Every Season of Destiny 2 adds some sort of new activity to the game. Sometimes they are six-player activities like Ketchcrash, while other times they are smaller three-player activities like Expeditions. For Season 19, the new seasonal activity that players will need to tackle is called Heist Battlegrounds.
In previous Seasons, Battlegrounds were essentially Strikes with higher enemy density and no restrictions on respawning. Heist Battlegrounds turn up the intensity even further, so players will need to keep on their toes as they take on Xivu Arath's forces in this brand-new activity. This guide will show players exactly what to look out for as they load into the Heist Battleground playlist.
How Many Heist Battlegrounds Are There?
At present, there are two Heist Battlegrounds that are available in the playlist. The first takes place on the Moon, and the second one takes place on Europa. There is a Heist Battleground on Mars, but it is currently unavailable. While both have different objectives at the start, the second half is always the same set of objectives that ends with a boss fight.
Find and Infiltrate the Submind Vault
The main goal of a Heist Battleground is to enter the Seraph Bunker and steal the submind within before Xivu Arath's forces can. On the Moon, Destiny 2 players simply have to defeat the Hive outside the bunker. All the while, players will need to stay out of sight to avoid being seen by the big towers in the distance. When spotted by a tower, players will have 15 seconds to get out of line of sight. Failure to do so results in instant death.
During the opening of the Heist Battleground on Europa, Destiny 2 players will need to make their way through Bray Exoscience before they can reach the Submind Vault which is located behind the large Exo head down in Creation. The Submind Vault in the Heist Battleground on the Moon, however, takes less time to get to, but players will need to have Ghost hack a door to reach it.
Just before arriving at the Submind Vault, Destiny 2 players will encounter fields of lasers. Some will turn off and then turn on again while others stay on. Players will need to either wait for the lasers to turn off or carefully navigate around them if possible to avoid getting instantly killed. Later on in the Season, players will be able to pick up upgrades at the Exo Frame that reduce damage from these hazards.
When doing Heist Battlegrounds in the playlist, Destiny 2 players should make sure to equip Champion Mods to their gear. Throughout each objective, players will encounter both Unstoppable and Barrier Champions. Without Champion mods equipped, these enemies are extremely difficult, if not impossible, to take down. Aside from the current seasonal mods, there are Exotic weapons that have Champion mods built into them. So players do have options for what to use in their loadout.
Deathtongue Choristers
During each Heist Battleground, Destiny 2 players will eventually come across an Acolyte with a staggering amount of health called Deathtongue Chorister. This Acolyte will move toward a nearby totem that looks like the ones in King's Fall and will begin singing a song that suppresses abilities. Players will want to find and kill these Deathtongue Choristers as fast as possible. Since they have a lot of health, the best way to deal with them is by having the entire team unload heavy weapons and Supers.
Breach the Submind Vault Security Door
Before Destiny 2 players can fight the boss at the end of the Heist Battleground, they will need to break the locks placed on the door. On the left and right of the doorway, there are two areas where players can pick up an item called PDT Refraction Core. These items can be used to destroy the five Hive Runes that keep the door locked. While two players grab the PDT Refraction Cores, one player should stay by the door to deal with adds (additional enemies) as they spawn.
Defeat the Boss
Once on the other side of the door, players will have to fight a boss. The mechanics are the same for each Heist Battleground activity, regardless of if it is on the Moon or on Europa. Once the boss reaches 50% health, they will gain a shield and become immune. In order to break the shield, Destiny 2 players will need to grab Charges from enemies that are marked on their HUD and deposit them into the device in the middle of the room.
Once the shield is down, players can resume damaging the boss while also dealing with the flow of constantly spawning adds. After the boss dies, make sure to loot the Seraph Chest at the end by opening it with Seraph Key Codes in order to get as much loot as possible from this activity.
Destiny 2 is available now on Epic Games Store, PS4, PS5, Steam, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.