Destiny 2has spent considerable time during Year 5 overhauling its subclasses to version 3.0 to closely resemble the structure of the Darkness subclass Stasis, first introduced inBeyond Light. With the release ofThe Witch Queenand the first three Year 5 Seasons out of four, all three Light subclasses were changed to match the new Aspects and Fragments system that replaces the 2.0 branching skill trees. However, new debuffs to Hunter’s Solar abilities inDestiny 2may hinder its power in end-game content.
Bungie explained this decision to rework the subclass abilities in its weekly blog post just before Season 19, detailing its intent to normalize the power of the subclasses to provide a more standard baseline that can be used for future tuning. They further explained that this would affect the outliers on the high and low end of the subclasses, including Stasis. Season 19 has already seen reworks to the game, especially inDestiny 2’sCrucible’s PvP, which seems to fuel some subclass changes.
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Solar Hunters Before Season of the Seraph
Before Season of the Seraph, Gunslinger Hunters saw powerful Supers through Golden Gun Deadshot, Golden Gun Marksman, and Blade Barrage, which enhanced different play styles for Hunters through offensive or defensive strategies. While these Supers allowed for powerful attacks, the new Aspect and Fragment system, particularly the Aspect Knock ‘Em Down, allowed for furtherenhancements to the Supers.
Hunters also had theKnock ‘Em Down Aspectin their arsenal, which saw Solar Supers enhanced. For example, with Knock ‘Em Down equipped, Hunter Gunslingers saw Golden Gun Deadshot with damage resistance. Knock ‘Em Down also increased the duration of Golden Gun Marksman while adding more projectiles to Blade Barrage. Finally, the Aspect fully refunded melee energy from final blows with equipped Throwing Knife.
Solar Hunter Debuffs in Season 19
Changes come to Knock ‘Em Down, where its benefits to Gunslingers were overloaded. Bungie explains that with Knock ‘Em Down, the overlap between Deadshot and Marksman Golden Gun muddles the identities of the abilities. To achieve this separation of identities, Bungie wantsGolden GunDeadshot to apply to Hunters ready to enter the fray. In contrast, Marksman is aimed at calmer sharpshooters waiting for the perfect shot.
Blade Barrage, especially coupled with Knock ‘Em Down, has also been evaluated as pushing too far above the power threshold and will receive a bonus knife reduction from 5 to 3 per wave. While these changes have affected players and their builds, the trade-off is thatSolar Huntersfeel a bit less potent to Guardians, especially in end-game content for PvE. While PvP seems to have motivated some of these changes, the lasting effects could cause many players to feel that Solar Hunters have been reduced to their 2.0 state.
Destiny 2is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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