In an effort to balance the player experience in Destiny 2, developer Bungie is removing Legendary Shards. The current plan is to slowly remove them from specific areas and ultimately permanently remove them with the launch of The Final Shape.
Why are Legendary Shards leaving Destiny 2?
The decision to remove the currency was announced in this week's TWID. In it, the Economy Team explains that the Legendary Shards economy has, at best, been unstable. Longtime players and those who took advantage of several vendor exploits (that have since been patched) have been able to amass tens of thousands of Legendary Shards. Conversely, New Lights often find it difficult to obtain Legendary Shards to do many basic things like upgrade weapons and armor.
Beginning in Season 23, all Legendary Shard costs are being removed from the Monument to Lost Lights. Existing additional currencies like Glimmer, Exotic Ciphers, and Spoils of Conquest will remain the same. Additionally, ritual gear focusing is being adjusted. Non-Adept focusing will only require ritual engrams and Glimmer. However, Adept focusing will still require either seven wins in Trials Passage or Nightfall Ciphers.
Gear Cost Breakdown
| Item | Engram(s) | Glimmer | Misc. Costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Ritual Weapons | 1 | 0 | NA |
| Standard Ritual Pool Weapons | 3 | 5000 | NA |
| Standard Ritual Pool Armor | 3 | 5000 | NA |
| Legacy Weapons | 5 | 15,000 | NA |
| Legacy Armor | 5 | 15,000 | NA |
| Iron Banner Weapons | 5 | 25,000 | NA |
| Nightfall Weapons | 5 | 25,000 | NA |
| Adept Nightfall Weapons | 1 | 50,000 | 10 Nightfall Ciphers |
| Trials Weapons | 5 | 25,000 | NA |
| Adept Trials Weapons | 1 | 50,000 | 7 Trials Passage Wins |
When Legendary Shards completely go away in The Final Shape, the currencies Guardians receive for breaking down gear will also change. The Economy Team did mention that these values and drop chances may change further before the next expansion goes live. For items like Ships and Sparrows, there will be no awarded currency for breaking them down, nor will they cost anything to pull out of Collections.
Dismantled Gear Rewards
| Gear Type | Rarity | Glimmer | Secondary Reward | Secondary Drop % | Gunsmith Reputation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General | Rare | 75 | NA | NA | NA |
| Armor | Legendary | 1000 | Enhancement Core | 25% | 10 |
| Armor | Exotic | 2000 | Enhancement Core | 60% | 20 |
| Ghosts | Legendary | 1,000 | NA | NA | NA |
| Ghosts | Exotic | 1,500 | NA | NA | NA |
| Weapons | Legendary | 1,000 | Enhancement Core | 25% | 10 |
| Weapons | Exotic | 2,000 | Enhancement Core | 60% | 20 |
Overall, I think this is a good move on Bungie's part. When my son plays (which is sparingly), the struggle is real when it comes to Legendary Shards. For a game that was mocked for having far too many currencies, the developers have really come a long way in simplifying things. Those sitting on a dragon's hoard of Legendary Shards, make sure to cash them in for Upgrade Modules, Enhancement Cores, and Enhancement Prisms, as Bungie won't be giving anything in return when the currency goes away.
For more Destiny 2 goodies, check out Commemoration God Roll and Best Perks in Destiny 2 on Pro Game Guides!
Christian has been playing games since he could hold a controller in the late 80s. He's been writing about them for nearly 15 years for both personal and professional outlets. Now he calls Pro Game Guides home where he worships at the altar of Destiny 2.