The Division's Third Expansion, Last Stand, Adds Dark Zone Themed Battleground

The third expansion brings three major updates to the game. The first one is a PvP battleground for up to 16 players. The second update is the Incursion: Stolen Signal. The final is a major 1.6 update that is free for all. According to the team behind The Division, it is one of the biggest updates so far.

Expansion III General Info

The info was revealed during the State of the Game Livestream on Twitch. You can also read about it on the official webpage.

• Last Stand release date is unknown, it will come soon.
• The third expansion will release simultaneously on PC, PlayStation and Xbox One.
• The Season Pass holders gets it without any additional purchase. They can also be the first ones to test it on the upcoming Public Test Server, ahead of its official release. Others will have to buy it separately.
• You need to be level 30 to play Last Stand.
• With the third expansion, expect new forms of balancing for player builds that limits the impact of Gear Set and stat randomness.
• No gear score increase.

Last Stand PvP General Info

Last Stand is a separated combat arena – a PVP battleground with the PVE elements. It differs from Dark Zone by its clear objectives and more forgiving deaths. To start the matches, go to the Terminal. Close to the recalibration station, you’ll find the tactical terminal standing. Use it to get into the battle!

• Team up with others to transfer enough information from the tactical terminals – SHD tech data relays.
• Teams consist of eight players. They are separated into two groups of four.
• You can queue solo or with three more friends. You can’t queue with seven more friends.
• The opposite team is always the rogue one. The game will always allocate players as the Division agents.
• The rogue mechanics do not apply in Last Stand. Your death here won’t have an impact on your DZ XP, keys, loot or any other currency. This is done purely for the lore.
• Matches can last up to 20 minutes.
• Matches take place in the Dark Zone themed maps. In Last Stand, there are four different Dark Zone maps. The first two are roughly based on previous DZ 1-3, 4-6. The two new Dark Zone areas are 7-8 and 8-9, respectively. The matchmaking screen will show the DZ zone you’ll be playing next.
• On each map, you’ll have to take control of three major tactical locations with three minor encryption points. All three minor points need to be controlled. This way, you allow the data to transfer.
• You choose where to spawn from the megamap. During the match, you can start automatically spawning closer to your team. Capturing a terminal, you’ll get the option to spawn there.
• Matchmaking is based on your current Gear Score, Last Stand Rank and other factors. One of them is your performance in the recent matches.
• After the match is finished, you can go back to the queue immediately. You don’t need to return to the main game to re-queue.
• PvE elements found in the Dark Zone are present here as well. You can expect to fight NPCs that will mostly guard the control points. They continuously respawn during the match. Other enemy NPCs that are found at the Landmarks will even respawn faster.
• When you kill NPC enemies, your team gets SHD tech (Strategic Homeland Division). You can spend it to activate turrets or a large Pulse that alerts you when the enemies get too close. It is done in the starting match spawn location.
• After a certain match milestone, tactical boost stations come online. This is where you can also spend SHD tech. These stations can give you different team bonuses. You can increase upload speed time, get more points for killing enemies and all for a limited time. The time is limited by the size of the SHD spent for the boosts.
• The rewards at the end of the match depend on your overall performance. There are more than 30 actions that are being tracked.

Last Stand Incursion: Stolen Signal Info

The third expansion is not entirely focused on the PvP action. Players who love PvE more will be getting their hands on new content. The new incursion “Stolen Signal” is set for release. We can expect to see more information about it in the future.

• This incursion will be a part of the third expansion.
• It will be available for you to try out on the Public Test Servers.

Last Stand Rewards

There is a progression reward system implemented into the Last Stand. It is similar to the Underground system.

• There is a special experience that counts toward the Last Stand ranks, gained for playing the expansion.
• You can look forward to a maximum of 40 ranks. After the 40th rank, you’ll still be gaining rewards for each experience level.
• Each rank awards you with a sealed cache of items.
• Two new unique exclusive expansion vanity sets and weapon skin sets. You can acquire them at the certain Last Stand ranks.
• Every time your team wins a PvP match, you get extra rewards. These rewards are given at the end of the match. If you leave, you won’t be seeing them.

At the same time when the third Expansion news came out, we found out new stuff regarding the Division movie adaptation. For all the Division fans out there, this is for sure a good week.