Bungie is finally removing Legendary Shards from Destiny 2

by | Sep 15, 2023

Legendary Shards have been an issue for Bungie for a long time. Hardcore players tend to have too many shards, whereas new and casual players barely have enough to scrap by.

After entire seasons of trying to find a balance, Bungie has decided to remove Legendary Shards from the game entirely starting next Season.

Legendary Shards removal starts next Season

As announced in their TWID post, Bungie will remove Legendary Shards in two steps:

  • Season 23: Legendary Shards costs will be removed from the Monument to Lost Lights and Engram focusing.
  • The Final Shape: All the remaining Legendary Shard sources and costs will be removed from the game, including Collections, Trials Passages, vendor purchases, and more.

And with that, one of Destiny 2’s most important currencies will soon become a thing of the past. And as Bungie claims this currency won’t be replaced by something new, the expectation is that the game’s economy will be both more balanced and simpler:

And to be totally clear, we will not be offering a currency exchange for stockpiled Legendary Shards. The goal in removing Legendary Shards is to make Destiny 2 a more approachable and fair experience for all players. This is why we are not raising Glimmer prices for items or adding replacement costs to things that previously needed Legendary Shards.

Legendary Shards Banner

Legendary Shards removal, Destiny 2

What are Legendary Shards?

Legendary Shards are one of the primary currencies in Destiny 2. Although they’re slightly rarer than Glimmer, they’re used just as frequently. You’ll often see them required in higher-tier purchases like raid banners, Exotics, weapon crafting, and masterwork leveling.

Where to spend Legendary Shards

Unlike other currencies like Spoils of Conquest and Exotic Ciphers, Legendary Shards don’t have a specific use. Instead, they’re required for most purchases in the game. Here’s a quick list of common ways you may spend your shards:

  • Raid Banners
  • Masterworking weapons & armor
  • Xur’s Fated Engram
  • Weapon crafting upgrades
  • Upgrade Modules

Upgrade Module Legendary Shards

That’s only a small list of items that require Legendary Shards. With so many ways to spend them, how does one go about obtaining them?

How to get Legendary Shards today

Legendary Shards are just as common to obtain as they are to spend. Doing almost anything in Destiny 2 will, one way or another, grant you shards.

The primary way of obtaining Legendary Shards is simply by dismantling items. All Legendary and Exotic gear in Destiny 2, including most cosmetics, will grant Legendary Shards upon dismantling.

A more direct way of getting a hold of the currency is to play the core activities—Crucible, Gambit, and Vanguard Ops. These frequently grant Legendary gear upon activity completion, but they can also occasionally drop Legendary Shards themselves.

Vanguard Ops Legendary Shards

As a whole, there’s no one source to look out for here; just playing the game will gradually give you shards in return.

How to farm Legendary Shards

While specific Legendary Shard farms come and go, the most reliable (and non-bugged) way of obtaining them is something we mentioned earlier: ritual activities (Crucible/Gambit/Vanguard Ops).

Vanguard Engram Legendary Shards

These activities grant shards in a multitude of ways. First, they can drop the currency directly (usually around 1-4 per completion). In addition, they drop Legendary weapons that you can dismantle for more shards. As a final cherry on top, you’ll be progressing your vendor rank the whole time. That means you’ll be able to claim even more Legendary gear that you can dismantle into shards.

Before you go…

If you’re interested in Legendary Shards, it means you’re probably looking into completing your collection of Exotics. If that’s the case, Solo Lost Sectors remains the best method to acquire Exotic armor. For Exotic weapons, this Exotics tier list tells you how to get every Exotic weapon in the game.

About The Author

Andrew Sideris
Andrew Sideris
With my over seven years of game knowledge, six months of writing experience for Blueberries.gg, and hundreds of Blueberries already guided through endgame content, I hope to allow newcomers to have the same great introduction I had all those years ago. You can find Andrew on Twitter.
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