From Mazeworld

Latest released Mazeworld update: OP3 part 8 - March 30th 2016

Opus Perfecta part 3

The third and final part of the Opus Perfecta updates will bring the biggest changes yet to come in MazeWorld! Each feature will be its own update due to the large scale and amount of features planned on the OP3 roadmap.

Future

Unknown date

Introduction of Quests as a replacement for Missions

• Missions are intended to be overhauled into a Quest system to match the new town and roomgen system.
  • Contract Missions will no longer exist as a separate mission set ; instead, they will be part of the upcoming Sidequests feature, where Contestants may now enter a hiring bureau and request jobs and contracts for cash, equipment, reputation and fame ; which in turn will serve to unlock further sidequests as well as main storyline mission arcs.
  • Other existing mission sets will become Story Arcs ; the Normal Missions will become the Maratuxa Campaign arc (a stand-alone, Neutral aligned arc), the Alternate Missions will become the Youkai Activism arc and the Proxy Missions will become the Mishap 4th arc ; both of which are in what is referred to as "opposed arcs" ; if one is started, the other may no longer be started.
  • In the future, more mission arcs and sidequests may be written.

Upcoming

Nothing yet!

Latest

July 4th 2016

Announcement

As of July 4th 2016, the OP3 Testing Period #3 is over, however there is still one pending major update: the Quests update, which is intended to be the final major update to the game before it can be considered "complete".

As such, all logs starting from this date and onwards will be considered part of a period called the "pre-v4 transitional period". When the Quests update will be rolled out and implemented, the game will be officially jumping to version 4, a leaderboards and Contestant reset wil occur, and a new "era" will begin: the v4 games.

During v4 and in the future, no major updates will be planned, barring unexpected and unforeseen changes, as the game will be considered "complete". Any additions made will be hopefully minor; to the tune of fixing errors, clarifying rules, and whatnot.

Testing Period #3 mini-update 22: Independence Day Special Gun Update

New weapons:

• SIG Sauer SG510-3, 7.62x39mm combat rifle
• SIG Sauer SG510-4, 7.62x51mm NATO combat rifle
• Steyr M357-A1, .357 SIG pistol

New Maze Customs offerings:

• Blackhawk, Redhawk: In "other modifications", new offering: Laser grips.
  • For 250 P$, the Customs workshop may add an integrated laser sight to the Blackhawk or Redhawk revolver. This integrated laser sight has a battery life of 100 turns.

New magazines:

• STANAG magazines: Extended 40-round mag (Large, weight 1.2) and 50-round drum (V.Large, weight 2).
  • The new 40-round mag is notably compatible with the FN F2000, similarly to the original 30-round mags.
• AK-47 magazines: 20-round mag (Medium, weight 1) and 60-round casket magazine (V.Large, weight 2).
• AK-74 magazines: 20-round mag (Medium, weight 1)
• AK-101 magazines: 20-round mag (Medium, weight 1) and 120-round drum magazine (X.Large, weight 3, weight tier +1 to equipped weapon).

June 27th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 21

Changes made to certain weapons and weapon accessory-related information

• Weapon accessories: "Front mount" is renamed to "Underbarrel".
• The now aptly-named Underbarrel accessories have now been placed into three categories, related to the length of a weapon's underbarrel rail interface: "Short", "Long" and "Special". See Weapon accessory#Underbarrel accessories for more details.
• All related weapons, Customs information and weapon accessories have been modified to reflect the changes.
• Scopes: High-power and Extreme-power effects have been modified.
  • High-power optics now provide FT-2 on the first shot, and FT-1 on any subsequent shots. Extreme-power optics do the same, but provide a FT-3 bonus on the first shot.
• Weapons renamed:
  • Tavor X95 -> Tavor X95R (clarification)
  • AK-12 (308) -> SVK-12 (clarification and further separation from the Customs-compatible AK-12s)
  • AK-12 (74) -> AK-12-1 (better nomenclature)
  • AK-12 (47) -> AK-12-2 (better nomenclature)
  • AK-12 (223) -> AK-12-3 (better nomenclature)

May 29th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 20

Changes made to the standard equipment of certain NPCs:

• Maze Citizens now carry 1 full retail box of ammunition per weapon equipped, if applicable.
• Non-SRT Maze Guards of all ranks now carry 2 full magazines per weapon equipped, instead of 1.
• Maze Soldiers of all ranks and branches now carry 1 full retail box of ammunition per weapon equipped, and the Support kit now includes 2 extra boxes.

The new boxes of ammunition match the caliber and ammunition type rolled for their corresponding weapon. The changes were made to allow NPCs to carry more ammunition and be able to last longer in a fight.

April 29th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 19: The armor miniupdate

Armor and Trauma plate modifications

• The Type-4 Kevlar vest was removed.
• Many items were renamed to drop brand names.
  • Type-2 Kevlar vest -> Light K armor vest
  • Type-3 Kevlar vest -> Heavy K armor vest
  • Twaron vest -> Light T armor vest
  • Light Dyneema vest -> Light D armor vest
  • Heavy Dyneema vest -> Heavy D armor vest
  • Dyneema helmet -> D armor helmet
  • SPECTRA helmet -> K armor helmet
  • Twaron helmet -> T armor helmet
  • Kevlar arm pads/leg pads/full leggings -> K armor arm pads/leg pads/full leggings
  • Twaron arm pads/leg pads/full leggings -> D armor arm pads/leg pads/full leggings
  • Dyneema arm pads/leg pads/full leggings -> T armor arm pads/leg pads/full leggings
• Other items were renamed for cosmetic reasons.
  • Ceradyne helmet -> Cerashield helmet
  • SSh-39 helmet -> Steel helmet
  • STSh-81 helmet -> Titanium/Steel armor helmet
  • HEV Suit -> Power Armor Suit
  • HEV Helmet -> Power Armor Helmet
• Certain items were statistically modified
  • Light K armor vest: Weight 5 instead of 9, now costs 500 P$
  • Light T armor vest: Weight 5 instead of 9
  • Light D armor vest: AC is now A3 instead of A2, Weight 5 instead of 9, now costs 750 P$.
  • Heavy D armor vest: AC is now A4 instead of A3, now costs 1000 P$.
  • D armor arm pads, leg pads and full leggings: AC is now A4 instead of A3 on all counts.
• New pieces of armor
  • Heavy T armor vest ; an AC A3, Weight 9 equivalent to the Light T armor vest
  • Composite full leggings ; the full leggings upgrade equivalent to the composite leg pads. Crafting-only (see below for details).
• Changes related to trauma plates
  • 2 new plates: Fiberglass and Aramid fiber, intended to be soft, cheaper alternatives to the "hard" plates (Ceramic and up)
  • All other plates have been balanced ; pass-through threshold and maximum HP were buffed across the board for all pre-existing plates.
• Crafting-related changes
  • The Box of alumina fibers have been removed.
  • Instead, two new crafting ingredients: the Box of carbon nanotube fiber sheets and the Box of super-aramid fiber sheets.
  • The CompVest, CompArms and CompLegs recipes have all been modified. See page for details.
  • Certain blueprints were renamed without changes to the recipe: DynLeg -> D-FL ; KevLeg -> K-FL ; TwaLeg -> T-FL ; SRALeg -> SRA-FL.
  • A new blueprint, CompFL, was introduced; which serves to craft the Composite full leggings.

Other changes

• All concerned NPC standard equipment has been renamed accordingly to the changes above.
• Certain supply crate contents were also renamed accordingly to the changes above.
• The gas mask is no longer a piece of headgear ; it is now a Key item, considered to be automatically worn if equipped as a key item. Gas masks now protect for a given amount of turns until their filters fail, at which point a new one must be purchased. Extra gas masks can be carried in the inventory, and are considered to weigh 1 unit. Gas masks can still be purchased in a clothing shop; they have a 75% chance to have between 1 and 4 gas masks in stock.
• The "Death Faction" was renamed Phantom Forces. All relevant names have been modified to reflect the changes.
• A new ability is introduced: Point shooting
• The Telephone network system was modified. Now, every mobile phone is allocated a random number.
• Shrines and dark sanctums: Between 1 and 3 shrine maidens and dark maidens can now be found in their respective facilities, instead of a 50% chance to find one, in order to improve maiden survivability and defend shrines more easily.

April 27th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 18

• New Battlespace rules: Each door in a room is now tied to one of the Sides of the battlespace, and if a creature wishes to escape through a specific door during combat, they must first move to the corresponding Side, then attempt an escape.
• New Explosives rules: Primed mines activate and maintain combat mode, for as long as there is at least one primed mine in the room. In order to leave combat mode with mines present but no enemies left, the mines must be set off, disposed of, or avoided by leaving the room.
  • This, combined with the new battlespace rules, results in the possibility of minefields that can deter access to certain rooms.
• A new encounter tag was created: Can fly. Flying creatures have the ability to ignore primed mines on a given Side, by simply flying over them, so that they cannot be triggered.

• Clarification of existing rules regarding battlespace, particularly regarding the UA ; every item, encounter and room furniture has a battlespace position ; meaning everything is on a given Side. In the Uncivilized Area, the positioning of every thing may be randomly selected. This means there is a small chance that encounters generated in the UA may be generated on the Contestant's side when they enter.

