[2019] Update 25 - Status update + video!

Hello, Miners, and welcome back from summer vacation!

Finish your drinks and pour the sand out of your guns, because it’s time to get back to work and Update 25 is just around the corner.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4olNe83KX0

The major headline of Update 25 is Deep Dives - our major new End Game mechanic. They are available only to Promoted, veteran dwarves and will come in two variants;
Deep Dives...and ELITE Deep Dives - the latter only for those who are feeling extra masochistic.

Each week, new pre-seeded Deep Dives will become available through the new Deep Dive terminal. All eligible players will play the same Deep Dives for that week and be able to compare results.



But what IS a Deep Dive? A Deep Dive is the sort of ultimate Deep Rock fantasy, where we string together three consecutive, pre-seeded, extra-challenging missions into one long adventure going deeper into the crust of Hoxxes than we’ve ever gone before.

What makes up the challenge? Well, for one thing, Deep Dives are DIFFICULTY-LOCKED - there’s no running these on easy difficulty.

And in each mission, or Stage, instead of contending with just one Main Objective, you get two - randomly selected. Plus: your Health, Ammo, and Nitra... those carry over from one Stage to the next. Complete Stage 1 with 6 Health left? You start Stage 2 with 6 Health. And then there’s the fact that every Stage of a Deep Dive is GUARANTEED to come with Mutators. Both the ones you already know and love, as well as a generous handful of all-new ones we’ve cooked up.

We got some real doozies in Update 25 for you - such as:

Low Oxygen
As the title says - hold your breath and try not to die before you reach an oxygen tank.

Lethal Enemies
The aliens are extra cranky today. All enemies deal significantly more damage.

Regenerative Bugs
I’ll have what they’re having. All enemies regenerate their health if you wound them and don’t take them out straight away.

Volatile Guts
You thought Exploder Infestation was bad? Well, whatever infested those poor creatures has run rampant here. Every alien explodes. Just awful.

Parasites
Well, it gets even worse. The aliens in this place are just… ugh… just full of angry, parasitic worms.

Haunted Cave
There’s... SOMETHING... in this cave. It is hunting you. Relentlessly. And it just... won’t... die!



If you survive and make it that far, actually COMPLETING Deep Dives will earn you new, special rewards only obtainable this way.
Completing the first Stage will earn you a sizeable cache of Minerals, which you’ll crack open post-mission.
The second Stage will earn you an Overclock Infused Matrix Core, a powerful new item that basically counts as a blueprint for one of our all-new Weapon Overclocks.
And completing the third and hardest Stage will earn you a Cosmetic Infused Matrix Core.

This system will be expanded on in later Updates, particularly in Update 26, where we plan to introduce the previously teased Machine Events.
Machine Events are special challenges that will spawn in normal, non-Deep Dive missions, usually consisting of time based combat scenarios or challenges.

The Machine Events will need a Promoted dwarf present to activate them, using a special Tritilyte Key given upon promotion - but all players in the team will be able to take part in the Machine Event and reap the rewards, regardless of Promotions.



Completing a Machine Event lets you Infuse an empty Matrix Core, downloading the data for a rare and lost Weapon Overclock into it.

If you have no empty Matrix Cores available, you’ll still gain a hefty bonus in the form of Minerals and Credits, so doing Machine Events will always be lucrative - if you survive the challenge, that is.

The Machine Events are currently in full production and will likely undergo some radical changes before release. And as said, some patience on your part is needed - we don’t expect these to go live before Update 26.

Now, Matrix Cores? Overclocks? What are these things and how do you use them? Well, that’s what the Forge is for.
The Forge is a new addition on the Space Rig - and this is where your Infused Cores go. Every Core you gain will be craftable using resources in the Forge, and are either used to make new, exclusive Cosmetic Items, or the second major addition of Update 25: Weapon Overclocks.



Weapon Overclocks are a new way for you to customize and power up your weapons in Deep Rock Galactic. Overclocks can add elemental effects or boost basic properties like damage and accuracy, and some can radically alter how a weapon functions at the basic level. Many Overclocks come with drawbacks, so think carefully and design your perfect build. Update 25 will launch with dozens and dozens of Overclocks to unlock.

We’ve done a complete overhaul of the entirety of our top-of-the-line Beard Physics™ - beloved by all but a bit prone to getting stuck in the floor. But now - all new physically driven skeletal animation for all of our existing cosmetics, as well as the honestly vast upcoming batch of new offerings.
Magnificent mustaches. Breathtaking beards. A game about mining? More like BEARD SIMULATOR 2020!



Secondly, the next step in our Skin system. Dozens of new skins to unlock, and not just simple recolors any longer - mesh attachments are now a thing. So... yeah. That’s Update 25. We’re quite proud of this one. Deep Rock has finally invested in some better equipment.

And we can’t wait to let it loose on you all.

Rock and Stone, Miners!

(The above text has a few minor differences from the video, and has been modified to clarify the differences.)

Major changes since the roadmap update

• Instead of batteries, Deep Dives will now reward Matrix Cores, and come in three variants. Blank or infused as a Cosmetic Matrix Core or an Overclock Matrix Core.
  
• Machine Events have been pushed to Update 26. We chose to do that, to make sure we could give the Deep Dives and Overclocks the attention they deserve.
  
• Deep Dive payout for this update will be like this for Update 25: Completing stage 1 of a Deep Dive will give you materials, Completing stage 2 will give you an Overclock-infused Matrix Core, while completing state 3 will give you a Cosmetic-infused Matrix Core. This change is primarily due to Machine Events being moved. The payouts will probably be modified once Update 26 hits.

Release date We’re currently on track to release Update 25 later in September. We plan to have the usual experimental phase, where you can test an unstable version of the update before we fully launch it into the wild.