Destiny 2 Update 8.2.6 early patch notes with sandbox changes & new weapons

Starting May 6, Destiny 2’s major update prior to the Summer release of the Edge of Fate expansion in 2025 will become active. This update includes a temporary special event, an exciting Player vs Player (PvP) mode, and significant enhancements to the gameplay environment (sandbox).

As a dedicated player, I’m thrilled about the upcoming Rite of the Nine in Update 8.2.6, a dungeon-style event that brings back several familiar weapons. However, their effectiveness in both PvE and PvP scenarios is yet to be determined. The broad rebalancing of weapon archetypes and Exotics promises a significant overhaul to the game’s meta for the rest of Heresy Act 3, leaving me eagerly anticipating the changes!

One significant adjustment involves lessening the strength of Legacy Frame Pulse Rifles, particularly Redrix’s Estoc. Since its introduction in Heresy, the Stasis Pulse has been a dominant force across all competitive levels and has undergone several nerfs previously. The recent modifications are designed to decrease its usage in mid-level gameplay.

In a new twist, not only does the main adversary get affected, but also the formidable duo – Void Aspect and Radiant Dance Machines (Exotics) – sustain damage as well. Since their debut, these two have been reigning supreme in the Crucible, particularly when combined with The Last Word, an Exotic Hand Cannon.

Check out what we know about the patch notes so far below.

Update 8.2.6 patch notes

Abilities

Crucible Only

Prismatic Supers

Reduced Prismatic-specific Super cooldown penalty from 10% to 5%.

Scatter Grenade

Reduced scatter grenade damage vs. players by 15%.

Hunter (On the Prowl)

Reduced PvP prey-finding range from 45m to 25m.
Reduced PvP hunt time from infinite to 15 seconds.

Warlock (Lightning Surge)

Clamped the variability of Lightning Surge damage against players.
Slightly increased the minimum damage dealt and reduced the maximum damage dealt.

Without a doubt, the most significant adjustment is the weakening of On the Prowl, reducing Void Hunter’s strength in combat. With Prismatic’s Super cooldown penalty being reversed, it seems Hunters may return to utilizing their Light and Dark subclass for Player vs Player (PvP) engagements.

Global

Hunter

Withering Blade (Stasis and Prismatic melee)

Increased tracking strength by 20%.
Increased damage by 10%.

All Throwing Knife melees

Fixed an issue where throwing knives were not tracking correctly. They should now track more consistently.
Lightweight Knife (Solar melee)
- Increased tracking shape size by 10%.
- Increased tracking strength by 20%.
Fan of Knives (Solar and Prismatic melee)
- Increase tracking shape size by 15%.

On the Prowl (Void Aspect)

Reduced prey-finding cooldown from 0.5s to 0.1s.
Ability energy is now granted instantly instead of over time.

Warlock

Lightning Surge (Arc Aspect)

Slightly increased the follow-up-melee suppression time after Lightning Surge to match Shoulder Charge and other similar abilities.

Mostly adjustments to maintain continuity between classes.

Weapon Updates

Pulse Rifles

Legacy Frame

The Legacy Frame Origin Trait now reduces ADS Damage Falloff Scalar by 0.1.
- This reduces Battler and Estoc’s ADS Damage Falloff Scalars from 1.7 to 1.6, matching High Impact Pulses.
- Increased BxR Battler’s Airborne Effectiveness stat – 10 to 21.

Rapid-Fire

Increased base damage from 14.5 to 15.
Increased precision damage from 27.6 to 27.8.

Hand Cannons

Heavy Burst

Increased ADS damage falloff scalar from 1.5x to 1.6x.

Adaptive – Judgment

Magazine size increased from 9 to 11.
Reload increased from 40 to 45.
Handling increased from 42 to 55.

Auto Rifles

High Impact

Increased base damage by 4%.
- Body shot goes from 23 to 24.
- Critical hit goes from 41.4 to 43.2.

Precision

Increased base damage 3%, reduced the precision damage scalar slightly to offset this.
- Body shot goes from 19.4 to 20.
- Critical hit goes from 33.95 to 34.

Submachine Guns

Adaptive Submachine Guns

Increased ADS damage falloff scalar from 1.4x to 1.5x.

Shotguns

Heavy Burst Slug

Increased damage by 8%.

