Normal = 1 chance at exotic drop Hard = another chance at an exotic drop Doing just hard lessens your chance for exotic drops but increased chances for raid drops. Nightfall x3 = 3 chances VoG normal x3 = 6 chances (gorgon and Atheon) VoG hard x3 = 6 chances (gorgon and Atheon) Crota normal x3 = 6 chances (deathsinger and Crota) Crota hard x3 = 3 chances (Crota) If you do hard first you don't get drops on normal because you get two drops at each checkpoint however that means less shots at exotics and more shots for raid gear/weapons. If you do normal first you can still get drops on hard.