• Clarification regarding stealth: If the Contestant enters the same side as an enemy encounter, they will always be noticed by the enemy, which breaks stealth.

April 21st 2016

Informational update

• Co-op is disabled for the time being. Other avenues to play MazeWorld with multiple players will be explored in the future.
• The Town Reputation system is clarified to only be used for Neutral towns ; faction-aligned towns call for Faction Rep instead.

April 4th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 18: Pain tweaks

• Max Pain Threshold (Max Pain until Death) has been redefined to be always equal to (Max Pain until Blackout + 50%).
  • Certain effects may still separately affect MPT, which in turn expand the length of the blackout window.
• A few Augmentations have been redefined to account for this change.
• The Cardinal Amulet effects have been modified.
  • Genbu (North): Maximum Pain until Blackout +10%, Maximum Blood counter +2.
  • Byakko (West): Strength +20%, Endurance (Max Fatigue) +20%
  • Seiryuu (East): All limbs max HP +5
  • Suzaku (South): Agility +1, Pain Regeneration Rate +1%/turn, Blood Regeneration Rate +0.1/turn
• A set of failsafes were introduced for blacking out outside of combat, in case the Contestant finds themselves blacked out and unable to heal on their own or with immediate outside help.

This update affects your inventory sheet yet again. The fix is relatively simple: check your current Max Pain until Blackout stat on your sheet, and replace the Max Pain threshold (until death) value to something equal to MPuB + 50%.

• Example: If your current MPuB is 115%, then your new MPT value is 165%.

March 30th 2016

OP3 features part 8: The Fatigue/Stress/Hydration update and the Meds Update part 2

Rolled up together into one big update are the introduction of the long-planned and long-awaited new statistics, which increase and deepen the survival aspect of the game, and its associated Meds Updates.

The new statistics

• Fatigue
• Stress
• Hydration

The new stats update the inventory sheet. Please send your inventory sheet to Tempest so that it can be updated.

The Meds Update part 2

• Nearly all Food items and Meds have been updated to reflect the introduction of the new statistics.
• Certain Mushrooms have also been updated.
• Addictions have been updated.
• Many Abilities have been updated and greatly revamped, particularly Resting.
• Several new Secondary effects were introduced.

Other changes

• Clarified and expanded the possibilities with Restraints, added list of ways to free a restrained creature.
• Revamped the Room page, now displays a list of UA roomstyles and useful room furniture, along with effects, or links to other articles where necessary.
• The library's book and computer usage fees now have a practical purpose ; that of offering books, which are new items and which have the purpose of relieving Stress.
• Many types of roomstyle furniture now find a new practical purpose as well, also as Stress relievers.
• Strip clubs now also serve a similar practical purpose ; tipping and requesting private shows all allow Stress reduction as well.
• Dark sanctums now offer a session of "demonic relaxation" as a service in exchange for a donation of 750 P$ or more. It also serves to relieve Stress. We'll leave it to your imagination as to what exactly happens in there.

March 24th 2016

Informational update

• Assault waves revealed to be too much of a hassle on the GM during testing. As such, the feature itself has been scrapped. None of the new content (expanded backup calls, new weapons and items such as mines and MARCs, or the new cover pieces) has been removed, only the assault wave system itself.
• As a result, the testing session on March 24th has been cut short.
• A note from the author: "Assault waves are a good example of feature creep, and they would have deviated too much from the spirit of the game. While I do think that defensive combat still has a place in the Mazes and that ways to implement it should be explored, I also think it should be a matter of circumstances. In my opinion, it can be worked out with just expanded backup calls and the right setpieces. Those expand on an existing system which is simple enough and worked in the past; NPCs calling for more of their fellows into the battle, who then show up after an ETA once the call is made - this is a lot more natural and respects the feels of the game a lot more than a sort of strategy minigame of asset and personnel placement. As such, I absolutely do think that things like mines and tactical shields have their place in the Mazes, but circumstances call for context, and there is no better way to create context than to do it within quests. As such, we will see aspects of defensive combat with the quests update, which means this will not be until an undetermined time in the future. I'm sorry for the mess today, this is not a frequent occurrence for me to determine that a feature needs to be removed after testing."

March 15th 2016

OP3 features part 7: Expanded backup calls and assault waves

Expanded backup calls

Backup calling is a NPC ability - and under certain circumstances, a Contestant ability (as a future quest reward) - which, as the name implies, allows a caller to bring backup to their position, in case a present threat warrants more firepower.

When calling for backup in the UA, the backup will show up on a random Side of the Battlespace that is not occupied by an enemy. If, somehow, all sides are occupied by enemies when backup is about to arrive, they will appear on the caller's original side.

This ability is now expanded and clarified into multiple tiers, each one with distinct effects.

Three different types of backup calls now exist: Low alert calls, High alert calls, and gating.

Low alert

Low alert calls are for mundane backup calls. They are low-priority; their ETA is long, the backup sent isn't necessarily powerful, however the cooldown period is relatively short and is a handy way to increase firepower.

• Military:
  • Can be performed by any Soldier with a rank of Sergeant or above. Backup size, ETA and cooldown improve if the caller is of a higher rank. Forces sent are of the same type (Regular Forces or Death Faction) as the caller's type.
  • Sergeant calls: 1d2 Soldiers, ETA 2d3+1d2 turns, Cooldown: 12 turns
  • Lieutenant calls: 1d3 Soldiers, ETA 1d3+2 turns, Cooldown: 10 turns
  • Captain/Colonel calls: 1d2+1 Soldiers, ETA 1d3+1 turns, Cooldown: 8 turns

• Youkai:
  • Can be performed by virtually any youkai activist.
  • Backup sent: 2 Youkai activists, ETA 1d6+2 turns, Cooldown: 15 turns

• LE/Police:
  • Can be performed by virtually any Maze Guard regardless of rank or type.
  • Backup sent: 1d3 Maze Guards, ETA 1d5+1 turns, Cooldown: 10 turns

High alert

High alert calls are when an immediate or powerful threat is in the room. They are high-priority, tend to have a shorter ETA, and sends more and/or better-equipped backup, however with a much longer cooldown period.

• Military:
  • Can only be performed by Soldiers with a rank of Lieutenant or above. Backup size, ETA and cooldown improve if the caller is of a higher rank. Forces sent are of the same type (Regular Forces or Death Faction) as the caller's type.
  • Lieutenant calls: 1 Sergeant + 1d3 Soldiers, ETA 2d3 turns, Cooldown: 24 turns
  • Captain/Colonel calls: 1 Lieutenant + 1 Sergeant + 1d4 Soldiers, ETA 1d3+2 turns, Cooldown: 20 turns

• Youkai:
  • Can be performed by virtually any youkai activist.
  • Backup sent: 2d2 Youkai activists, ETA 1d3+1 turns, Cooldown: 30 turns

• LE/Police:
  • Can be performed only by Guard Sergeants, Guard Chiefs, the Maze Sheriff, and SRT Guards.
  • Backup sent: 1d3+1 SRT Guards, ETA 1d3+1 turns, Cooldown: 12 turns

Gating

Gating is a sort of backup call that is more of a natural ability. Gating can only be performed by certain species in the Angelic and Demonic factions. The point of gating is to summon nearly instantaneously powerful backup, with the caveat that they will invariably appear on the same Side as the caller and that gating imposes an extremely stiff cooldown period, to make up for the instant power that can be summoned. In addition, only high-ranking and powerful creatures can perform gating, which limits the instances.

Gating performed by Angelic creatures is called divine-gating, while the Demonic counterpart is called demon-gating.

• Divine-gating:
  • Can only be performed by Aurors, Archaurors and shrine maidens.
  • Backup sent: 1d3+1 random Angelic creatures (except shrine maidens). ETA: 1 turn. Cooldown: 50 turns.

• Demon-gating:
  • Can only be performed by Great Daemons, Succubi, Incubi, and dark maidens.
  • Backup sent: 1d3+1 random Demonic creatures (except dark maidens). ETA: 1 turn. Cooldown: 50 turns.

Assault Waves

Feature scrapped, see March 24th 2016

New items and assets

• New clothing, the reinforced leather jacket.
• Three new Cover types: Improved versions of the Guardian, Defender and Colossus Tactical Shields, respectively designated "Super Guardian", "Super Defender" and "Titan".
  • The particularity of these three new tactical shields, besides being designated "Improved Tactical Shield" and their increased resiliency, is their new attribute: Full protection, which designates cover types that have the ability to protect a full standing body, therefore protecting from harm even fully Exposed users. These cover types still benefit from the use of firing ports and gaps through which users may still retaliate and open fire, greatly improving their value.
• New Supply crate crate series, the Mixed Ammunition Resupply Containers, or MARCs. The MARC-series crates is comprised of 6 crate types. See the Supply crate article for more details.
• New Weapons - all of which are Class 4:
  • M18A1 Claymore and MM-1 Minimore; directional mines, which are a new subtype of planted explosives
  • TS-50 and PMN-2; pressure mines, another new subtype of planted explosives
  • SLAM and SUPER SLAM, multipurpose mines which can emulate the behavior of either an explosive charge (like C4), a grenade, a time bomb, a directional mine, or a pressure mine. The SUPER SLAM is crafting-only.
• New crafting recipe:
  • SuperS recipe (Level 3): 1x SLAM + 1x E. circuit + 3x copper wire + either 3x Mini C4 charges or 1x Small C4 charge. Creates 1x SUPER SLAM.

