Destiny 2 - Power Leveling Guide by QurBDO

Note: Destiny 2 can be played and enjoyed in many ways, so this guide is not for everyone.

I couldn't get clear information about how power/levels work with the mechanisms for progression in the game, so after a little bit of testing and reading, this is what I've come to understand:

LEVELS

• Leveling 1-20 requires EXP. Most activities in the game give you EXP - the main story, public events, side story, crucible, patrols, lost sectors, and even aimlessly killing mobs. If you just wish to keep up with the story, you normally wont have to go out of your way to meet its level requirements. There is a small jump in requirement near the end, however - one mission requires level 12, while the one after it requires 15 - so for those levels you might want to look at other sources for EXP, but for the most part the story will give you enough to keep up.
• If you finish the campaign and talk to the final npc at the very end, even if you are level 17/18/19, you will be immediately boosted to level 20.
• Each level 1-20 has a cap in how high Power you can attain in that level; you wont be able to hit 260 Power below level 20. So, there is little to no need to grind for Power in any case before level 20.
• Level 1-20, in the open world, is scaled to the mobs you are fighting and the public events you do, so you can fight next to a leveled 300 Power player with the same potency at level 5 when it comes to open world mobs.
• Spend all your glimmer on gear upgrades. Glimmer is of little use at endgame at the moment, so spending it on gear upgrades early on is a great way to level your light and have an easier time in story missions. Staying within 10 light of the recommended light for your questline is optimal.
• Join a clan early on if possible, clan rewards are another great source of gear.

At level 20, you start focusing on leveling Power. There are a few interesting mechanics around this:

• Since Power is the average of the best gear in all 8 slots, you must always prioritize your weakest slots as you level.
• Blue engrams and blue drops decrypt from anywhere between -2 to +4 Power level from your overall average Power level.
• Legendary engrams often decrypt beyond +4 levels from your average Power level, up to a softcap of 265 Power.
• You may receive legendary gear that is beyond 265 Power from vendors; that will be mostly likely because it has a +5 attack/defense Legendary mod on the gear already installed. So you may receive up to 270 gear from vendors on rare occasions. You may also receive just the legendary mods on their own that you can insert into your gear to boost its power by +5. The gunsmith drops these legendary mods, as well as a few exotics, in his rank-up packages.
• Remember to open your engrams as soon as you get them - their Power is determined by your Power the moment you acquired them, instead of your Power when you decrypt them.
• Spend your glimmer freely: buy 200 Power vendor gear if you aren't there yet, and Scout Reports from Cayde to see all the treasure chests with ease for farming tokens.

Now, for a short guide to efficient power leveling-

• As a fresh level 20 that just beat the campaign, you are free to do any activity to gain more Power. Your best bet at this point is to stow away certain activities that reward gear past the softcap of 260 for later - specifically, do not turn in milestones, nightfall, exotic weapon questlines, or cayde's treasure maps. Instead, focus on activities that reward blue gear. In order of the fastest to the slowest for attaining blue gear, you can do
  • Public events: around 1-2 blue pieces, chance of legendary and exotic pieces, glimmer and vendor tokens (20 vendor tokens = 1 or 2 legendary pieces). They are by far the fastest if you hop from event to event. However, they can get tedious fairly quickly. Try your best to activate the "Heroic" version of these events as they are more likely to give 2 blue pieces instead of 1 upon successful completion and a potentially higher chance at an exotic.
  • Farming treasure chests, killing yellow bar elite wandering mobs, looting lost sectors, finding regional chests -- all are amazing for getting vendor tokens, but are slower on average than spamming public events when it comes to getting blues. However, when you want to get purples, do these more frequently instead for vendor tokens.
  • Side story, vanguard strikes, crucible matches - fun original content but quite slow when it comes to amassing a bunch of blues compared to the methods above.

Most of these activities will provide you enough blues over time to get 260. While doing these, remember to occasionally open up faction packages when your gear plateaus to get guaranteed legendaries that pull your average higher.

At 260, the softcap for blue gear, you can choose to progress by amassing legendaries.

• Legendaries go to 265, but at times drop at 270 from vendors because they come premodded. You can also add your own mods to your gear to push it to 270.
• If your only goal is to get these vendor legendaries, focus more on farming tokens instead of public events. Public events have a chance at dropping exotics, but at 260-270, you're better off progressing via guaranteed vendor legendaries and mods.
• You can also get modded legendaries from crucible/strikes as rare drops that go up to 270.

