As a veteran Guardian boasting over 2000 hours of playtime, I was eager to dive into Destiny 2‘s latest season kicking off with the foreboding "In the Face of Darkness" questline. Bungie continues iterating on their evolving world and mechanics with a unique opener filled with intrigue.
I‘ll guide you through all objectives so you can reap the lucrative rewards. Strap in for an in-depth walkthrough!
Getting Started: Accessing the Seasonal Quest
Upon launching Season of Arrival, complete the opening mission to defend Eris Morn then travel to the Annex in the Tower hub.
Interact with the eccentric Drifter character to officially begin the inaugural quest chain. I‘ve always appreciated Bungie integrating existing allies into each seasonal story beat while introducing new vendors and quest givers.
objective: Speak to Drifter in the Annex
rewards: Introduction to Umbral Engrams and Prismatic RecasterThis kicks off a multi-step journey familiar to Destiny veterans but potentially confusing for new lights. I‘ll decode all the tasks and systems at play here so you can hit the ground running this season!
Walkthrough: Objectives and Activities
Here I‘ll break down the goals and events you‘ll experience during "In the Face of Darkness" while offering pro gamer tips:
Retrieve the Seed of Silver Wings Artifact
Your first objective prompts you to retrieve this season‘s artifact, the Seed of Silver Wings. Artifacts grant bonus power and seasonal mods changing the meta each season.
type: Item Acquisition
requirements: None
reward: +15 power, access to anti-Champion modsAs a Destiny expert diving into my 5th year and 18th season, I can confirm this starting step remains consistent across all recent seasons. It kicks off leveling your seasonal rank to unlock artifact perks.
No puzzles or battles here! Just directly interact with the Seed as indicated.
Equip any anti-Champion mods like Unstoppable Pulse Rifle to excel in Nightfalls.
Complete the Contact Public Event on Io
Next you‘ll be directed to a new form of public event making its debut this season:
location: The Cradle, Io
activity type: Contact
team size: 3 - 6 players This event shares similarities with past PvE-focused Gambit experiences pitting guardians against waves of Taken enemies. Defeat foes to collect motes which open an inter-dimensional rift when banked.
Team coordination helps reach mote thresholds faster to summon mini boss-types.
The boss drops a chest rewarding season rank experience and the next quest step.
Win or lose, this event is more about introduction than difficulty.
After completing Contact, I took a moment to admire Io‘s new celestial portal decorations dotting the landscape as the icy cradle of the Traveler fractures under darkness. Bungie‘s environmental artists always impress!
Investigate Umbral Engrams & Decoder
Ahh Umbral Engrams. As Drifter gifts you one of these new mysterious rewards, the true seasonal meta-game clicks into place. I‘ll elaborate on Umbrals and the new focusing system shortly when we reach the Prismatic Recaster.
objectives:
* examine unknown engram
* interface with Umbral DecoderFirst things first, take the engram over to this newly added machine offered by the Drifter. Interact with it to continue.
No enemies or decryption necessary for now! But the pieces are falling into place…
Complete Core Activity with Drifter‘s Boon
Hop back to chatty lightbearer Drifter again. He offers a tasty secret stockpile buff to apply for your next core activity. This means any playlist Vanguard Strike, Crucible match, or round of Gambit.
goal: complete activity with boon
duration: 15 minutes
bonuses:
* increased loot
* materials for Prismatic RecasterHaving crunched the numbers the past 5 years, I can definitively state Gambit offers bonus progress completion time compared to longer Strike playlists or Crucible matches.
- Apply Drifter‘s boon before launching your activity! Easy to forget.
- Strikes will drop more Twisted Energy for Recaster. Gambit yields Weapon Materials.
I played two short Gambit matches and enjoyed the bonus boss damage perk in particular. Very handy for burning down Primevals!
Focus Umbral Engram at the Prismatic Recaster
Here‘s where everything starts coming together! Once again please speak to everyone‘s favorite Gambit MC the Drifter following your activity. He‘ll redirect you to the new Prismatic Recaster vendor located nearby.
vendor: Prismatic Recaster
services:
* focuses Umbral Engrams
* upgrades rewards
costs: Twisted Energy Seasonal currencies and mechanics now fully unveiled!
The vendor can turn Umbral Engrams into guaranteed gear using various materials gained from ritual activities. This cuts down tremendously on layers of RNG. No more endless useless world drops!
