Alright guys, let me walk you through my mess trying out that Destiny 2 desert perpetual raid cheating contest mode. Seriously, what a mouthful.
Stumbling Into This Thing
Right, so it started totally accidental. I was grinding out bounties on that Mars patrol zone, you know, the dusty one with all the Cabal and those annoying sandstorm things. Shooting dregs like usual, trying not to die of boredom. Then, outta nowhere, some weird public event notification pops up – super vague, just calling it “Trials of the Eternal Sands” or some poetic nonsense.
I figured, eh, public event, might as well try it. Grabbed my favorite auto rifle, the one that feels kinda loose but sprays bullets everywhere, and wandered over. Triggered the thing by shooting some glowing relic near an entrance I swear wasn’t there before. Next thing I know, I’m dumped into this dark cave system. Game chat suddenly floods with voices yelling things like “LFG CHEESE” and “KNIGHT SPAWN GLITCH??”. Confusion set in hard.
The First Few Disasters
Okay, trying to make sense of it:
- Wave one hit us fast – a ton of Cabal Phalanxes with those freaking shields blocking everything. Rounded a corner, boom, physics launched off a cliff by shield bash. Respawned miles back. Totally unprepared.
- Got this weird buff called “Desert’s Glimmer” or whatever. Thought it was like an overshield. Nope. Stepped on a cursed thrall trap thing thinking it couldn’t hurt me. Exploded. Lesson learned: just because it glitters doesn’t mean it’s good.
- Heard some players shouting about a “Vex box exploit” near the second encounter teleporter. Tried jumping onto this floating rock ledge everyone was clustering around. Fell off. Twice. Saw someone just clip through the geometry completely. Felt bad.
Basically spent the next 30 minutes dying, watching others exploit invisible walls to skip mechanics, and getting kicked to orbit when the timer ran out. Zero loot. Just salt.
What Actually Worked (Sort Of)
Eventually got matched with a group that seemed to know the intended flow, even if they were grumbling about it:
- Cleared the cave entrance legit: Communication was key. We assigned someone to snipe those shield Cabal weak points. Just shouting “Left shield down!” helped a ton. Simple, but effective.
- Used the “Glimmer” buff smart. Figured out it only protected against environmental damage – like the falling rocks when the cave shakes, or standing too close to the sand geysers. Hid like a rat behind rocks during sandstorms. Survival over glory, always.
- Beat the boss fight ugly. It spawns two Ogres simultaneously in the final arena. Brutal. Someone remembered a big fallen pillar near the back you can stand on for partial cover. Camped that spot like it was home. Focused fire, burned one Ogre down, then the other. Took ages.
No fancy cheeses that run. Got the emblem and some glimmer. Felt like an actual accomplishment, honestly. A sweaty, messy accomplishment.
Real Talk Takeaways
So, based on falling on my face repeatedly, here’s what I figured:
- It’s chaotic by design. Don’t expect a clean raid experience. It’s testing how you adapt to nonsense.
- Pay attention to buff names, but TEST them safely first. Assume “perpetual” might mean “will kill you slower.”
- Listen for common calls. Stuff like “Glimmer active!” meant find cover. “Knight spawn?” usually meant someone spotted a mechanic trigger.
- Cover is your best friend. The environment is trying to kill you as much as the enemies. Use it for protection.
- Don’t chase the cheese unless you’re ready to reset. Saw so many groups wipe trying to skip the Ogre mechanics. Doing it legit, slowly, worked when we stuck to the plan.
Look, it’s definitely not balanced, and half the time it feels broken on purpose. But surviving it felt weirdly good after all that initial chaos. Good luck out there, and watch your step in the sand.