![]() ![]() ![]() For years, Legendary armor and weapons, which display a potential base strength of five gold stars, have topped out at 3, despite the presence of items like Legendary modules that would seemingly bridge the gap. Hardcore fans of Fallout 76 have long noted that improvements to the Legendary crafting system were on the way. In terms of adding substance, it’s been a slow but steady return to complexity, and Steel Reign makes a valid contribution. Picking up from some of the subtler narrative improvements established by the Wastelanders update from last year, key mission objectives also broaden the game’s RPG aspects by adding SPECIAL stat checks to dialogue and mission options, again harkening back to some of the freedom of choice supported in earlier games. Both have perhaps signified a shift back towards the series’ previous nuance by giving the player a branching narrative option, a former hallmark of the series’ writing that took a back seat with the removal of the Skills system in Fallout 4. All told, the arcs only take about three to four hours each to play. With the official multiplatform release on July 7, I was able to replay the content on PlayStation 4, where I had not yet completed the Broken Steel quest, and it was a better experience in that the momentum from the conflict between Paladin Rahmani and Paladin Shin carried over cohesively. I first played Steel Reign on the Public Test Server on PC before release, and the effect of coming back into the story without a refresher and with little memory of the preceding events was almost disorienting, like trying to do homework after taking a nap. For how short they are, the chapters are delivered a little too far apart. ![]() What dampens the experience is how abrupt it is. Be it the Brotherhood or the Enclave, it’s intriguing to get insight on the immediate post-War years of their existence (whether my head considers them canon or not). To their credit, the writers have worked hard to justify their presence. While I’m not a huge fan of how hamfistedly certain historic Fallout factions are shoehorned into Fallout 76, it’s been enjoyable to revisit some of these groups in the game. ![]() Will you side with Paladin Shin and stay true to the group’s sworn purpose to keep the Wastelanders from obtaining technology, despite the zero-sum value it places on human life? Or will you sympathize with Paladin Rahmani and sever ties with the old ways in favor of embracing altruism? The path to making that final decision takes us through a tale that explores some of the darker sides of scientific experimentation, weaving together the origins of Fallout’s Forced Evolutionary Virus into a story that ultimately unfolds into the premise established by the original games. Picking up where its predecessor left off, Steel Reign follows the Brotherhood of Steel as a rift between their two leaders threatens to divide the faction in two. In a game that is admittedly repetitive in its post-campaign material, it and its predecessor Broken Steel have not only added weight to the game’s faction-heavy narrative but also, mercifully, given players something new to do. While not as meaty as a core expansion, Steel Reign, which is the second of a two-part questline centered on the Brotherhood of Steel, is nonetheless a welcome change of pace. The Seasons updates of the past year or so have been a well-timed return to the kind of mission-based DLC that once dominated Fallout post-release content. It is one of the many, steady batches of new content that have continued to refine Fallout 76 since its initial release, transforming the game from its initial chaotic roots. Steel Reign made its debut this past week, marking the conclusion of a key Brotherhood of Steel storyline, while padding out some of the sorely underdeveloped aspects of the game’s crafting system. Last month we gave you an in-depth look at the Fallout 76 update Steel Reign, discussing the new quest mission and features coming to the game with Project Lead Jeff Gardiner and Design Director Mark Tucker. ![]()
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