Most weapons in Fortnite have been nerfed and buffed multiple times over the years, but not the grenade. Five years on, Fortnite's grenades have dealt the same amount of damage to players and buildings as they always have. That's until now as Epic has rolled out its first nerf in half a decade.
For five years, grenades have dealt 100 damage if you land a direct hit. It's actually a minor miracle this is the first time Epic has addressed that since 2018. Now even the most precise grenade hit will only deal 40 damage, so no more relying on them quite as much as you used to.
Using them to take down buildings won't be easy anymore either. The nerf to building damage is an even bigger one. Grenades would previously deal 375 damage to a building upon impact. That impressive number has now been dropped to a lowly 75. Good news for those of you who like to hide out in towering structures you're able to whip up in a matter of seconds.
Grenade-throwing players aren't the only ones who have been dealt a hefty blow by the latest round of nerfs. The damage a Heavy Sniper can do to buildings has also been scaled back significantly, although as far as I can tell from Fortnite dataminers Hypex and iFireMonkey, the heavy-duty gun will still pack the same amount of punch when using it on a rival player.
Previously dealing 690, 660, 630, and 600 damage to buildings depending on the level of the weapon – from Mythic down through to Rare – the Heavy Sniper will now deal just 173, 165, 158, and 150 damage when a bullet hits a building. Again, the descending numbers correspond to the level of sniper you're using.
If you heavily rely on grenades and snipers, all of the above likely has you raging right now. If you don't, you may well be able to rest a little easier when cooped up inside somewhere on Fortnite's island. With the two weapons now having less of an impact on buildings, even when it's a direct hit, it's likely even those who love them will be using them a lot less.
Fortnite's grenades and snipers aren't the first weapons to get newsworthy downgrades so far in 2023. The Mythic Shotgun was so powerful not so long ago that it was capable of eliminating a player with one well-placed shot. A nerf shortly after it was added fixed that, although it still packs a hell of a punch.