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Prep for War...

This Sunday, November 18, 2012, at 6:00 PM EST, the Beta War for Halo 4 will be starting. This Beta War will last until December 23rd.

We will be using this time to test out a variety of gametype settings, map variants, etc.

We will be making changes nearly every week, so be sure to stay active on the forums to be sure you see them all.

Also, keep in mind that this is not counted as an actual war. It will not have a winning army, there will not be a warmap and neither faction will be defending a Capital. The outcome of the war does not influence the first actual war, which starts on January 6th (more info on that later on).

So relax and enjoy yourselves for this quick six-week war. Use it as a time to improve teamwork with your squadmates and set up some strategies. Just be sure that you HAVE FUN!

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Holo Humping

No.

We will be considering this like a regular teabag, and anyone caught intentionally doing this will be punished appropriately.

Consider this your only warning.

We can tell if it was intentional or not, so if you do it accidentally don’t freak out.

If you get teabagged by a hologram, though, and you believe it was intentional, save the film after the game and report it to your squad CO, Field Marshal, or someone else who can pass it along through the proper channels.

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Gametypes

We’ve got a full set of preliminary gametypes on my fileshare. Unfortunately, 343 hasn’t finished setting it up on their website, so you’ll need to download them through the File Browser in Halo 4 itself. Just do a search for my gamertag.

Some differences from default Matchmaking gametypes:

In addition to the settings, we're also doing something different from matchmaking in terms of ordnance.

• On maps, the initial ordnance will now respawn every so often.
• The Random Ordnance will be removed.
• Personal ordnance will be implemented into all gametypes (details below).

Personal ordnance will be setup like follows (w is the weighting. the higher the weighting, the more likely you are to get it).
Note that everything stated above about settings is subject to change. We will be experimenting with a variety of different options throughout the Beta War to find what works best.

For instance, the usage of personal ordnance. We will experiment and see what the members like better. Also, whether the Oddbomb should be auto-pickup or not. Or whether we should use the deathcam.

All of these things will end up being decided by what the community likes best. So, we encourage everyone to try out all the gametypes and get a feel for everything, because if you don't like something now's your time to get it fixed.

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Forge Department

Anyone interested in being involved in adjusting maps or finding and fixing imbalances or exploits on all maps to be used in the wars, now's your chance to sign up for the Forge Department.

You can check out all the details here.

Additionally, if you'd like to submit a custom map that you made for use in the wars, go here and follow the format instructions.

We always want to feature member-made maps when we can, so be sure to submit yours. If we like it, we'll use it.

Keep in mind that the Beta War will focus on 343's maps. Submitted maps will be considered for the actual war which starts in January.

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New vCash System Implemented

Halo 4 distracted me enough that I forgot to do it during the weekend, so I just did it a few minutes ago.

Everyone has been reset to 1000 vCash. Everyone who applied and earned a vCash Bonus has been given their bonus.

People who earned vCash during the last few months but didn't fill out the vCash Bonus application will get their vCash distributed eventually. PM me about it if you want it sooner.

To find out what the new vCash System does and some of the changes it makes, refer to FC Update 6.3.

If anyone has any questions about it, bring them up. If you are someone who had 50,000+ vCash before the switch, PM me about a conversion.

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Another reminder: this Sunday, the Beta War starts at 6:00 PM EST. Be there.

~Mythonian