He mentions the changes are going to set the landscape for C&C3 for the coming months, WCG, the ladder, etc. To reiterate his words:
– We are targeting the patch release for later this month and we are currently on track. Since this is such a huge patch, our QA team has mandated a much more extensive amount of testing time on it. That is the primary reason we have not put the patch live yet. As I’ve said before our patches go through extensive QA testing efforts, and especially one of this magnitude.
– We intend to start a ladder season shortly after the release of patch 1.05. Per this ladder season we are working on prizes, tournaments, etc.
– The Battlecast feature is currently undergoing A LOT of tuning. Its a new revolutionary feature and we are working to make it everything its meant to live up to. Changes and enhancements to Battlecast will also coincide with patch 1.05 and further in to June.
– The balance changes that are addressed in this patch are absolutely reflective of thousands of hours of testing and play, thousands of matches and generated opinions from you… the community… we listened and we made conscious choices that we feel are going to diversify the factions greatly. I ask that you please save your final judgement until you PLAY THE PATCH extensively. We had balance testers here to help us finalize and fine tune and they all really felt it brings a new dynamic to the game. I consider our balance testers indicative of the general community player, you. Can’t have everyone come in and test, but it certainly helps to get that added layer!
– We just fixed the auto-map transfer issue for custom maps, that is not noted in the patch notes, but it will be included in patch 1.05. So for anyone having issues automatically transferring custom maps, this patch should fix your problem.
– We are working on a strict disconnection and cheat policy that we plan to coincide with the release of patch 1.05. We will not rest on our laurels and let these people ruin the competitive aspect of the game. Please also understand that this battle is end- less and there cannot be an expectation to 100% rid of cheaters and disconnects. We will have to adapt to survive, its true. If you look at any other RTS, MMO, or FPS game, its an on-going war, its not just here on C&C 3, its everywhere. We will crackdown and do whatever it takes to combat this in order to make our ladder and your experience as great as possible.
– The notes below do not encompass all of the technical bug fixes in this patch but they do include the primary fixes that would be most visually apparent to you.
Here’s the official 1.05 changelist:
· Fixed an exploit in which players could use GDI Engineers,
Nod Saboteurs, or Scrin Assimilators to capture enemy structures
without moving the units over to those structures.
· Observers of multiplayer matches can no longer use hotkeys to
affect spectated players’ production queues.
· Units affected by the Scrin Mothership’s Catalyst Cannon now
lose their explosive properties if teleported via the Teleport
Units ability or the Wormhole support power.
· It is no longer possible to stall an online multiplayer match
by repeatedly pressing the Capture Screenshot hotkey.
· Fixed a team exploit in which the Nod Cloaking Field support
power could be used to make infantry units inside of allied GDI
APCs gain stealth.
The following balance changes are intended to enable a more
diverse set of viable strategies for both casual and competitive
play, and to further ensure that the forces of the GDI, the
Brotherhood of Nod, and the Scrin are evenly matched as the
Tiberium Wars rage on.
/General Balance Changes/
· Some structures on each side no longer provide Ground Control
for base expansion. These include: Power Plants, Reactors,
Tiberium Silos, Barracks, Hands of Nod, and Portals.
· Heavy infantry units’ resistance to CANNON damage increased by
45%. This affects GDI’s Zone Troopers and Commando, Nod’s Black
Hand and Commando, and Scrin’s Shock Troopers and Mastermind.
All other infantry resistance to CANNON damage increased by 25%.
This change means infantry are less vulnerable to tank shells and
similar weapons.
· Infantry armor penalty to SNIPER damage removed. This change
makes infantry slightly less vulnerable to Nod Shadow Teams in
particular; GDI Commandos and Sniper Teams, Nod Commandos, and
Scrin Buzzers are still highly lethal against enemy infantry.
· Infantry attack range bonus while garrisoned reduced by 25%.
· GDI Commando, Nod Commando, and Scrin Mastermind units can no
longer be crushed by enemy vehicles.
· CANNON weapons, such as those found on the GDI Predator Tank and
Nod Scorpion Tank, now cannot miss against moving enemy vehicles.
