The Santa Blanca cartel is a well-oiled machine. It takes several parts moving together in harmony to maintain the power it holds over Bolivia. Our narrative team has done an amazing job giving personality to the people behind these moving parts. Sam Strachman, our Narrative Director, had this to say about the process:

“We looked at the hierarchy of the cartel, all the roles that needed to be filled, all the jobs, and we created personalities around each of these jobs. “

Learn more about the Santa Blanca cartel, and the process behind bringing it to life in the video below.

VIDEO

For more intel on Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, please keep an eye on GhostRecon.com and be sure to visit our official forums and subreddit.

The Santa Blanca cartel is a well-oiled machine. It takes several parts moving together in harmony to maintain the power it holds over Bolivia. Our narrative team has done an amazing job giving personality to the people behind these moving parts. Sam Strachman, our Narrative Director, had this to say about the process:

“We looked at the hierarchy of the cartel, all the roles that needed to be filled, all the jobs, and we created personalities around each of these jobs. “

Learn more about the Santa Blanca cartel, and the process behind bringing it to life in the video below.

VIDEO

For more intel on Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, please keep an eye on GhostRecon.com and be sure to visit our official forums and subreddit.

We are thrilled to announce that the writing duo of New York Times bestselling authors Don Winslow and Shane Salerno have teamed up with us to create the cartel-themed novel for Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands. Winslow is the award-winning and #1 internationally bestselling author of The Cartel, The Power of the Dog and Savages. Salerno is one of the most sought-after writers in the film industry. He is currently working with Oscar-winning filmmaker James Cameron on four separate sequels to Avatar, the highest grossing film of all time, and writing and producing The Cartel (an adaptation of Don Winslow’s novel) for master filmmaker Ridley Scott. He also co-wrote the film Savages with Don Winslow and the three-time Oscar-winner Oliver Stone, as well as the film Armageddon for director Michael Bay.

“I’ve written about drug cartels for more than twenty years and together with my writing partner Shane Salerno have brought that knowledge to the story, scenes, characters and dialogue found in Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands,” Winslow said.

“I’ve been a Tom Clancy fan ever since I first read The Hunt For Red October.” Salerno declared. "It was a real thrill to work on this game with the team at Ubisoft, who are incredibly passionate and committed to delivering the best gaming experience possible for fans.” Salerno said.

Winslow and Salerno offered their knowledge of the international drug trade and their skills in storytelling to create an authentic drug-cartel narrative that will unfold for players when Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands launches on March 7, 2017.

“Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands presents a first for the series with our massive open world that can be explored freely. With this amount of freedom, we wanted to bring in top talent to create a believable cartel organization and story. As fans of their work, we knew that Don Winslow and Shane Salerno would be the perfect team to help us keep the game rooted in reality while keeping the game’s core entertainment experience,” said Nouredine Abboud, Senior Producer of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands.

We were able to catch up with Don and learn about his experience with cartels, as well as his first experience writing for a video game. You can see the video of that interview below.

VIDEO

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands will be available on March 7, 2017, for PlayStation®4 system, Xbox One, and PC.

For more intel on Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, please keep an eye on ghostrecon.com and be sure to visit our official forums and subreddit.

We are thrilled to announce that the writing duo of New York Times bestselling authors Don Winslow and Shane Salerno have teamed up with us to create the cartel-themed novel for Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands. Winslow is the award-winning and #1 internationally bestselling author of The Cartel, The Power of the Dog and Savages. Salerno is one of the most sought-after writers in the film industry. He is currently working with Oscar-winning filmmaker James Cameron on four separate sequels to Avatar, the highest grossing film of all time, and writing and producing The Cartel (an adaptation of Don Winslow’s novel) for master filmmaker Ridley Scott. He also co-wrote the film Savages with Don Winslow and the three-time Oscar-winner Oliver Stone, as well as the film Armageddon for director Michael Bay.

“I’ve written about drug cartels for more than twenty years and together with my writing partner Shane Salerno have brought that knowledge to the story, scenes, characters and dialogue found in Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands,” Winslow said.

