Our author Sven was invited by Bungie to Seattle and was able to try out some content from Destiny 2 Shadowkeep in advance – including the new Nightfall mode “The Crucible Test”. Read here what awaits you in the new Nightfalls.
Attention, Spoiler! Continue at your own risk!
What exactly could I play? Bungie showcased the new Nightfall format “Dusk: The Crucible Test” to us along with the Moon and the first story mission of Shadowkeep. In this context, we were able to play one of the two new Shadowkeep strikes at two different difficulty levels.
At first, we jumped straight into the battle without tips. The second time, we fought after a brief introduction to the new seasonal artifact and its role. The developers wanted to demonstrate the differences between the difficulty levels and the influence of tailored gear – and the experience really differed enormously.
What is Dusk: The Crucible Test? With the release of Shadowkeep, the Nightfall experience is being revamped. If you want to tackle this challenging version of the strikes, you can choose from a total of 4 difficulty levels in Dusk: The Crucible Test:
- Master (recommended power level 750)
- Hero (recommended power level 920)
- Legend (recommended power level 950)
- Grandmaster (recommended power level 980)
With increasing difficulty, the number of modifiers also increases. Additionally, a new type of enemy has been introduced – the Champions. These are particularly tough, have special abilities, and can dish out serious damage themselves.
The first two levels, by the way, feature matchmaking, meaning a player search. For Legend and Grandmaster, however, you still need a pre-made team.
That’s why the new Nightfalls are challenging
Here’s how our first attempt went: First, we played (power level 951) the Crucible Test Nightfall at the second of four levels – so on Hero (920). The strike itself led us into the Scarlet Fortress, where we pursued Hashladûn, the daughter of Crota.
The strike actually went quite smoothly until we encountered the first Champion – a Barrier Knight. There, we initially struggled for several minutes. The Champion dealt heavy damage even at this difficulty level, and just before we managed to defeat him, he received an overshield that seemed to absorb all our projectiles.
Additionally, the new enemy healed almost completely within a few moments inside his shield, so we were only able to take him down after coordinating and using nearly all our power ammunition along with a super at the right moment.
During the course of the strike, we encountered these enemies several more times. It was particularly tough when we had to battle two of them simultaneously while clearing some smaller enemies. Even though we were more than 30 levels above the enemies – against the Champions, you really never noticed that. Later, we even faced a Champion Ogre that we struggled against immensely.
Yes, we hardly coordinated in the first run, the gear was not yet optimized, and we were not familiar with the details about the new type of enemy. Yet, the experience felt tougher compared to previous Nightfalls. In the time we were given of just under 25 minutes, we couldn’t even make it to the final boss.
This is what was in the briefing: The developers approached us afterward and explained some details for the Crucible Test:
- The Champions have specific symbols (triangle, square, circle) above their heads according to their properties (Barrier, Unstoppable, Overload).
- These symbols will also be listed before the strike alongside the modifiers, so you know ahead of time what kind of enemy you’ll encounter.
- If you want to effectively combat these enemies, the seasonal artifact comes into play. If you level this artifact (which was already fully unlocked for us), you’ll gain access to specific mods that make your life against the Champions easier. These mods are marked with corresponding symbols (triangle, square, circle) that correspond to the Champions.
- These mods can enable certain weapons to quickly breach the shields of Barrier Knights when you use them in your arsenal. This also interrupts or prevents their health regeneration, making it easier to fight these opponents.
- Because at higher difficulty levels, it’s nearly impossible to defeat Champions with brute force without corresponding artifact mods.
- Additionally, Armor 2.0 and properly aligning your armor significantly aid in combat. For example, if your super charges faster (with the right stats, it really is significantly quicker), you can use your ultimate ability more often or have it available exactly when you need it. And especially against Champions, your super often needs to hit at the exact moment.
Here’s how the second attempt went: Our second attempt took place at the Legend difficulty level. We were still at power level 951, but the recommended level was now 950.
The Nightfall was noticeably tougher this time. However, we were better equipped and prepared. We had fully leveled the energy of our armors and tailored them with mods for specific roles. Our weapons now also carried corresponding artifact mods. In addition, we communicated much more and coordinated better – especially in battles against the Champions.
And all this was incredibly necessary. Because these fights proved to be significantly harder. With the right tactic and communication, it went much smoother at the same time. While we felt we needed nearly all 3 supers per Champion along with a lot of power ammunition after tweaking them with modified kinetic or energy weapons, thanks to our coordination and well-timed attacks, we managed much better than in the first attempt. Still, we struggled against one or another Champion – especially the Ogre.
Also, even in the second attempt, we didn’t quite reach the final boss (none of the attending press representatives completed the strike) – but definitely further than before. The experience was satisfying, even if it required noticeably more “sweat”. Because at higher difficulty levels, the new Nightfall demands more from Guardians than the current version. You have to do more, pay attention to more things, and react to more factors than before.
I don’t remember the last time I had such a strenuous Nightfall run. At the same time, I also don’t remember the last time I had so much fun in the Dusk as in this attempt – even if we didn’t make it to the boss.
Conclusion: Whether this experience changes over time, with a well-rehearsed team, more routine, better gear, and increasing power level (especially due to endless leveling with the artifact), remains to be seen.
However, during my visit, “Dusk: The Crucible Test” was immensely enjoyable. The fights are more tactical, require significantly more communication and coordination, and the choice and coordination of gear and abilities are noticeably more important. Otherwise, the Nightfalls at increasing difficulty levels are hardly manageable. In their new form, the Dusk is finally a real challenge – and a fun one at that.
By the way, at Grandmaster, the Nightfall is supposed to be even tougher.
That’s why the new Nightfalls are worth it
Here’s how you will be rewarded: The tougher battles with increasing difficulty are not only meant to provide more challenge and fun – they are also supposed to offer attractive incentives to undertake the Dusk.
In the difficulty levels of Legend and Grandmaster, you have a higher chance of Exotics. Additionally, you will also receive rare materials such as enhancement prisms or ascendant shards (only on Grandmaster), which you need to boost the energy level of your “Armor 2.0.” gear pieces.
The Nightfalls were not only mechanically revamped, but they will also play a significant role regarding your gear and thus character development.
The new Nightfall in video: If you want to check out the new Dusk, you can do so in the following video from Nexxoss Gaming.
However, keep in mind: My team consisted of press representatives (all average or good players) who were sent into the strike completely blind and clueless the first time. Nexxoss, being an excellent Guardian, was in a team with two other top players who make a living playing games. Accordingly, the experience in the video may sometimes differ from my experiences.
What do you think of this new Nightfall system? Does it make you excited for more? Or do you prefer the previous system?
