The Finals Midseason Update 10.6: Dragon's Claim LTM, Scales of Fortune Event, and Major Balance Changes

The Finals has launched its Midseason Update 10.6, bringing a new Limited Time Mode, free cosmetics, and a comprehensive list of bug fixes and balance adjustments. This update aims to refresh the arena experience with new gameplay opportunities and meta shifts.

LTM: Dragon's Claim

A new 5v5 Limited Time Mode, Dragon's Claim, is now live until May 28. This mode emphasizes control, teamwork, and siege tactics. Players must capture and hold a banner long enough to plant it, creating a zone where teams earn money by surviving. The team that plants the banner receives a bonus, and all contestants in the zone earn additional cash. Beware of the dragon, as it will rain fire upon the banner's location, adding an environmental hazard to the intense battles. The first team to reach the winning cash amount or have the most cash at the end of the round wins.

Event: Scales of Fortune

The Scales of Fortune event offers players the chance to earn over 20 free rewards, including a Legendary outfit. By completing daily contracts, contestants can earn up to three tickets per day to spin a prize wheel. Landing on a duplicate prize converts the tile into a Golden Ticket, guaranteeing a new, unowned item on the next spin. Rewards can also be purchased with Multibucks. This event runs until May 28.

New DLC & Store Updates

The Crown That Remains DLC bundle is available, featuring a legendary outfit, grenade skin, emote, epic charm, and 2400 Multibucks. Additionally, the store has been updated with the Helion Exarch Set, offering a knight-themed aesthetic, the Brewed for Trouble set, and the return of the M.E.L.V.I.N. Reforged outfit.

Twitch Drops: Up the Scale

Players can earn free rewards by linking their Twitch and Embark accounts and watching The Finals streams with Drops Enabled until May 21:

• 1 hour: Wyrmmarked Sticker
• 2 hours: Scale Crest Charm
• 4 hours: Scaelium Edge Chimera-XB Skin

Balance Changes

Gadgets

• Vanishing Bomb: Duration of invisibility decreased from 6s to 5s. Cooldown increased from 18s to 22s. (Dev Note: Aims to reduce its dominance among Light builds and balance it against the Cloaking Device.)

Game Modes

• General (Cashout, Ranked Cashout, Quick Cash): Minimum player spawn distance from enemies when coining increased by approximately 20%. (Dev Note: Addresses instances where coining players spawned too advantageously.)
• Ranked Tournaments: League rank distribution recalibrated for a more even spread across ranks. (Dev Note: Corrects an over-distribution towards lower ranks, leading to potential rank gains for most players over time.)

Gameplay

• Goo: Time for Goo to break when overlapping a player decreased from 0.8s to 0.35s. (Dev Note: Reduces frustration while maintaining Goo's blocking utility.)

Specializations

• Shockwave: Reverted a 10.3 change that constrained player launch height when combined with the Jump Pad. (Dev Note: The previous change was too aggressive in practice.)

Weapons

• .50 Akimbo: Increased hip-fire accuracy. (Dev Note: A small buff to improve viability for a popular but underperforming Heavy weapon.)
• Chimera-XB: Decreased damage falloff minimum and maximum ranges (20m to 17.5m, 30m to 27.5m) and falloff multiplier (0.6 to 0.53). (Dev Note: Nudges it towards mid-range, as it was outperforming longer-ranged weapons.)
• KS-23, M26 Matter, Model 1887: Disabled trigger-hold delay on pump action. (Dev Note: Provides a smoother, more consistent firing experience for pump-action shotguns.)
• M11: Increased damage falloff max range from 17.5m to 20m, but decreased falloff multiplier from 0.52 to 0.45. (Dev Note: Reduces its effectiveness at medium-to-long ranges to prevent it from encroaching on other weapon roles.)
• Spear: Increased spin attack target caps (players from 8 to 24, non-players from 20 to 60). (Dev Note: Quality of life improvement.)
• V9S: Decreased magazine size from 20 to 18. (Dev Note: Aims to bring its performance more in line with other Light weapons.)

Content and Bug Fixes

The update also includes numerous bug fixes across animations, audio, cosmetics, expressions, gadgets, game show events, gameplay, maps (Monaco, Seoul), private matches, social features, spectator mode, stability, and UI. Notable fixes include improved right-arm interactions, resolution of audience sound cut-outs, better cloth simulation performance, and various UI enhancements for clarity and functionality.