Published , by Sam Chandler
Published , by Sam Chandler
Vault of Glass has returned and it’s a little bit different in Destiny 2. For those looking for the optimal strategy for completing this iconic raid, look no further than this Vault of Glass raid guide. Whether you’re a veteran or someone venturing below Venus for the first time, this raid will test you and your Fireteam and offer great rewards for those that complete it.
Last updated on October 17, 2021 at 10:40 p.m. PT
The Vault of Glass takes place on Venus, an area that is currently only accessible through the new Legends node in the Director. The raid has a recommended Power of 1300, which shouldn’t be too difficult to reach given Destiny 2’s new lenient Power structure. For those that played the original Vault of Glass back in Destiny 1, most of the encounter remain the same though there are some slight changes.
While you can likely clear the Vault of Glass with whatever weapons you want or feel most comfortable using, there are some choices that will make it significantly easier for those teams that are struggling to hit DPS checks.
For starters, Xenophage is almost non-negotiable. This Exotic Machine gun can one-hit Oracles and really puts the hurt on bosses and Champions. You can also have a lot of ammo with the right mod setup. It really shines in all encounters.
Anarchy is another excellent option for those that have it unlocked. During Season of the Splicer, the Breach and Clear mod works with Anarchy, which debuffs bosses and other targets. Anarchy is also one of those “set and forget” weapons that lets you deal DPS with your secondary, like a Sniper Rifle. However, as of Season of the Lost, the boss damage has been reduced and the seasonal mods are different. While this is still a good option for add control and area-denial, there are some other options to consider.
You might also consider using Deathbringer, if you’re able to get the Exotic Catalyst. This is, unironically, a great DPS option. Coupled with Argent Ordnance, Deathbringer can melt the Wyverns, Champions, the Templar, and Atheon.
Weapons that utilize Overload Rounds are critical. There are several Overload Champions in the Vault of Glass, so being able to lock them down is vital to clearing encounters. Find an Overload Mod and use a weapon that you feel most comfortable using. During Season of the Splicer, the Seventh Seraph SMG could overload Champions while also allowing players to generate Warmind Cells.
As for general weapons that make things easier, consider bringing in a Void Shotgun to deal with Minotaurs and Praetorians, a Grenade Launcher with a Blinding Grenades perk, Scout Rifle to deal with long-range combatants, Salvager’s Salvo for one boss DPS option, precision shotguns for another boss DPS strategy, Divinity for the large crit-spot creation, and Tractor Cannon for the debuff.
During Season of the Lost, One Thousand Voices is a viable Power weapon. Coupled with Null Composure, these two can shred through trash mobs and bosses with ease. Part of this is thanks to the seasonal mod, Particle Deconstruction. This mod boosts the damage of Fusion Rifles when you deal damage with Fusion Rifles.
The first encounter in Vault of Glass is to open the raid. This mechanic requires three Vex sync plates to be activated and held until a central spire is formed. Praetorians will spawn (with some backup Vex) to try and reclaim the plates.
This encounter starts overlooking the entrance to the Vault of Glass. From spawn, you can reach the top by going left and wrapping around to the higher area. There is a Vex sync plate on the left, in front of the door, and on the right. Send two players to each plate.
Begin by standing in all of the plates to build a connection. Once this happens, Vex will begin spawning. The smaller units, like Goblins and Hobgoblins, cannot take the plates back. The only enemy that can severe the connection and turn the plate red are the Praetorians. Focus on killing these Praetorians before they reach your plate. They will alternate their spawn points.
As you fight, several Cyclops will spawn around the area. These must be neutralized as fast as possible as they can deal extreme amounts of damage. Use Supers and Heavy to knock them down fast.
It’s not required that you stay on the plate once the connection has been made. In fact, it can sometimes make it more difficult. Just focus on stopping the Praetorians.
You can track your progress by looking to the center of the map where the Spire will be forming inside a Vex latticework. The more physical it becomes, the closer you are to opening the Vault of Glass. When it’s fully built, the enemies will despawn and a light will blast out of the Spire and open the door.
After working your way deeper into the Vault of Glass, you will enter the Templar’s Well where the next three encounters will take place. The first of these is the Confluxes encounter. This requires players defend three Confluxes as Vex march towards them to try and sacrifice.
