The Division is live!

@Cav - good to hear some feedback from one of our guys on this. Right now PS4 doesn't have an ETA on 1.3 (maybe 7/5), because there's issues they're trying to fix and we have to wait until 8/2 for Underground. We'll have to live vicariously through those of you playing on XB1.

Oh, and as for Destiny, I haven't played the most recent update with the new level cap because I'm waiting for Xur to sell the Bones for the Hunter again. Each week I check the the web for sites that list Xur's location and inventory on Friday to see if he's selling them, so I don't have to log into Destiny to check.

PS4 issues .... y'all need to come back to XB1.

Got the Bones. Have you checked the kiosk to buy them from there?

Is there a new level cap above 40? Did I miss something?

@Cav - I haven't played Destiny since The Division dropped on 3/7. I thought thought it was a level cap increase but it was a light level increase. As for the kiosk, not sure what you're talking about.

I'm actually ok with the extra month before the DLC releases, gives Massive some time to hopefully work out any bugs that might come up on XB1 and PC before it drops on PS4. I'm still entertained by the new stuff from 1.2 and still need to play Clear Sky (I only play about 8-10 hrs a week).

The only real thing I'm not pleased with this the 1.3 update being late. However, it sounds like it will be out Tueday (7/5) and I'm on vacation next week so I can play some during the week.

Puppet,

Ref kiosk - when Div dropped it was already active in Destiny. Go to the Commander's Hall and just as you enter the room where the Commanders stand around the big table, to your left on the wall is a large helmet symbol (Armor kiosk) and to the right is a large sword symbol (weapons kiosk). When you click on either, you will see an icon inventory of all exotic items of that category that you have discovered available to be bought for marks+ if you don't own them yet and glimmer+ if you do, i.e. you can buy it more than once. So you don't have to wait for Xur if you have it already available in your kiosk. Either way, you get the item at level 280. Of course you can always try your luck to see if you can get an exotic engram to drop your Boots - then you get it at level 290 or higher.

Back on topic (Division):

Didn't get to play much tonight because I had a prior commitment, but this is what I know so far.

1.3 alerts you to a mission on the map near one of the eastern safe houses (I forget which one). Mission acts like you are back in story mode and has a few phases to it. (Trying not to spoil it for anyone.) What I can say is that if you are a run&gunner you will die.     Success yields you a lot of loot of which one item is high end and a weapons kit (new currency). You are then instructed to return to Base Ops and open up the Terminal Ops Ctr. Once you return to Base Ops, go all the way down the back hall where the redeem free stuff vendor stood and you will see a down stairway in his place. (He was moved to the side to make room for the stairway door.)

Walk down those stairs, then down a hall and you will enter the Hub (1st sublevel below Base Ops). Here are a number of vendors replicated from Base Ops and both crafting and recalibration stations. There are still vendors in Base Ops that were not replicated, e.g. Mods and Dark Zone Gear vendors. To the left rear of the Hub as you enter it, there is a set of stairs leading down to a mezzanine where there is an elevator. You can't get down this stairs unless you have the DLC. Having the DLC, you enter the elevator and it takes you down to the Terminal Ops Ctr (2nd sublevel below Base Ops). Here you are told that there are directives for you to collect by doing underground missions and that one is available. A central large control table holds the access to the missions and you can elect to Plan Ops (solo) or Matchmake. You also get warned that missions are "no respawn" (ala HVT missions). The available mission is on a clock synched to restocking the Base Ops vendors and I presume that a new mission generates when the countdown ends. I will try a mission later today.  

Weapons Kits are new currency, i.e. you spend them to recalibrate your weapons (new feature). They seem to drop on the battlefield much like any other loot. There are blueprints you can buy for weapons kits which use any of the 4 currencies (wpns, tools, electronics, fabric) to make new kits at the crafting station.

You can now fast travel to either the Hub or the Terminal just like a Safe House. Saves time.

Something else I have noticed which may not be attributed to 1.3 - Friendly AI are smarter now and will enter the battle if they are nearby. They are more effective; watched them kill a weakened Veteran a few days a go. I try to use them as much as possible as they will at least divide the Enemy AI's attention in a firefight. That has helped me in some of the S&D and HVT missions.  

@Cav - good info on 1.3. If the AI really is more useful, that should be some help now that the PvE enemies are all at least lvl 30. They're not typically a problem, but help against swarms (especially the more tactical LMB) is nice. It's also nice to hear you can get blueprints for the weapon kits.

As for those kisoks, I know what you're talking about know. I haven't checked those because I thought only weaps (left side) and gear (right side) that you've picked up with your character were available. I've never had Bones, so if that's the case then the kiosk won't work. I'll give it a look this weekend or next week.

Just tried a solo mission in the Underground. I died ... twice - no respawn. On Normal no less. Do not pass Go, do not collect $200 ... back to start at Terminal Ops (just like HVT).

