Super late with this post

TL;DR:

• Episode 1 Act 2 starts July 16
• Iron Banner will now be two weeks instead of one.
• Khvostov getting nerfs to recoil and ricochet rounds in PVP only.
• Red Death is getting Pulse Rifle recoil instead of AR recoil.
• Speaker's Helm is getting it's orb generation disabled in Crucible only till a more proper fix can be implemented.
  • For those who didn't play Trials the last two weeks this helmet combined with Khvostov was one of the most toxic things I've ever seen in PVP. Whole teams of warlocks throwing heal turrets every single round bouncing buffed ricochet rounds across my whole team.
• More PVP changes coming with the mid Episode patch.

TL;DR:

• Surges are getting removed from Raids and Dungeons next week and HP and damage values are being adjusted to compensate.
• GMs and Salvation's Edge go live June 25th.

I pretty much have one friend that still playing destiny and we normally do dungeons when they come out blind and stuff but this duo mission was great for us to do blind with really cool mechanics and being designed for two people to complete. If you don't know what mission I'm talking about it's for the exotic class item you have to do all 3 overthrow events in the pale heart and kill a boss that spawns after then there is large beam in sky. Bungie really cooked with this DLC I expected to play the story and then pretty much call a quits for destiny.

We can finally see the Raid weapons on light.gg so let's look at what they're packing.

Origin Trait: Collective Purpose - Gain bonus range and handling when near allies. Bows get better draw time. Swords get better charge rate. Stacks with more allies.

Critical Anomaly - Stasis Aggressive Sniper Rifle:

• First Column:
  • Reconstruction
  • Chill Clip
  • Rewind Rounds
  • Keep Away
  • Opening Shot
  • Quickdraw
• Second Column:
  • Bait and Switch
  • Headstone
  • Chaos Reshaped - Gains bonus damage that stacks the longer the wielder is in combat. Periodically heals the wielder.
  • Explosive Payload
  • Triple Tap
  • Firing Line
  • Snapshot Sights
• Combos:
  • PVE: Reconstruction/Rewind Rounds + Bait and Switch/Headstone/Triple Tap. Chill Clip Headstone.
  • PVP: Keep Away/Opening Shot + Snapshot
• Thoughts:
  • Chill Clip seems interesting if you combine it with headstone.
  • The new perk might be good but I think it's going to do better on primary weapons.
  • If snipers ever get good for DPS again this might be able to compete with Succession.

Imminence - Strand Lightweight SMG:

• First Column:
  • Demolitionist
  • Slice
  • Enlightened Action
  • Dynamic Sway reduction
  • Pugilist
  • Perpetual Motion
• Second Column:
  • Hatchling
  • Kill Clip
  • Chaos Reshaped
  • Target Lock
  • Desperate Measures
  • Firefly
  • Strategist.
• Combos:
  • PVE: Slice/Demolitionist/Pugilist + Hatchling/Kill Clip/Chaos Reshaped/Firefly
  • PVP: Slice/Enlightened Action/DSR/Perpetual Motion + Kill Clip/Target Lock
• Thoughts:
  • Get ready for another SMG in PVP.
  • Many ways to run this for PVE. I'm most interested in the new perk Chaos Reshaped to see how it performs.
  • I list hatchling on all the weapons that have it because of how it fits with Strand but I personally think it's a bad perk and needs a buff to be relevant.

Non-Denouement - Arc Precision Bow:

• First Column:
  • Archer's Tempo
  • Dragonfly
  • Opening Shot
  • Shoot to Loot
• Second Column:
  • Voltshot
  • Chaos Reshaped
  • Explosive Head
  • Desperate Gambit - Hipfire precision hits grant a massive draw speed bonus.
  • Moving Target.
• Combos:
  • PVE: Archer's Tempo + Volshot. Done. Maybe you could argue Dragonfly but why would you?
• Thoughts:
  • So they're just giving us legendary Trinity Ghoul?
  • Bows are annoying in PVP.

Forthcoming Deviance - Void Rapid Fire Glaive:

• First Column:
  • Reconstruction
  • Replenishing Aegis
  • Demolitionist
  • Grave Robber
• Second Column:
  • Chain Reaction
  • Chaos Reshaped
  • Destabilizing Rounds
  • Close to Melee
  • Desperate Measures
  • Vorpal
  • Unstoppable force
• Combos:
  • PVE: Any perk combo listed above. I'd personally go Reconstruction + Chain Reaction.
• Thoughts:
  • I find glaives to be really not fun to use. I guess this one gets rid of my biggest problem which is their piss poor reload by having nearly all reload bypass perks in the first column. I'm thinking chain reaction will help you keep the shield energized with AoE kills.

Nullify - Solar Heavy Burst Pulse Rifle:

• First Column:
  • Rapid Hit
  • Heal Clip
  • Subsistence
  • Demolitionist
  • Firefly
• Second Column:
  • Incandescent
  • Chaos Reshaped
  • Multikill Clip
  • Adrenaline Junkie
  • Vorpal
  • Desperate Measures.
• Combos:
  • PVE: Rapid Hit/Heal Clip/Subistence/Firefly + Incandescent/Chaos Reshaped.
  • PVP: Not really seeing much here.
• Thoughts:
  • Personally I'm going with Firefly + Incandescent. I got Adhorative last season which has my Heal Clip + Incandescent PR covered.

