It was a big week for both Bungie and Destiny 2 players as Season 13, also known as Season of the Chosen, finally launched. The update not only includes a new story featuring the Cabal and their new Empress Caiatl, but also adds new modes like the three player activity Battlegrounds. Players can also visit the H.E.L.M. a war table of sorts where they can upgrade a new seasonal item called the Hammer of Proving to unlock new rewards and umbral engrams.
Of course, a new season also means new loot to chase. In addition to a whole new selection of legendary weapons and gear, Bungie has also added a few new exotics to obtain as well. While season pass players can earn the solar bow Ticuu's Divination, Bungie has stocked Master and Legendary Lost Sectors with new exotic items for each class. In fact, the Titan exotic Cuirass of the Falling Star has already proven to be quite strong as various streamers like Gladd have demonstrated its abilities to completely shred normally difficult bosses like Atraks-1.
RELATED: One of Destiny 2's Returning Strikes Disabled Because of Progress Bug
Speaking of exotics, exotic merchant Xur has once again arrived inside of Destiny 2 with a fully updated inventory for players to check out. Follow this guide for his location, news on his exotic cypher quest, as well as a review of what he's currently selling for the weekend of February 12, 2021.
This weekend, players will need to head to the Tower hangar to find Xur overlooking the snowy mountains.
From the default landing zone, immediately head to the left and following the path down into the Hangar. After entering the hangar, head left again past Arach Jalaal and his Dead Orbit crew and up a metal stair case. Xur is standing on a metal platform at the back of this room overlooking the mountain ranges below.
While Xur's role is essentially the same as it was prior to the Beyond Light expansion, the exotic merchant also has weekly quests that players can acquire to unlock an exotic cypher. Not only are these required to purchase a second fated engram, but they're necessary to acquire legacy exotic gear from the new kiosk. Players can earn a new cypher by completing strikes and winning crucible or gambit matches. Gain bonus points for playing with clanmates or finishing more challenging activities.
Other than that, here are Xur's three gear pieces this weekend:
Felwinter's Helm - Warlock helmet
Xur has brought back Felwinter's Helm again. During season 10, Felwinter's Helm was once a damage powerhouse thanks to a bug that let players proc the item's special ability after each kill. Bungie was forced to disable the exotic in order to fix it.
Felwinter's remains a solid exotic, though it's not likely going to replace the traditional go to items. The item comes with the Warlord's End perk that turns any Solar, Void, or Arc melee kill into a burst of energy that weakens nearby enemies. Finishers and elite kills make this burst stronger through a bigger radius and longer debuff.
Void Enhanced. Stat Values:
- Mobility +18
- Resilience +6
- Recovery +6
- Discipline +14
- Intellect +2
- Strength +14
Young Ahamkara's Spine - Hunter chest armor
Young Ahamkara's Spine is back on sale with Xur after having just been featured at the end of June. Since then, not much has changed. A neutral class exotic, it really only benefits players who enjoy using tripmine grenades. It comes with an exotic perk called Wish-Dragon Teeth, which increases tripmine grenade duration and blast radius. Better yet, any damage done with the ability returns bonus tripmine grenade energy.
Again, the perk can be useful but overall, the exotic gear isn't valued as highly as some other Hunter gear. It's hard to recommend this week but under the right circumstances, these gauntlets can really come in handy.
Solar Enhanced. Stat Values:
- Mobility +10
- Resilience +14
- Recovery +7
- Discipline +12
- Intellect +10
- Strength +9
Dunemarchers - Titan leg armor
Dunemarchers are back in stock for Titan players this weekend. Linear Actuators increase the player's sprint speed and also builds up a static charge. When using a melee attack on an opponent, the charge is released and chains damage to all nearby enemies.
While these are a fun exotic to mess around with, their actual utility may vary from person to person. Still, they're worth picking up for those who don't have them as they can cause some pretty big damage when paired with certain Titan subclasses like bottom tree Striker or middle tree Sunbreaker. Stats this week are pretty solid overall, so for those who may want an upgrade, these could be it.
Arc Enhanced. Stat Values:
- Mobility +8
- Resilience +13
- Recovery +10
- Discipline +9
- Intellect +6
- Strength +15
Last year, Hard Light was largely regarded as the strongest weapon in Destiny 2, including competitive events like the Crucible. It was favored by most players for its rapid fire, high damage, and near zero recoil. As these things tend to go, the nerf hammer finally fell on the weapon, reducing it's effectiveness. These days, the weapon is largely outclassed by other auto rifles in the game, making it hard to recommend. The changing elemental damage is helpful at times, so the gun remains serviceable.
For those who don't know, Hard Light basically shoots lasers thanks to its Intrinsic perk, Volatile Light. Rounds fired from the weapon have reduced damage falloff, overpenetrate targets, and ricochet of hard surfaces. The more they ricochet, the more damage they inflict.
Additional perks:
- Polygonal Rifling
- Alloy Magazines
- Composite Stock
Here's the complete rundown of Xur's entire stock in Destiny 2 for February 12, 2021:
- Felwinter's Helm (Warlock helm) – 23 Legendary Shards
- Young Ahamkara's Spine (Hunter gauntlets) – 23 Legendary Shards
- Dunmarchers (Titan leg armor) – 23 Legendary Shards
- Hard Light (Auto Rifle) - 29 Legendary Shards
- Exotic Engram - 97 Legendary Shards/1 Exotic Cypher
- A Question - Exotic Cypher Quest
Destiny 2: Beyond Light is now available PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.