AION 2 — July 22, 2026 Update Notes: Survivability Nerfs, the Transparent Map & Server Transfers

Editor's take

Sooner or later every MMO ships the patch where the developers stop adding things and start taking them away. This is that patch. Six weeks of "why will this tank simply not die" have been answered with a red pen: survivability buffs run shorter, hard crowd control lands less often, and life steal has politely stopped healing you off eight mobs at once. If you main a Templar or a Chanter, this one stings, and pretending otherwise would be insulting.

And yet I like it more than I expected. This is a scalpel, not a carpet bomb. Knockdown and stun go from 50% to 30% — still a coin flip and a half, not a dead mechanic. Brawler gets an actual rework of Ascension Strike instead of a number nudge. Cleric's damage goes up across four skills, and Chanter walks away with critical damage amplification at 26% where it used to be 15% — the single largest number in the whole document, buried in a passive nobody reads.

The Transparent Map is the other reason to be cheerful. It is the kind of quality-of-life feature you will have forgotten was ever missing by Friday, which is the highest compliment a UI change can earn.

And yes — server transfers are finally here. For one week. Four hours a night. Starting at 1,000 Quna. Nothing says "we know how badly you want this" quite like a queue with a curfew.

AION 2 — July 22, 2026 Update Notes

TL;DR — survivability buffs are shorter, hard crowd control drops from 50% to 30%, and life steal now hits one target only. Chanter and Cleric are the winners; Templar and Ranger pay for it; Brawler gets a genuine Ascending Blow rework. The Transparent Map arrives as a semi-transparent overlay with markers and party positions. Server Transfer opens for one week only — July 22 to July 28, 20:00–24:00 daily, 1,000 Quna base plus 200 per character and 1,000 per locked slot. Assassin and Sorcerer have no skill changes this week.

Translated and annotated from the official Korean update notes published by NCSOFT on July 21, 2026. Numbers, skill names and effect wording follow the original; the commentary, the cost tables and the FAQ are ours. It follows directly on from the July 15 notes, where several of these same skills were last touched.

[Content & System]

Class Changes

Editor's note — Read the "all classes" block first — it applies to every class that owns those skills, and the per-class tables below only list what changes on top of it. Where the notes say a spec effect "changes", the old effect is gone, not stacked on.

All classes

Skill	Change
Focused Block Shield of Protection Focused Defense Evasion Stance	Spec 3's "+1 consecutive cast" is replaced by: on a successful block, +20% movement speed for 3 seconds.
Rush Strike Shield Rush Shoulder Tackle	Status-effect (crowd control) chance is reduced.
Tenaciousness Comrade in Arms Barrier Spell Mother Nature's Breath Command: Proxy Unstoppable	The duration of these survivability skills is reduced.
Noble Armor Guardian Blessing	Max-HP increase effects can no longer be dispelled.

Life steal now applies to a single target only.

Editor's note — The life-steal change is the quiet one, and it will be felt hardest in open-field farming and in Abyss scrums, where sustaining off a whole pack was doing more work than any single defensive cooldown. Paired with the duration cuts above, the intent reads clearly: fewer immortal frontliners, more actual healing.

Gladiator

Skill	Change
Rush Strike	Knockdown chance 50% → 30%.
Tenaciousness	Spec 5 duration bonus 2s → 1s.
Experienced Counterstrike (passive)	Its base damage-amplification bonus no longer overwrites the 1.5× damage amplification from Wave Armor. Frontal damage amplification adjusted: 5% / 10% / 15% ▶ 4% / 8% / 12% * shown at skill level 10 / 20 / 30

A rework of the Gladiator's skill-chain mechanic is in progress. The schedule will be announced in a later update note.

Verdict: A small net loss that is partly a bug fix — the passive no longer eats Wave Armor's bigger buff, which is worth more in practice than the three-point frontal cut costs. The interesting change is the one that has not shipped yet.

