 |
This article and/or its subarticles are missing information or have fallen out of date. You can help Eternal Return Wiki by updating them. |
Cobalt Protocol is a fast-paced battle-oriented 4v4 Game Mode in Eternal Return.
At the start of each test, two teams with four Test Subjects are dropped into Cobalt Protocol combat laboratory to fight for survival against other Test Subjects. This game mode is only available to players at Account Level 15.
Main Gameplay Changes[]
Here is a list of changes compared to the main game mode, Lumia Island:
- The Route/Catalog UI is not available, instead items a set of items is selected from a random pool at the beginning and additional items can be rolled with
Credits. - In addition to items, players can also spend their credits on Infusions, which grant strong passive effects.
- All test subjects start the game at level 9, with all masteries starting at level 6.
- Players earn XP over time.
- Despite being a team mode, there is no “downed” state, instead respawning after a set period of time back at their spawn rooms.
- There are safe rooms at the opposing corners of the map where players can quickly restore HP and SP. These rooms are protected by Defense Turrets (Attack Speed: 1.8).
- For balance, cooldowns of ultimate(R) skills have been scaled per character/weapon.
- Heal Packs spawn all over the map that restore HP and SP for the first character that touches them. Once used they go on a 75s cooldown.
- Equipment cannot be dropped onto the ground.
Game Preparation: Test Subject Draft[]
The game randomly selects one test subject for each player from the ones they own and/or from Cobalt's free rotation.
Apart from this, a draft pool of 6 different characters will also be made available for selection for each team. The draft pool is shared within each team. Each player can swap their current character with one from the pool by selecting their portrait. There's a 2s cooldown after switching a test subject before another can be selected. Players can only select test subjects they own.
After a time, the 6 unchosen characters in the pool are swapped with those from the opposing team's, becoming available for pick.
Equipment Draft[]
Since there is no looting and crafting in this game mode, the players will draft their equipment instead. They will get to choose from 3 options for each equipment type. The equipment is drafted in the following order: weapon → chest → head → arm → leg → accessory.
Each item has a main tag describing the item's playstyle characteristics. Equipment options in the rest of the draft will differ based on the main tag of the player's chosen weapon. Bellow the item's main tag there is a sub-tag that indicates the equipment's secondary characteristics. Recommended items for that character will have a "Thumbs Up" icon next to them.
Players can spend 30 to roll for one of three random items of a chosen category (weapon, chest, head, arm, leg, accesspry). Unwanted items can be sold back for credits (Epic: 6 ). Selling 6 items (legendary items count as selling 3) will automatically grant the ability to choose one of three random legendary items of the selected category.
Phase System[]
| Phases | Duration | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Preparation | 30s | A brief setup phase, players choose one of two safe rooms where to teleport. Up to 2 players can choose one room. |
| Phase 1 | 120s (2 minutes) | A barrier will keep the map separate in two halves, players are confined to their chosen half and must fight 2v2. |
| Phase 2 | 210s (3 minutes 30 seconds) | The barrier is lifted and players can cross and teleport anywhere on the map. Omega spawns near the center of the map. |
| Phase 3 | 750s (12 minutes 30 seconds) | The sealed room near the middle opens, granting acess to Gamma (Omega will despawn if it wasn't killed yet). |
| Phase 4 (Sudden Death) | 90s (1 minute 30 seconds) | An additional phase where the team that loses points first will be defeated. Revival is disabled and Defense Turrets are deactivated. |
Cobalt Wild Animal Data[]
| Credit Bounty (Self) | Credit Bounty (Team) | Item Drops | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drone (NEW) | 3 | 0 | |
| Mutant Wild Dogs | 6 | 3 | |
| Mutant Wolves | 5 | 2 | |
| Mutant Boars | 10 | 5 | |
| Mutant Bears | 30 | 15 | Enhanced Shield Pack |
| Omega | 60 | 30 | Enhanced Heal Pack |
| Gamma (NEW) | 120 | 60 | ??? |
Life Points[]
In Cobalt Protocol, each team starts with 40 Life Points. For a team to win, they must either deduct the enemy team's points to 0 or to a value lower that theirs before the match time is up.
