Rainbow Six Siege Operation Ember Rise patch notes bring huge utility changes

The reveal of Rainbow Six Siege Operation Ember Rise presented fans with some massive curveballs but the Y4S3 patch notes boast even more changes coming to the main game. Operator utility is being heavily altered, especially on the defensive end. 

Operation Ember Rise is now available on the Technical Test Server (TTS) and players are going to notice a ton of changes to operator utility, for better or worse. A lot of these changes seem to be the result of the revamped Deployable Shield. The new shield boasts small bulletproof windows and full threshold coverage when placed in a doorway, making it a more useful tool overall. 

Among the most notable utility swaps include Smoke, Jӓger, Lesion, Frost, Glaz, and Maestro. While other ops will see similar utility changes, these operators are the ones who seem most affected by the patch. Smoke loses Impacts for a Deployable, potentially making it easier for the op to gather late-round intel while anchoring. Jӓger loses a Deployable for a Bulletproof Camera, which makes sense given that Jӓger doesn’t need more power over the battlefield. Maestro is in a similar position with the loss of his Deployable for Impacts since his gadget is already an intel gadget. Lesion losing the Deployable for a Bulletproof Camera seems odd considering that the opposite is the case for fellow trap defender, Frost.

On the attacking side of the utility swap, Glaz sticks out as the operator with the most to gain from the patch. Since Glaz’s nerf into oblivion during Operation Phantom Sight, the operator has seen little love in the Siege community. The devs have “generously” replaced Glaz’s Claymore mine with Frag Grenades to add some versatility to the operator’s loadout. Choosing Frags over Smokes as Glaz solely depends on if another player brings Smokes for Glaz, which doesn’t quite make sense. This could help Glaz’s pick rate or make him a more viable option in a wider variety of team compositions, but that might be too optimistic. 

The notes also include the “removal” of Capitao’s Asphyxiation Bolts with Fire Bolts. The funny part about this change is that for a long time, players commented on how the Asphyxiation Bolts are just Fire Bolts. The newly-revamped propagation and visual effects system are what allows for the devs to finally call them what they’ve always been—Fire Bolts. 

The final step to fixing weapon sight misalignment was tucked deep into the patch notes. While the issue has long been a talking point in the community and a priority for the devs, it looks like it’ll finally be put to rest with the release of Operation Ember Rise. The devs have said that the changes are “under the hood” and animations are now “code driven,” so there won’t be any noticeable changes to the gameplay.

Ember Rise looks like it’s going to be a massive shift away from the norm of Siege and that could go either way. Fans will have to decide for themselves after testing out all of the new changes. The Technical Test Server is now live and fans can read the full patch notes.