Destiny 2 Update 1.2.3 Means the Return of Bounties

In Update 1.2.3, Bungie will be expanding with new bounties for Destiny 2. Here is what Senior Design Lead Tyson Green had to say on the subject:

With the original launch of Destiny, bounties provided a set of daily objectives that players could use to advance faction reputation or earn XP to level up their gear. These were removed to streamline the activity experience in Destiny 2 and reduce the number of “chores” that players felt compelled to complete every day. In retrospect, we realized that was an over-correction, and optional daily objectives to achieve specific goals are something we want to restore.

The bounties returning to Destiny 2 in Update 1.2.3 are a return to most of the properties of bounties in The Taken King. They will be obtained from a variety of vendors, they will generally award XP and faction reputation (though some will offer even better rewards), and can be redeemed “in the field” to immediately claim your rewards. In Forsaken, you may also see some bounties drop in the wild.

There are two new mechanics. Bounties will expire if left uncompleted, and acquiring them will cost a small amount of Glimmer. We wanted to avoid the “grab every bounty you see until your inventory is packed and sort them out later” experience without constraining players to the tiny inventory they found in previous iterations of the game.

In Forsaken, more vendors will have more bounties on offer, and some will provide Legendary (or better) rewards for completing them.

The team adds: “It’s fair to observe that we didn’t answer every question you might ask about the return of bounties. What would be the fun in that? You’ll discover exactly how they work and where you can find them next week, and in all the weeks that will follow.”

Destiny 2 update 1.2.3 will drop on Tuesday, July 17. Stayed tuned with Destiny Player Support for more information on times and download sizes. Below is a quick preview on what to expect

Misc Quality of Life Changes

PC Clan Chat: Adds a new in-game text chat channel that allows online Destiny 2 clan members to communicate.

Once all Mercury Forge weapons have been obtained, they become available for direct purchase from Brother Vance in the Lighthouse (on the second vendor page).

Removed momentum from Heroic Adventures.

The Pursuits inventory bucket has been moved to the top of the inventory categories.

Commas have been added to large numbers as separators on the IGCR and PGCR.

Exotic Armor Fixes

Fixed an issue that was causing targets marked by Sanguine Alchemy to produce orbs when defeated.

Fixed an issue that caused Starfire Protocol to not work with Dawnblade’s Attunement of Sky ability path.

Fixed an issue that prevented Warlock melee attack damage when using the Ophidian Aspect Exotic and the Hive Swords or orb carry objects.

Additionally, some Heroic Strike Modifiers will be given slight adjustments in response to player feedback. Test Engineer Drew Martineau has a quick round of developer commentary on the goal of these changes:

Since the release of Update 1.1.3, we’ve been collecting player feedback concerning Heroic strike modifiers. On Tuesday, three of the more punishing modifiers will receive some adjustments. Ultimately, we want your Power, stats, and armor modifications to matter, and we realized that our debuff modifiers were a little too powerful to allow players to see their impact. Here’s what you can expect:

Blackout: We wanted to ensure that enemy melees are threatening, but this shouldn’t dismiss a player’s Power progression or the stats they chose to invest in with their armor. As such, this modifier is changing somewhat: it still increases enemy melee damage significantly, but it’s now no longer a guarantee of players being defeated by a single melee from many enemies. Be careful, though! If you’re not at the recommended Power for the Heroic Strikes playlist, your enemies will be more powerful and pack a harder punch.

Grounded: There are many times players are considered “airborne” when they’re not actually jumping. To account for that, we are reducing the damage threshold so players aren’t punished for things outside of their control. Additionally, we’re looking to prevent players from falling to their demise from a height of 2 meters, just as they happen to land on a rock or some other small object.

Glass: This modifier reduces a Guardian’s shields and health while increasing recovery. We slightly reduced the impact of this modifier to better enable players to see the effects of their overall Power progression over time.