I just read a really interesting article on Game Empress about some big changes coming to Destiny 2’s Season 2! Bungie is doing a lot of combat tuning, tweaking things for Sentinels, and even having a special week for open play. If you want to stay up-to-date on all things gaming, Game Empress is a great place to check out – you can find them at gameempress.com.
Bungie has detailed the upcoming combat improvements for Marathon Season 2, which includes adjustments to weapons, modifications, gear, a new Sentinel Runner armor shell, implant updates, and overall gameplay changes. These updates will go live on June 2, alongside a free play week on Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S from June 2nd to June 9th.
This isn’t just a small adjustment to weapon stats. Bungie describes the Season 2 update as a complete overhaul designed to make combat in Marathon clearer, more impactful, and require more strategic thinking – affecting everything from how players customize their gear to how they engage in battles on Tau Ceti.
Season 2 Is Built Around Clearer Combat and Stronger Loadout Identity
Bungie’s main focus for Season 2 is making things easier to understand. They want weapons to clearly show what they’re best at, and for players to be rewarded for making thoughtful choices in how they build their character. They also aim to make more of your equipped gear feel important during gameplay.
This design approach is evident throughout the upcoming season. Weapons are being adjusted to excel at specific distances, implants have been renamed for clarity, and the Signal Jammer has been balanced to be less powerful during combat. New items like Darksight Scopes and Vector Rounds add more strategic options to how players build their loadouts. Season 2 isn’t about making the game more complicated; it’s about making every choice you make feel more impactful.
New Weapons: KKV-9SD and D54 Battle Pistol
KKV-9SD
The KKV-9SD is a submachine gun designed like a pistol, featuring a built-in silencer and the highest rate of fire of any weapon in the game so far. It excels in close-quarters fights and is particularly effective against players who aggressively charge in with shotguns. It uses modifications designed for pistols, including optics, magazines, and special chips.
This weapon’s special ability is called Flechette Drum. It keeps you fighting by restoring your health each time you destroy an enemy’s shield, which perfectly complements its fast-paced, offensive style of gameplay.
D54 Battle Pistol
The D54 Battle Pistol is a fully automatic handgun that fires in three-round bursts. It’s designed for quick, one-on-one fights and works well when used alongside powerful weapons like snipers or shotguns. Bungie, the game developer, highlights its effectiveness in these situations and as a fast weapon to switch to during combat.
The weapon’s special ability is called Daredevil Stock, and it’s a new type of modification. When the stock is folded, defeating enemies builds up to two charges. Extending the stock then uses those charges to unleash a powerful, nine-round burst of fire. This encourages players to be aware of their surroundings and time their shots effectively, rather than just relying on weapon stats.
Misriah 2442, Overrun, and CE Tactical Sidearm: Key Tuning Breakdowns
Misriah 2442
In Season 1, the Misriah 2442 was a very powerful weapon. Instead of simply reducing its damage, Bungie is changing how it works: they’re removing the extra rate-of-fire boost from all Slick Mag attachments. To make up for this, the weapon’s base fire rate is being increased. The result is that while the Misriah 2442 will still fire faster, it won’t be able to reach the extremely high fire rates that were previously possible with certain builds.
| Change | Detail |
|---|---|
| Hip-fire pellet spread | +10% |
| ADS pellet spread | +5% |
| Base rate of fire | 58 RPM → 72 RPM |
| Base damage falloff start | 11m → 10m |
| Max damage falloff start | 15m → 16m |
| Magazine stat | Rebased so every mag gives at least +1 round |
| Base/max magazine size | Unchanged (4 / 10) |
Adjusting the spread helps the Misriah perform as originally designed, keeping it effective at close and medium ranges without significantly reducing its overall power.
Full-Auto Selector Prestige Mod
Bungie is updating the Full-Auto Selector perk, which previously limited how players used the Misriah’s weapon. The changes will make players choose between quickly firing from the hip and using the aiming-down-sights mode, creating a more engaging playstyle.
| Mode | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Hip-fire | Full auto, +10% pellet spread, significantly higher stability |
| ADS | Higher range, tighter pellet spread, no full-auto |
The weapon’s firing speed has been reduced from 150 rounds per minute to 90, but this is balanced out by improvements to aiming. It now aims 50% faster and with 50% better accuracy. This change is designed to encourage players to quickly switch between shooting from the hip and using the sights, depending on how close the enemy is and how much pressure they’re under.