After 270, the only way to progress is by the methods you patiently saved for yourself this entire time, namely:

• Milestones that reward "Powerful Gear" purple engrams. These are on a weekly lockout.
• Exotic weapon quests that reward various exotics that scale beyond 290 light. Do them when your weapon slot is holding you back.
• Nightfall drops. Weekly lockout.
• Possible Cayde treasure map drops.
• After 270, your blue and purple random drops will break the softcap but will always be 6-9 below your current average Power. The "hardcap" for these blue and random drops will probably always be 6-9 below the max possible light in the game, but we don't have enough info to know that yet.

Once all of those are dried up, you can choose to progress further by

• Using super high Power weapons/armor to pull your average light level ahead, then using the blue/purple drops to fill your lowest slots. i.e. if you're 279 light b/c you have a 289 exotic, a 279 energy weapon, and a 286 power weapon, your blue/purple will decrypt at 272. If you replace all of your armor with the 272 level, you'll hit 280 or above, and can then go on to unlock another super high powered exotic (comes from quest rewards, or high powered legendary that comes from "Powerful Gear" rewards.
• Farming exotic drops from public events, crucible, and strikes. Its slower but its currently the only way to progress outside of weekly lockouts or the raid. If you have two armor or weapon slots that are at max level with two different exotics, you need to infuse one of the exotics into a legendary for it to count in the game's algorithm, as it only takes into account one exotic weapon and one exotic armor when calculating your highest average level. A comment below notes that you should infuse these exotics into legendaries that have a legendary mod on it to end with +5 power above the base infusion.
• Making another character of the same class and transferring gear to take advantage of all the weekly lockouts on that new character. You cannot cross-infuse, so if you make a different class and move over your weapons earlier, you will need to get all of its armor at 270 or so independently grinding it, and then hope to go beyond your previous character's level because you did your weekly lockouts at a higher overall level. This is still slower (but arguably more fun) than making another character of the same class. Your weapons will carry your alt character's light level really well - you can easily get to 265 within an hour or two on a fresh level 20 alt if your weapons are sitting at 280+.
• u/Oniji says "You can trade in multiple rare mods for legendary +5 power mods at 280, at the gunsmith. He currently sells mods for every slot except Hunter cloaks."
• Once you make +5 mods for all of your slots, your drops (that come unmodded most of the time) can be infused to your modded gear to raise your modded gear's level. So if you have a 282 piece that's already modded (base value 277), and you get a 279 drop, you can infuse the 279 drop into the 282 modded piece and it'll go to 284.
• Dump all your extra glimmer into 'random mod' at the gunsmith so you can build a stockpile of blue mods to make purple mods with.
• More info worth looking at https://www.reddit.com/r/DestinyTheGame/comments/6zn27w/the_real_guide_to_leveling_over_265_in_destiny_2/https://www.reddit.com/r/DestinyTheGame/comments/6zn8zj/how_drops_work_how_rewards_for_alts_of_the_same/

Cheers all, and remember that Destiny is a game designed for fun; if this powerleveling stuff doesn't feel fun to you, there is no need to do it.

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Destiny 2 - How to get Rat King's Crew Guide by YK Eminence

Text: Step 1: Complete All quests on Titan

Step 2: Complete 3 patrol missions

Step 3: Complete 2 public events

Step 4: Complete or Win 2 crucible matches (Quickplay works)

Step 5: Complete Nightfall

Edit: You may need a fireteam to complete!

Destiny - Massive Breakdown of Range, Accuracy, Aim Assist, and Stability, and How They Interconnect by Mercules904

Long story short, I've spent a lot of time testing and reading about the various stats in Destiny, and at certain points in time I've posted breakdowns on them. What I'd like to do now is offer a simple refresher on what we know about four of those stats: Range, accuracy, aim assist, and stability. Now, somewhat surprisingly, all of these stats are actually interrelated, and they work together to give us the feel of the weapons we love so much in Destiny. I'm going to breakdown each on individually, then discuss how exactly it is that they relate.

For those who prefer to listen, here is Massive Breakdown Podcast Episode 40: What Do Those Stats Mean, Anyways?

Range:

When you use a perk that directly affects range (like Rifled Barrel or Hammer Forged) there are three things that change

1. Damage fall off distance - the distance and rate at which the gun longer does its maximum damage. Increasing range pushes this out farther.
2. Aim assist fall off distance - the distance and rate at which the aim assist loses effectiveness. Increasing range pushes this out farther.
3. Accuracy cone (error angle) - the physical size of the crosshairs when ADS (invisible in normal Destiny, but can be seen in the Last Rites mission). Determines the maximum angle a shot could deflect from center when leaving the barrel of the weapon. Increasing range narrows the crosshairs, thus decreasing the diameter of the accuracy cone and providing a lower possible error angle.

Accuracy:

Perks like Persistence, Eye of the Storm, and Hot Swap affect this.

