Beyond raids and dungeons, exotic missions are some of the best PvE content Destiny 2 has to offer. However, even these great experiences aren’t safe from the clutches of the Destiny Content Vault, and their disappearance throughout the years has saddened many.
Luckily, Season 22 has an excellent solution: the Exotic Mission Rotator. This new system brings back beloved missions from past seasons while also sprucing them up with some enticing loot. In this article, we’ll cover what these missions are, how they rotate, when each will be featured, and their rewards.
Destiny 2 Exotic Mission this week: September 19, 2023
The rotating Exotic mission this week is Vox Obscura and rewards the Dead Messenger Exotic grenade launcher.
Art | Raid | Location | Power Level | Loot | Requires |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Vox Obscura | Legends tab | 1800 | Dead Messenger | ![]() Lightfall |
Exotic Rotator rewards this week
While these Exotic quests can be fun and challenging, most Guardians are running them for a chance to earn exclusive weapons and armor.
These are the weapons and armor sets available this week:
Art | Weapon | Type | Archetype | Rarity | Ammo | Element | Requirements | In loot pool? | Ammo? | Element? | Tier | Excels | Source | Craftable? | Requires | Released | Slot | Can be Crafted? | Best of? | Top Perk? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Dead Messenger | Grenade Launcher | Exotic | Exotic | Special | Void | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Best ❘ S | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Explosive Personality | Grenade Launcher | Wave | Legendary | Special | Solar | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong ❘ A | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Piece of Mind | Pulse Rifle | Rapid-Fire | Legendary | Primary | Kinetic | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong ❘ A | PvP | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Kinetic | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Recurrent Impact | Machine Gun | Rapid-Fire | Legendary | Heavy | Stasis | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Average ❘ B | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Heavy | Craftable | ||
![]() | Sweet Sorrow | Auto Rifle | Rapid-Fire | Legendary | Primary | Arc | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong ❘ A | PvP | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Thoughtless | Sniper Rifle | Adaptive | Legendary | Special | Stasis | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong ❘ A | PvE + PvP | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Kinetic | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Under Your Skin | Combat Bow | Precision | Legendary | Primary | Void | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Best ❘ S | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier |
Armor Set | Released | Titan Preview | Hunter Preview | Warlock Preview | Source | Obtainable? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tusked Allegiance Vox Obscura | Season 16 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | Vox Obscura | Yes |
🛑 These rewards require ownership of The Witch Queen or Season of the Risen.

Exotic Mission Rotator, Destiny 2
Weekly rotation
This is the Season 22 calendar covering the entire Exotic missions rotation until November 28, 2023:
Exotic Mission Rotator: Season 22
Week | Exotic Mission | Exotic | Week # |
---|---|---|---|
22 August 2023 | Presage | Dead Man's Tale | Week 1 |
29 August 2023 | Vox Obscura | Dead Messenger | Week 2 |
5 September 2023 | Operation: Seraph Shield | Revision Zero | Week 3 |
12 September 2023 | Presage | Dead Man's Tale | Week 4 |
19 September 2023 | Vox Obscura | Dead Messenger | Week 5 |
26 September 2023 | Operation: Seraph Shield | Revision Zero | Week 6 |
3 October 2023 | Presage | Dead Man's Tale | Week 7 |
10 October 2023 | Vox Obscura | Dead Messenger | Week 8 |
17 October 2023 | Operation: Seraph Shield | Revision Zero | Week 9 |
24 October 2023 | Presage | Dead Man's Tale | Week 10 |
31 October 2023 | Vox Obscura | Dead Messenger | Week 11 |
7 November 2023 | Operation: Seraph Shield | Revision Zero | Week 12 |
14 November 2023 | Presage | Dead Man's Tale | Week 13 |
21 November 2023 | Vox Obscura | Dead Messenger | Week 14 |
What is the Exotic Mission Rotator?
Over the years, Bungie has added missions that carry specific exotic weapon rewards to Destiny 2. These typically are kept a secret until they’re discovered by the community in-game, making for a day almost as exciting as the release of a new raid.
The exotic mission rotator, new for Season 22, takes some of these missions from past years and puts them into a playlist. This playlist features one mission per week, granting unique rewards that reset every Tuesday.
Currently, three missions are available via this rotator: Presage, Vox Obscura, and Operation: Seraph’s Shield. Bungie has confirmed that more Exotic Missions will be added in 2024.
