This year is shaping up to be one of Destiny 2's biggest yet. After an unfortunate delay in 2021, the Witch Queen expansion is rapidly approaching its February launch. The expansion finally gives players a chance to go toe to toe with the Hive Queen, Savathun, a character that has stayed mostly in the background through lore and in name only since the original Destiny launched back in 2014.
In addition to new expansion content and the Throne World destination, Bungie also confirmed that Season 16 will actually be known as Season of the Risen. Sitting alongside the expansion content, Season of the Risen deals with the new threat to Earth posed by the Hive Guardians known as the Lucent Brood. Cabal Empress Caiatl returns to assist the Vanguard with their Light Suppressing tools in an effort to put down the threat.
Alongside all of that new story content, Bungie is also preparing a huge sandbox update to Destiny 2 that is likely going to alter the way fans play the game. Part of that involves the void subclasses finally getting a major overhaul, which hopefully should help players make the perfect build for the activity it's needed for.
General Void Changes
Known as Void 3.0, Bungie is making sweeping changes to all three subclasses, which will now look very familiar for those who have dabbled with the Stasis subclasses. Once live, Void players will have much more freedom to create their perfect Void subclass using the Aspects and Fragments system instead of being locked into the old diamond blocks. For those who are unaware, this mechanic was introduced in the Beyond Light expansion specifically for the Stasis subclasses and offers much more creative freedom.
Aspects are class-specific items that can be selected and offer additional actions players can perform within their elemental subclass. The most famous, and likely hated by non-Hunter users, is Shatterdive, a move that allowed Hunter players to smash the ground detonating any ice crystals in front of them. The Shatterdive ability has since been nerfed but caused a lot of trouble in PvP modes like the Crucible.
Fragments, on the other hand, are non-class specific that offer enhancements to gameplay. For now, Bungie hasn't detailed many of the fragments, but for Stasis classes, Fragments could offer a boost to a particular stat, as well as offering reduced damage when standing near a frozen enemy of friendly stasis crystal. The four Fragments already confirmed are:
- Echo of Expulsion - Giving a bonus to Intellect, equipping this fragment also causes enemies to explode after void ability kills.
- Echo of Provision - While this fragment gives a penalty to Strength, it grants melee energy after enemies are damaged by grenades.
- Echo of Domineering - After suppressing an enemy, the player's weapon is reloaded from reserves and Mobility is greatly increased for a short duration. This fragment also gives a bonus to discipline.
- Echo of Undermining - While also adding a penalty to discipline, void grenades gain the ability to weaken enemies.
Bungie's ultimate goal with this Void rework was to essentially modernize these classic light elements for the current sandbox. For Void specifically, Bungie envisions it to be related to space and gravity, so the studio has redesigned it, so players feel like they're using black holes to attack, suppress, and weaken. Not only that, for the first time, all three classes will have access to every void style grenade.
Titan Sentinel Changes
Through Void 3.0, both Ward of Dawn and Sentinel Shield supers have been separated. No longer do players lose super energy to the activation animation before the Ward of Dawn is created. Instead, Ward of Dawn is not only instantly activated, but it has one of the fastest recharge timers in the game. The instant activation for Ward of Dawn helps it become a reliable tool to mitigate damage, even as a reactionary measure.
In terms of Sentinel Shield, much of it remains the same as it was before the update. However, thrown shields not only damage enemies but also apply a new status called Volatile when the Controlled Demolition aspect is equipped. This causes the target to explode in a void detonation when a certain amount of damage is dealt to the target with this effect. Shield Bash grants a full overshield to the player as well.
The Titan can pick from the following Aspects:
- Controller Demolition - Hitting an enemy with a Void ability or volatile detonation splash damage will make them volatile.
- Bastion - Casting Barricade generates an overshield for the player as well as any nearby allies. For any allies bunkering behind the shield, they'll regenerate overshield over time and extend the duration.
- Offensive Bulwark - With an overshield or when inside the Ward of Dawn, grenades recharge significantly faster and melee damage is increased. The Sentinel Shield super gains an additional throw.
Hunter Nightstalker Changes
With the Void 3.0 update, Hunters become the true trapper stealth class Bungie originally envisioned them as, vanishing from a battle, disorienting an enemy, and generally causing mayhem. Moebius Quiver and Deadfall received additional tweaks to better differentiate the two Shadowshot supers. Moebius Quiver now fires volleys of three arrows that can track targets and apply volatile if they're tethered. With Deadfall, void anchors now pull enemies towards them, almost like a mini black hole effect.
The Snare bomb melee attack now weakens enemies, and in PvP, will cause an enemy player's HUD to disappear. The original screen obscure effect also remains for a short duration.
The Hunter can pick from the following Aspects:
- Trapper's Ambush - Similar to Shatterdive, activating Quickfall will use up a melee charge creating a smoke cloud on impact with the ground. Enemies caught in the cloud become weakened while allies go invisible. Snare bombs cause nearby allies to become invisible, after attaching to surfaces or enemies.
- Vanishing Step - Dodging makes the Hunter invisible.
- Stylish Executioner - Defeating a Void-debuffed target, such as weakened, suppressed, or volatile, the player gains invisibility and Truesight. While invisible, performing a stylish execution will make the next melee attack weaken enemies.
Warlock Voidwalker Changes
The Void changes really seemed to allow Bungie to tap into the more mystical side of the Warlock. While there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of changes to the Nova Warp super, Nova Bomb has a few new tricks Destiny 2 players can tap into. With Vortex Super enhancement, the Nova Bomb will pull enemies into a singularity, causing continued damage. Alternatively, the Cataclysm enhanced Nova Bomb can travel across maps, tracking enemies, and then detonating with smaller seeker projectiles. If players shoot at the Nova Bomb, it can detonate early.
The melee ability known as Pocket Singularity not only detonates when it nears an enemy, but the Void ball also pushes them back. Naturally, this is a great tool to gain some space from a rushing enemy or perhaps a shotgun user inside the Crucible.
The Warlock can pick from the following Aspects:
- Chaos Accelerant - Holding down the grenade button overcharges Vortex, Axion Bolt, Scatter, and Magnetic grenades. Overcharged magnetic grenades transform into a Handheld Supernova.
- Feed the Void - Devour activates after an enemy is defeated with Void abilities.
- Child of the Old Gods - This appears to be a favorite at the Bungie office as it has been featured in the recent Destiny 2: Witch Queen ViDoc and again in the Void Blog. When casting a rift, a Void Soul spawns to assist the player. When damaging enemies with a weapon, the Void Soul launches itself towards them and detonates. After dealing damage, the Void Soul attaches itself to the enemy, weakening them while also dealing damage. When it deals damage, it restores melee energy as well as grenade energy (for Healing Rift players) or health (for empowering rift players).
Destiny 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