Summum Bonum - Arc Wave Frame Sword:

• First Column:
  • Tireless Blade
  • Relentless Strikes
  • Attrition Orbs
  • Unrelenting
  • Strategist
• Second Column:
  • Chaos Reshaped
  • Chain Reaction
  • Bait and Switch
  • Whirlwind Blade
  • Surrounded
  • One for All
  • Vorpal
• Combos:
  • PVE: Lots of options. I'm not really a sword guy so I don't know what to use in the first column but I'm sure as shit using Chain Reaction or Bait and Switch in the second column.

Covers what to expect with Episodes for the next year. D2 Codename: Frontiers is coming in 2025, no other details on what that is exactly.

Time to look at the new and returning weapons for ritual activities. I'm just going to mention the origin traits for each one along with the standout perks.

The Riposte - Void Lightweight Auto Rifle:

Source: Competitive Crucible

• First Column:
  • To the Pain
  • Killing Wind
  • Zen Moment
  • Enlightened Action
  • Tap the Trigger
  • Repulsor Brace
• Second Column:
  • Kill Clip
  • Encore
  • Desperate Measures
  • Dynamic Sway Reduction
  • Target Lock
  • Destabilizing Rounds
• Combos:
  • This is a PVP gun through and through and I don't think you can go wrong with any perks unless you get repulsor brace in the first column and not destabilizing in the second.
• Thoughts:
  • This is the first Lightweight AR we've ever gotten (?). Going to be real interesting to see how it shakes out as ARs are pretty hot right now in PVP. It has killer perks all around too.

Aisha's Care - Omolon Strand Heavy Burst Pulse Rifle:

Source: Trials

• First Column:
  • High Impact Reserves
  • To the Pain
  • Encore
  • Slice
  • Zen Moment
  • Keep Away
• Second Column:
  • Moving Target
  • Headseeker
  • Golden Tricorn
  • Desperado
  • Kill Clip
  • Hatchling
• Combos:
  • PVE: Slice/Keep Away + Hatchling/Kill Clip
  • PVP: Avoid Gutshot Straight in the First and Collective Action in the second.
• Thoughts:
  • Heavy burst pulse rifles are new this season so I'm interested to actually get one and see how they do.
  • This one looks like it has solid perks and leans more towards PVP than PVE which is a nice change for a Trials weapon.

Better Devils - Nadir Strand 140rpm HC:

Source: Crucible Engrams

• First Column:
  • Demolitionist
  • Enlightened Action
  • Slice
  • Perpetual Motion
  • Moving Target
  • Rangefinder
  • Rapid Hit
  • Reconstruction
• Second Column:
  • Adreneline Junkie
  • Elemental Capacitor
  • Frenzy
  • Hatchling
  • Zen Moment
  • Explosive Payload
  • Kill Clip
  • Opening Shot
  • One For Alll
• Combos:
  • PVE: Slice/Rapid Hit/Reconstruction + Frenzy/Hatchling/Explosive Payload/Kill Clip/OFA. Demo + AJ
  • PVP: EA/PM/MT/RF/RH + EC/ZM/EP/KC/OS
• Thoughts:
  • Another fan favorite returns. I never used this thing in the past but I'm sure it coming back as Strand is a big deal. The other Strand 140 we have is from Season of the Witch and it doesn't really have PVE perks.
  • Lots of perk combos to choose from and since this is one of those guns with 12 perks per column you'll probably want to wait to farm them till you reset your Crucible rank if that's your thing.

Crimil's Dagger - Hakke Kinetic 120rpm HC:

Source: Iron Banner

• First Column:
  • Outlaw
  • Moving Target
  • Slideways
  • Enlightened Action
• Second Column:
  • Adagio
  • Opening Shot
  • Zen Moment
  • Explosive Payload
  • Kill Clip
• Combos:
  • Take your pick of the above perks. They'll all work okay together in PVP.
• Thoughts:
  • This one looks like a PVP only gun IMO. Lots of good combos to choose from. Adagio might be disgusting if you can keep it proc'd

Claws of the Wolf - Void Rapid Fire Scout:

Source: Iron Banner

• First Column:
  • Perpetual Motion
  • Elemental Capacitor
  • To the Pain
  • Repulsor Brace
  • Headseeker
• Second Column:
  • Zen Moment
  • Destabilizing Rounds
  • Kill Clip
  • Rampage
• Combos:
  • PVE: Repulsor + Destabilizing. Perpetual Motion + KC/Rampage
• PVP: Anything but Repulsor + Destabilizing
• Thoughts:
  • Didn't get a good Aisha's Embrace from Trials? Saladin has you covered.
  • Again scouts are in a weird spot but Rapid Fires tend to perform well in PVP.
  • Can be used to stun champs in PVE.

