Operation Crystal Guard Patch Notes: Release Date, New Operator, Map Updates, Charms, Seasonal Weapon Skins And Everything You Need To Know

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We're less than a month away from Rainbow Six Siege's new season, and we've finally gotten a look at what to expect. Ubisoft hosted a livestream filled with details on the new operator, map tweaks, and balancing changes coming to Year 6 Season 3, otherwise known as Crystal Guard.

Here's what we know about Crystal Guard, the new Operator, and when it's all releasing.

Crystal Guard is set to be released on September 6, and there's no sign of any delays on the horizon.

AK-12 (ACE AND FUZE)

• Increased first shot kick.
• Increased vertical recoil.
• Horizontal spread is now stronger and more constant to the right.
• Long burst recoil now starts on 10th bullet instead of the 12th.

FINKA

• Frag Grenade replaces Hard Breach Charge.

SLEDGE

• Removed SMG-11.

GLAZ

• Increased magazine capacity of OTs-03 to 15 bullets (from 10).

IANA

• Removed 2.0x scope from G63C.
• Removed 2.5x scope from ARX200.

TWITCH

• Twitch now drives a standard drone during the Preparation Phase. Her Shock Drone is equipped during the Action Phase. It now jumps and fires lasers that destroy opponent devices instead of disabling them.
• Note: The collision size of the Shock Drone has been adjusted, and as a result, it no longer fits through 6 drone vents. Level Design is working to correct this. The affected vents are located on the following maps:
  • Kanal - 2F Printer Room
  • Kanal - B1 Bathroom
  • Oregon - 1F Shower Corridor
  • Oregon - 1F Small Tower
  • Border - 1F Bathroom
  • Border - 1F Main Lobby

IQ

• IQ's Electronics Detector is now equipped with the Ping System 2.0, allowing her to identify and ping electronic devices through walls, including those held by Operators, like the counter defuser and Vigil's ERC-7.

MUTE

• The area of effect for Mute's Signal Disruptor is now spherical instead of cylindrical, and the device lights up when active.
• The area of effect is displayed for 2.5 seconds after deployment is complete.
• Bullet collision is more accurate as the device's antennas and handles have been added to the collision.

FUZE

• Fuze's Cluster Charge can now be deployed on reinforced surfaces.
• When triggered, the sub-grenades take additional time to pass through reinforced surfaces, whereas they instantly pass through soft surfaces.

GAME BALANCING

FLASH DETECTION CHANGES

• Ying's Candela, Blitz's G52-Tactical Shield, and the Stun Grenade use a new flash detection system that calculates flash duration. It takes the environment and angle of the explosion into account as well as players' distance and orientation.
• This means that if an Operator is affected, they will always be flashed at 100%, but the duration will change each time, increasing the reliability of the flash effect.

PLAYER COMFORT

POST-ACTION REPORT

• Post-Action Report has updated art representations in each tab. The information in the Battle Pass tab and the Packs tab is more specific and clear.

SHOP – ESPORTS

• A free gift (Esports Pack) can be acquired in the Esports category of the Shop.
• New items have been added to Esports Packs.

DISPLAY AREA

• Players can now scale the display area of the menu and in-game HUD. These options are in the Display section of the Options menu.

WEAPON MAGAZINES

• Adjusted ammo count for primary and secondary weapons to set a consistent magazine ammo range for each weapon in a weapon type.

DAMAGE DROP-OFF

• Adjusted damage drop-off for each primary weapon type (except for shotguns with spread pellets) to have consistent, linear curves.
• Unified damage drop-off for silencers (15%) across all primary weapons (except for shotguns with spread pellets).

FRIENDLY FIRE

• To help combat toxicity, friendly fire for thrown device hits and launcher hits has been removed.
• This change does not impact the effect of the gadget. For example, throwing a frag grenade at a teammate will not deal damage, but the explosion of the frag grenade will.

RARITY ICONS AND CARDS

• Improved the recognizability of different rarity categories for items and pack cards.

MATCH REPLAY

• Added gamepad functionality.
• Added support for Team Loadout.
• Added support for Banned Operator icons.
• Improved sounds overall.
• Reduced replay file size.

SPECTATOR MODE

• Spectator mode now shows the Operators who have been banned by each team and displays the magazine ammo in the loadout info.

