In this latest edition of Designer's Notes, we'll go into detail about the balancing changes that'll come with the Y11S1 update and give you some insight into the reasons behind them.
We are sharpening Skopós' identity by reducing the Shells' health while increasing their speed, pushing her further into a fast-but-fragile playstyle. This shift rewards good positioning and tactical movement. The goal is to make her feel distinct, dynamic, and more reliant on smart decision-making rather than just killing potential.
To improve the fluidity of her kit, we are reducing both the shell transfer time, and the cooldown between shell swaps. These changes remove unnecessary friction, allowing players to access the right tool more quickly and adapt on the fly. By streamlining these interactions, Skopós' Shells become more responsible and better suited to rapid tactical shifts during engagements.
Finally, we are adding Aruni's punch to give Skopós more agency in soft destruction and map interactions. This allows her to contribute more meaningfully during prep phase and mid-round rotations, and it pairs naturally with the increased mobility.
Overall, these adjustments aim to make Skopós more flexible, expressive, and rewarding to paly without compromising the counterplay.
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Speed: 3 (from 2)
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Health: 1 (from 2)
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Transfer time: Reduced to 1.3 seconds (from 1.5)
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Activation time: Reduced to 1.3 seconds (from 1.5)
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Swap cooldown: Reduced to 0.5 seconds (from 3)
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Melee: Creates a bigger hole and destroys wood studs (same behavior as Aruni)
With the introduction of the T-95 to Flores' loadout, we're aiming to broaden his gameplay depth and give players more meaningful choices. While Flores isn't underperforming, his kit has remained unchanged for quite some time. He sits in a healthy spot, but not one that demands immediate attention or raises his presence in the meta.
The addition of the T-95 provides new flexibility, opens fresh tactical approaches, and shines a bit of light on an operator who has largely avoided adjustments over the years. Overall, this is a positive, optional expansion to his toolkit.
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Primary weapons: Added T-95 LSW
The F2 is an iconic weapon, but it has lived too long in a state where many players find it difficult to use, despite its high pick rate across every rank and platform. Introducing the Grip attachments allows us to smooth out its handling and bring the weapon back into a place where it feels rewarding rather than punishing.
We are aware this is a powerful weapon and that improving its usability may have a noticeable impact on the meta.
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Grips: Added Vertical, Angled, and Horizontal
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Twitch
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Solid Snake
We are removing the ability for Ballistic Shield operators to break through full-HP barricades by simply pushing through them. This change is intended to slow down the momentum of shield users and create more opportunities for defenders to react, reposition, or counter their approach.
By requiring deliberate action to open barricades, we're enhancing interaction and counterplay on both sides, ensuring that shield advances feel less automatic and more thoughtfully earned.
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Cannot break through full health barricades
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Blackbeard
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Blitz
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Fuze
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Montagne
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Clash
These are small adjustments that don't aim to alter an operator's overall power level or flexibility. Instead, they focus on polishing gameplay details, improving consistency, and enhancing quality-of-life without shifting the meta. Our goal is to maintain a steady stream of these refinements alongside major updates, helping the game evolve and improve at a constant pace.
A longer tracking period means that precise trigger control becomes even more rewarding.
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Tracking: The last ping is not removed when the debuff finishes
Adding an extra charge gives Amaru even more freedom to move around the map.
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Max resources: Increased to 5 (from 4)
A longer concussion effect gives Ela more time to capitalize and secure the takedown.
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Concussion: Increased duration to 9 seconds (from 7)
A longer flash duration gives Ying extra time to exploit the advantage and finish the takedown.
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Cluster Flash: Increased flash duration to 1.6 seconds (from 1.4)
The Observation Blocker is intended to be placed with a clear tactical purpose. Its ideal use involves covering specific drone lines of sight, protecting valuable utility, and securing key chokepoints. This encourages defenders to plan ahead during the preparation phase, coordinate with teammates to cover blind spots, and shape attacker behavior by forcing drone reroutes or risking utility loss. At its core, the gadget is meant to be proactive, offering defenders a way to control drone vision and create safe zones for rotations or anchoring.
If the gadget were throwable, it might be used more reactively, often under pressure after being spotted, leading to less precise placements and not fulfilling its main role of not getting spotted in the first place. This could reduce its strategic impact and shift its role from deliberate intel denial to emergency concealment.
Additionally, throwable gadgets often land in unpredictable or unintended locations, on top of props or gadgets, inside map geometry, tilted surfaces, or behind objects. For the Observation Blocker, this is particularly problematic, as it requires clear space to expand and function properly. Poor placement could result in activation failures, visual clipping, or unintended bugs, introducing technical risks and inconsistent gameplay, both of which are serious concerns in a competitive environment like Rainbow Six Siege.
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Deployment time: Reduced to 1 second (from 2.5)
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Alibi
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Caveira
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Denari
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Fenrir
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Jager
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Kaid
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Lesion
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Maestro
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Pulse
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Sentry
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Warden
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