The First Descendant September Update Adds Ultimate Hailey, Cradle of Evolution and Offline Trading

Nexon has condensed its latest developer livestream into a new TL;DW recap covering The First Descendant’s September 17 update. The mid-season release expands Season 4 Episode 1 with Ultimate Hailey, the Cradle of Evolution dungeon, two new Skill Modules, a new Trigger Module and several important changes to character balance, Transcendent Weapons and player trading.

While Ultimate Hailey is the most visible addition, the update is also making structural changes to the game’s loot economy. All 11 existing Transcendent Weapons are becoming tradable, Lounge Storage will allow purchases while sellers are offline and several underperforming weapons are receiving substantial improvements. Luna and Lepic are also being rebalanced, while Onslaught receives its first desertion penalty.

Ultimate Hailey expands beyond long-range sniping

Ultimate Hailey arrives with an upgraded equipment set called Pitch Black Firing Line. Unlike Ultimate equipment primarily focused on increasing Arche power, this set is designed to improve stability while sniping. Hailey’s overall skill damage is also being increased as part of the update.

A new Descendant Story will explore more of Hailey’s background. Completing it rewards players with Hailey’s Records, a chest accessory, one Crystallization Catalyst and materials required to research Ultimate Hailey. Those rewards should give existing Hailey players a useful starting point, although they will still need to farm the remaining components.

Her most significant gameplay additions are two new Skill Modules that push her toward very different combat distances.

Dangerous Distance transforms Hailey into a closer-range Chill damage dealer. Its effects activate while fighting within 30 metres, increasing Chill Skill Power and critical-hit rate. Reactive Cryo Round becomes a toggle that automatically applies Cryogenic status, while Meteor Snare changes into a freeze beam that can be fired from the ground or in mid-air. Arctic Rage grants movement speed, shields and a higher skill critical-hit multiplier, and Extreme Torrent replaces her fourth skill with a minigun that causes additional explosions against Cryogenic targets.

Extreme Strike moves in the opposite direction. This module is designed around fighting from at least 12.5 metres away, with its benefits becoming stronger as the distance increases. Cryo Round reaches up to 60 metres and can slow Titans and Commanders, while Charging Snare becomes a chargeable freeze beam. Its exclusive fourth skill fires a single, powerful laser that amplifies weapon damage and pierces every target along its path.

These modules give Ultimate Hailey a broader role than a simple numerical upgrade. Dangerous Distance supports a mobile, close-range area-damage build, while Extreme Strike doubles down on the deliberate long-range identity associated with the original character.

Freezing Breakthrough supports Chill weapon builds

A new Trigger Module named Freezing Breakthrough is also being introduced. Maintaining its toggle generates Supercooling stacks. Using a Skill Weapon or exclusive weapon skill while those stacks are active increases both Chill Skill Power and the critical-hit multiplier.

The module appears deliberately suited to Ultimate Hailey, but it is not presented as exclusive to her. Its focus on Chill damage and special weapons potentially gives other compatible Descendants another way to connect skill-based damage with firearm-oriented builds.

Its final value will depend on activation time, stack retention and how comfortably it fits into existing module configurations. Nevertheless, the design supports Nexon’s wider attempt to make weapons and Descendant abilities interact more directly instead of functioning as largely separate damage systems.

Cradle of Evolution targets veteran players

Cradle of Evolution is the update’s new Maneuvering Operation. It takes place inside a ritual and experimental facility operated by the Order of Truth, where Vulgus are being sacrificed so their Essence can be concentrated into a new higher-order entity. Albion sends the Descendants into the facility to stop that process.

The mission structure changes between runs, preventing players from following precisely the same sequence every time. Nexon has placed its difficulty above Axion Infiltration Operations, positioning it as a new endgame farming location rather than an introductory activity.

Cradle of Evolution will be one of the primary sources of Ultimate Hailey materials. It can also drop Transcendent Weapons between Quality 271 and 400, making it particularly relevant for players trying to improve the lower boundary of their endgame collection.

The dungeon appears to favour Descendants who rely on Unique Weapons, with characters such as Raven, Valby and Blair among the expected beneficiaries. The newly improved Lepic should also be better equipped to participate through his enhanced Overkill build.

Weekly mission progression is being adjusted to accommodate the new activity. Karel’s Mothership now contributes three points, while Cradle of Evolution contributes one. Players can combine runs from both activities to reach the weekly target of five points, which will award 500 Merit Tokens instead of the previous 300.

Transcendent Weapon trading finally opens

All 11 Transcendent Weapons introduced with Season 4 Episode 1 will become tradable on September 17. Future weapons in the same category are expected to support trading immediately when they are released.

A 24-hour protection period applies after a Transcendent Weapon is obtained through gameplay, preventing it from being listed immediately. Weapons acquired through a trade also become bound to the buyer and cannot be resold unless that binding is removed with a Trade Permit purchased from the paid shop.