OPPONENT RIM LIGHT

• By default, opponents are now highlighted with a rim light, which helps prevent unfair camouflage. This Interface Preference can be turned off in the Options menu.

DBNO SCORING

• Players will now get a kill score when they down or completely eliminate an opponent. Players will receive an assist score when they eliminate an opponent who was already downed by a teammate.
• Note: The 'kill feed' will display the name of the last player to damage the opponent, whether or not they got a kill or assist.
• The DBNO scoring event has been removed. This prevents players from gaining unfair intel when they down an opponent who isn't in their line of sight.

SCREEN SHAKE REDUCTION

• Screen shakes that result from explosions are now reduced across the board and are completely removed from certain device explosions. This helps make shooting more precise and competitive.
• Screen shakes are completely removed from explosions caused by:
  • Ela's GRZMOT Mines
  • Zofia's KS79 Lifeline concussion grenades
  • Echo's Yokai sonic bursts
  • Nomad's Airjab Launcher repulsion devices

FLINCH REDUCTION

• The flinch animation that used to occur when an Operator was hit by bullet damage is now reduced. This helps make shooting more precise and competitive.

MMR ROLLBACK 3.0

• To ensure fair players keep their MMR (such as when they win against a cheater), improvements to the system address the most relevant matches and restrict the time window in a current season when rollbacks occur.
• The messages displayed by the system have been improved.

GAME HEALTH

HP REPLACES ARMOR

• Operator armor has been converted to health (HP). 3-Armor Operators have 125 HP, 2-Armor Operators have 110 HP, and 1-Armor Operators have 100 HP.

NEW SKILL DISTRIBUTION

• The team detected a trend where Ranked players who reach Platinum don't play as much to reach Diamond. For this reason, Platinum now has smaller gaps between skill ranks, and more skill ranks have been added to Diamond, so high level players can climb skill ranks faster and have a greater sense of progression.
• New Platinum gaps (old ones in parenthesis):
  • Plat III – 3200 (3200)
  • Plat II – 3500 (3600)
  • Plat I – 3800 (4000)
• New Diamond gaps and skill ranks:
  • Diamond III – 4100
  • Diamond II – 4400
  • Diamond I – 4700
• Please note: This is not Ranked 2.0 – that feature will require more changes and will come at a later date.

INDIVIDUAL ATTACKER SPAWN

• Players can choose whether they want to spawn with other players or spawn alone.
• This setting is now always active in all playlists, allowing players more agency over their spawn selection and overall strategy.
• Since the setting is now always active, the option to vote for a single Attacker spawn location has been removed from Custom Game settings.

MAP ROTATIONS

• • Instead of a big rework, this season there will be three maps with small changes: Bank, Coastline, and Clubhouse.
  • Ranked/Unranked: No rotation, since Favela was introduced to Ranked and Unranked map pools midseason during Y6S2.
  • Newcomer: Coastline replaces Favela in the Newcomer map pool.
  • Note: Remember, Quick Match does not have a rotation.

For more check out the full bug fix list here.

The latest Operator has been lurking in the shadows of Nighthaven for some time and is finally ready to make her debut. Osa is in charge of the group's research and development team known as quantum concepts and robotics. As a result, she’s responsible for creating the equipment used by many other Operators. Now she's bringing her own unique gadget to the scene: the Talon-8 shield.

The Talon-8 shield is a transparent, bulletproof shield that Osa can deploy in windows, doors, or on the floor. She can also carry it and, unlike other shields, have her head completely protected from the front. The see-through shield allows both her and her enemies to see through it. However, Osa's side has the added advantage of a pressurized canister attached to the rear. Shooting this canister instantly breaks the shield.

Enemies can destroy the Talon-8 shield using explosives like C4, and can also shatter the glass to obscure vision through it. The shield can also be deployed while rappelling, allowing for some unique plays as an attacker.

As for Osa herself, she has both medium speed and attacker armor. Her loadout includes a 556XI rifle, a PDW9 SMG, and a PMM pistol. Her gadgets include smoke grenades and claymores, which, paired with her shield, can be used to completely lock down rooms.

Instead of focusing on big changes for one map, Ubisoft opted to spread out some precise tweaks across three maps. These include Bank, Clubhouse and Coastline.

