How to Obtain Vaulted Exotics in Destiny 2

As a hardcore Destiny 2 gamer and content creator, I get asked constantly: "how do I get old exotics from past expansions?" With weapons and armor being vaulted each season, here is the definitive guide on reearning these lost exotics in 2024.

The Monument to Lost Lights – Your Exotic Archive

The number one source for reacquiring sunset gear is the Monument to Lost Lights terminal added in Beyond Light. Located by the Vaults in the Tower, this exotic archive lets you pull year 1 and 2 weapons and armor previously only found in the world loot pool or old campaigns.

I often describe it as a museum of greatest hits from Destiny‘s past. After all, it contains favorites like Ace of Spades, Thorn, Truth, and Phoenix Protocol.

But accessing this archive isn‘t free. To reearn an exotic, you‘ll need to fork over piles of hard-earned ascendant shards, enhancement prisms, cores, and glimmer. I‘ve sunk millions pulling random rolls on my precious Getaway Artist.

Cost Varies Dramatically by Item

While glimmer and enhancement cores are plentiful, ascendant shards don‘t grow on trees. Exotic armor costs 1 shard, but weapons can demand up to 3 plus an ascendant alloy. With only 6 shards earnable weekly from playlist activities, rebuilding your arsenal takes some work.

However, in a recent patch Bungie slashed costs across the board. Weapons now only require 2 shards and some change. Armor was also reduced to a flat rate of 5000 glimmer, 10 cores, and 1 shard.

Target the Best of Year 1 First

My advice? Focus on grabbing top tier options before browsing randomly. Priorities like Anarchy, Tarrabah, Always on Time, and Contraverse Holds offer strong return on investment.

I especially recommend Year 2 Annual Pass exotics from minor DLCs like Black Armory and Joker‘s Wild since they are harder to randomly drop compared to expansions‘ world loot.

Abusing Destiny‘s Targeted Exotic Systems

Beyond the Monument‘s grab bag of old goodies lie more focused exotic acquisition pathways offering better drop chances.

Solo Legend/Master Lost Sectors = Free Exotic Armor

Since Year 4, solo flawless completion of the daily Legend or Master Lost Sector has guaranteed a random piece of beyond light exotic armor (also random stat roll and element). I farm these regularly and estimate the drop chance around 25% on Legend and 33% at Master.

Pro tip – use TodayInDestiny.com to check the reward before hopping in. Nothing worse than grinding Nezarec‘s Whisper for Impossible Machines.

Xur: Your Weekend Exotic Santa

Our tentacle-faced friend Xur offers a selection of older exotic weapons and newer armor every Friday reset. His inventory now sells a second, legendary item and the infamous Hawkmoon/Dead Man‘s Tale scout rifles when their weekly missions are available.

Buying an unwanted armor piece can also drop high stat rolls – I grabbed a juicy 71 Pheonix Protocol recently. Visit him whenever he‘s in town to build your collection.

Expansion Quest Exotics Still Relevant

While vaulted Red War and Forsaken campaigns took their exotic quests too, Shadowkeep and Beyond Light activities remain in-game. Excellent weapons like Divinity, Xenophage, Lament, and Salvation‘s Grip can be earned by finishing these often lengthy, puzzle-filled missions.

I‘d chase these down sooner than later, as Bungie said quests tied to vaulted content will also get removed eventually for simplicity‘s sake. RIP Legend of Acrius and Thorn.

Exotic Drops Rates and Recommended Activities

Outside of targeted farming, world drops provide a slight chance at old and new exotics alike. See my detailed analysis below:

I‘ve rated activities primarily by fun factor and reasonable effort versus exotic probabilities. Surprisingly the Drifter‘s weekly Gambit challenge also rarely drops old exotics so I sneak that in routinely.

Given variance in luck, your epic Session Zero or Graviton Lance could come from any blue engram in patrol. But targeted play utilizing the above offers the best return for grind time.

Wrapping Up – Go Grab Your Favorite Oldies

Despite weapons and activities entering the infamous Destiny Content Vault each expansion, our lost exotic arsenal gets preserved through the Monument to Lost Lights. Paired with smart play in targeted systems like Legend Lost Sectors and raid runs galore, veterans and new lights alike can experience these oldies made new again.

Bungie‘s new player experience leaves much to be desired. But hopefully this guide sets you on the right path to rebuild your perfect PVE loadout for endgame or chase down PVP meta favorites like Not Forgotten. Because we all know the magic of our first Hawkmoon or Vex Mythoclast moment.

What vaulted exotic should every guardian add to their collection? Let me know in the comments! This is your fellow loot hunter signing off.