Ions in elevated charge states and at velocities well below a solid's Fermi velocity facilitate surface modifications predominantly by charge-exchange-driven potential energy deposition. The ion potential energy is defined as the sum of the binding energies of all previously ionized electrons and is released by electronic excitations of a solid upon impact.In this contribution we present experimental data on distinct morphology changes induced by slow highly charged ions on freestanding two-dimensional materials and their heterostructures. We furthermore show recent results on surfaces of bulk transition metal dichalcogenides which indicate that strong local electronic excitations due to the ion impact can be used to tune surface electronic properties with overall negiglible beam damage.