Destiny 2 guardian abilities are getting a serious rebalance next season

Destiny 2’s Season of the Splicer ends in a few short weeks, and the gang over at Bungie are starting to share some of the changes that will arrive when the new season starts in its sci-fi shooter MMO. Today’s This Week at Bungie details a significant rebalance of many guardian subclass abilities that’s going to force some players to rethink some tried and true strategies both in PvE and the Crucible.

Perhaps most notable among the subclass adjustments is the nerf coming for middle-tree Dawnblade warlocks’ Well of Radiance. Bungie says it’s a “no-brainer” ability to use on many of the game’s bosses, and starting next season, wells will be more vulnerable to boss damage. Currently, a Well of Radiance takes 0.25x boss damage, and that’s getting ramped up to 1.5x, meaning that bosses will be able to destroy these wells much faster.

Don’t fret too much about that, Warlocks – while it won’t be as viable in PvE, your Well of Radiance is getting a boost in the Crucible, with its damage resistance buff vs. enemy players increasing from 20% to 40%.

Top-tree Dawnblades’ Celestial Fire ability is going to be slightly less accurate next season, and Bungie is changing Heat Rises to last for 15 seconds rather than 10 – you’ll also get more of a time extension for mid-air kills while using it, but you’ll also appear on enemy radar while it’s active.

For Hunters, Bungie is dialling back a nerf to the Revenant subclass’ withering blade, increasing its projectile speed and tracking by 10%. Squall movement speed is getting boosted by 20%, and Squall will now stop moving when it comes into contact with a boss.

Titans’ barricades have gotten some adjustments as well. The rally barricade hasn’t been getting used much, so Bungie says that in addition to boosting reload speeds for guardians standing behind it, it will also grant +30 stability, +10% range, and -50% flinch. All barricades will now do significantly more damage to enemy guardians who run through them at high speed, although they’ll always be left with a sliver of health when they do.

This week’s update also mentions assistant game director Joe Blackburn’s recent Twitter thread in which he discusses the team’s plans for new Crucible maps. “For the tl:dr crew, the main thing we want everyone to know is that we have a plan, it’s going to take some time, and we are excited about the future of creating a more consistent delivery of PVP content each year,” writes community manager Chris “Cozmo” Shannon.

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