Very Quick Tips for Destiny 2

Don’t talk to Shaxx if you hit level 20 and haven’t finished the story

Last night my Destiny 2 Warlock hit Power Level 268, and I finished the Nightfall — so it’s safe to say I’ve experienced much of what the game has to offer, and at this point, I’ve started to work on my second and third characters

Here are some things I picked up along the way

• Seriously, don’t talk to Shaxx (the Crucible/PVP NPC) if you hit level 20 and haven’t finished the campaign, as he’ll spoil the story. It happened to a fireteam member of mine and since he was really into the narrative, he was pissed.

• If you get a subclass drop that starts the quest to unlock your second or third subclass, do it quickly. If you get your third subclass item you won’t be able to actually pick it up, as you need to complete your other subclass quest first.

• The new glimmer cap is 99,999. The best way to spend your cash is on shaders (which cost money to implement and are now consumable), maps from Cayde, and instant vendor upgrades for your alts.

• If you “rally the flag” before a public event by touching it, your super will fill and your game will track the event.

• Warlocks are one of the easiest classes to play at the moment, especially the Void subclass. Just go for the Devour skill and bask in your ability to constant regenerate health.

• Finishing the campaign and defeating the final boss, then talking to the last NPC in the final area will automatically level your character to 20 to start endgame.

• Speaking of infusions, the Coldheart, which is its own funky weapon class, can be fueled by autorifles.

• Gear infusion works on a 1:1 basis, where the desired item will be powered up to the item you’re infusing it with. Just note that it uses up legendary shards, the currency that Xur is going to require when he first arrives next Friday.

• Save five blue or purple scout rifles for level 20 to disassemble for the MIDA Multi-tool quest, which can be picked up in the EDZ and asks for a Power Level suggestion of 260.

• Once you hit 20 you’ll earn a free Sparrow, but you can buy more for your alt characters and transfer one to them as soon as they hit the open world (roughly 30 minutes in).

• So how does the endgame grind work? Exactly like the first game, but you have more options. Equip better gear constantly, even if you don’t like the stats or the weapon. The higher your power level, the higher gear you’ll get, so you’ll want to keep that gravy train running.

• Save turn-ins for level 20 if you can. While getting reputation early on can help you gear-wise, turning in at a high light level will earn you better gear. Once you hit 260 you’ll really need to start getting legendary drops from reputation vendors (one in each area, denoted by the green icon) or from milestone quests (which you can also save).

• In the same vein, don’t do the blue banner quests (one for each planet) that you unlock after completing the story until you’re at least power level 265. They’ll reward you with guaranteed exotics that can RNG all the way up to 300. The higher you are, the better they’ll be, and you can’t take this roll back unless you go through the game again on another character.

• The fastest method I’ve found for upgrading gear is by roaming the open world, killing VIPs (random yellow bar enemies that appear), doing quests (adventures), and as many public events as you can. Buy the four hour treasure chest radar buff from Cayde, and loot chests along the way. If you’re lucky, you’ll be earning reputation medals at a very quick rate, having completed multiple activities in rapid succession. Gear from all of these activities will often result in upgrades, and you’ll also get even better gear from token turn-ins.

• If you’re doing the Nightfall, try to get a group that has all three types of weapon burns (void, arc, solar). The modifier this week constantly swaps between them in the order listed above, so you can predict which weapons are going to be more powerful at any given time. As a rule, you’ll want to run when you can (after dunking the first ball, after opening the door by killing the lieutenant, after killing the second tank) to save time.