Templar

Skill	Change
Battlefield Banner	Spec 5 combat speed bonus 10% → 15%.
Shield Rush	Stun chance 50% → 30%.
Comrade in Arms	Duration 10s → 6s.
Noble Armor	Can no longer be removed by dispel effects.
Taunt	Spec 1 PVE damage-resistance reduction 25% → 20%. Spec 1 PVP damage-resistance reduction 12.5% → 10%. Spec 5 critical-damage-resistance reduction 7% → 5%.
Punishment	Executor PVE damage amplification 10% → 15%. Executor PVP damage amplification 5% → 7.5%.
Vicious Strike	Spec 4 changes from "Warding Strike cooldown −1s" to "Punishment cooldown −1s".
Pummel	Spec 4 changes from "on Punishing Strike hit, Punishment cooldown −2s" to "on Punishing Strike hit, Warding Strike cooldown −2s".
Fury (passive)	Its base damage-amplification bonus no longer overwrites the 1.5× damage amplification from Second Skin. Frontal damage amplification: 2% / 4% / 6% ▶ 3% / 6% / 9% PVE damage amplification: 20% / 30% / 40% ▶ 18% / 26% / 34% PVP damage amplification: 10% / 15% / 20% ▶ 9% / 13% / 17% * shown at skill level 10 / 20 / 30
Insulting Roar (passive)	Attack: 8% / 11% / 14% ▶ 10% / 15% / 20% * shown at skill level 10 / 20 / 30

Verdict: The most rewritten class in the patch, and the one carrying the heaviest defensive cut: Comrade in Arms losing 4 seconds is a 40% cut to an ally-saving window. In exchange the offensive passives and Punishment go up noticeably, and the two cooldown-reduction specs swap targets — which changes your rotation, not just your numbers. Re-read spec 4 on both skills before you queue.

Brawler

Skill	Change
Unstoppable	The cooldown-increase effect no longer applies to it. Spec 5 duration bonus 2s → 1s.
Rampage	Can no longer be removed by dispel effects.
Pulverize	Fixes spec 3's [Frontal Breakthrough] 1.5× multiplier not applying. Adds a tooltip for the 0.5s re-trigger limit on hit stacks.
Ascending Blow	Base effect gains: at maximum charge in [Normal] and during [Rampage], 50% chance of a 3s air bind. Spec 2 "[Normal] +30% skill speed" ▶ guaranteed critical hit. Spec 3 "move while charging" ▶ +30% Ascending Blow accuracy. Spec 4 "air bind at max charge / during Rampage" ▶ up to +20% maximum damage, scaling up as fewer targets are hit. Spec 5 "−50% cooldown during Rampage" ▶ +50% damage against targets immune to action-impairing effects.
Whirlwind	Spec 4 "frontal damage amplification" ▶ move to the target's front.
Exploding Fist	Base effect now grants [Normal] +30% skill speed. Spec 2 "[Normal] +30% skill speed" ▶ on hit, +10% frontal damage amplification for 10s. Spec 5 bonus damage now scales with the charge stage.
Shoulder Tackle	Base effect now restores 50 Rage. Stun chance 50% → 30%; stun duration 2s → 3s. Spec 5 "restore 50 Rage" ▶ +25% stun chance.
Ground Smash	Fixes the cooldown being reset when Rampage ends after the skill was used during Rampage.

Verdict: The only class here that gets designed rather than tuned. Ascending Blow stops being a "press at max charge for the air bind" button and becomes a choice between burst (spec 2), reliability (spec 3), single-target damage (spec 4) and anti-immunity damage (spec 5). Shoulder Tackle moving its Rage restore into the base effect frees spec 5 outright. Net: clearly better if you rebuild your specs, mildly worse if you do not.

Ranger

Skill	Change
Bow of Blessing	Spec 2 critical-scaling attack conversion rate 20% → 10%.
Mother Nature's Breath	Duration 10s → 6s.

Verdict: Two entries, both downward, and halving the conversion rate is a real damage loss for crit-stacked builds. Nothing in this patch compensates for it.

Chanter

Skill	Change
Barrier Spell	Spec 5 duration bonus 2s → 1s.
Guardian Blessing	Can no longer be removed by dispel effects.
Rushing Smash	The pre-cast animation is made faster.
Dark Crush Penetration Chain	PVE damage +7%.
Wind's Promise (passive)	Critical damage amplification: 5% / 10% / 15% ▶ 12% / 19% / 26% * shown at skill level 10 / 20 / 30

Verdict: On paper Chanter takes the same survivability trim as everyone else. In practice Wind's Promise going from 15% to 26% critical damage amplification at level 30 is the largest single buff in this document, and a faster Rushing Smash animation is worth more in a real fight than the patch notes make it sound. Chanter wins this week.

