Bethesda and the devs have been testing the so-called “Gleaming Depths” update for Fallout 76 extensively on the PTR, and now it’s finally hit the live servers. This all went down yesterday with Update 1.99, Patch 1.7.16.13!
Before we dive into the details, just a heads-up: the download size is huge! Depending on what platform you’re playing on, you’ll need to download anywhere from 18 to 38 GB. So hurry up and start the download for Fallout 76 Update 1.99!
Fallout 76 Update 1.99 Patch Notes | Patch 1.7.16.13
The New Raid: “The Gleaming Depths”
The new raid, The Gleaming Depths, offers a challenging endgame experience for teams of four well-equipped players. This is all about true teamwork—every boss fight requires specific roles and strategic coordination. Unlike Daily Ops or Expeditions, which can be tackled solo, this raid demands close collaboration and communication to overcome its challenges.
To make coordination easier for teams without voice chat, a ping system has been introduced. With this feature, you can mark objectives, items, and key points, ensuring that every team member can contribute effectively. The raid focuses on unique mechanics that reward teamwork and adaptability across different character builds.
4-Star Legendary Items
With the release of The Gleaming Depths, the legendary system is getting an upgrade: you can now enhance your existing 3-star items to 4-star legendary status. This opens up new possibilities for customizing your weapons and armor, allowing you to fine-tune your playstyle even further. These powerful 4-star items are available as drops in the new raid.
Some of the new mods provide exciting enhancements for weapons, power armor, and classic armor—perfect for taking your gear to the next level.
Mutated Public Events Update
We have added five public events to the Mutated Public Events playlist.
These events are:
- Campfire Tales: Volatile and Toxic Blood Mutations
- Free Range: Resilient and Swift-Footed Mutations
- Project Paradise: Active Camouflage and Resilient Mutations
- Beasts of Burden: Freezing Touch and Reflective Mutations
- Safe and Sound: Swift-Focused and Danger Cloud Mutations
Perk Cards Balancing Update
The Gleaming Depths update releases with some substantial balancing changes to a handful of Perk Cards.
Our goal was to take generally underperforming perks and make them more interesting and easier to incorporate into your builds by removing some extra ranks, lowering the cost, and changing their effect to scale with the related primary stat.
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Adamantium Skeleton
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- New effect: Limb Damage Reduction effect now scales with Endurance
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All Night Long
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- Rank 1 Perk Point cost increased from 1 to 2
- New effect: The positive effects of pre-war alcohol last twice as long
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Batteries Included
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 2
- Rank 1 now offers 45% weight reduction
- Rank 2 now offers 90% weight reduction
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Bloodsucker
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- Moved from Charisma to Endurance
- Rank 1 gains the effects of the former Rank 3 effect
- Healing bonus increased from 150% to 200%
- Additional effect: Benefits now also apply to Cannibal
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Bullet Shield
- Moved from Strength to Endurance
- Added a 4th rank.
- New effect: 5% chance per rank to Deflect ranged attacks for 6 seconds when firing a heavy weapon.
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Cannibal
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- Increased the healing received and hunger restored at Rank 1
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Cap Collector
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- Now applies to containers and corpses, not just Cap Stashes
- New effect: The amount of Caps found scales with Luck
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Evasive
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- New effect: Now increases Evade Chance based on Agility
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First Aid
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- Now affects Stimpak Diffuser
- New effect: Stimpak healing scales with Intelligence
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Four Leaf Clover
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- New effect: Misses in VATS contribute to the Critical Meter based on Luck
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Hard Bargain
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- Rank 1 now grants +7 Charisma while bartering with NPCs
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Iron Stomach
- Now also increases Energy Resistance
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Junk Shield
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- Now works while in Power Armor
- Additional effect: Now also scales with Luck
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Lifegiver
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- New effect: Improves HP gained from Endurance
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Lone Wanderer
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- New effect: AP Regen and defense bonus based on Charisma
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Natural Resistance
- No longer increases Energy Resistance
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Night Eyes
- Removed requirement for the time of day
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Ordnance Express
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 2
- Rank 1 now offers 45% weight reduction
- Rank 2 now offers 90% weight reduction
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Pharmacist
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- New effect: Radiation healing scales with Intelligence
- No longer required to craft Disease Cures or Water Filters
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Professional Drinker
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 2
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Ricochet
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- New effect: Now increases Deflect chance based on Luck. Deflect grants a chance to reflect 100% of the damage of ranged attacks back to the attacker and reduces the damage you take from the attack by 50%. Deflect chance receives a bonus while wearing Heavy Armor or Power Armor (+50% multiplier). While in Power Armor, the amount of damage reflected is doubled (200%).
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Serendipity
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 1
- New effect: Now increases Evade Chance while under 30% life, based on Luck. Evade provides a chance to avoid all incoming damage from direct attacks. Evade can happen once every second and the cooldown is now increased by armor. Please note, Evade cannot happen when over encumbered or while in Power Armor.
- Armor increases Evade cooldown at the following rates:
- Light Armor: +0.1 second per piece
- Medium Armor: +0.2 seconds per piece
- Heavy Armor: +0.4 seconds per piece
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Starched Genes
- Ranks reduced from 2 to 1
- Moved from Luck to Endurance
- Rank 1 now provides the benefits of the former Rank 2
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Thru-Hiker
- Ranks reduced from 3 to 2
- Moved from Agility to Endurance
- Rank 1 now offers 45% weight reduction
- Rank 2 now offers 90% weight reduction
Adjustments to Explosion VFX
We’ve reduced the radius in which screen flash effects appear for a multitude of explosions throughout the game. This is purely a visual change and does not impact the radius in which damage is dealt.
A few of these have had sizeable reductions (especially Fatman and Fatman MIRV explosions). Please be sure to provide feedback on whether these changes are sufficient in reducing unwanted screen flashing, if there’s any additional explosions that we should adjust, or if some explosions no-longer feel impactful and satisfying to use.
If you’re thinking that’s all there is, NOPE, not even close. The official list has a lot more in store. You can check out all the details over at Bethesda!
