Understanding Ritual Activities in Destiny 2 Gameplay

Destiny 2 offers a variety of content for Guardians, categorized into three main types referred to as ritual activities. Players must participate in these activities to enhance their Guardian’s Power to achieve the current cap.

The three fundamental pillars of ritual activities in Destiny 2 are Vanguard Ops, Gambit, and Crucible. Engaging in these activities is crucial for leveling up your Guardian effectively.

Except for Gambit, each category features multiple activity types. Below is a detailed overview of each type of ritual activity, the associated tasks, and the player demographics they cater to.

What are Ritual Activities?

Ritual activities are permanent content within Destiny 2 that rewards players with powerful and pinnacle gear for fulfilling various daily and weekly tasks. Each category is designed specifically for PvE, PvP, or a combination of both (PvEvP).

Vanguard Ops

For those focused solely on PvE, Vanguard Ops includes friendly Strikes, the challenging weekly variants known as Nightfalls, and Onslaught—a wave defense mode introduced in Into the Light.

The activities included are:

Nightfall: More challenging versions of regular Strikes, featuring various difficulty modifiers. One Nightfall is available per week.
Vanguard Ops: The fundamental activity; a casual-friendly playlist of Strikes and similar past content.
Grandmaster Nightfall: Extremely challenging endgame content that rewards exclusive Adept weapons from Nightfalls, generally available a few weeks into the season.
Onslaught: Playlist: A base defense mode involving ten waves, dropping BRAVE weapons.
Onslaught: A 50-wave version of the same mode, also awarding BRAVE weapons.

The Crucible

Compete in The Crucible to test your skills against other Guardians. This ritual activity encompasses various PvP content, ranging from casual playlists like Control and Rumble to high-stakes modes such as Trials of Osiris and Iron Banner.

The activities found here include:

Competitive (3v3 Ranked): Different from Trials of Osiris, this is a permanent option where players are ranked based on performance with unique rewards.
6v6 Unranked: Ideal for casual PvP, typically featuring Control as the main game type.
6v6 Quickplay: Offers the same team composition as 6v6 Unranked but with a different ruleset.
Crucible Labs: An experimental playlist where Bungie trials new game modes and rulesets.
Free for All: A fun-focused mode allowing all players to compete against each other.
Private Match: A mode where Guardians can create custom matches with their own rules.
Trials of Osiris: This is the pinnacle 3v3 PvP activity featuring exclusive rewards. Players can reach The Lighthouse by winning seven consecutive matches. Available from Friday to Tuesday when active.
Iron Banner: Another pinnacle 6v6 PvP mode providing unique rewards. Available for two weeks when active.

Gambit

Gambit intertwines PvE and PvP gameplay, where two teams of four compete to deposit Motes and defeat a boss first. Each team operates within its instance and interacts primarily through Blockers and invasions.

Teams earn Motes by defeating enemies, which they can bank in sets to summon Blockers that hinder the other team’s deposits. Upon reaching specific deposit milestones, portals open for players to invade and attempt to eliminate opponents, which can heal their boss if successful.

Additional Content (Legends)

Beyond the main ritual activities, you will find a fourth option in Destiny 2’s Director for accessing Raids, Dungeons, and Exotic Missions.

It’s important to note that while some content is permanent, other Legends rotate weekly.

Ritual Challenges & Rewards

Rewards vary based on the difficulty of the activities.

Completing challenges related to daily or weekly ritual activities rewards players with various engrams of differing quality. Below is the list of obtainable engrams:

Powerful Gear (Tier 1): Gear that drops +3 above your current total.
Powerful Gear (Tier 2): Gear that drops +4 higher than your current total.
Powerful Gear (Tier 3): Gear that drops +5 higher than your current total.
Pinnacle Gear: Gear that drops +6 above your current total.

It’s advisable to prioritize challenges rewarding Pinnacle Gear, with those for Powerful Gear as a secondary concern. The former typically involves greater time commitments and tougher challenges, so feel free to balance these as you choose.

Understanding the Pathfinder System

Guardians aim to complete objectives within their Pathfinder, seeking rewards upon completion.

Introduced in The Final Shape, the Pathfinder system replaces activity-based Bounties, providing various rewards by completing simplistic objectives.

Each of Vanguard Ops, Crucible, and Gambit has dedicated Pathfinder trees that reward engrams, XP, and essential materials with each path completion. For further details, check out our Pathfinder guide.

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