· GDI, Nod, and Scrin Harvesters’ cost/build time increased by 40%
to 1400/14. Standardized all Harversters’ speed and turn rate.
Specifically, the Scrin Harvester is now slightly more
maneuverable than before.
· GDI Refinery, Nod Refinery, and Scrin Extractor sale price
reduced by 70% to 300 credits.
· GDI Engineers, Nod Saboteurs, and Scrin Assimilators now
capture enemy structures or repair allied structures as soon
as they reach the edge of the structures.
· Standardized the speed of GDI Surveyor, Nod Emissary, and Scrin
Explorer base expansion units. Specifically, the Nod Emissary and
Scrin Explorer now move 50% more slowly to match the GDI Surveyor.
· Repair Drones for all sides can now repair vehicles that are
under attack. Limit one Drone per vehicle. Rate of repair is now
constant, rather than a percentage based on the vehicle’s total
health. This means vehicles with lower maximum health will be
repaired faster.
· Standardized repair radius on all structures. As a result, the
radius on all aircraft production structures has increased.
· Re-stealth time doubled for units that do not have innate
stealth effects, such as units affected by Nod’s Cloaking Field.
This means such units will take longer to regain stealth after
attacking or being detected.
· Standardized the amount of Ground Control provided by a GDI
Crane, Nod Crane, or Scrin Foundry. Specifically, the amount of
Ground Control gained by building a Nod Crane or Scrin Foundry
has increased by 50%.
· Tiberium Spike tech structure’s income increased by 66% to 25
credits per unit of time.
· Defensive Tower tech structure’s attack power increased by 60%.
· Visceroids are now punishable by crushing.
/GDI Balance Changes/
· Rifleman Squad: Speed increased by 20%. Attack power increased
by 50%. Dig In ability cost/buildtime reduced to 100/5, now causes
the Riflemen Squad to begin building a Foxhole immediately at its
location. Foxhole capacity increased to two units. Foxholes no
longer eject infantry units until the Foxholes are destroyed.
· Missile Squad: Speed increased by 20%. Health increased by 100%.
Range increased by 75%. Attack power vs. aircraft reduced by 25%.
· Engineer: Speed increased by 20%.
· Grenadier Squad: Speed increased by 20%.
· Sniper Team: Speed increased by 20%. Health reduced by 50%. Rate
of fire reduced by 50%. Re-stealth time increased by 25%.
· Commando: Speed increased by 20%.
· Pitbull: Health increased by 33%. Rate of fire increased by 25%.
Turret turn rate and pitch rate increased, improving the Pitbull’s
ability to fire on fast-moving aircraft.
· APC: Speed increased by 20%. Attack power vs. infantry reduced
by 25%. Turret turn rate and pitch rate increased, improving the
APC’s ability to fire on fast- moving aircraft.
· Harvester: Attack power increased by 300%.
· Rig: Acceleration and deceleration times reduced, making the
unit more maneuverable. Battle Base Repair Drones changed to work
like all other Repair Drones.
· Mammoth Tank: Speed reduced by 7%. Attack power of rockets
reduced by 25%. Rate of fire with Railguns upgrade reduced by 35%
but attack power increased proportionally.
· Orca: Health increased by 50%.
· Firehawk: Now fires its missile loadout in volleys, improving
the Firehawk’s ability to quickly damage groups of enemy aircraft.
· Ox Transport: Health increased by 70%.
· Sonic Emitter: No longer hits larger units multiple times in one
attack. Attack power per hit increased to compensate.
· Railguns: Upgrade cost increased by 66% to 5000.
· Composite Armor: Upgrade cost increased by 100% to 2000.
· Radar Scan: Support Power cost increased by 20% to 300.
· Shockwave Artillery: Support Power cost increased by 33% to
2000. Attack power reduced by 38%.
· GDI Airborne: Support Power cost increased by 50% to 1500.
· Bloodhounds: Support Power cost increased by 50% to 3000.
· Sharpshooter Team: Support Power cost increased by 40% to 3500.
· Zone Trooper Drop Pods: Support Power cost increased by 50% to
4500.
/Brotherhood of Nod Balance Changes/
· Militant Squad: Speed increased by 20%. Attack power increased
by 50%.
