These are the maximum values of the individual quality levels. Whether an item actually achieves that is questionable, especially for rare items it is almost impossible.
And how much Light do I need per level?
To level up to Light level 21, you need 21 Light points, then 11 points for each further level up. The first level up therefore costs 10 Light points more than usual. At level 25, you need 10+5*11= 65 Light points. At level 30, you need 10+10*11= 120 Light points.
This way, you can calculate which gear you need for which Light level. For the maximum level of 30, you need a fully upgraded set of legendary raid items or exotic items.
The thing with upgrading: Potential and reality
Weapons and armor in Destiny can be upgraded further with Ascendant materials and other upgrade items. This also increases their Light value. It is important to note that a fully upgraded blue item may have a higher current Light value than a brand new legendary item, but you may still want to switch it out because the legendary item is better in the long run. It has higher potential.
With upgrading, it’s always a bit of a gamble in Destiny. Generally, items that you think you will use for a long time should be upgraded. Upgrading a rare item and wasting resources on it, which you will swap out just five minutes later, is really frustrating.
Ideal candidates for upgrading are exotic items and legendary items with a high base Light value.
Let there be Light – How to reach level 30 in Destiny?
The ascent to the first Light levels is still easy for many. A few good rares, eventually a legendary, and you’re already approaching levels 22, 24, and 26. After that, new possibilities open up, you’re busy, collecting gear, upgrading your legendaries, maybe buying an exotic from Xur, and you’re at level 28.
After that, you’ll only proceed in the current raid, the Glass Chamber. There, a special raid set drops, which fully upgraded and complete, provides enough Light to reach the coveted level 30. Thus, a visit to the Vault of Glass is essential for this level.
You should be able to manage your way to legendaries well until then; these two guides will tell you how to obtain them without just mindlessly shooting at any caves:
– Destiny Guide: Level Up Light Level Like the Pros – with Marks, Coins, and Materials
– Destiny: Level 20 and what now? Endgame in Destiny – Marks, Reputation, and Legendary Weapons
And also, you get – classically – access to harder content and therefore also better loot with a higher Light level. So the same mechanism is at work as in many MMOs: You need better loot to take down stronger enemies, who then drop better loot.
Recently, a player found out on reddit, that your Light level is crucial for how much damage you deal to higher-level enemies. Against level 28 mobs, a player with Light level 24 deals almost no damage, no matter how good his gear is. The answer is basically: “You will always get stronger.”
The Light level not only represents a “meta value”, it doesn’t just tell you how strong you are, but it precisely determines that strength. And it unlocks additional content. It may well be that upcoming expansions target top-tier players. But don’t worry: usually, with an expansion, there are also ways to level up faster than without it. Such a “catch-up” mechanism is common in MMORPGs.
And this is how you level up in Destiny
Experience points are still available after level 20, but they are used to upgrade weapons or armor, unlock upgrades, and collect Motes of Light. This is a currency that can be exchanged for a few cosmetic items. Or you better wait until Friday at noon. Then Xur, a merchant appears, where you can exchange Motes of Light for an exotic item, but you only find out its stats and class assignment when unboxing.
Unfortunately, this does not count for the Light level: The best weapon in the game.
To move from level 20 and to increase your Light levels, you need rare, epic, or exotic items. Only these can have the “Light” value. Rare items (the blue ones) have only a chance of having that value. Legendary (purple) and exotic (gold) items will have it in any case.
Unfortunately, it does NOT automatically mean: The more powerful an item, the higher its Light value.
It is quite possible that you get a legendary item that is worse in every way than what you’re currently wearing, but has a higher Light value. It is still worth it to wear the new item because of the described advantages.
By the way: Exotic items always have the highest Light value, but you can only equip one weapon and one armor piece at the same time.
How much do the individual item types give?
Light points can only be obtained from four different item slots: from helmet, chest, legs, and feet.
