SoftBank Ultra Link

As the Persepolis Anomaly series was coming to a close, further details regarding the SoftBank Ultra Link began to emerge.

Rumors were abound regarding exactly what benefit it would provide. “Would it be hackable?” “Would it replace the VRLA?” “How far will it reach?” “Will it allow more outbound links?”

The answers to some of the questions are now available. Thanks, in part, to the fact that they are indeed capable of being hacked. The Primary sites for Persepolis were also welcomed to a wonderful surprise where some agents were presented with SoftBank cards, complete with single use Passcodes.

Details have emerged and we can confirm a new maximum range for these hackable Ultra Links. They come with a 5x Multiplier and share the same trait as the Rare and Very Rare Link Amp with a diminishing value of 100%, 25%, 12.5%, 12.5% upon subsequent deploys.

L8 Portal = 655.36 km
1 SBUL = 3276.8 km (x5.000)
2 SBUL = 4096 km (x6.250)
3 SBUL = 4505.6 km (x6.875)
4 SBUL = 4915.2 km (x7.500)

The handshake revealed that the SoftBank Ultra Link would allow for 8 additional outbound links. Diminishing values did not appear to be present in the handshake and afforded us the opportunity to give this a good old fashion “real life test”

Turning to my boss, Chris Maulden, and asking him if he wanted to set the record for the first “40 Outbound Link” Portal yielded just the answer I was looking for.

Setting out after work to a local farm proved fruitful as it had been taken down the night before and not yet rebuilt. Filling out the portals and key hacking along the way had us set and ready to go. Word had spread fast that this was about to occur and David Dellsperger set into action to record what he could before heading home for the day.

Applying the SB-UL one at a time, we noticed that there was not an indicator that additional outbound links were present, nor was a shield mitigation value. I have since learned that SBUL provides 50% additional mitigation. It is unclear if this number is stacked by using multiple SBUL.

We began linking slowly after applying 4 Link Amps and I waited for the “No Linkable Portals” message, and waited….and waited. Success!! 40 Links Out! Checking the map revealed that it was not just our scanner that neglected to provide SBUL Mitigation Data, so keep this in mind as you see a portal with one applied that you feel just won’t accept your XMPS so readily.

Once 40 outbound links are established the portal has a natural mitigation value of 66.8%, the additional 50% maxes out the portal defense for those lovely 1% attacks.

The portal used is located here: https://www.ingress.com/intel?ll=38.325405,-76.455787&z=17&pll=38.325405,-76.455787