Players can deduct the enemy team's Points by:
- Killing enemy players: 5 points (lowers to 1 point during Phase 3)
- Having control of the Power Beacons (2 point every few seconds per beacon)
- Killing adroid bosses:
- Gamma: 8 points
Earning Credits[]
- Credits are earned through the following:
- Time-based Income (4
every 15 seconds) - Test Subject Kill
- Test Subject Kill Assist
- Killing Spree
- Killing Spree Shutdowns
- Hunting Wild Animals
- Time-based Income (4
In addition, there is a 1.5x bonus to credits obtained that is triggered when there's a 9-point difference between both teams.
Infusions[]
- Infusions can be purchased at the Synthesizer, and can be thought of as Cobalt Protocol-exclusive Augments.
- Each player can purchase and equip up to 3 Infusions. Most Infusions can be upgraded, but some provide unique passive abilities that cannot be upgraded.
For a list and more information about available Infusions in Cobalt Protocol, please see Infusions.
Power Beacons[]
Power Beacons are devices found in Cobalt Protocol. There are 3 beacons spread evenly across the map. When a player captures a beacon (by interacting with it until the progress bar is full), that player and their allies are granted a buff, with each beacon granting a different buff. This buff increases in potency on each phase change. In addition, retaining control over a beacon for a period of time deducts the opposing team's Life Points by 1.
| Power Beacon Buffs | |
|---|---|
| Power Beacon (Southwest) | Attack Power: 5 / 10 / 15 |
| Power Beacon (Northeast) | Skill Amplification: 5 / 10 / 15 |
| Power Beacon (Middle) | Defense: 5 / 10 / 15 |
Mode-Specific Balancing[]
- There is a Cobalt Protocol-specific scaling for each character-weapon combination. damage dealt, damage received, and other stats.
- Scaling applied to damage dealt, damage received, shield effectiveness, recovery effectiveness, and ultimate (R) skill cooldown.
Character-Specific Changes[]
Some test subjects' skills, passives, or other quirks can’t function properly in Cobalt Protocol, so they’ll be changed as described in the table below:
- The following issues are stuff that we're aware of and will be improved or fixed in the future.
- Examples:
- Some characters (e.g. Daniel) have Passives that don’t make sense in the context of Cobalt Protocol.
- Silvia cannot gain fuel.
- Mai cannot acquire her exclusive equipment.
- Echion cannot acquire his legendary weapon. Etc
| Character | Changes |
|---|---|
| Nadine | Starts with 50 Wild stacks.
(Drones and Androids are machines, so Nadine won’t earn Wild stacks for slaying them.) |
| Hart | Starts with 3 Evolution points. |
| Xiukai | Starts with 100 Juggernaut Chef stacks. |
| Silvia | Starts with 15 Lumia Grand Prix stacks. |
| Daniel | Stat bonuses from Recluse(P) are constantly applied at a reduced ratio as follows:
-Out of Combat Movement Speed increased by 10%. -When below 100% HP, gain 10 additional Attack Power. |
| Luke | Neat 'n Tidy(P) is capped at a maximum of 75 stacks. |
| Echion | Cannot draft a weapon during the starting equipment draft or through the Extra Equipment Draft. Instead, Echion starts with his VF Prosthetic, which gets upgraded with each point put into his Passive. |
| Priya | Cannot draft head armor during the starting equipment draft or through the Extra Equipment Draft. Instead, Priya’s headpiece gets upgraded with each point put into her Passive. |
| Alex | During the starting equipment draft, Alex gets an extra draft step where he can draft a secondary weapon. |
Item-Specific Changes[]
Certain items normally obtainable in Lumia Island are unavailable in Cobalt Protocol. In addition, there are a few weapons that have Cobalt exclusive variants to replace them:
