Rainbow Six Siege keeps growing, and we know more about its sixth year of content than we have about any year prior.
Ubisoft has finally revealed what's coming with Y6S4, named Operation High Calibre, which introduces a new defender named Thorn, some big UI changes, an Outback map rework, and plenty more. Most of which you can read about extensively in the official Rainbow Six Siege Patch Notes.
For now, though, let's give you an overview of what to expect from Operation High Calibre.
Latest News
30 November 2021 -
Rainbow Six Siege Y6S4 High Calibre is releasing today! Downtime for maintenance will begin later today and as with any update, a small period of maintenance is required for each platform before the new season can begin. The server downtime is planned to last one hour, however, as with any server downtime, this could vary.
Writing on Twitter the team told fans that the deployment schedule will start with PC players, then PS4/PS5 owners and finally Xbox users.
PC server downtime begins at 9:00 AM ET / 13:00 UTC. For those in the UK that means a 1pm GMT. Xbox server downtime begins at 10:00 AM ET / 15:00 UTC. That means UK based players will go offline at 2pm GMT. PS4/PS5 server downtime starts at 11:00 AM EDT / 16:00 UTC. Finally that means Xbox players will go offline at 3pm GMT.
HOW BIG IS THE RAINBOW SIX SIEGE Y6S4 UPDATE?
Ubisoft has confirmed that the Rainbow Six Siege Y6S4 update and patch will be quite a small one. Approximate files sizes can be seen below:
APPROXIMATE Y6S4 PATCH SIZES
- PC - Steam: 4.80 GB, Uplay: 5.36 GB
- PS4 - 4.38 GB
- PS5 - 4.10 GB
- Xbox One - 4.08 GB
- Xbox Series X - 4.31 GB
29 November 2021 -
We're now just over 24 hours away from the launch of Rainbow Six Siege High Calibre. In the meantime, make sure to take a look at the games most recent patch notes, as the devs recently shared some more details on the Y6S4 update.
26 November 2021 -
There's a fantastic new Rainbow Six Siege High Calibre Story Trailer available to view on YouTube which helps give a bit more backstory to new Y6S4 Operator Thorn. Give it a watch, we've no doubt you'll enjoy watching Thorn having a punching match with Sledge one-on-one in a training exercise.
Oh, and it was also revealed that High Calibre starts on Tuesday 30th November with a brand new Battle Pass to instantly unlock Thorn.
23 November 2021 -
Rainbow Six Siege appears to have confirmed the release date for Y6S4 Operation High Calibre and the new operator, Thorn. A new tweet from Siege's official account confirmed the news, writing:
"Thorn will be there on November 30 and she's bringing with her the deadly Razorbloom Shell gadget. Unlock her Day 1 along with new weapon skins, charms, and so much more in the High Calibre Battle Pass."
16 October 2021 -
Whilst we have you, why not check out what is going on at Siege.gg, our friendly Siege esports focussed friends. Most recently Shikhar "InfianEwok" Gupta & Hunter "Diamondback" Cooke went live for the weekly SiegeGG Live show to discuss the Sweden Major, won by FaZe Clan. Follow the link and check it out!
6 October 2021 -
We've added some more details (further down) on Thorn's new gadgets, as shared by dataminer @benjaminstrike on Twitter.
5 October 2021 -
The next major update is reportedly named "Operation High Caliber" as per Rainbow Six Siege Dataminer @Zer0Bytes0 on Twitter.
Allegedly the next update will introduce a new Irish defender named Thorn alongside the already confirmed map rework to Outback, which was first introduced with Operation Burnt Horizon back in Feb 2019.
23 July 2021 -
Oops, it looks as though Ubisoft may have jumped the gun as part of the recent AMA. Twitter user BikiniBodhi screenshotted and annotated a chunk of text that suggests the next Operator, for Year 6 Season 4, will be named Thorn.
23 July 2021 -
According to a Reddit AMA, Ubisoft is developing a shooting range to allow players to practice recoil patterns and bullet penetration.
While the feature has no release date, it could potentially arrive alongside Y6S3 or Y6S4. The same AMA also saw the game's creative director confirm that there are no plans for a sequel to Siege.
Y6S4 Release Date
Operation High Calibre went live on Siege's Technical Test Server on November 9.
A full release for the new Y6S4 operation hasn't been confirmed as of yet, but it's expected that the testing period will last around three weeks. Over the course of these testing weeks expect to see some potential reworks or fixes for the new operation.
Following the testing period, we should see the new update shipped to live servers at some point in late November or early December.
New Operator - Thorn
We've had a new attacker, Flores, and a new defender, Thunderbird, so far this year, and it sounds like Y6S3 will add another attacker. Our new defender is called Thorn. Here's everything you need to know about the latest operator.
Thorn Weapon Loadout
PRIMARY WEAPON -
- UZK50Gi - Submachine Gun
- M870 - pump-action shotguns
SECONDARY WEAPON -
- 1911 TACOPS - Handgun
- C75 Auto - Handgun
Thorn's Gadget
- Barbed Wire x2
- Deployable Shield x1
Thorn Unique Abilities - Razorbloom Shell
The Razorbloom Shell sticks to a surface after it's thrown by Thorn. Shortly after detecting a nearby opponent, it automatically propels a set of sharp blades in all directions, delivering lethal damage.
Outback Map Rework
Border and Favela have received big reworks so far in Year 6, while Y6S3 will rework multiple maps. Here's what we know about the Outback Map Rework.
Outback has received a variety of updates to improve balancing and player comfort. Both the main building and its exterior have been modified to allow Attackers to create and execute more effective strategies. As well, new exterior soft walls have been added to the building, and some areas have been refurbished and cleaned up to remove junk and provide better lines of sight and balance.
A few new locations have been added to the map:
- 1F Convenience Store, 1F Compressor Room, 1F Gear Store, and 1F Beer Fridge have been combined into 1F Bike Repair and 1F Mechanic Shop.
- 2F Office Supply is larger and has an exterior soft wall.
- 1F Restaurant has been split into two rooms: 1F Restaurant and 1F Shark.
- 2F Covered Terrace is now an interior area that connects 2F Mezzanine and 2F Piano Room. The 2F Piano Room stairs have been removed.
Bomb sites have been moved:
- The bombsites that were previously in 2F Dorms and 2F Laundry have been moved to 2F Laundry and 2F Piano Room.
Operators Price Decrease
As with every season, High Calibre brings a price decrease for specific Operators. Nomad and Kaid are dropping to 10,000 Renown or 240 R6 Credits, Kali and Wamai are changing to 15,000 Renown or 360 R6 Credits, and Aruni will now cost 20,000 Renown or 480 R6 Credits. Take this opportunity to add them to your roster and maybe you’ll find your new main!