1. Accuracy cone (error angle) - Exactly what we discussed before. The physical size of the accuracy cone grows as you maintain fire, which we refer to as bloom, and this means shots have a higher error angle, and thus are less accurate.
2. Projectile accuracy - Likelihood of shot going dead center or receiving maximum aim assist deflection (I think). This one has been the hardest to test in game, but based on things Bungie has said in past updates we know it exists, and this is my hypothesis of what it does. I believe that weapons have a higher initial projectile accuracy and it decreases as you maintain fire or jump in the air, in conjunction with the accuracy cone (error angle) changes. So a weapon with high initial projectile accuracy and a wide initial accuracy cone (high error angle) like a hand cannon could have a fairly accurate first shot, but the likelihood of each following shot being accurate would decrease as both bloom increases, and projectile accuracy decreases. Alternatively, a weapon with a low projectile accuracy but relatively narrow accuracy cone (like auto rifles) tends to be be inaccurate on single shots, but the bloom is clamped, which keeps the bullets confined within a relatively tight diameter, perfect for close range battles where the opponent fills the diameter of the crosshairs.

Aim Assist:

Hidden Hand, and some scopes, sights, and barrels change aim assist.

1. Reticle slow down - How much your reticle slows down when it nears a target.
2. Reticle stickiness - Once your aim is on a target, how much the reticle wants to stick to or follow the target when it moves.
3. Bullet magnetism - The amount that a bullet will alter its path out the end of the barrel to hit a target, even if the reticle or aim is slightly off target. The maximum deflection a bullet can take is given by the circular part of the reticle (not the crosshairs) that can be seen when ADS on Last Rites. The circle increases in diameter as the Aim Assist stat gets larger, due either to sights (SureShot), barrels (Smooth Ballistics), or perks that increase AA (Hidden Hand). Weapons with higher base AA will have larger circles than those with smaller base AA. As you fire the circle shrinks in size, so your maximum aim assist deflection degrades with sustained fire. Increasing the stability stat slows down this process and speeds up the reset to maximum deflection. Think of it like the opposite of bloom. This has a maximum distance where it is effective. Meaning at a certain distance, your bullets will no longer have their paths altered, and will instead be directed solely by the accuracy principles. Functionally, magnetism works the same way as a larger hitbox, in that it provides an area around a target that counts as a hit, even if technically the shot should miss. However, instead of the bullet passing through the empty space and registering as a hit, the bullet paths out of the barrel to the target, and can still be blocked by cover. Examples of this behavior can be seen when bullets impact a phalanx's shield, even though the player is clearly aiming at the exposed hand. Deflection can also be seen with any weapon that has a bullet trail, like Touch of Malice or Thorn.

Stability:

Perks like Perfect Balance, Braced Frame, etc. affect stability.

1. Barrel jump - How much the barrel and your aim moves with each shot fired. Recoil can be vertical, horizontal, or both. Increasing stability decreases the physical distance moved. Stability does not necessarily reset between shots, so your gun can actually come to rest in a different position if you do not correct for it. Stability and accuracy work together, but are separate mechanics. A gun with high accuracy but low stability will still be inaccurate, as, even with the bullets going straight out of the barrel, the barrel itself will move radically after each shot, thus spreading the bullets out even without individual deflections. Likewise, a gun with high stability and low accuracy will also be inaccurate because, even though the barrel doesn't jump around much, the high error angle will continue to make the bullets spread out from the barrel.
2. Aim assist degradation - How much and how fast the circular reticle which defines maximum aim assist deflection degrades is dependent on stability. The higher the stability, the longer the circle will last before it shrinks too much and disappears, and the faster it will reset during the time between shots.

TL;DR

1. Range affects damage drop off, aim assist fall off, and the crosshair size (aka the accuracy cone or error angle).
2. Accuracy affects the crosshair size (accuracy cone or error angle) and projectile accuracy (how likely the shots are to go straight or receive maximum aim assist deflection).
3. Aim Assist affects reticle slow down (speed decrease when near a target), reticle stickiness (how much the reticle wants to stick with a target it is already on), and bullet magnetism (how far the shot will deflect from the barrel to pull towards a target).
4. Stability affects barrel and reticle movement while firing, and the degradation of the diameter around the reticle that bullet magnetism is effective in. Higher stability means slower degradation.

