EA published the Cipher season overview on October 29, 2026, laying out the full scope of Apex Legends Season 31. The update delivers a ground-up rework of Crypto, a new loot mechanic called Strongholds that replaces Care Packages, Legend Bans in Diamond and above ranked lobbies, buffs to Revenant and Lifeline, and a new dual-wielded Wingman variant. Season 31 is set to begin in November 2026, though no exact launch date has been given.
Crypto’s drone runs on batteries now
The headline change is Crypto. His Surveillance Drone no longer operates on a cooldown; it runs on batteries, meaning the drone can be picked up and redeployed without the long wait that defined the old kit. When parked, the drone activates a new Sentry Mode that tags enemies in its line of sight for both the player and their squad. The EMP Ultimate can now be deployed with a single button press rather than the previous channeled activation.
EA described the shift as a move from passive to aggressive intel-gathering, framed in lore as a firmware upgrade from Crypto’s sister Mila. “The deadliest weapon isn’t a gun, it’s information,” the season overview reads. In practice, this means Crypto players no longer have to choose between scouting and fighting. A drone parked on a rooftop can feed constant pings while the squad pushes, and the EMP becomes a genuine engage tool rather than a setup that required seconds of vulnerable channeling.
Strongholds replace Care Packages
Care Packages are gone. In their place, Strongholds spawn on the map carrying high-tier loot: crate weapons, corrupted attachments, and EVO. The catch is that opening a Stronghold takes time and triggers an alarm audible to everyone nearby. Strongholds spawn with cover and Hardlight, giving the opening squad some protection but also creating a fixed point that third parties can collapse on.
EA called Strongholds “the evolution of Care Packages” that bring “high-tier, high-risk loot in a very loud package.” The design intent is clear: force a decision about whether the loot is worth the attention it draws. For squads that have struggled with the randomness of Care Package drops landing in open ground, Strongholds at least guarantee a defensible position. For everyone else, the alarm functions as a free ping on enemy location.
Also new to the weapon pool is the Akimbo Wingman, a dual-wielded revolver. EA has not yet detailed its damage profile or availability, but the concept is straightforward: two Wingmans, double the headshot potential, presumably double the reload anxiety.
Legend Bans hit Diamond and above
Ranked play gets its most structural change in seasons. Every player in a Diamond or higher lobby casts one vote to ban a Legend before the match starts. The more votes a Legend receives, the greater the chance they are unavailable for that game. The system activates alongside Drop Zone deployment, so any match containing Diamond-plus players uses it. The stated goal is breaking up dominant metas at the top of ranked, a problem Respawn has acknowledged through its ranked roadmap without previously committing to a mechanical solution.
Whether a vote-weighted probability actually breaks a meta or simply shifts it remains to be seen. If three Legends each receive 20 percent of the vote and one receives 40 percent, the system may only consistently remove the single most-picked pick while leaving the rest of the meta intact. Respawn has not published the exact probability curve.
Alongside the ranked change, two Legends receive buffs. Revenant gets a shorter Ultimate cooldown, a quicker Tactical, and new Upgrades: one extends his Ultimate with every knock, one silences nearby enemies after a Shadow Pounce landing, and one refreshes Shadow Pounce automatically while an enemy is marked. Lifeline receives a reduced D.O.C. cooldown, the ability to self-heal while gliding, and Upgrades for Ultimate cooldown reduction, a shield while reviving, and improved flight mobility. Both sets of changes push these Legends toward more aggressive play patterns.
The season also introduces the Cryptic Core, a Mythic Volt SMG themed around Crypto’s aesthetic. It features a hive-mind nanite visual design and a built-in PALS assistant rendered in low-res pixel art. It can be rethemed with Exotic Shards and is available as a possible drop in Cipher Seasonal Packs.
What changes for players
If you play ranked at Diamond or above, Legend Bans affect every match starting Season 31. Expect to lose access to one or two meta picks regularly and build comfort on off-meta alternatives. The system’s probability-based design means no single Legend is guaranteed banned, but high-pick-rate Legends will disappear more often than not.
Crypto mains get a fundamentally different kit. The battery system removes the old cooldown punishment, Sentry Mode provides passive value without active piloting, and the instant EMP turns the Ultimate into a usable engage tool rather than a committed setup. If you previously avoided Crypto because the drone felt like a liability, the rework addresses that directly.
Strongholds change the loot economy for everyone. Care Packages were unpredictable and often uncontested; Strongholds are fixed, loud, and defensible. Squads that like to third-party now have a reliable audio cue to work with. Squads that like to open them need to treat the alarm as a countdown.
EA also confirmed that Season 32 will bring a major map update described as “a completely reworked map with numerous new, remixed, and touched up POIs,” scheduled for early 2027. The season overview identifies this as Kings Canyon Evolved, which would mark the first full rework of the game’s original map.