Apex Legends Season 18 update patch notes: Start time & balance changes

The Apex Legends Season 18 update, Resurrection, is just around the corner and fans are desperate to get stuck into all of the fresh content like the Revenant Reborn and Charge Rifle Respawn has been working on.

Finally, all of the details surrounding Season 18 have been revealed in a recent blog post, including Revenant Reborn, the Death Dynasty Collection Event, the Mixtape mode, and of course, the release date.

So, let's jump into everything we know about Apex Legends Season 18 so you’re fully prepared for Resurrection.

• Curious about how popular your favourite Legend is? Consider checking out our Apex Legends pick rate tracker

Apex Legends Season 18 start time & release date

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Apex Legends Season 18's release date is August 8, 2023. In terms of Season 18's start time, Resurrection will launch at 6 PM BST / 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET.

Apex Legends Season 18 patch notes: Weapon & Legend changes

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Balance Updates

Armor Changes

• White to Blue evo points required increased to 200 (was 150)
  • Crafted evo points increased to 200
• Fixed overflow damage on level-up applies to the next tier

Crafting Rotation

• Rampage and R-99 leave the crafter and are back on the floor
• Nemesis and Mozambique with Hammerpoint Rounds enter the crafter
• Double Tap Trigger and Hammerpoint Rounds removed from rotation
• Boosted Loader and Disruptor Rounds added to rotation
• Medkit price increased to 20 (was 15)

Care Package Weapon Rotation

• Hemlok Burst AR returns to the floor
  • ADS Recoil increased
  • Damage reduced to 22 (was 23)
  • Headshot multiplier reduced to 1.75 (was 1.8)
• Prowler Burst PDW enters the care package
  • Damage increased to 16 (was 15)
  • Select Fire Enabled defaulting to Full Auto

Gold Weapons Rotation

• Hemlok, Peacekeeper, Alternator, Rampage, Charge Rifle

Loot Spawn Changes

• Blue and Purple Weapon Attachment spawn rate reduced by 20%
• Blue and Purple Armor spawn rate reduced by 30%

Weapons

Charge Rifle Rework

• New ballistics and projectile
  • Removed hitscan
  • Removed pre-fire laser
  • Projectiles have player passthrough: 80% damage retained
  • Opens doors
• Projectiles gain damage with distance
  • 50 meters: 75 Damage
  • 300 meters: 110 Damage
• New charge mechanics
  • Holding the trigger down will increase charge
  • Releasing the trigger will decrease charge
  • Fires at 100% charge
• Added Extended Sniper Mag attachment slot
  • Base: 4
  • White: 5
  • Blue: 6
  • Purple/Gold: 8
• Ammo Consumption per shot reduced to 1 (was 2)
• Handling timings adjusted
  • Tactical reload time decreased to 3.5 (was 4.0)
  • Empty reload time decreased to 4.6 (was 5.1)

All SMGs (R-99, Alternator, CAR, Volt)

• Strafe Speed: ADS strafe scale reduced to 0.75 (was 0.85)
• Headshot multi reduced to 1.25 (was 1.5)

R-99

• Vertical Recoil slightly increased
• Ammo capacity reduced
  • Base Ammo reduced to 17 (was 19)
  • White Mag reduced to 20 (was 21)
  • Blue Mag reduced to 23 (was 24)
  • Purple/Gold Mag reduced to 26 (was 27)

M600 Spitfire

• Added Barrels for improved stability
• ADS Recoil improved
• Hipfire spread slightly improved

Mastiff

• Blast pattern tightened

HOP UPS

Boosted Loader (Hemlok, Wingman)

Reloading when near empty will speed up reloading and overload the next magazine

• Hemlok overload ammo: 9
• Wingman overload ammo: 3

Disruptor Rounds (Alternator, Peacekeeper)

Increases shield damage

• Alternator shield damage increased by 20%
• Peacekeeper shield damage (per pellet) increased by 25%

Double Tap Trigger (EVA-8, G7 Scout)

• Removed from floor and crafting bundles

Grenades

• Frag Grenade
  • Outer Radius increased to 350 units (was 320)
  • Inner Radius increased to 125 units (was 96)
• Thermite
  • Adjusted fire VFX to better match damage area

Legends

Revenant has been reborn

• Updated class to Skirmisher (was Assault)
• New abilities (see above)

Ultimate Cooldowns

• Bangalore: Rolling Thunder to 240s (+60s)
• Catalyst: Dark Veil to 150s (+30s)
• Gibraltar: Defensive Bombardment to 180s (-90s)
• Horizon: Black Hole to 210s (+30s)
• Loba: Black Market Boutique to 150s (+30s)
  • Ultimate Accelerants grant 25% ult charge (up from 20%)
• Mad Maggie: Wrecking Ball to 120s (+30s)
• Pathfinder: Zipline Gun to 180s (+60s)
• Wraith: Dimensional Rift to 180s (-30s)

Tactical Updates

• Ballistic’s Whistler
  • Reduced delay before an overheated weapon starts cooling down to 1s (was 2s)
  • Reduced how long it takes an overheated weapon to cooldown to 8s (was 12s)
• Loba’s Burglar’s Best Friend
  • Cooldown reduced to 25s (was 30s)
• Seer’s Focus of Attention
  • Slow Duration reduced to 0.5s (was 2.5s)
  • Silence Duration reduced to 8s (was 10s)
  • Firing Speed increased to 1.4s (was 0.9s)

Maps

• Broken Moon
  • Maps added to Mixtape: Production Yard & The Core
  • Multiple rat spots removed
• Kings Canyon: multiple rat spots removed
• World’s Edge: smoothed Legend movement on road edges

World Systems

• Crafting Workbenches, Survey Beacons, Ring Consoles
  • Removed ‘exclusion radius’ that caused some POIs to get these objects more than others
  • All POIs now have an equal chance of receiving a Ring Console, Survey Beacon or Crafting Workbench

Modes

• Control
  • Capture Bonus bounty reduced ~20%
  • Capture time reduced to 10 seconds (was 20 sec)
  • Score limit reduced to 1000 (was 1250)
  • Spawn waves removed: players should spawn instantly at the location they choose including Home Base, Captured Points, and MRB (Note: MRB will still use the dropship)
  • Timed events: Airdrops, MRB, Capture Bonus should all start ~30% sooner in match-time

That's everything when it comes to the patch notes - let's break down all the main features coming in Apex Legends Season 18.