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Destiny - Imago Loop Roll Guide for PvP by Mercules904

Several things to note:

• All Pros and Cons are determined by comparing weapons within the same class (in this case Hand Cannons), not by all weapons in general, and not by only the weapons within the archetype. If you would like a different or more specific comparison than what I have listed, feel free to ask and I can provide one in the comments.
• This guide can also be found on Planet Destiny.
• Classes are broken down into Impact sub-classes.
• I've listed the perks in the order that I would taken them in each column. These are strictly my opinions, so I'm very aware that a lot of people will probably disagree with them.
• The Bolded Perk/Perks in each column mean that I would include them in a God-Roll. If there are perks listed after the bolded ones, it means I think they are good perks, but not up to par with the God-Roll ones. If there are no bolded perks, it means that I feel any of the listed perks are fine to use in the column.
• All Times-to-Kill are assuming Guardian has 200hp (max armor not including the effects of Max Armor Juggernaut Titans or Warlocks with The Ram).

Hand Cannon

Mid-Impact
Imago Loop - Available from the Echo Chamber or Undying Mind Strikes as a random drop.

Pros - High Range. Above average Mag Size. Very high Recoil Direction.
Cons - Low Stability and Equip Speed. Below average Aim Assist and Reload Speed.

• Time-to-Kill: 0.86s (1 crit shot and 2 body shots)
• Rate of Fire: 22
• Impact: 87 (86 damage per crit shot, 57 damage per body shot)
• Range: 40
• Stability: 32
• Reload Speed: 33
• Mag Size: 10
• Aim Assist: 61
• Recoil Direction: 95
• Equip Speed: 36

Recommended Perks:

• Column 1 - SureShot IS/TrueSight IS
• Column 2 - Rangefinder, Outlaw, Hot Swap, Spray and Pray, Underdog
• Column 3 - Rifled Barrel, Smallbore, Reinforced Barrel, Hammer Forged, Braced Frame, Explosive Rounds, Hand Loaded
• Column 4 - Hidden Hand/Icarus, Luck in the Chamber, Third Eye, Reactive Reload, Life Support, Grenadier, Army of One

Basically the exact same as last weeks Finnala's Peril recommendations, since both weapons are in the same impact sub class and benefit from the same perks:

As always, the two best sights on HCs are SureShot and TrueSight, since they both help to boost the average base aim assist, but I would say they're the least important part of a great roll. In the second column, Rangefinder is universally considered to be the very best perk, and no God-Roll is complete without it. Outlaw is a passable second option, but after that it's a steep drop off to Hot Swap and Spray and Pray, neither of which are optimal choices. Underdog brings up the rear, but at least it can give you a range bonus in some situations. In the third column, Rifled Barrel is again the universally acclaimed choice, but Smallbore, Hammer Forged, and Reinforced Barrel (if you don't care about the massive hit to stability) are all very passable second options. If you are trying to get a Luck in the Chamber build, Smallbore and Braced Frame will be your two best choices. Explosive Rounds and Hand Loaded bring up the rear of the preferred perks in this slot, with ER greatly increasing your opponents flinch, and HL giving a minute boost to the range stat. In the final column, Hidden Hand and Icarus are my two top choices, given their all around usefulness, but some people will want Luck in the Chamber, depending upon their play-style. Third Eye is always solid in PvP, and Reactive Reload can be put to fantastic use situationally, so don't sleep on either of those. Life Support, Grenadier, and Army of One are all also decent options, so you really can't go wrong in this column, unless you get Mulligan.

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Destiny - How to easily obtain exotic shards by erock1283

So most people probably already know this trick, but I try to tell my friends about this any chance I get. One way to easily get a good supply of exotic shards is to buy the Year 2 version of any Machine gun or Rocket Launcher (for this example I use the Year 2 Thunderlord) from the exotic weapons blueprint kiosk and equip it. Then make sure to equip your class item (cloak, mark, or bond) that has the "Increase the upgrade rate of Machine Guns" (or Rocket Launcher if using a Rocket Launcher for this). Then use just 6 motes of light to completely upgrade your Thunderlord (you don't have to activate the nodes on the Thunderlord) and then dismantle it. In return, you will get 2 exotic shards, usually 3 motes of light back, 5 weapon parts, and some glimmer. All it costs is 1 exotic shard and 2500 glimmer. So you are essentially trading 1 exotic shard for 2. Something great to do if you are maxed out on your glimmer.

TL;DR: Purchase Y2 Thunderlord, equip it. Equip "upgrade machine rate" class item. Use 6 motes of light. Dismantle Thunderlord. Get 2 exotic shards.

Bonus SGA: Credit to aspergerac for posting the following in the comments below.
Also don't forget free exotics upgrades with the kiosks. If you have a 334 Exotic you want to infuse to 335 you will spend one exotic shard. If you break down that 334 instead you will get two exotic shards. Then you can use one shard to buy a new gun from the kiosk and the second shard to infuse it. This way you actually spend 0 shards instead of 1.

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