You haven’t played Destiny 2 in a while and want to dive right into the new expansion Beyond Light? MyMMO brings you up to date, so you don’t have to hide from other Guardians.
On November 10, the Beyond Light expansion is released and kicks off the 4th Destiny year. You’re considering squeezing back into your Guardian outfit and combing the universe for loot, but you’re not quite sure what has happened in Destiny 2 during your absence?
You are in the right place, because we will bring you up to date so you can relax and enjoy the new content from Beyond Light.
MyMMO addresses questions like:
- Do I need old DLCs to play Beyond Light?
- What is the difference between Beyond Light and the Season of the Hunt?
- Will the (re)entry be made easy for me?
- What is a Destiny content vault and why is it even a thing?
- Why is everyone complaining about weapon sunsetting?
- Can I prepare for the new expansion?
Do I need Shadowkeep and Forsaken for Destiny 2: Beyond Light?
Are there DLC prerequisites? No! You do not need old content to play the new content of Destiny 2: Beyond Light.
- All players experience the same expansion when they buy Destiny 2: Beyond Light.
- Even if you only own the free-to-play version Destiny 2: New Light, you can check out the new locations. However, most of the new content will only be available after purchasing the expansion.
However, if you missed the content from the two major expansions in the past and want to catch up, you will have to purchase them separately. Content like raids, quests, exotics, or the story from
is not included in Beyond Light.
Tell me more about the Season of the Hunt from Destiny 2
This is what Season 12 is about: Depending on how long your Destiny break has been, the current season model might confuse you. Season 12, the Season of the Hunt, launches parallel with the Beyond Light expansion and runs until February 2021.
Here are the key points at a glance:
- DLCs traditionally bring a lot of content at once and new DLC locations – With Beyond Light, Europa and the Cosmodrome from Destiny 1 partially return
- A season has a clear start and end date and takes place in known areas
- Seasons distribute smaller content bites over a certain period to give you reasons to log in repeatedly
- You do not need to purchase Season 12 to play Beyond Light
- Many items such as the seasonal artifact, the Season Pass, or events and even new gear are free for all Destiny players
- Buyers of a season (around €10) will also get more loot from the Season Pass and access to quests or activities
- The story of Season 12 and Beyond Light are independent of each other – however, over the 4 seasons of year 4, a storyline will unfold that will lead into the next major expansion in 2021
So, now you know whether you need to pay attention to anything when purchasing. But what is different now if you log into Beyond Light for the first time and who will help you get your bearings?
Destiny 2 helps returning and new players
This is what the new beginning brings: When you are in the Destiny groove, you don’t notice how complex Destiny 2 has actually become. This can deter new and returning players – Bungie has noticed this and is providing assistance.
Starting from November 10, a new entry point is waiting for you. It spans several missions and guides you through the returning Destiny 1 location, the Cosmodrome.
- Here, new players are guided and learn all the basics of Guardian life
- Veterans can also play the missions easily and refresh their knowledge
- A new NPC is being introduced for this purpose: Your trainer will be Shaw Han
You don’t have to worry about your level: In Beyond Light, all players start at the same level of 1,050. This way, everyone can play the new content – even if they have taken a long break and seem hopelessly behind in power level.
What you need to know about the Destiny Content Vault
If you start Destiny 2 on November 10 and want to head to Shaw Han in the Cosmodrome, you will immediately notice a big difference in the menu: Half of the game is missing!
With Beyond Light, Destiny will lose these 5 locations:
- Io
- Titan
- Mars
- Mercury
- The Leviathan
These planets and locations, along with their quests, PvP maps, strikes, and everything you found there, will move to the so-called Destiny Content Vault. Activities like the forges of the Black Armory or the dungeon-like missions such as Zero Hour and the Whisper mission will also disappear.
Why is Destiny 2 removing content? There are several reasons for this. One is that Destiny 2 cannot grow endlessly. However, the content in the vault is not lost forever. It is being removed from the game to be revised by Bungie at a later time.
Additionally, Bungie is gradually bringing back highlights from Destiny 1. So think of the Content Vault as a sort of resource pool, where content from both Destiny 1 and 2 is resting. It has already been announced that the cult raid “Glass Chamber” will be playable in Year 4.
Okay, now you are prepared for the shock at the launch of Beyond Light. If you want to know more about it, here’s a list of all disappearing content and additional information:
- Destiny 2 is soon cutting many contents – What remains for the free-to-play version?
- Insider explains why Bungie is really cutting half of Destiny 2
- A side effect of this is that Destiny 2 thus consumes significantly less hard drive space
- Destiny 2 advises: Spend your savings now because items will disappear in Beyond Light
Weapon Sunsetting – Why is the community arguing so fiercely about this?
This is what Sunsetting is about: The most controversial feature of Beyond Light is the so-called weapon sunsetting. This means that you can no longer infinitely infuse or level up items.
- Each affected piece of equipment has a sort of expiration date. Once that date is reached, it becomes virtually useless for endgame content
- The calculation is made in seasons: A new item is “fully usable” for 3 seasons after its original season
- A weapon from Season 12 can thus last until Season 15, but in Season 16 it’s over – at least regarding its effectiveness for endgame
- This affects legendary weapons and armor
- Exotics are not affected
- Some items from activities like raids may last longer and therefore remain relevant in later seasons
What’s the point? Bungie wants to continue bringing powerful weapons into the game but does not want to worry about how long the item is a balance plague.
This topic has sparked heated discussions since its announcement, also on MyMMO:
It is important to note: The equipment does not dissolve or anything like that; it just can no longer be leveled but can still be used. So, you can use your “Luna’s Howl” in the regular Crucible, but in Iron Banner or the Trials, the damage won’t be sufficient.
Are there any questions left? Now you should be able to speak on all important topics regarding Beyond Light.
Do you have any further questions you would like clarified before your start? Let us know in the comments.
If you’re returning now and aren’t quite sure how to spend the last week before the expansion or how to prepare, check this out:
Destiny 2: Leveling and stockpiling bounties for Beyond Light – Is it worth it?
