Anno 117 Dawn of the Delta Guide: DLC and Patch 3.0 Changes

Quick Answer: Anno 117: Pax Romana's Dawn of the Delta DLC and Update 3.0 went live on Thursday, November 5, 2026 at 10 AM UTC on all platforms, and the base game is free to play until November 9. Before you settle Aegyptus, check the balance changes below — aqueduct specialists were cut in half, festival costs dropped from 50,000 to 25,000 coins, and "normal" is now the default difficulty for new saves.

By the TechGamer App Review Team · Published November 7, 2026

Ubisoft Mainz shipped its biggest Anno 117 update to date together with the Dawn of the Delta expansion, and the combined release changes how both new and returning players should approach the game. This guide walks through the release timing, the Free Weekend, what the DLC actually adds, and the patch 3.0 numbers that will reshape your existing city plans.

Dawn of the Delta and Patch 3.0: Release Timing at a Glance

According to the official Anno Union announcement, both the "Dawn of the Delta" DLC and Update 3.0 deployed on Thursday, November 5, 2026 at 10 AM UTC (11 AM CET) on all platforms. The free weekend and a cross-platform sale started at the same time.

Ubisoft also ran Twitch Drops for release week: watching livestreams in the Anno 117: Pax Romana category on Twitch earned viewers rewards, and partner content creators were allowed to publish Dawn of the Delta gameplay from November 3.

How to Use the Free Weekend (November 5–9)

The Free Weekend gives everyone the full base game of Anno 117: Pax Romana for free — without any DLC — until November 9, 2026. Per the developer announcement, the free version is fully multiplayer and co-op compatible, so you can play it with friends who own the game.

Steps to get started

1. Download Anno 117: Pax Romana on Steam, Ubisoft Connect, PS5, or Xbox Series X|S during the Free Weekend window (November 5–9).
2. Install Update 3.0, which ships with the free version automatically.
3. Note that the DLC is not included — Dawn of the Delta is a separate purchase.
4. Start on "Easy" if you are new: patch 3.0 made "normal" the default difficulty and raised goods consumption, which makes the early game harder than before.
5. If you like it, the cross-platform sale running alongside the weekend is the cheapest entry point per DLCompare's coverage.

What Dawn of the Delta Adds: The Province of Aegyptus

Dawn of the Delta is Anno 117's new major expansion, taking players out of Latium and Albion and into Aegyptus, a province inspired by ancient Egypt. The headline mechanics are environmental and political rather than cosmetic.

According to DLCompare, the expansion "introduces a new province inspired by ancient Egypt" whose features "include river flooding, new raiders, and additional Romanization mechanics." If your city plans lean on predictable farmland, plan for the flood cycle before placing your first fields.

Patch 3.0 Balance Changes That Break Old Habits

This is the part most launch coverage skips, and where the actionable numbers live. The official patch notes contain several changes that directly affect city layouts, budgets, and specialist setups.

Difficulty: "normal" is now the default, and only for new saves

Goods consumption is increased because "normal" is now the default difficulty. Per the patch notes, this change only affects new save games — your existing city keeps its old settings. "Easy" remains available, as does a "very hard" difficulty with a 75% consumption increase. Starting money was raised to compensate for the tougher early game, and the threshold to reach Legendary difficulty in game setup was changed.

Festivals are cheaper, but priced by goods value

Two festival changes matter for mid- and late-game budgets. First, festival goods requirements now take each good's value into account, so you will need higher quantities of cheap goods but fewer of expensive ones. Second, end-game festival cost was cut from 50,000 to 25,000 coins, with costs scaling better across progress. Ubisoft also added an "Auto-Accept festivals" toggle under Options in the Game category, and the festival governor decision now shows your current storage for the goods cost.

Aqueduct specialists were nerfed hard

The two aqueduct-related water supply specialists both lost half or more of their effect, per the patch notes. Comments on the announcement already flag this as the most disruptive change for long-running saves.

Latium Mills produce faster but cost more to run

The Latium Mill was rebuilt as a faster, hungrier building: production time dropped from 30s to 20s, internal grain storage rose from 8 to 12, and flour storage from 6 to 9 — but maintenance rose from 8 to 12 and workforce from 3 to 4. In practice, mills now need more housing and coin support per building, so check your workforce pool before copying old mill layouts.

