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Forget what you know about Destiny, because on September 8, the 2.0 patch is out and it changes almost everything. This includes Weekly Strikes, Nightfalls, PvP, and more. The latest Bungie Weekly Update has some details on those particular changes that are coming next month.
Luke Smith shares some of what fans can expect.
It will be very interesting to see how those who do not own The Taken King content will be able to enjoy some of these new features. The Taken King is due to be released on September 15.
Luke Smith shares some of what fans can expect.
In our Strike the Dreadnaught reveal earlier this week, we showed some and told some about how we wanted Strikes to move forward into Year 2.
• Strike replayability is augmented by variability.
• Bosses with more interested combat phases and less vitality.
• Strike-specific rewards.
- E.g., Armor drops that look like trophies from the Strike boss
- E.g., weapons that only drop from certain Strikes
But those aren't the only changes coming to Strikes. We've also looked at the programming/Strike playlists and made some changes there, too.
Nightfall
Our desired Nightfall experience is the weekly ritual where you get together with your friends for a test of thumbskill and allow players to optimize for gear.
Burn skulls motivate weapon rotation and now the Burn resist talents found on chest pieces will rotate armor.
The death penalty of being kicked to orbit often leads to players feeling forced to play too safe, rather than running through the world as a monster killing machine.
Another thing we didn't like about the Year 1 Nightfall was how players could feel forced to play Nightfall as early as possible in the week to maximize the benefit from the Nightfall buff. So, we've shelved that buff until we can reform it into something closer to its original intent - a mark of prestige for having achieved something challenging. We've adjusted sources of XP and Reputation up to account for its absence.
• Now Requires Level 40
• Wiping no longer returns Fireteams to Orbit
• Now uses 30 second time-out penalty for Death (same as Raid Normal)
Weekly Heroic Strikes
We've removed a dedicated Weekly Heroic Strike from the game this Fall. In its place we've added a new playlist: the Vanguard Heroic Playlist.
Each week players receive bonus Legendary Marks from the Weekly Heroic Playlist. These awards are received at the Account level rather than the character level - as was the case with Year One Weekly Heroic Rewards.
We made this change to enable players to focus on a single character more, or feel less pressure to gear three characters at once for Legendary Marks.
• Requires Level 40
• Removed the Weekly Heroic Strikes
• Instead, accounts receive Legendary Marks for completing the first three Weekly Strikes
• Removed the Weekly Cap on how many Legendary Marks can be earned.
• Guarantee a Legendary Engram drop from a character's first clear of a Weekly Heroic Strike
Weekly PVP Ritual
Nightfall was built as a ritual experience for groups of three players in PVE. In Year 1, we didn't have a good weekly ritual experience for PVP players.
Once players have completed the PVP Intro chain on Lord Shaxx, they receive access to the Weekly PVP quests on Lord Shaxx and the PVP Quartermaster.
Each week, Lord Shaxx has a Bounty called "The True Meaning of War." Completing this Bounty each week (which requires completing the PVP weeklies) grants players Nightfall tier rewards.
Daily Heroic/Daily PVP
It's important to us that Destiny remain compatible with real life. Playing multiple characters can sometimes feel like a job or a chore, the Daily Heroic and Daily PVP often felt that way. So we increased their rewards and made them an account completion. We want players to choose which characters they want to play on and earn Legendary Marks on.
• Strike replayability is augmented by variability.
• Bosses with more interested combat phases and less vitality.
• Strike-specific rewards.
- E.g., Armor drops that look like trophies from the Strike boss
- E.g., weapons that only drop from certain Strikes
But those aren't the only changes coming to Strikes. We've also looked at the programming/Strike playlists and made some changes there, too.
Nightfall
Our desired Nightfall experience is the weekly ritual where you get together with your friends for a test of thumbskill and allow players to optimize for gear.
Burn skulls motivate weapon rotation and now the Burn resist talents found on chest pieces will rotate armor.
The death penalty of being kicked to orbit often leads to players feeling forced to play too safe, rather than running through the world as a monster killing machine.
Another thing we didn't like about the Year 1 Nightfall was how players could feel forced to play Nightfall as early as possible in the week to maximize the benefit from the Nightfall buff. So, we've shelved that buff until we can reform it into something closer to its original intent - a mark of prestige for having achieved something challenging. We've adjusted sources of XP and Reputation up to account for its absence.
• Now Requires Level 40
• Wiping no longer returns Fireteams to Orbit
• Now uses 30 second time-out penalty for Death (same as Raid Normal)
Weekly Heroic Strikes
We've removed a dedicated Weekly Heroic Strike from the game this Fall. In its place we've added a new playlist: the Vanguard Heroic Playlist.
Each week players receive bonus Legendary Marks from the Weekly Heroic Playlist. These awards are received at the Account level rather than the character level - as was the case with Year One Weekly Heroic Rewards.
We made this change to enable players to focus on a single character more, or feel less pressure to gear three characters at once for Legendary Marks.
• Requires Level 40
• Removed the Weekly Heroic Strikes
• Instead, accounts receive Legendary Marks for completing the first three Weekly Strikes
• Removed the Weekly Cap on how many Legendary Marks can be earned.
• Guarantee a Legendary Engram drop from a character's first clear of a Weekly Heroic Strike
Weekly PVP Ritual
Nightfall was built as a ritual experience for groups of three players in PVE. In Year 1, we didn't have a good weekly ritual experience for PVP players.
Once players have completed the PVP Intro chain on Lord Shaxx, they receive access to the Weekly PVP quests on Lord Shaxx and the PVP Quartermaster.
Each week, Lord Shaxx has a Bounty called "The True Meaning of War." Completing this Bounty each week (which requires completing the PVP weeklies) grants players Nightfall tier rewards.
Daily Heroic/Daily PVP
It's important to us that Destiny remain compatible with real life. Playing multiple characters can sometimes feel like a job or a chore, the Daily Heroic and Daily PVP often felt that way. So we increased their rewards and made them an account completion. We want players to choose which characters they want to play on and earn Legendary Marks on.
It will be very interesting to see how those who do not own The Taken King content will be able to enjoy some of these new features. The Taken King is due to be released on September 15.