xREL.v3

update v4.0.0.21699:
MARCH 28th UPDATE

After over three months of countless posts of forum feedback, numerous surveys and tournaments, and over 10 mod iterations, the final changes put forward in the Winter Balance Preview are ready to be released into the live game.

A massive thank you goes out to community members Mr. Smith, Callum from GeneralsGentlemen, and Miragefla that put in countless hours to make the following balance changes possible. But of course, they did not do it alone. Community members such as Nacho, Cruzz, Le Saucisson Masqué, Capiqua, Osinyagov, and Planet Smasher were instrumental in identifying and helping fix bugs as well as implementing multiple QoL features, top players in the community were crucial for providing high level balance critique and of course the constant vigilance of the entire community that playtested the mod and provided ongoing feedback over these past few months made the iteration process possible. For all your efforts and dedication, we thank you.

As a refresher, the changes below were designed to target specific dominate meta in order eliminate default build orders and promoting strategic diversity. The scope of this patch was focused around two primary pillars: Light Vehicle Play and Infantry Scaling, as well as, two secondary areas of Dominate Meta: Soviet Guards and Penals, and the USF Mortar. Finally, a number of Quality of Life changes such as Squad Formations and “Ghosting” have been targeted to improve gameplay and feel.

GENERAL

Reinforcement Half Tracks/Transports

We wanted to make using these units less frustrating as a reinforcement platform and more reliable in order to better supplement Wehrmacht field presence.

Reinforcement Half-tracks now have shared veterancy from infantry squads and weapon teams
Load Times for all Half-tracks standardized to 2.
Given a handbrake ability to prevent unwanted movement
251 Half-track can now carry mortar teams
Shared Veterancy
The following unit types will contribute to shared veterancy to nearby officers/halftracks at the following rates:

5% mortars/indirect fire
10% HMGs
50% infantry
0% anything else
Snipers

We feel that the Sniper’s cloak ability is over performing, making them extremely difficult to counter with infantry. To address this issues we have made the following changes:

When firing a shot or using an offensive ability when not camouflaged, the unit will be unable to become camouflaged for 10 seconds
Snipers cannot cloak until out of combat for 3 seconds
Stealth Changes

To bring other stealth units in line with the cloaking changes made to Snipers, we have applied the following re-cloaking restrictions:

Anti-tank gun/Tank stealth changes

Tanks (e.g., JP4) and anti-tank guns cannot re-cloak until out of combat for 5.5 seconds

Neither type of unit can re-cloak within 10 seconds of having fired a shot

Non-sniper stealth infantry changes

Stealth (infiltration) infantry cannot re-cloak until out of combat for 4 seconds

Stealth infantry cannot re-cloak within 10 seconds of having used an offensive ability (e.g, grenades)

Veterancy Rates from Infantry-Based Anti-Tank

Anti-tank infantry squads were attaining veterancy disproportionately fast compared to anti-infantry squads. This was allowing blobs of infantry to scale versus armour too easily. This also allowed anti-tank-equipped squads to outpace dedicated anti-infantry squads and trade more efficiently than they should. With this change we aim to streamline the speed of veterancy gain or all squads.

Panzerschrecks/Bazookas/PIATs/PTRS/BOYS AT Rifles now award 3 times less experience when damaging a target. This change does not affect the British Sniper
M17 Quad

We wanted to tone down the performance of the Quad to be in-line with Light Tanks and other suppression platforms. In order to make infantry counters to this unit viable, the M17 can no longer suppress enemy squads on the move.

Moving Burst reduced from 1 to 0.5
Moving accuracy reduced from 0.4 to 0.25
Near rate of fire reduced from 1.24 to 1.15
Accuracy reduced from 0.5/0.3125/0.125 to 0.34/0.28/0.1
Near Cooldown modifier increased from 0.5 to 0.75
Cannot suppress units while moving.
Increased the chance for the Quad to take down an airplane (from 30 in 10000 to 10 in 100)
Munition cost from 120 to 100
Mortars

The escalation of mortar power has made them over perform compared to other types of more costly artillery pieces that had not received this bonus such as Pack Howitzers and Mortar Half-tracks.

Vet 3 no longer grants range increase to auto attacks.

SOVIETS

Penals

The combination of the raw amount of bonuses Penal Battalion squads receive with the power of their flamer upgrade made the squad capable of winning nearly all engagements vs infantry, in almost any situation, creating very limited avenues for counterplay. To address this, we are removing some of the raw power of Penal battalions. At the same time, we are giving Penal Battalions access to some anti-tank utility to give Soviet T1 some tactical versatility, which it previously lacked.

Popcap cost increased from 7 to 8
Penal Veterancy 3 received accuracy from 0.77 to 0.85
Veterancy 3 reduces cost of satchel charges from 45 munitions to 35 munitions.
No longer gains access to the Oorah ability.
No longer have access to the flamethrower upgrade
Now gain access to a (2x) PTRS upgrade
PTRS x2 upgrade

Cost 60 Munitions
Same damage as Guards PTRS (refer to Guards changes)
Accuracy lowered from 0.69/0.575/0.253 to 0.15/0.105/0.06
Has 0.33 drop-rate
Satchel charges
Penal satchel charges can now also behave as vehicle snares:

Damage vs vehicles reduced to 240 (same as AT satchel)
Friendly fire multiplier increased from 25% to 50%
Causes engine snare on targets with 75% HP or lower (after the damage is applied)
Satchel will stick to vehicles if it hits them on its trajectory to the target
Satchels can be targeted directly on enemy vehicles. However, the throw will abort if, at any time, the target leaves the range of the ability (unlike other snare abilities that will fire regardless)
Guards

Guards were proving to over perform in ratio to their cost, appearing to supplement any strategy, thus, limiting variation in Soviet commanders.

