Destiny 2: Bungie Is Nerfing Luna’s Howl and Not Forgotten Pinnacle Hand Cannons

Any reasonable Destiny 2 PvP player would agree that two specific weapons currently dominate the PvP meta. The Luna’s Howl and Not Forgotten hand cannons are classified as ‘pinnacle weapons’ because of the effort needed to obtain them. However, in the right hands, they can also outperform virtually every other weapon in a PvP scenario. Because of this, Bungie will be nerfing both weapons in Destiny 2’s upcoming Season of Opulence.

Destiny 2 Luna’s Howl and Not Forgotten Nerfs

Destiny 2 Luna's Howl and Not Forgotten nerfs

Bungie dedicated a significant portion of its latest weekly blog post to outlining the upcoming weapon changes. The studio explained it doesn’t want to invalidate the hard work players have put into earning these weapons. Given their overwhelmingly powerful performance, though, some changes needed to be made.

Specifically, Bungie is planning on making to noticeable changes to Luna’s Howl and Not Forgotten. The above blog post goes into a bit more detail, but we’ve summarized the changes below:

  • The unique ‘Magnificent Howl’ perk found on both weapons is being nerfed. Currently, the perk grants a universal damage bonus after landing two precision shots. This bonus applies to all damage and lasts until the player misses or scores a kill. After the nerf, the damage bonus will only apply to body damage, not precision damage. This means that, similar to other hand cannons, both weapons can kill with two precision shots and a body shot.
  • The rounds-per-minute (RPM) of both weapons is being reduced from 180 RPM to 150 RPM. Again, this will bring both weapons more in line with other hand cannons while maintaining their unique behaviors. Bungie says Luna’s Howl and Not Forgotten will also be the only 150 RPM precision hand cannons.

Unsurprisingly, there are a lot of Destiny 2 PvP fans who aren’t happy about the planned nerfs. These fans feel that weapons like Not Forgotten and Luna’s Howl should feel dominant since they’re so hard to get. It’s admittedly a sticky situation for Bungie to be in. The studio obviously doesn’t want to alienate dedicated PvP players, nor does it want to discourage casual Crucible visitors.

We’ll find out in season seven just how drastic the PvP pinnacle weapon changes are. In the meantime, Destiny 2’s PvP community is also not too thrilled about the Reveler’s Tonic item. On the other hand, few are likely mourning the retirement of the Iron Banner’s Iron Burden item.