Rust's new Bandit Town update adds more NPCs and wipes the servers

It's a scary day for Darwinist survival sandbox shooter Rust. For the first time in a long while, everyone's starting out fresh. Today's major new update - introducing a whole new NPC-run town - is accompanied by a universal server wipe. Clans are forced to reform, projects to be rebuilt, and reputations to be restored. It's anarchy out there, and I don't think Rust's players would have it any other way. You can check out the extensive patch notes here, although I'll be breaking down the key points below.

While the scientist compound added back in May was a heavily enforced no-weapon zone, Bandit Town is a little looser in its rules. You're allowed to keep your guns (outside of the casino, at least) in this swampy little enclave, but they still look down on violence. If you go shooting up the place, you'll probably be killed by the armoured bandit NPC guards, although they're obviously less of a threat than the automated turrets you'd find in the compound. The guards don't give a crap about what you do outside, though, so feel free to stumble inside if you're a wanted man elsewhere.

Bandit Town is a somewhat more capitalist place, too. NPC-run shops sell otherwise-uncraftable 'black market' weapons, and you can trade in some items for scrap. As mentioned, there's a casino, because when everyone's got money (or scrap) to spare, why shouldn't you go risking it on ridiculous games of chance? You can bet money on a basic Roulette game in the hopes of making a bit more cash, but the devs are pretty honest that the odds are stacked in the house's favour. They're also contemplating adding Poker, knowing full well the gunfights that'll lead to.

AI in general has been given a bit of a polish-up. NPCs are generally less buggy, pick targets in combat better, and are less likely to fall through the ground. There's also some new scientist-faction guards out in the Military Tunnels zone. Given how well equipped they are, you probably won't want to go charging in there with little more than a prayer and a sharp stick. Animals should behave a little better as well, with their AI now nudging them towards preferred environments, rather than just letting them roam blindly.

Other changes include spawn points for the RHIB boat. They're rare (only a handful per server), but they're the fastest, safest way to get around by water. A coveted prize that someone will probably want to take from you. There's a new compound bow to craft, which allows you to charge up a single powerful shot at the cost of having to stand still while drawing it. There's a few more changes, but you'll probably just want to explore and see what's changed. If not, rub your eyes all over the patch notes here, then jump into the freshly rebooted servers. The murder's great.