The free Latvia expansion is live!

Join the Latvian Riflemen defending their homeland or attempt to break their defensive positions in the sand dunes and marshes of the new Baltic map! To celebrate todays release, Tannenberg is 50% off on Steam! https://youtu.be/WsfSaPbK5QQ

Face the Latvian Riflemen

The Latvian Riflemen are a support squad equipped primarily with the Type 30 and Type 38 Japanese import rifles and older repeating Winchesters. They are renowned for their composure under fire, and their NCO ability can remove weapon sway for 30 seconds, allowing perfect shots by skilled players in the squad at key moments in battle. For trench assaults they carry plenty of grenades and a few squad members carry the iconic US M1911 pistol.

Welcome to The Baltic

Sand dunes, marshes, and swamps form the environs of the new Baltic map. Wooden fortifications and sandbag positions line the water edges, overlooking pontoon bridges and fords. The land is mostly flat, so youll need to make good use of cover to avoid enemy fire.

New rifles, special grenades, and a pistol

The Entente factions get three new non-native weapons in this update - the Japanese Type 38 rifle is more modern than the Type 30 already in the game, the Vetterli M1870/87 is a 4 shot Italian rifle converted from the single shot version, and the M1911 pistol needs no introduction! In addition to these firearms, there are two new types of grenade - the German Nebelbombe smoke grenade and Russian M1917 Chemical grenade. These can be used to deploy smoke or gas clouds while attacking or defending without the need for a telephone to call in a barrage from artillery.

NCO leadership abilities

Another exciting feature in the expansion is NCO command powers. They can already use field telephones to call in support from artillery or aircraft, and to give movement orders, but now they can also activate special leadership boosts for a limited time. Here are two examples from the new Latvian Riflemen and the last squad we added - the Bulgarians.

Squad levelling overhaul

Todays update significantly changes how squad levelling works. The system we had in place did not feel right as it was unclear why/how your level increased and for some users it was difficult to achieve and stay at a high level. To counter this we have chosen to overhaul the system and replace it with something that is more clear and rewarding. Previously, you earned co-op squad XP with each squad member which resulted in the final squad level. Under the new system, every player has an individual squad level for each type of squad. The level of a squad in-game is simply equal to the combined squad levels of each player in the squad - so a Tommies squad with two players who have a Tommy squad level of 10 and two players who have a Tommy squad level of 15 would have a total level of 10+10+15+15 = 50. This also means that you can reach a level 100 squad playing by yourself, and if there is any player within your squad who has level 100, the squad will be level 100. For those who have worked hard to reach a high level in the legacy system, have no fear! We've also made sure that the stats of the legacy system still function as well - anybody who reached a level 100 squad with their friends under the previous system will still see a level 100 squad when they play with those same friends, even if their squad level under the new system would be lower! The legacy system kicks in after a legacy squad level of 10+. It is, however, no longer possible to level through the legacy system.

Unity version update, and more.

The update also brings an update to the latest version of Unity (2019.1) and some other bits and pieces - you can read the full changelog on the forums. A few of the most interesting updates include:

Overhauled squad levelling system

Weapon stats sorting (i.e. kills, minutes played etc.).

Added settings option to make some UI text elements larger (i.e. in-game text chat).

Optimized spawning of bots, especially for the player that's controlling them.

NCO abilities are now displayed in a new icon to other squad mates. Finally, a giveaway... Would you like to win a copy of Tannenberg, for yourself or a friend? It just so happens that were running a giveaway right now - all you need to do is tell us over which dates you think the Christmas Battles, in which the Latvian Riflemen fought so hard, occurred. Let us know on Twitter or Facebook!

Let us know what you think of the new content!