Destiny 2 has been chugging along strong for almost 4 years now and Bungie has been hard at work adding (and, unfortunately, vaulting some) clever and entertaining content for its players. Although there may be mixed feelings about the future of Destiny 2 and where the MMO-like FPS is headed, you can't deny that developers don't work hard to bring unique twists, turns, and upgraded gameplay to their community.
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Progression can seem a bit murky to new players, thanks to a massive overload of materials, relics, and catalysts. You'll find yourself gaining a wide array of "things" as you progress through Destiny 2's expansive world and there may be times that your inventory seems outright overwhelming. Between the planetary resources, weapon parts, and "buffs," it can be hard to understand what's important and what is simply "filler."
One resource that sees a lot of confusion is Glimmer. This "currency" is gained by doing a multitude of activities across Destiny 2 but what exactly is it used for and how can you get tons of it as quickly as possible?
Glimmer is rewarded for doing almost anything in Destiny 2. You'll snag it from killing enemies, completing planet patrols, opening chests, completing strikes, quests, bounties, and just about everything else. You can even unlock certain mods and artifact abilities that will help you gain glimmer faster. It may not seem like a big deal at first, because this resource bleeds from many facets of the Destiny 2 world, but Glimmer can actually be pretty valuable, especially if you're trying to grow stronger.
There are an array of reasons you'd want to carry as much Glimmer as possible at all times.
Destiny 2 isn't like a traditional MMO where you'll be saving up your stores of gold to purchase powerful potions and incredible weapons. Instead, Vendors offer unique items that can be used to help upgrade equipment, or buff certain "drop rates" for some of the more sought-after materials. You can also snag Armor pieces to make your Guardian stronger, or even snag lower-level gear pieces to dismantle, in order to grab any basic materials you might be missing.
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Perhaps one of the best things you can snag from a Vendor are mods. Banshee-44, the Exo Gunsmith located in The Tower, sells a rotating group of weapon modifications. While players can usually pick these up on their own, if you're searching for a particular part, it can be much easier (and faster) to simply purchase it.
Glimmer is also important when it comes to upgrading your armor and weapons. Adding modifications (like the ones mentioned above from Banshee-44) can turn your "okay armor and weapons" into absolute powerhouses that will upgrade your defense, optimize your damage, and synergize your abilities. Modifications are very important to perfecting the build you want for a given character and you'll need to keep an eye on your Glimmer if you find yourself switching and swapping often.
Each time you change a potential modification, you'll need to toss some Glimmer to the Destiny 2 Gods. This can add up quickly when you consider that some weapons and armor pieces have multiple slots.
Bounties are one of the best ways in Destiny 2 to gobble up valuable experience and materials. This used to be a moot point for higher-level Guardians, but once Bungie unveiled their seasonal artifacts and started integrating more planetary materials into the upgrade requirements for armor, bounties once again became a great way to farm. Each vendor offers a specific amount of bounties each week and it can be important to snag as many as possible in that time frame if you're a new player looking to get a boost towards max level or a veteran wanting to fill out experience for your Season Pass.
Unfortunately, bounties aren't exactly cheap. It will cost you a pretty hefty handful of Glimmer just to grab one of these side-quests and if you're planning on having yourself a good ol' fashioned farming fest you're going to need deep pockets.
Now that you know there's a Glimmer-eating monster lurking beneath the waves of Destiny 2, you'll need a way to bankroll all of your purchases and upgrades. Unfortunately, there is also the annoyance of a pretty unforgiving Glimmer cap. Players can only hold 250,000 of the currency at one time, so you won't be able to "farm for a week and retire." Glimmer use and production are a revolving door and dedicated players will need to constantly replenish their currency.
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Thankfully, there are some great ways to make Glimmer quickly in Destiny 2 and with all of this "money" exchanging hands it's easy to see why Bungie rewards players with Glimmer for practically everything they do.
Shaders are one of the best parts of Destiny 2 for Guardians out there that crave character customization. These handy-dandy squares of color will allow you to shade your armor and weapons with a variety of patterns and hues. Bungie is very giving when it comes to these visual modifiers and you'll find yourself swimming in shaders without even realizing it. In fact, it's pretty easy to have so many shaders at one time that you physically can't hold any more thanks to inventory restrictions.
Thankfully, you can break down the more common shaders into Glimmer. You'd be surprised how quickly you can amass a nice pile of currency just by dismantling the colors you aren't interested in using.
Spider is absolutely and without a doubt "The Man" when it comes to gathering Glimmer quickly. If you're looking for the fastest way to get a ton of currency, look no further. Spider allows players to trade certain materials with him and the trade structures will shift weekly. Sometimes you'll be able to snag Legendary Shards and Planetary Materials from him for Glimmer, which is handy if you're short on upgrade materials, but the flip side is that Spider will also allow you to trade certain planetary materials and shards for cold, hard, cash.
The exchange rate is pretty generous too, with batches netting up to 10,000 Glimmer per trade. If you don't feel like farming and want the instant gratification of money-in-hand, Spider is the man to see.
Perhaps you don't want to give up your hard-earned planetary materials and your incredibly valuable Legendary Shards. That's definitely understandable and smart for the Destiny 2 player that doesn't mind farming up a firestorm. Sure, you can grab Glimmer through planetary Patrols and Public Events but you're honestly much better off running through PVP and Strikes. PVP players stand to make the most from these ventures because matches are fast and short depending on the Game Mode. PVP is a great place to grab not only Glimmer but materials, shaders, weapons, armor, and even exotics.
For those that simply can't stand PVP and prefer to throw hands with Destiny 2's hordes of A.I., it can be rewarding to enter the Strike playlist.
No matter what you end up doing, you'll want to take a look at the many modifications available for your armor and weapons. A handful of these mods can actually help you gain Glimmer in certain situations. Likewise, your artifact will usually have some sort of unlockable buff that can ramp up Glimmer Gain. Bungie's latest fray into Seasons can also prove fruitful as buying the Season Pass and climbing through the "levels" of it can unlock Glimmer-based buffs.
You can even snag special Ghost shells that come packed with abilities that are strictly for farming Glimmer.