“I’ve been a Tom Clancy fan ever since I first read The Hunt For Red October.” Salerno declared. "It was a real thrill to work on this game with the team at Ubisoft, who are incredibly passionate and committed to delivering the best gaming experience possible for fans.” Salerno said.

Winslow and Salerno offered their knowledge of the international drug trade and their skills in storytelling to create an authentic drug-cartel narrative that will unfold for players when Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands launches on March 7, 2017.

“Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands presents a first for the series with our massive open world that can be explored freely. With this amount of freedom, we wanted to bring in top talent to create a believable cartel organization and story. As fans of their work, we knew that Don Winslow and Shane Salerno would be the perfect team to help us keep the game rooted in reality while keeping the game’s core entertainment experience,” said Nouredine Abboud, Senior Producer of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands.

We were able to catch up with Don and learn about his experience with cartels, as well as his first experience writing for a video game. You can see the video of that interview below.

VIDEO

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands will be available on March 7, 2017, for PlayStation®4 system, Xbox One, and PC.

For more intel on Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, please keep an eye on ghostrecon.com and be sure to visit our official forums and subreddit.

Hello Ghosts,

We would like to announce the patch notes for our Title Update 2, available on PC on March 22nd and PS4 and Xbox One on March 23rd during morning UTC. We will have a small maintenance in order to update our servers.

The development team focused on improving all areas of the game, from gameplay content to connectivity and stability tweaks. The patch size will be around 3 GB on consoles and up to 5 GB on PC, depending on your client, and an in-game notification will let you know when it’s available. Players in game will need to reboot the game to apply the patch. Please remember that in order to play co-op, all the players will need to have the same version of the game.

In addition to that, following the community feedback we received, we have implemented the option to turn off the radios in the game by default, as well as the option to choose the type of vehicle you want to spawn when using the “Drop Vehicle” rebel skill. Now you should have even more tactical options to plan and execute your missions.

Also, for those of you who love playing with the most hardcore settings and all your HUD elements turned off, we have implemented the option to choose which type intel you want to collect when interacting with files or NPCs. This way the gameplay flow won’t be interrupted and you will be able to discover new missions, skills, and weapons seamlessly, even with all the visual tips turned off.

You can find some PC specific fixes and improvements at the end of the notes. On top of other fixes, the Home, End, Insert, Delete, Page Up, and Page Down keys can now be remapped--making life easier for some players, especially the left-handed ones.

Thanks for your suggestions, Ghosts!

MISSIONS/NARRATION

We received reports of some players having issues with certain missions in the game. After investigating the causes, we have implemented fixes so they can now have a smooth experience. We also fixed an XP farming exploit related to the “Rebellion Rising” mission, which created interference with the co-op experience.

- Adjusted various missions markers & GPS pathfinding.
- The following missions are now unlocked correctly for players who reported issues: 

• Gold Rush
• Sueño’s proposition
• Sandoval Dead body
• El Cerebro

- Adjusted various mission triggers in order to smoothen the player's progress and game experience.
- Fixed situations where dialogue and barks would not trigger correctly.
- The following missions are now replayable: 

• El Cerebro 
• Boss missions 
• Sandoval confession 
• Western cocaine cache

- Fixed infinite XP farming exploit on "Rebellion Rising" mission.
- NPCs now exit the vehicle properly in "Stop the Convoy" missions

USER INTERFACE

We implemented various fixes and tweaks related to trophy and weapon packs unlocking. We also fixed an issue related to the Charactersmith model not being positioned correctly. On top of that, players who love to play with the HUD completely hidden will now be able to select the type of intel they want to collect when they interact with files or NPCs.


- Players can now select what intel they want to collect, even with all the HUD options turned off.
- Trophy requirements adjustments: 

• The Champion 
• Eagle-Eyed 
• With a Pistol!

- Fixed some weapon packs not unlocking properly:

• Underbarrels & Rails Pack

- Fixed Character hiding behind menus in certain situations.
- HUD now updates when XP boosters are activated. 

CO-OP

We detected some replication issues during cooperative sessions between players. This patch should provide a more consistent experience between Ghosts sharing the same game session.


