Hello everyone!
The time has come to talk to you about the second drop in Operation 6.
This post will cover everything you can expect to see when Drop 2 releases on Tuesday, April 13th.
Trailer
Before you dive into the full post below, watch our special Drop 2 trailer!
Characters
Chairman Prescott
Richard Prescott served as Chairman of the COG through most of the Locust War. Infamous for commanding wartime measures such as the Hammer of Dawn strikes – firing orbital weapons on the COG's own cities to try to stop the Locust advance – Prescott has made controversial choices to steer humanity from certain doom.
Disciple Drone
Locust Disciples are enhanced Drones that form the powerful front-line of Ukkon's army. Ferocious survivors of Ukkon's experiments on Locust troops, the Disciples wear an injection harness that delivers Imulsion directly into their bloodstream.
New Map Addition
Tomb
The Tomb of the Unknowns was the final resting place of brave Gears who fought and died for the COG. This section of the restored tomb features a raised corridor overlooking the open courtyard below.
PvP
We know it, you know it, there is always an appeal for single-life modes in Gears. In early 2020 we introduced Gridiron, a single-life mode intended to address the void left by the removal of Execution and Warzone. Gridiron was popular for a brief time, but we continued to see players asking for Execution. So, without further ado, we would like to introduce Execution 2.0.
Execution 2.0
In the original version of Execution, the goal was simple: eliminate the enemy team in a single round. However, this often created stalemate situations, which slowed the pace of the game.
With Execution 2.0 we are adding "Overtime," a stalemate-breaking element.
Overtime begins after a standard two-minute round, at which point a ring appears on the map. Teams then have 30 seconds to capture the ring or eliminate the other team to win the round. If the ring is being contested at the end of the first 30 seconds, then "Overtime" continues until the ring is cleared or captured, or a team is eliminated. The ring capture time is a standard 5 seconds.
If neither team captures the ring (or is in the process of capturing the ring) after 30 seconds, then the team with the most players alive wins the round. If both teams have the same number of players alive at the end of the 30 seconds, then the round ends in a stalemate.
Much like Gridiron, the ring location will move to different spots along the map's centerline in a set-order. The ring location will also be clearly outlined at the start of each round so teams will have time to set up their approach.
As in prior versions of Execution, each round win counts as 1 point, and the first team to 5 points wins the match.
This Versus weekly event will run for two weeks and runs alongside a special medal group.
- Well done soldier! – Deal 25,000 damage in the Execution Versus Event
- Do as I say, and die! – Get 50 eliminations in the Execution Versus Event
- Onward and Upward! – Complete 15 rounds in the Execution Versus Event
- Now our time is done – Perform 10 Executions in the Execution Versus Event
Completing the medal group will grant you 4,000 Gear Coins!
We had some time to catch up with Jonathan Taylor to talk about Execution 2.0 and PvP in general. Check it out below.
PvP tweaks
In drop 2 we'll be adding Control to Quickplay, this will replace King of the Hill. To accommodate this change, we've also fixed the Control ring locations on many of the maps across Gears 5 which should provide a more polished experience across the game. Additionally, you can now expect to play Control on over 20 maps in the game, many of these were originally not playable when Control was a Versus event.
If you missed the news, we recently updated our OP6 ranked reward list with this update we'll be adding rewards so that players can complete their Masters weapon sets.
- Hammerburst
- Retro Lancer
- Boomshot
- EMBAR
- Dropshot
- Markza
- Claw
- Talon
PvE
At the start of Operation 6, we introduced a special Horde event 'Escape from Kadar.' This was a special moment for us as we brought the Locust back to Gears 5 PvE modes for the first time since Gears of War 3.
Drop 2 takes that one step further with the new event, 'Nexus Siege.'
Horde: Nexus Siege
The Locust are back and they are here to bring the pain! Drones, Bolters, you name it, they are all here and you will encounter a truly one-of-a-kind experience in Horde.
Every wave will see Locust enemies attacking you, each with unique stats and AI. You may even encounter Locust enemies foraging for weapons across the map to use against you.
Oh… and boss waves? Expect to see a unique Locust boss every two waves… however instead of telling you which bosses to expect, each wave will be a surprise.
Check out the video with Michael Shannon where we show you some exclusive gameplay of this epic event!
Nexus Siege will run for two weeks and runs alongside a special medal group, completing this medal group will grant you the Palace Guard Weapon Set.
- Hollow Stormed – Win 1 match in the Nexus Siege Horde Event
- Heroes of Nexus – Get 15 Locust Boss Eliminations in the Nexus Siege Horde Event
- Lambent Pandemonium – Get 30 Lambent Eliminations in the Nexus Siege Horde Event
- The Queen's Guard – Get 50 Palace Guard Eliminations in the Nexus Siege Horde Event
PvE Tweaks
In addition to Nexus Siege, we have the following changes coming to PvE for drop 2, details below:
General
- Decreased Elite Drone base damage from 35 to 34.
- Increase base Juvie execution delay from 10s to 14s.
- Decreased Guardian/Sentinel shield health from 1200 to 1000.
- Increased Guardian/Sentinel shield reset time from 9.5s to 15s.
- Replaced "Execution Rules" with "Aggressive Enemies" in the default Horde mutator list.
- Fixed an issue where the "Freezing Hammerbursts" and "Freezing Grenadiers" mutators weren't dealing the correct amount of freezing damage.
- Fixed an issue where the Wakaatu would sometimes fail to appear.
Anchor
- Added +30% Pistol Damage to Anchor Passive.
- Excluded Heavy Weapons from Anchor's Bullet Chain Skill Card.
Infiltrator
- Infiltrator Passive no longer triggers using non-ballistic weapons.
Demolitions
- Demolitions Passive now correctly doubles the duration of marks.
Protector
- "Big Knife" Skill Card now correctly deals 130% damage at Level 6.
Combat Medic
- Added +30% Rifle Damage to Combat Medic Passive.
- Increased radius of Combat Medic's Intervention Skill Card from 10m to 20m. (Level 6)
- Increased stim healing per headshot of Combat Medic's Helpful Headshots Card from 12HP to 30HP. (Level 6)
- Decreased Team Revive recharge time from 300s to 250s.
TCA Lancers
When we created The Coalition Army, we wanted to provide a platform for upcoming creators to share content and build their following from Gears. To celebrate those players who have joined the TCA program before April 27th we'll be granting your account the TCA Recruit Lancer.
If you haven't joined the program by April 27th – fear not! We'll be granting the Recruit Lancer again at a later date.
And for those that have reached the ultimate goal of becoming a Partner, we'll also be granting the TCA Commendation Lancer.
Conclusion
And that is about it for Drop 2! Look out for our full patch notes and the dedicated TWIG next Monday!