Armor 3.0
New stat archetypes, armor set bonuses for every set in the game, all Exotic armor upgraded to Tier 5, and notable Exotic reworks.
Stat Archetypes
Six new stat archetypes were added (bringing the total to 12). Each archetype is a named armor identity that shapes how your stat points are distributed across the six stats. The six new archetypes are:
Siegebreaker — Resilience and Strength focus
Skirmisher — Mobility and Recovery focus
Demolitionist — Discipline and Resilience focus
Colossus — Resilience and Recovery focus
Reaver — Mobility and Strength focus
Powerhouse — Discipline and Strength focus
Archetypes replace the old stat-spread lottery. When farming armor, sort by archetype first — this tells you immediately which stats the piece can roll high. No more wasting materials on bad-stat pieces that look good on paper.
Armor Set Bonuses
Every armor set in the game now has 2-piece and 4-piece set bonuses. Wearing 2 pieces of the same set activates the 2-piece bonus. Wearing 4 pieces activates both the 2-piece and 4-piece bonuses. Critically: you can wear two different 2-piece set bonuses simultaneously as long as you have an Exotic filling the fifth slot.
The best builds now often mix two 4-piece sets split 2/2 with an Exotic completing the look. This opens up enormous flexibility — you're not locked into wearing 4 pieces of a single set to get value from set bonuses.
Set bonuses apply to the armor set as it was designed — raid armor, dungeon armor, seasonal armor all have different bonuses. Check the in-game tooltip or the Armor 3.0 section on Bungie.net for each set's specific bonus before building around it.
Exotic Armor — Tier 5 Upgrade
All Exotic armor in the game has been upgraded to Tier 5. This gives every Exotic full access to the complete tuning mod table — you can now customize Exotic behavior to a degree that wasn't possible before.
Previously abandoned Exotics may now be viable with the right tuning mods. Check your vault — something you shelved years ago might work well with the current sandbox.
Notable Exotic Reworks
Hunters
Wormhusk Crown: Class ability activation now grants Cure (heal) in addition to existing effects
Raiden Flux: Arc Staff now jolts targets on hit
Mothkeeper's Wraps: Converts 6 grenade charges into dual moth grenades (more flexible grenade cycle)
Lucky Pants: Boss damage bonus reduced ~33% (nerf — adjust builds accordingly)
Titans
Peregrine Greaves: Shoulder charge damage reduced 400% → 250%, but base melee damage doubled to partially compensate
Praxic Vestments: Now grants a 500% melee boost during jetpack flight, extended airborne window
Helm of Saint-14: Suppresses nearby enemies when Weapons of Light is active inside Ward of Dawn
Warlocks
Astrocyte Verse: Enables horizontal dark blink (teleport while sprinting sideways)
Skull of Dire Ahamkara: Can now cast Nova Lance (powerful follow-up attack) immediately after Nova Bomb
Crown of Tempests: Ionic Sentry ability now spawns Storm Grenades on kill
Lucky Pants (Hunter) boss damage bonus was reduced ~33%. If any of your builds rely on a raw % damage modifier Exotic, verify your DPS math is still correct.
Exotic Transmog
You can now apply Legendary armor ornaments to Exotic armor pieces in PvE. This was previously only available for Legendary gear.
Your favorite Exotic no longer has to look like itself. Apply any unlocked Legendary ornament for full fashion freedom without giving up the Exotic perk. This is cosmetic only — no stat changes.
Exotic Transmog is PvE only. The Exotic visual is preserved in PvP.