With a tweet and an announcement trailer, Destiny 2's The Dawning event has returned. This year, Destiny 2's winter holiday event will run from December 14, 2021 through January 4, 2022, and is free for all players.
Destiny 2 has several real counterparts to several real-world celebrations. The Dawning covers winter events, Festival of the Lost covers Halloween and Day of the Dead, while Crimson Days stands in for Valentine's Day, all in addition to a number of other in-game events.
Much like years past, everyone's favorite space-grandma Eva Levante will be bringing her baking supplies and Holiday Oven to the Tower. With it, players will be able to craft all sorts of cookies and delights to give to their favorite Destiny 2 NPCs. After creating their first holiday gift and speaking to Eva, her full inventory will open up and players will be able to obtain bounties, quests, and upgrades.
Upgrades are a new system for The Dawning and are purchased with Dawning Spirit. Upgrades will last for the duration of the event and provide bonus event rewards, add the ability for Dawning-themed weapons to drop with even more perks, and increase the power of snowballs.
This year, Eva offers two new quests, "Rite of Dawning" and "The Pigeon Provides." Upon completing these quests, players will unlock the Vapoorwill Spin exotic ship and the Zephyr legendary sword. Players can then use Dawning Spirit to focus their "A Gift in Return" boxes from delivering cookies into "Unity Gift Exchanges" or "Edgy Gift Exchanges" to chase targeted weapon drops from The Dawning events since passed.
Dawning snowballs have also returned and pack a Stasis punch. Players will find snowball piles across the system including Europa, in weekly Nightfalls, and in Seasonal activities. As mentioned previously, players will be able to increase the power and potency of their snowballs through infusing Dawning Spirit.
Aside from all the events to participate in for the 3 weeks the event runs, players will be able to purchase all manner of Dawning-related armor, ghost shells, emotes, sparrows, and ships from Eververse. In addition to the new content for 2021, players will be able to purchase ships and sparrows from past The Dawning events. It certainly looks like Bungie has gone all out this year in this department.
The Dawning is one of the more enjoyable events in Destiny and on par with others like Festival of the Lost. It's a festive and delightful way to end the year and break up the grind that is at the heart of Destiny 2. The Dawning event is live now for all players wishing to partake.
Destiny 2 is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.