Exotic Mission Rotator Rewards
Each Exotic Mission offers several rewards, including a specific craftable Exotic weapon, several Legendary weapons, and one armor set.
Art | Weapon | Type | Archetype | Rarity | Ammo | Element | Requirements | In loot pool? | Ammo? | Element? | Tier | Excels | Source | Craftable? | Requires | Released | Slot | Can be Crafted? | Best of? | Top Perk? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Dead Man's Tale | Scout Rifle | Exotic | Exotic | Primary | Kinetic | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong ❘ A | PvP | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 13 | Kinetic | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Dead Messenger | Grenade Launcher | Exotic | Exotic | Special | Void | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Best ❘ S | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Revision Zero | Pulse Rifle | Exotic | Exotic | Primary | Kinetic | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong ❘ A | PvP | Operation: Seraph Shield | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 19 | Kinetic | Craftable | Top-tier |
As explained by Bungie:
Weapon crafting rewards:
- First completion of the mission on Normal or Legendary difficulty will award the Exotic Deepsight weapon associated with the mission.
- Each completion of the Normal or Legendary version of the Exotic mission will award an intrinsic upgrade that can be used when crafting the Exotic weapon.
- Each completion of the Legendary version of the Exotic mission will award a Catalyst upgrade for the crafted Exotic weapon.

Exotic Mission Rotator rewards, Destiny 2
Armor and weapon rewards:
- Weekly mission rewards:
- One guaranteed Deepsight weapon that has not had its pattern unlocked and one armor piece that has not already been obtained.
- On every completion, you will receive an additional weapon from the mission’s weapon pool. However, this weapon will have no knockout or guaranteed Deepsight behavior (the weapon can roll with Deepsight, but this would be on a random percentage chance).
Note that Exotic Missions feature two difficulties, Normal and Legendary, and each has separate weekly reward lockouts.
Exotic Rotator Missions: Season 22
As of Season 22, this rotator features three missions from past years. Let’s take a quick look at all three and what they have to offer.
Presage
Released with Season of the Chosen back in early 2021, Presage is the closest thing to a horror experience you’ll get in Destiny 2. Here, you’ll explore a seemingly abandoned Cabal ship filled to the brim with Scorn forces.
The normal difficulty variant of this mission isn’t timed, so explore to your heart’s content! It’s one of the most immersive spaces the Destiny franchise has to offer. Presage is the source of Dead Man’s Tale, a unique exotic scout rifle that now has the option to be crafted. Presage also rewards top-tier weapons from Season 17.
Rewards:
Presage rewards
Art | Weapon | Type | Archetype | Rarity | Ammo | Element | Requirements | In loot pool? | Ammo? | Element? | Tier | Excels | Source | Craftable? | Requires | Released | Slot | Can be Crafted? | Best of? | Top Perk? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Dead Man's Tale | Scout Rifle | Exotic | Exotic | Primary | Kinetic | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong
❘ A | PvP | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 13 | Kinetic | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Austringer | Hand Cannon | Adaptive | Legendary | Primary | Kinetic | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong
❘ A | PvE + PvP | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Kinetic | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Beloved | Sniper Rifle | Adaptive | Legendary | Special | Solar | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Best
❘ S | PvP | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | Incandescent |
![]() | Bump in the Night | Rocket Launcher | Aggressive | Legendary | Heavy | Stasis | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Average
❘ B | PvE | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Heavy | Craftable | ||
![]() | CALUS Mini-Tool | Submachine Gun | MIDA Synergy | Legendary | Primary | Solar | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Best
❘ S | PvE | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | Incandescent |
![]() | Drang (Baroque) | Sidearm | Together Forever | Legendary | Primary | Solar | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Best
❘ S | PvE + PvP | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | Incandescent |
![]() | Firefright | Auto Rifle | Precision | Legendary | Primary | Kinetic | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Worst
❘ D | - | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Kinetic | Craftable | ||
![]() | Hollow Denial | Trace Rifle | Adaptive | Legendary | Special | Void | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Weak
❘ C | - | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Energy | Craftable | Repulsor Brace | |
![]() | Nezarec's Whisper | Glaive | Adaptive | Legendary | Special | Arc | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Weak
❘ C | - | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Energy | Craftable | ||
![]() | Tears of Contrition | Scout Rifle | Precision | Legendary | Primary | Kinetic | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Average
❘ B | PvP | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Kinetic | Craftable | ||
![]() | Without Remorse | Shotgun | Lightweight | Legendary | Special | Solar | Beyond Light | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Average
❘ B | PvP | Presage | ![]() | ![]() Beyond Light | Season 17 | Energy | Craftable | Incandescent |
Armor Set | Released | Titan Preview | Hunter Preview | Warlock Preview | Source | Obtainable? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Eidolon Pursuant Presage | Season 17 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | Presage | Yes |
Vox Obscura
Vox Obscura came with Season of the Risen and has you and your fireteam storming a Cabal bunker on Mars. While this mission is timed, it has noticeably fewer mechanics than the other two featured in this playlist.