Cleric

Skill	Change
Condemnation	PVE damage +5%. Spec 4 "75% chance to reset the cooldown" ▶ reset the cooldown on a critical hit.
Noble Aura Judgment Thunder Divine Punishment	PVE damage +10%.

Verdict: A straight PVE damage buff across four skills, with one caveat: the Condemnation reset stops being a flat 75% roll and starts depending on your critical rate. Below roughly 75% crit that is a downgrade; above it, an upgrade — and it makes critical rating meaningfully better for damage-leaning Clerics.

Spiritmaster

Skill	Change
Command: Proxy	Base duration 5s → 4s. Spec 1 duration bonus 5s → 2s.

Verdict: One line, and it is brutal: a fully specced Command: Proxy drops from 10 seconds to 6. That is the largest proportional survivability cut in the patch.

Assassin and Sorcerer receive no skill changes this week.

Cross-check the live numbers in our skill database: Gladiator skills · Templar skills · Brawler skills · Ranger skills · Chanter skills · Cleric skills · Spiritmaster skills.

Transparent Map

A Transparent Map is added — a new map feature that draws the terrain and walkable routes of your current zone semi-transparently over the game screen.
Unlike the minimap it does not block your view: you can see the paths and key information around your character while you move.

What it shows

The outline of the zone's terrain and its routes, centred on your current position.
Markers for key points of interest: quests, NPCs (shop / crafting / storage), travel points (Kibelisk, Spacetime Rift, Flight Circle), dungeon entrances, field bosses, Traces of Aion and more.
Hovering a marker shows a tooltip with the target's name, altitude and remaining distance.
Party and Force member positions are shown on the Transparent Map as well.

Where it works

Major territories, plus instanced content such as Sealed Dungeons, Quest Dungeons and Party Dungeons.

Editor's note — Note what is not on that list: the Abyss and the Abyss Rift Zone are not mentioned. Given that the same patch fixes map pins inside the Rift Zone, the omission looks deliberate rather than accidental — treat the Transparent Map as a PVE navigation tool until NCSOFT says otherwise.

Shop

"Star Jewel Song Wings (Bound)" is added to Chapter 1 of the [Subscription Pass Shop].
For the duration of the server transfer period, some items move from [Shop – Breeze Trading Company – Special] to [Substance Morph – Special – Breeze Trading Company]. The affected items are Od Energy (Bound), Unknown Rift Challenge Ticket (Bound), Instant Completion Ticket: Daily Dungeon (Bound) and Instant Completion Ticket: Nightmare (Bound).

[Promotion]

Server Transfer

Where to buy: [In-game Shop] → [Server Transfer]
Sale period: after the July 22 (Wed) maintenance ~ July 28 (Tue), 2026
Purchase window: 20:00 – 24:00 every day within that period

Cost component	Price	Purchase limit
Base cost	1,000 Quna	Once per account
Per character	200 Quna per transferred character
Slot expansion	1,000 Quna per unlocked slot

Official example: moving 2 characters costs 1,400 Quna — but if every free slot on the destination server is locked, unlocking 2 slots is added on top, for 3,400 Quna in total.

What it actually costs (our table)

The formula is 1,000 + 200 × characters + 1,000 × slots you have to unlock. Two columns: the best case, where the destination server already has enough open slots, and the worst case, where every slot you need is still locked.

Characters moved	Destination has free slots	Every slot must be unlocked
1	1,200 Quna	2,200 Quna
2	1,400 Quna	3,400 Quna
3	1,600 Quna	4,600 Quna
4	1,800 Quna	5,800 Quna
5	2,000 Quna	7,000 Quna
6	2,200 Quna	8,200 Quna

Editor's note — Check your destination server's open slots before you pay. The slot fee is five times the per-character fee, so a full roster move into a locked account can cost nearly four times what the character fee alone suggests. And because the whole thing is once per account, there is no second attempt to get it right.

Service rules

Transfers move characters from the server you currently play on to another server (the destination server).
Transfers are only possible between servers of the same race.
Once per account, and only from one server to one server.
There is no limit on how many characters you move in that single transfer; the cost is calculated from the number of characters you select.

How to apply

Transfer period: after the July 22 (Wed) maintenance ~ July 28 (Tue), 2026.
Application window: 20:00 – 24:00 daily during the transfer period.
Each server's inbound and outbound quotas are updated at 20:00 every day.
The purchase button becomes active once you meet the application conditions.
Transfer is impossible if your current server's outbound quota is closed, or the destination server's inbound quota is closed.
Selecting an ineligible server in the application UI shows an explanatory message.

