Leveling up your gear and increasing your Power level is an important part of Lot 2but it is also very confusing.
This page will tell you everything you need to know about increasing your power level after the release of Light — an expansion that increased the level cap and requirements for various high-level activities, such as Nightfalls or raids.
Remark: Bungie has not increased the power level since the release of Lightalthough some of the powerful resources have changed since Season of the Wish rolled out in late November.
How Power Level and Gear Drops work in Destiny 2
Power level inside Lot 2 is a numerical value that determines how much damage you take and deal to your enemies: the higher the level, the more damage you deal and the less you receive. In addition to dictating how much damage you dish out, you should know that activities in the game have a fixed power level and that you will be more effective if you are close to or exceeding that level.
Players and enemies each have a power level and are compared against each other. Your the overall power level is determined by the average of your equipment’s power level, plus any additional levels of your seasonal artifact.
When it comes to equipment, Lot 2 spreads your progress with different Power Level Caps: the soft capthe Powerful capand the Top cap. Each of these limits represents a point at which certain types of drops will no longer increase your Power level, so you’ll need to shift your priorities each week to continue increasing your level.
Image: Bungie via Polygoon
Additionally, a seasonal artifact level is added on top of the average power level of your equipment. This way you can reach a higher level than the Pinnacle or Max cap. You obtain artifact levels by playing for a season and earning XP. However, unlike your gear level, your artifact level resets at the end of the season. If you want to earn XP quickly, it’s best to use bounties or seasonal challenges, as they provide the fastest and easiest XP in the game.
Maximum level limits in Destiny 2
There are three level limits Lot 2: the soft cap, the strong cap and the Pinnacle cap. For Lightthose caps are:
- Soft cap: 1750
- Powerful cap: 1800
- Pinnacle cap: 1810
We’ll break down each limit below.
How to achieve the soft cap in Destiny 2
The soft cap for Lot 2 is 1750. What does “soft shell” mean? This means that until you reach the power level 1750, virtually anything and everything can give you a power level increase. These can be blue drops from the ground or activity rewards; anything that drops for you will be a few Power above your current Power level. Once you reach the soft cap, you will no longer get any blue drops.
The best way to achieve the soft cap is to simply play the game, as regardless of the activity you will regularly receive equipment up to that power level.
Image: Bungie
If you want to get past the soft cap quickly and you’re just getting started Light, then it’s worth considering playing the Legendary campaign, which upon completion (1770) gives you fixed gear at 20 Power above the soft cap. However, this is a challenge, especially for new players. So consider playing other activities instead while you get comfortable with the game.
How to Achieve the Powerful Gear Cap in Destiny 2
Image: Bungie via Polygoon
The powerful cap for Lot 2 is 1800, which means between 1750 and 1800 the The only way to increase your power level is to get a reward from it activities that yield powerful or pinnacle equipment. All these sources are reset weekly.
Activities and resources with powerful equipment are coming in Light Involving:
- Complete eight vendor rewards for Banshee-44 (+1 power)
- Weekly Nightfall Challenge (+1 Power)
- Complete three attacks (+1 power)
- Three Crucible matches (+1 Power)
- Three Crucible Labs matches (+1 Power)
- Three Gambit matches (+1 Power)
- Gambit, Vanguard, Crucible and Banshee rank rewards (+1 power)
- Defeat fighters in Terminal Overload for Quinn on Neomuna (+1 power)
- Weekly Reputation at Nimbus on Neomuna (+1 Power)
- Complete three deep dives (+1 power)
- Complete three Defiant Battlegrounds (+1 Power)
- Open reward chests from Season of the Witch (+1 Power)
- Turn in eight Spirit of Riven bounties (+1 power)
- Clear four paths in Riven’s Lair (+2 Power)
- Give five Commendations (+2 Power)
- Three Dares of Eternity runs (+2 Power)
- Prime and Exotic Engrams, which drop randomly
If you’re trying to be as optimal as possible (possibly for a day one raid), you’ll want to save all your powerful rewards until after you reach 1800. Powerful loot drops are limited per weekso you don’t want to waste Powerful or Pinnacle drops while still being able to gain levels with unlimited rewards.
How to Reach the Pinnacle/Max Power Limit in Destiny 2
Image: Bungie via Polygoon
The Pinnacle cap for Lot 2 is 1810meaning between 1800 and 1810, the only way to increase your Power level is to receive Pinnacle rewards. As with powerful rewards, if you’re trying to maximize the effectiveness of the Pinnacle rewards, you won’t want to collect them until you reach Power 1800. as these loot drops are limited per week.
Activities with Pinnacle equipment are coming in Light Involving:
- Complete eight activity vendor bounties: Lord Shaxx, Commander Zavala, and Drifter
- 200,000 Nightfall score during the week
- Weekly campaign mission on Neomuna with a team score over 100,000
- Complete the Partition mission while in possession of Polymorphic Shellcode
- Complete the exotic rotator mission twice
-
Crota’s End, the latest reprized raid
- Warlord’s Ruin, the newest dungeon (releases December 1)
- Complete the Avalon Exotic mission
- 250,000 score on Dares of Eternity
- Iron Banner Challenges (when event is active)
- Final encounter of the raid and dungeon highlighted in the weekly rotation
- Collect 100,000 points in The Coil
It’s worth noting that there’s no point in saving Pinnacles if you don’t reach 1800 with that character by the end of the week. We recommend completing all powerful rewards for a character first and then tackling Pinnacle activities.
When is the best time to open Engrams in Destiny 2?
Until you reach the powerful cap, you must turn in Prime Engrams immediately after picking them up. These are considered +1 power rewards from the moment they drop, meaning their power does not increase like your power level. If you continue to level up without surrendering the Prime Engram, you are essentially wasting it. If you’re having trouble with the raid and you get a Prime Engram, it’s always worth taking a Tower break to decode it.
Image: Bungie
Lot 2 also uses a slot leveling system, meaning equipment drops per slot and is based on your current average power level. One sticking point with this system is that some of your equipment slots can fall behind. Your general level can be 1725, while your hunter’s cloak can be stuck at 1720 and your helmet at 1728.
To get the most out of your Powerful and Pinnacle drops, try to keep items within a few Power levels of each other. You can do this by collecting items that fall “with Power”. “At Power” means the equipment drops to your current average Power level, which can help bring up some pieces that are falling behind (bringing your Cloak to 1725 and increasing your overall average without a weekly Powerful or Pinnacle reward reduction). This can increase your overall strength level and make those powerful and pinnacle exercises more effective.
If you don’t even upgrade your armor, a Pinnacle or Powerful can drop a +2 power helmet, which would be a shame since it’s already your best slot. Many playlist activities (Strikes, Gambit, Crucible) drop items ‘at Power’, so keep an eye out for equipment left behind.
How to Quickly Reach the Pinnacle Cap in Destiny 2
For those looking to level up as quickly as possible – for a raid or other endgame activities – there are a few best practices to consider.
Run the Legendary campaign first and complete all activities to reach 1800 as quickly as possible.
Image: Bungie
If you have three Destiny classes, you might want to level one up faster than the others. You can actually play in a specific order to make this easier, as the last character you play in a week will almost always be the highest-ranking character of your three characters, as they can share weapons.
The best way to maximize your power is to use a snaking order. First, arrange your characters in an order that you think you want to focus on, with your main character being your most important character and the last character being the character you play with the least. If you play in order from favorite to least favorite, your least favorite will be your most powerful at the end of your first week of grinding. The following week you will want to reverse your order to ensure that your main character becomes the most powerful in week two.