The Conflux encounter is really easy to understand as there are no mechanics beyond killing Vex before they reach a Conflux. The real challenge is clearing enemies as fast as possible. Keep an eye out for Wyverns and Champions that spawn, these will be your main threat.
When you have successfully defended a Conflux, it will disappear and there will be a small section where several enemies rush out to try and defeat you. Survive this phase to reach the next Conflux spawns.
At the start of this fight, there will only be on Conflux in the middle. You can either all defend close to the Conflux or send your team out around the arena to defeat enemies as they spawn. When the two Confluxes spawn, split your team in half and have them each defend one – there’s one on each side. For the final phase where there are three Confluxes, have two players defend each of the Confluxes.
Communication is key here, as it is important to not let too many Vex sacrifice to the Conflux. It’s also vital to not let any Wyverns sacrifice, as they will immediately cause the team to wipe. Defeat them quickly using Supers and Heavy ammo.
There is also a mechanic whereby certain Vex units will explode and leave a pool of liquid. Standing in this pool gives players a debuff which will kill them unless they cleanse. There is a Cleansing pool in the center of the arena. This is repeated for the Oracle and Templar encounter.
The Oracles section of the Vault of Glass requires players defeat Vex Oracles that appear around the map. The Oracles must be destroyed in the order they appeared. If the Oracles are destroyed in the wrong order, your team will be marked and will eventually wipe. If the Oracles are destroyed too late, players will be wiped.
The Oracle encounter in Destiny 2’s version of Vault of Glass rewards that the Oracles be defeated in the order that they spawn. This means communication is key and players must recall which Oracle spawned and when.
Ideally, you will have players assigned to an area where an Oracle spawns. They will count the chimes as the Oracles spawn and call out the number when their Oracle appears. For example, if the Oracle you’re watching appears on the fourth chime, you will defeat it fourth. To make this easy, each player should call out their number when the Oracles first appear and call out their number again as they destroy the Oracle – this way each person knows when it’s their turn.
During this encounter, Goblins and Minotaurs will spawn in the arena and Hobgoblins will snipe you from the distant blocks. You must deal with these or avoid them as you destroy the Oracles.
It’s worth noting there are seven Oracles in the arena, which means one player will be responsible for watching and destroying two of them.
It can help to label the Oracle locations so you know where they are. You can split it left and right and label them L1 to L3 and R1 to R4, with the middle Oracle being called “mid”. Use whatever method works for your team.
The Templar fight in the Vault of Glass introduces a new tool called the Aegis or Relic. The fight requires players defeat three Oracles in the correct order, before taking down the Templar’s shield using the Relic and dealing damage. The Templar will teleport to a new location and then the steps must be repeated – unless someone blocks his teleport by standing in the ring.
Before you begin, assign one player to use the Relic. It will be there job to destroy at least one Oracle, take down the Templar’s shield, and protect the team using the Oracle’s shield function. Use the shoot button to heavy attack (which is a slam when activated in mid-air), the melee button for a fast attack, your aiming/ADS button for the shield, and the Super buttons to do the Relic’s firing attack (which removes the Templar’s shield). If the Relic is dropped, it will wipe the team after 10 seconds unless someone picks it up.
The fight starts as soon as the Relic is picked up. From here, the person with the Relic should hang around one side to see where the Oracles spawn. Two other people should also assist. After the first three Oracles spawn, defeat them in the order they appeared.
When the Oracles are gone, the person with the Relic should use the Super ability to knock off the Templar’s shield. You can get Super energy faster by defeating enemies or Oracles with the Relic.
As soon as the Templar’s shield goes down, all players (excluding the Relic holder) should begin damaging the Templar – it’s weak point is its “nose”. Look out for the player who gets Detained
After a few seconds, the Templar will create a ring on the ground to indicate where it will teleport. When it teleports, it will regain its shield and then the previous steps will need to be repeated until the Templar dies.
One strategy to increase amount of time in the damage phase is for the Relic holder to prevent the Templar from teleporting. This is done by standing in the circle it makes. If done in time, the circle will change color and eventually disappear – you must stay in the circle until it disappears. If you get out of the circle before then the Templar will still teleport.
The challenge of this method is that if you prevent the Templar from teleporting, it will spawn Praetorians for every successful block. This means the team may need to clear these strong Minotaurs while also focusing on damage.
