All of the currencies available in the game.
Our Destiny 2 currency guide contains everything you need to know about Legendary Shards, Glimmer and Bright Dust.
Much of the loot you’ll gather in Destiny 2 is going to be acquired from things like Loot Chests, not to mention all those Engrams which you decode into armour and weapons back at base.
There are, however, a few special currencies which are used for outright purchases or upgrades, and it’s worth taking a few moments to get up to speed on what each one is for.
This isn’t a big guide, and it’ll likely be expanded upon once the game goes live, but here’s everything we know about the currency systems in Destiny 2, based on recent leaks ahead of launch.
What are Legendary Shards and what are they used for?
Legendary Shards are items that are received from the destruction of either Legendary or Exotic equipment. If you’ve played games like World of Warcraft in the past, you’ll easily understand this as a form of disenchanting.
What are Legendary Shards for though? While we understand that these might be used for new purposes down the road, right now they are the primary currency for buying Exotic items from Xur.
Xur is the travelling salesman who used to hang around in the Tower in the first game, showing up on a weekly basis with a new selection of goodies to spend your hard-earned currency on.
This time around he can show up in any of the game’s worlds, changing on a weekly basis. We’ll have a post for you outlining his position each time.
What is Glimmer, how do I get it, and what do I spend it on?
Glimmer returns from the first game, and is earned from smashing enemies to bits, opening Loot Chests, harvesting materials out in the open world and completing Crucible matches. In the first game it could be used to both buy new equipment, and upgrade those individual pieces of gear into something a little more powerful.
It’s likely you’ll be able to use this currency with any number of NPCs. If you’re curious to see who will be located where, our Destiny 2 vendor guide contains details of all the shopkeepers we currently know of!
Our most popular Destiny 2 guides:
- 1. Guide – Destiny 2 Guide
- 2. Crucible – Destiny 2 Crucible PVP guide
- 3. Subclasses – Destiny 2 Subclass guide
- 4. Strikes – Destiny 2 Strike guides
- 5. Campaign – Destiny 2 Campaign walkthrough
How is Bright Dust obtained and what is it used for?
This currency is acquired whenever you dismantle Bright Engrams. This currency can only be used in the Eververse shop. We’ll expand on this section of our guide considerably once Destiny 2 goes live, and a clearer picture of how this system will work the second time around.
