Disclaimer: this is not my work, credit goes to the reddit user: https://www.reddit.com/user/Sholef
I'm of the opinion that PVP in the Dark Zone is broken. The greatest threat is not from challenging firefights against tough NPCs or against similarly-equipped players scavenging for the same loot you are, it is high-level gank squads rolling through the server griefing solo farmers or undergeared squads looking to gear up. Sherpa squads are good insurance against troll rogues, but it only further highlights the fundamental flaw with the DZ: your progression is no longer in your hands.
The current design of the Dark Zone places your personal character progression in the hands of others. In rogue ambush, the aggressor has the advantage of landing the first shots and the defender must take the bullet or risk going rogue themselves and eating all the associated penalties when they are inevitably killed by better geared players with a numerical advantage. Conversely, if you want insurance against trolls, you need to have people carry you, which places your safety again in the hands of someone else, however benevolent your sherpas might be.
So I present to you a framework for a split DZ and a full rework to the current PVP mechanics with the end goal of returning control of personal progression back to the hands of the individual players.
Lore: With the majority of Midtown stabilized, the JTF begins planning the largest offensive operation they have ever undertaken in the city: an attempt to retake the Dark Zone and make it habitable again. But before they can commence large-scale operations, The Division must first wipe the area clean of rogue agents and secure critical infrastructure and intel. The Second Wave trains endlessly for their moment to shine, as they know that they will be going up against not just leftover rabble, but the most battle-hardened veterans of the LMB and the most ruthless of Keener’s rogue agents.
PVP and the Dark Zone will be split as follows:
Killhouse: Structured PVP in a controlled arena setting with normalized skills, agent stats, and weapon damage. Hone your skills against other agents in brutal close-quarters arena battles.
Warzone: Gear-based, force on force, no holds barred combat with an objective-based metagame. Engage in epic large scale firefights across varied terrain in the open world of the Dark Zone.
Dark Zone: Challenging cooperative small-group and solo content for endgame players in the open world. Venture into the rotting heart of Manhattan and take on the most lethal predators in the city while scavenging for supplies and intel.
Killhouse: Structured PVP
Lore: Second Wave agents train endlessly in their downtime. With the threat of rogue agents now public knowledge, it only makes sense to run training exercises against similarly trained and geared opponents. Various “killhouses” have been set up throughout Manhattan in secured areas as training grounds for agents and JTF, allowing the Second Wave to train in terrain and against opponents appropriate to their next mission.
Killhouse is traditional structured PVP between equally equipped agents.
Inspired by Ghost Recon: Future Soldier multiplayer.
Agents will be identified by colored armor, ballcaps, and armbands for either red or blue team.
Cosmetics not in the jacket or hat category will be preserved.
Killhouse matches will take place in 5-10 minute bouts on dedicated PVP maps.
No medkits or consumables
Weapon and skill damage and effects will be normalized.
Status effects and durations will be normalized.
Map Ideas:
Shoothouse: Plywood and rebar training grounds behind the post office used for training JTF and Division agents.
Relay: A scuttled rooftop comm relay.
Circle: Columbus Circle after it has been cleared of Rikers.
Pumphouse: The APC room of the pumping station under Warrengate Power Plant from Falcon Lost.
Game Modes
Conflict: Objective TDM. Objectives spawn randomly around the map. Killing enemies awards points, but objectives grant more points as well as advantages for your team.
Team Deathmatch: Traditional TDM. Eliminate enemies to score points.
Capture the Flag: Recover the enemy team’s flag and return it to your base to score a point.
HVT: Protect the designated HVT on your team until time runs out.
Killhouse Rewards
PVP reward track is filled as you complete PVP matches
Milestones grant a cache of your choice (DZ, UG, etc.) in addition to KH tokens (dogtags?)
KH tokens can be used to buy unique skins, new weapons for your PVP locker, and unique clothing items.
Even at max KH rank, the reward track is repeatable, allowing for a slower progression path to grind for caches, clothes, and gear.
Warzone
Lore: The Division has begun reconnaissance in force into the Dark Zone. Every day, dozens of agents gear up and launch expeditions into the DZ, sweeping for intel, clearing faction nests, and taking control of critical infrastructure to clear the way for a full-scale JTF offensive. Even in its early stages, the war for Manhattan rages fiercely, with Division agents clashing regularly with rogues and the LMB remnants supporting them.
Mode selection for PVE Dark Zone or PVP Warzone is accessed from a console at any DZ checkpoint.
When matchmaking into a WZ instance, players are matched on an allied team with up to 11 other players.
Squads are kept intact and solo players are placed into an allied team as backfill.
The other 12 players in the server are matched to the opposing team.
Players can only see the location of allied agents.
When enemy agents are encountered, they will be marked as hostile for agents within range and will appear on the map when pinged with pulse.
Players are free to farm NPCs and even fight alongside enemy agents in the times between objective drops.
Periodically, objective locations are broadcast to all agents in an active DZ instance.
Objectives grant bonuses to players who secure them.
Objectives are deployed separately from supply drops.
Securing the objective scores your team points.
Each hour, points are tallied and the winning team receives rewards.
Participants that log out before scoring ticks are awarded rewards based on their participation.