Reducing the power of Legacy Frame Pulse Rifles even more could lead to a decrease in their usage. On the other hand, High Impact Auto Rifles, which have traditionally been one of the less effective PvP types, are set for some beneficial adjustments. Additionally, Heavy Burst and Adaptive Hand Cannons will also receive boosts. As a result, it seems we might be heading towards a balanced mid-range gameplay style due to these modifications.

Weapon perks

One Quiet Moment

Now has two stacks, one that activates after 1s of being out of combat for 50% of the bonus, and the other at 2s.

Alacrity

Now activates at reduced effectiveness whenever a teammate dies. Reaches maximum effectiveness when two or more teammates are currently dead.

Exotics Weapons Updates

Lord of Wolves

Reduced hip fire damage in PvE by 30%.

Riskrunner

Increased zoom from 13 to 14

Truth and Two Tailed Fox

Increased the amount of ammo picked up from ammo crates in Crucible from 1 to 2.

Alethonym

Creating a special ammo brick now only costs 50% energy.
Reworded the Vestigial Alchemy trait description to be a little less confusing.

Finality’s Auger

Increased the duration that a target is painted to match the duration of the turret.
The environmental target marker now marks additional targets that enter the zone after its initial creation.
Now grants an automatic reload from reserves after deploying a turret.
Reduced the turret’s self-damage by 85%.
Increased the turret’s damage by 10%.

The adjustment to the power level of the Lord of Wolves will no longer make it the premier choice for dealing damage on specific Raids’ bosses. Instead, Queenbreaker is expected to regain its position as the go-to Exotic due to its compatibility with the Heresy’s Particle Reconstruction mod.

Armor Updates

Hunter

Radiant Dance Machines

Reduced the bonuses granted to Primary weapons when hip firing. Aligned the hip fire bonuses to range and accuracy with the values granted by the Hip Fire Grip perk, instead of the Legacy Frame intrinsic perk.
- Reduced accuracy bonus for standard weapons by 60%.
- Reduced aim assist falloff distance bonus by 60%.
- Further reduced the accuracy bonus for the custom tuned Exotic weapons (including The Last Word) by an additional 25%.
- Reduced the amount of energy refunded for defeats against players when you do not have full class ability energy from 33% to 20% to align it with the upper tier of the Strategist perk.

Titan

Lion Rampant

Added the accuracy and range hip fire bonuses from RDMs to Lion Rampant for Primary ammo weapons only. These hip fire benefits are always active, not just when airborne.
The +50 Airborne Effectiveness bonus is now always active, not just when you are hip firing while airborne.

Warlock

Lunafaction Boots

Added the accuracy and range hip fire bonuses from RDMs to Lunafaction Boots for Primary ammo weapons only. These hip fire benefits are always active, not just when in a rift.
Decreased the range bonus granted by the Empowering Rift by 50% in PvP only to reduce occurrences of extremely long-range kills with short range weapons like Fusions and Slug Shotguns.

The nerfs to Radiant Dance Machines open up more build variety for Hunters in Crucible.

New Ritual weapons

Iron Banner

Nature Reclaimed

Solar Lightweight Scout Rifle
Column 3: Killing Wind, Outlaw, Heal Clip, Lone Wolf, Rapid Hit, Shoot to Loot
Column 4: Desperate Measures, Kill Clip, Incandescent, Precision Instrument, Box Breathing, Explosive Payload
Origin Trait: Iron Banner

Trials of Osiris

The Inquisitor

Arc Precision Slug Shotgun – SUROS Foundry
Column 3: Envious Assassin, Lone Wolf, Offhand Strike, Loose Change, Perpetual Motion, Slideshot, Threat Detector
Column 4: Bait and Switch, Closing Time, Cascade Point, Fragile Focus, Jolting Feedback, Opening Shot, Precision Instrument
Origin Traits: Trials, Crucible, SUROS

Nightfall

Cruel Mercy

Arc Heavy Burst Pulse Rifle – Omolon Foundry
Column 3: Dragonfly, Demolitionist, Eddy Current, Fourth Times the Charm, Keep Away, Lone Wolf
Column 4: Jolting Feedback, Adrenaline Junkie, Headseeker, Frenzy, Kill Clip, Desperado
Origin Traits: Nightfall, Vanguard, Omolon

Details about the complete changes coming with Destiny 2 Update 8.2.6, as announced by Bungie, will be shared nearer to its launch date on May 6th.

2025-05-03 15:19