- “Face–Off” Announcement - 28 September 2026
We know you’ve enjoyed the Developers vs. Content Creators format we’ve hosted so far. That’s why we’re introducing Face–Off, our new monthly event where a team of CCs will challenge the STB team in two multiplayer matches.⠀Every battle will be streamed on Slitherine’s official channel, and we’ll keep track of each side’s performance over time. Rosters may change from one event to the next, giving different Content Creators a chance to take part and keeping the matches unpredictable.⠀September’s Face-Off will take place on September 28 at 17:00 CEST on our Twitch channel, featuring the team shown above. The streams will be cast by voices you already know: Edmon, VulcanHDGaming, and N7 SHARK. ⠀Have a great weekend, commanders! — Steel Balalaika Studio
- About Tournament Support - 25 September 2026
We hope you’re as excited as we are for the official Broken Arrow × FACEIT tournament. We’re also glad to see many unofficial community tournaments appearing now that Observer Mode is available. We want all of them to succeed, and to that end, we would like to offer special rewards for the winners of these events, similar to those awarded in our official one.⠀The avatars will be offered to any tournament that we deem to be sufficiently well organized.⠀You can apply for our support by contacting [email protected]. Please indicate that your email is a support request and include detailed information about your event.⠀To be clear: receiving avatars does not make an event “official” in any way. Only events organized by FACEIT, Slitherine, and Steel Balalaika Studio may be considered as such. As for the official tournament, be sure to check the rules before it begins, as they are subj…
- BA × FACEIT Tournament — Sign Ups Now Open - 22 September 2026
Gather your team and prepare for battle! Registration for the first official Broken Arrow tournament on FACEIT has now started.The tournament begins on October 3 and will feature a 5 vs 5 double-elimination bracket, giving every team a second chance to fight their way back after their first defeat. Each stage will last one week, providing enough time to coordinate and complete your matches. Please note that the tournament is limited to a maximum of 64 teams.⠀To participate, every player must have a FACEIT account linked to their own Steam account before signing up for the tournament → https://www.faceit.com/en/championship/35b0cd91-c2d0-44e8-9686-f37241bfbec6/Broken%20Arrow#1 PLACE REWARDSSteam keys for the next Broken Arrow DLC. Broken Arrow Units Book.Custom in-game avatars created by STB.#2 PLACE REWARDSBroken Arrow Units Book.Custom in-game avatars created by STB.#3 PLACE REWARDCust…
- Hotfix on September 14 — 1.2.0.3 - 14 September 2026
Please note that today, September 14, at 12:00 CEST, the servers will be temporarily unavailable during the build deployment. Based on our current estimates, the maintenance should take up to 2 hours.Multiple network stability improvements across the board.Expanded logging for connection failures.Fixed a visual issue with units carrying “0 kg” of supplies.Fixed various localization issues.Added a new “Force Neutral” checkbox for objective zones in the editor.→⠀ Instead of being contested, the point starts shifting toward neutral when at least one unit from both teams is present.
- Hotfix on September 7th - 1.2.0.2 - 7 September 2026
This version will not require additional maintenance, and the servers will remain available after the new build is installed.⠀Expanded logging for player login failures.Fixed gateway selection for players.Fixed “SendSpawnUnit” node crashing and preventing unit spawning in custom scenarios.Fixed various localization issues.
- Hotfix on September 3 — 1.2.0.1. - 3 September 2026
Please note that today, September 3, at 12:00 CEST, the servers will be temporarily unavailable during the build deployment. Based on our current estimates, the maintenance should take up to 2 hours.⠀Revised the default deck compositions.Shturmoviki, incorrect availability limit fixed — \Spetsnaz Alpha (Stand−Off), RPG−30 count fixed — \MDP−01 Termit, S−8L delay between shots increased and helicopters removed from its target list.F−15E Strike Eagle, added an empty loadout option for the fuselage pylons.⠀T−62M, incorrect 3OF27 Cover Ignore value fixed — \PTS−4 Duplo, incorrect price fixed — \S−400 (×16 missiles), incorrect price fixed — \GENERAL BUG FIXESFixed the shell casing ejection animation for artillery.Fixed various unit, modification, and UI icons.Fixed incorrect S−24B Buran ammunition prefab.Fixed incorrect Ka−60 Kasatka flares object.Fixed incorrect KPV sound.KNOWN ISSUESMedals…
- Specialization: “Russian Guard” - 1 September 2026
Despite its extremely limited number of heavy armored units, the Russian Guard specialization makes up for this with a powerful combination of aviation and artillery, backed by specialized infantry squads and armored transports.RECONSpetsnaz Vympel — forward infantry from the FSB Special Purpose Center, 7 men. Available in three loadouts: Close−Quarters (6P62, flashbangs), Base (RMG, RPL−7), and Stand−Off (TKB−0249 Arbalet and RPG−32 Barkas, also known as Hashim).⠀Pogranichniki — forward infantry, 4 men. The cheapest and most accessible recon unit, armed with a pair of RPG−18 Mukha.⠀Snaipery FSB — counter−snipers, 4 men. Equipped with top−tier sniper rifles — OSV−96, DXL−4, SVCh (8.6 × 70 mm), and T−5000. In addition to laser designators, they also carry Smokes.⠀Chaborz M−6 — scout vehicle. Can be equipped with a PKP, Kord, GShG−7.62, AGS−40, or Kornet−M ATGM. Up to 3 seats, 130 km/h on…
