The year of The Witch Queen ends soon. Lightfall is the next major expansion coming to Destiny 2. Subsequently, a new raid will debut alongside it on March 10. This kicks off a popular pastime done since the original Vault of Glass. However, the timeline of the Lightfall day one raid is receiving some changes.
Day-One Emblem
“Day-one raiding” is a tradition among casual and hardcore guardians. Players race together to conquer a new raid within the first twenty-four hours of its release. A Contest Mode is active during this time. Meaning, guardians have the power fixed at a certain level. Over-leveling beforehand is pointless for power level. However, the introduction of seasonal artifacts grants some cause.
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Whether you hoard bounties or grind nonstop, the experience gained will unlock mods in your artifacts. Primarily, the last column of mods is sought after. These are often powerful and can make a difference in situations like survival or DPS checks.
Top streamers like Datto often stream their experience. Those that complete the raid while Contest Mode is active will receive a special emblem. Only a small percentage of the Destiny 2 community experiences raids normally. Furthermore, a fraction of that percentage complete day-one raids. It is a stressful experience. Players go many hours at a time trying to complete it. Some teams work until the very last hour of the twenty-four-hour period. Yet, it is almost sacred in reverence by the community. Bungie wants more people to experience this and facilitate a smooth Lightfall day-one raid.
More Break Time
Gaming nonstop for hours on end is unhealthy in many cases. Bungie sees that. Previously, they changed the raid precedent. The day-one raid event starts on Friday instead of Saturday now. This change was aimed to minimize the amount of work needed by Bungie on the backend of servers during the weekend. However, the community raised many concerns about having to work or other commitments on a weekday versus a weekend. Therefore, Bungie is tweaking the raid race again.
The studio released a tweet stating the Lightfall day-one raid race is being changed. Contest Mode will be active for forty-eight hours instead of twenty-four. All guardians who complete the raid on Contest Mode will receive the special day-one emblem.
The Lightfall raid will launch on Friday, March 10, 2023 at 9am PST (Pacific Standard Time). Contest mode on the Lightfall raid will be active for 48 hours ending on Sunday, March 12, 2023 at 10am PDT (Pacific Daylight Time).
— Destiny 2 Team (@Destiny2Team) February 3, 2023
Bungie cares about its players and wants the event to be more enjoyable than stress-inducing. However, this has much of the community divided. There are some who welcome the extension. More time means more room to handle unexpected obligations or wrap up prior engagements. On the other hand, some players see this as catering to the casual audience.
We are extending contest mode an additional day to allow teams pursuing the emblem more chances to take breaks, as well as allow anyone who has commitments on Friday to still have time to participate. More details will be available in a future TWAB.
— Destiny 2 Team (@Destiny2Team) February 3, 2023
The day-one emblem is one of the few prestigious accolades guardians can show off. Extending the time frame cheapens the achievement to others who conquered every obstacle within twenty-four hours. Lastly, there are players who see this extension as a warning. The new raid might be extremely difficult, warranting longer completion times. Players might be in for another Last Wish scenario.
I for one welcome the extension but will reserve final judgment until Bungie releases more details. Are you planning to participate in the Lightfall day-one raid? What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments down below. For everything Destiny 2, remember to bend the knee in the realm of Lords of Gaming.