Purchase conditions

Only characters of Lv.45 or above on the same server can transfer.
The applying character must be in a village. Applications cannot be made from the Abyss, the Spacetime Rift or a dungeon.
The character must not be in a Legion, and must not have a pending Legion application.
The character must have no Mission [Duty] in progress.

Unclaimed goods block the purchase. You cannot use the product if you have: ① items listed for sale on the Exchange, items to be retrieved, or unsettled proceeds; ② unclaimed items in shop storage; ③ unread mail in the transferring character's mailbox.

What transfers — currencies

Kina transfers only from the character's cube inventory and character storage. Kina held in server storage does not transfer.
Quna / Mileage held on the current server transfers and is added to the balance on the destination server.

What transfers — purchased items

Your character name becomes "@TempName" even if the name is free on the destination server. You set a new name on the character's first login after the transfer. If the same name already exists there, you cannot reuse your old one.
Membership and queued Membership Passes transfer and are merged on the destination server, and are deleted from the current one. Membership Passes in progress are completed and their rewards paid out.
An active Deva Pass transfers with its progress. However, if that pass has a per-server purchase limit and the same pass is already bought on the destination server, that character cannot transfer there.
Growth Support in use transfers with its progress, under the same per-server restriction.
Special pets and appearances bought in the shop all transfer. If you already own the same special pet on the destination server, you keep only the destination copy and receive a Pet Exchange Ticket usable in the shop — or a "Deva Pass Shop Coin: Encore" if the pet was bought in the pass shop. Duplicate decorative appearances that cannot be customised will receive a Single Item Exchange Ticket at a later date.
Server storage expansion slots are applied on the destination server at whichever of the two counts is higher. Items stored in server storage do not transfer — move anything you want to keep into the transferring character's inventory or character storage first.
Character slot expansions already purchased and used stay on the current server and do not affect the destination server's slot count.
Styles registered in the Style Shop remain downloadable, applicable and payable after the transfer. The creator's name and server are not updated — they stay as they were at the time of creation.

What transfers — content & systems

Titles, achievements, wardrobe, pets and Theostones all transfer and merge on the destination server, and are reset on the current one.
For Race Understanding you choose between the value from your current server and the one in use on the destination server. Either way, the current server's Race Understanding is reset.
A character's season ranking points and season mission progress transfer with the character.

Transfer summary table

Item	Transfers	Item	Transfers
Character	Yes	Wardrobe – appearances	Yes
Quna / Mileage	Yes	Wardrobe – collection points	Yes
Abyss Points	Yes	Wings	Yes
Daily Kina / Abyss Point earnings	Yes	Theostones	Yes
Membership	Yes	Pantheon	Yes
Membership Pass	Yes	Arcana	Yes
Deva Pass (character)	Yes	Monolith	Yes
Deva Pass (server)	Blocked if duplicated	Trace of Aion	Yes
Growth Support (character)	Yes	Content reward counts	Yes
Growth Support (server)	Blocked if duplicated	Content tickets	Yes
Daevanion	Yes	Season missions	Yes
Cube (inventory)	Yes	Season ranking points	Yes
Character storage	Yes	Supply Requests	Yes
Server storage	Expansion record only	Substance Morph record	Yes
Skills / Stigma	Yes	Crafting record	Yes
Quests	Yes	Gathering proficiency / skills	Yes
Exploration	Yes	Attendance	Yes
Titles	Yes	Friend list	Yes
Achievements	Yes	Blocked friends list	Yes
Pet – level	Yes	Blocked mail list	No
Pet – collection stage	Yes	Exchange history	Yes
Pet – collection rewards	Yes	Customisation	Yes
Pet – race determination	Yes	Registered styles	Yes
Pet – race understanding	Yes	Item recovery history	Yes

Before you press the button

Once the application completes, the transfer cannot be cancelled or reverted.
When the transfer starts you are sent to the title screen, and the account cannot log in while it is running.
You are notified through a Purple PUSH alert when the transfer completes.
A transfer takes at least one minute, and longer depending on how many people are applying.
Transfers may be temporarily restricted to keep processing stable.
This product may be sold again later in the same or a similar form.

