Rainbow Six Siege Y11S1.2 Designer's Notes (13th April 2026)

In the Y11S1.2 Designer’s Notes, we take a deeper look at the upcoming balancing update, with insights into each major change.

[PC] WIN DELTA VS. PRESENCE

[CONSOLE] WIN DELTA VS. PRESENCE

[PC] TOP OPERATOR BANS

[CONSOLE] TOP OPERATOR BANS

We’re updating Rauora’s launcher to strengthen her presence as a zone control. Increasing the launcher’s range and providing all charges at the start of the round give Rauora more flexibility, letting her establish fortified zones without relying on cooldowns. These adjustments support more deliberate planning, especially on larger or more open sites where her previous limitations reduced her influence.
On the panel side, we’ve focused on sharpening the contrast between ally and enemy interactions. Panels now open and close more quickly for attackers, improving flow and responsiveness during rotations. At the same time, defenders face significantly longer interaction times, reinforcing Rauora’s delaying power and raising the risk of pushing through her utility.

D.O.M. PANEL LAUNCHER

Jackal gains improved vertical tracking potential. By allowing footprints to be detected from lower floors when the ceiling is opened, he becomes more consistent in multi-level engagements and gains new ways to pressure roamers.

We’re giving Smoke a Deployable Shield to offer more flexibility in his site setups and provide additional defensive utility. This should enhance his ability to delay pushes and create stronger hold positions.

These are small adjustments that don’t aim to alter an operator’s overall power level or flexibility. Instead, they focus on polishing gameplay details, improving consistency, and enhancing quality-of-life without shifting the meta. Our goal is to maintain a steady stream of these refinements alongside major updates, helping the game evolve and improve at a constant pace.

Clash receives a significant boost to her crowd control uptime to compensate for the mobility lost at the start of the season. This lets her maintain pressure for longer and better support her team when stalling enemy advances.

Frost’s traps become more punishing, giving defenders a slightly longer window to capitalize on a caught attacker. This also increases the tension for trapped players attempting to reposition or get revived.

This adjustment enhances Glaz’s ability to move while keeping his sight equipped.

The deployment delay adjustment encourages more deliberate usage of Grim’s gadget and slightly reduces the effectiveness, as it will be easier to destroy by shooting at it before the swarm of bots is created.

Thunderbird’s healing output is being strengthened to increase her impact in sustained defensive holds.

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