The Thorn Exotic hand cannon is another Destiny 1 weapon reprised in the sequel, and in Destiny 2 Season 23, Thorn is getting a brand-new, long-awaited catalyst.
The This Week In Destiny blog post shared an image of the Thorn catalyst, revealing its new ability and masterwork bonus. The Thorn catalyst gives additional range and stability to the hand cannon. The weapon stats in the image show that the masterworked Thorn's range goes up to 69, and stability is at 65. Getting final blows or absorbing Remnants increases weapon range, mobility, and handling for a short period of time. This relates to Thorn's Mark of the Devourer and the Soul Devourer intrinsic traits.
Starting in Season 22, hand cannon received buffs to boost the weapon in PVE activities. Bungie increased the base reload speed by 15% and the damage dealt to enemies. Hand cannons now deal 20% more damage to minor red-bar foes, and damage against major orange-bar enemies was increased by 75%. This season also brought the reprised Destiny 1 Monte Carlo auto rifle an Exotic catalyst, which turns the once-decorative bayonet into a melee weapon.
More Destiny 2:
- Legendary Shards Are Leaving Destiny 2 Next Season
- A Destiny 2 Weapon Type Tier List (September 2023 Meta)
The TWID also addressed recoil changes to weapons with a Season 22 or later watermark, affecting auto rifles, pulse rifles, scout rifles, trace rifles, hand cannons, sidearms, SMGs, and machine guns. "These weapons will recoil in a predictable way with sustained fire, allowing players to learn the patterns and compensate for them," Bungie said. The developer explained that this "deterministic recoil" change should make weapons feel unique and have a recognizable recoil pattern. The TWID shared a video clip of the Abyss Defiant Legendary auto rifle firing pattern with 86 recoil and 25 stability as an example of deterministic recoil.
