Destiny 2 leaks hint at an upcoming Exotic nerf

Bungie has recently started reworking Exotic gear pieces in Destiny 2. This entire rework expedition started in the Season of the Seraph and will continue even beyond Season of the Deep. The main reason behind these changes is the fact that most of the Exotics are slightly unbalanced, or are so powerful that they're preventing players from branching out into other builds and playstyles.

While some of the Titan Exotics like the Heart of Inmost Light were nerfed when the Season of Defiance went live, Destiny 2 leaks suggest that a popular Warlock Exotic will be the next to receive a nerf.

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Leaks hint at a possible Starfire Protocol nerf in Destiny 2 Season of the Deep

Starfire Protocol is one of the most popular Warlock Exotics in Destiny 2. Whenever there's a Warlock running a Solar subclass in an activity, there's a high chance that they're using the Starfire Protocol Exotic.

The primary reason for using this weapon is because it almost guarantees an infinite supply of grenades with the right build. Not only that, it synergizes very well with some really powerful damage rotations during DPS phases in Destiny 2. Here's a short description on how this Exotic and its intrinsic perks function:

"Fusion Grenades have an additional charge and recharge from empowered weapon damage. Fusion Grenade kills grant Rift energy."

Based on community research, players receive 20% grenade energy every time they cause damage with a weapon while standing inside a Well of Radiance or an Empowering Rift. Apart from that, they have two Fusion Grenade charges as well. During DPS phases, it's practically impossible for a Warlock to run out of Fusion Grenades because of all the damage they're dealing.

Now, if the leak is to be believed, then this 20% grenade energy return will be nerfed to a meager 8%. While this won't make the Exotic completely unusable, it'll probably force players to look for a different alternative. However, it is still a leak for now and needs to be taken with a pinch of salt.

Bungie hasn't mentioned any rework as of now, so players will have to wait till it talks about these reworks in the weekly This Week At Bungie (TWAB) blog post. Recent leaks further suggest that these reworks will go live in Destiny 2 Season of the Deep. It's barely been five weeks in the Season of Defiance, so there's technically a lot of time left before the Starfire Protocol nerf goes live in the game.

When the Lightfall expansion went live, Bungie reworked the overall build-crafting and the mod system in Destiny 2. The current iteration grants players more freedom when it comes to creating a build that suits their playstyles. So, if the rework does happen, they will definitely come up with a way to circumvent the heavy nerf to continue to use the Exotic.