Manpower cost increased from 330 to 360
Damage vs non-vehicles reduced from 27 to 20
Damage vs vehicles on penetration remains 40
Damage vs vehicles on deflection increases from 13 to 20
Guards can now re-buy lost items and equipment
Vet 2 accuracy bonus reduced from 1.3 to 1.14
Vet 2 received accuracy bonus decreased from 0.83 to 0.88
Vet 3 now grants a further 1.14 accuracy (1.3 total)
Vet 3 now received accuracy bonus increased from 0.77 to 0.75, total received accuracy at vet 3 has been reduced from 0.6391 to 0.66.
RGD-33 Fragmentation Grenade (Affects Partisans, but not Shocks)

AOE far damage reduced from 0.5 to 0.25 (Same as MK2)
Ready aim time increased from 0.125 to 0.625 (to match MK2 overall delay)
Munitions cost reduced from 45 to 35
T-70

We feel that the T-70’s high damage and AOE allowed it to wipe infantry too effectively, not giving the opposing player sufficient time to react, particularly if units are clumped in cover. The changes below will make it so that the T-70 loses its characteristic pinpoint accuracy on the move while maintaining its ability to flank teams weapons and push back infantry squads.

Manpower cost increased from 200 to 260
Health increased from 320 to 400
Crew repair removed
Reload speed increased from 1.8 - 2.2 to 2.1 - 2.5
AoE damage reduced from 1/0.35/0.05 to 0.8/0.35/0.15
Scatter Max increased from 1.7 to 2.5
Distance scatter offset reduced from 0.25 to 0.15 (this improves targeting)
Veterancy 3 decreases weapon scatter by 20% (accuracy vs infantry)
Coaxial MG cooldown decreased from 5 to 3
Coaxial MG cooldown multiplier changed from 0.5/1/1.5 to 0.75/1/1.25
Coaxial MG accuracy changed from 0.38/0.33/0.28 to 0.38/0.355/0.33
Coaxial MG reload duration reduced from 4-6 seconds to 3 seconds
T-70 Recon Mode now also allows the T-70 to capture territory with veterancy 1.
Capture Point ability removed.

WEHRMACHT

Medkits

To give Wehrmacht more staying power on the field, Medkits will now fully heal up a squad. We are also giving some QoL improvements to the ability.

Medkits duration increased from 10 seconds to 20 seconds (will now heal to full)
Cost reduced from 20 munitions to 15 munitions
Squads can now use the medkit ability on themselves
It is now possible to interrupt the casting of OST Medkits
Pioneers

We felt that pioneer damage output was under-performing and proving ineffective in combat.

Near accuracy increased from 0.403 to 0.463
Mid accuracy increased from 0.23 to 0.27
Population reduced from 6 to 5
Assault Grenadiers

Whilst they have an initial impact, their damage fall off, manpower bleed, grenades and veterancy scaling made them not scale well into the late game. Therefore, to improve their scalability, we have made the following changes:

Reinforce cost lowered from 28 to 26
Grenade Assault munitions cost lowered from 45 to 30.
Grenade Assault aim-time and ready-aim time reduced by half to allow faster throwing.
Squad leader armour reduced from 1.5 to 1.
Medical kits removed.
Veterancy 1 now Grants -10% received accuracy and reduces recharge on sprint by 25%.
Fixed an issue where interrupting the Assault Grenadier grenade ability early enough would immediately reset the cooldown
Panzer Grenadiers

Panzer Grenadiers are a strong unit but their timing means other factions already have veterancy on their infantry making it difficult for PGs to scale in veterancy vs their opponents.

Vet 1 now grants 0.84 received accuracy bonus
Vet 2 received accuracy bonus reduced from 0.71 to 0.84 (~0.71 total)
G43 Package (Also affects Stormtroopers but not Grenadiers)

Far aim time multiplayer reduced from 3.5 to 3. (Boosts long range DPS)
Now increases sight range by 20%
Fixed an issue with the G43 package interrogation ability that would not reveal all enemy units in a sufficiently-large map.
Elite Doctrine Stormtroopers now have access to Panzergrenadier G43s, and can upgrade G43’s in enemy territory
222 Scout Car

The 222 also wasn’t scaling with veterancy as well as other light vehicles and suffered from inconsistent damage output preventing it from tracking infantry properly. We also felt that the auto-cannon was too reliant on AOE for damage. Another concern with the 222 was that it was too cheap relative to its performance,

Manpower cost increased from from 210 to 250
Fuel cost increased from 15 to 30
Veterancy requirements increased from 480/960/1920 to 720/1440/2880
Acceleration increased from 2.4 to 3
Spotting Scopes Sight bonus reduced from 2 to 1.4
Veterancy 1 improves received accuracy to 0.889
Veterancy 3 awards 20 extra HP
Autocannon