- Corrected various replication issues, such as:

• Paint jobs & attachments not showing correctly in the lobby 
• Rebel Radio explosion not synchronizing 
• Sniper scope glare effect not synchronizing 
• Players seen running beside VHC/bike they should be sitting in 
• Suppressor not synchronizing when removed from a vehicle’s shooting position 
• Burning corpses from systemic events 
• Explosion not replicating if the distance is too high

- The following achievements should now be awarded to all the players in the two missions below:

• A Better Mousetrap 
• The Cluster Bomber

- Fixed a bug where hits would register with a 0.5-second lag.
- Fixed kick/ban vote notifications.
- Fixed game freezes in 4-player sessions. 

CONNECTIVITY

We detected and fixed some issues that were causing some player disconnections. The experience should be more solid after the patch.

- Fixed various disconnection bugs.
- Fixed a bug where the user could not reconnect to a previous session.
- Fixed errors when looking for public sessions.
GAMEPLAY
Added fixes and improvements for gameplay-related issues and requests that some players reported.

Players can now select the vehicle they want to spawn when using the "Drop Vehicle" rebel skill.

- Fixed XP awarded when killing an enemy undetected.
- Fixed a bug where sometimes vehicle seats could stay booked after NPC exiting.
- Fixed a bug where the player would take cover too far from certain props.
- Players can no longer teleport to safe houses while being hunted.
- The Medical Helicopter will now spawn correctly in the Tabacal area side-mission.
- Fixed bikes not slowing down in water.
- Fixed flash grenades not stopping detection.
- Fixed an occasional instant game-over when falling off a dirt bike.
- Fixed a bug where sometimes the player could not tag enemies after hot joining.
- Adjusted damage caused by explosives in Arcade difficulty.
- Fixed an issue where sometimes pilots didn’t die after AI helicopter crash.
- Fixed a situation where sometimes vehicles disappeared when driving at high speeds.
AUDIO
We implemented some fixes and improvements related to some audio aspects of the game, as well as the option to mute radios for those players who requested it.

- Added a feature allowing the player to mute every radio in-game.
- Fixed Car radio not functioning in various situations.
- Amplified the radio voice effects to avoid player confusing El Sueño’s voice on the radio and the one of the Ghosts.
- Introduction video mix enhanced.

GRAPHICS

We focused on fixing various issues in order to provide a solid experience. For stability and performance improvements, see the section below.

- Fixed player models appearing with twisted limbs if they were killed in certain positions.
- Fixed low-resolution textures appearing while aiming/driving.
- Fixed camera clipping through some textures & props.
- Fixed missing textures in certain environments.
- Fixed drone showing blur effect on objects.
- Fixed the textures flickering when using parachute or helicopter.

STABILITY

- Fixed various crashes.
- Fixed an occasional infinite loading screen after validating settings at first launch.
WORLD
- Fixed various world building glitches.
- Fixed some world parts where the player could get stuck.
PC SPECIFIC IMPROVEMENTS
Graphics

- Added the SMAA anti-aliasing mode.
- Added a notification for anti-aliasing recommendations in multi GPU setups.
- Addressed a series of issues causing flickering in multi GPU setups.
- Fixed an issue with HUD scaling in 4 monitor multi display setups.

User experience & interface

- Added support to bind Home, End, Insert, Delete, Page Up and Page Down keys.
- Added several menu navigation improvements with mouse and keyboard.
- Added a notification if the video driver is outdated.
- Added a notification when the system is low on free RAM and starts writing to the virtual memory.
- Fixed a HUD issue in co-op for users who have already completed the selected mission.
- Fixed the Pitch icon display when using mouse to steer helicopters.

Co-op

- Fixed an issue with co-op sharing of systemic activities.
- Fixed the use of Push to Talk in the co-op lobby.

Controls

- Changed the Enable Controller default option to Only Gamepads.
- Addressed a number of issues with the Steam Controller icons and functionality.

