Update 8.2.6 for Destiny 2 is set to drastically change the game, with huge weapon and armor alterations, Rite of the Nine, and much more.
On May 6, Destiny 2 moves into Update 8.2.6, which completely changes the game in many ways. A little over a month into Episode: Heresy Act 3, players will now be greeted with major weapons, armor, and Exotic changes, Rite of the Nine, and Heavy Metal.
Alongside this, 8.2.6 will include three new weapons from three of the game’s current modes.
We're breaking down everything coming with Update 8.2.6, starting with a look at the new modes, Rite of the Nine and Heavy Metal.
Rite of the Nine and Heavy Metal touch down in Update 8.2.6
Rite of the Nine is a new mode coming to Destiny 2 on May 6, with the launch of Update 8.2.6. This new dungeon-focused mode is similar to Into the Light’s Pantheon Challenges or The Nether, introduced more recently.
Rite of the Nine takes players into one of three dungeons — Prophecy, Spire of the Watcher, or Ghosts of the Deep — with enhanced difficulty modifiers. These dungeons will rotate weekly, with different modes catering to different difficulties.
- Explorer Mode: Designed with new players in mind, featuring waypoint markers and a less punishing experience.
- Eternity Mode: Increased difficulty for players who know their way around.
- Ultimatum Mode: Meant for only the strongest guardians, Ultimatum has Contest Mode difficulty levels. Limited revives, lower power levels, and highly accurate enemies will stand in your way.
Each of the aforementioned dungeons will offer four weapons that have been revamped for the Rite of the Nine. Rewards beyond this include emblems and a title. You can find more details on Rite of the Nine here.
For those who prefer player versus player (PvP) combat (or Crucible modes), Heavy Metal is coming in Update 8.2.6. However, there is a rather big caveat here — it is Drake tanks versus Fallen Brigs! Guardians will get to pilot either vehicle in 6-versus-6 combat as they aim to earn 50 points to claim victory for their team.
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All sandbox changes in Destiny 2 Update 8.2.6
Coming with the new update, there are some massive changes to some of the Exotics, armor, weapons, and abilities in Destiny 2. According to Bungie, this should be taken “like a second mid-season update.”
For further information on all the changes below, you can check out Bungie's feedback here.
Exotic Weapons
Weapon(s) Change | 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 entering the zone after its creation. Now grants an automatic reload from reserves after deploying a turret. Reduced the turret's self-damage by 85%. Increased turret damage by 10%. |
Exotic Armors
Armor (and Class) Change | Lunafaction Boots (Warlock) 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. | Lion Rampant (Titan) 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. | Radiant Dance Machine (Hunter) 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 the 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 upper tier of the Strategist perk. |
Weapons
Weapon type (and weapon where necessary) Frame Change | Pulse Rifles (Redrox’s Estoc) 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 from 10 to 21. | Pulse Rifles 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. | Hand Cannons (Judgment) Adaptive 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 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. | Auto Rifles 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 Increased ADS damage falloff scalar from 1.4x to 1.5x. | Shotguns Heavy Burst Slug Increased damage by 8%. |
Abilities
Ability (and Class) Change | Withering Blade - Stasis and Prismatic melee (Hunter) Increased tracking strength by 20%.Increased damage by 10%. | All Throwing Knife melees (Hunter) Fixed an issue where throwing knives were not tracking correctly. 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 (Hunter) Reduced prey-finding cooldown from 0.5s to 0.1s. Ability energy is now granted instantly instead of over time. | Lightning Surge: Arc Aspect (Warlock) Slightly increased the follow-up melee suppression time after Lightning Surge to match Shoulder Charge and other similar abilities. |
There is a lot more coming in Update 8.2.6 for Destiny 2. On May 6, we will also see the reveal for the upcoming expansion, The Edge of Fate, and learn a bit more about the future of the game.
For more Destiny 2 news and information, stay tuned to esports.gg.