- A rare item can give a maximum of 15 Light points.
- A legendary item that does not come from the raid can reach a maximum of 27 Light points.
- A legendary item that comes from the “Glass Chamber” raid can go up to 30 Light points.
- Exotic items always reach the current maximum of 30 Light points.
These are the maximum values of the individual quality levels. Whether an item actually achieves that is questionable, especially for rare items it is almost impossible.
And how much Light do I need per level?
To level up to Light level 21, you need 21 Light points, then 11 points for each further level up. The first level up therefore costs 10 Light points more than usual. At level 25, you need 10+5*11= 65 Light points. At level 30, you need 10+10*11= 120 Light points.
This way, you can calculate which gear you need for which Light level. For the maximum level of 30, you need a fully upgraded set of legendary raid items or exotic items.
The thing with upgrading: Potential and reality
Weapons and armor in Destiny can be upgraded further with Ascendant materials and other upgrade items. This also increases their Light value. It is important to note that a fully upgraded blue item may have a higher current Light value than a brand new legendary item, but you may still want to switch it out because the legendary item is better in the long run. It has higher potential.
With upgrading, it’s always a bit of a gamble in Destiny. Generally, items that you think you will use for a long time should be upgraded. Upgrading a rare item and wasting resources on it, which you will swap out just five minutes later, is really frustrating.
Ideal candidates for upgrading are exotic items and legendary items with a high base Light value.
Let there be Light – How to reach level 30 in Destiny?
The ascent to the first Light levels is still easy for many. A few good rares, eventually a legendary, and you’re already approaching levels 22, 24, and 26. After that, new possibilities open up, you’re busy, collecting gear, upgrading your legendaries, maybe buying an exotic from Xur, and you’re at level 28.
After that, you’ll only proceed in the current raid, the Glass Chamber. There, a special raid set drops, which fully upgraded and complete, provides enough Light to reach the coveted level 30. Thus, a visit to the Vault of Glass is essential for this level.
You should be able to manage your way to legendaries well until then; these two guides will tell you how to obtain them without just mindlessly shooting at any caves:
– Destiny Guide: Level Up Light Level Like the Pros – with Marks, Coins, and Materials
– Destiny: Level 20 and what now? Endgame in Destiny – Marks, Reputation, and Legendary Weapons
In the MMO shooter Destiny the path to the maximum level 30 is long and arduous, but not as dependent on luck or nebulous as some might think. It may be madness, but there is a method to it. In our guide, we show you how to increase your Light levels, how much Light you need per level up, and which items you need to collect for that. Everything is hidden in the depths of Destiny.
Tier system in Destiny a bit confusing, raises questions
The level system in Destiny causes confusion and there is a need for clarification for players. Normally, leveling is associated with experience points: once you have enough, you level up to the next tier. That’s how it has always been, that’s how it is, and that’s how it will always be: Well … almost always.
In Destiny, leveling up to level 20 works the same way – through experience gain. However, it changes after that. From level 20, leveling becomes tied to your gear – not all gear, but only the four armor pieces: helmet, chest, legs and boots. You need the “Light” value on each of the armor items to continue climbing the ranks.
What does a higher Light level actually bring?
A higher Light level than 20 in Destiny unlocks some new activities. You won’t see the “Dusk” missions until level 24, which are extremely worthwhile.
Oh, and one more thing: This loot cave, for example works only because even at level 5 or level 8, mobs drop loot that scales with the Guardian’s level. In MMORPGs like World of Warcraft or WildStar, such mobs would only drop “grey” items, which are far below the player’s level. That is not the case in Destiny. At level 24, the same enemies drop better items than at level 20 – so leveling up is even more worthwhile.
And also, you get – classically – access to harder content and therefore also better loot with a higher Light level. So the same mechanism is at work as in many MMOs: You need better loot to take down stronger enemies, who then drop better loot.
