In this Power Level guide to Destiny 2 we will show you how to quickly reach max level 335. This is how you level up, this is how you exceed 260 Power.
Update: Since Curse of Osiris, the new max power level is 335 (with mods).
No matter how powerful your Guardian was in Destiny 1 – in Destiny 2 you start over. Ghaul, the new villain, has robbed you of your power, and now you need to regain your strength. All Guardians start at Level 1 in Destiny 2.
But how do you level up efficiently? What is the cap, what is the max level in Destiny 2? Here are all the answers.
Reach character level 25 in Destiny 2 – The first step of leveling
At the beginning, you need to raise your character level. The maximum since Curse of Osiris is Level 25. This is the first goal of character progression.
To increase your character level, you only need to do one thing: Gather experience points (XP). The XP bar fills up as you defeat enemies and complete activities – in other words, by playing Destiny 2. For example, play the story missions, tasks in the open world, or PvP matches in the Crucible.
Each time the XP bar is filled, you level up. By the way, you receive one upgrade point per level, which you can use to unlock focus abilities. Once level 25 is reached, the next step in progression begins.
By the way: The strength of enemies in the open world is scaled based on your level.
Reach Power Level 260 / 265 / 270 – The second step to the maximum
On your way to character level 20, you will also level up in Power Level. The Power Level of your Guardian is calculated from the average attack and defense values of your equipped weapons and armor pieces. It determines how much damage you deal and how much damage you can take. Therefore, the big goal is: Max out your Power Level.
From character level 25 onwards, you no longer need experience points to progress. You can only improve by finding powerful gear pieces to increase your Power Level. This Power Level was called “Light Level” in Destiny 1, by the way.
At the launch of Destiny 2, the max Power Level is 300. However, your previous goal is 260 / 265 / 270 Power before you take on the 300 Power challenge.
Since Curse of Osiris, the max Power Level is 335.
You increase your Power Level by equipping gear with better stats. New items can only be a few points better than your total Power Level, which means you level up slowly but steadily.
This is how you level up quickly in Power Level; the numbers can be higher since Curse of Osiris:
- Blue gear drops with higher stats (up to max 260) can be found in all kinds of activities. They can, for example, be rewards after an activity or dropped by enemies.
- Legendary (purple) items and engrams can also be obtained from numerous activities. These can be a maximum of 265 Power. By the way, the Power Level is assigned immediately upon the drop of an engram, so it doesn’t make sense to save it for later. You can take it directly for decoding.
- Legendary items over 265 Power (up to 270 Power) can be received from vendors as rewards. This is because they can be equipped with mods that push the Power Level by +5. Legendary items with mods (up to 270 Power) are also rare rewards in strikes and PvP matches.
Tip: To level up quickly, it’s worth playing a lot of public events. This way, you can quickly get vendor tokens, which you can exchange for legendary items that go up to 270.
By the way: If you have around 270 Power Level, blue engrams can drop with stats over 260. If you have over 276 Power, legendary items over 265 can also drop from all kinds of activities. However, they are not suitable for leveling up. They are always around 10 points below your total Power Level.
So how do you get over 270 Power?
Reach Power Level 335 – Level Cap – Go through weekly milestones and exotics
Once you reach Power Level 260-270, there are significantly fewer options to continue leveling up and become even more powerful.
You can go from 270 to 335 Power through weekly milestones. There are several milestone types that you can display in the objectives overview – the crucial ones are the weekly milestones that grant “powerful gear”.
These activities reset every Tuesday for the Weekly Reset. This means that the rewards from these activities can only be earned weekly.
These Weekly Milestones are listed:
- The Call-to-Arms in the Crucible – that is a PvP quest
- Flashpoints – In a region marked as a Flashpoint, events must be mastered
- Nightfall Strike – a hard version of the “normal” strikes
- Clan XP – Earn Clan XP in strikes, in raids, in the Crucible, and in world activities
- Raid
- Heroic Strikes (3 per week)
Since you can only earn rewards from these activities weekly, you should only attempt them when you are over Power Level 270.
- Additionally, exotic engrams can drop items beyond 270. These are very rare drops in public events, strikes, Crucible matches, or Cayde’s treasure maps. All locations of exotic engrams are presented here.
Also, through the raid and the trials, you can obtain gear that will bring you to the max level. Keep in mind that you can increase your Power Level by up to 5 with mods. Thus, it goes up to 335 Power, without mods up to 330.
In this graphic, you get an overview of which activities you can play on your way to Power Level 300. The activities that bring you to 300 also bring you to 335.
Good luck on your way to 335, Guardians!