Rewards are scaled based on time participated and points scored.
Agents can choose not to capture objectives, to defend one objective over others, or to split up and tackle multiple objectives simultaneously.
All stats and talents will be in full effect in Warzone, making it critical for serious WZ players to gear up before going in, though gear dependence can be mitigated through tactics and bringing more friends to the next gunfight.
Sample Objectives
Retrieval: Capture the Flag. Locate a hard drive from the target sector and extract it at an extraction zone. In addition to fighting the enemy team, NPCs will be attracted to the extraction chopper.
Secure: King of the Hill. Proceed to the target waypoint and defend the supply crates located there. While the area is secured, agents will be able to restock at the ammo box there.
Transmit: One member of your team is designated the HVT who has intercepted a transmission and is uploading its contents to the ISAC cloud. Transmission takes place slowly while running around above ground, stops while below ground, and proceeds at double speed near a comm tower. Securing a comm tower is advantageous but not necessary to succeed.
Sweep: King of the Hill. Activate and defend a comm tower.
Exterminate: TDM. Locate and eliminate rogue agents. Agent activity also escalates NPC activity, causing larger spawn waves, stronger enemy spawns, and more aggressive NPC behavior.
Rogue System
The Rogue system has been reworked into a “heat” system.
Killing enemy agents at the start of an objective cycle rewards the same credits and XP as a level 1 rogue kill.
As players kill other players and complete objectives, their heat level goes up, increasing the rewards for eliminating them.
At maximum heat rating, the rewards for killing that player are the same as killing a level 5 manhunt rogue.
Assets used for rogue system can be repurposed; scoring will just be rolled into the new Warzone system.
Warzone Rewards
WZ reward track is filled as you gain DZ XP.
Milestones grant a Purple DZ cache with a chance to receive a bonus gold DZ cache.
Once rank 99 is reached, every level up grants a gold DZ cache with a chance to receive a bonus teal DZ cache.
Battle Lines Metagame
Securing objectives grants individual players passive buffs for 24 hours after a scoring tick is done.
Buffs earned depend on the number and types of objectives a player participated in during a given tick.
Sample Reward Buffs
Battle Hardened: Earned for winning a round of exterminate. Increased XP and credit gain for all enemy kills, including PVP.
Pack Mule: Earned for securing an ammo cache objective. Increased maximum ammo capacity and ammo drop rate from enemies killed.
Hacker: Earned for successfully uploading the intercepted transmission. Gain additional skill haste.
Dataminer: Earned for successfully extracting a hard drive. Increased division tech drop rate for NPCs. Player kills have a chance to drop DT.
Sweeper: Earned for successfully securing a comm tower. Grants the team that owns it map pings on enemy positions periodically for a short time.
Warzone Directives
Directives are introduced periodically to alter gameplay and make Warzone more interesting.
Directives are activated for one week every other week.
Sample Directives
Unity: All agents matched into a DZ are considered friendly.
Wasteland: No NPCs spawn in the Dark Zone. Player kills have a chance to spawn loot drops. All other agents are considered hostile and can be engaged and killed without penalty.
Valley of the Shadow of Death: All NPCs in the DZ spawn as max level elites for a given bracket.
Power Overwhelming: Signature resource gain rate increased by 100% for all players.
Bomb Squad: Only allowed skills are sticky bombs, seeker mines, and tactical link.
Fog of War: Radar display, pulse 3D spotting, and other target tagging HUD elements are disabled. Pulse skill, precision talent, and skills that pulse targets have no effect. HUD elements only show your squad’s proxies. Health bars only appear when enemies are being aimed at.
High Noon: Only pistols can be used in the DZ. All sidearms deal 200% more damage.
Dark Zone PVE
Mode selection for PVE Dark Zone or PVP Warzone is accessed from a console at any DZ checkpoint.
The standard Dark Zone is now a high-level PVE zone and the main source of endgame content.
Agents are free to explore and farm unhindered by griefers and trolls.
Supply drops will continue to occur in the PVE DZ; they are replaced by objective spawns in Warzone.
Intel will also spawn in the DZ that will unlock additional lore entries, achievements, and cosmetics.
A framework can be established for future story content that takes place in the DZ.
Because of the removal of the rogue system from PVE, NPC spawns during extractions are more aggressive and stronger.
Dark Zone Directives
The Directives mechanic can also be applied to DZ, tuned appropriately.
Dark Zone enemies also drop intel.
Directives can be activated for intel cost to increase potential rewards.
Dark Zone Rewards
DZ reward track is filled as you gain DZ XP.
Milestones grant a Purple DZ cache with a chance to receive a bonus gold DZ cache.
Once rank 99 is reached, every level up grants a gold DZ cache with a chance to receive a bonus teal DZ cache.
Miscellaneous
Scavenger: Loot goblin or Skritt burglar. NPC that periodically spawns in the DZ and moves from location to location looking for supplies. Uses an SMG. Will attempt to run if confronted. Drops random loot as he runs. Killing him drops a large quantity of loot.
Materials: Chests also have a chance to drop materials scaled to your DZ bracket alongside Division Tech or standard loot/caches.
Disclaimer: this is not my work, credit goes to the reddit user: https://www.reddit.com/user/Sholef