Related changes

• Hand grenades and certain planted explosives suffering a critical failure now become duds, which can be repaired by using a Gun Repair Kit. 1 use of a GRK on a dud explosive repairs the weapon, which can then be used again.
• Explosives rules now clarify which Class 4 weapons have special rules regarding failure and critical failures.
• All blueprint event lines now correctly display their new weight (0.01 units)

March 10th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 17: The Town Rep update

This updates the inventory sheets with a new section. Please update your inventory sheet by adding the new "Town Reputation" section to your sheet.

• Towns have a new essential feature: the Town Hall, as well as new encounter roles - subsets of the Maze Citizen as they do not have standard equipment or uniform, but are nevertheless important:
  • The Mayor, leader and supervisor of the town, whose role is to run the town, assign personnel, allocate residents, manage a local police force/security team called TownSec, and represent the town and its affiliations, as well as the laws enforced.
  • Towns may now enforce either Standard Law (the Maze Guard-enforced law described in this article), Standard Modified (same, but with extra, local ordinances), Independent (does not enforce Standard Law - only local laws and rules, and does not receive protection from the police), or no law system at all, meaning it is the same anarchy state as the Uncivilized Area.
  • Alongside the Mayor are several sub-roles relevant to the Town Hall, most important of which is TownSec - they are a force of volunteer, non-uniformed Maze Citizens with a special TownSec badge, and their role is to serve as a local police force and security team. TownSec citizens are now in charge of town entrance defense, patrolling in the social square, doing administrative work at the town hall's TownSec HQ, and responding to emergency calls relevant to their town.

• Additions to the Reputation system: Town Reputation. Alongside Faction Rep, reputation of the Contestant towards a specific town is now tracked, including Neutral towns.
  • Town Reputation is essentially there to allow towns (non-Faction aligned) some semblance of independent behavior towards the Contestant, particularly Neutral towns. Faction-aligned towns may still deny access based on overall Faction Rep, but specific wrongdoings or good deeds towards a specific town may allow for some wiggle room.

March 6th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 16: The non-combat skills update

This updates the inventory sheets with a new section. Please update your inventory sheet by adding the new "Noncombat skill group" section to your sheet.

Weapon accessory changes:

• Muzzle brakes and foregrips get a new effect, replacing the old one: After an attack roll, one of the lowest dice score gains 1 point to a maximum of 11. Does not affect critical failures, replacing "+2 max shots per turn for weapons not affected by Recoil" in both caseS.
• The effects of both accessories stack: Two such effects means two of the lowest scores gain 1 point.
• New bayonets: The SA80 bayonet, a non-blocking knife-bayonet compatible with the Enfield L85A2, and the Type 30 sword-bayonet, a knife-bayonet compatible with both the Type 38 Arisaka and Type 97 Arisaka rifles.

Gameplay mechanics changes:

• Introduction of seven noncombat skills which affect the performance of the Contestant when performing distinct activities: Hunting, Crafting, Mining, Handloading, Barter, Repair, and Lockpicking. Of these noncombat skills, the five are based on already existing activities and features, while two ; Repair and Barter, are completely new. See here for more details.
  • Hunting is essentially a renamed and improved version of the prior system of butchering skill.
  • Crafting is overhauled - there is now only one crafting kit instead of 3, crafting kits become consumable items which need to be replenished (a crafting kit has up to 20 uses), successfully crafting an item now depends on success chances (the higher the item level, the lower the initial chances). Failure to craft an item merely burns 1 use on the crafting kit and must be re-attempted until success is achieved.
    • Blueprints are no longer mandatory to craft items, however having one increases the success chances. Blueprint weight is decreased - 0.1 unit per blueprint instead of 1, in order to facilitate carrying them. Lastly, a large amount of blueprints and corresponding crafting recipes have been added, and many existing ones were modified (adjustments to crafting level.
    • Plenty of new crafting recipes and associated items.
  • Handloading sees no fundamental changes to the way it functions, the skill however affects what load types can be made (only experienced handloaders can do hot loads such as +P/MAG and +P+), as well as how many rounds can be manipulated every turn.
  • Mining also sees little changes, the skill largely governs amount of nutrition burned per turn spent mining, and chances to extract ore bundles per successful hit.
  • Barter and Repair are new Abilities, described here: Bartering, Repairing.
  • Lockpicking is vastly improved upon - it is now more difficult to pick locks overall, but the skill levels can alleviate the difficulty, and there are new ways to tackle locks; notably, the ability to attempt picking the trap trigger itself (if there is any trap), and attempting to force the lock for a high risk-high reward, faster alternative to picking the lock conventionally.

Other changes:

• Clarification: All random encounters have at least Basic in the combat skills corresponding to the weapons they were generated with. Only under specific circumstances (named characters, for examples) will different skill levels be assigned. Skill level of NPCs also does not change, again barring certain exceptions.
• Kappa now naturally have Master skill level in Crafting and Repair.
• Oni and Kishin now naturally have Master skill level in Mining.
• Kitsune now naturally have Master skill level in Bartering.
• All engineers naturally have Expert skill level in Crafting. Workshop ET engineers additionally have Expert level in Repair and Handloading, while Mining ET engineers additionally have Expert level in Mining.
• All chefs, including Kitsune chefs but excluding bartenders, now naturally have Expert level in Hunting.

February 25th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 15: The Barrel Lengths Update

Barrel length damage modifier

Introduction of a new feature, barrel lengths and damage modifiers tied to barrel length.

As most weapons in the game are firearms, not all calibers and not all firearms are created equal. Thus, weapons may have an overall damage multiplier, applying to both Pain and Limb Damage, depending on the length of their barrel. Every caliber may have one or more barrel length groups, which represent a range of barrel lengths for which the multiplier applies.

Examples, with .357 Magnum firearms. We are assuming all of the firearms below are loaded with .357 Magnum rounds.

• A Smith & Wesson Model 686 features a 6 inch (6") barrel. Thus, it is in the Medium handgun barrel length group for this caliber, and enjoys the normal 1x damage multiplier.
• However, a Ruger LCT has a much shorter 1.875" barrel, thus placing it into the Short handgun group for this caliber - thus it has a 0.65x damage multiplier.
• On the other hand, a Marlin Model 1894C, which is a rifle with a 18.5" barrel, will be in the Rifle group - thus it has a 1.5x damage multiplier.

Different calibers have different barrel length groups. Your particular firearm's barrel damage multiplier depends not only on its barrel length, but also on the caliber of the ammunition it is about to fire ; not necessarily what it is chambered for. This is important for firearms that can chamber multiple calibers, such as the aforementioned .357 Magnum firearms, for example.

Certain calibers may have only one barrel length group - this is intentional. Sometimes, the difference across the available firearms' barrel lengths is not sufficient to need more than one group.

Other changes

• All caliber pages referenced on the Ammunition article have been updated to display all the barrel length groups.
• .38 Special LDV is now +2 instead of +1.
• Every firearm event line now displays barrel length in inches, next to the caliber and fire modes.

February 17th 2016

Not really a game update but more of an announcement that the wiki is no longer dark, and invites are no longer required to read it. Wiki invites will still be provided to players as a sort of 'proof of membership'. If you're reaching us from Google or another website, then hello! Please direct yourself to MazeWorld to get a quick idea of what the game is all about!

And just because I'm nice like that, here's a new weapon:

• IZHMASH Mosin-Nagant M44, a 7.62x54mm R bolt-action rifle and shorter cousin to the M1891 and 91/30 PU rifles. Class 1, Weight 22.

February 9th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 14

WARNING: This update updates inventory sheets (again!). Active sheets made prior to this update are "broken" and will be updated on your next session.

• Many shops now offer a delivery service, which transfers all of the Contestant's purchases to their bank vault, instead of being given in person, similar to having store credit transferred to the bank account. The service costs 200 P$ for shops located in a town, and 800 P$ for shops operating in the Uncivilized Area.
• Weapon skills have been updated. Firearm skills no longer call for skills based on weapon type, but on a new set of skills based on weapon action, such as bolt-action, pump-action, automatic rifle, semi-automatic pistol, and so on. The full list of new skills, alongside a list of important notes regarding certain weapons and the skills they are covered by, can be seen here: Gameplay mechanics#Skill types
  • Startgame weapon offerings have been updated to match the new skill types. In addition, as there are now more skills than before, the total amount of points to allocate to starting weapon skills was bumped from 5 to 10.

February 7th 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 13 ; The Grenade Spam mini-update

WARNING: This update updates inventory sheets. Active sheets made prior to this update are "broken" and will be updated on your next session.