If you want to prevent the Templar from teleporting, a good strategy is to use the platforms near the starting point of the arena – right where the Templar spawns. Placing a Ward of Dawn with Weapons of Light and then a Well of Radiance further along the platform will allow teams to deal a lot of damage. Being this close means you can also use precision shotguns (like First In, Last Out) to deal a lot of damage. Using Anarchy allows players to have other sources of continual damage while using a Shotgun. As the seasons change, the weapons you use will differ, but the strategy of using this corner to deal damage remains viable.
Another option is to set up further away and use Snipers or other types of Power weapons. This lets you keep your distance from the Templar while capitalizing on something like Deathbringer, which has some outrageous DPS during Season of the Splicer thanks to its Exotic Catalyst and certain mods.
Though not technically an encounter, players must still pass through the Gorgon’s Labyrinth without dying. If a Gorgon sees you, it will enrage and then wipe the team. The exit is located on the left-hand side of the maze, from the direction of the spawn point.
There are multiple routes through the maze, but the most consistent option tends to be using the large rocks on the left-hand side of the main maze area to jump over the Gorgons.
Updated Gorgon's Labyrinth map forthcoming.
The Gatekeeper is the second last fight in the Vault of Glass. This encounter requires players take the Relic in and out of portals and pass it to one another in a relay race kind of fashion. This encounter introduces Praetorians that have a shield which can only be removed with an attack from the Relic.
There is one main debuff in this fight around which the entire encounter is based around: Teleport Destabilized. This 45 second debuff prevents someone from taking the Relic through a portal more than once. To work around this, if you pass through a portal with the Relic (either into a portal or out into the main room) you will need to drop it for another player to take.
As an example, the player that picks the Relic up first will go into the portal with the Praetorian, defeat it, and then drop the Relic for the player inside the portal. This player will pick up the portal and take it out into the main room and drop it for the player at the other side. This player will take the Relic into the other portal, defeat the Praetorian, and drop the Relic for the other player.
To start the encounter, defeat the Gatekeeper that is in the center. It will teleport around the arena until it is defeated. Once defeated, grab the Relic that spawns in the middle in front of the island. While the Relic is being picked up, the other players should be opening both portals at the same time by standing on the Vex sync plates.
When both portals are active, send one player into one portal and another player into the other. These players defend a Conflux and call out who has the Praetorian. As soon as the Praetorian is called out, the player with the Relic should immediately enter their portal.
As this is playing out, another Gatekeeper will spawn, turning off the portals. The Gatekeeper must be defeated before the portals will reactivate. A Gatekeeper will spawn around about the same time a Praetorian spawns. If everything goes according to plan, six Gatekeepers will be defeated before the final phase begins (including the starting Gatekeeper).
While all this is happening, one or two players will be defending the Vex sync plates. These plates will be continually assaulted by Goblins and Overload Minotaurs. If an Overload Minotaur reaches the plate, it will claim it, shutting down the portal. Try to defeat them as soon as they appear.
After enough Praetorians are defeated, a Conflux will appear in the main throne room. At this point, all players should return to the main area and defend it. The player with the Relic will need to remove the shield of any Praetorians that spawn. Three Wyverns will also spawn close to the end of the encounter.
Speaking of Wyverns, when the Praetorian spawns inside the portal on one side, the other side will have a Wyvern to deal with.
In terms of which Supers you should be using for this encounter, consider something that’s a one-and-done, like Blade Barrage, Thundercrash, or Nova Bomb. These melt the Wyverns, which is helpful as you may be by yourself when they spawn.
The final fight in the Vault of Glass is against Atheon, Time’s Conflux. This encounter teleports three players at random through one of the portals where they must collect a Relic and defeat three sets of three Oracles in the correct order before escaping. Once freed, damage can be dealt to Atheon thanks to the Time’s Vengeance buff.
The main mechanic in this fight that must be perfected is the Oracle callouts. Much like the Oracle and Templar encounters, these Oracles must be destroyed in the correct order. The difference here is that the players on the outside will need to communicate the spawn order to the players that get teleported. For the players that get teleported, the Oracles will appear to spawn at the same time. If the Oracles don’t die in the correct order or are destroyed too late, the whole team will die. There are only two rows of Oracles, so label them in whatever fashion works for your team.
