Guardians will see the return of the Solstice of Heroes event during Season of the Splicer. For many Guardians, the Solstice of Heroes event brings new and exciting armor sets. For others, it’s a chance to flaunt their overpowered abilities with daily buffs for their subclasses. For all Guardians however, it is a time of remembrance and honor.
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The Solstice of Heroes event first came to Destiny 2 in August 2018, to honor the triumphs of Guardians over the last year and a celebration of the Traveler waking up after the Red War. Typically, the Solstice of Heroes comes at the end of a major release such as the end of the main Destiny 2 campaign and the end of the Forsaken expansion to further signify the end of a year in Destiny 2.
The Gear
The annual Solstice of Heroes event brings Eva Levante back to the Tower to remind Guardians of what an outstanding job they have been doing. Along with the return of Eva, Guardians can earn special armor and ornaments that will have bright, vibrant glows applied to them, a must-have for many Guardians.
Unlike traditional gear in Destiny 2, Solstice of Heroes’ gear is upgraded by completing specific challenges for each piece of gear. Guardians typically earn their new armor by participating in the Solstice of Heroes and upgrading the Solstice gear from Rare to Legendary and then finishing the set by Masterworking it.
Each rarity has its own set of challenges for Guardians to complete to upgrade that piece of gear. While completing specific challenges can be a chore for some Guardians, the Solstice of Heroes event takes place in the European Aerial Zone, home to an encounter that many Guardians enjoy.
The European Aerial Zone
In the European Aerial Zone, Guardians will need to kill as many mini-bosses as they can in a timed event before the final boss spawns. The more mini-bosses that Guardians defeat, the more chests they can earn after defeating the final boss. There is however a catch to how Guardians claim their chests.
After an encounter, Guardians will have a short-timer to run around the European Aerial Zone and open their chests. The downside is, the chest locations are only revealed for a second before hiding on the HUD. Guardians have to hunt these chests down to claim their rewards. Luckily, Guardians can split up, claiming chests for the whole Fireteam.
The rewards claimed and the challenges Guardians complete during these events help them level up their new gear. Typically, this gear was the best gear available and is what Guardians would wear into a new expansion. Things however have changed, as this year’s Solstice of Heroes event is not happening at the end of a major expansion.
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A Memorable Year
Despite Solstice of Heroes arriving a season early this year, it has still been a year and Guardians have accomplished a lot in that time. Since the last Solstice of Heroes, Guardians have been learning more about the Darkness, even learning how to use it from the Stranger, Elsie Bray.
Guardians helped reunite Elsie with her sister Ana Bray while uncovering information on multiple timelines where Guardians became corrupted by the Darkness. Learning of dark future timelines allows Guardians to have a better understanding of the weight of using the Darkness. Guardians then discovered the true identity of Banshee-44, AKA Clovis Bray.
Using the Darkness in Beyond Light, Guardians have defeated Eramis (for now) with the help of Variks. Helping Variks, Guardians helped Eliksni refugees get safely to the Kell of House Light, Mithrax. Guardians then discovered Clovis Bray’s secrets in the Deep Stone Crypt Raid.
In the Hellmouth, Guardians found Crow and then helped him hunt down and defeat the High Celebrant of Xivu Arath, freeing Crow from Spider in the process. During Season of the Chosen, Guardians defeated Empress Caiatl Chosen, causing Caiatl to honor a peace treaty.
Guardians have accomplished a surprising amount for the last year, certainly worth a celebration, even if some Guardians will be bringing the Darkness with them to this year’s event. While the Solstice of Heroes is about honoring the Guardians, it is also about celebrating the awakening of the Traveler. Knowing that, it may be awkward for some Guardians to flaunt their Darkness powers during the event.
A Worthy Celebration
Details around this year’s Solstice of Heroes event have not yet been shared, and Guardians may not find out more until closer to the event on July 6. Considering the timing of the second half of the season, this could be a memorable event to officially recognize Crow in the Tower, if that has not yet happened.
Solstice of Heroes is about acknowledging the heroism of Guardians, the bravery in their deeds. What better event to acknowledge Crow and his heroism than the Solstice of Heroes? While he will never be Cayde-6, Crow has shown his bravery and willingness to be a hero worth recognition.
While the event itself may not change that much, the timing of the event concerning the end and start of story expansions has certainly been affected. The coming of the Solstice of Heroes was usually followed by the end of the current year of Destiny content. Considering there is one more season after Season of the Splicer, the end of this year in Destiny is still a way off.
Based on the Season of the Splicer roadmap, an Epilogue chapter starts after Solstice of Heroes ends, meaning it could herald an end of sorts after all. While little is known about the Epilogue for Season of the Splicer, happening days after Solstice of Heroes ends, the roadmap looks ominous. Void of the Traveler, Guardians look over the Last City, shrouded in night. Could the celebrations during this year’s Solstice of Heroes be too early, or will Guardians check off another victory to celebrate for the next Solstice of Heroes?
Destiny 2: Beyond Light is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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