Gameplay changes

• Inventory sheets have been modified.
  • Sheets no longer feature a Class 4 weapon slot ; it is no longer possible to directly equip a Class 4 weapon.
  • Other equipped weapon slots have been modified - the blank inventory sheet now clearly shows how many weapons of each different Class a Contestant can equip at any given time. The sheet now also lists the position of equipped weapons on the Contestant's body. For more info, see the Weapon page.
• Items and weapons that are considered "immediately accessible" can now be equipped and used as a free action during combat. This includes Class 4 weapons - from now on, the only limit to how many Class 4 weapons that can be carried depends on your carrying space. While it is still possible to equip weapons of other Classes via the use of implied slings and holsters, the amount of weapons a Contestant has at their immediate disposal has now been increased.
• To clarify, "Immediately accessible" implies any one of the following conditions:
  • When in combat, the desired item in an immediately accessible piece of LBE (tactical vest, utility belt, leg rig, set-down only backpack)
  • When in combat, the desired item is on the floor, but only if the item is on the same side as the Contestant. See Gameplay mechanics#Battlespace for an explanation.
• Clothes shops now have separate aisles for clothing, armor and trauma plates. They now also sell 12 random pieces of LBE instead of 8.

Load-bearing equipment

• The available LBE have been completely remade with many items renamed or replaced by equivalents, and several new LBE items overall. Very few items were kept as-is. See the LBE lists for more info.
• Corresponding items in the standard equipment of encounters have been replaced as well, with certain changes to match:
  • As the Mk64 Marksman vest no longer exists, Sniper mercenaries now wear a TT-1A Assault vest and an AMR mag rig instead.
  • As the Grenadier chest rig no longer exists, Bomber mercenaries now wear an AK/VOG chest rig instead.
  • As the Ocelot rig no longer exists, Type 1 Desperados now wear a Gunfighter belt.
  • Military Lieutenants and Captains now wear a Dump belt instead of a Basic belt.
  • Scientists (except nurses) now carry a Courier bag and a Pistol mag rig for their PP2000 magazines.
  • Weapon shop owners now carry an Armalite AR-10 instead of their old Springfield M14, with 3 magazines.
  • Several encounters received a Basic belt and Condor utility rigs.
  • Bankers and Hirers now carry a Ceramic plate inside of their Kevlar vests.
• Supply crates: All of the LBE series of crates have been modified, both with new names and new contents.

February 2nd 2016

Testing Period #3 mini-update 12

Roomstyle related changes

• New roomstyles have been introduced: the Empty Armory and the Vault room.
• Roomstyles in advanced states of disrepair (the "forsaken" and "overgrown" flavors) now have a chance to spawn mushrooms from the moss and moldy deposits that form in such rooms, to compensate for the low chance of roomstyle-related items.
• Roomstyles have been generally overhauled and improved - proper descriptions, proper definition of the available furniture and interactable items, and improved roomstyle stocks (items tied to the roomstyles rather than random events)

Other changes

Containers and lockpicking in general:

• Computer locks have been properly defined as a lock type, though not strictly related to containers, it is listed alongside the other types for the purposes of completeness.
• A new type of key is introduced, the keycard, which separates from the existing mechanical keys. Keycard serial number range is 1-FFFF (Hexadecimal for 65535, as opposed to 9999 for mechanical keys). Keycards are now required to unlock electronic locks on containers.

Towns:

• Bugfix: All rooms and facilities which use computer locks and FL/HS locks have been reviewed and correctly defined. Computer and FL/HS locks are now said to be 'slaved' to a control computer, which must be hacked into (or any other creative methods a Contestant can come up with) in order to tamper with the locks.
• Bugfix: The police station map was missing a room, the evidence vault. It has been rectified ; the evidence vault now contains a bunch of random items (weapons, magazines, ammunition and armor) that are explained to have been seized from criminals and outlaws. The evidence vault will also play a role in future quests.

Other:

• The @stuff command can now spawn keys and keycards, so that Contestants have more chances to find valid serial numbers.

January 3rd 2016

OP3 features part 6: The Handloading Update

New feature: Handloading

An all-new feature is introduced to the Mazes: Handloading. Handloading (also known as reloading) is the activity of manufacturing ammunition from separate components, rather than purchasing complete ammunition on the retail market. These components are typically purchased, scavenged loose, salvaged from other rounds of unwanted ammunition, and if certain conditions are met, certain of these components can even be manufactured by the Contestant.

In the Mazes, ammunition for all firearm calibers except for .22 Long Rifle and 4.73x33mm Caseless can be disassembled (broken down into their basic components) and/or handloaded (assembled to form complete rounds).

In order to handload ammunition, the following components will be needed:

• A Handloading kit, for either (P)istol, [R]ifle or {S}hotgun calibers.
• Primers, Cases/hulls, Wads (for shotgun shells only), Powder and Projectiles.

When firing ammunition with salvageable cases, there is a 20% chance per round fired that this shot will produce an usable case. This introduces an element of scavenging, allowing the Contestant to potentially reuse previously-fired cases if they so choose to. After firefights, it is wise to look on the floor for spent cases and hulls - they can be salvaged for later use.

Retail ammunition only sells common projectile and load combinations - handloading allows a Contestant who acquires the right components to create their own specialized loads.

Advanced ammunition crafting

With access to primary materials and a suitable production facility (an ammunition factory), the Contestant can even produce his/her own handloading components, expanding the possibilities even more. Here is the list of related changes and new features:

• Lead, iron, zinc and tungsten are no longer "quick cash" materials (to be sold only for money) - such ore can now be traded at the Mining Lobby for ingots.
  • The value of lead ingots is fixed at 150 P$ per kilogram.
  • Lead ingots can only be found in 500g (75 P$) and 1kg (150 P$) variants.
  • Lead ingots: 500g of lead ore is required at the minimum to obtain a lead ingot - any less will be traded for cash.
• It is also possible to acquire advanced metal ingots: Brass, Steel and Tungsten, by exchanging suitable ore at the mining lobby for relevant ingots and paying a manufacturing fee (which covers the costs of alloying or blast furnace use).
  • Brass ingots: 167g of copper ore and 83g of zinc ore plus a 25 P$ fee for one 250 gram brass ingot. Extrapolate as needed for 500g and 1kg ingots.
  • Steel ingots: 250g of iron ore plus a 70 P$ fee for one 250 gram steel ingot. Extrapolate as needed for 500g and 1kg ingots.
  • Tungsten carbide ingots: 250g of tungsten ore plus a 50 P$ fee for one 250 gram tungsten carbide ingot. Extrapolate as needed for 500g and 1kg ingots.
    • It must be noted that brass, steel and tungsten can be used as base metals for creating jewels - but lead can't, for evident reasons.

• Various components (predominantly metal ingots; lead, copper, steel, brass) can be brought to an ammunition factory for producing various components such as projectiles, cases and hulls. Powders, primers, rubber products and explosive ammunition components require special equipment not normally available in a standard ammo factory, and are as such not available to the Contestant.
  • LEAD, LSWC, LSWCHP, lead buckshot, slug: 100% lead
  • FMJ, JSP, JHP: 90% lead, 10% copper
  • HPX, SEG, UHS: 100% copper
  • AP: 40% lead, 50% steel, 10% copper
  • API: 40% lead, 50% steel, 10% copper + 1 MgX charge
  • APX: 40% lead, 50% tungsten carbide, 10% copper
  • Flechette: 100% steel
  • Incendiary slug: 100% lead + 2 MgX charges
  • Brass cases (all pistol and rifle calibers, 12 gauge CAWS hulls): 100% brass
  • 12 gauge hulls: 100% brass + Box of plastic sheets

Related changes

Along with the introduction of handloading as a new feature, several important changes are introduced:

Shops

• Workshops have a 50% chance to have 1 handloading kit (of a random type) for sale.
• Ammunition found in gun shops and weapon shops now belong to specific "brand names", which offer a limited selection of projectile/powder type/load combinations - the most common. The majority of possible combinations of projectiles, powder types and powder loads can only be acquired through handloading. Players are encouraged to experiment and create loads that are otherwise impossible to find elsewhere.
• Gun shops and weapon shops have a 50% chance to sell primers, cases/hulls and powders, each.
  • If primer boxes are in stock, 3 random types will be found, 1d3 boxes for sale per type.
  • If case boxes are in stock, 12 random calibers will be found, 1d3 boxes for sale per type.
  • If powder jars are in stock, 1d4-1 powder jars per type will be found (including empty jars)
• Bulk cans, when found, now contain ammunition of a random type ; not just Surplus FMJ ammunition as before.
• Workshops no longer offer ammunition customization services (ammo type conversions) - the role of that service has been rendered obsolete by handloading.
• New crafting ingredients:
  • Box of Magnesium explosive (MgX) charges, for use in the production of incendiary ammunition. One box costs 100 P$.
  • Box of plastic sheets, which are used in the manufacture of plastic shotgun shells (all 12 gauge shells). One box costs 10 P$.
• Modified existing crafting ingredients:
  • Rags are now sold in workshops in batches of 1d20 when available.

