Some ofDestiny 2’s solar subclasses are getting some significant changes in Season of Dawn on Tuesday, December 10th, with some changes to their abilities including buffs and even complete reworks. DeveloperBungie detailed the solar subclass changescoming to bottom tree Gunslinger, middle tree Sunbreaker, and top tree Dawnblade weeks ago, but players finally got an actual look at gameplay featuring the changes. And some of them look very significant and powerful.
These changes to solar subclasses are similar towhat happened to some of the arc subclassesin the game in April when Bungie took another look at some of the underperforming and underused arc subclasses in the game and took them back under the design knife. Bungie’s language makes it sound as though this could be a somewhat regular occurrence moving forward in Year 3 as another way to freshen up the game.
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While the short videos show some of the changes coming to each highlighted subclass and their effects, they are not comprehensive in all the changes. Bungie said other solar and non-solar subclasses will see some other, more minor tweaks, inDestiny 2’s Season of Dawn.
Gunslinger
This first video is actually highlighting a change coming to the top tree of the Gunslinger, Way of the Outlaw. The big focus of the changes coming to Hunters inSeason of Dawnis focused on the bottom path, Way of the Sharpshooter. But in order to differentiate the two paths with the bottom path being about longer-range precision shooting and the top tree about closer encounters, some work was done to both. This video shows Way of the Outlaw’s new Explosive Prox Knife, which will stick into surfaces and detonate when enemies pass near it. As seen in the video, when paired with the Gunslinger’s Tripmine Grenade, the damage of both combined can take out an enemy Guardian in PvP in one shot.
The new melee ability for the bottom tree, Way of the Sharpshooter, is Weighted Knife: “High-damage knife throw with a long wind up. Travels at high speeds, bounces once, and does extra damage to the head. Precision shot final blows recharge the melee completely. One-hit precision final blow in PvP.” Many players were expecting the wind-up animation to be much longer, but it is actually pretty short as seen in this clip. Expect this to be seen often in PvP with its one-hit-kill and self-regen ability, as players who enjoyed similar gameplay inDestiny 1will be happy about the return of this ability.
The final clip shows the changes in regards to the Golden Gun super for Way of the Sharpshooter. With the new perk Knock ‘em Down, precision final blows increase weapon stability and ADS speed. The timer on the perk starts at 10 seconds but any additional final blow/assists can increase it up to 25 seconds.Casting Golden Gunwith this buff above 20 seconds consumes the buff and grants extra damage. That can be seen here, with precision kills getting the buff above 20 seconds and then popping the super. Combined with the Line ‘em Up perk, which grants additional damage on precision hits with Golden Gun, the Hunter in the video makes quick work of the Spider Tank.
Sunbreaker
The Sunbreaker Titan is getting a change to itsCode of the Devastator(middle) tree. The first video shows a change to the subclass’s Burning Maul super, specifically that the super’s spinning light attack costs less energy to use and an adjustment to the light attack’s animation that allows it flows seamlessly into chained light attacks without stopping. That leads to this spin attack that doesn’t run out until the super energy does.
Not only does Burning Maul last longer in general, which also helps the spin attack above, but the vertical explosion caused by the super’s heavy attack has been increased with the purpose of reaching airborne enemies better, like these ones in the Crucible:
Dawnblade
The Warlock’s Dawnblade subclass is undergoing changes withSeason of Dawnas well, with perhaps the biggest change being that Burst Glide will no longer propel players in their super fast and far. The change was made to further differentiate the Attunement of Sky, or top path, of the Dawnblade to be about fast movement while airborne.
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But despiteBurst Glidegetting this major nerf, the new top tree Dawnblade can recreate that rapid and long-reaching airborne movement by using Icarus Dash while the super is activated. That is on display here, with Icarus Dash providing enough acceleration and distance to allow this Warlock to clear the distance of the Hellmouth.
The second video featuring the upcoming changes to Attunement of Sky showcases a few different things. First, the Warlock consumes a grenade to activate a completely reworked version of the perk Heat Rises, which with this change extends glide time and dramatically reduces the in-air accuracy penalties for weapons. Also at work here is the reworked Winged Sun perk, which allow the Attunement of Sky Dawnblade to fire weapons, use melee, and throw grenades while gliding. Airborne final blows grant melee energy and extend the duration of Heat Rises, which can be seen when the Warlock gets a final blow with the sniper rifle and the new Celestial Fire melee that send out a spiral of three explosive solar projectiles. Keep a close eye on the melee meter after both kills, as Heat Rises grants nearly half melee energy back.
These changes definitely look impressive, but it will be up to players getting their hands on these reworked subclasses and putting them through the paces to see if the meta will shift in Season of Dawn.
Destiny 2: Shadowkeepis available now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
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