'Destiny 2' Update 2.2.2 (1.35) Nerfs Spectral Blades & Fixes Bugs - Patch Notes

Destiny 2 update 2.2.2 has just released as version 1.35 on PS4. While the patch doesn't feature much in terms of content, it resolves a few critical balance issues Guardians have been asking for with regard to the Spectral Blades. Read the full patch notes below courtesy of a Bungie blog post.

Destiny 2 Update 2.2.2 (1.35) Patch Notes

Sandbox

Hunter

• Spectral Blades
  • Out-of-stealth damage reduction decreased from 60 percent to 52 percent
  • In-stealth damage reduction decreased from 62 percent to 54.4 percent
  • Super duration out of stealth with no attacking decreased from 17.5 to 14.5 seconds
  • Super duration in stealth with no attacking decreased from 26.6 to 23.5 seconds
  • Light melee cost increased by 50 percent
• Arcstrider
  • Fixed an issue in which Combination Blow was unintentionally magnifying damage of the Arc Staff Super

Warlock

• Voidwalker
  • Fixed an issue where Warlocks were unable to Blink after going through a teleportation portal
• Stormcaller
  • Fixed an issue where Chaos Reach would not deal damage to enemies affected by other status effects (such as Thorn's Soul Devourer or Hunter Tethers)

Weapons and Armor

• Fixed an issue where Actium War Rig would prevent Auto Rifles with the Grave Robber perk from being able to generate Masterwork orbs
• Fixed an issue where Vestian Dynasty could not be Masterworked
• The Wizened Rebuke can now drop with random rolls from Iron Banner engrams and Match Rewards once the associated Triumph has been completed
• Removing Sentry armor with Umbral Strike stacks active will no longer give a permanent damage buff against Taken (note that while the buff string does not clean up, the damage modifier properly clears when removing the armor; the string cleanup will be fixed in a later patch)

Investment

Lore

• Fixed an issue where Dreaming City lore was not being awarded when completing an Ascendant Challenge

Bounties

• Fixed an issue where the "Collect Vex Samples" objective of the Xûr bounty "The Tower" could not be completed in the Warden of Nothing strike
• Fixed an issue with the Gambit Prime bounty "Sentries Hold the Line" where all boss enemies were unintentionally contributing toward bounty progress
  • The bounty has been re-balanced to award significantly more bounty progress for Blocker and Primeval kills

Triumphs

• Lowered the Verdant Light: Competitive Triumph to require only 20 Revelry Orbs
  • Players who earned 20 orbs during the Revelry event will have their Triumph completed retroactively
  • If players completed all other Triumphs, the "Party Harder" Triumph will also be completed and grant the emblem reward

Medals

• Fixed an issue where Massacre and Locksmith medals were not appearing in Gambit Prime

Iron Banner

• Fixed an issue where the Iron Ruby shader was not dropping
  • This shader now drops when dismantling Iron Banner gear

Eververse

• Fixed an issue where Legendary Eververse Ghost Shells were dropping with only Mercury perks
• Fixed an issue where the "Good Doggo" emote was dropping from unintended sources

The biggest change for today's update is probably the Sandbox rebalance of the Spectral Blades. Under the new system, its damage reduction and Super duration have been drastically reduced to make the Hunter Super a bit less potent than before. In short, Guardians were able to take too little damage for too long while the roaming ability was in play. Painting with broad strokes, the goal of these changes is to ensure use of the Spectral Blades remains thoughtful instead of being a guaranteed spam. Stealth on its own is beneficial enough, so Bungie wants players to use it wisely.

Beyond that singular rework, the changes listed above are fairly minor. With the Revelry coming to a close, it's good to see rewards-focused bugs being patched out. The same goes for lingering issues with Dreaming City lore and Ascendant Challenges. Season of the Drifter is officially over, so today's update mostly servers to tie up a few loose ends before the next major content drop hits this summer. The third Annual Pass season, called Penumbra, features a new six-player activity, a Raid and more. We'll likely learn more about it heading into E3 in June.

Destiny 2 is available now on PS4, Xbox One and PC. The 2.2.2 update is rolling out on all platforms.

What are your thoughts on the latest update for Destiny 2? Are you happy with the Spectral Blades nerf? Tell us in the comments section!