You get the choice to do either solo or matchmake for missions. If you solo, then you plan your op by selecting the difficulty level and how many phases you want the mission to have. Caveat is that Normal can only have one phase. Thought I would try it out just to see what missions would be like.

Underground is dark, dirty and dangerous at every turn. (Won't spoil what all you can run into.) You get to your mission location via the subway (cut screen.) My mission was "NY" which pit me against the Rikers. Ultimately that is what was the problem in that I discovered the critical intel both times (knew where to go the 2nd time) but when I got to the Rikers den, all hell broke loose. It became a 360 degree fur ball capped by a heavily armored Elite with an MG that chased you around the small space with the help of his minions. Epic fail.

At least there is a lot of loot to be found if you look hard enough.

I may pick this up if I see a price drop. I've been playing a lot of Destiny lately, and this game really reminds me of it. Now that I can progress through without having to do the grief/dark zone, I'm more interested. The demo just didn't excite me to want to get it right away.

Yes, it is a lot like Destiny, but better in a number of ways, I think, e.g. you can trade wpns/gear with your teammates. I wrote a longer note to explain some of Div play to you but the server kicked me off and I lost it. So my suggestion, in short, is go to the Ubisoft site and IGN to get a lot of good looks at the details and game play. (And of course there is YouTube.) There is much much more to do and you will find it hard to get bored.

I still like Destiny and will return when there is something new but for now it is the same old bounties and arena giving you meager rewards for the effort.

This is on the summer sale, including half price for the season pass. Do I need the season pass if I pick this up? From what I understand I need the DLC to do the randomized single player dungeons?

S7 mrmiller wrote:This is on the summer sale, including half price for the season pass. Do I need the season pass if I pick this up? From what I understand I need the DLC to do the randomized single player dungeons?

You're correct about needing the DLC for the randomized dungeons, they're part of Underground, as well as the most recent incursion and the bulk of the new gear sets.  Everything except the Underground DLC (see below) has been free.  

Expansion 1: Underground

Please note that you must own the Underground DLC to gain access to this content. This is available on June 28 for Xbox One and PC, and August 2 for PlayStation 4.

(from http://tomclancy-thedivision.ubi.com/game/en-us/news/152-256432-16/the-division-update-13-underground-patch-notes)


[2016-06-27] Underground Recap
Underground

There is a secret war going on in the uncharted and claustrophobic depths of Manhattan. Root out the threat and earn unique rewards.

Explore the Underground of New York in solo play or up to four player co-op.

Operations: Experience randomly generated levels with all new environmental hazards and traps.

Directives: Add a unique twist to your gameplay experience by changing the rules of engagement for both your enemies and your own team and combine more Directives to unlock better rewards.

Underground Rank: Earn Underground experience and climb in Rank to unlock new Directives, Operation types, and exclusive Vanity Items.
New Incursion: Dragon’s Nest

Travel to Hell’s Kitchen and investigate rumors of a new Cleaner weapon that can wreak havoc throughout Manhattan.

You must be level 30 and have completed the mission "General Assembly" to access the incursion.

The encounter is balanced for a team of four players outfitted with high-level gear.

Heroic Mode will be available one week after release.

New Gear Sets and Weapons

Added four new Gear Sets:

B.L.I.N.D. – Control the battlefield with an improved Pulse skill and flashbangs with this hybrid gear set.

DeadEYE – Dictate long-range engagements with powerful critical strikes or accurate headshots.

FireCrest – Set your enemies ablaze with this offensive gear set.

Reclaimer – Boost your entire group with the ultimate support set.

Added one new Weapon:

B.L.I.N.D. System MDR Rifle: Please note that while it will be implemented in the game, you will not be able to acquire it until a future update.

Highly recommend you get the season pass. I believe 2 more DLC drops are scheduled for year 1. Patches 1.1 and 1.2 were good add-ons and delivered on some of the things that were advertised. Patch 1.3 (Underground) is a true DLC drop and opens a whole new world map in the game. You will need to take the time to build yourself and your wpns/gear up with the normal game (incl first 2 patches) before you get to Underground as it is fast, dangerous and requires player gear values (think Destiny light levels) close to or over 200+ and normal game rank level of 30 to just be able to compete against the Underground AI. And in Underground you get to start a new rank system which can go up to 40.

I first went into UG at about a gear value of 184 and got toasted. I was solo and my weapons were too weak for some of the higher level AI and the "Boss". I fought my way all the way to the last battle in the mission before dying and getting sent back to start twice (no respawn in the UG). Now I'm up to gear value 194 (still may be too low but not bad for not playing DZ) after leveling up weapons and armor, and tweeking skills and attributes on both my wpns and armor (think a more sophisticated fusion in Destiny) to get more bang for my buck. And you have to do that with a large array of wpn types so as to have enough capability to deal with the increased number of battle situations and targets (to incl running out of ammo in one wpn type, e.g. aslt wpn, and having to switch to SMG or LMG, etc. to pick up the slack). So I'm going to go back in and try again. I think this is one of the best features of the game, the huge variety of ways you can customize your appearance, gear and wpns.

