Nerfs in the details... New World patch notes

 Yesterday, I covered the general patch notes for New World's upcoming PTR (public test realm) but I missed the full patch notes posted to the forums.  There was some additional goodness (nerfs!) hiding in the details.

First a nerf to musket damage:

Ballistic Advantage Passive:
Updated passive to no longer remove damage fall off entirely, but reduce damage fall off by 50% after 50m.

 This is a needed change and I'd go so far as saying they could have gotten rid of the passive altogether.  There is no reason muskets should hit for full damage at long range -- the farther away the less damage; its that simple.  This is not a modern era sniper rifle; it is a musket!  As a long time musket fan it pains me to say the weapon is ruining the game.  OPR may be jokingly called BowPR but muskets are a far worse problem than bow.

 Another needed change (nerf!?) is coming to Shirking Fortification:

Adjusted issue where the base duration and max duration of the Shirking Fortification perk was set to the same value. Base value was meant to be lower. Reduced duration of fortify from 6s to 4s.

 This is a 33% duration reduction in most cases which is good. Shirking Fortification is a "must have" perk because of how strong it is.  This doesn't make it useless but brings it more in line with what it should be.  I'd still argue this perk should be for heavy armor only similar to how Shirking Energy is for light only, but I'll take this change over nothing changing at all.  3s instead of 4s would even be better!  Note: I am currently playing heavy with multiple Shirking Fortification pieces.