Overrun
The Overrun weapon had a strong kickback, making the cheaper versions feel difficult to control for players using less expensive setups.
| Stat | Change |
|---|---|
| Horizontal recoil | Reduced by ~50% |
| Vertical recoil | Reduced by ~12% |
High-Rarity Overrun is already successful, so this update focuses on making the Standard and Enhanced versions useful in cheaper, sponsored kits and for players looking to save money.
CE Tactical Sidearm
The CE Tactical Sidearm isn’t performing well, so it’s getting a significant overhaul in Season 2. Even with all its attachments, players haven’t been choosing it.
| Area | Change |
|---|---|
| Recoil settle speed | +15% |
| ADS accuracy error multiplier | Reduced by ~50% |
| Aim assist falloff distances | Min and max both increased |
| Magnetism falloff distances | Min and max both increased |
| Aim assist cone | +33% at base stat, +16% at max stat |
| Moving accuracy | Reduced at minimum stat; increased at maximum stat |
| Crouch accuracy | Max crouch accuracy bonus reduced |
As a fan, what I’m really hoping for is that they make this weapon easier to use and more fun to build a character around. Basically, they want it to be a strong contender at the distances it’s meant to excel at – a real threat when used right!
Mods and Chips: A Major Buildcrafting Shake-Up
In Season 2, we’re introducing two new types of weapon attachments (mods) and eight new chip variations. Plus, we’ve adjusted the balance of all magazine and optic mods to improve gameplay.
New Mod Family: Folding Stocks
New folding stocks are now available for the KKV-9SD and D54 Battle Pistol. When folded, these stocks improve your accuracy and speed while firing from the hip. Players can quickly open or close the stock using a button press, switching between better hip-fire control and improved accuracy and range when aiming down sights. This creates a dynamic choice during combat, letting you adapt to the situation rather than just changing a static stat.
New Optic Archetype: Darksight Scopes
Darksight Scopes are a new type of sight available in the Night Marsh area. Each weapon type will have its own Darksight Scope in two quality levels: Deluxe and Superior. When you aim with these scopes, the screen darkens around the edges, like when using a sniper scope. You can also activate a night-vision effect to brighten the area around you. The higher-quality Superior scopes offer a wider and longer-reaching night-vision effect.
Chip Rotations
| Chip Family | Status |
|---|---|
| Stack Overflow | Removed from Season 2 loot pool |
| Optimal Prime | Removed from Season 2 loot pool |
Bungie explained that Optimal Prime wasn’t working consistently well and didn’t quite find its place as a tool for building things within the game.
New Chip Families (Selected Examples)
| Chip | Rarity | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Alarmist | All rarities | After ADS for a short duration, projectile impacts generate a scan drone alert |
| Scrapyard | All rarities | Defeating hostiles can drop depleted health items or standard materials |
| Brain Freeze | Superior only | Precision downs or kills trigger a Frost-spreading explosion |
Bounty Hunter Updates
| Rarity | Previous Credits | Updated Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 10 | 25 |
| Enhanced | 15 | 50 |
| Deluxe | 20 | 75 |
| Superior | 25 | 100 |
Bungie resolved an issue where players weren’t receiving credits for destroying UESC scan drones while playing as the Bounty Hunter class.
Cloudborn Redesign
The old version of Cloudborn had a tendency to give players too many bullets when reloading while in smoke. The new version does away with that system and instead provides steady, reliable benefits like improved stability, accuracy, handling, and movement speed while you’re in smoke. This makes for a more consistent and predictable experience.
Vector Rounds
Each family will receive one high-quality magazine mod that automatically includes Vector Rounds. After aiming down sights for a brief period, any bullet impact will create a pulse that briefly reveals enemies nearby – functioning similarly to Darksight. This provides a way to track targets without using up a valuable optic slot, giving players more options when customizing their loadouts.
Equipment Changes: Grenade Nerfs, Signal Jammer, and New Tools
General Grenade Timing
We’ve added a short delay to how quickly you can throw grenades. While the throw itself remains the same once you release the grenade, the animation before throwing has been slightly lengthened, making it harder to throw them rapidly one after another.
