Season 8 of Destiny 2 is making a major change with the addition of the Seasonal Artifact. The Seasonal Artifact, The Gate Lord's Eye, will introduce a new progression mechanic to the game allowing players to upgrade it and unlock mods that then players can slot into the new Armor 2.0 and into weapons. And from the looks of it, the Artifact was designed to go hand in hand with the content for Season of the Undying, giving players access to mods and perks that will give players what they need to get the most out of their experience this season.

In addition to unlocking mods, the Seasonal Artifact will also introduce an infinite power climb, with new levels gained on the Seasonal Artifact giving a +1 Power bonus to players that goes on top of whatever Power level their gear affords them. But the game will keep the level cap from growing exponentially into the future by retiring each season's Artifact at the end of the season, introducing a new set of mods to unlock and resetting the Power bonus progression. The Seasonal Artifact is going to be a big part of Season 8 and the Shadowkeep expansion, so here is a full guide to The Gate Lord's Eye.

RELATED: Destiny 2: Shadowkeep Power Level Soft Cap and Hard Cap Revealed

The Gate Lord's Eye Mod Unlocks

Column 1

  • Dark Glimmer: Defeating Hive combatants with finishers grants extra Glimmer. Mod does not stack.
  • Labyrinth Miner: Defeating Vex Minotaurs grants weapon parts. Mod does not stack.
  • Biomonetizer: Defeating Hive combatants grants extra Glimmer. Mod does not stack.
  • Circuit Scavenger: Defeating Vex combatants grants extra Glimmer. Mod does not stack.
  • Dissection Matrix: Defeating Vex Hobgoblins grants destination materials. Mod does not stack.

Column 2

  • Anti-Barrier Rounds: This mod is useable only on Auto Rifles and Submachine Guns. Shield-piercing rounds designed to bypass combatant defenses. Strong against Barrier Champions.
  • Anti-Barrier Hand Cannon: Shield-piercing rounds designed to bypass combatant defenses. Strong against Barrier Champions.
  • Overload Rounds: This mod is usable only on Auto Rifles and Submachine Guns. Uninterrupted fire grants bullets that cause disruption, delaying ability energy regeneration and lowering combatant damage output. Strong against Overload Champions.
  • Overload Arrowheads: Damage by fully drawn arrows causes disruption, delaying ability energy regeneration and lowering combatant damage output. Strong against Overload Champions.
  • Unstoppable Hand Cannon: Aiming down sights loads a powerful explosive payload that staggers unshielded enemies. Strong against Unstoppable Champions.

Column 3

  • Enhanced Hand Cannon Loader: Greatly increases reload speed of Hand Cannons.
  • Enhanced Submachine Gun Loader: Greatly increases reload speed of Submachine Guns.
  • Enhanced Bow Loader: Greatly increases reload speed of arrows.
  • Enhanced Fusion Rifle Loader: Greatly increases reload speed of Fusion Rifles.
  • Enhanced Auto Rifle Loader: Greatly increases reload speed of Auto Rifles.

Column 4

  • Breach Refractor: Grants grenade energy on final blows with shield-piercing weapons or when a member of your fireteam shuts down a Barrier Champion's ability.
  • Ballistic Combo: Grants melee energy on final blows with shield-piercing weapons or when a member of your fireteam shuts down a Barrier Champion's ability.
  • Overload Grenades: Void grenades cause disruption, delaying ability energy regeneration and lowering combatant damage output. Strong against Overload Champions.
  • Disruptor Spike: Improves the effects of disruption, lowering combatants' damage output even further.
  • Unstoppable Melee:  Arc melee abilities stagger unshielded enemy combatants. Strong against Unstoppable Champions.

Column 5

  • Heavy Finisher: Finishers generate heavy ammo. Requires one-half of your super energy.
  • Oppressive Darkness: Causing damage with a Void grenade adds a weaken effect to enemies.
  • Arc Batter: Grants overshield and reduced cooldown during activation for all Arc class abilities.
  • Thunder Coil: Grants bonus damage for all Arc melee abilities and refunds Super energy on finisher final blows.
  • From the Depths: Grants bonus Void Super damage if cast while critically wounded. Lasts until the end of the Super activation.

How to Unlock Mods on The Gate Lord's Eye

Earning XP is what will let players get Artifact Unlocks of which there is a maximum of 12. That means that players will only be able to choose from 12 of the above mods through one full upgrade of The Gate Lord's Eye Seasonal Artifact.

In addition to needing XP to gain Artifact Unlocks to then choose which mods to unlock, each column of mods will further control how players will have to distribute their choices across the entire artifact. This will keep Destiny 2 players from hoarding their Artifact Unlocks until the very last column. This manifests itself in each column having a minimum requirement of unlocks in the previous column(s). Obviously, the Column 1 does not have any unlock prerequisites. But then players must choose at least one mod from Column 1 in order to unlock mods in Column 2. Column 3 requires 4 unlocks in previous columns, Column 4 requires 7 previous unlocks, and the final Column requires 10 previous unlocks.

That means players won't be able to choose more than two mods from the last and most powerful column on mods. That is, unless players during the course of Shadowkeep and Season 8 are willing to reset their artifact.

How to Reset The Gate Lord's Eye

Players can reset their artifact directly on the artifact menu itself, which looks to give players the option to keep the mods they have already unlocked at the cost of Glimmer and a new progression of the artifact from the beginning. It is unclear if resetting the Season Artifact will also reset the Power bonus that players have earned, and if it does, there will certainly be decision point there where players will have to weigh the cost and benefits for unlocking more mods at the price of starting over. Multiple resets are possible, with each reset costing an increasing amount of Glimmer. At least, Season 8 will also more than double the game's Glimmer cap.

Destiny 2: Shadowkeep releases October 1, 2019 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with a Stadia version also in development.

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Source: Fireteam Chat (IGN)