Autocannon accuracy from 0.06/0.04/0.02 to 0.05/0.04/0.03
Autocannon AOE Near damage reduced from 1 to 0.6
Autocannon Rate of fire multiplier from 1.4/1.2/1 to 1/1/1
Autocannon penetration increased from 35 to 40
Autocannon Mid range distance from 15 to 20
MG42

MG42 now properly tracks infantry
MG42 accuracy reduced from 0.6/0.425/0.25 to 0.44/0.385/0.275
MG42 accuracy increases with veterancy: +10%/+15%/+15%
MG42 range distance near from 10 to 0
MG42 0.75 accuracy modifier versus Snipers (down from 1.5).
Stug E

The Stug E was proving to be overly effective for its cost, especially as a call-in tank that could bypass tech requirements. Furthermore, Target Weak Point allowed the Stug E to have strong anti tank utility even though it's primarily an anti-infantry vehicle.

Manpower cost increased from 200 to 260
Health reduced from 540 to 480 (Now Destroyed in 3 ATG shots)
Reload from 4.8 to 6
Recharge time between successive Stug-E call-ins increased from 30 seconds to 60 seconds
Damage vs garrisons increased from 0.25 to 0.5
Fires a slow-moving projectile in a 20-degree arc
Weapon type changed from ballistic to big explosive (building damage readjusted)
AOE damage reduced from 1/0.15/0.05 to 0.75/0.35/0.15
AoE distance from 1/1.5/2.25 to 1.5/2.5/3
AOE Radius from 3 to 4
Scatter Max increased from 2.15 to 3
Scatter Angle increased from 5 to 5.5
Distance scatter ratio reduced from 1 to 0.075
Scatter offset turned to 0.
Target Weak Point (TWP)

TWP now applies Stuart Blind (5 seconds: no vision, guns disabled)
TWP damage reduced from 80 to 40
TWP Always penetrates
Puma

The Puma serves the role of a anti-vehicle and soft counter to tanks, however, the Target Weak Point’s ability to stun even the heaviest of tanks made it over perform for its cost and mobility.
Target Weak Point (TWP)
* TWP now applies Stuart Blind (5 seconds: no vision, guns disabled)
* TWP Damage reduced from 120 to 60
* TWP always penetrates
* TWP munitions cost reduced from 40 to 35 to match other TWP variants

USF

M1919 Light Machine Guns

The ability to equip two M1919 LMG’s on a squad was resulting in over performing long range DPS for a squad as durable as Riflemen or as cheap as Rear Echelon.

Can no longer be double equipped via weapon racks.
Riflemen

To improve Wehrmacht's late game infantry scaling, USF Riflemen have received a slight reduction in their vet 3 bonus to their received accuracy.

Vet3 Received accuracy was changed from -20% to -15%
81mm Mortar

The USF Mortar barrage, rate of fire and veterancy bonuses have been causing this unit to overperform in most engagements. Furthermore, it has overshadowed the more expensive pack howitzer, lacking only range on its barrage until the pack howitzer hits veterancy 2.

Cost reduced from 260MP to 240MP
Range reduced from 80 to 65
AoE near distance reduced from 1 to 0.75 (both attack and barrage)
Reduced the rate of fire of the barrage ability to OST mortar levels
Pack-up time improved from 1.9 to 1.1
Set-up duration decreased from 1 to 0.5
Veterancy 0 now provides access to a Smoke Barrage ability with 65 range
Veterancy 1 reduced scatter bonus replaced by increase to Smoke Barrage range (80)
Removed certain accuracy bonuses at Vet3 that would further increase the accuracy of the mortar (over other mortars)
Vehicle Crews

Critical repair allowed USF vehicles to escape too easily after getting caught by a Panzerfaust or hitting a mine.

Veterancy requirements increased from 200/400/800 to 650/1300/2800
Crit Repair munitions cost increased from 10 to 25
Crit Repair Delay increased from 0 seconds to 4 seconds.
Stuart

We felt that the Stuart was over-performing in its role as an anti-infantry unit and as a strong light vehicle counter. Furthermore, its stun rounds allowed it to hunt down light vehicles that were designed to counter it. Thus, we have made the following changes to solidify its role as primarily an anti-light vehicle unit.

Manpower cost increased from 240 to 270
Main gun damage vs infantry set to -25%
Main gun penetration increased from 65/50/45 to 75/60/55
MG Accuracy from 0.6/0.45/0.25 to 0.4/0.3/0.16667 (Hull & Coaxial)
MG Incremental accuracy from 1.04 to 1 (Hull & Coaxial).
Stun rounds only disables weapons and sight. Does not affect movement.
Veterancy requirements reduced from 1170/2340/4680 to 870/1740/3480
M15 AA Half Track

Due to the changes in the opposing factions (most notably 222 changes and Luchs), we are adjusting the performance of M15 to bring it in line with the other light vehicles. This will also help prevent the Lieutenant tier from dominating over the Captain tier.

Manpower cost reduced from 350 to 310
Main gun damage vs infantry set to -50%
Vet requirements reduced from 1290/2580/5160 to 870/1740/3480
Maximum health increased by 40HP at Veterancy 3.
50 cal MG accuracy increased by 10%/15%/15% at vet levels 1-through-3 respectively
Veterancy 3 bonuses (accuracy/penetration) now apply to the main gun

OKW

Sturmpioneer

Given the changes to light vehicles, we felt that the risk vs reward for the Mechanised HQ as a tech choice would become too high due it not offering any type of healing. To compensate, Sturmpioneers have Medical Supplies available from the start.

