Fallout 76 patch notes: the 8 biggest changes

Fallout 76 got another patch on PC today (it’s coming to consoles next week), and it’s another round of fixes and quality-of-life changes for Bethesda Softworks’ beleaguered RPG, and may seem incremental to most players. But you gotta start somewhere, and a lot of this stuff does shore up some of the game’s sloppier details and minor disappointments.

Here’s a list of the top eight things I saw in this rather lengthy list of patch notes that affect gameplay in or enjoyment of Fallout 76. The full list, of course, makes broad promises of client stability and in-game performance improvements. If so, those will help the game more than anything. Fallout 76 players uniquely know the helpless feeling of hearing the sound of all your gear dropping, knowing a disconnect is coming next.

The lever action rifle reloading bug is no more

For most folks, this was a pain in the ass, as it meant a reload meant loading all five rounds into the magazine regardless of how many were actually left in it. However, those with the legendary quad-capacity lever action rifle, which carries 20 rounds, will see quite the nerf. They had been reloading 20 rounds for the price of five thanks to this bug. Now they’re gonna reload correctly — including all 20 if they’re empty.

Bobby pins now no longer weigh a tenth of a pound

Er, 0.1 WT. (But if a 40-pound barbell is 40 WT ...) Anyway, bobby pins, used for lockpicking, are a never-throw-it-away commodity. Problem is, after they start piling up, users noticed they might be carrying an extra 10 WT thanks to 100 pins. Inside the already cramped Stash, their mass had an even more outsize effect. Now they’re 0.001 weight.

Ballistic fiber’s level requirement has been increased

When crafting armor, Ballistic fiber is now required only for armor at level 25 or above. It had been required at level 20. So this is a break for mid-level crafters but really, you should have been hoarding and bulking that stuff all along.

Lower repair costs for weapons and armor

As to that, “overall repair costs have been lowered for both weapons and armor.” Even with perk cards offering cheaper repair for certain types, it would be frustrating to see a weapon need 3 adhesive to get it back in top condition, making it feel as though you were crafting a new weapon. This gets things back in line. Further down the patch notes, Bethesda Game Studios says that the components needed to repair mid- to high-level weapons and armor have been trimmed by up to 20 percent.

Glowing Ones no longer hand out excess XP

Glowing Ones had been giving out erroneously large amounts of XP. Some players had been farming them within Nuke Zones to speed their leveling. That exploit is now over.

Power Armor headlights are brighter

They could be infuriatingly dim — much less than the standard Pip-Boy light — when outdoor conditions were both dark and inclement (or during a radiation storm).

Fusion cores’ recharge exploit is gone

Fusion cores once replenished to a full charge upon quitting and joining another game world. Wouldn’t you know, right as I found out about this, it’s over.

Bulk acid combines more acid

And this may matter only to me, but Bulk Acid now combines 15 acid instead of 10 acid, presumably for the same weight in the end, which will help with Stash management. (Acid is a base component of always-necessary gunpowder).