As Season 21 of Destiny 2 approaches, Bungie has revealed its plans to revamp Exotic armor pieces that have been underused and nerf those that have become too powerful. One of the most significant changes will be made to the Warlock Exotic, Starfire Protocol, which has been a popular choice for those who enjoy using explosive strategies.
Changes to Starfire Protocol
Starfire Protocol is one of the best single-target damage-boosting Exotics in the game and, according to Bungie, has been strong for a long time. However, it is also responsible for spam grenades. To address this issue, Bungie will decrease the amount of energy gained from every instance of damage from 20% to 2.5%, and Empowered weapon kills will grant 20% grenade energy when Season 21 begins.
“In making these changes, we didn’t want to completely rob the Exotic of its benefits,” said Bungie. “But right now, Starfire Protocol is sucking all of the air out of the room.”
Buffed Armor Pieces for Warlock, Hunter, and Titan
Several other Warlock Exotics will receive buffs next season. Mantle of Battle Harmony will do more damage if the right conditions are met, Daybreak’s projectile damage bonus is being increased when using Dawn Chorus, and Chromatic Fire will create explosions that apply status effects to enemies.
For Hunters, Oathkeeper will get an interesting overhaul that emphasizes aggressive combat bow gameplay, and Radiant Dance Machines will gain a time extension on kills that pairs very well with Marksman’s Dodge, the Reaper armor mod, and the new Powerful Attraction mod that will allow players to collect Orbs of Power at a distance. Stomp-EE5 will have its airborne effectiveness penalties removed and will now function as a situational power fantasy Exotic with increased speed, slide distance, and improved jumping if you have full class ability charge.
As for Titans, their Exotics range between harder-hitting armor pieces and complete reworks. Point-Cannon Contact Brace, which was introduced last year, proved to be one of the more underwhelming power fantasy Exotics for Titans who enjoy using their Arc subclass. This Exotic will pack more of a punch next season, as its damage is being quadrupled and lightning strikes will Jolt targets.
Eternal Warrior is getting a big redesign, as this legacy Exotic will grant an escalating bonus to Arc weapon damage after achieving a rapid takedown, and has several other perks as well. No Backup Plans has been overhauled entirely as well and will provide a moderate benefit to the airborne effectiveness and reload speed of shotguns. Using a Void subclass offers several other benefits, including additional shotgun damage and Void overshields when you defeat powerful enemies.
Full List of Changes
For a more comprehensive breakdown of all the changes coming to 24 Exotic armor pieces in Season 21, take a look at the list below:
Hunter
- Sealed Ahamkara Grasps
- Athrys’s Embrace
- Oathkeeper
- Raiju’s Harness
- Radiant Dance Machines
- Stomp-EE5
- Mask of Bakris
Titan
- Point-Cannon Contact Brace
- No Backup Plans
- Second Chance
- Stronghold
- Eternal Warrior
- Khepri’s Horn
- Path of the Burning Steps
- Dunemarchers
Warlock
- Vesper of Radius
- Chromatic Fire
- Dawn Chorus
- Sanguine Alchemy
Destiny 2 Season 21 will see numerous changes and additions to the game, making it an exciting time for players.