Begin the encounter by destroying the Vex cube that is floating over the island. At the point Atheon will spawn and Harpies will begin flying into the throne room. Defeat Harpies while avoiding Atheon’s attacks until three players are teleported.
For the players that remain in the throne room, the task is to open the portal to the area where the other three players were teleported. Meanwhile, they must watch for the Oracles that spawn above the throne room. The order the Oracles spawn must be relayed to the players on the inside. This is repeated three times until 9 Oracles are defeated.
The team that gets teleported must immediately say which side they were teleported to. The side that looks like a jungle is on the right and the desert side is on the left. Once this information is shared, the Vex portal can be opened.
While this is happening, one player must grab the Relic. They will need to use it to destroy Praetorians that spawns down by the portals (the Praetorians will spawn near the teleport you use to exit). During this time, the Oracles will appear and must be destroyed in the order indicated by the outside team. The Relic holder will also need to use the Relic’s cleansing bubble to remove the blinding effect from everyone inside a portal.
When 9 Oracles are destroyed, the players should leave through the portal as fast as possible. When the last Oracle dies, every player will receive a 30 second buff called Time’s Vengeance which increases ability regeneration and allows everyone to damage Atheon.
All players should get into a position to best damage Atheon. The prevailing strategy is to use the stairs on the side where the team comes through the portal. A Ward of Dawn to the side for Weapons of Light and a Well of Radiance on the stairs means you can be nice and close to Atheon to deal damage.
During the damage phase, a player at random will receive a debuff called Imminent Detain. When this reaches zero, it will detain the player and anyone too close to them. The player should quickly get away from the other players and wait for their teammates to free them by shooting the detainment field.
Unfortunately, the Relic’s shield does not block Atheon’s damage, so it’s only purpose here is to cleanse players that come out of the portals. During the damage phase, the player with the Relic can drop it momentarily to deal damage to Atheon. Remember, if you do drop it, the Relic must be picked up within 10 seconds or it will wipe the team.
When Time’s Vengeance ends, the Relic will disappear and all players should get to a safe place. Be careful, as there’s a good chance a lot of Supplicants and Harpies will remain around the periphery. Quickly defeat as many of them as possible before the next teleportation occurs and the fight repeats.
Repeat all of this until Atheon is defeated. As soon as Atheon dies, you can claim your rewards from the far side of the throne room.
As for optimal weapons to use during this encounter, the main hurdle for players may be destroying the Oracles. If the three players are shooting the same Oracle, you can use Primary weapons and save Heavy ammo. It can help to have the Relic holder drop the Relic to help damage the Oracles for a few seconds. An alternative is to have players use Xenophage, as that will one-shot the Oracles. Another option is to use a Sniper Rifle, which will allow you to save your Power weapon for Atheon.
In terms of dealing damage to Atheon, there are different strategies. You can use one-and-done Supers like Thundercrash, Blade Barrage, and Nova Bomb, as these deal a lot of damage and, thanks to Time’s Vengeance, will regenerate fast enough to get off a second usage. You could also use Salvager’s Salvo with Demolitionist and Vorpal Weapon to shoot, throw a sticky grenade, and shoot again. This deals a whole lot of damage very quickly. You might also consider Deathbringer and stack Argent Ordnance mods for the bonus damage. Of course, having a Sniper Rifle means you can continue to deal considerable damage if you deplete all your Heavy.
During each season, the go-to weapons will differ slightly. During Season of the Lost, One Thousand Voices with the Particle Deconstruction mod is a clear winner. However, during Season of the Splicer, Anarchy was still a beast. You will tend to want to use whatever is the meta weapon of choice for the current season.
The main key to victory will be ensuring player survivability during the fight. A Well of Radiance or Ward of Dawn are almost critical for this reason, however, seasoned players can likely do without.
The Vault of Glass raid in Destiny 2 should be immediately nostalgic for veterans while also offering some great new twists. For newcomers, it’s a great look at how far Destiny has come in terms of raid design and complexity. Be sure to keep it locked to Shacknews as we cover the Vault of Glass Master difficulty and more. You can find all this valuable information over on the Destiny 2 Complete Strategy Guide, which is your one-stop shop for everything you need.