Do The Division's new Threat/Aggro changes in patch 1.4 actually work?
Threat and Aggro mechanics have seen big changes in The Division's PTS. Let's take a look at the improvements.
The Division's 1.4 patch is currently available for PC players to test on the public test server (PTS). 1.4 is a substantial updates, and features many changes to core mechanics.
Among the changes is a rework of the Threat system and how players can manage enemy aggro. This is controlled by skills that generate and reduce threat, thus enemy aggro. In the video above, Alex explores whether or not enemies will respond to your equipped skills.
Alex created a new character with a gear score of 229, using only high-end gear. To more accurately test out skills, no weapon mods were used.
You can use the Ballistic Shield skill to generate threat, along with the Mobile Cover skill and the extension mod. To reduce threat, you can equip the Smart Cover skill with the Concealment mod, Pulse with the Scrambler mod, or Mobile Cover with the Countermeasure mod.
The idea here is to "juggle aggro", which means switching between threat generation and reduction skills to see if enemies will react. As you're about to see, Alex and a buddy of his manage to juggle aggro pretty well, by equipping and removing relevant skills.
The way it works, however, is a bit different from what you may be used to from other MMOs. Watch the video to find out.