[Other Improvements & Fixes]

Improvements

Some of the training dummies placed in villages and Legion hideouts are replaced with dummies that use attack skills. They only use skills while you are standing near them.
Crafting chance information: pressing the [%] button to the right of a craftable item's name opens a crafting-chance window.
It shows your crafting chance based on your character's current proficiency and the proficiency-level gap to the item being crafted.

Editor's note — The crafting readout is small but overdue — proficiency-gap penalties have been invisible since launch, and "why did this fail four times in a row" was previously a question you answered with a spreadsheet. The attacking dummies matter more than they sound: you can finally test defensive specs against something that hits back, which is exactly what you need in the week the defensive numbers changed.

Fixes

Fixes map pins being unusable in the Abyss Rift Zone.
In the Abyss Rift Zone, when a channel move caused by population rebalancing removes you from a party or Force, a notification message is now shown.
Abyss Orders sold by the Abyss Order merchant are now identical regardless of stronghold.
The surface material of the lava flower monsters in Saint of Morheim's Muspel Volcanic Zone is swapped for one that fits the area.
Trial "Vakron Sky Island" boss Vakron Helm — fixes the thorn objects not appearing when the "Thorn Bind" status effect is applied while jumping.
Trial "Vakron Sky Island" boss Tamon — fixes a skill name being displayed incorrectly.
Transcendence "Abyssal Horn Den" boss Gargaum — the "Assault" pattern's use count is changed from 2 to 1 (applies at stages 2, 3 and 4).
Transcendence "Abyssal Horn Den" — the number of status-effect stacks that triggers the "Roar" trait is changed from 4 to 5.
Expedition "Citadel of the Fallen Daeva" boss Basilus the False — fixes a Spiritmaster's spirit receiving the "Fear" status effect when it touched the summoned "Fallen Deva Guide".
Expedition "Vakron Sky Island" boss Tie — fixes the boss direction marker being misaligned when certain skills are used.

FAQ

Which class comes out ahead this week?

Chanter, clearly. Wind's Promise moves critical damage amplification from 15% to 26% at level 30 — the biggest single number in the patch — and Dark Crush / Penetration Chain gain 7% PVE damage on top. Cleric is second, with +10% PVE damage on three skills and +5% on Condemnation.

Which class loses the most?

Spiritmaster proportionally: a fully specced Command: Proxy goes from 10 seconds to 6. Templar loses the most in absolute terms — Comrade in Arms down to 6 seconds, Shield Rush stun down to 30% — though it is compensated with offensive passive buffs. Ranger is the only class here that gets nothing back.

Do I need to rebuild my specs after this patch?

Brawler and Templar players: yes. Both have spec effects that were replaced with different effects rather than rescaled, so a spec that was correct last week may now be doing something you did not choose. Everyone else can leave their setups alone.

Does the Transparent Map work in the Abyss?

The notes list major territories plus Sealed, Quest and Party Dungeons. The Abyss and the Abyss Rift Zone are not mentioned, so assume it is unavailable there until stated otherwise.

Will my Kina come with me when I transfer servers?

Only the Kina in the transferring character's cube inventory and character storage. Kina sitting in server storage does not transfer, and neither do items stored there — move both before you apply. Quna and Mileage do transfer and merge with your destination balance.

Can I transfer while I am in a Legion?

No. You must not be in a Legion, and you must not have a pending Legion application. You also need to be Lv.45 or above, standing in a village, with no Mission [Duty] in progress and no unclaimed Exchange items, shop-storage items or unread mail.

Why is the transfer only purchasable between 20:00 and 24:00?

Each server's inbound and outbound quotas are recalculated at 20:00 every day, and the four-hour window is when those quotas are spent. If your source server's outbound quota or the destination's inbound quota is exhausted, you cannot transfer that day — come back the next evening.

How much will moving my whole roster cost?

1,000 Quna base, plus 200 per character, plus 1,000 for every slot you have to unlock on the destination server. Six characters into an account with free slots costs 2,200 Quna; the same six into an account where every slot is locked costs 8,200. See the cost table above.

Thank you.

AION 2

Source: the official AION 2 update notes for July 22, 2026, published by NCSOFT on the Korean community board. This article is our own English edition of those notes — the factual content follows the original, while the commentary, cost tables, verdicts and FAQ are written by our editorial team. Skill names are resolved against our own AION 2 skill database, so they match the in-game English client rather than a literal translation of the Korean.