Hot Air Balloons and SAM Sites incoming!

12:00am EST - Update day has arrived and we’ve got a new mode of air transportation, surface to air missiles, and a new type of Cargo Ship entering the game.

As with all updates, a forced map wipe will occur when the patch goes live (no forced BP wipe). There is no set time for the update to hit, however, it tends to occur between 2pm and 5pm EST. Our update stream goes live at 3pm EST. Follow @Rustafied for news throughout the day.

Hot Air Balloons

The first ever mode of air transportation in Rust has arrived! Hot Air Balloons allow multiple players to float up in the air and travel around the game in a way never before possible. With roughly 16 spawning at a time on a normal (4k) map size, you’ll find deflated balloons randomly as you wander the landscape. Like Rowboats and RHIBs, the amount of Hot Air Balloons which spawn is changes based on the servers map size.

To fly one, simply add some low grade into the fuel storage (look up when in the basket to access) and then hit the big red button to ignite. Once inflated, the balloon will lift off the ground and travel in the direct the wind takes it.

Controlling where you go is a bit tricky as there is no steering per say. Instead, you’ll want to track the wind direction using the flags attached to the basket. As you go up, the flags tend to go in a clockwise direction. Once the flags are pointing where you want to go, kill the ignition. As you start to go down, the flags start going counter clockwise.

To continue heading in the direction you want, you can toggle the ignition on and off to keep the flag pointed generally where you want to go. It appears the higher you get up, the faster the wind changes, making it harder to steer.

As far as fuel consumption is concerned, it takes about 4 low grade to inflate the balloon initially and then costs roughly 15 low grade for each minute of ignition. Although there is only one slot to place fuel in on the top, there is a small wood storage (which looks like a stash) in one corner to hold extra fuel or any other goodies you collect during your travels.

Once you’re air born, maintaining altitude and course isn’t all you’ll have to worry about. Along with the new SAM Sites targeting you (see more on those below), players are able to shoot you down with their guns - although not easily. Each bullet currently does about 5 damage. With a total of 1500 health, the Hot Air Balloon requires hundreds of bullets to be fully brought down just by guns.

A SAM Site, on the other hand, does about 50 damage per hit, making them a much more viable way to take down this new form of air transportation. Thankfully, it is possible to repair the Balloon while you’re in it with a hammer and some cloth (5 cloth regains around 50 hp per hit). Keep in mind, like building blocks, there is a cool down period after damage is dealt before you can repair.

As you’re flying around, you’ll want to avoid obstacles such as water towers, bases, and high tension power poles. Also keep an eye on that ignition, as it will automatically turn off after 60 seconds of being on.

With regards to storing your Hot Air Balloon securely once you’ve got one, your guess is as good as mine. Although you can build around it, landing back inside said building is a very difficult proposition. You also can’t place code locks on any part of the Hot Air Balloon, so there isn’t any obvious way to lock people out. Your best bet might be just to set up a Turret to secure the area. Keep in mind, the Hot Air Balloon will decay over time when left outside, so you’ll want to keep an eye on its health.

As with all first iterations of items to the game, balance, tweaks, and bug fixes are expected. We’ll keep this post as up to date as possible as said changes occur.

SAM sites

To balance out this newfound air superiority (overstatement? maybe…) Helk has added surface to air missile sites. Able to be purchased at the Compound for 500 scrap, SAM Sites can be deployed on foundations or floors and automatically target any nearby Hot Air Balloons.

Using a new type of ammo to the game (see below), SAM Sites unleash a barrage of missiles at any nearby target. Shooting in bursts of 6, these sites lock onto targets in a 360 degree view. After a short reload time, they will continue to fire as long as the target is in range (which is a pretty long distance).

It currently takes around 30 rocket hits to take down a Hot Air Balloon, and keep in mind, these are not homing missiles, so not every rocket fire results in a hit. Also, as with any new addition, these numbers are subject to change.

SAM Sites have 1000 hp and can be destroyed with explosives, guns, and tools (with enough patience). They can also be repaired and picked up. Repair costs metal frags and hqm and heals 75 hp while picking up one damages the SAM Site by 350 hp.

You’ll also find some static SAM Sites around as 4 have been added to the top of the building at Launch Site. If you damage them enough, they start smoking and stop functioning for a period of time.

SAM Ammo

No SAM Site would be complete without a healthy dose of ammunition. SAM Ammo can be purchased right along with the SAM Site themselves at the Compound. 6 rounds will run you 75 scrap, but remember to stock up, because ammo goes fast with these sites.

Unlike, the SAM Site itself, this ammo can be researched and crafted. Here are the details:

Crafting cost
1 pipe
30 gunpowder

Amount per craft
6 shells

Crafting time
10 seconds

Research cost
75 scrap

Workbench required
Level 2

Cost at Compound
75 scrap for 6

Cargo Ship changes

There have been some significant changes to Cargo Ships this update. Along changes to loot and the addition of a new below deck area, there is a completely new variation of the Cargo Ship itself! This new type of ship features Chinooks, tanks, and various different cargo on the deck.

Below deck you’ll find find various new loot including an Elite Crate. In total, you’ll find 4 military crates, 4 square wood crates, 1 locked crate, and 1 elite crate on each Cargo Ship. The variant of ship which spawns is random each time the server event starts.

Tactical Glove nerf

Tactical Gloves will be slightly less beneficial with this update as the aimsway reduction has been reduced from 100% to 80%.

L96 nerf

The newest military grade gun has recieved a bit of a nerf this month. Along with decreasing its durability, Helk has increased the price of the L96 from 500 to 700 scrap at Bandit Town.

New Rowboat model

The Rowboat has a fresh new look as it is no longer using a model purchased off the Unity asset store. Instead, it is now a custom created model for Rust. A purely aesthetic change, the Rowboat still has all the same functionality as before.

Other stuff

• Halloween drops / content disabled

• Pumpkins only have one season

• Jumpsuit model has been started

• New oil rig monument being worked on

• Alternative versions of the Cargo Ship are in process
  

New Server: EU Medium III

Due to popular demand, I’m happy to announce the launch of our newest server: EU Medium III. Like the other medium servers, this will feature a bi-weekly map wipe, 4k map, and 200 slots. If you’re looking for some fresh BP wipe action after the update, come check it out on the official list!

Charitable Rust 2017: November 17th!

For the fourth year in a row, we’re hosting our annual charity event, Charitable Rust, on Saturday, November 17th. With all the proceeds this year going to charity: water, we’re excited to blow our previous donation amounts out of the, well, water! Check out charitablerust.com for more information and view our trailer video below.