Space Marine 2 Update: Patch 15.2 Notes and Patch 16 PTS

The newest live Space Marine 2 update as of November 12, 2026 is Hotfix 15.2, released on October 20, which followed the big Patch 15.0 Anniversary Update II on October 1. Patch 16 is not live yet, but its content is on the Steam Public Test Server until November 18, so the next full update is already partly visible. Below is a plain-English breakdown of what changed in Patch 15, what the two hotfixes fixed, and what the Patch 16 test build adds.

We checked this against the official Patch Notes 15.0, the Hotfix 15.1 and 15.2 notes, the October Community Update, the PTS Patch Notes 16.0 thread on Focus Together and Saber's Steam news feed in November 2026.

The Current Version: Hotfix 15.2

If you load the game today on PS5, Xbox Series X|S or PC, you are on the Patch 15 branch with Hotfix 15.2 applied. Saber posted the 15.2 notes on October 20, twelve days after Hotfix 15.1 arrived on October 8. Both hotfixes sit on top of Patch 15.0, the Anniversary Update II that launched on October 1 to mark the game's second birthday. There has been no Patch 16 release on live servers yet, so anything you read about Patch 16 changes is test-server material that can still shift before launch.

The October Community Update, published on October 29, confirms this picture. It describes both hotfixes as fixes deployed "this month" to address key issues and balance gameplay, then says the team is now fully focused on Patch 16 and beyond. That same update also reported that the game had passed 15 million players, which helps explain why Saber keeps shipping large free updates on a steady rhythm.

Official patch release dates, second half of 2026

Update	Date	Headline content
Patch 14.0 (Confrontation)	July 28, 2026	Sanctum and Facility PvP maps, Scarab Occult Terminator Sorcerer
Hotfix 14.1	August 11, 2026	Bug and balance fixes
Hotfix 14.2	September 3, 2026	Fix for Weekly Siege and Eternal War accolades
Patch 15.0 (Anniversary Update II)	October 1, 2026	Chaos Siege, Crucible, Tactical rework, One-Handed Thunder Hammer
Hotfix 15.1	October 8, 2026	Hammer and Melta buffs, Crucible fixes
Hotfix 15.2	October 20, 2026	Further hammer tuning, Crucible and Siege fixes
Patch 16.0 PTS	Opened November 9 to 10, runs until November 18, 2026	Vanguard rework, Weekly Clash for PvP, Chaos Siege sector 3

What Patch 15.0 Added on October 1

Patch 15 was the largest update of the year and changed how many players spend their evenings in the game. The headline additions were:

• Chaos in Siege Mode: for the first time you play Heretic Astartes in PvE, backed by Cultists and a Helbrute, fighting both the Tyranids and loyalist forces on a new Siege map called Hive, set in Avarax's hive city.
• Crucible: the first true endgame mode, open to Level 25 classes. You launch it through Operations, pick Penances that make the mission harder, and earn Crucible XP toward the Lamenters armour set. It uses its own matchmaking pool.
• The One-Handed Thunder Hammer: a fast melee weapon that builds charges and spends them on stronger area attacks. Saber's launch post lists it for the Tactical, Assault, Bulwark and Techmarine classes.
• Three Heroic weapons unlocked with Accolades: the Frost Axe (Power Axe), the Power Maul (One-Handed Thunder Hammer) and an Iron Hands Auto Bolt Rifle, plus three Heroic armour parts.
• Wargear 2.2: tabards and cloaks got separate slots and can be painted, with new cloth colours and Sniper cloak camouflage patterns.
• Season Pass 3 content: the Space Wolves Champion Pack for the Bulwark and the Exorcists Cosmetic Pack.

Crucible deserves a second look if you play at the top end. The September Community Update explained that each class has its own Penance set and its own Crucible progression, so Crucible XP earned on a Tactical only counts toward the Tactical's Lamenters set. Penance sets are split into six tiers, and higher tiers demand more Penances before you can start: two at Tier 1 and six at Tier 3.

The Tactical Rework and the Weapon Damage Rebalance

The change that will affect the most loadouts is the Tactical rework. Saber rewrote most of the class perk tree to support three styles: two primary weapons, Gun Strike focus and close combat. The Tactical's starting perk now includes the old Kraken Penetrator Rounds effect, so bolt weapons pierce one extra enemy and deal 20 percent more non-headshot damage by default.

Several perks were replaced outright. Signal Jammer became Tactical Reserve, which swaps your secondary weapon for a primary Bolt Rifle. Priority Targeting became Pulse Auspex, Target Lock became Mobile Auspex, Expert Timing became Strongpoint and Concentrated Fire became Prime Target. The Tactical also gained three melee options (Power Sword, Power Axe and One-Handed Thunder Hammer), but equipping one removes your primary weapon. We go through the new tree slot by slot in our Tactical build guide for Patch 15.

Because Auspex Scan now gives a smaller damage bonus, Saber raised base damage on most primary weapons to compensate. The Bolt Rifle gained 10 percent, the Auto Bolt Rifle and Occulus Bolt Carbine 15 percent, the Heavy Bolter 5 percent and the Pyreblaster and Pyrecannon 10 percent each. Melta weapons got a different treatment: the Melta Rifle's base damage rose by 65 percent while its ammo capacity fell from 15 to 10, and damage falloff now starts much closer to you, which makes Melta brutal at point blank range and weak at a distance.