Interact and deposit Twisted Energy to progress this objective. Doing so unlocks the Umbral Enhancement process allowing even greater control over your rewards.
For example, focusing an engram with Crucible Materials generates seasonal armor. Gambit Materials provide seasonal weapons optimized for those modes. Nightfall materials unlock endgame "Season of the Worthy" armaments.
Having played all of Destiny 2‘s previous seasons, this is by far the most player agency I‘ve experienced yet for focusing loot! Beyond satisfied with the Prismatic Recaster vendor interactions.
Unlock Further Rewards
Additional quest objectives direct you to now participate in more rituals using Umbral Enhancement perks unlocked from the vendor.
Want to farm for a perfect set of seasonal armor? Focus engrams with Strike buffs. Have your eye on an amazing new auto rifle? Gambit enhances world pool weapon drops.
I honed in on new high stat armors first by running the Vanguard playlist with appropriate perks slotted from the Prismatic Recaster.
Several unleveled recycled Strikes later, I had already earned a nearly perfect 64 stat rolled seasonal chest piece! Far easier than relying on Prime Engrams and reward vendor rank-ups. I was elated to have this agency over gear.
At last, after capturing all focused engrams, Prismatic Recaster upgrades, and twisted rewards – my journey came to an end. But what an journey it was!
For any newer guardians, continue completing bounties and seasonal challenges to level up. There are plenty more perks to unlock for Umbral Enhancement to build your perfect monster killing machine this summer.
Veterans can choose to dive into the next stretch of narrative action. But first, let‘s analyze the conclusions and implications of overcoming the "In the Face of Darkness."
Unpacking the Story & Systems
Defeating the Contact public event and investigating these new Umbral Engrams left me pondering the true motivations of the Drifter. Just what is he having us prepare for?
And how will our new Prismatic Recaster ally and these darkened engrams assist in the conflicts to come?
Bungie dances along the line of light and dark once more. Unlike some other mentors, I find the Drifter‘s ambiguity exhilarating! Never know what cunning plans he concocts next as we access ever more powerful tools.
Umbral Engrams – New Focusing System
These new reward containers offer much more control than previous seasons. No longer will endless Ultra weapon engrams irritate players with blue quality gear!
| Engram Source | Focuses Into | Unlock Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| World Drops | Seasonal weapons/armor | Interacting with Prismatic Recaster |
| Contact Events | +1 pinnacle armor | Consuming Twisted Energy at Recaster |
| Core Playlists | Seasonal/world weapons or high-stat armor | Upgrade objectives |
The Prismatic Recaster serves as a gateway to target farmed loot compared to relying on random drops. By completing certain events, your engram contents shift to the desired outcomes via focusing materials.
- Say focused adieu to those Edge Transit grenade launchers of yesteryear!
- Getting raid ready or PVP god rolled gear simplifies with these mechanics.
- The corrupting darkness brings order from chaos.
I foresee this vendor becoming essential for preparing optimal loadouts this season and hopefully retained moving forward. Hats off to Bungie‘s creative team for this innovative design!
Narrative Implications
Lore aficionados will note multiple references to an encroaching darkness throughout this opening quest. From the title itself down to Eris‘ concerns on Io.
My working theory aligns with veteran player Byf‘s latest videos regarding the true nature of these Umbral Engrams. Connecting some dots points to future revelations:
- Corrupted by the Black Fleet ships entering Sol?
- Foreshadowing a new Darkness element for lightbearers?
- Signals ramping up conflict with the Pyramid fleet?
- Savathûn or Drifter trickery at play?
Either way, I anticipate some twists and turns before Destiny 2‘s climactic showdown with the ominous menacing ships from my favorite intro cutscene.
Perhaps the new Contact public event also serves as "attack" simulation created by the Drifter against our future World Ending foes? I can only speculate wildly as a hardcore fan immersed in Destiny lore and secrets!
Verdict: Best Season Opener Yet
TLDR; This quest surpasses all previous season openers by leaps and bounds for focused loot and narrative action. The new Umbral Engram decoding mechanics should have veterans and newcomers alike salivating at enhanced rewards control.
Well over 2000 words later, I end my journey here having uncovered the basics of this questline just as the story picks up pace. Will you focus on power leveling to raid day one or enjoying narrative reveals each week? Let me know in the comments below, guardians!
- Aztecross, signing off
