Everything There Is To Know About Destiny 2 – Lightfall (So Far)

The latest expansion for Destiny 2 is on its way and since I’ve been glued to Bungie’s space shooter for the best part of two years, I thought it prudent to give you the rundown of the next major expansion – Lightfall ahead of the release next month.

Latest update – 20 January 2023.

Releasing on 28th February, Destiny 2: Lightfall picks off where last year’s Witch Queen expansion left off. The conclusion of the expansion opened up a bigger threat to the Solar System in the form of a being known as The Witness, and he’s got his sights firmly set on the Traveller. Joining The Witness as one of his disciples is Emporer Calus, who will be a familiar foe for those long-time players. In what is set to be the penultimate expansion to the ongoing MMO, Bungie is pulling out all of the stops with Lightfall.

Update 20 January 2023

Bungie has confirmed a number of tweaks to Destiny 2, which will be available for all players, regardless of owning the Lightfall expansion. With the introduction of new weapons, the Cruicible – the game’s PVP section will see a few changes. This mainly pertains to buffs and nerfs of certain weapons such as fusion rifles being less effective over longer distances. What is interesting is that due to the introduction of the Strand subclass is that aerial combat will be more effective. Players who like taking to the skies will be able to do more damage than those on the ground.

For those who prefer staying on the ground might want to experiment with zipping around the arenas and thanks to the new loadout slots, players can freely experiment without losing their faithful setup. Guardians will be able to store 10 loadouts per character – not account.

On top of this, if you hit the relevant power gap for the season or expansion, blue engrams will spawn at a much reduced rate and will be replaced by glimmer packs. Most players have been frustrated at having to dismantle the blue engrams as they quickly become pointless once the power level is met. The replacement glimmer packs will valued at the equipment scrap value. Gunsmith levels will also be upped for scrapping weapons by around 25% to compensate for the loss of the blue equipment.

Original post – 1 January

The key gimmick with the Lightfall expansion is that it will bring another new subclass to players known as Strand. Much like the Stasis class which was added to the roster with 2020’s Beyond Light story, this looks to be forged from the Darkness and gives players the ability to do some rather nifty things.

For Hunters, this new power opens up Threadrunner abilities, where a rope made of light can be flung across the arena and will attach to the nearest wall or enemy before pulling the Guardian across. Titans will become units thanks to the Tyrant ability and Warlocks will be able to possess the opposition for a short while. I do like my powerhouse characters but this is making me think twice about who I’ll use as my main in the year ahead!

In Lightfall there is a brand new area to explore in the form of Neomuna, a bright neon-filled city based on Neptune that will serve as the main base of operations for the expansion. The trailer above does hint at more battles in space, something that has become more prevalent as TWQ seasons has drawn on. It will be interesting to see if Bungie does mix up the locations, previous expansions have typically centered on one location.

If a new power and new location weren’t enough for people, then Destiny 2 Lightfall will also introduce two new types of bad guys. For all its pros, The Witch Queen’s Lucient Hive was a rather disappointing enemy type, as they did little more than slightly repackage foes of old so it’ll be interesting to see what Bungie throws at us.

The Witness’s Pyramid legion leads the charge against the Light and along with the usual set of goons are the Tormentors. Not a lot is known about these towering humanoids apart from their shredded clothing and tiny heads, but they look to be this expansion’s version of Champions so will certainly provide a challenge to Guardians. Emporer Calus is also bringing his own Shadow Legion to battle, and while they do look like a cross between Cabal and Dark Helmet, it is nevertheless exciting we get a shake-up of the enemies.

As always, Lightfall will come in two editions, the base expansion which grants players access to the main story, a new raid, and one additional season. The deluxe edition includes the main expansion, a year’s worth of seasons (yet to be announced), a raid as well as a season key that allows access to two additional pinnacle challenges. Pre-orders are currently live and if you buy the deluxe edition, you’ll get a new emote, an exotic ride, and early access to a new Quicksilver exotic – an Auto Rifle that doubles up as a rocket and grenade launcher.

While Guardians wait for the arrival of The Witness, they can tackle the rebuilding of a rather dangerous Warmind that goes by the name of Rasputin in the Season of the Seraph. This is the final season of The Witch Queen expansion and will conclude on 28th February.

Destiny 2 – Lightfall will release on 28th February 2023 on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, and Xbox One.