Current version: 30 July 2026 launch update
The first post-launch patch landed the same day the game released. It is a stability and Withered Knight pass rather than a broad rebalance — the sweeping class changes people are still discussing arrived in the pre-launch balance update that shipped inside the launch build itself.
Withered Knight adjustments, quoted
These are the official wordings from the Steam post. All four are buffs, and the Rainbow Piercer change matters because that skill was widely written off at launch.
| Change | Official wording | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Charged Dash | "Energy drain during the shield-raising charge phase has been slightly reduced" | Holding the charge to level three costs less, so the Polearm & Shield defensive stance is more sustainable under fire |
| Basic Attack | "Damage of the 1st and 3rd thrust hits has been slightly increased" | The Polearm light chain is a slightly better Judgment builder than it was |
| Rainbow Piercer | "Energy cost slightly reduced, and cooldown slightly reduced" | Retest it. The skill was skippable at launch on cost and commitment, and both were just cut |
| Block | "Energy cost reduced" | Directional blocking is cheaper, which compounds with the Charged Dash change |
Bug fixes worth knowing about
Several of these were actively costing players runs, so if you hit one before 30 July it was not your fault.
- "Fixed incorrect key prompts in the Sorcerer's spellcasting tutorial."
- "Fixed a mismatch between the visual effect range and actual damage range of Flameblade" — the effect was lying about its reach.
- Fixed repeatedly entering and exiting the area around the Soul Tree consuming extra resources.
- "Fixed an issue where items could not be split via the secondary menu."
- "Fixed an issue where some matches on console platforms could not reconnect" — a reconnect failure in an extraction game means a lost bag.
What shipped inside the launch build
The balance pass that actually reshuffled the tier list went out with the launch client rather than as a separate patch, which is why pre-launch guides and beta tier lists disagree with what you see in game.
- Buffed: Sorcerer, Mercenary and Withered Knight.
- Cut: some of Blackarrow, Shadowstrix and Mace Seer's strongest PvP tools, with Ice chain crowd control taking the single biggest reduction.
- Withered Knight also gained the entire Polearm & Shield weapon path, an extended parry counter window and a Thorn Guide collision fix.
Launch rewards and player count
Bellring reported over 100,000 Gyldhunters within eight hours of launch and granted a Thumbs Up gesture plus 500 Soul Coins. A known-issues list was published the day before launch listing twelve items awaiting store approval.
How this page is maintained
Balance moves fast on a live-service game, and stale advice is worse than no advice. When a patch lands, the changes are quoted here from the official notes first, and only then are the class and gear pages updated to match. If a page contradicts this one, this one is newer.