Ammunition and ammo/projectile types

• Randomly found ammunition now matches the new "brand name" system in the majority of cases - only in rare instances may randomly found ammunition have truly random combinations of powder type, load, and projectile type.
• The third level of overpressure (+P++, or "Nuclear") is scrapped and becomes no longer available (and thus not craftable).
• Shotgun shells no longer have separate damage tables for "tactical" and "full-power" shells ; load power is now subject to powder load (and thus subject to a damage multiplier).
• 12 gauge CAWS: Buckshot shells now contain 15 pellets. 12 gauge CAWS now has new ammo types to match their regular 12 gauge counterparts: CAWS Rubber buckshot, CAWS rubber baton, CAWS incendiary slug, and CAWS FRAG.
• New unique 12 gauge/CAWS shell, available only by handloading: the Coin shot. The projectiles are twenty Parallar coins (for both 12 gauge and CAWS). Now you can defeat your enemies with money!
• Virtually all pistol, rifle and shotgun calibers received new prices per round.
• Many new projectile types for pistol, rifle and shotgun ammunition have been introduced:
  • New solid projectiles: LEAD and LSWC, two types of cast lead, unjacketed bullets which are inexpensive, readily available, easy to manufacture. Ammunition with these projectiles may foul firearms a little faster (increased Cleanliness wear rate). They are effective against unarmored targets (particularly regarding to limb damage), but are not recommended for use against armored targets. LEAD projectiles are available for both pistol and rifle calibers, while LSWC is available only for pistol calibers.
  • New expanding projectiles: JSP, LSCWHP and HPX. JSP is Jacketed Soft Point, and acts as a middle ground between FMJ and JHP. LSWCHP is similar to LSWC (described above), but with a hollow point and for pistol calibers only, allowing it to perform dramatically better than any other type of expanding bullet against unarmored targets, but is even more useless against armored targets. HPX is Hollow Point eXtreme, an all-copper, wide-cavity projectile for rifle calibers only and essentially is the rifle equivalent of LSWCHP.
  • Changes and corrections: HP is renamed to JHP to clarify that it is indeed jacketed hollow points. SAP is renamed to APX for Armor Piercing, eXtreme. Neither projectile type is otherwise modified in role or modifiers.
• Flechette is now considered an armor-piercing projectile type - meaning it will damage bullet-resistant armor.
• Expanding projectile types is no longer guaranteed to fail against Cover - if sufficiently powerful after limb damage calculation, such ammunition may still overpenetrate barriers.

Damage tables

• .338 Lapua Magnum: Damage tables modified due to switching from a 250 grain to a 300 grain bullet.
• .40 S＆W: Damage tables modified due to switching from a 180 grain to a 200 grain bullet.
• .454 Casull: Damage tables modified due to switching from a 360 grain to a 250 grain bullet.
• 40mm NATO grenade: M576 buckshot damage tables modified - switching from #3 buckshot to #00 buckshot.
• 12 gauge: Slug damage tables modified ; previous ones were incorrect due to erroneous projectile dimensions.
• 12 gauge CAWS: Buckshot, slug and flechette all receive new damage tables as well thanks to new, more accurate load data.
• New damage tables created: CAWS rubber buckshot, CAWS rubber baton, CAWS incendiary slug, CAWS FRAG, 12 gauge coin shot, CAWS coin shot

Advanced ammunition crafting

• Access to an ammunition factory is required to access the advanced ammunition crafting services (detailed above). A placeholder factory will be made available and accessible during the Testing Period so that Contestants can try it for themselves, however it must be noted that normally, such a factory is off-limits to the Contestant.
• A sidequest will be completed in the future to give the Contestant a chance to legally access to such a facility, and benefit from advanced ammunition crafting during normal play.

December 31st 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 11

• 1 new caliber: .260 Remington. A cartridge with dimensions similar to 7.62x51mm NATO, which trades a small amount of base power for one level of Recoil less. It is a Rare Caliber (no stock firearms chambered for this round, and no ammo sold in stores) intended to be much more power-recoil effective in combat rifles than 7.62 NATO.

• 4 new weapons:
  • Česká Zbrojovka CZ-805 BREN A1 - Class 1 combat rifle, 5.56x45mm NATO, with a 2-round burst mode.
  • MKEK MPT-76 - Class 1 combat rifle, 7.62x51mm NATO, a modern battle rifle.
  • Beretta BM59 - Class 1 combat rifle, 7.62x51mm NATO, a classic battle rifle with integrated bipod, and the Italian take on a successor to the M1 Garand.
  • SIG Sauer P220 - Class 3 pistol, .45 ACP, a classic handgun and predecessor to the P226.

• Maze Customs: New Minor services category: Minor Rechambering conversions.
  • 30 firearms not belonging to the Customs families can now benefit from caliber conversion services, with more to possibly come in the future. Among those weapons, 17 are 7.62x51mm NATO rifles now eligible for the new Light Battle Rifle (LBR) conversion kit, which is nothing more than a service that rechambers those firearms to the newly-introduced, lower-recoiling .260 Remington cartridge.

• Related changes
  • A226 rail adapter renamed to ASIG rail adapter, now compatible with SIG P220.
  • A92 rail adapter now compatible with Beretta 96FS.
  • The 6.5mm rifle silencer is renamed .260 / 6.7mm and is now also compatible with .260 Remington
  • 1 new muzzle brake: Rifle, .260 / 6.7mm, compatible with .260 Remington and 6.5x50mmSR Arisaka. The new brake is priced at 400 P$.

December 17th 2015 part 2

Testing Period #3 mini-update 10

Two new weapons:

• Big Horn Armory Model 89 Carbine, a .500 Magnum lever-action conventional rifle, with a capacity of 7+1 rounds.
• Smith & Wesson Model 500ES, a short barreled Weight 3 variant of the Model 500, also in .500 Magnum, although it has no integrated brake.

December 17th 2015

OP3 features part 5: The Meds Update, part 1

Alongside the introduction of Agility, medical aid in the Mazes have undergone a much needed balancing update. Now, all meds, including the "hard" drugs, are properly balanced to offer interesting and attractive effects. But beware of Addiction!

Changes introduced

Meds effect changes:

• Cannabis: Strength-10% effect removed. Added Increased Pain Regeneration Rate +1%/turn, a new effect in the Healing category which affects the natural Pain regen rate.
• Codeine: Pain reduction effect is now -35% instead of -40%.
• Heroin: Pain reduction effect is now -85% instead of -70%. Strength reduction effect is now -10% instead of -20%. FT+1 effect removed.
• Lorazepam: Forced sleep effect duration is now 6d5 turns instead of 1d3*10 turns.
• Morphine: Pain reduction effect is now -70% instead of -75%.
• Nitrous oxide inhaler: Pain Sensitivity negated and Strength -10% effects removed. Replaced with Pain Sensitivity -50% and Nausea. Effect duration is now 1d6+2 turns instead of 1d6 turns.
• Oxycodone: Item shape is now a red pill instead of a white tablet. Pain reduction effect is now -55% instead of -50%.
• Steroids: Rage and FT+2 effects removed. Strength boost is now +30% instead of +20, added Accelerated hunger.
• Universal antivenom: Item shape is now a syringe instead of the now deleted vial.

Secondary effect changes:

• Forgetfulness as a secondary effect has been scrapped.

Addiction - Withdrawal effect changes:

• Amphetamine withdrawal: No longer causes forgetfulness (effect no longer exists).
• Anabolic steroid withdrawal: No longer causes Strength-20%. Now causes Rage instead.
• Cannabis withdrawal: No longer causes forgetfulness (effect no longer exists). Replaced with Strength -10%.
• Opioid addiction: FT+1 effect becomes FT+2.
• Sick Hakutaku syndrome: No longer causes forgetfulness (effect no longer exists).

Removed medical items:

• Ketamine: Probably the game's worst painkiller as it had many negative effects for a lukewarm single positive (Pain -50%).
• LSD: Had nothing but negative effects. Other substances already fill the hallucinogen niche.
• Pentobarbital: The 'suicide pill' was deemed unnecessary.
• Concept of placebo items: Now all medical items are useful.

December 4th 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 9 - Wuxia'd in the face mini-update (Player-suggested!)

• Gameplay mechanics: Initiative has been updated to introduce a new mechanic and a new IS tier.
  • All non-combat actions are now treated as having a IS 0 (Reminder: Lowest number = Fastest), a speed normally impossible to reach with weapons or attacks naturally, so that they remain naturally faster than combat actions.
  • However, because non-combat actions are now formally part of the Initiative system, through the use of IS tier modifiers, sufficiently light weapons or fast attacks can eventually reach a practical IS 0 as well, making such attacks potentially as fast as non-combat actions. The direct consequence is a chance to resolve such fast attacks before non-combat actions can even be resolved.
  • For example, it now becomes possible, in the right conditions, to attack a creature before they have a chance to take cover, or flee, among other things.
  • The position of Concentration in the IS tier system has been clarified ; a Concentrated fighter (IS tier 99) is now considered to have an IS that is impossibly slower than Unsparable (IS tier 12), in order to make it clear that it is impossible to reach the Concentrated IS tier by other means than Concentrating. (for example, using an Unsparable weapon with an IS Tier +1 effect will not make it as fast as a Concentrated attacker ; the Concentrated attacker is still going last.)