Here's what's being altered:

• Bank: Bank has had the most changes by far. Sightlines from the skylights were covered up as they were considered to be overpowered. Arched windows from the exterior of the garage have been blocked off, so shooting from and to Banana will be more difficult. Banana also got a lot more cover on the second floor in the form of boarded-up railings. The pile of filing cabinets at Banana has been removed and replaced with a doorway. Railings at the top of Square will be destructible. Bars from the vault window and near the vault have been removed as they were obstructing bullets during firefights. The hatch to the vault has been moved in the lobby. An alleyway has been added from the front of Jewelry that leads all the way to Terrace. Elevators have been moved around and hatches have been changed to be more usable.
• Clubhouse: There were only a few tweaks to Clubhouse announced for Crystal Guard. The bomb was moved slightly and a doorway was added in between the bar and stage, making both easier to defend. A new path has been cleared from Kennels to the main gate, allowing for a full rotation around the map without rappelling.
• Coastline: Coastline had a few small but important tweaks. Breakable walls have been added on the outside of VIP that will allow access to the deck. You'll also be able to rappel up from the DJ deck to the roof underneath Purple Tops. Courtyard windows will be barricaded and a new doorway window has been added to the kitchen service entrance.

This season features an explosion of colors in a kaleidoscopic pattern. Acquire the Holographic Bundle to become a visual masterpiece.

The weapon skin will be released at season launch and is available for purchase throughout the season. Once unlocked, it remains in your inventory indefinitely and can be applied to all available weapons.

Just because Ubisoft added a new Operator doesn't mean they aren't paying attention to their old ones. A bunch of the existing crew are being reworked, but t three are getting some special attention:

IQ: Smart Ping — IQ players will now be able to use the smart ping system for anything detected with her electric field detector. Things such as enemy gadgets can be pinged from IQ's detector and will appear for teammates as well. IQ players will be able to see traced outlines of objects before pinging them as well, allowing them to pick and choose what they deem important to share with teammates.

Fuze: Better Charges at a Cost — Fuze will be able to deploy his charges on reinforced surfaces. However, using charges on these walls will give it a longer delay and give the defenders a heads up. It will also spawn a fuse tube through the other side of a surface that defenders can shoot to disable the charge. Using these enhanced fuses will require some forward thinking in Crystal Guard.

Twitch: Custom Drone Changes — Right now, Twitch starts the preparation phase by using her custom drone. With Crystal Guard, Twitch will now start rounds with the standard drone. Her custom drone will also be able to jump, just like the drones of other operators. It's also been equipped with a laser that has an infinite range, making it much more versatile.

As well as this, Operator armor has been converted to health (HP). 3-Armor Operators have 125 HP, 2-Armor Operators have 110 HP, and 1-Armor Operators have 100 HP.

Mute - The area of effect for Mute's Signal Disruptor is now spherical instead of cylindrical, and the device lights up when active.

Five Operators will see their prices adjusted during Crystal Guard, starting with Maverick and Clash, whose prices are set to go down to 10,000 Renown or 240 R6 Credits. Next, is Amaru and Goyo, with a lowered price of 15,000 Renown or 360 R6 Credits. Last but not least, Zero now costs 20,000 Renown or 480 R6 Credits. Make sure to add them to your personal roster!

Previously, how much a flashbang affected a player depended on where they were looking. If an enemy player simply spun around while being flashed, they were able to escape the brunt of it. Not anymore. Flashing will now always occur at full intensity, making your entire screen fully white. The duration of the flashbang's effect will depend on how far a player is from the explosion, still allowing for some wiggle room.

Before Crystal Guard, elite equipment could only be equipped together with everything included in its bundle. Over two separate updates, players will soon be able to equip headgears and uniforms from these bundles separately. OP cards, victory dances, and ability skins will be linked to the elite's uniform for now, but by the second update these cosmetics will be fully mixable as well. Customization for OP cards is also planned for the future, but no word was given on what this may look like.

OPPONENT RIM LIGHT

• By default, opponents are now highlighted with a rim light, which helps prevent unfair camouflage. This Interface Preference can be turned off in the Options menu.

DBNO SCORING

• Players will now get a kill score when they down or completely eliminate an opponent. Players will receive an assist score when they eliminate an opponent who was already downed by a teammate. Note: The 'kill feed' will display the name of the last player to damage the opponent, whether or not they got a kill or assist.
• The DBNO scoring event has been removed. This prevents players from gaining unfair intel when they down an opponent who isn't in their line of sight.

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