· Militant Rocket Squad: Speed increased by 20%. Health increased
by 100%. Range increased by 75%. Attack power vs. aircraft reduced
by 25%.
· Saboteur: Speed increased by 20%.
· Shadow Team: Health reduced by 50%.
· Black Hand: Speed increased by 22%. Health increased by 66%.
Attack power increased by 150%.
· Attack Bike: Removed 200% attack power bonus vs. aircraft.
Turret arc and turn rate increased, which allows the unit
to more-effectively attack any nearby targets while moving.
Directional armor removed, which makes the unit more resistant
to attacks from the flank and rear. Fixed an error that caused
the unit to not always fire both rockets at once, effectively
raising its attack power.
· Raider Buggy: Attack power vs. infantry reduced by 25%.
· Scorpion Tank: Attack power reduced by 20%. Rate of fire with
Laser Capacitors upgrade reduced by 20% but attack power increased
proportionally.
· Flame Tank: Cost/buildtime increased by 20% to 1200/12. Turret
turn rate doubled, improving the Flame Tank’s ability to quickly
acquire targets. Attack power increased by 150%.
· Stealth Tank: Cost/buildtime increased by 50% to 1500/15. Attack
power increased by 50%. Attack power bonus vs. aircraft reduced
by 25%.
· Avatar: Cost/buildtime reduced by 27% to 2200/22. Flamethrower
upgrade attack power increased by 150%.
· Venom Patrol Craft: Attack priorities fixed so that the unit
will always prioritize enemy infantry over vehicles and base
defenses.
· Carryall: Health increased by 70%.
· Armageddon Bomber: Health increased by 33%. (Note: This aircraft
only appears when summoned by certain Support Powers.)
· Laser Capacitors: Upgrade cost increased by 50% to 3000.
· Tiberium Infusion: Upgrade cost increased by 300% to 2000.
· Cloaking Field: Support Power cost increased by 100% to 3000.
Attack power vs. light infantry increased by 600%. Attack power
vs. heavy infantry increased by 200%.
/Scrin Balance Changes/
· Buzzers: Health increased by 50%. Move and attack rates retuned.
As a result, Buzzers are now more effective at cutting through
massed infantry but will no longer kill entire infantry squads all
at once.
· Disintegrators: Speed increased by 17%.
· Assimilator: Speed increased by 20%.
· Mastermind: Cost/buildtime increased by 66% to 2500/25. Recharge
time on Manipulator Device increased to 30 seconds. Teleport Units
ability now begins its cooldown period after units are teleported,
rather then when units are first selected for teleporting.
· Gun Walker: Acceleration and deceleration times reduced, making
the Gun Walker more maneuverable.
· Harvester: No longer spawns an Ion Storm when destroyed.
· Corrupter: Acceleration and deceleration times reduced, making
the Corrupter more maneuverable.
· Planetary Assault Carrier: Ion Storm ability now generates an
Ion Storm more quickly. Scrin aircraft now receive a 25% bonus to
attack power in addition to a 25% bonus to armor while in an Ion
Storm.
· Mothership: Attack power increased by 100%. Catalyst Cannon now
causes a faster, wider chain reaction. Damage sustained by the
Mothership has less impact on the power of its attack.
· Buzzer Hive: Buzzers immediately respawn when killed. Buzzers no
longer die if their Buzzer Hive is destroyed.
· Gravity Stabilizer: Now spawns Buzzers instead of Shock Troopers
when sold or destroyed.
· Force Fields: Upgrade cost increased by 66% to 5000.
· Stasis Shield: Support Power cost increased by 100% to 2000.
· The Swarm: Support Power cost increased by 50% to 1500.
This patch adds four new multiplayer maps, which may also be used
in Skirmish mode. Two out of four of these maps are enabled for
ranked competition online, and so will appear in the Automatch
map rotation.
/Map 1: Tournament Rift/
Red Zones such as this have long since become uninhabitable to any
of Earth’s life forms, and yet serve as a focal point for the
conflict between the GDI, the Brotherhood of Nod, and the Scrin,
in their continued efforts to gain control over the alien mineral.