Medical Supplies available at Vet 0
Medical Supplies munitions Cost reduced from 40 to 30
50% of the vet 3 construction bonus moved to vet 1
Panzerfausts

OKW’s heavy Panzerfaust cost made them excessively vulnerable to vehicles, especially when compounded with their other anti-tank options.

Volksgrenadier Panzerfaust Munitions cost reduced from 35 to 25
Requires an sWS being summoned into the field (as opposed to truck being set-up)
Raketenwerfer

Due to the changes made to Stealth, the Raketenwerfer has become overly vulnerable to infantry flanks. We feel that this leaves the performance of the Raketenwerfer somewhat lacking against vehicles.

Reduced the ready-aim-time of the raketenwerfer from 0.25-0.375 seconds to 0.125 seconds
Increased the fire-aim-time of the raketenwerfer from 0.125-0.25 seconds to 0.25-0.375 seconds
251 Flak Half Track

We’ve found that the 251 Half-Track was underperforming in its role as an anti-infantry unit due to its immobility and vulnerability to vehicle rushes, lack of infantry support, and inability to counter some of OKW’s primary threats such as MG lockdown.

Penetration increased from 20 to 30
Defensive Smoke no longer requires vet 1
Defensive Smoke munitions cost increased from 0 to 25
Vet 1 now reduces cost of Defensive Smoke from 25 to 10
Build-time from 45 to 60
Garrison Damage Multiplier increased from 0.25 to 0.35
Garrison Accuracy Multiplier increased from 0.4 to 0.5
AoE far reduced from 1 to 0.05 (only affects anti-garrison performance)
Minimum Range Removed
Handbrake ability added to prevent unwanted movement
Panzer 2 ‘Luchs’

The following changes aim to make Luchs much more consistent in its damage output (reducing spikes, as well as removing several sources of inconsistency). These changes are intended to keep the unit a strong AI vehicle while giving opposing players enough time to react in an engagement. To do this we are making the main gun of the Luchs ignore suppression modifiers of the target unit. We are also increasing the performance of Luchs when it closes in on enemy squads. With this change, the Luchs will ignore cover of nearby infantry units if driven up within 10m from them, (similar to small-arms fire weapons, i.e. the Point Blank mechanic)

Manpower cost reduced from 315 to 265
Fuel cost reduced from 65 to 60
AoE damage reduced from 1/1/1 to 0.6/0.5/0.1
AoE distance reduced from 1/1/1 to 1/0.9/0.25
Fixed an issue where a large portion of the shots would miss into the air
Accuracy reduced from 0.775/0.66/0.56 to 0.65/0.5/0.4
Vet2 accuracy reduced from 0.875/0.76/0.66 to 0.78/0.6/0.48
Moving accuracy at Vet0-Vet1 increased from 0.25 to 0.3
Moving accuracy at Vet2-Vet5 increased from 0.4 to 0.5
Luchs MG incremental accuracy from 1.04 to 1.
Incremental accuracy modifier reduced from 1.04 to 1
Veterancy requirements lowered from 1170/2340/4680/5850/7781 to 870/1740/3480/4350/5786
Veterancy 5 "Suppressive Fire" ability

Veterancy 5 passive turned to a timed “Suppressive Fire” ability.
Suppresses enemy squads
10 Munition cost
20 seconds duration
60 seconds cooldown
Reduces main gun damage by -50%
2cm vs Garrisons

Garrison Damage Multiplier from 0.25 to 0.3
Garrison Accuracy Multiplier from 0.4 to 0.5
Damage all in hold set to True
Puma

Aimed shot ability
Given the changes to the other factions’ light vehicles, this ability would make it so that the Puma would also be the best vehicle for wiping infantry squads. To mitigate this, we have made the following changes:

Accuracy vs infantry suffers additional penalties while the Puma is moving.
Puma now suffers from the same accuracy penalties as OST sniper vs retreating squads

BRITISH

PIAT’s

We feel that PIAT’s are a primary influencer to why the British are experiencing a disparity in the early and late game anti-tank capability. PIAT’s also pose a problem between game modes, skill levels and maps due to the fact they must be manually and precisely aimed. The following changes will make PIATs feel more consistent and easier to use at all skill levels and in all situations:

Gave PIAT homing projectile, if there is no obstruction between the PIAT and the target
PIATs have the same accuracy as bazookas for ranges between 0 and 30
Range reduced from 45 to 30
Damage reduced from 120/80 (penetrating hit/deflected hit) to 100/25
Munitions cost increased from 40 to 50
Fire-aim time reduced from 2.4 to 0.625 (reduces delay to fire)
Post firing aim time increased from 0 to 1.25
Reload time increased from 4.5 to 5.75 (same as bazooka)
Increased scatter, so that PIATs in indirect-fire mode are unreliable (especially when the user is suppressed)
Adjusted scatter offset, so that misses are centered around an immobile target
Royal Engineers

We have found that the Sapper squads simply scale too well due to the reduced reinforcement cost bonus they achieve at Vet 3.

