Rainbow Six Siege – Operation New Blood Operator Remaster and Balance Guide

Operation New Blood is the second season of Year 9 of Rainbow Six Siege, following the release of Operation Deadly Omen in March. This season will see the introduction of the Recruit remaster, which will create two new Operators to fill this role: a striker in attack and a sentinel in defense. While these former recruits don’t have their own unique gadgets, they do have the unique ability to bring two different secondary gadgets, unlocking the potential for electrifying combos to make play easier.

Operation New Blood also addresses the two dominant Defenders with balancing updates to Fenrir and Solis, and tightens the barbed wire so that it now damages Operators when they pass through it. These updates, as well as AI additions in Versus mode, map filter changes, stadium renovations, and more, will be coming to Operation New Blood.

Two new names, many new possibilities

The Striker and Guardian now take on the role of Recruit in attack and defense respectively, but each can do much more than their predecessor. Each of them is now selectable in Ranked play, and their appearance can be customized with the standard range of cosmetic items, some of which will be available as part of the Operation New Blood Battle Pass. Unlike other Operators, the Striker and the Guard do not have unique gadgets. Instead, everyone can choose two additional gadgets to bring into battle. In this way, the Attacker can finally realize the attacker’s dream of opening an electrified wall himself using EMP shock grenades and a powerful breaching charge. They could also plot their own path to the target with a breaching charge and then cover their own flank with a claymore. Of each additional gadget the attacker may choose, the attacker may choose two, provided they are not the same item.

Meanwhile, in defense, the Sentry can do the same, but chooses from a completely different pool of gadgets. They can focus on hiding from attack drones by taking along a surveillance block and placing a bulletproof camera nearby to further deter prying eyes. They can also create very dangerous situations by placing strategic proximity alarms and lurking nearby with a nitrous cell to surprise unwary attackers.

Flexibility is the key here, as both Sentry and Striker open up opportunities to create solo and team play compositions that were not previously possible. Each of them has a corresponding set of equipment: when attacking, the Striker uses an M4 assault rifle or M249 light machine gun as a primary weapon, and a 5.7 USG pistol or an ITA 12S shotgun as a secondary weapon. Defensively, the Sentry uses the Commando 9 assault rifle or M870 shotgun as its primary option, and the C75 Auto submachine gun or Super Shorty shotgun in its secondary slot.

Fenrir and Solis balance updates

Operation New Blood is also making balance changes to Fenrir and Solis to address the two dominant Defenders. Fenrir will now only have four F-NATT Horror Mines to distribute, with two activation codes to place among them, and the mines will no longer be bulletproof in any state. This means fewer mines can be active at one time, and they are easier for an attacker to clear. However, when a mine is destroyed, Fenrir will now receive the code back instead of losing it, allowing him to more easily use his full set of mines. Additionally, his barbed wire option will be replaced with a surveillance lock.

As for Solis, her SPEC-IO electrosensor will no longer be usable in the build-up phase, giving buzzing attackers a little more breathing room. Once the active phase begins, the gadget will have a reduced duration of 10 seconds and a reduced range of 12 meters; in addition, it must be fully charged before each activation. Finally, her concussion grenade option is replaced with barbed wire. Note that crossing the barbed wire will now cost attackers approximately 5 life points per second, so choose your steps carefully.

Stadium renovations, AI additions and more

Some other significant updates coming to Operation New Blood include renovations to Stadium Alpha and Stadium Bravo. To make these arenas a bit more competitive, bulletproof glass has been removed in many areas and some layout changes have been made to make certain targets easier to defend.

The Versus AI map pool expands to include Coastline and Nighthaven Labs, and new AI Operators available as opponents include Vigil and Thunderbird. You can now play against the AI ​​as Ace, Blackbeard, Hibana and Deimos.

Rainbow Six Siege is available now on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC (Ubisoft Store and Epic Games Store), and Amazon Luna and is included with Ubisoft+ Premium subscription. Stay up to date with the latest seasons and events on our Rainbow Six Siege news page.