December 1st 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 8 - Improved Startgame mini-update

• Several "fluff" questions were grouped together in order to complete Startgame more quickly.
• Constitution becomes an important question, the choice now affects natural stat modifiers.
  • Average: No advantage, no disadvantage.
  • Slender: Agility +1, Limb HP mod -10%
  • Thin: Agility +2, Limb HP mod -20%
  • Athletic: Strength +10%, permanent "Athletic" effect: natural hunger becomes 2 kcal/turn instead of 1.
  • Muscular: Strength +20%, permanent "Muscular" effect: natural hunger becomes 4 kcal/turn instead of 1.
  • Overweight: Limb HP mod +10%, Agility-1
  • Obese: Limb HP mod +20%, Agility-2
• Species selection also becomes an important question ; the various different halfling species now offer natural stat modifiers as well. Humans remain the default, well-balanced option with no advantage or disadvantages.
  • Human: No advantage, no disadvantage.
  • Feline halfling: Agility +1, Strength-10%
  • Canine halfling: No stat advantage, Pain Sens +10%, but gains a natural bite attack (Sharp-type).
  • Lagomorph (Rabbit) halfling: Agility +1, Pain Sens +10%
  • Muridae (Mouse/Rat) halfling: Max Blood +1, Strength -10%
  • Squamata (Snake) halfling: No stat advantage, Limb HP mod -20%, but gains a natural snakebite attack (Sharp-type, poisonous)
  • Salientia (Frog) halfling: Strength+10%, Pain Sens +10%
  • Equine halfling: Limb HP mod +10%, Max Blood -1

• NPC halflings now have corresponding natural statistics - however, NPC constitution (governed by Physio code) does not grant natural statistics for the sake of simplicity

November 29th 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 7 - The Agility mini-update

A new statistic is introduced: Agility. Its primary purpose is to offer a way of influencing cover rolls and escape rolls. (Agility modifiers may be referred to as Agi for shortening purposes.)

• All creatures have been given a natural Agility statistic.

• Several substances have received modified effects to account Agility modifiers:
  • Food: Cola drink, Lemonade, Black tea, Green tea and Black coffee: All of them lost their Strength+10% effect, replaced by an Agility +1 effect. Energy drink kept its Strength+10% effect, but also gained Agility +1.
  • Meds:
    • Amphetamines gained Agi+2.
    • Cannabis now grants Strength-10% instead of -20%, and also gains Agi-1.
    • Cigarette loses its Inaccuracy effect, replaced by Agi+1 and FT-1 and the effect duration is now 1d6+2 turns instead of 2d6 turns. (Cigarettes now make you MORE accurate - everything negative is in nicotine withdrawal now.)
    • Codeine loses its Strength-10% effect, replaced by Agi-1.
    • Desoxyn gained Agi+2.
    • Diazepam now grants FT-2 instead of FT-1, loses its Pain Sensitivity+10% effect, replaced by Agi-2.
    • Epinephrine now grants Agi+3.
    • Heroin loses its Inaccuracy effect, replaced by Agi-1.
    • Morphine now grants Strength-20% instead of -30%, and also gains Agi-2 and Pain Sensitivity -20%.
    • Oxycodone loses its Nausea effect, replaced by Agi-1.
    • PCP loses its Strength-10% and Inaccuracy effects, replaced by Rage and Pain Sensitivity -15%.

• Certain withdrawal symptoms now have Agility modifiers:
  • Benzo withdrawal now has Agility -2 as one of its potential symptoms.
  • Amphetamine withdrawal no longer has FT+2 as a symptom, now replaced by Agility -2.
  • Sick Hakutaku Syndrome now has Agility -1 as one of its potential symptoms

• Augmentations changes:
  • Existing augs modified: Ninja Speed lv1 and lv2 now respectively offer Agility +1 and +2. PP costs and values do not change.
  • New augs: Ninja Speed lv3 and Ninja Speed lv4, respectively offering Agility +3 and +4.

• Inebriation: Being drunk (40-69%) now causes an additional Agility-1 effect. Being blurred (70-99%) now causes an additional Agility-2 effect. Drink responsibly! (Or not.)
• New Mushrooms: Velocitas - Mushroom of Speed (Agility +1) and Extra Velocitas - Mushroom of Extra Speed (Agility +2). Both mushrooms' effects last 10 turns.

Other changes:

• Effect of the cola drink now lasts 6 turns instead of 3.
• Cover roll remains at FT 6, but Escape rolls are now FT 5 instead of FT 6, in order to make fleeing easier.
• Addictions: Benzo addiction rate increased from 25% to 30%. Amphetamine addiction rate increased from 25% to 30%. Cocaine addiction rate increased from 20% to 25%.

November 25th 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 6 - The .22 Long Rifle mini-update

• Weapons: Ten new .22 Long Rifle weapons and one new .32 ACP pistol. Many of these weapons introduce .22 LR for the first time in weapon categories that didn't have any stock weapons in that caliber before. From now on, at the exception of shotgun, all firearm weapon skills have at least one .22 LR weapon for cheap training purposes.

Class 1 additions:

• Anschütz 1416D HB Luxus, .22 LR precision rifle, with integrated 6x optic and bipod
• Anschütz MSR RX22, .22 LR conventional rifle, made to look like a modern fighting rifle (specifically, the SCAR-L), complete with threaded barrel and accessory rails (and, amusingly enough, UGL compatibility!!)
• Armi Jager AK-22, .22 LR combat rifle, which is a select-fire AK lookalike.
• IZHMASH SV-99, .22 LR precision rifle, with integrated 4x optic, bipod, and silencer
• Lakeside Machine Vindicator BF1, .22 LR belt-fed machine gun
• PWS T3 Summit conventional rifle, .22 LR bolt-action conventional rifle with threaded barrel and NATO optic rail, capable of accepting Ruger 10/22 magazines
• Savage Arms Mark II FV-SR conventional rifle, .22 LR bolt-action conventional rifle with threaded barrel and NATO-S optic rail

Class 3 additions:

• High Standard HDM, .22 LR pistol with integrated silencer
• Llama Ruby Plus Ultra, .32 ACP pistol with peculiar 22-round magazine
• Trejo Modelo 1, .22 LR auto pistol
• Walther SP22 M2, .22 LR pistol with NATO-S optic rail and light mount

New Customs services

• Full auto conversion, Anschütz MSR RX22 -> RX22 FA (Combat rifle, Semi/Full, AutoROF 5)
• Full auto conversion, Llama Ruby Plus Ultra -> Ruby Plus Ultra FA (Auto pistol, Semi/Full, AutoROF 6)

November 8th 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 5

• Equine-people (horse, pony) have been added as a new Halfling variant.
• Inebriation: Being drunk now progressively decreases Pain sensitivity (-10%, then -20%) to counter the decreased accuracy effects.

October 26th 2015

OP3 features part 4: The Reputation system (Basic version)

The Reputation system (basic version)

Formal introduction of a formerly implied system of Factions, and introduction of two brand new statistics, which compose the Reputation system:

• Faction Reputation, which tracks the Contestant's record with each one of the six major Factions of the Mazes: the Military, the Youkai Activists, the Law Enforcers, the Outlaws, the Angelics and the Demonics.
• Renown, which tracks the Contestant's overall fame; how easily recognizable and famous he/she is.

The Reputation system is introduced in a so-called "basic" version because the feature is not considered complete, despite being technically functional.

Faction Reputation becomes an important meter to gauge how respected or shunned the Contestant is by these Factions, and Faction Rep is influenced by the Contestant's actions. Currently, the list of actions that can influence Faction Rep and the subsequent effects are limited:

Influencing Faction Rep (basic)

• Contributing to the victory or the defeat of Faction members in a fight
• Killing Faction members
• Attacking a town controlled by a Faction (a town is considered attacked if one of its inhabitants is killed)

• (Law Enforcement) Increasing the Police Attention level (a renamed Wanted Level)
• (Angelics, Demonics) Finding the first Cardinal Amulet
• (Angelics, Demonics) Donations to the Shrine or Dark Sanctum

Effects of Reputation

• Being in the good graces of a Faction brings many advantages; shops and services in towns that Faction controls will start offering discounts, and certain Factions will offer bonuses or favors in relation to that Faction's trade (e.g. high Angelic rep can grant boosts to prayers at a Shrine.)
• Conversely, being disliked by a Faction will mean members and towns of that Faction grow increasingly hostile to the Contestant's presence. A sufficiently low Faction Rep can lock the Contestant out of Faction-specific missions and sidequests, losing access to towns they control, and even start attacking him/her on sight.
• Factions are in conflict with each other ; Military vs Youkai, Law enforcers vs Outlaws, Angelics vs Demonics. Oftentimes, what's good for a Faction will mean bad news for the other ; the right choices must be made.
  • The higher the Reputation with one Faction, the harder it will be for the corresponding rival Faction to consider the Contestant trustworthy ; being well-liked by the Military may mean that the Contestant's efforts to be in the Youkai's good graces will be less effective.
  • Conversely, having sufficiently low Reputation with one Faction means that they will trust the Contestant less and less; which in turn, divides the effectivenss of positive actions towards that Faction - to atone for one's mistakes, one must often work harder and pay more than what was lost in the first place.
  • Reaching maximum Reputation (+1000 Rep) with a Faction grants the Legendary status, which also boosts Renown (see below), and grants undying trust and affection for the Contestant. As a Legendary figure, any negative actions committed towards that Faction have a chance to be entirely ignored. Towns controlled by a Faction that considers the Contestant a Legend may start erecting statues in his/her honor.
  • Conversely, reaching a sufficiently extremely low Reputation (-900 Rep) grants the Unforgivable status, which cancels out the effects of any positive actions towards that Faction completely ; they consider the Contestant to be exempt of all redemption ; an enemy to be destroyed at all costs. Reaching minimum Reputation (-1000 Rep) grants the Demonized status, where the Contestant becomes so infamous, all members of the Faction treat the Contestant as their literal devil, or the personal incarnation of every single of their problems. Towns controlled by a Faction that demonizes the Contestant will start plastering WANTED posters, offering a fat reward for the Contestant dead or alive, but preferably dead.