Performance

- Addressed a series of random crashes encountered by users.
- Fixed an issue causing framerate drops when the saving icon was being displayed.
- Fixed an issue where the menu was lagging while running the game on a Hard Disk Drive.
- Solved an issue with VRAM bar update when lowering Resolution scaling.

Misc

- Fixed a bug on the Medication Air Transport mission in Tabacal.
- Fixed an issue with character poses in Ansel.
- Solved a controls issue where one couldn’t sprint from crouch or prone position.

We would like to thank all the players for their commitment and passion. The development team will continue their support for Ghost Recon Wildlands and we will bring you more updates and exciting features in the future!

Hello Ghosts,

We would like to announce the patch notes for our Title Update 2, available on PC on March 22nd and PS4 and Xbox One on March 23rd during morning UTC. We will have a small maintenance in order to update our servers.

The development team focused on improving all areas of the game, from gameplay content to connectivity and stability tweaks. The patch size will be around 3 GB on consoles and up to 5 GB on PC, depending on your client, and an in-game notification will let you know when it’s available. Players in game will need to reboot the game to apply the patch. Please remember that in order to play co-op, all the players will need to have the same version of the game.

In addition to that, following the community feedback we received, we have implemented the option to turn off the radios in the game by default, as well as the option to choose the type of vehicle you want to spawn when using the “Drop Vehicle” rebel skill. Now you should have even more tactical options to plan and execute your missions.

Also, for those of you who love playing with the most hardcore settings and all your HUD elements turned off, we have implemented the option to choose which type intel you want to collect when interacting with files or NPCs. This way the gameplay flow won’t be interrupted and you will be able to discover new missions, skills, and weapons seamlessly, even with all the visual tips turned off.

You can find some PC specific fixes and improvements at the end of the notes. On top of other fixes, the Home, End, Insert, Delete, Page Up, and Page Down keys can now be remapped--making life easier for some players, especially the left-handed ones.

Thanks for your suggestions, Ghosts!

MISSIONS/NARRATION

We received reports of some players having issues with certain missions in the game. After investigating the causes, we have implemented fixes so they can now have a smooth experience. We also fixed an XP farming exploit related to the “Rebellion Rising” mission, which created interference with the co-op experience.

- Adjusted various missions markers & GPS pathfinding.
- The following missions are now unlocked correctly for players who reported issues: 

• Gold Rush
• Sueño’s proposition
• Sandoval Dead body
• El Cerebro

- Adjusted various mission triggers in order to smoothen the player's progress and game experience.
- Fixed situations where dialogue and barks would not trigger correctly.
- The following missions are now replayable: 

• El Cerebro 
• Boss missions 
• Sandoval confession 
• Western cocaine cache

- Fixed infinite XP farming exploit on "Rebellion Rising" mission.
- NPCs now exit the vehicle properly in "Stop the Convoy" missions

USER INTERFACE

We implemented various fixes and tweaks related to trophy and weapon packs unlocking. We also fixed an issue related to the Charactersmith model not being positioned correctly. On top of that, players who love to play with the HUD completely hidden will now be able to select the type of intel they want to collect when they interact with files or NPCs.


- Players can now select what intel they want to collect, even with all the HUD options turned off.
- Trophy requirements adjustments: 

• The Champion 
• Eagle-Eyed 
• With a Pistol!

- Fixed some weapon packs not unlocking properly:

• Underbarrels & Rails Pack

- Fixed Character hiding behind menus in certain situations.
- HUD now updates when XP boosters are activated. 

CO-OP

We detected some replication issues during cooperative sessions between players. This patch should provide a more consistent experience between Ghosts sharing the same game session.


- Corrected various replication issues, such as:

• Paint jobs & attachments not showing correctly in the lobby 
• Rebel Radio explosion not synchronizing 
• Sniper scope glare effect not synchronizing 
• Players seen running beside VHC/bike they should be sitting in 
• Suppressor not synchronizing when removed from a vehicle’s shooting position 
• Burning corpses from systemic events 
• Explosion not replicating if the distance is too high

- The following achievements should now be awarded to all the players in the two missions below:

• A Better Mousetrap 
• The Cluster Bomber

- Fixed a bug where hits would register with a 0.5-second lag.
- Fixed kick/ban vote notifications.
- Fixed game freezes in 4-player sessions. 

