WARDOGS backend update removes the Lonestar bonus and fixes Driver progression

On the evening of 15 October 2026, the day Season 2 went live, BULKHEAD pushed a backend update. The announcement on X comes with a 10-minute video in which the developers say they got two things wrong: the Lonestar bonus and Driver progression. The changes are server-side, so there is nothing to download.

What changed#

Lonestar bonus removed. The blue team got 5% more cash and 2.5% more XP. BULKHEAD meant to keep it for about a week, but experienced players moved to Lonestar straight away and the team started winning most matches. The new Bakurani spawns stay, and so does the "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" music tape.
Driver XP fixed. In BULKHEAD's words, Driver XP "was wrong". Their data shows the top 1% of Drivers already at 21, while the top 1% of the infantry roles sat at 12 to 15. Tanks such as the T-72B3 reached matches before other players had anything to answer them with. A temporary fix, already live, brings Driver back to the Season 1 pace. BULKHEAD hopes to raise it again in the next hotfix.
Exploit closed. Some players farmed logistics by leaving the spawn and coming back over and over, deploying around 150 crates a match. The most blatant cases, fewer than 1,000 players, get a 24-hour ban.

What it means for players#

Picking Lonestar no longer pays extra. The economy calculator no longer lists the $10,000 Lonestar win bonus that is still in the game files.
Driver levels come slower than in the first hours of the season. The progression tracker and the Driver unlock table show the unlock levels from the game client, with the T-72B3 at 20. The vehicle database lists every tank and its price. We will update them if a hotfix changes the client data.
BULKHEAD did not say whether XP earned through the exploit will be reset.
The other roles keep the faster Season 2 pace: last season's level 14 is now level 20.

Limited Mode servers#

A mid-season update planned for late October or early November adds servers without power weapons and vehicles. The name is not final. In the video, level 4 armour, the heavy tank and artillery are the examples of what gets capped, so matches play around level 2 armour. These servers replace the current low-level servers. The full list of restricted items is not out yet.