Smaller quality-of-life rebalances worth knowing

• All shrines now share a 22-tile range, making shrine planning uniform.
• The Sandarac Nursery is now classified as a plantation, so plantation buffs apply and it uses aqueduct irrigation again.
• Liberti Bread consumption from Splendor was reduced to match Plebeians.
• Escort contracts are less frustrating: escorted ships are no longer too slow, attackers spawn further from the convoy, and escorted ships appear near the lighthouse where the contract was accepted.
• On PC, NVIDIA RTX 30-series cards now get FSR 3 frame generation by default in automatic graphics settings, and Low-preset systems no longer get frame generation forced on.

New Features to Set Up First: Stamps, Statistics, and Hidden Quests

Update 3.0's headline feature is Stamp Mode. Using the Copy/Stamp tool, you can save your favourite residential or production layouts as reusable stamps, name them, and sort them into folders. PC players can additionally share stamp files with other players — effectively community layout libraries, according to the patch notes.

The Statistics Screen gained two tabs: a storage tab covering stored goods, passive trades, active trades and general storage fluctuations; and an item/specialist tab listing every owned specialist plus unknown ones and their sources. If you have ever lost track of which trader sells which specialist, the new tab answers it directly.

You can now hide quests from the quest log to cut clutter — hidden quests stay findable in the quest book, where they can be unhidden. And if you are returning to an older save, the game gives you a short introduction to the newly added features such as Stamps and Notes when you continue it, so nothing arrives unannounced.

Console and Technical Notes Before You Update

Console players should expect a larger download this time: Ubisoft reduced the game's install size on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, which means a bigger one-off update now but smaller updates later, per the patch notes. The update also improved performance on recommended-spec PCs, reducing frame rate drops and stutter when panning over large cities, and fixed multiplayer desyncs — including a check that now covers sub-mods as well as main mods, so modded co-op sessions should desync less.

Verdict: Which Path Should You Take?

If you have never played Anno 117, the Free Weekend through November 9 is a zero-risk trial of the full base game — start on Easy, then buy during the sale if it clicks. If you are a returning player, the priority is adapting to the specialist nerfs and the faster Latium Mills before copying old layouts, and building your first Stamp library. If you are invested long-term, Dawn of the Delta's flood-and-raider province is the reason Update 3.0 exists: the free patch prepares the whole game for the DLC's new challenges.

Frequently Asked Questions

When did Dawn of the Delta and Update 3.0 release?

Both released on Thursday, November 5, 2026 at 10 AM UTC (11 AM CET) on all platforms, according to the official Anno Union announcement.

Is Anno 117 free to play right now?

Yes — the Free Weekend runs until November 9, 2026, giving everyone the full base game (no DLC) for free, with full multiplayer and co-op support. A sale across all platforms runs alongside it.

Is Dawn of the Delta included in the Free Weekend?

No. The Free Weekend covers the base game experience only. The Aegyptus province, river flooding, and new raiders come with the paid Dawn of the Delta DLC.

Does the new "normal" difficulty affect my existing save?

No. The higher goods consumption tied to "normal" being the new default only affects new save games, per the patch notes. Existing saves keep their previous settings.

What happened to the aqueduct specialists in patch 3.0?

Aquila Dulcis, Curator Aquarum, dropped from +200% to +100% Water Supply, and Ductuarius dropped from +50% to +25%. Rebuild water coverage plans accordingly in existing cities.

How much do festivals cost now?

End-game festivals were cut from 50,000 to 25,000 coins, costs scale better with progress, and goods requirements now depend on each good's value. An "Auto-Accept festivals" option was also added.

Can I share my city layouts with other players?

Yes, on PC. Stamp Mode saves layouts via the Copy/Stamp tool, and PC players can share the stamp files with others. Stamps can be named and sorted into folders on all platforms.

Disclosure

This article is independent editorial coverage based on the sources listed below. It contains no affiliate links and was not sponsored by Ubisoft or any retailer.

Sources

• Anno Union – Union Update: Free Weekend and Dawn of the Delta release
• Anno Union – Anno 117: Pax Romana Patch 3.0 Notes
• DLCompare – Anno 117: Pax Romana Update 3.0 and a free weekend