Sapper Vet 3 reinforcement cost increased from 13MP to 20MP.
Can now only equip 1 Bren gun per squad
AEC

We found that the AEC’s anti-infantry damage was too potent for a vehicle with so much anti-tank capability, yet its main gun was very inconsistent due to its comparatively large scatter. The AEC also suffered from extremely low armour causing it to be destroyed by S Mines and HMG teams too easily. Finally, we have made changes to the Treadbreaker ability that will make it considerably more consistent and easier to use.

Frontal Armour increased from 40 to 55
Medium crush replaced with light crush
Smoke cooldown reduced from 120 seconds to 40 seconds (puma cooldown is 38 secs)
Main gun accuracy far increased from 0.025 to 0.03125
Range profile changed from 0/20/40 to 10/30/40
Moving accuracy increased from 0.5 to 0.6 (does not affect the Treadbreaker ability)
Turret rotation increased from 35 to 40
Main gun AoE reduced from 1/0.25/0.1 to 1/0.15/0.05 (to match Puma)
Max scatter increased from 1.7 to 9.5
Machine gun accuracy reduced from 0.7/0.6/0.46 to 0.48/0.47/0.46
MG incremental accuracy decreased from 1.04 to 1
Treadbreaker
Turret rotation in treadbreaker mode increased from 33 to 40 (makes it more reliable)

Added a projectile
Scatter changed from 7.5/1.7 to 6/6.5 (horizontal/vertical) -- this makes treadshot more reliable
Cone of fire increased from 5 to 10
Stationary accuracy increased by 20% from the main gun
Duration reduced 20 to 7

QUALITY OF LIFE CHANGES

Squad Formations & Clumping

We feel there is a disparity in how squads are assigned formations which is impacting squad performance. To address this problem we have implemented the following changes:
Give all squad members a roughly equal breathing space, regardless of the size of the squad (be it 2 members or 6 members)

Prevent unwanted clumping when given two opposing orders in quick succession (e.g., forward & backwards to avoid an AoE projectile).
Allow stealth-oriented squads to better utilize crater wherever available, without breaking their formation, but without clumping too much either
Change unwanted reaction behaviour which would cause squads to break formation and put them unnecessarily into danger.
Ghost Wire/Sand Bags

“Ghost Wire/Sandbags” is the name for a common exploit in competitive play which allows partially completed fortifications to block movement. While unfinished fortifications could be destroyed by small arms, they took several seconds of focus fire to destroy what could be placed instantly. If players want to impede enemy movements with barbed wire and/or sandbags, they now have to fully complete constructing them.

Unfinished wire/sandbags/tank traps (aka ghostbags) will self-destruct automatically if there is no longer an infantry squad (owned by the same player) within 10 meters of the unfinished fortifications for 5 seconds.
Retreat Point De-Congestion

The base layout of several armies makes it so that retreating infantry units often get caught up in high-congestion areas. This, in particular, makes it difficult for nearby-stationed medics to reach injured soldiers, thus reducing the efficiency of healing.

Squads will halt their retreat within 10 meters from their designated retreat point
For UKF, squads will also use the weapon racks as forward retreat points
OKW forward retreat antennas can now be traversed by units
Base Structure Rotation

Soviets engineers and Werhmacht Pioneers will be able to select the rotation of base buildings to allow players to optimize paths, as well as create unique layouts!

General

Introduced improvements to the build order of AI-controlled armies (fix provided by Nachocheese)

Prioritize Vehicle now only affects the main gun of the affected tank, but not the MGs. Thus, vehicles with the Prioritize Vehicles ability active will continue to engage infantry with their MGs.

Base medics (OKW/Soviet/OST) will no longer chase after retreating units.
Troop transports are given the “Handbrake” ability. This ability disables the unit from moving or rotating to make the following tasks easier: (i) loading/unloading troops (ii) setting up as a forward reinforcement point.
Infantry units can target their snares at de-crewed/abandoned vehicles.
USF/UKF Medics are given an auto-heal toggle. This way, the player can control whether they wish these medics to go after wounded units or not (e.g., to avoid putting the medics in danger)
USF/UKF Medics will not chase after moving squads, to avoid unwanted long chases.
Anti-infantry partisans no longer display the PPSh icon, to help the player identify any picked-up weapons.
Puma’s detection ability reverted to Vehicle Detection only to fit the unit’s role
M20 given a Hold Fire ability
M15 AA Half-track given a Attack ground ability
M15 AA Half-track given a Handbrake ability
The Raketenwerfer can now pick up medical supply drops from Sturmpioneers
OKW Flak Half-track given handbrake ability to prevent accidental movement
OKW Flak Half-track now displays the max range of the weapon when selected
Panzer 2 Luchs given access to the Prioritize Vehicles ability.
OKW Infrared searchlight halftrack given Handbrake ability
Universal Carrier is no longer a valid host for the Command Vehicle ability
AVRE given a “Hold Fire” command to make the bombard ability more responsive.
Due to interference with UKF teching, it will be no longer possible to call Gliders or Air Resupply operation in the base sector

MAP UPDATES

Lisores River

Wooden docks removed

Extra large vehicles no longer get blocked when crossing the Western bridge

Westwall

Improvements made to LoS and cutoff points
Hill 400

Fixed an issue that removed it from the map list
The following community-made maps have been removed from automatch and the map list

Market Ruins
Bombarded Refinery
Rüstungswerke Essen

BUG FIXES

Fixed a bug where firing at non-infantry targets would suppress nearby infantry. Now suppression platforms will only deal AoE suppression if the primary target is an infantry model.