My 2 cents.

Just to clarify, 1.3 is separate from Underground and is free:

1.1 - first free update: included fixes, first gear sets, Falcon Lost incursion, supply drops in DZ, gear trading, gear score and gameplay fixes

1.2 - second free update: included fixes, next group of gear sets, search & destroy & HVT, loot hijack in DZ, Clear Sky incursion, DZ sealed caches, player stash in DZ checkpoints (entrances) and gameplay fixes

1.3 - third free update: includes AlphaBridge gear set, 9 new weapons, weapon recalibration (previously only able to recalibrate non-weapon gear), added Challenge mode to 2 missions and Heroic mode to all missions that had Challenge mode already, added The Terminal to the back of the BoO (contains special weapon and blueprint vedors as well as HVT vendors, player stash, restock, and recalibration table), split the special weapons vendor (one in Tech Wing is only pre-made items, blueprints now in The Terminal), and gameplay fixes

The Underground (XB1/PC on 6/28, PS4 on 8/2) - first paid DLC: included new gear sets, Dragon's Nest incursion, random dungeon missions with addable directives to increase mission difficulty and rewards (B.L.I.N.D. Assault rifle was delayed due to balancing issues with DZ/PvP, no ETA on its release)

That's a quick breakdown of the major updates and DLC so far.  There as multiple changes and weapon balancing under the gameplay changes from 1.1-1.3, but I didn't list them because of the sheer quantity of them.

Thx for the clarification on patch 1.3. For XB1 the patch and UG appeared the same time so that is why I made the connection.

What the Heck I need is help in the DZ....After talking to a few experienced players....that's the only place to get the good gear from! Help! I hate going in there but if we can get a couple squads together....who knows

Uncle Chuck is requesting an organized "sneek + peek".
Plan it out, strap-up, go in to see what's available, split up into teams and take it all  

Oh how I miss the old days of S7 organized executions on Joe Public

Klown...Puppet and I tapped into a site called "Discord". It's not a clan but it is a free voice and text app for gamers. The people that run this thing are doing a great job. Nice people willing to help out with an old guy like me struggling to level up in a game. Kind of like the old days if you know what I mean

so it's like teamspeak?

I went ahead and picked this up on the summer sale instead of overwatch. I'll be jumping in this week and trying to level up to be able to play with the group. Are there any good sites with builds for newbs like me?

I will run with you Miller I've been wanting to pick it back up recently.

Unc, Knight and Klown - I'm game! Already talked to Miller about helping him level up. We can all drop him loot (trade) to get him up faster.

I have avoided the DZ because of the chaos .... you work hard for the loot only to get stabbed in the back at extraction either buy rogues or by those you just helped. It was especially bad with the exploits and glitches. Don't know how many of them have been fixed. I'd rather go in with friends but I have seen very few play in recent months.

Been focusing mostly on S&D and HVT missions. So if others are interested in getting a group together to run the DZ , then let me know. I'm on usually any night at about 1900 ET until I'm tired.

Unc - don't forget you can buy and/or craft a good selection of high end wpns and gear without DZ running. Also, successful HVT missions drop you high end loot too (50% of my 200+ value stuff has come that way). But I agree that to get real high up in the 200s you may need DZ loot.

S7 K1ll3rKlown wrote:so it's like teamspeak?

From what I understand, yes, but it has a text option on the app too. It's also free, I don't remember if teamspeak is or not.

S7 mrmiller wrote:I went ahead and picked this up on the summer sale instead of overwatch. I'll be jumping in this week and trying to level up to be able to play with the group. Are there any good sites with builds for newbs like me?

This is where I do most of my build and game research:

http://www.thedivisionforums.com

I also listen to the weekly recordings of both Rogue Agent Radio (RAR) and Dark Zone Report (DZR) podcasts.

I loaded the game up last night just to see where my character stands. I'm level 30 with a gear rating of 143. Miller I can help you power level or I can start a new character. Either way I'm looking forward to getting back into this. I ran two daily missions and a few encounters before logging off. I will be on tonight around 10 central to run some more.

Ran with Miller for a couple of hours after he finished the tutorial. Got him to level 8 and open all the wings of his base of operations. Will probably be on again tonight to help boost him closer to end game. Other than aircav who on Xbox still plays division?

S7 Uncle Charles wrote:What the Heck I need is help in the DZ....After talking to a few experienced players....that's the only place to get the good gear from!  Help!  I hate going in there but if we can get a couple squads together....who knows

@Charles

From Ubisoft's page about the July 14th update/patch:

"Modified PvP weapon damage modifier so players will deal about 20% more weapon damage to each other (note that this change does not impact skill damage)"

Still thinking you want to try to avoid the rogues and work the DZ for weapons?