CONNECTIVITY

We detected and fixed some issues that were causing some player disconnections. The experience should be more solid after the patch.

- Fixed various disconnection bugs.
- Fixed a bug where the user could not reconnect to a previous session.
- Fixed errors when looking for public sessions.
GAMEPLAY
Added fixes and improvements for gameplay-related issues and requests that some players reported.

Players can now select the vehicle they want to spawn when using the "Drop Vehicle" rebel skill.

- Fixed XP awarded when killing an enemy undetected.
- Fixed a bug where sometimes vehicle seats could stay booked after NPC exiting.
- Fixed a bug where the player would take cover too far from certain props.
- Players can no longer teleport to safe houses while being hunted.
- The Medical Helicopter will now spawn correctly in the Tabacal area side-mission.
- Fixed bikes not slowing down in water.
- Fixed flash grenades not stopping detection.
- Fixed an occasional instant game-over when falling off a dirt bike.
- Fixed a bug where sometimes the player could not tag enemies after hot joining.
- Adjusted damage caused by explosives in Arcade difficulty.
- Fixed an issue where sometimes pilots didn’t die after AI helicopter crash.
- Fixed a situation where sometimes vehicles disappeared when driving at high speeds.
AUDIO
We implemented some fixes and improvements related to some audio aspects of the game, as well as the option to mute radios for those players who requested it.

- Added a feature allowing the player to mute every radio in-game.
- Fixed Car radio not functioning in various situations.
- Amplified the radio voice effects to avoid player confusing El Sueño’s voice on the radio and the one of the Ghosts.
- Introduction video mix enhanced.

GRAPHICS

We focused on fixing various issues in order to provide a solid experience. For stability and performance improvements, see the section below.

- Fixed player models appearing with twisted limbs if they were killed in certain positions.
- Fixed low-resolution textures appearing while aiming/driving.
- Fixed camera clipping through some textures & props.
- Fixed missing textures in certain environments.
- Fixed drone showing blur effect on objects.
- Fixed the textures flickering when using parachute or helicopter.

STABILITY

- Fixed various crashes.
- Fixed an occasional infinite loading screen after validating settings at first launch.
WORLD
- Fixed various world building glitches.
- Fixed some world parts where the player could get stuck.
PC SPECIFIC IMPROVEMENTS
Graphics

- Added the SMAA anti-aliasing mode.
- Added a notification for anti-aliasing recommendations in multi GPU setups.
- Addressed a series of issues causing flickering in multi GPU setups.
- Fixed an issue with HUD scaling in 4 monitor multi display setups.

User experience & interface

- Added support to bind Home, End, Insert, Delete, Page Up and Page Down keys.
- Added several menu navigation improvements with mouse and keyboard.
- Added a notification if the video driver is outdated.
- Added a notification when the system is low on free RAM and starts writing to the virtual memory.
- Fixed a HUD issue in co-op for users who have already completed the selected mission.
- Fixed the Pitch icon display when using mouse to steer helicopters.

Co-op

- Fixed an issue with co-op sharing of systemic activities.
- Fixed the use of Push to Talk in the co-op lobby.

Controls

- Changed the Enable Controller default option to Only Gamepads.
- Addressed a number of issues with the Steam Controller icons and functionality.

Performance

- Addressed a series of random crashes encountered by users.
- Fixed an issue causing framerate drops when the saving icon was being displayed.
- Fixed an issue where the menu was lagging while running the game on a Hard Disk Drive.
- Solved an issue with VRAM bar update when lowering Resolution scaling.

Misc

- Fixed a bug on the Medication Air Transport mission in Tabacal.
- Fixed an issue with character poses in Ansel.
- Solved a controls issue where one couldn’t sprint from crouch or prone position.

We would like to thank all the players for their commitment and passion. The development team will continue their support for Ghost Recon Wildlands and we will bring you more updates and exciting features in the future!