In the future, the Mission Overhaul update will bring the "Full" version of the Reputation system ; Faction Rep and Renown are meant to play a primary role with mission and sidequest finding. Faction Rep is most notably going to be the requirement to trigger the faction-specific mission sets ; the Mishap 4th and the DeadEyes arcs.

Renown currently has little purpose in the Basic version other than flavor ; inhabitants of the Mazes will react to the Contestant in accordance with his/her current Renown level. Renown will not be meant to play a major role in the future, other than to unlock certain sidequests, nor will it have many special positive or negative effects.

Other changes

On request from one of our weapons advisors, new weapons.

• Alexander Arms Ulfberht, a semi-automatic .338 Lapua Magnum precision rifle and one of the very rare few weapons rated at DV+6.
  • 10- and 20-round magazines exist for this weapon.
  • A new Customs Minor service is introduced, which allows turning the Ulfberht into a select-fire rifle (Semi/Full).

• The so-called "Baby Glocks" ; a collection of 6 subcompact Glock pistols, all of which are Class 3, Weight 2, DV+3 RV+4 weapons with no accessory mounts and generous magazine capacities for weapons of their class.
  • Respectively: Glock 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 33 in respective calibers: 9x19mm Parabellum, .40 S＆W, .380 ACP, 10mm Auto, .45 ACP and .357 SIG.
  • Each weapon brings new magazines in the Glock magazines for each of their respective calibers, e.g. the Glock 26 comes with a Glock 9mm 10-round magazine.
  • Magazines designed to fit in a subcompact Glock are not compatible with full size Glock pistols or Custom Glock-SF/LF pistols, as they are too short to fit.
  • Conversely, magazines designed to fit in a full size Glock will work in a subcompact, however they impart a weight tier +1 malus when equipped to a subcompact.
    • Example: A Glock 26 equipped with a Glock 9mm 17-rd magazine designed for a Glock 17, will make the G26 become a Weight 3 weapon instead of a Weight 2.)

New rules for certain weapon accessories.

• Underbarrel grenade launchers, underbarrel shotguns, and Weight 3 drum/pan mags/C-MAGs now impart a weight tier +1 malus to their equipped weapon, in order to balance out the substantial advantages that they provide.

New magazines for existing weapons.

• FN SCAR-H: New 10-round and 30-round magazines.
• IMI UZI: New 20-round and 40-round box magazines, and a new 72-round drum.

Other changes.

• Wanted Level is now known as Police Attention. Criteria to attract Police Attention have been simplified and streamlined.

October 21st 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 4

Some more new Maze Customs changes:

• The Glock-SF family now has new rechambering options: .32 ACP and .380 ACP.
  • The custom Glock .380 magazines that come with the .380 ACP option are compatible with Glock 25 pistols, however the original G25 15-round magazines will not fit in custom .380 ACP Glock-SF pistols, as they are too short to fit inside (Glock 25s are compacts, Glock-SFs are full size).

October 17th 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 3

Gameplay mechanics:

• The cover, escape and stealth escape rolls have been better reworded, and their names properly defined.

Bionics:

• Several implants have had their effects reworded for clarity.
• Ninja Speed lv3 has been removed. The numbering system of implants has been changed to a letter-number system, where each letter corresponds to one of the Bases, and each number to one of the Augs for that base.

Weapons: Four new weapons and one new magazine have been implemented.

• JianShe CS/LR3, a 5.8x42mm bolt-action precision rifle, along with its proprietary 10-round magazine.
• McMillan ALIAS CS5-T, a 7.62x51mm NATO bolt-action precision rifle with three major characteristics: it is Class 2, feeds from AR-10 mags, and possesses an integral silencer.
• CMMG Mk47-T Mutant and CMMG Mk47-K Mutant, respectively Class 1 and Class 2, are two rifles derived from the same basic system: a semi-automatic 7.62x39mm conventional rifle with AR-15-like ergonomics, yet it has the ability to use AK-47 magazines.
  • A new Customs Minor service has also been introduced to offer the Mk47 Mutant rifles a conversion to select-fire.

Maze Customs:

• The L-Frame Customs family has been completely phased out. It was replaced by the Redhawk family, with similar customization offerings. The Rechambering lineup is the only aspect that differs from the L-Frame family, in that it offers more options than its predecessors.

Other minor changes:

• The WPN-SWLF supply crate is removed, replaced by the WPN-RHWK crate. It contains the following: Ruger Super Redhawk + 3x .454 Casull/.45 Colt 6-round speedloader + 50x .454 Casull FMJ

October 6th 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 2

• The firearm rarity values have been modified to put less weight on Rarity 1 firearms, and thus improve the chances of finding a higher-quality item.
  • Old values: Rarity 6: 0.45% / Rarity 5: 2.45% / Rarity 4: 5.65% / Rarity 3: 9.50% / Rarity 2: 22.45% / Rarity 1: 59.50%
  • New values: Rarity 6: 0.50% / Rarity 5: 2.50% / Rarity 4: 6.00% / Rarity 3: 10.00% / Rarity 2: 33.00% / Rarity 1: 48.00%

September 22nd 2015

Testing Period #3 mini-update 1

• The CZ 75 9mm models no longer come with a 15-round magazine; it is instead replaced with a more modern 16-round magazine.
• All weapon event lines now display rarity level.
• The bot command @wpnc5 no longer exists ; separate commands have been made for all melee weapon classes instead: @wpnC5L, @wpnC5S and @wpnCHG.

September 14th 2015

OP3 features part 3: The Big One ; New Roomgen update

The biggest part of the OP3 features is now ready for preliminary testing!

The new room generation system

After many months of work in the making, the new random room generation system is now ready for testing. There are two major components to this update, which relate to the way the Mazes now function: a new civilized area / town system, and a redesigned random room generation system for what is now known as the Uncivilized Area, also referred to as the UA or simply the Mazes.

Civilized areas

Civilized areas, or towns, are hubs with a fixed layout and a semi-random selection of features. They are protected settlements, usually either Neutral or under the influence of a faction. All towns possess an entrance point, a generator, a hospital, between 1 and 5 residential areas, a social square with many shops and facilities, and they may also have either extra shops or a mall, as well as a specific facility which defines the reason the town exists (a military base, a factory, a laboratory, an office facility, etc.)

Towns are an incomplete feature ; the relation between a town's faction and the Contestant is meant to be explored in a future update (the Reputation system).

Towns are meant to be randomly generated for the most part ; random name, faction, facilities and inhabitants may all be randomly generated. There are a few exceptions - certain towns are fixed in nature and are meant to have special, recurring facilities. For example, this is the case of the town in which the Startgame is now initiated; this town is called Arnett, and it is the home of a special facility: a biotech laboratory, where the Contestant now wakes up.

The Uncivilized Area (UA)

MazeWorld's bread and butter, procedurally generated environments and events, still exists in the form of the Uncivilized Area (UA, or just The Mazes).

The main activity of the game will be to go from town to town ; leaving the initial town of Arnett to search for other towns. Between each town is the Uncivilized Area ; the classic MazeWorld experience with its random rooms, events, and encounters.

As before, a system of roomstyles and random events still exists, but with major changes:

• A random amount of events per room is generated, instead of just one in the old system.
• Each door may lead to a different roomstyle or to special areas, which are announced in advance, in order to give the player the ability a more meaningful choice.
• The next town is not the only destination ; independent shops that have settled in the UA to service travelers, and new, explorable areas, filled with dangers but also potentially valuable loot. There is also a small chance that the trip leads to a dead end ; an abandoned city, ruins, or an otherwise dead zone which will prompt the Contestant to keep traveling - meaning that no two trips in the UA are the same, and that there is always a sense of risk associated to long periods outside of a town.
• The player may now indirectly choose a Traveling Style: Safe, Fast or Deep route, all of which affect their trip in the UA.
  • Three major factors are at play when traveling in the UA: Speed (the distance remaining until the next destination), Danger (the chance to find encounters on the way), and Explorables (the chance to find explorable areas on the way).
    • Fast route increases Speed, at the cost of increased Danger and decreased Explorables. Recommended when the priority is reaching the next destination as fast as possible.
    • Safe route decreases Danger, but decreases Speed and sharply decreases Explorables. Recommended when trying to stay away from fights, as long as supplies allow a potentially longer trips.
    • Deep route sharply decreases Speed, and sharply increases Danger and Explorables. Recommended when looking for a fight and loot, as long as the equipment is suited for a danger-filled, lengthy trip.

The Cardinal Amulets are now only findable in the UA, with a very small chance to be randomly generated as an event each room.

Objectives of this testing period

• Randomly generated towns and the UA are ready to be tested, but at the exception of Arnett, no special, fixed towns will be found while testing the various aspects of this feature. This is because fixed towns only have any real meaningful existence with the Reputation system (coming soon).
  • The routine for this testing period will be Arnett -> UA -> Random town 1 -> UA -> Random town 2. Trips in the UA will include at least one explorable, one independent shop, and one dead end. All three traveling styles (Fast, Safe and Deep) are to be tried out as well.
• As stated in the "Upcoming" section above, missions are now completely disabled, pending an overhaul.

