As Destiny 2’s second year comes to a close, Bungie’s got some celebratory events planned for the last part of the Season of Opulence. The Solstice of Heroes event is returning from last year with some big changes to how it celebrates the prior year. The Solstice Armor is returning with its three upgradeable tiers, but this year, that Solstice Armor will carry over into Shadowkeep. In fact, if you want a set of Destiny 2 Armor 2.0 right when Shadowkeep launches on September 17, Solstice Armor is going to be your golden ticket.
Players who earn the Solstice Armor and upgrade it to Legendary “Majestic” (as seen above) will be able to pick up the Armor 2.0 versions from the Gunsmith once Shadowkeep comes out. Players will need to make the entire set Legendary (per character) to earn this reward, and they won’t be able to access Armor 2.0 until September 17, but it will at least give them a head start into Year 3.
Armor 2.0 is the new armor system that Bungie is launching with the Shadowkeep expansion. While the developer has yet to offer full details of the new armor system, it promises to offer a lot more depth and nuance as players control more of their skills and stats through armor that will grow with our characters. It seems to be one of the ways that Bungie is combating power creep in the game, as new content and activities require players to be more and more powerful.
Destiny 2 Solstice of Heroes
Just like last year, players will need to complete various objectives in order to upgrade the uncommon “Drained” gear to the “Renewed” rare state, finally earning the full legendary set of “Majestic” Solstice Armor. Once you get that Majestic set, you can complete additional objectives to Masterwork the armor, though Bungie hasn’t explained how Masterworking armor will function with Armor 2.0. Regardless, players only need to collect the legendary set in order to get the Armor 2.0 versions on Shadowkeep’s launch. Oh, and picking up all of the legendary armor sets for all three characters will grant players an exclusive sparrow.
Solstice of Heroes will introduce a new three-player matchmade activity in a new region called the European Aerial Zone (EAZ). Players will need to eliminate minibosses and then a final boss before setting out across the EAZ to find treasure chests which can reward rare and legendary gear, Enhancement Cores, and materials. More of the minibosses killed means more treasure in the end. It sounds pretty similar to the horde-mode events that they’ve done in the past in the Infinite Forest, only in a new zone this time around, and with some minor tweaks to make it feel a bit different.
Solstice will also have additional Eververse cosmetics, though this time around, there won’t be an additional event engram to earn. All of the cosmetics will be available to purchase for Silver (real-world money) or bright dust (in-game currency) at some point during the event. These cosmetics will include armor glows for the Solstice Armor (seen above), which will be able to be used on the Armor 2.0 versions of the armor once Shadowkeep launches.
There are also a couple of new sparrow, including one that really evokes the energy of Futurama’s ScootyPuff Jr. and another that’s basically a boat. Ghost is getting some fun shells, including a beach ball, lifeguard ring, and single-lens sunglasses. And we can’t forget new emotes as well. Without an event engram, players are left to purchase the items for themselves instead of earning them randomly.
Solstice of Heroes runs from July 30 to August 27, giving players four weeks to earn and upgrade all of the armor. Make sure you get your full Legendary set before the event ends so that you can get a head start on that Destiny 2 Armor 2.0. Armor’s not all that’s changing with Shadowkeep. Get a look at how the moon is going to be changing from its Destiny 1 iteration.
[Source: Bungie]
