Published , by Sam Chandler
Published , by Sam Chandler
Powerful gear sources have undergone a change in Destiny 2. These days, Powerful gear is classed as a Tier 1, Tier 2, or Pinnacle. Depending on your Power level, which reward you chase is going to be different. If you want to reach the max Power level, you’re going to need to start completing all these activities.
The release of Shadowkeep on October 1, 2019, ushered in a change to how Powerful rewards work in Destiny 2. Instead of each reward offering the same increase to Power, Powerful drops are now based on a tier system.
There are four tiers of Powerful gear. In order to reach the soft cap of 950, players will need to collect Powerful gear from tiers 1-3. Once at this soft cap, the only way to reach the gear hard cap of 960 is from Pinnacle tier drops. These are exclusive to end-game content like the Garden of Salvation raid, Nightfall, and from reaching the Legend Glory rank.
After reaching Power 960, the only way to get more Power is to level up your Seasonal Artifact. You receive 1 point of Power each time you level up the artifact. Each level requires exponentially more XP to level, so it will take a while to increase it. For example, to get from 13 to 14 bonus Power requires 1.4 million XP.
| Powerful gear source | Powerful Gear Tier | Power increase | Frequency |
| Gunsmith bounties | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Vanguard bounties | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Crucible bounties | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Gambit bounties | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Flashpoint | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Crucible Core Matches | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Crucible Rotator Matches | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Vanguard Strikes - Burn Match | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Nightfall: The Ordeal | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Nightmare Hunts | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Story Mission - Eris | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Memory Pursuit - Eris | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Vex Invasion | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Quest |
| Clan Crucible Engram | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Clan Nightfall Engram | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Clan Raid Engram | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Clan Gambit Engram | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Valor Rank Up Package | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | On rank-up |
| Glory Rank Up Package | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | On rank-up |
| Infamy Rank Up Package | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | On rank-up |
| Exotic Engrams | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Random |
| Prime Engrams | Tier 1 | +3 to base Power | Weekly |
| Clan Weekly XP | Tier 2 | +4 to base Power | Weekly |
| Gambit Matches | Tier 2 | +4 to base Power | Weekly |
| Campaign Exotic Reward | Tier 2 | +4 to base Power | Once |
| Sai Mota Quest | Tier 2 | +5 to base Power | Once |
| Symphony of Death Exotic Quest | Tier 2 | +5 to base Power | Once |
| Vex Offensive | Tier 2 | +5 to base Power | Weekly |
| An Arm and a Leg - Ikora | Tier 3 | +6 to base Power | Weekly |
| Legend Glory rank | Pinnacle | +6 to base Power | Seasonal |
| Nightfall: The Ordeal 100k points | Pinnacle | +6 to base Power | Weekly |
| Garden of Salvation | Pinnacle | +6 to base Power | Weekly |
The introduction of Shadowkeep to Destiny 2 brought some welcomed changes. Of these changes, the new way Destiny 2 handles Powerful gear provides players a clear path on gaining Power. With more sources of Power and Powerful gear tiers, players should be able to quickly ascend the ranks and focus on Pinnacle activities. Check out the Shacknews Destiny 2 guide for more end-game guides and ranking breakdowns.