Shayura's Wrath - Nadir Void Precision SMG:

Source: Trials

• First Column:
  • Strategist
  • Zen Moment
  • Killing Wind
  • Dynamic Sway Reduction
  • Repulsor Brace
• Second Column:
  • Target Lock
  • Harmony
  • Cascade Point
  • Destabilizing Rounds
  • Kill Clip
  • Tap the Trigger
• Combos:
  • PVE: Repulsor + Destabilizing is probably the standout.
  • PVP: So many options. Just stick away from Keep Away and High Impact Reserves.
• Thoughts:
  • This gun goes hard in PVP and is kind of slept on since it left the rotation. I don't believe it had Target Lock before so that's obviously going to be really good.
  • Don't sleep on Harmony or Cascade Point. Pair this weapon with Eye of Sol or another gun that nabs easy kills in the first column. Swap to Shayura's after a kill with that gun. Then melt anyone who tries to challenge you.

A Few other guns returning with unchanged perk pools or nothing worth noting:

• Eye of Sol - Trials
• Steady Hand - IB

Let's take a look at the returning Saint-14 weapons from Season of the Dawn. These weapons are NOT craftable and can be rolled from the war table using Echoes Engrams. Again, I'm only listing perks I think are worth it.

Origin Trait: Cast no Shadows - Dealing melee damage increases weapon handling and loads a small amount of ammo to the mag.

Patron of Lost Causes - Kinetic Lightweight Scout Rifle:

• First Column:
  • To the Pain
  • Stats for All
  • Strategist
  • Rapid Hit
  • Triple Tap
• Second Column:
  • Precision Instrument
  • Kinetic Tremors
  • Vorpal
  • Explosive Payload
• Combos:
  • PVE: Stats For All/Rapid Hit + Kinetic Tremors/Precision Instrument/Vorpal
  • PVP: To The Pain/Rapid Hit + Explosive Payload
• Thoughts:
  • Scouts are still in a weird spot in both parts of the game. In PVE I basically see them as champion stunning tools and in PVE I'm not taking this over my Hung Jury.
  • PVP might have some more use for this as Lightweights tend to do better there especially with explosive payload.

Perfect Paradox - Kinetic Rapid Fire Shotgun:

• First Column:
  • Threat Remover
  • Pugilist
  • Slideshot
  • Threat Detector
• Second Column:
  • One Two Punch
  • Vorpal
  • Opening Shot
  • Swashbuckler
  • Trench Barrel
• Combos:
  • PVE: Anything except Slideshot + Opening Shot
  • PVP: Slideshot + Opening Shot/One Two Punch
• Thoughts:
  • One of the best shotguns in the game is back, although I feel like shotguns have changed a lot since this was in its prime and it might be not great now.
  • Lots of good PVE combos to choose from. I'm particularly interested in Threat Remover + Trench Barrel.
  • IDK if I would use this in PVP but it has the one combo for that if you're interested.

Breachlight - Strand Heavy Burst Sidearm:

• First Column:
  • Slice
  • Threat Detector
  • Perpetual Motion
  • Pugilist
  • Demolitionist
• Second Column:
  • Hatchling
  • Vorpal
  • Swashbuckler
  • Adrenaline Junkie
  • Desperate Measures
• Combos:
  • PVE: Lots of good combos. Slice + Hatchling if you want to lean hard into Strand.
  • PVP: Probably Threat Detector + Swashbuckler/AJ/Desperate Measures.
• Thoughts:
  • Another banger of a weapon from that season returns. We also haven't gotten a Heavy Burst sidearm in a while. It coming back a strand is a huge boon too.
  • Definitely farm for this one. I'm probably looking for Slice + Hatchling.

Martyr's Retribution - Solar Wave Frame GL:

• First Column:
  • Envious Assassin
  • Auto Loading Holster
  • Heal Clip
  • Demolitionist
  • Field Prep
• Second Column:
  • Vorpal
  • Incandescent
  • Desperate Measures
  • Strategist
  • Kill Clip
• Combos:
  • This looks mostly like a PVE gun and there are so many options.
• Thoughts:
  • This thing is absolutely stacked with good perks. I'm probably looking for Envious Assassin/Auto Loading Holster + Incandescent for maximum add clear. I could see an argument for Heal Clip but I think I'd personally rather have that on a primary ammo gun.

Line In the Sand - Arc Precision LRF:

• First Column:
  • Clown Cartridge
  • Demolitionist
  • Rapid Hit
• Second Column:
  • Bait and Switch
  • Firing Line
• Combos:
  • This is a hard PVE gun with some obvious combos.
• Thoughts:
  • LFRs probably will never be as good as they once were. This one has some good combos. Take your pick between Bait and Switch or Firing Line depending on how much you want to micromanage your DPS. I think Demolitionist will get you the most out of a DPS phase too but the others aren't terrible.

Salvations Edge has been cleared and a new 12 man activity is available to launch on the Pale Heart. You must have completed the campaign and the Wild Card mission to launch it.