AION 2 Global Patch Notes — October 21, 2026 (Expedition Hard Mode, Ariel Daevanion Board)
After the October 20 (23:30 PDT / 06:30 UTC October 21) maintenance, Global gets Hard mode for the Krao Cave and Draupnir Expeditions (item level 2600, 3 revives, 4-minute Frenzy), a new Ariel Daevanion board fed by Ariel Fragments, the Rise to the Challenge Resurrection Spiritstone sale until December 15, Chanter and Sorcerer fixes and higher HP for Abyss bosses and the Lower Abyss Dimensional Core.
Last updated: October 21, 2026
Maintenance window
NC's weekly scheduled maintenance for the Global service. Login was unavailable while it ran, and anyone online was disconnected when it began. The maintenance post said details would follow; they arrived as the patch notes below.
| Start | October 20, 2026, 23:30 PDT · October 21, 2026, 06:30 UTC / 08:30 CEST |
| Duration announced | 5.5 hours |
| Affected | Game servers |
Content & systems: Expedition Hard mode
Hard mode is added to the Krao Cave and Draupnir Expeditions. Entry needs an item level of 2600. The boss Frenzy timer is 4 minutes, and each player is limited to 3 revives.
- Rewards: a chance at Philosopher's Stone: Revelation (Bound), which you can also pick as a guaranteed reward; Ariel Fragments (Bound), which differ by dungeon; and a chance at an Expedition Hero Artwork. Hard mode pays more Kina than Normal.
- Crafting materials: every Unique crafting material, including Wrathful Mind, Wrathful Will and Wrathful Ego, can be obtained from Krao Cave and Draupnir in Hard mode.
- Achievements: a new Expedition Hero Artwork Collector achievement and new Expedition (Hard) achievements. Completing the Expedition (Hard) achievements unlocks Unique Skins.
Substance Morph conversions for Ariel Fragments:
| Conversion | Limit | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 100 Ariel Fragments → Daevanion Crystal: Ariel (Bound) | Up to 30 times per character | Substance Morph > Special > Daevanion |
| 1 Ariel Fragment → 5 Enhance Stones | Unlimited | Substance Morph > Special > Consumables |
Content & systems: new Ariel Daevanion board
A new Ariel board is added to the Daevanion system. Ariel Daevanion Points come from collecting Ariel Fragments in Expedition (Hard) and morphing them through Substance Morph. The amount you can obtain through Substance Morph is limited per dungeon.
Class changes: Chanter and Sorcerer
All three entries are bug fixes.
Chanter (호법성)
| Skill | Change |
|---|---|
| Spinning Strike | Fixes skill effects not displaying correctly. |
Sorcerer (마도성)
| Skill | Change |
|---|---|
| Cold Storm | Fixes targets with stacked Frostbite not taking the extra damage, and Frostbite not matching the skill level. With Specialty 1, fixes Frostbite being applied an extra time to targets inside the Cold Storm area after the effect ended. |
| Fire Wall | Fixes extra damage being dealt to targets that were not affected by Embers. |
Event: Rise to the Challenge
| Schedule (PDT / PST) | October 21, 2026 until the start of maintenance on December 15, 2026 |
| Schedule (CEST / CET) | October 21, 2026 until the start of maintenance on December 16, 2026 |
| Where | Shop > Wind Breeze Merchants |
During the event, Resurrection Spiritstone (Season 1) can be bought with Kina in two steps. Each step is limited to 30 per server per week.
| Step | Item | Price | Quantity | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Step 1 | Resurrection Spiritstone (Season 1) | 25,000 Kina | ×30 | Per server per week |
| Step 2 | Resurrection Spiritstone (Season 1) | 50,000 Kina | ×30 | Per server per week |
Other improvements and fixes
Improvements
- The maximum number of players allowed into the Abyss is adjusted upward to fit more players.
- The HP of the Dimensional Core in the Lower Abyss increases.
- The HP of all bosses that spawn in the Abyss increases, and the hitboxes of the Abyss bosses Kaira and Argo grow slightly.
- The system that restricts listing gathered materials on the Market based on gameplay history is adjusted: some previously restricted players can trade normally again, while restrictions stay in place for others.
Fixes
- Empyrean Traces made unreachable by Halloween decorations at the Dawn Legion Base and Zumion Village in Verteron are moved to accessible spots.
- The [Movement Controls] option no longer appears several times under Settings > Key Settings.
- Fixes a mismatch between the actual title effect and the effect described in the item tooltip.
Official sources
Frequently asked questions
When did the AION 2 Global October 21 patch go live?
Maintenance started on October 20, 2026 at 23:30 PDT (October 21 at 06:30 UTC / 08:30 CEST) and was announced to last 5.5 hours.
What does Expedition Hard mode need?
An item level of 2600 for Krao Cave and Draupnir. The boss Frenzy timer is 4 minutes and each player has 3 revives.
What are Ariel Fragments for?
They drop in Expedition (Hard). 100 can be morphed into a Daevanion Crystal: Ariel (Bound), up to 30 times per character, which feeds the new Ariel Daevanion board; 1 fragment can also be morphed into 5 Enhance Stones without a limit.
How long does the Rise to the Challenge event run?
From October 21 until the start of maintenance on December 15 (PST), which is December 16 in CET.