- “Russian Guard” DLC Release - 31 August 2026
The long−awaited 6th specialization for the Russian faction is now available for purchase!Meet new Rosgvardiya, FSB, and Army Reserve units, as well as unique ground and air vehicles that will expand the Russian Army’s arsenal.Alongside the DLC, the game has been updated to version 1.2.0, bringing a whole range of improvements, including major performance gains and better network stability.⠀Major Update on August 31Please note that today, August 31, starting at 13:00 MSK, the servers will be temporarily unavailable during the build deployment. Based on our current estimates, the maintenance should take up to 3 hours.Added a new “Russian Guard” theme for hangar customization.Added new maps — “Daugavpils” and “Coal Mountain”.Added new scenarios — “Assault on Daugavpils”, “Daugavpils Defense”, and “Coal Mountain Defense”.Added new achievements for the Baltic Battalion and Russian Guard spe…
- New DLC Is on the Way - 28 August 2026
Greetings! We’re excited to announce that the release date for the new DLC has been officially confirmed.Update 1.2.0 will be released on August 31 at 12:00 CEST, bringing “Russian Guard” with it.The new specialization for Russia will be priced at $9.99. On September 1 at 16:00 CEST, the official Slitherine Twitch channel will also host a new showmatch between the developers and content creators.We'll see you again very soon, Commanders! — Steel Balalaika Studio
- Hotfix on August 21 — 1.1.2 - 21 August 2026
Please note that today, August 21, at 11:00 CEST, the servers will be temporarily unavailable during the build deployment. Based on our current estimates, the maintenance should take up to 2 hours.Network accessibility improvements for players in the CIS.Added the ability to view enemy unit cards with LCTRL + LMB.Fixed the match timer getting stuck.Fixed an issue preventing the game mode from starting after the deployment phase.Fixed unit spawning and the display of unit ghosts.Fixed the first spectator in a lobby being unable to be kicked.
- Statement from the Studio Founder - 20 August 2026
Link to the full video with battle footage:Hello, comrades! For those hearing from me for the first time — my name is Sergei Kuzmin. I’m one of the founders of Steel Balalaika Studio, and some of you may know me by my old nickname, Serega Samara. Some of you may have also watched my Wargame: Red Dragon videos roughly 7−10 years ago.Today, I want to talk openly and directly about the game and its future — just as things really are.⠀WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE?Looking back at the past year, we spent too long trying to make the gameplay as comfortable as possible, primarily for newcomers. To achieve that, we reduced lethality, increased TTK, slowed down aim−times, and gradually moved away from the gameplay we originally wanted to create ourselves.We now believe that this approach has run its course. Above all, player comfort should come from other areas: in−game tutorials, clear visualization of…
- Hotfix on August 11 — 1.1.1.2 - 11 August 2026
This version will not require additional maintenance, and the servers will remain available after the new build is installed.⠀Fixed issues with the user database for multiplayer.
- Hotfix on August 5 — 1.1.1.1 - 5 August 2026
Please note that today, August 5, at 13:30 CEST, the servers will be temporarily unavailable during the build deployment. Based on our current estimates, the maintenance should take up to 1 hour.⠀VDV Shturm, incorrect optic value fixed — \Assaultmen (SMAW), ammo count fixed — \CAAT Javelin, ammo count fixed — \Shturmoviki, incorrect 3D models fixed.⠀All UBGLs penetration reduced — \M250, weapon ID class changed to GPMG / Aim−time increased — \RPG−7V2 (with TBG−7V) and MK153 SMAW, reload speed increased — \MRO−Z and M74 (incendiary round for M202A1 FLASH), penetration increased — \⠀T−15 Barbaris, “Supply” ability added.M1025 HMMWV M240, incorrect “Smoke” ability removed.BTO, RPO−A penetration reduced — \⠀9K317 Buk−M2, incorrect base DMG fixed — \2S7M Malka, guided shells resupply time reduced — \9K720 Iskander−K (×4 missiles), incorrect max speed, dispersion, and resupply time fixed.Fixe…
- Gameplay Balancing, Technical Improvements, and Spectator Mode released - 30 July 2026
Major Update on July 30 — 1.1.1A new update for the main version of the game has arrived. Observer Mode, updated maps, improved performance and connection stability, a wide range of changes from the PTE branch, and, of course, many more QoL features and bug fixes.Please note that today, July 30, starting at 13:00 MSK, the servers will be temporarily unavailable during the build deployment. Based on our current estimates, the maintenance should take up to 3 hours.Added a new objective zone and spawn layout for “Chernyakhovsky District”, “Jelgava Pils”, “Bay of Winds”, and “Kaliningrad”.Added a new, significantly more advanced LOS Tool.Added the first iteration of Observer Mode.Added hotkeys to enable or disable weapons and real vision for the selected unit.Added the ability to save and share color presets for unit labels.Improved the visualization of unit paths and action queues.Added an…
- Broken Arrow: Russian Guard Specialization DLC | Announced - 22 July 2026