PvP also saw a rebalance in 15.0. Scope cameras moved closer to the character so players can no longer shoot from fully behind cover, the Heavy's Iron Halo lost 25 percent of its health in PvP, the Techmarine's ability cooldown dropped 16 percent and the Sniper Bolt Rifle fires 9 percent faster. Our Eternal War guide covers how those changes fit into the PvP modes.

Hotfix 15.1 and 15.2: Hammer and Melta Tuning

The two follow-up hotfixes were mostly about making the new hammer feel worth using and pulling Melta back from an overly harsh falloff curve. Hotfix 15.1 on October 8 raised the One-Handed Thunder Hammer's base damage by 10 percent and its charged attack damage by 25 percent, doubled the damage of Echoing Swing waves and Energised Strike, and temporarily removed the forced stagger from charging stances. It also pushed Melta falloff back out: Standard-Issue Melta Rifles now start losing damage at 3 metres instead of 2, the default ammo pool rose to 12 and the magazine to 6.

Hotfix 15.2 on October 20 kept going with the hammer. The time to gain one charge dropped to 1.25 seconds, Energy Loop damage doubled and can now follow a Charged Impact, Underhand Swing damage rose by 30 percent and Charged Impact by 15 percent. The Heroic Power Maul was reworked so its Ground Slam needs three charges, forces a stagger and gained 30 percent damage and a 100 percent larger radius. If you play the Assault, these numbers matter, and our Assault build guide explains where the hammer now fits next to the classic Thunder Hammer.

Both hotfixes also cleaned up Crucible and Chaos Siege. 15.1 fixed players below Level 25 slipping into Crucible missions, raised the Pandemonium Penance value from 15 to 25 percent and cut the summonable Helbrute's melee damage by 30 percent in Chaos Siege. 15.2 stopped PvE Quick Match players from being matched into Crucible and fixed a Tactical Reserve bug that made the secondary Bolt Rifle hit softer than the primary.

What Patch 16 Looks Like on the Test Server

The PTS Patch Notes 16.0 thread went up on November 9, and Saber's Steam post on November 10 confirmed the Public Test Server is open until November 18. It runs only on PC through Steam, as a separate install, and your progress there is not saved or carried over. Everything starts maxed out, DLCs are not available and mods will crash the PTS at launch, so disable them first.

The test build shows the main features planned for Patch 16:

• A Vanguard class expansion: the Grapnel Launcher works at close range, the perk tree is heavily reworked and new perks apply two new status effects, Stun and Revenge.
• Weekly Clash for PvP, described as new rules every week.
• Chaos Siege Sector 3, the final part of the Hive map, where loyalists try to stop a Daemon Host ritual.
• Six Heroic weapons for Accolades: Bolt Rifle, Heavy Bolter, Plasma weapon, Heavy Bolt Pistol, Las Fusil and Omnissian Axe.
• Wargear 2.3, which gives the Bulwark a dedicated robe and tabard slot and lets it equip a cloak.
• Small Tactical tweaks: Improved Efficiency rises from 25 to 30 percent, Mobile Auspex gains 7 seconds of duration instead of 4 and Prime Target adds a passive 20 percent Gun Strike bonus.

Saber has not announced a release date for Patch 16. The October Community Update only says the team is fully focused on it, so treat any specific date you see elsewhere as a guess until the official notes go live.

After Patch 16: Patch 17, the Apothecary and Switch 2

The September Community Update laid out the Year 3 roadmap. The Apothecary joins as the next class with Patch 17 in the first quarter of 2027, and like the Techmarine it will get a Champion skin in the update after its release. The October update added that the Victrix Honour Guard Storm Shield, previously a Twitch reward, moves to the Refinement and Redemption shop with Patch 17. For the full year plan, see our Year 3 roadmap breakdown.

Separately, the Nintendo Switch 2 version announced in June is still targeted for Holiday 2026, with no exact date announced as of today. Our Switch 2 release guide tracks what Saber has and has not confirmed for that port.

Catching Up After a Big Patch

Every large update adds weapons, Heroic variants, ordeals and cosmetics to unlock, and returning players often find their classes far behind the new content. If you would rather start a new patch with progression already in place, the store's Space Marine 2 services page lists boosting and unlock-all style services for PC, PlayStation and Xbox covering PvE, PvP, cosmetics and progression.

The unlock-all service is applied to your account without you sharing login details, and its page lists all classes at Prestige 4 and Level 25 in PvE, all class perks upgraded, and all weapon versions and perks unlocked. Note that the page describes its coverage as current to the May 2026 update, so ask support about anything added in Patch 14 or 15 before you order.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Space Marine 2 Guides

• Is Space Marine 2 on Game Pass? Tiers and Status in 2026
• Space Marine 2 Heavy Build: Best Perks for Patch 15
• Space Marine 2 Mastery Points: How to Earn and Spend Them
• Space Marine 2 Operations Guide: PvE Co-op Tips
• Space Marine 2 Best Bulwark Build & Tactics