While the new Exotic class items were a big selling point of The Final Shape expansion, it’s frustratingly awkward to actually earn them, as the Destiny 2 Dual Destiny mission will be blocking your path. Not only is the opportunity to start Dual Destiny secret, but the mission itself demands you complete it as a pair and requires good communication.
Using our guide, you’ll know how to beat Dual Destiny so that you can earn the prized Exotic class items. After all, these come in very handy when trying to make the best Destiny 2 Prismatic Warlock build, Prismatic Hunter build, and Prismatic Titan build, so the hard work does pay off in the end.
How to Unlock Dual Destiny
To unlock and start Dual Destiny, you must complete Overthrow once in each region of the Pale Heart. During the brief cooldown time after each completion, you will need to search the area for a Secret Keeper Hive Witch. This can be done solo, unlike the Dual Destiny mission itself.
The Secret Keeper locations in each region are as follows:
- The Landing - In the large cave outside of the Lost Sector entrance.
- The Blooming - In a cave beneath the spawn point.
- The Impasse - In a large cave near the Lost Sector and Region Chest.
After you have killed the three Secret Keepers, travel to The Blooming where you will see a green beam of light in the distance. Follow this and you will end up in the large, crystal cave in The Refraction. When you enter this area, you will automatically be granted the 'Savathun's Envoy' buff for seven minutes. While being timed might be daunting, it’s more than enough time to complete the task that follows. And if you’re unable to beat this in time, then you’d likely struggle with the Dual Destiny mission anyhow, which is also timed.
With the Savathun's Envoy buff, continue to the cave exit. Then kill enemies outside to spawn two Subjugators. Damage these Subjugators until they flee and grab the Light and Darkness orbs that they drop. Take these orbs back to the crystal room in The Refraction and place them on the pedestals. This will unlock the Dual Destiny mission where you can face these Subjugators again and ultimately defeat them.
Dual Destiny is a great Exotic mission that requires strong teamwork to beat. While it’s best experienced for yourself, figuring it out as you go, our Dual Destiny guide will show you how to complete the activity. Obviously, this includes spoilers on gameplay mechanics.
How to Complete Dual Destiny
To complete Dual Destiny and its seven main encounters, you need two players, as this activity can’t be completed solo. It is also rated 1995 Power difficulty, meaning you have to be high level to stand a chance of being successful.
If you don’t have a friend to play it with, you can use the in-game LFG system - Fireteam Finder - and head under ‘Other’, ‘Exotic Missions’ and then select Dual Destiny.
Before loading into the mission, it’s best to sort out your subclasses, as this will influence your role during the mission - though this isn’t that big of a deal. In Dual Destiny, one player will be assigned Light Aligned and the other Darkness Aligned. You can have control over this decision by choosing either a Light or Darkness subclass respectively. Importantly, Prismatic counts as either, and will be randomly assigned an alignment at the start of the mission. If you’re unsure which one you are, it will permanently be displayed in your buffs in the bottom left of your screen during this mission.
There are seven main encounters in Dual Destiny and you only have limited time to beat the mission, though each encounter completed increases your available time:
- Escape
- Find Balance 1 - Symbols
- Explore the Anomaly 1
- Find Balance 2 - Crux Clock
- Explore the Anomaly 2
- Mastery of Balance - Boss
- Claim Your Reward/Schism - PvP
Below is a full Destiny 2 Dual Destiny guide, covering how to beat each encounter.
Escape:
The first objective is to escape the starting room and thankfully begins nice and simple. All you have to do is have the Light player stand on the Light plate, and the Darkness player on the Darkness plate. This mechanic is used throughout the Dual Destiny mission, so keep this in mind.
After escaping the first room, head through the caves until you reach the first puzzle area.
Find Balance 1 - Symbols:
Once you enter this room, you will be split up and have a different role each. The Light player will have to read symbols in the caves below, Darkness player will have to shoot the correct symbols in the area above.
Defeat the groups of enemies until two enemies spawn which can only be killed by the Light and Darkness player respectively. These enemies will drop Motes of Light, which lets the Light player read the symbols on the nearby plates. Activate both plate symbols and then read them out from left to right for the Darkness player to shoot the correct ones.
There are two more rooms that follow using the same process but with the roles inverted. This is why the alignment you are assigned at the start isn’t too restrictive, though it’s still useful to know. Complete all three stages of the first Find Balance step and then it’s time to put your best parkour shoes on.
Explore the Anomaly 1:
Explore the Anomaly is the staple platforming section we’ve come to expect in Exotic missions. While it can be a little confusing at times as the platforms are narrow, it’s simple enough to find the path forward. Using a sword can help you see the environment better if you’re struggling. Beware of the traps and enemies along the path.
Like the start of the mission, you will periodically have to split up to stand on the correct plates based on your subclass to open the path forward. Given these platforms glow against the dark environment, they’re easy enough to find though they do require platforming to reach while getting shot at.
Find Balance 2 - Crux Clock:
For this encounter, you will want to use both add-clearing weapons and high DPS precision weapons for killing Tormentors, or have one player specialize in each. For example, Sunshot or weapons with Incandescent or Voltshot are great for AoE damage. Meanwhile, linear fusion rifles and snipers are perfect for precision damage against the Tormentors.