Apex Legends Season 18 trailer

Check out the official Season 18 trailer from Respawn for a quick rundown of all the main additions coming in Resurrection.

• Check out our Apex Legends Legendary loot guide

What's coming in Apex Legends Season 18?

Now Respawn has released the full details on Apex Legends Season 18, we know exactly what to expect from Resurrection.

Here are the additions coming in Apex Legends Season 18:

• Revenant Reborn (Revenant Rework)
• Charge Rifle rework
• New Ranked Season
• Mixtape modes coming to Broken Moon
• New Battle Pass
• Fresh cosmetics & skins
• Balance changes

It's worth noting that as the Revenant Reborn rework is coming in Season 18, Resurrection will not be introducing a brand new Legend on the roster. Below, we’ll go into more detail about all of the key additions coming in Season 18.

Apex Legends Season 18 Revenant Reborn

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Finally, after a mysterious Revenant easter egg popped up on Storm Point and his icon started glitching in the lobby, it's been confirmed that the Revenant Reborn rework is coming in Season 18.

Not only that, the devs have revealed all of his new abilities and while the Death Totem has been removed, Revenant Reborn's kit is more aggressive than ever. Here's a rundown of his new abilities in Resurrection:

• Passive: Assassin’s Instinct highlights nearby enemies who are low on health through walls and will do it for the whole squad if Revenant was the one who lowered their health bar. The ability also retains the improved crouch walk speed and climbing from his previous form, with an upgrade to his horizontal movement when climbing on terrain.

• Tactical: Shadow Pounce is a powerful forward leap that can be charged to go further, reaching the same distance as an Octane Launch Pad when fully wound up.

• Ultimate: Forged Shadows will build a shroud of hardened shadows that block damage but increase his upper body hitbox. These shadows and his Tactical will be refreshed instantly if he achieves any knockdowns.

It's worth noting that Revenant will be unlocked automatically for all players at the beginning of Season 18. To unlock him permanently, you'll have to "complete quests before the season ends." This is brilliant news for the community as it means everyone will get a chance to try Revenant.

• Looking to take your skills to the next level? Check out our Apex Legends character tier list

Apex Legends Season 18 Charge Rifle rework

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The Charge Rifle is being completely reworked in Apex Legends Season 18, but the devs are hoping it'll maintain its spot as the number one long-range rifle.

For starters, the Charge Rifle will now be projectile-based and will no longer have hit-scan. It's worth noting that this means the gun will now have bullet drop, so that will need to be accounted for when using it.

On top of this, the pre-beam laser is gone and the Charge Rifle no longer automatically release its projectile when you push the fire button. Instead, you’ll need to actually charge the weapon by holding down the input for it to reach its maximum power per shot.

Finally, magazines are back and the devs have reduced its ammo consumption per shot to one.

Apex Legends Season 18: Death Dynasty Collection Event

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Apex Legends Season 18 will be launching alongside the Death Dynasty Collection Event, bringing even more content to the table.

The Revenant-centric event brings the "Death Grip" Heirloom recolour for the Synthetic Nightmare, alongside double XP in Battle Royale & Mixtape modes, and of course, a set of fresh cosmetics.

In order to obtain this Heirloom, you’ll need to collect all 24 limited-time themed cosmetics in the Death Dynasty Collection Event by opening packs. For a more in-depth look at the event, check out our Apex Legends Death Dynasty hub.

Apex Legends Season 18 Broken Moon Mixtape modes

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Another key feature of Apex Legends Season 18 will be the arrival of Mixtape modes to Broken Moon.

Specifically, players will be able to jump into Gun Run & Team Deathmatch in The Core POI or Control in the Production Yard.

Apex Legends Season 18 Ranked Changes

On July 19, the Apex Legends devs released a blog sharing what they've learned so far observing Ranked in Arsenal and the changes that are coming in Season 18.

One of the most significant problems that is going to be addressed is the rank distribution, with Respawn recognising that far too many players reached the upper echelon of the ladder this season. So, here's a breakdown of all the changes you can expect in Season 18 Ranked:

• Decreased overall LP gains per match to combat the overall shift in the rank distribution.
• A ruleset that only applies to Diamond+ to properly dial in the top of the ladder.
  • Players in these ranked tiers will have increased stakes and losses and decreased rating bonuses and loss mitigations.
• A minimum elimination bonus increase based on the player's MMR and buffing elimination bonus in general.
• Increased action in the ring by adjusting ring damage.
• Adjusted ring timings to create more mid-game encounters and less pre-finale lulls.
• Updated matchmaking to better handle players that are actively challenging their MMR, for more competitively challenging matches that mirror their ranking.

A lot of these new Ranked changes are exactly what the community was looking for, but we'll have to wait until August to see how much of an impact they have on the competitive mode.

That's everything we know about Apex Legends Season 18 'Resurrection'. Be sure to check back regularly for the latest updates, as we'll be sure to share more as more details arise. For more Apex Legends guides, keep reading GGRecon.