Destiny 2 has been shaking things up recently with its story expansion, Lightfall, releasing next month. One such change involved opening all mods for users to play with, letting new and old players experiment with different builds they ordinarily had to grind for. Going further, Bungie announced that changes were coming to Destiny 2's Grandmaster Nightfalls as well, lowering the Power Level to enter one of the game's more challenging pieces of content. This may bode well overall for Power Level Changes, with Lightfall around the corner.
Destiny 2's Grandmaster Nightfalls are higher-level Strikes players and their Fireteam can access at specific times each Season. There are 6 Grandmaster Nightfalls on rotation for Season of the Seraph and every other Season in the game. Each requires players to pay attention to their builds and crafting to make it through successfully. Nightfalls are usually filled with Champions, which need anti-Champion Exotics or mods to overcome. The rewards for these challenges are high, some being weapons and others being rarer crafting materials, and making GM Nightfalls more accessible means opening up the loot pool to more players.
Changes to Grandmaster Nightfalls in Destiny 2
Bungie revealed in a TWAB post that changes would be coming to Grandmaster Nightfalls as a preview for the overall activity once Lightfall launches. To kick this off in Destiny 2, Bungie has lowered the required Power Level by 25, allowing players with a 1580 (the powerful cap) to enter. Furthermore, the overall Power Level of Grandmaster activities has been reduced by 10 to 1620, all of which took effect when Destiny 2's Grandmaster Nightfalls launched on January 17.
However, despite Destiny 2's Power Level changes, all enemies are at least 25 Power above players, meaning that players can enter at 1580, yet, the enemies will be 40 Power above that number. Players can use Artifact Power and pinnacle drops to increase up to 1595, which is maximum effectiveness. While these changes allow newer players and those with lower Power Levels access, players should be aware of the uphill challenge they'll face with enemies remaining at a higher Power Level themselves.
What These Changes Mean for Power Levels
Bungie has described in its TWAB that more information regarding changes to Grandmaster Nightfalls and other high-difficulty modes will be forthcoming. Though those changes are unknown, much has been done to service the new systems that will be introduced in Lightfall. This could mean that further Power Level changes may be tweaked for other high-difficulty modes to allow more players to experience these modes and acquire higher-level gear.
These changes could also be a way to incentivize players to use the Destiny 2 Companion App to find Fireteams and Clans, as well as create their own with other newer or old players, bridging the gap between lower and higher Power Levels that are seen now. Endgame content for Destiny 2 ranges from Grandmaster Nightfalls, Dungeons, and Raids, generally played by those with high-end gear. With newer players having more access to builds and endgame content could see this balance increase the Destiny 2 community.
Additionally, most activities at this level are not matchmaking-enabled, meaning newer players must have a Fireteam to play with or try to find one through the Destiny 2 Companion App. Since mods have been opened to all players, and Power Levels have been dropped for such a higher-difficulty activity, Bungie could be monitoring if this helps bring in newer players and assists with them leveling up faster through an easier time finding a team to tackle such activities with. Regardless, making changes to how accessible Grandmaster Nightfalls are bodes well for major changes to Power Level as a system overall, maybe allowing players to try their hand at higher-tiered endgame content.
Destiny 2 is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.