Other changes

Changes in the structure of the Maze Military and Police.

Military

• Three new RF Companies (from 9 to 12) and one new DF Company (from 5 to 6), for a total of 900 extra men.

Police

• Introduction of a new character position, the Maze Sheriff. Equivalent in rank to the Colonel in the military, the Sheriff's role is to serve as the chief of all police in the entirety of the Mazes.
  • The Sheriff, just like the Colonel, is an unique character ; Sheriff Len Hargrave. For now, he is only referenced, there are no planned ways to meet or find him yet.
• New police role, the Call Operator. No different from standard Maze Guards regarding standard equipment and appearance, their role is to monitor and take emergency calls, directing patrol and SRT teams to the location as necessary. They are found in police stations.

• New future special facility: the Police Headquarters. It will be featured in the future as the special facility of a fixed town. The Police HQ is the law enforcer equivalent of the Main Barracks: it is the residence of the Maze Sheriff. Similarly to Colonel Wight's own Elite forces (the Battalion), the Sheriff leads his own special unit, the Emergency Support Group (ESG), a group of 8 SRT teams specially trained for crisis and extreme law enforcement situations.
  • Currently, it is impossible to trigger the apperance of the Sheriff or the ESG units or to find the Police HQ ; they will be formally introduced in the future.

Both

• New Key Item, the Tactical Radio. It is an attachment for the mobile phone and allows squads and groups to communicate with each other (provided they all have a tactical radio as well). Communication with their superiors on base ensured by using the phone and tac-radio to call the radio operator, a new role within a Barracks. The radio operator's job is to allow communication between squads and their barracks.
  • Both military and police receive a tactical radio as part of their default equipment.
  • Tactical radios do not require separate power or batteries, running as an extension to the mobile phone. Multiple tac-radios can communicate with each other from a certain distance without drain on battery power ; phone battery is only drained when calling and communicating with a central.
  • Tactical radios can be found for sale in a Workshop.
  • While Contestants can purchase and equip a tactical radio, they currently serve no specific purpose ; in the future they will be an integral part of the equipment through the Mishap 4th missions, and may be used at will to call for reinforcements (provided the Contestant's rank allows it).

September 12th 2015

OP3 features part 2: The weapon rarity system

Weapon rarity

Weapons are now generated using a new rarity system, which regulates rarity according to shop value (which itself is a representation of how 'good' the weapon is).

Firearms and melee weapons are graded on two separate rarity scales:

Firearms:

• Rarity 1: Common - Chance to generate: 59.5%
• Rarity 2: Regular - Chance to generate: 22.45%
• Rarity 3: Premium - Chance to generate: 9.5%
• Rarity 4: Superior - Chance to generate: 5.65%
• Rarity 5: Rare - Chance to generate: 2.45%
• Rarity 6: Extraordinary - Chance to generate: 0.45%
• Rarity 7: Unique - Never generated randomly, is applied to custom weapons, crafting-only weapons, and specs docs weapons.

Melee weapons:

• Rarity 1: Common - Chance to generate: 55%
• Rarity 2: Regular - Chance to generate: 26.5%
• Rarity 3: Premium - Chance to generate: 12.5%
• Rarity 4: Superior - Chance to generate: 6%
• Rarity 7: Unique - Never generated randomly, is applied to custom weapons, crafting-only weapons, and specs docs weapons.

New MazeBot commands have been created (for GM use only):

• @rarity-gun ; Generates a random combination of weapon Class (C1-C4) and Rarity (R1-R6).
• @rarity-melee ; Generates a random combination of weapon Class (C5L, C5S, Handgear) and Rarity (R1-R4).

Related changes:

• Black Markets now exist again, as weapon shops specialized in weapons of Rarity 4 and above only... with a caveat: they are overpriced. All ammunition and accessories are priced at 200% of their value. Rarity 4 weapons are sold at 200% value, Rarity 5 at 250%, and Rarity 6 at 300%. In a pinch and with a lot of disposable cash, these shops may come in useful...

The criteria given by the commands are entered in the GM's weapon database, and a random weapon, if any exists, is selected then specced among the possibilities. If the combination of weapon class and rarity returns no results, then a random weapon from that class (with no regard for rarity) is generated instead.

August 28th 2015

OP3 features part 1: The "Wildey's Here!" update: The OP3 weapons pack

It's almost a tradition by now: here's even more weapons for your ballistic pleasure. 23 new stock firearms, 2 new calibers, one new underbarrel shotgun, 2 new specs docs-only weapons, associated new accessories, and more.

New calibers:

• .44 Special, the older and shorter variant of .44 Magnum. Compatible in all .44 Magnum revolvers + the Marlin Model 1894 lever-action rifle.
• .475 Wildey Magnum, a high-powered, rimless magnum cartridge. Wildey's Here at last!

New stock firearms:

• Beretta Stampede Marshal, Class 3 revolver, .45 Colt
• CETME Ameli, Class 1 machine gun, 5.56x45mm NATO
• Charter Arms Bulldog, Class 3 revolver, .44 Special
• Colt Cobra, Class 3 revolver, .38 Special
• DSA SA58 FAL SPR, Class 1 precision rifle, 7.62x51mm NATO
• FN Herstal M240B, Class 1 machine gun, 7.62x51mm NATO
• IZHMEKH MP-412 REX, Class 3 revolver, .357 Magnum
• KAC Stoner 99 LMG, Class 1 machine gun, 5.56x45mm NATO
• Kel-Tec RFB, Class 1 conventional rifle, 7.62x51mm NATO
• MasterPiece Arms MPA57SST, Class 3 pistol, 5.7x28mm
• Norinco QBZ-03, Class 1 combat rifle, 5.8x42mm
• Rheinmetall MG3, Class 1 machine gun, 7.62x51mm NATO
• Ruger LCR CT, Class 3 revolver, .357 Magnum with integrated laser sight
• Smith & Wesson Model 24, Class 3 revolver, .44 Special
• Smith & Wesson Model 296 Airlite, Class 3 revolver, .44 Special
• Smith & Wesson Model 625-6, Class 3 revolver, .45 Colt
• Steyr AUG HBAR, Class 1 machine gun, 5.56x45mm NATO
• Taurus Model 431, Class 3 revolver, .44 Special
• Taurus Model 444 Ultra-Lite, Class 3 revolver, .44 Magnum
• Taurus Model 450T, Class 3 revolver, .45 Colt
• Valmet KvKK 62, Class 1 machine gun, 7.62x39mm
• Wildey Hunter, Class 3 pistol, .475 Wildey Magnum
• ZiD PKM, Class 1 machine gun, 7.62x54mm R

New specs-docs only weapons + their associated documents:

• DP-12 (affectionately called the Super Shotgun), Class 2 shotgun, 12 gauge
  • Specs docs required: #DP008: Prototype hybrid double barrel/pump-action shotgun blueprints
  • Has the particularity of being the first pump-action double barreled shotgun, and as such, will benefit from unique rules regarding shooting and reloading.
• LMG11, Class 1 light machine gun, 4.73x33mm Caseless
  • Specs docs required: #ON504: Prototype caseless light machine gun blueprints + #KM991: Technical guides for conversion of G11 action into other weapon systems
  • The LMG11 has a 300-round capacity, fed from a special ammunition cassette which essentially acts as a very large capacity magazine.

New magazines and accessories:

• C-More M26 MASS, magazine-fed underbarrel shotgun, 12 gauge. The M26 MASS comes standard with a 5-round magazine, and is capable of +1.
• 200-round PK belt, suitable for use in the PKM and PKP Pecheneg
• FN FAL 10-round magazine, suitable for all firearms using FAL mags, and standard on the SA58 FAL SPR.
• The M26 MASS's 5-round magazine and an extended 10-round magazine.
• New speedloader: .44 Magnum/Special 5-round.

New Customs services

• .44 Special being naturally compatible with all .44 Magnum revolvers, it is now explicitly listed as compatible in all .44 Magnum cylinders of custom Blackhawk and L-Frame revolvers.
• New minor services: H&K CAWS to CAWS Modernized, H&K G11K2 to G11K2 Modernized, LMG11 to LMG11 Modernized, and LWMMG to LWMMG Enhanced.
  • The CAWS Modernized will add a NATO-S optic rail, 2 large Light mounts, a front mount compatible with bipod, foregrip and M203PI, and a threaded barrel.
  • The G11K2 Modernized and LMG11 Modernized both add the same modifications: NATO-S optic rail, 2 large Light mounts, and a front mount compatible with bipod, foregrip and M203PI.
  • The LWMMG Enhanced simply allows the weapon to fire .338 Lapua Magnum, for greater damage but increased recoil. Everything else about the weapon remains unchanged ; even the ammo belts required are the same!

Related changes:

• The pre-existing ".44 Magnum 6-round speedloader" will be renamed .44 Magnum/Special 6-round speedloader.
• The M203A1 was scrapped, and the M203 is now compatible with all AR-15s in Rifle or Carbine configuration.

Older

See the Changelog Archive.