SAND: Raiders of Sophie – Update 8 Kicks Off Gear-Score Matchmaking Beta

Hologryph just shipped the biggest overhaul SAND: Raiders of Sophie has seen so far with Update 8: gear-based matchmaking enters beta, alongside three new armor sets, three new shell types, and a full rework of the trampler reactors.
Players who kept getting steamrolled by fully-kitted crews should now run into wildly different gear tiers less often, even though the system itself is clearly labeled as a work in progress.

Matchmaking now factors in a gear score built from the trampler compartments you've installed and the gear loaded into your outfitting. Players who used to queue with basic gear against fully-decked crews should now get matched against something closer to their own weight class, at least in theory.

• If the matchmaker can't find enough players at your gear level, it automatically widens the search.
• The system is explicitly running as a beta. Hologryph says further tuning is coming based on community feedback and backend data.
• Queue times may get a bit longer as a result.
• The reassuring part: past a certain point, the matchmaker throws everyone into the general pool regardless of gear score, so even during low-population hours you're still guaranteed a match eventually.

Three New Armor Sets and Fresh Ammo Types for Your Trampler

All three new trampler armor sets unlock through the Tech Tree, no special boss loot or grind gate involved. On top of that, three new shell types change how combat actually plays out:

• 70mm Armor-Piercing/Shrapnel Shell: Fires as a single projectile, penetrates armor, and bursts into shrapnel on the other side.
• 80mm Subcaliber Shell: 100 percent penetration chance, can punch through multiple compartments in a row.
• 40mm Low Heat-Optimized Shell: Cuts autocannon overheat buildup by 50 percent.

Four Shell Hit Types, Explained

The patch notes finally clear up how shell impacts actually resolve:

• Hit: The shell connects, deals damage, and is destroyed.
• Ricochet: Deals 20 percent damage, then deflects off in another direction and can still land its full damage if it hits something else on the way.
• Penetrate: Deals 50 percent damage to the compartment it hits and keeps flying until it hits something else, meaning a single shot can theoretically deal up to 150 percent of its listed damage.
• Clean Through: Passes cleanly through an already-destroyed compartment without dealing damage again. The mechanic always existed, but there's now a notification so it's less confusing when it happens.

Reactor Rework: More HP, But a Real Weak Spot Now

Trampler reactors now visibly show how much health they've got left, glowing redder the more damage they take. On top of that, every reactor got a flat 50 percent HP increase across the board, making tramplers noticeably tankier overall.

Shooting the back of the reactor now deals critical damage, a new tactical weak spot attackers can actually aim for on purpose. Reactor smoke VFX also now react to your gear, boost state, and current health.

Anti-Cheat Fixes and a Reworked Repair Kit

Several anti-cheat false positives are fixed. Grabbing a ladder or starting a parkour jump while approaching the island used to wrongly flag "suspicious activity," and so did firing a turret.

• The Repair Kit can now be reloaded instead of getting destroyed after a full charge is used up. Ironclads drop fuel for it, and an empty Repair Kit can now be bought directly in Storage.
• Bringing a Repair Kit into an expedition means it starts with zero fuel. Extract it, and any remaining fuel gets automatically unloaded separately.
• "The Great Silence" now counts as a large item and no longer fits in your regular character inventory.
• Several duplication exploits are patched, along with a bug that let cheaters remotely steal items out of a box you were holding, and an exploit that let default ammo get swapped into special ammo types.
• Other fixes touch trampler leg positioning after rejoining a session, trampler-on-trampler collision, and syncing Upior positions between client and server.

The Trampler Editor also got refactored to support the new armor types, on top of additional VFX polish and an updated energy rod model.

Known Issues (Selected)

• The reactor sometimes won't power on while hip-firing a weapon.
• You can't enter an expedition if the invite was accepted from behind the tutorial popup.
• Items occasionally render inside your character model or float around you.
• You're briefly invulnerable to melee damage while interacting with turrets or the steering wheel.
• Bullets can pass through your character on a speed-boosted trampler.
• Shotguns sometimes deal no damage at close range.
• 3440×1440 resolution isn't currently supported.

Hologryph on Pre-Teaming and Cheaters

Studio Hologryph also addresses the growing number of reports about pre-teaming and queue-sniping, players deliberately gaming matchmaking to land on smaller-crew servers with their friends. The studio's stance is blunt: it's against the rules and can get your account banned.

• New admins are handling bans and reports faster and more consistently.
• A code of conduct is in the works that players will need to accept before playing, with a specific focus on third-party cheats and pre-teaming.
• Gear Based Matchmaking is framed as the first step against queue-sniping, alongside ideas like queue delays and active checks for players who repeatedly land on the same server together.
• An expanded in-game admin system for real-time reporting is in early development.
• Bans against pre-teamers are now issued daily instead of in large, infrequent waves.

Quick FAQ on Update 8

Is Gear Based Matchmaking final?
No. Hologryph explicitly calls it a beta and says more tuning is coming based on community feedback and backend data.

Will matchmaking take noticeably longer now?
A bit, according to Update 8 queue times may stretch slightly. You're still guaranteed a match though, since the matchmaker eventually pulls everyone into the general pool regardless of gear score.

How do I unlock the new armor sets?
All three new trampler armor sets come through the Tech Tree, no special boss loot or hidden requirement needed.

What's your take on the new Gear-Score matchmaking? Let us know in the comments!