To begin this encounter, activate the Light and Darkness plates as usual. This will spawn waves of enemies that you will need to kill. Shortly after, a Tormentor will spawn which also needs to be defeated. However, the player who lands the killing blow will be the only one to get the Harmonic Sundering buff. This effect lets you view the Darkness Crux 'clock' at the back of the room to shoot the correct ones. While there are different methods to solving this encounter, simply labelling them 1-9 clockwise is the most useful.
The player without the Harmonic Sundering buff then needs to call out which Cruxes they have active, signified by the orange lines. Then, compare these to the ones that you have active. There will be three that you both have which you will then have to shoot. So, if your partner calls out a Crux that you also have active, shoot it. Remember, you can also use text chat if it is easier for you to keep track.
Repeat this process three times to open the door and move on to the next area. If you make a mistake, you should have plenty of time left to try again.
Explore the Anomaly 2:
After beating the Crux encounter, you will be met by another platforming section, though this one is simpler. Much like the first, follow the path together and defeat the enemies along the way until you have to activate Light and Darkness plates based on your subclass alignment. Activating the plates will launch you up to the next section.
Repeat this until you both reach the final island together. Here, various enemies spawn, including two Tormentors which can be quite a pain to take down given the small arena.
Mastery of Balance:
Congratulations, you’ve made it to the final boss of Dual Destiny in time. Known as Mastery of Balance, this encounter tasks you with defeating two Subjugators - Selin and Yemiq - by bringing together the mechanics used through the previous encounters.
To begin the fight, activate the plates to spawn Selin. Damage the boss to 66% health, at which point it will become immune. However, two Servile Wizards (one Light, one Darkness) will spawn that you need to kill to create various symbols around the room.
Have the Light player read out the three symbols they see near the pyramid shard by the boss from top to bottom. The Darkness player then has to find and shoot the correct Cruxes in the right order. There are lots of enemies to contend with here, though by now you should have a solid understanding of all the symbols to locate the correct ones quickly. Selin can then be damaged once more, taking them down to 33% health.
After this damage phase, the second boss, Yemiq, will spawn. Damage them until they reach 66% health, after which two more Servile Wizards spawn. Like before, you have to read the symbols and destroy the correct ones. However, this time the roles are reversed - the Darkness player shoots while the Light player reads. Successfully do this and the Yemiq’s shields will lower, letting you damage them down to 33% health before going immune again.
For the final shape, two more Servile Wizards will spawn, which you need to kill. However, this time it will activate the Crux clocks on either side of the room. This is like the earlier encounter only this time both players need to shoot at the single similar Crux. This is best done by having one player read their symbols and the other compare them to theirs, before reading out the answer and both firing.
This will activate the boss damage phase in which both Selin and Yemiq will be out in the field. As the final phase, you can go all out with Supers, heavy ammo, and Transcendence if you’re playing with Prismatic.
Claim Your Reward/Schism:
With the final boss out of the way, it’s almost time to claim your reward. Follow the objective marker in the room and stand on their respective Light or Darkness plate.
In a dramatic turn, this actually begins a 1v1 PvP duel between you and your partner, ending when one player comes out on top and 'crushes' the other’s Ghost. Don't worry though, whether you win or lose, this doesn't affect your reward, which you will receive after this duel.
If you’re looking to farm Exotic class items via Dual Destiny, the fastest way to do this is to simply have one player stand still to let the other kill them faster. You can also, however, choose peace, which results in Savathun killing you both anyhow.
Destiny 2 Exotic Class Item Farm - Dual Destiny
Dual Destiny is the best method to farm Exotic class items in Destiny 2. Once you've got the hang of it, you can complete it in around 20 minutes and it guarantees one Exotic class item each time.
Currently, there is also an exploit which lets you earn double Exotic class items from completing Dual Destiny, making this method even better. All you have to do is have both players play as the same class, claim your reward at the exact same time at the end, and then climb on the nearby pillars to 'leave' the area. This will then teleport you back to the arena, where you can both claim another Exotic class item.
However, you can also farm Exotic class items from Overthrow, providing you have completed Dual Destiny on your character at least once. Keep in mind though that this is slower than doing the Dual Destiny repeatedly.
Destiny 2 Dual Destiny Rewards
For completing Dual Destiny, you are guaranteed an Exotic class item for the class you’re playing every time. Once you’ve got the hang of this mission, it can be completed relatively fast, so you can complete it as many times as you want until you’ve got the perk roll you’re hunting for.
That’s not all, however, as completing Dual Destiny will also unlock the ability to earn Exotic class items from chests in the Pale Heart. So, if you never want to play Dual Destiny again, then don’t worry, you don’t have to. Farming Overthrow is your next best bet.
So, that wraps up our complete Destiny 2 Dual Destiny guide, including how to start it and how to beat it. Once you’ve got your Exotic class item, why not put it to the test by taking on the Destiny 2 The Final Shape missions on Legendary difficulty? You can get even more Final Shape Exotics if you do as part of the Final Shape Legendary campaign rewards.