Minimum prices depend on weapon Quality. Weapons between Quality 1 and 100 begin at 100 Caliber, increasing through four brackets until Quality 301–400 weapons reach a minimum price of 600 Caliber. The maximum value permitted for both direct and Lounge Storage transactions is being increased to 25,000 Caliber.

This system creates access to desirable rolls without completely removing the incentive to farm them. However, the paid Trade Permit means repeated resale is deliberately restricted. Players purchasing a weapon for personal use will be less affected than those hoping to speculate on market prices or continuously exchange upgraded rolls.

Lounge Storage enables trading with offline sellers

The new Lounge Storage Trade system removes the requirement for buyers and sellers to be online simultaneously. Sellers can register eligible items inside their Lounge, after which those listings are automatically synchronized with the official Trade Market.

A buyer can search the Trade Market, add the seller’s Lounge information to the game and visit that Lounge to complete the purchase. If the seller is offline, the transaction can still proceed, and the seller can collect the resulting Caliber from Lounge Storage later.

Traditional one-on-one trading remains available. In direct trades, buyers pay a fixed Gold fee while sellers pay nothing. Lounge Storage reverses that structure: the buyer pays no transaction fee, but the seller loses 10% of the sale price in Caliber.

That difference gives each system a clear use case. Lounge Storage prioritizes convenience and continuous availability, while one-on-one trading remains more economical for sellers handling expensive items. The new approach should increase the number of active listings, although its success will depend on whether supply grows enough to produce genuinely competitive pricing.

Luna, Lepic and five Transcendent Weapons receive buffs

Luna’s rebalance focuses on making her more effective outside dedicated support groups. Her damage is increasing, failed notes will consume less MP, base buffs last longer and Inspiration Gauge generation is being improved. Noise Surge should clear nearby enemies more easily through movement, while Battlefield Concert receives better targeting, range, duration and boss damage. Battlefield Artist also provides more ammunition recovery for players attempting a firearm-focused Luna build.

Lepic receives stronger grenades, added Skill Power through Overclock and a stack-based redesign for Traction Grenade. Overkill gains additional damage and duration, while Increased Efficiency improves movement speed, explosive range and damage. Nerve Infiltration strengthens Severe Burn against Titans, and Explosive Stacks requires fewer shots while dealing more damage.

Five Transcendent Weapons are also being improved: ARMIS, Storm Cage, Raging Light, Malicious Dominator and Emperor’s Guard Lance. Their single-target Transcendent Ability damage is being approximately doubled, while area-based effects receive better activation frequency, probability or range.

Previously acquired copies benefit from these changes, meaning players will not need to replace weapons they have already farmed. Storm Cage can activate Lightning Storm when hitting enemies rather than only after kills, Malicious Dominator gains improved blade behaviour and explosions, and Raging Light no longer resets its aim after firing.

Onslaught leavers face a new desertion penalty

A desertion penalty will initially apply to public Onslaught matchmaking. Leaving a match increases a daily desertion count and delays access to the next public queue. Repeated departures create longer delays, and affected players cannot join parties while the matchmaking restriction remains active.

Completing a public match normally while under penalty removes the active delay. Nexon intends to expand the system’s reach later, but Onslaught is the first activity receiving it.

The change targets players who abandon public groups once a run becomes inefficient or fails to follow their preferred route. It should improve match stability, although its fairness will depend on how the game distinguishes deliberate departures from crashes, disconnections and severe technical problems.

Breach Tracking gains high-value reward opportunities

Breach Tracking is also being expanded with a chance for a Dimensional Stone to appear. Activating it consumes a large number of Dimensional Stabilization Keys but can provide up to 5,000 Superconductive Cooling Units, ten Crystallization Catalysts or 100 million Gold.

A second Dimensional Stone can appear probabilistically during the activity, while research-acceleration items and Transcendent Weapons are being added to the available reward pool. This makes Breach Tracking more relevant to long-term weapon progression instead of functioning primarily as a source of its existing materials.

Other quality-of-life changes include 50 additional Ancestors Module storage slots, a filter for unowned modules, improved Research menu shortcuts and a new Archive Shard shop operated by Silion. Phase 2 of the Karel’s Mothership Conquest event also begins with support for solo play and public matchmaking.

The September update strengthens Season 4’s endgame loop

The September 17 update is not a completely new season, but it addresses several systems established by Season 4 Episode 1. Cradle of Evolution supplies another difficult farming destination, Ultimate Hailey adds two meaningfully different playstyles and the weapon buffs improve some of the Transcendent arsenal already in circulation.

Lounge Storage trading may prove to be the most consequential addition over the longer term. By allowing players to buy from offline sellers, Nexon is removing one of the largest practical obstacles in the existing market. The 10% seller fee, binding rules and paid Trade Permits ensure that the new economy will not be entirely frictionless, but the system should make legitimate high-value trading considerably more accessible.

The First Descendant’s September update arrives on September 17 across PC, PlayStation and Xbox.