Bungie has revealed Destiny 2’s next expansion called The Witch Queen, which is set to launch on February 22, 2021. There’s a lot to unpack as Guardians will now face the Hive Queen Savathûn who has now found a way for the Hive to use the Light and become Guardians themselves. Here are the 5 big things you should know about the upcoming expansion.

The Hive have light powers now

Savathûn and the Hive now has the Light on their side. How? We’ll know soon enough but that’s scary to hear as that means the Witch Queen has her own set of ghosts that can convert Hive into their own version of light-wielding Guardians. That also means they can be resurrected by their bony ghost companions. This is an interesting twist as it feels like the next big fight is on equal ground. The last expansion, Beyond Light, saw Guardians wielding the dark, now light is also no longer exclusive to one side, or one faction. The fight between light and dark, good or evil, is a bit blurred now. I like it.

The start of reworking light subclasses

The Witch Queen expansion will not feature new subclass or class for Guardians to wield. Instead, players will experience the start of reworking the light subclasses.

The current light subclasses - Solar, Arc, and Void - will slowly be converted to the modular system which is currently being used by the Stasis subclass. It’s a system that allows players to modify the class to fit certain playstyles by applying Aspects and fragments to their chosen subclass. In this expansion, the Void subclasses will be worked on first and the rest will be worked on in future content releases.

Glaives are the new melee weapon

The Witch Queen expansion will adding glaives, a melee weapon that Guardians can wield, making swords no longer the only option if you want to get up close and personal. But glaives will work differently though. This isn’t another melee weapon that will be played in the third-person perspective like swords. Glaives will be played in first-person as it can also be used to fire projectiles from long range.

Weapon crafting is coming to Destiny 2

Finally, the looter shooter will have their take on weapon crafting. In The Witch Queen, the first thing you’ll craft with the new system will be your first glaive weapon, and from there, seasonal weapons. Throne World weapons, and raid weapons. There’s going to be limitation it seems as to what weapons you can make, probably to not ruin the appeal of getting loot from activities. There will be a progression system attached to what you make as the more you use your creation, the stronger it becomes.

The next destination is Savathûn's throne world

Guardians are taking the fight to Savathûn's as we are heading to the witch queen’s swampy throne world. Bungie describes the new area as “A twisted wonderland of corruption and splendor, Savathun’s Throne World plays host to a fragile balance of power. From her palace to the swamp, all that she hides can be found here.”.

For those unfamiliar, throne worlds are unique worlds created by the Hive, and each one is unique based on whoever creates them. It’s a mini-world with their own set of realities and rules established by the owner of the throne world. Savathûn’s brother Oryx had one, so did his son Crota. It’s going to be tough fight for the Guardians as Savathûn has the home court advantage.

The Witch Queen expansion will be a new story arc for Destiny 2 and will continue on in the next major expansion titled Lightfall, which is planned for a 2023 release. Bungie also revealed the next expansion after Lightfall will be titled The Final Shape, which is said to end the current 10-year narrative.

Destiny 2’s The Witch Queen expansion is now on sale on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.

On Steam, the expansion is priced at P830, while the Deluxe edition will cost P1,660 and comes with an Exotic SMG (with Catalyst and Ornament), access to Seasons 16 to 19, two Dungeons that are planned for Year 5, and an exotic Throne World Sparrow.

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