Completing Vox Obscura rewards Dead Messenger. This exotic wave frame grenade launcher can utilize all three Light elements, making for a great counter to missions with high elemental shield density.
Rewards:
Vox Obscura rewards
Art | Weapon | Type | Archetype | Rarity | Ammo | Element | Requirements | In loot pool? | Ammo? | Element? | Tier | Excels | Source | Craftable? | Requires | Released | Slot | Can be Crafted? | Best of? | Top Perk? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Dead Messenger | Grenade Launcher | Exotic | Exotic | Special | Void | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Best
❘ S | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Explosive Personality | Grenade Launcher | Wave | Legendary | Special | Solar | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong
❘ A | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Piece of Mind | Pulse Rifle | Rapid-Fire | Legendary | Primary | Kinetic | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong
❘ A | PvP | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Kinetic | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Recurrent Impact | Machine Gun | Rapid-Fire | Legendary | Heavy | Stasis | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Average
❘ B | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Heavy | Craftable | ||
![]() | Sweet Sorrow | Auto Rifle | Rapid-Fire | Legendary | Primary | Arc | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong
❘ A | PvP | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Thoughtless | Sniper Rifle | Adaptive | Legendary | Special | Stasis | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Strong
❘ A | PvE + PvP | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Kinetic | Craftable | Top-tier | |
![]() | Under Your Skin | Combat Bow | Precision | Legendary | Primary | Void | The Witch Queen | Yes | ![]() | ![]() | Best
❘ S | PvE | Vox Obscura | ![]() | ![]() The Witch Queen | Season 16 | Energy | Craftable | Top-tier |
Armor Set | Released | Titan Preview | Hunter Preview | Warlock Preview | Source | Obtainable? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tusked Allegiance Vox Obscura | Season 16 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | Vox Obscura | Yes |
Operation: Seraph’s Shield
Basically a small-scale version of the Deep Stone Crypt raid, Operation: Seraph’s Shield was released with Season of the Seraph. This mission has Guardians venturing into a Braytech orbital platform above the Last City to rid it of Fallen forces.
This one is relatively mechanically complex but doesn’t have a timer, making it an enjoyable experience if you take your time.
Revision Zero is the unique exotic you’ll get for completing Operation: Seraph’s Shield. Able to fire a two-round burst, four-round burst, or powerful sniper-like shots, this pulse rifle is truly a jack of all trades. It’s also craftable, allowing you to customize it to your liking.
Rewards:
Operation: Seraph's Shield rewards
Art | Weapon | Type | Archetype | Rarity | Ammo | Element | Requirements | In loot pool? | Ammo? | Element? | Tier | Excels | Source | Craftable? | Requires | Released | Slot | Can be Crafted? | Best of? | Top Perk? |
Armor Set | Released | Titan Preview | Hunter Preview | Warlock Preview | Source | Obtainable? |
Exotic Rotator Challenges
Last but not least, these Missions also feature specific challenges. These challenges are meant to test you and reward those who succeed with even more loot. This is how challenges work:
- The challenge rewards will be output at pinnacle power and will prioritize the rewards in the following order:
- One guaranteed Deepsight weapon that has not had its pattern unlocked.
- If weapon patterns have all been unlocked, the challenge will award one armor piece that has not been obtained.
- If all weapon patterns and armor have been obtained for the in-rotation mission, the challenge will output a random weapon or armor.

Exotic Mission Rotator Difficulties, Destiny 2
What about the cult classics?
It’s great to see all these missions back in the game, especially with enticing loot. But it has left many players with one question: What about the rest of the exotic missions we’ve lost to the DCV?
Luckily, Bungie has stated that they’re also looking into bringing older fan favorites like Zero Hour, The Whisper, and Harbinger back through this system. While a timeline hasn’t been set, it’s clear that Bungie has early plans to make this rotator even more robust in the future.
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