In order to maximize their efficiency and maintain tight control over the people working for them, the Santa Blanca Cartel is organized into four distinct operations: production, trafficking, influence, and security. Each operation is based in different territories and is led by a head of the operation who reports directly to El Sueño. Below their rank, the Buchones (the Bosses) facilitate the cartel’s day to day operational activities across the game’s 21 provinces.

This firm hierarchy is one of Santa Blanca’s greatest assets, but even the strongest walls have cracks. You will have complete freedom to pick which enemy you want to face first, but choose wisely. Every operation is different from the other driven by unique characters and motivations.



As a Ghost, your mission is to destabilize each of the cartel’s branches until the heads of operations have no other choice but to show themselves. Successfully tackle your missions and maybe even El Sueño himself could be within your reach. But first, you’ll need to get briefed on each operation and know their ins and outs before you can end the Santa Blanca Cartel’s business once and for all.

PRODUCTION



The foundation of the Santa Blanca Cartel is production, the branch that deals with the raw materials used to build the cartel’s empire. This operation performs every step of transforming a coca leaf into its white powdery counterpart. To achieve this magic, production uses a large network of coca fields, laboratories, and hideouts, and Santa Blanca’s henchmen supervise the work of the cocaleros, or farmers, to ensure they meet the production demands by way of threats and extortion.

Production is headed by El Yayo (the Grandfather), an ex-cocalero who became a cocaine producer. Formerly a coca union leader, El Yayo is the highest-ranking Bolivian inside Santa Blanca and he works closely with La Gringa, a disgraced American chemist. Learn more about El Yayo here.

INFLUENCE



The influence branch manages the cartel’s recruitment and public image through manipulating religion, corrupting education, controlling the elite, and even operating a humanitarian non-governmental organization (NGO). Influence leaders are often found in churches, monasteries, sanctuaries, and NGO camps, preaching El Sueño’s words and trying to convert people to the Santa Muerte cult. Their mission is subtle but clear: they propagate all Santa Blanca’s dreadful actions as divine acts, making people believe El Sueño is a saint who really cares about their well-being. Despite their sweet lies, some of the cartel’s doings are too much for the people to digest.

El Cardenal is in charge of influence branch, and is the direct spiritual advisor to El Sueño. Excommunicated by the Catholic Church for preaching Santa Muerte doctrine, his religious background makes him perfect for winning the hearts and minds of the people. Despite his traditional appearance, El Cardenal is also very aware of the crucial role of mass communications for disseminating the cartel’s propaganda. That is why he relies on the smooth talking , DJ Perico, the official DJ of the Santa Blanca radio and his henchman, to communicate his teachings. Similarly, El Chido, a Narco-Corrido singer, adds the music to a finely tuned propaganda machine, playing epic songs about El Sueño and his alleged exploits. You can learn more about El Cardenal here.

TRAFFICKING



Trafficking deals with money laundering, packaging and the transporting of final products both within the country and internationally. They own processing plants, shipping stations, railways, and airports. Trafficking makes sure the product always flows to where the demand is, and they use the most dubious and creative ways to ship drugs to satisfy that demand. Air, land, sea – and even under sea – nothing can stop them.

Nidia Flores, the fearless Beauty Queen, is the head of trafficking. Smart and manipulative, Nidia rules the drug transportation business with efficiency along with her right hand, El Boquita. Learn more about Nidia here.

SECURITY



Security makes sure that every division of the Santa Blanca Cartel can operate in safety by taking care of issues rising with the Kataris 26 rebels and the government’s Unidad forces. Their duties also include protecting both departing drug shipments and incoming money to keep Santa Blanca’s business flowing. This branch is heavily armed and often operates in outposts, sicario’s houses, prisons, camps, and road checkpoints. If you become a problem for the cartel, you will receive a visit from security and it won’t be pleasant, that’s for sure. Just pray that you end up dead instead of being tortured in one of their prisons.

El Muro (the Wall) is the head of security. Personal bodyguard and childhood friend of El Sueño, he’s cold and professional, and is the cartel equivalent of a Ghost. His little brother, La Plaga, works closely with him. Learn more about El Muro here.

