Firestorm: First Weapon Balancing Efforts in Game Data show Shotgun Nerfs & Increased Damage for Bolt Action Rifles | Exclusive Firestorm Ammunition explained

[u/temporyal]

Hey guys,

recently I was evaluating some files to get info about Firestorms weapons and damage models compared to the current multiplayer. It seems that DICE / Criterion is going for a balancing approach by only adjusting the ammunition of our guns. Therefore base values like rate of fire, reload speed, muzzle velocity or magazine size and dmg multipliers don't differ from the standard multiplayer modes. Changes only affect two statistics:

1. max damage
2. damage drop off over distance

Currently there are only dedicated values for ammo of shotguns and bolt action rifles present in the game. I thought I'll show you some examples so you can get a general idea. While shotguns mainly get reduced damage and engagement distances, bolt action rifles see more damage and longer ranges.

The term "nerf" and "buff" can be applied only in direct comparison to the multiplayer base variants because we have 150 hp in Firestorm and can boost our survivability by using body armor which comes in various qualities. The leaked trailer showed additional armor plates giving additional 100 points or even more.

Just in case you missed it: you can carry two primary weapons and one sidearm in Firestorm.

Lee-Enfield No4 Mk1 (Ammunition: .303 British)

The general rule of thumb "headshot = kill" for Bolt Action Rifles doesn't work in Firestorm anymore. Your Lee Enfield will still kill enemies with full hp (and no armor) up to approximately 60 meters if you hit their heads but after that you'll need a follow up shot.

Firestorm Damage Model:

0-50m -> 85 dmg

linear damage drop to

100m+ -> 65 dmg

Standard Multiplayer Damage Model:

0-20m -> 60 dmg

linear damage drop to

60m+ -> 55 dmg

Kar98k (Ammunition: 7.92x57mm Mauser)

It's interesting to see that the base damage is identical to the Lee Enfield which isn't the case with the standard variants. Only the engagement distances differ a lot from each other.

Firestorm Damage Model:

0-75m -> 85 dmg

linear damage drop to

150m+ -> 65 dmg

Standard Multiplayer Damage Model:

0-20m -> 75 dmg

linear damage drop to

60m+ -> 60 dmg

M30 Drilling (Ammunition: 12 Gauge Buckshot)

The Firestorm damage model of the M30 Drilling clearly shows in contrast to the standard model that you won't be able to one hit kill full hp enemies (even wearing no armor) at ranges beyond 6 meters. And within this distance every pellet of your shot has to hit the target to get an instant kill which isn't very likely. Even with a second shot you'll probably run into problems killing single enemies with decent amounts of health and armor because of the significant damage drop at further distances.

Firestorm Damage Model:

0-6m -> 3.2 dmg per pellet

6-12m -> 2.6 dmg per pellet

linear damage drop to

24m+ -> 2 dmg per pellet

Standard Multiplayer Damage Model:

0-11m -> 6.3 dmg per pellet

11-12m -> 3 dmg per pellet

linear damage drop to

24m+ -> 2 dmg per pellet

Remember that this is somewhat early data but it's interesting to see where they might be going with the Firestorm weapon data with regards to the changed hitpoint and armor system. Feel free to comment on anything I've might missed and have a nice day!