Fixed a bug where AI-controlled non-Conscript Soviet squads would, sometimes, get access to anti-tank grenades

Fixed an issue with multiple infantry-borne AT snares (e.g., Panzerfausts) sometimes failing to hit
their intended target (thanks to Cruzz and Le Saucisson Masqué for helping identify the issues behind this).
Fixed an issue where team weapons dying when under the effects of suppression, would have their stats permanently diminished. This bug affected all MGs, mortars and the raketenwerfer (many thanks to Cruzz for identifying and fixing the bug).
Fixed an issue where certain vehicles would receive engine damage criticals when hit from non-snare weapons (OKW Panzer4/OKW Puma/Universal Carrier)
Fixed an issue where certain types of mines (most infamously, Teller mines) would trigger too early, thus failing to cause damage on enemy targets (Fix provided by NachoCheese)
Fixed an issue with players being able to double-buy certain upgrades using macro-based cheats.
Fixed an issue where static Howitzers (e.g., B4, ML-20, LeFH) would sometimes become temporarily unresponsive when given consecutive direction-facing commands.
Fixed an issue where Snipers would avoid engaging infantry units when the Sniper was cloaked without “hold fire” on, even when issued the attack-move command
Fixed an issue where USF/UKF medic squads would, sometimes, stop healing nearby wounded troops.
Fixed an issue where the suppression -33% distance modifier was not affecting the following squads:
Airlanding officer (Light Gammon Bomb)
Stormtrooper (Stun grenade)
Obersoldaten (Bundle grenade)
Tank Hunter Infantry Sections (Heavy Gammon Bomb)
Fixed an issue where several squads would cost more manpower to reinforce when crewing a team weapon. This bug was also causing the affected squads to award more experience to the enemy when hit. This affects the following squads: Panzergrenadiers, Tommies, Fallschirmjaegers, Sturmpioneers and Obersoldaten
Fixed an issue where firing a Panzerfaust would fulfill the requirements for counter-barrage
Pak43/Pak40 production bulletin now works (previously did not affect pak43 production time as intended)
Fixed an issue where several Off-map abilities (mostly belonging to Soviets, OST, OKW) could still be targeted in the base sector
The change also affects Pathfinder artillery and Major artillery
Paratroopers can no longer be dropped into the enemy base sector.
Fixed an issue where a re-crewed vet 2 T-70 using recon mode was unable to toggle the ability off.
Fixed an issue where the Coaxial MG would not track targets properly
Fixed an issue where Soviet AT guns crews would open fire and break stealth (thus ruin ambushes)
Fixed an issue where camouflaged Soviet AT guns would refuse to open fire at intended targets, when stealthed
Fixed an issue where the M1-57mm gun would not benefit from Soviet AT ambush tactics.
Fixed an issue where the original crew of the M42 would sometimes drop prone on the ground, thus inhibiting movement
Fixed an issue where the 250 halftrack could not upgrade spotting scopes, if spotting scopes were available from the doctrine.
Fixed an issue where the AoE of the Brummbar “Bunker Buster” ability was lower than that of the main gun of the Brummbar.
Fixed an issue where “Hold Fire” would not work properly on the Mortar Halftrack
Fixed an issue where the USF mortar would become unresponsive when ordered to fire its smoke rounds
Fixed an issue with the M1 81mm Smoke barrage UI radius was not properly adjusting with range
Fixed an issue that USF mortars would not “mix” with other types of mortars when double-click selecting all mortars in an area.
Fixed an issue where Paratrooper models had 1.5 popcap, as opposed to the intended 1 popcap per model.
Fixed an issue where Paratroopers would receive an involuntary move command when reinforcing near a beacon.
Fixed an issue where re-crewed M8 Scotts would lose access to their auto-attack when de-crewed when “Hold Fire” was active
Fixed an issue where the Sherman Bulldozer “Hold Fire” ability had no effect
Fixed an issue where the default crew of the USF anti-tank gun were easier to hit than other default crews (target size removed from 1.25 to 1)
Paratroopers can now rebuy dropped 30-cal LMGs
Added prioritise vehicles to Greyhound
Fixed an issue where captured M3 halftracks would display an incorrect healthbar
Fixed an issue where M8 Scott abilities would not trigger reliably
Fixed a bug where Rifleman AT grenades were unresponsive under certain conditions
Fixed an issue where “Hold Fire” would not work properly on the M21 Mortar Halftrack
Fixed an issue where the M21 Mortar Halftrack could fire at the enemy without having to rotate towards it
Fixed a bug where it was possible to make OKW Medical supplies have infinite duration
Fixed an issue where Raketenwerfer guns crews would sometime open fire and break stealth (thus ruin ambushes) despite user's preferences (prioritisation)
Fixed an issue where Raketenwerfer would sometimes not open fire from stealth at an intended target
Fixed an issue where the OKW FlakHT could setup on the move
Fixed an issue where the setup timer would reset (prolong) when given new attack commands
Fixed an issue where Luchs Hold Fire would not prevent the MG from opening fire.
Fixed an issue where Schu mines were not applying suppression
Fixed an issue where the Vet1 ability (Target Weak Point) on OKW Pak43 had no effect
Fixed an issue where the Sturmtiger would complete its reload instantly, if abandoned while reloading
Fixed an issue where Obersoldaten would not use their specific voice lines with the infrared-StGs
Fixed an issue where the MG34 did not use the correct lines for the Incendiary Armour Piercing rounds ability
Fixed a bug where the Puma would use the wrong type of projectile after finishing using HEAT shells (fix provided by Cruzz)
Fixed an issue where Recovery Sappers would still apply their Vet1 Cover Bonuses to picked up weapons. Now, the ability correctly only applies to Sapper Sten guns only.
Fixed an issue with certain squads breaking formation and leaving cover involuntarily (Sappers, Commandos, Officer).
Fixed an issue where the UKF “Command Vehicle” ability would become permanently unavailable when the previous vehicle would become abandoned.
Fixed an issue with UKF infantry gaining access to the wrong version of their intended Bren gun, when picking up a Bren gun from the ground.
Fixed an issue with Anvil “Early Warning” not giving sight over captured territory. Note that the scope of the ability has been restricted: the only territory points that the player gains access to are those that the player captured themselves (i.e., not allied-captured territory), just like the similar OKW Overwatch commander ability
Fixed an issue where the second mortar belonging to the mortar pit would deal reduced damage while barraging.
Fixed an issue where the damage Sexton Creeping Barrage had not been increased to match the AoE damage of the normal barrage ability.
Fixed an issue where UKF HEAT anti-tank grenades would, sometimes, fail to apply their snare.
Fixed an issue where Commando Ambush bonuses would apply inconsistently (sometimes none at all, other times permanently). The reworked Ambush requires commandos to be out-of-combat for 25 seconds, for 5 seconds of sprint & +50% accuracy on their Sten guns.
Fixed an issue where the UI would misinform the players about the nature of bonuses involved in Commando Ambush
Fixed a bug where Churchill (grenade) and AEC (treadbreaker) abilities would not trigger reliably
Fixed a bug where the Churchill could still move while priming and throwing a grenade
Fixed a bug where OST medic supplies would heal in-combat squads
Fixed an issue where OST Pioneers would announce “anti-personnel” mines being built, when in fact building a Teller mine
UI FIXES