--

Now that you have learned more about the different cartel operations, it’s time to take them down. Remember that you will have complete freedom to choose your path, so it’s up to you to choose which branch of the Santa Blanca tree you want to prune first. Make it count, Ghost.

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands will be available on March 7, 2017, for PlayStation®4 system, Xbox One, and PC.

For more intel on Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, please keep an eye on GhostRecon.com and be sure to visit our official forums and subreddit.

In order to maximize their efficiency and maintain tight control over the people working for them, the Santa Blanca Cartel is organized into four distinct operations: production, trafficking, influence, and security. Each operation is based in different territories and is led by a head of the operation who reports directly to El Sueño. Below their rank, the Buchones (the Bosses) facilitate the cartel’s day to day operational activities across the game’s 21 provinces.

This firm hierarchy is one of Santa Blanca’s greatest assets, but even the strongest walls have cracks. You will have complete freedom to pick which enemy you want to face first, but choose wisely. Every operation is different from the other driven by unique characters and motivations.



As a Ghost, your mission is to destabilize each of the cartel’s branches until the heads of operations have no other choice but to show themselves. Successfully tackle your missions and maybe even El Sueño himself could be within your reach. But first, you’ll need to get briefed on each operation and know their ins and outs before you can end the Santa Blanca Cartel’s business once and for all.

PRODUCTION



The foundation of the Santa Blanca Cartel is production, the branch that deals with the raw materials used to build the cartel’s empire. This operation performs every step of transforming a coca leaf into its white powdery counterpart. To achieve this magic, production uses a large network of coca fields, laboratories, and hideouts, and Santa Blanca’s henchmen supervise the work of the cocaleros, or farmers, to ensure they meet the production demands by way of threats and extortion.

Production is headed by El Yayo (the Grandfather), an ex-cocalero who became a cocaine producer. Formerly a coca union leader, El Yayo is the highest-ranking Bolivian inside Santa Blanca and he works closely with La Gringa, a disgraced American chemist. Learn more about El Yayo here.

INFLUENCE



The influence branch manages the cartel’s recruitment and public image through manipulating religion, corrupting education, controlling the elite, and even operating a humanitarian non-governmental organization (NGO). Influence leaders are often found in churches, monasteries, sanctuaries, and NGO camps, preaching El Sueño’s words and trying to convert people to the Santa Muerte cult. Their mission is subtle but clear: they propagate all Santa Blanca’s dreadful actions as divine acts, making people believe El Sueño is a saint who really cares about their well-being. Despite their sweet lies, some of the cartel’s doings are too much for the people to digest.

El Cardenal is in charge of influence branch, and is the direct spiritual advisor to El Sueño. Excommunicated by the Catholic Church for preaching Santa Muerte doctrine, his religious background makes him perfect for winning the hearts and minds of the people. Despite his traditional appearance, El Cardenal is also very aware of the crucial role of mass communications for disseminating the cartel’s propaganda. That is why he relies on the smooth talking , DJ Perico, the official DJ of the Santa Blanca radio and his henchman, to communicate his teachings. Similarly, El Chido, a Narco-Corrido singer, adds the music to a finely tuned propaganda machine, playing epic songs about El Sueño and his alleged exploits. You can learn more about El Cardenal here.

TRAFFICKING



Trafficking deals with money laundering, packaging and the transporting of final products both within the country and internationally. They own processing plants, shipping stations, railways, and airports. Trafficking makes sure the product always flows to where the demand is, and they use the most dubious and creative ways to ship drugs to satisfy that demand. Air, land, sea – and even under sea – nothing can stop them.

Nidia Flores, the fearless Beauty Queen, is the head of trafficking. Smart and manipulative, Nidia rules the drug transportation business with efficiency along with her right hand, El Boquita. Learn more about Nidia here.

SECURITY



Security makes sure that every division of the Santa Blanca Cartel can operate in safety by taking care of issues rising with the Kataris 26 rebels and the government’s Unidad forces. Their duties also include protecting both departing drug shipments and incoming money to keep Santa Blanca’s business flowing. This branch is heavily armed and often operates in outposts, sicario’s houses, prisons, camps, and road checkpoints. If you become a problem for the cartel, you will receive a visit from security and it won’t be pleasant, that’s for sure. Just pray that you end up dead instead of being tortured in one of their prisons.

