How to Level Up Fast in Destiny 2
Learn how to level up fast with XP and Power in Destiny 2.
Whether you’re just starting out a career as a Guardian in Destiny 2 or trying to hit max Power at the release of new content, knowing how to level up fast is essential. Blitzing through content as fast as possible isn’t necessarily the aim here, as enjoying the campaigns and stories are still an option. In order to min-max the leveling up process, players will want to focus on streamlining the end-game. What this amounts to is focusing on the correct gear drops, completing Challenges in an ideal order, and tackling the raids and other difficult activities in order to level up and hit max Power fast.
Level from 1 to 50 fast
Starting out a new character in Destiny 2 and leveling it from 1 to 50 can be a monumental undertaking, even for a long-time Destiny player. A lot of grinding and repetitive gameplay is needed to hit level 50, at which point the focus will shift to acquiring Power.
If you don’t want to use a character Power Boost to level from 1 to 30 (or don’t have one available), there are only a few options to quickly skip through the 50 levels.
- Complete the campaigns (all of them)
- Grind out Public Events
Leveling from 1 to 50 is going to be the most time-consuming and monotonous part of starting a new character. Because you’re no doubt trying to get up to speed, it’s a good idea to finish the latest available campaign the character can play. For some, this might mean playing through Destiny 2, Curse of Osiris, Warmind, and Forsaken while for those who use a Power Boost it might just mean completing Forsaken. The goal is to put your head down and just complete mission after mission.
With the main campaigns finished, you should be able to access all of the other content excluding end-game activities like Nightfalls, dungeons and raids. From here, the most consistent strategy is to complete Heroic Public Events.
Players can spice up the grind by playing other activities, though the speed at which you can level up is questionable. Crucible matches can be frustrating when under-leveled and when wielding poor gear and Strikes can be time-consuming when the Matchmaking doesn’t connect you with another player. So though playing a seemingly endless string of Heroic Public Events is tiresome, it's the fastest way to level from 1 to 50.
During all this leveling from 1 to 50, the best option is to have another player, or two, as part of your Fireteam. Having three players leveling will help clear content faster, especially if one character is already maxed out. Furthermore, using a Fireteam Medallion will expedite the process, as it increases XP gains for the Fireteam for 4 hours.
Level up fast from Power 100 to max
After leveling from 1 to 50, the next major goal will be to increase your Power level to the new maximum. Ideally, leveling up Power using the following method should be started once the Blue engram drops plateau in Power. The main ways to increase Power is to chase three specific gear drops:
- Powerful Gear engrams
- Prime Engrams
- Exotic gear
Powerful Gear is rewarded upon completing a Challenge, Destiny 2’s new version of the Milestones from launch. Each Challenge amounts to simply playing an activity: complete a Strike, play a match of Gambit, complete Public Events. There are roughly a dozen of these Challenges to complete each week, which includes daily Challenges.
A Powerful Gear engram should drop an item a few Power higher than the slot it drops for, though there is a soft cap at around Power 550. At Power 550, Powerful Gear becomes less reliable from certain engrams.
Unlocking the Dreaming City grants access to Petra Venj, who offers two Powerful Gear engrams, both of which are classed as the highest tier of Powerful engrams. When the Powerful engrams from Strikes, Gambit, and Flashpoints begin to plateau, focus your efforts on completing Petra's bounties each week, as these yield better results. At this point, the standard Challenges should be used to supplement Petra's offerings.
Prime Engrams are rewarded after killing certain amounts of enemies each day and are another excellent means of leveling up Power. These engrams are guaranteed to give an item a few Power higher than the slot they drop for. Players looking to level up their Power quickly should try and chase as many Prime engrams as possible. The only way to farm Prime engrams effectively is to just play Destiny 2 and kill everything you see.
The last of the gear drops are the Exotics. An Exotic item will always drop at a high Power level for the slot and can be infused into Legendary gear for minimum costs. Though it’s impossible to seek our an Exotic drop, don’t be afraid to use it for infusion fuel to bump up some lower Legendary gear, especially if the Exotic armor doesn’t mesh with your character’s build.
Outside of engrams, players should also participate in end-game activities. These end-game activities are often exceptionally challenging and require a lot of teamwork. However, they quite often reward the best gear at a high Power.
- Shattered Throne dungeon
- Last Wish raid
- Scourge of the Past raid
There isn’t a lot of minutia when it comes to leveling up Power in Destiny 2. The main takeaway is to focus on Blue engrams until the Power plateaus and then switch to Powerful Gear engrams, saving Petra’s tasks until last. Leveling from 1 to 50 in Destiny 2 might be fast in comparison to farming for Powerful gear, though it’s far more tedious. Be sure to check out the Shacknews Destiny 2 complete strategy guide for more comprehensive walkthroughs.