During July's Slitherine Next event, we revealed the upcoming Russian Guard specialization, set to arrive later this summer.This new specialization brings together elite infantry units, powerful fire support and AA systems, as well as reserve infantry and diverse armored vehicles, creating a versatile fighting force capable of handling a wide range of battlefield roles while expanding Russia's arsenal with new tactical options. We're also excited to announce our partnership with FACEIT. We'll be sharing more details soon about the first official Broken Arrow tournament and the competitive circuit.In case you missed the event, you can watch the full showcase here:YouTube stream Slitherine's Twitch channel → https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2826252968The DLC will be released very soon. In the meantime, stay tuned, more updates and new features are coming before launch.Additionally, the game w…
- The Current Situation - 13 July 2026
Following the release of version 1.1.0.3, it became clear that the update did not meet the expectations of the vast majority of the community. This is primarily because too few of the changes from the testing branch made it into the update, along with several new gameplay features that sparked widespread criticism. In its current state, we consider this update to have fallen short.⠀Our dev team has adjusted its plans and begun reviewing what made it into the update and what didn't, focusing on the changes that had already been tested on the PTE while continuing work in that direction. Put simply, we got this one wrong, and we're now working to set things right. We're preparing to release another major update before the end of this month, with more details to follow as they become available through our official channels.⠀— Steel Balalaika Team
- Hotfix on July 3 — 1.1.0.4 - 3 July 2026
Please note that deploying the update will result in a short server downtime.⠀Infantry rearm speed modifier from “Supply” ability reduced — ×0,5 → ×0,25.Resupply time for all RPGs has been reduced by half. →⠀In practice, only ATGMs and MANPADS are meaningfully affected by slower resupply from vehicles.⠀Patriot PAC−3 and Patriot PAC−3 MSE, target list now correctly includes ballistic missiles.ESTSOF, C90−CR−BK firing range fixed — 800 → 400 m.M1134 Stryker ATGM, incorrect interaction between APS and “Sneak” ability fixed.T−72B, 9M119 Invar base DMG fixed — 9 → 10.Chernye Berety, ground optics fixed — 1,4 → 1,2 km.Rangers Stinger, ground optics fixed — 1,2 → 1,4 km.MQ−1C Gray Eagle and MQ−9 Reaper, AGM−114K Hellfire 2 aim−time fixed — 2−3 → 1 sec.Shturmoviki, RPG−7V reload speed increased — 6−8 → 5−6 sec.
- Anniversary Update - 2 July 2026
ForewordFor the past 3 months the Private Test Environment (our beta branch) has been running. What was initially supposed to be a shorter 2 to 4 weeks test ended up creeping in scope, with some features needing time to be refined and players requesting balance changes in the meantime when it wasn’t our initial goal.As a result we ended up splitting the community into two groups not really playing the same game and becoming less and less compatible with each other as time passed. Some preferring PTE, others preferring the live version, all agreeing that no version is perfect but that keeping both is detrimental.The objective of this patch is to re-unify our community back into a single version. We have heard the feedback from players who actively participated in the PTE as well as those who were disappointed by it and went back to the live version.This patch is not the removal of one ve…
- End of PTE v.1 and Update Preview - 24 June 2026
We would like to thank everyone who participated in the first public test. According to our statistics, since the branch launched on April 22, more than 50k unique players have joined the test. Throughout both the closed and open phases of the PTE, we evaluated a large number of gameplay changes and design approaches, many of which proved successful and will make their way into the main version of the game.With that in mind, we have decided to conclude the current testing iteration — access to the branch will be revoked on June 26.That said, the PTE is far from over. Once a new batch of changes is ready, we will prepare another testing iteration. For now, our focus shifts to finalizing the upcoming update for the main version of the game, for which the following set of changes has already been approved:GROUND UNITSTo begin with, a new Airborne Recce unit will be added to the game, as we…
- Devblog 2.0 on June 12 — Observer Mode - 12 June 2026
Devblog 2.0 on June 12 — Observer ModeFor a long time, one of the community's most requested features has been spectator functionality. There are many occasions when someone needs to be present in a match without actively participating, from stream casting to tournament coverage. Today, we'd like to take a closer look at the upcoming “Observer” mode, which is currently in the final stages of development.Previously, players who wanted to spectate had to either join one of the teams as an AFK teammate or rely on other solutions such as game recordings or restreaming through Discord. With the new system, the functionality of the Waiting List in custom lobbies has been significantly improved. While it retains its original purpose, lobby hosts will now have an additional option — assigning a waiting player as a spectator for the upcoming match.The spectator assignment system has also been de…