El Muro (the Wall) is the head of security. Personal bodyguard and childhood friend of El Sueño, he’s cold and professional, and is the cartel equivalent of a Ghost. His little brother, La Plaga, works closely with him. Learn more about El Muro here.

--

Now that you have learned more about the different cartel operations, it’s time to take them down. Remember that you will have complete freedom to choose your path, so it’s up to you to choose which branch of the Santa Blanca tree you want to prune first. Make it count, Ghost.

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands will be available on March 7, 2017, for PlayStation®4 system, Xbox One, and PC.

For more intel on Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, please keep an eye on GhostRecon.com and be sure to visit our official forums and subreddit.

Hello Ghosts,

At 8:30pm UTC today, we’re going to apply a patch 1.1.5 for the PC version (Uplay & Steam) of Ghost Recon Wildlands.
This intermediary patch is providing you with some major fixes and improvements regarding compatibility and performances.

Players in game need to reboot the game to apply the patch. Its size is up to 4 GB depending on your client.
You can still keep on playing and wait before applying the patch. An in-game notification will let you know when the patch is available.
Please note that in order to play co-op with friends, you will need to all have the same version of the game.

Please be aware that the patch will automatically download the next time you launch the game, so if you are already in a game session, you will need to reboot it to benefit from the improvements.
If you’re planning on playing tomorrow, we recommend you to preload the patch starting tonight.

Please find below an overview of main changes:

1. Multi-GPU improved support
We have been working with our partners to improve both SLI and Crossfire support. Various stuttering and graphical corruption issues have now been fixed.

2. Quad-core CPUs improved support
Several freezes and performance issues have been resolved for players using quad-core CPUs, notably Intel i5 based setups.

3. AMD graphic cards improved performances
4. Enhanced mouse navigation in store menu
5. 4K menu background scaling implemented
6. Several crash sources have been addressed
7. Improved Ansel support and fixed bugs
8. Various fixes for the Steam Controller integration
9. Other bug fixes & improvements.

The development team will continue to address existing issues in the next update that will be available around end of March/early April across all platforms.

We will update this announcement to let you know about the patch availability.

Thank you again for your support, Ghosts!

[Update 1: Added mention of Steam Controller integration.]
[Update 2: Patch 1.1.5 is now live.]

Hello Ghosts,

At 8:30pm UTC today, we’re going to apply a patch 1.1.5 for the PC version (Uplay & Steam) of Ghost Recon Wildlands.
This intermediary patch is providing you with some major fixes and improvements regarding compatibility and performances.

Players in game need to reboot the game to apply the patch. Its size is up to 4 GB depending on your client.
You can still keep on playing and wait before applying the patch. An in-game notification will let you know when the patch is available.
Please note that in order to play co-op with friends, you will need to all have the same version of the game.

Please be aware that the patch will automatically download the next time you launch the game, so if you are already in a game session, you will need to reboot it to benefit from the improvements.
If you’re planning on playing tomorrow, we recommend you to preload the patch starting tonight.

Please find below an overview of main changes:

1. Multi-GPU improved support
We have been working with our partners to improve both SLI and Crossfire support. Various stuttering and graphical corruption issues have now been fixed.

2. Quad-core CPUs improved support
Several freezes and performance issues have been resolved for players using quad-core CPUs, notably Intel i5 based setups.

3. AMD graphic cards improved performances
4. Enhanced mouse navigation in store menu
5. 4K menu background scaling implemented
6. Several crash sources have been addressed
7. Improved Ansel support and fixed bugs
8. Various fixes for the Steam Controller integration
9. Other bug fixes & improvements.

The development team will continue to address existing issues in the next update that will be available around end of March/early April across all platforms.

We will update this announcement to let you know about the patch availability.

Thank you again for your support, Ghosts!

[Update 1: Added mention of Steam Controller integration.]
[Update 2: Patch 1.1.5 is now live.]