Vehicle minimap icon sizes have been scaled according to the vehicle type to help players better identify their forces on the battlefield.

Updated abandoned M1 81mm Portrait

Updated M1 81mm squad portraits for their respective factions.
Updated 120mm Mortar Shield Symbol to a different variant
DShka shield icon updated to the correct version for non-EFA armies.
Panzerfusilier G43 extra text should now state: G43s improve mid-short range effectiveness, moving accuracy and sight range.
Ranger Squad Extra Text now state: Effective versus infantry at medium range. Can be upgraded with Thompson SMGs.
Fixed description issues with the 222 when upgraded with the autocannon.
M5 UI text modified for better clarification.
Planting the Soviet demo charge will show a radius of explosion, like other similar abilities while planting it (similar to USF/UKF abilities)

January 11th Hotfix - DELAYED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with bundle artwork not being displayed properly in the in-game store

Fixed an issue with Hill 400 not showing up in the map pool

Dec. 23rd Hotfix

Bug Fixes

Issues with textures not loading properly for team weapons and weapon upgrades has been resolved.

Dec. 22nd - Holiday Update

NEW CONTENT

5 New Historical Skin Sets - 1x each faction, UGC historical skin sets created by community modders Starbuck and Georider added to the in-game store from the curated pathway on the Steam Workshop. 35% of all revenue generated from these skins sets goes back to the community!
USF - Olive Drab
Soviet - Red Army
OKW - Three-Color Ambush
British - Assorted Armor Division
Wehrmacht - Armor Division
5 New Faceplates - 1x each faction, UGC faceplates created by community modder RitaRush added to the in-game store from the curated pathway on the Steam Workshop. 35% of all revenue generated from these faceplates goes back to the community!
1 New 1v1 Map - The community-made map and grand prize winner of Tric's Map Making contest, Halbe, has made its way into COH2's 1v1 automatch and custom games list. This map was created by community map maker, Beagletank
4 New 2v2 Maps - The community-map spotlight shines on the 2v2 gamemode this month with 4 new community-made maps making their way into the automatch and custom games list.
Elst Outskirts by MonolithicBacon
Lisores River by STAHLHAGEL
Pripyat Sector by Tric
Schilberg Outskirts - by MonolithicBacon & Stormless
MAP UPDATES

The maps Hill 400, Caen, Market Ruins, Bombarded Refinery, Rüstungswerke Essen, and Westwall have received updates to resolve pathing and balance issues.
IN-GAME STORE UPDATES

The Valkyria Chronicles skins are now available to purchase via Supply

Community commanders (Soviet Defensive Tactics & Wehrmacht Defensive Doctrine) added to the in-game store

The following new Commander Bundles have been add to the in-game store
Soviet Top Played Commander Bundle (1v1)
Soviet Top Played Commander Bundle (Team Games)
Soviet Top Played Commander Bundle (Overall)
Wehrmacht Top Played Commander Bundle
OKW Top Played Commander Bundle
USF Top Played Commander Bundle
British Top Played Commander Bundle
HelpingHans' Recommended Commander Bundle

Oct. 25th Update

A huge thanks goes out to Miragefla, Mr. Smith, and Cruzz for their help identifying and testing bugs for this patch.