This is a two-player map available for ranked matches.
/Map 2: Tournament Coastline/
As the spread of Tiberium inexorably continued across the world,
GDI and Nod forces found themselves frequently skirmishing for
control over strategic coastal regions such as this one. This is
a two-player desert map available for ranked matches.
/Map 3: Schlachtfeld Stuttgart/
The Scrin, desperate for Tiberium, savagely laid waste to this
once-proud German city in short order. Now fighting over the green
crystal continues in the city’s ruined remains. This is a two-
player urban map available for unranked matches.
/Map 4: Coastline Chaos/
An extension of Tournament Coastline, this map is based on the
very first map used to publicly showcase Command & Conquer 3
Tiberium Wars at the 2006 Electronic Entertainment Expo. This is
a four-player desert map available for unranked matches.
· Added a “Classic Command & Conquer (Left-Click Orders)” mouse
interface option, which may be selected in the General tab of
the Settings menu.
· Added the ability to cycle through multiple production
facilities of the same type either by clicking on the main tab
for that production category or tapping the respective hotkey.
· When placing production structures, players will now see
these structures’ default rally point, which should help guide
base- building decisions near impassable terrain.
· The Reverse Move command for vehicles can now be given by
pressing and holding the hotkey (default ‘D’) as well as by
tapping the hotkey before each move order.
· The ‘Show Healthbars’ hotkey (default ‘~’) now toggles on all
healthbars with one tap. Tapping the hotkey again reverts the
effect.
· Loading screens prior to online multiplayer battles now show a
snapshot of the selected map as well as statistics for each
player.
· It is now possible to rebind the default hotkeys for camera
controls.
· Hotkeys for Telestrator features are now available for the
match Commentator. Visit the Hotkeys tab of Settings menu to
view the default hotkeys or change them.
· Various “slash commands” added to online multiplayer lobbies.
Type “/help” in an online lobby for a list of commands. To
expedite one-on-one chat, press Ctrl + Up Arrow or Ctrl + Down
Arrow to cycle through players with whom you have exchanged
private messages during your last session.
· Fixed an error that caused some players to unexpectedly see
the GDI campaign’s alternate ending video instead of the
intended ending video.
· Fixed an error that prevented players from being able to place
certain structures as closely together as expected, which makes
it easier to find suitable building locations.
· Flying units can now be ordered to move onto terrain that is
impassable to ground units.
· On multi-monitor systems, the mouse cursor will no longer
unexpectedly move from the gameplay monitor to another
monitor as players scroll across the screen.
· Fixed an error that sometimes caused computer-controlled
opponents to cease fighting after loading a saved Skirmish game.
· Fixed an error that sometimes caused players to unexpectedly
select multiple control groups at once when rapidly switching
between control groups.
· The Attack Move order now works correctly if a target unit
is selected.
· Fixed an error that sometimes caused units to not target
structures automatically when given an Assault Move order.
· Fixed a graphical error that caused production timers in the
Sidebar interface to “snap” to position when switching between
production queues.
· Added an EVA announcement for when an enemy Scrin Mastermind
enters the player’s line of sight.
· Fixed an error that prevented players from using hotkeys to
change unit stances while units were moving.
· Tiberium Spikes now continue to provide a flow of resources
if damaged and then repaired.
· Several campaign cinematics now show up as expected in the
Transmission Log.
· Fixed an error that caused players to lose credits when
selling Refineries or Extractors under the control of a
Scrin Mastermind unit.
· Fixed an error that sometimes caused GDI Ox Transports and
Nod Carryalls to become stuck and unselectable when ordered to
land next to edges of cliffs.
· Switching to and from low-power state now causes unit and
structure build times to update dynamically as intended.
Previously, production that started during low-power state
did not automatically speed up if power was restored.
· The mouse cursor now no longer suggests that air units can
be used to open Crates.
· Jumping to a unit group now moves the camera to the center
of the group, rather than the last unit added to the group.
· Nod defensive turret hubs now appear unstealthed when their
turrets fire while under the effects of the Disruption Tower.
· Computer-controlled players will no longer attempt to sell
the same structure multiple times when low on resources, which
caused a stream of zeros to appear onscreen.
