Marksmanship 2.0 & KS-23 Showcase news

Marksmanship Update

As a marksman, you are the eyes of the team, providing surveillance and acquiring targets for your team. You are the sharp shooter that your team will call upon when they need help taking out a high priority target. Not only will you be taking more accurate shots, but you have adjusted to the recoil like a true marksman would. While you are perched up in your sniper tower, you aren't just terminating enemies with extreme prejudice, but you are providing your squad mates with battlefield situational awareness. The marksmanship skill tree hasn’t changed too much since FAS 1.0, however it has made room for a new third tier team benefit perk.

Marksmanship I

• 15% Accuracy Increase
• 5% Recoil Decrease

Marksmanship II

• 30% Accuracy Increase
• 10% Recoil Decrease

Marksmanship III

• Target Acquisition: Provide battlefield awareness to teammates by spotting enemies

Target Acquisition, or enemy spotting, allows you to call out enemy positions and relays that information to all of your teammates. In-game, an enemy icon appears above the players head that you have spotted so that other players will enter the battlefield knowing what to expect. In the beta, players are highlighted for 8 seconds, and you can only attempt another spot after the previous spotting has expired. However, if enemies are clustered together, you can spot multiple targets with one click (as you can see in the video below at 2:20). In FAS, we have two types of skills, selfish and team skills. Selfish skills are those that really only benefit you directly, whereas team skills benefit the team as a whole. We found that the Marksmanship skill was very one dimensional in the 1.0 release and was strictly a selfish skill. We were trying to find a nice perk that would benefit the entire team, so adding target acquisition as the third tier seemed to fit perfectly.

KS-23 Showcase

I am also pleased to finally show off our latest addition to the shotgun line up, the KS-23 slug firing shotgun. The KS-23 is different from the typical shotgun because instead of firing buckshot (multiple pellets), it fires one large ass slug round. As described in the developer blog last week, the KS-23 would definitely be an exception to the shotgun class. Instead of the usual CQC ranges of the typical shotguns, the KS-23 is geared more towards mid-range combat. The KS-23 has a 3 round tube magazine, and 1 round for the chamber. Being a pump firing weapon with such a low ammo capacity, you really have to make each shot count. When your slug rounds do find their target, there won’t be much of a target left.

As you can see in Michael65’s KS-23 showcase video, the KS-23 is extremely deadly, as long as you have a good shot. He also uses the target acquisition from Marksmanship III to highlight the enemies making it easier for him and his teammates to find their targets and land their shots.

Team Building

We have appreciated the applications being sent in and have filled most of the positions that we have needed to get 2.0 However, we are still looking for one more level designer to work on future levels as well as new position that has recently opened up, Environment Sound Designer. The sound designer will work with the level design and audio teams to create better ambiance in our maps. A prime candidate has their own gear and has access to many diverse environments. Responsibilities include many varying map props, distant battle ambiance, animal sounds, wind, room tones, precipitation and other sounds as they arise. Along with your application, include a demonstration of your work. We cannot accept applications unless an audio demo is included. The role of this artist will have a huge effect of the overall experience of the game, so great sounding gear and effective recording techniques are a huge advantage! If you feel that you can fulfill these requirements, please head over to our Jobs page.