Hey everyone, it's time for yet another pretty big and highly anticipated update! It's been a few months since the last one, and since then a lot has been changed. If you haven't been keeping up with our other social media platforms, v0.12.0 was made available almost three weeks ago, and now v0.12.1 is out as well! What's in these new updates, you ask? New toys, QoL improvements, and loads of fixes!
Update 0.12.0 and Update 0.12.1
Revamped File Structure
Among the biggest changes is a totally revamped resource structure in the project's .pak files, which removes unused resources and ensures that old files don't overwrite new ones. This means your download through the launcher will probably take an extra buttload of time since you'd essentially have to redownload all of these .pak files. This can be an even bigger issue if you have had slow downloads through our launcher before. But have no fear! We've made alternative downloads available to you from multiple - hopefully faster - sources! You can now grab the latest version of MWLL from ModDB, through a torrent, and through 12th VR's servers (provided by the great folks that maintain the 12th VR Neucason gameserver network). These downloads are for the full project. If you participated in 0.12.0's PTE, you should be able to simply update your PTE build through the launcher without having to worry about super long download times.
New Mechs!
Of course, the main attraction in this update is the introduction of two new mechs to the lineup - the Sunder and Kodiak! Some of you may remember the Kodiak as being one of WSS's planned mechs, and those that really paid attention may remember the Sunder being another. Well, we're pleased to announce that both mechs are finally stomping onto the battlefield! They aren't the exact same designs that WSS had planned, but they're here now nonetheless, and we'd like to express our thanks to all involved in making them a reality.
Let's start with the Sunder: Based on captured Clan OmniMech technology in the mid 3050s, it's a 90 ton Inner Sphere design capable of unleashing devastating firepower at short to medium range engagements. In MWLL, nearly all of its variants sport one massive gun in one arm, a pair of not-quite-as-massive guns in the other, and a handful of smaller backup weapons riddled throughout the torso sections. All in all, lots of guns to rip your enemies apart. Also, for you lore nerds - you'll notice that unlike the lore configurations, nearly all variants are equipped with Jump Jets. This means the Inner Sphere now has its first (and likely only) jump-capable assault Mech, but a versatile one at that!
Now for the Kodiak: A Clan Ghost Bear totem Mech introduced in 3001, the Kodiak is 100 tons of savage onslaught, capable of surprising mobility for its weight class. It's this mobility that allows it to unleash a...grizzly assault upon unsuspecting enemies. Most variants carry a big main gun in the right torso, some missiles in the left, and supporting weapons split between both arms and sometimes the center torso. Like the Sunder, it is jump-capable and can reach a speed of 65 kph. And yes, it does look a bit like a spess muhreen; and no, you can't eviscerate your enemies with those claws - they're purely decorative. What's the Kodiak doing in MWLL role- and balance-wise? It gives team star thinger a second scary 100-tonner to balance out with team fist's Atlas and Fafnir, and acts as a true assault-class brawler in nearly all of its configurations.
Other Changes
Naturally, this update also features a bunch of fixes and improvements to a lot of things. One of the most asked-for since update 0.10.0 hit with hatch escape was a fix for hijacking mechs. With 0.12.0, this has now been fixed! You can now destroy your enemy mechs' heads and confidently jump into their cockpits as BA. Another kinda long-demanded change is the removal of the notorious Morrigu D variant with its 3 UAC10s. As we get ready to implement the assault tanks in the next major update, this variant has now been changed to wield a single LBX10, two LBX5s, and two HEATM9s. Still powerful at close range, but not quite as absurd as the old variant. Speaking of the Morri, it's received a bunch of changes to improve its steering and acceleration. Another notable change is that Narc beacons will no longer activate on friendlies. This also happens to fix the issue of the Atlas M&C variant Narcing itself in certain situations. Speaking of the Atlas, its arm-mounted guns have been moved to above the fists to prevent your shots from hitting hills, rocks, and other objects. Lastly, damage transfer rates for damage taken through the back torso on Mechs using standard engines has been cut in half: from 3x to 1.5x.
For 0.12.1, a couple noteworthy changes have been put through to both help newcomers and spice up the experience a little: The HUD now displays the minimum range of missile weapons; and covering teammates inside your AECM bubble will grant you a small C-Bill reward every second, and every Narcing attempt on your teammates that you've thwarted with your AECM will grant a bonus C-Bill reward as well.
Apart from all of these changes, a lot of assets and weapons received another adjustment pass (Commando is now tier 1 and HVAC10 took a little nerf, for instance). Furthermore, some work has gone into cosmetic improvements, such as deploy/undeploy sounds for tanks and hovercraft, and the loading screen tips have been updated.
Full changelogs for both updates are available on the wiki: 0.12.0's can be found here, and 0.12.1's here.
Looking Ahead
For those not in-the-know, the Mars and Behemoth tanks are planned for the next major update. Hopefully, there will be another couple goodies in there as well, but we can't say for sure yet. It's hoped that one of these might be an update to the C3 system, with the introduction of the C3 Master.
That's all for now, folks!
Stay safe out there!