New Content

5 (one for each faction) new FREE Halloween themed skins added to the game

6 new Community-made maps added to the Community Map Rotation


Halloween Event

Log-in between Oct. 25th 2:00 PM PDT - Nov. 8th 10:00 AM PDT to receive 5 Halloween themed vehicle skins for FREE!

Play with any of the Halloween skins during the Halloween Weekend to earn 2x Loot Points!


Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug where it was possible for a player to discover if a building was garrisoned through the fog of war by issuing a garrison building command.

Fixed a bug where it was possible to determine which direction a garrisoned MG was facing through the fog of war.

Fixed a bug where certain team weapons wouldn't follow queued commands to capture neutral territory.
Fixed a bug where Weapon Racks did not announce upon start/completion of research
Fixed a bug where the British counter-barrage would target the Brummbar
Fixed a bug where Paratrooper & Ranger grenades would cancel after 3 seconds.
Fixed a bug where Sapper barbed wire was not crushable by light vehicles
Fixed a bug where Pershing and Comet auto throw grenades were capable of causing the crew_shocked critical
Fixed a bug where the Brummbar and Panther were using incorrect speech lines
Fixed a bug where stun grenades would cause unintended behaviour on retreats as well when exiting buildings
Fixed an issue where the MG-34 Generic weapon was more powerful then lmg_moving and lmg_moving_no_prone
Fixed a bug where grenades were not receiving their proper range reduction
Fixed a bug that would occasionally cause vehicles such as the Puma and 222 to do unintentional 360 or 180 degree turns
Fixed a bug where units such as the Fallschirmjägers, Pathfinders, etc. would remain camouflaged on retreat
Fixed a bug that occasionally caused Penals to instantly become unsuppressed
Fixed a bug where the British Sniper would fail to engage garrisoned units

Quality of Life Changes

Removed the auto-rotate from the Wehrmacht 250 Half-track

The British Universal Carrier Vickers weapon now follows attack commands

The Soviet 45mm ATG 1.25 received accuracy modifier for the squad has been removed to match all other anti-tank gun squads.

October 4th Update

New User Experience

Replaced the two commanders given to new players for registering by 30,000 Supply Points to spend as they see fit in the in-game store (this change only affects new players going onward)

Multiplayer standalone now compatible with mods; modding hub unlocked in this standalone version of the game as well

Humble Bundle

5 new skins (1 for each faction) added to the game for the COH 10th Anniversary Humble Bundle.

August 18th Update

New Content

Three new UGC skin sets have been added to the game. 35% of all proceeds generated from these skins go back to their creators.

British - Geirolul by GrumpNTug
OKW - Calamity Ravens by RitaRush
USF - Valkyria Mauler by Puppeteer

July 28th Hotfix

UI

Revamped promotional UI added to main lobby
Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug where the USF Mortar could track, fire at, and reveal enemies through the FOW

Fixed a bug which caused the USF Motar to have stronger performance than intended

Fixed a bug which caused the USF Mortar to receive twice the reduction in scatter at Vet 1 & 2 than intended
Fixed a bug with the Soviet 82mm & 120mm Mortar's default weapon causing it to not receive its range bonus at Vet 3
Fixed a bug with the Wehrmacht Mortar causing the default weapon to not receive its range bonus at Vet 3

July 4th Hotfix

Bug Fix

Fixed a bug causing the combined Arms bonus to stack with each nearby unit

June 29th Hotfix

Bug Fixes

Combined Arms will no longer stack when de-crewing and re-crewing vehicles

OKW's MG34 now using correct icon

Various hotkey fixes where the same hotkey was being used for various commands on the same unit
Soviet B4 now reflects correct popcap
Reported bugs with the USF 81mm Mortar are currently being investigated and will be fixed when possible.

June 23 Hotfix

Bug Fix

Fixed a bug that made Volksgrenadier's Panzerfaust ability disappear when they hit VET 4

Fixed a bug where VET 4 and VET 5 didn’t exist on the LEFH 18

Fixed a bug that caused unintended behaviour to units when hit by Stun grenades
Fixed a bug where the modifiers from the combined arms ability was overwriting other modifiers
Fixed a bug where the auto-fire range on the USF 81mm mortar was more than the barrage.
Fixed a bug where some veterancy bonuses on the USF 81mm mortar wasn’t applying to the barrage and smoke barrage abilities.
Fixed a bug where Sturmpioneers could get all upgrades when multiple upgrades were queued.
Fixed a bug where the USF AT Gun Vet 1 ability had a initial delay before the ability would be active; Initial delay removed.
Fixed a bug where some grenades that didn't get the 33% range reduction when the squad is suppressed.
Fixed a bug where some vehicles were still stunning the JagdTiger. Removed all deflection stun criticals from all weapons.
Removed the random abandon critical from SturmTiger that could happen during reload.
Fixed a few help text issues
Fixed a bug where Volksgrenadiers could pick up a weapon and then upgrade to get 2 more STG44s