Frag and Heat Grenade Nerfs
| Grenade | Stat | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Frag Grenade | Max damage | 135 → 115 (−15%) |
| Heat Grenade | Damage | 40 → 20 (−50%) |
Signal Jammer
In the first season, Signal Jammer automatically weakened tools designed to detect enemy activity, like Early Warning and Vital Intel. Now, in Season 2, it’s only helpful in certain situations, instead of being powerful all the time.
- Jamming now flickers off when the player shoots, uses abilities, takes damage, or performs actions
- No longer blocks Early Warning System detection
- No longer blocks Vital Intel detection
It’s still useful for staying hidden and moving around, but it’s not very effective in a direct fight. This creates opportunities for other types of technology to become more important.
New Equipment
The Frost Mine is a placeable trap, similar to a Claymore. When enemies get close, it explodes, dealing damage in a circular area and slowing them with the Frost effect.
The Vector Grenade is a tool focused on gathering information. When it explodes, it sends out waves that briefly reveal enemies and areas over a wide range. Bungie suggests it’s especially useful in the Night Marsh environment.
Signal Flares come in red, green, and blue and are used to create light, not inflict damage. The developers at Bungie designed them as a way for players to communicate and coordinate with each other without needing to talk.
Sentinel: Defensive Area Control Comes to Marathon
In Season 2, players will meet Sentinel, a new Runner character focused on using traps and controlling areas to maintain a strong defense.
Sentinel Abilities
| Ability | Type | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Defender System | Prime Ability | Deploys a defensive platform that neutralizes incoming explosives with a limited number of projectiles; nearby allies gain weapon stability and reload speed |
| Snare Mine | Tactical Ability | A proximity mine that detonates into Immobilizing submunitions |
| Prey Tracker | Trait Ability | Activates motion tracking that reveals moving enemies in a cone on the HUD |
| Castle Doctrine | Passive | Readies and reloads SMGs, Pistols, and Shotguns faster based on nearby hostiles; splash damage temporarily boosts Hardware, Firewall, and Self-Repair Speed |
Sentinel expands Marathon’s defensive options, specifically designed to stop opponents who rely on quick attacks, shotgun plays, and constant movement.
Sentinel-Specific Runner Cores
Sentinel ships with 10 Sentinel-specific Runner cores. Three examples:
| Core | Rarity | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Reversal | Enhanced | Defeating an Immobilized target heals the player over time |
| Wellness Beacon | Deluxe | Standing near Defender System accelerates medical item use for the player and allies |
| Eminent Domain | Prestige | Grenades neutralized by Defender System fall as lootable items |
Implants Are Being Reworked for Better Readability
In the first season, item names showed ability scores, and details about special benefits were hidden in smaller text boxes. The second season changes this, making the benefits the main focus and moving the scores to a less prominent place.
| Change | Detail |
|---|---|
| Primary identity | Each implant now grants one fixed, named perk |
| Item naming | The perk name is reflected directly in the item name |
| Stat packages | Each implant carries a fixed stat package |
| Existing perks | Season 1 perks remain collectible |
| New perks | Eight new implant perks added |
Okay, so they’re adding some cool new perks, and I’m really digging one called “Going Dark.” Basically, when I use a healing item, I turn invisible! It’s a pretty awesome way to play. Bungie said things like Tox Injectors and the Triage Cloaking Device will help you instantly understand what a perk does just by looking at its icon. They’re working on making those icons even clearer next, which is great because it’ll be way easier to build a loadout when you can quickly see what everything does.
Runner Shell Quality-of-Life and Ability Balance
In addition to the Sentinel update, Bungie is making general improvements to how players move and interact with the game. These include better mantle grabbing, more fluid movement, reduced lag, and fixes to ensure loot boxes always spawn in reachable areas.
A recent update adjusts how quickly abilities recharge. Specifically, the “Prime” and “Tactical Recovery” stats won’t speed up cooldowns as much when fully maximized. Bungie made this change to ensure players still have opportunities to react and counter each other in intense fights, as abilities were previously becoming too readily available.
Marathon Season 2 Open Play Week: June 2–9
The second season of Marathon starts on June 2nd. From June 2nd to June 9th, players can participate in Open Play Week on Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
Bungie hasn’t published the complete patch notes yet. They’ll be released when Season 2 begins. This preview only highlights the most important changes – the final patch notes may include additional adjustments to weapons, mods, and gear.
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2026-05-30 04:03