Recently, a player found out on reddit, that your Light level is crucial for how much damage you deal to higher-level enemies. Against level 28 mobs, a player with Light level 24 deals almost no damage, no matter how good his gear is. The answer is basically: “You will always get stronger.”
The Light level not only represents a “meta value”, it doesn’t just tell you how strong you are, but it precisely determines that strength. And it unlocks additional content. It may well be that upcoming expansions target top-tier players. But don’t worry: usually, with an expansion, there are also ways to level up faster than without it. Such a “catch-up” mechanism is common in MMORPGs.
And this is how you level up in Destiny
Experience points are still available after level 20, but they are used to upgrade weapons or armor, unlock upgrades, and collect Motes of Light. This is a currency that can be exchanged for a few cosmetic items. Or you better wait until Friday at noon. Then Xur, a merchant appears, where you can exchange Motes of Light for an exotic item, but you only find out its stats and class assignment when unboxing.
Unfortunately, this does not count for the Light level: The best weapon in the game.
To move from level 20 and to increase your Light levels, you need rare, epic, or exotic items. Only these can have the “Light” value. Rare items (the blue ones) have only a chance of having that value. Legendary (purple) and exotic (gold) items will have it in any case.
Unfortunately, it does NOT automatically mean: The more powerful an item, the higher its Light value.
It is quite possible that you get a legendary item that is worse in every way than what you’re currently wearing, but has a higher Light value. It is still worth it to wear the new item because of the described advantages.
By the way: Exotic items always have the highest Light value, but you can only equip one weapon and one armor piece at the same time.
How much do the individual item types give?
Light points can only be obtained from four different item slots: from helmet, chest, legs, and feet.
- A rare item can give a maximum of 15 Light points.
- A legendary item that does not come from the raid can reach a maximum of 27 Light points.
- A legendary item that comes from the “Glass Chamber” raid can go up to 30 Light points.
- Exotic items always reach the current maximum of 30 Light points.
These are the maximum values of the individual quality levels. Whether an item actually achieves that is questionable, especially for rare items it is almost impossible.
And how much Light do I need per level?
To level up to Light level 21, you need 21 Light points, then 11 points for each further level up. The first level up therefore costs 10 Light points more than usual. At level 25, you need 10+5*11= 65 Light points. At level 30, you need 10+10*11= 120 Light points.
This way, you can calculate which gear you need for which Light level. For the maximum level of 30, you need a fully upgraded set of legendary raid items or exotic items.
The thing with upgrading: Potential and reality
Weapons and armor in Destiny can be upgraded further with Ascendant materials and other upgrade items. This also increases their Light value. It is important to note that a fully upgraded blue item may have a higher current Light value than a brand new legendary item, but you may still want to switch it out because the legendary item is better in the long run. It has higher potential.
With upgrading, it’s always a bit of a gamble in Destiny. Generally, items that you think you will use for a long time should be upgraded. Upgrading a rare item and wasting resources on it, which you will swap out just five minutes later, is really frustrating.
Ideal candidates for upgrading are exotic items and legendary items with a high base Light value.
Let there be Light – How to reach level 30 in Destiny?
The ascent to the first Light levels is still easy for many. A few good rares, eventually a legendary, and you’re already approaching levels 22, 24, and 26. After that, new possibilities open up, you’re busy, collecting gear, upgrading your legendaries, maybe buying an exotic from Xur, and you’re at level 28.
After that, you’ll only proceed in the current raid, the Glass Chamber. There, a special raid set drops, which fully upgraded and complete, provides enough Light to reach the coveted level 30. Thus, a visit to the Vault of Glass is essential for this level.
You should be able to manage your way to legendaries well until then; these two guides will tell you how to obtain them without just mindlessly shooting at any caves:
– Destiny Guide: Level Up Light Level Like the Pros – with Marks, Coins, and Materials
– Destiny: Level 20 and what now? Endgame in Destiny – Marks, Reputation, and Legendary Weapons
