While most Destiny players have September 15th circled in bold red sharpie on their calendars, what with that being The Taken King’s launch date and all, plenty have their sights set on the 8th. That day, for those who might not know, is when Destiny will launch update 2.0 and usher Bungie’s MMO/FPS into year 2.

Although Bungie has detailed many of the major changes with Update 2.0, especially how they pertain to weapon balancing, there is still some mystery surrounding what will change on the 8th and what will change on the 15th. Luckily, Bungie’s Weekly Update has arrived to provide further clarity. First and foremost, Update 2.0 will deliver all of the previously noted weapon changes. Those include a nerf for Gjallarhorn’s Wolfpack Rounds, a buff for Auto Rifles, and a range decrease for shotgun effectiveness, among other things. Any interested in knowing more about the weapon changes in update 2.0 should read the full patch notes here.

Alongside the weapon changes, update 2.0 will also eliminate light-based leveling and switch to the new experience-based leveling system. So players who have yet to hit the cap of level 34 will be able to do so purely by playing the game. That also means that armor and weapons will carry new attack and defense ratings, meant to reflect the changes in The Taken King. However, the attack and defense power for these Year 1 weapons will not change.

Update 2.0 will also add the new quest menu system, which should help Destiny players better keep track of their bounties and in-game missions. Since The Taken King reportedly adds a ton of new activities, Bungie wanted to better organize the system, but this change also applies to Year 1 activities as well.

Players who are hoping to stock up on bounties for day 1 of The Taken King should know that any incomplete bounties will be abandoned on the 8th. Eris’s bounties will also be taken out of rotation, in favor of new Crota’s Bane reputation gains. The big change, though, is that any incomplete exotic bounties will auto-complete with their vendors, meaning any legwork for those exotics is unnecessary for the next five days.

Other points of note for the update include the addition of the exotic blueprint system, the emblem/shader collection, the changeover to Legendary Marks as a unified currency, all class armor materials will become universal armor materials, and old materials can be exchanged for armor materials.

Overall, update 2.0 seems poised to have a major impact on the world of Destiny, from the way quests are completed to player’s weapon choices in PvE and PvP. It’s no wonder the update is upwards of 18GB; this is where Bungie makes a statement for how they want Destiny to look like in Year 2.

Destiny Update 2.0 Patch Notes

Character

  • Character Level Cap for all players will be raised to 34
    • Level Cap for The Taken King will be 40
    • You will be able to level up by gaining XP alone
    • Character Level and Light are now separate statistics
    • Your Character Level will be grandfathered into your highest possible Light Level from all gear in your inventory and vault
  • Attack and Defense ratings for armor and weapons will be translated to the new systems - their power levels will be unchanged
  • Grimoire Score has been moved from the Character Nameplate and now displays in the Character Screen

Quests

  • A Quest Screen will be added to your Menu
  • Tracks all active Quests
  • Abandoned Quests can be recovered in the Hall of Guardians
  • Year One Activities have been converted to the Quest system

Bounties

  • Bounty slots will be increased to 16
  • Incomplete Year One Bounties will be auto-abandoned on 09/08 in preparation for launch of The Taken King
  • Incomplete Year One Exotic Bounties are auto-completed with their respective Vendors
  • Year One bounties issues by Eris will be retired
  • Reputation with Crota's Bane can continue to be earned by completing Quests in The Taken Kin

Tower

  • Collections have been added to the Tower
    • Emblems/Shaders can be found near Eva Lavante
    • Ships can be found near Amanda Holliday
  • Exotic Armor and Weapon Blueprint added to the Tower
    • You will now have the Blueprint for all Exotics you own in your Collection
    • Report to the Vanguard in the Hall of Guardians

Inventory

  • Motes of Light will be used to grant XP to Weapons and Armor
  • Class-specific Armor materials will be deprecated in favor of a unified Armor Material
  • Vanguard Quartermaster, Roni-9940, will exchange old materials for armor materials

Weapons & Armor

  • Revised Sandbox balance will be in effect

World

  • Fallen Wolf Hunt Patrols will retreat in anticipation of the arrival of Oryx in your solar system
What do you think of the Update 2.0 patch notes? Is there anything you didn’t expect or are surprised by? Destiny: The Taken King releases on September 15, 2015 for PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.