Destiny 2 Releases Another Major Update for December 2024

Summary

• Update 8.1.5.2 for Destiny 2 fixes many remaining bugs and buffs tonics.
• Legendary Tonics now guarantee their drop, while all rarity tonics have increased durations.
• The recent Titan Sentinel Shield melee damage bug has also finally been fixed.

Bungie releases update 8.1.5.2 for Destiny 2, continuing to address numerous issues with the game, while making quality of life improvements to features like tonics. So far, Episode Revenant and The Dawning have not gone the way many Destiny 2 fans have expected, with big issues continually plaguing the experience for players.

Episode Revenant has largely been defined by major issues, some being discovered by players like a weapon perk weighting problem for Vesper’s Host drops. Even the holiday seasonal event, The Dawning, has experienced its own fair share of issues, including exotics not working correctly, the Destiny 2 Event Card being listed for free for a short time, and even the new linear fusion rifle being unable to be focused. It’s been a rough stretch for players, though Bungie continues to chip away at these issues with another new update.

Update 8.1.5.2 is now live for Destiny 2, continuing to address the numerous bugs still impacting the experience. While it continued to fix bugs associated with activities like Tomb of Elders, Vesper’s Host, and others, the Titan’s Sentinel Shield bug in Destiny 2 has also been addressed. Previously, melee hits had their damage multiplied, which has now been fixed. However, Bungie did increase its PvE damage to non-Champions by 44%, and champion damage by 15%. Not only that, Spectral Blades have also been buffed again, with a 66% increase to non-Champion damage, and another 30% for damage against Champion enemies.

In addition to bug fixes, Bungie is providing some much-needed buffs to the tonics system of Episode Revenant. According to the patch notes, Legendary Tonics now 100% drop the associated reward, while increasing the chances of obtaining specific gear for the activity they’re for. Tonics have also had their base duration increased, as Uncommon is now active for 40 minutes, Rare at 60, and Legendary to 80.

While the update should help improve things, Bungie is also giving fans a heads-up of what’s coming alongside Act 3. Without a livestream to showcase the new content, Bungie confirmed in its final blog of 2024 that a few Destiny 2 exotics are being adjusted in January. Specifically, the popular Graviton Lance pulse rifle is seeing some nerfs as it is currently dominating lower and middle skill lobbies.

Destiny 2 Update 8.1.5.2 Patch Notes

Seasonal

Tomb of Elders

• Fixed an issue where players could join Contest of Elders after the final encounter had been completed.
• Fixed an issue where one of the bonus chests during Contest of Elders would only reward Glimmer.
• Fixed an issue where sometimes only five out of six explosive tanks would spawn during the Spider Tank encounter, resulting in a soft lock.

Onslaught: Salvation

• Reduced the number of visual and sound effects in Cabal boss rooms.

Vanguard Ops

• Fixed an issue where the Inverted Spire strike was disabled in the playlist.

Lost Sectors

• Fixed an issue where weapons would not drop on certain days.

Raid and Dungeons

Crota’s End

• Fixed an issue where the Master version of Crota’s End was not saving player checkpoints.

Salvation’s Edge

• Fixed an issue where the Master version of Salvation’s Edge was not saving player checkpoints.

Vesper’s Host

• Fixed an issue where the nuclear core could get stuck under the floor in the final encounter.
• Fixed an issue where player’s Ghost could get stuck in a bad location when traversing between the second and third encounters.

Gameplay and Investment

Revenant Tonics

• Legendary Tonics now 100% guarantee their specific reward.
• Legendary Tonics now increase the chances of obtaining the specified gear from the activity they are made for.
  • For instance, Tonic of Vangate Point (Onslaught) will increase the chances of that weapon dropping from Onslaught: Salvation chests.
• Increased the base duration of Tonics across the board.
  • Uncommon: 40 minutes
  • Rare: 60 minutes
  • Legendary: 80 minutes

Exotic Armor

Hunter

• Fixed an issue where Knucklehead Radar was applying its target marking players instantly on hits.
  • It should now only mark players only when breaking their shield.
  • Functionality remains the same against combatants.

Weapons

Weapon perks

• High Ground
  • Damage bonus against players has been fixed. Perk has been reenabled.
  • Increased the height differential required to activate High Ground’s damage bonus against players by 150% when using a Primary ammo weapon.
    • Let Bygones be Bygones…

Weapon crafting

• Fixed an issue where trying to craft a Garden of Salvation weapon without its pattern unlocked would show an incorrect dialog.

Abilities

Titan

• Sentinel Shield
  • Fixed a bug that was unintentionally multiplying Sentinel Shield damage.
  • Increased non-Champion PvE-combatant damage by 44%.
  • Increased Champion PvE-combatant damage by 15%.

Hunter

• Spectral Blades
  • Increased non-Champion PvE combatant damage by 66%.
  • Increased Champion PvE combatant damage by 30%.

Power and Progression

• Fixed an issue where the requirements for Guardian Rank 6 didn’t have the proper descriptions.

General

• Corrected an issue that prevented Warlocks from purchasing the Lucent Night Bundle in the Eververse.
• Updated Street Fighter finisher bundle inventory check to avoid instances of items being sent to the Postmaster.