· GDI APCs now will always move close enough to their targets
to ensure infantry units inside are within attack range.
· Fixed an error that sometimes caused walker unit death
animations to not play correctly.
· Scrin Stormriders are now affected by the player’s handicap
setting in multiplayer matches.
· Maps with six starting positions now properly randomize
players’ starting positions.
· The Nod nuclear missile can no longer be stopped after launch
if players power down the Temple of Nod.
· Nod Avatars will no longer retain their veterancy level when
they are destroyed and their husks are recovered.
· Nod Beam Cannons now gain their expected bonuses to attack
power from veterancy.
· Fixed a graphical error that sometimes caused Nod laser
defenses to appear as if they still were firing when powered
down or destroyed.
· Units created using Nod’s Decoy Army support power will no
longer last indefinitely if the Nod Operations Center is
powered down. Decoyed Scrin Corrupter units no longer spawn
Visceroids.
· Fixed an error that sometimes caused units to display
veterancy ranks from the wrong faction.
· Added effects for when Tiberium crystals are attacked and
destroyed.
· Added effects for Nod Vertigo Bomber’s rear anti-air turret.
· Added ambient sound effects for Scrin Gun Walker and Scrin
Annihilator Tripod.
· GDI and Nod Commandos will now respect the rules of their
selected combat stance with regard to their C4 charges. They
will not automatically move to demolish structures unless
set to Aggressive stance.
· GDI Firehawks equipped with Stratofighter Boosters will no
longer fly in stacked on top of each other when groups of
Firehawks are ordered to use the ability at the same time.
· Fixed a graphical error that caused Nod Scorpion Tanks to
catch fire more quickly than intended.
· The user interface now properly stretches to the top and
bottom of the screen in 1280×1024 resolution.
· Added recoil effects to non-upgraded Nod Scorpion Tank and
GDI Guardian Cannon.
· Scrin Worm Hole support power no longer allows the player to
create the entry and exit points on top of each other.
· Scrin Buzzer Hives now show an attack radius when selected.
· If the player is defeated, the end- of-mission music no longer
plays twice.
· Computer-controlled players will now attempt to build
superweapons only in their most-fortified bases.
· Added an EVA announcement for when teammates place a beacon.
· When spectating multiplayer matches, players will now hear the
game music change dynamically as the battle’s participants do.
· Fixed an error that caused text to misalign in online chat
lobbies if players remained in those lobbies for a relatively
long period of time.
· When loading replay files directly from the Windows desktop,
the Main menu music no longer plays during the match.
· Various other minor bug fixes.
· Online lobbies have been renamed.
· Some campaign missions have been tuned and rebalanced.
· In team-based matches, allied players now share Ground
Control, allowing them to build structures in each others’
bases.
· When attempting to restart a campaign from the beginning,
players will now receive a warning prompt notifying them
that their autosave for that campaign will be overwritten
if they proceed.
· The Resources chart in the post-match screen now graphs total
credits gathered over time.
· Added a wider variety of scorch marks to the battlefield.
· Added garrison-clearing effects for Nod Flame Tank, Nod Black
Hand, and Scrin Corrupter units.
· Added explosion effects for when Scrin Disintegrators are
crushed by enemy vehicles.
· Added Heroic- level firing effects for the GDI Juggernaut.
· Added music when viewing the Intelligence Database during
campaign missions.
· Scrin Devourer Tanks now have an additional gauge that
shows remaining supercharged ammunition gained by using the
Conversion Beam ability.
· Added new visual effects for the Scrin Annihilator Tripod’s
close-range EMP attack.
· Added new visual effects for when walker husks are destroyed.
· Added an audio cue for when the Repair command is used on a
structure.
· Added ammunition counters to the unit portraits of aircraft
with limited ammo, including the GDI Orca and Firehawk and the
Nod Vertigo Bomber. Also added ambient reload sound effects to
these units.
· Updated the loading screen when loading saved games.
· Jeff Hua, Travell McEntyre, Ino Karella, and Jason Priest
credited for additional art contributions.
· Fixed various typographical errors in the game.