I remember way back in Y1 when Vault of Glass dropped. I was running around on Venus doing patrol missions when I came across literally hundreds of raiders pouring into the Vault of Glass. At that time, I didn’t know anybody that played Destiny besides myself and I remember looking forlornly at those that were about to experience one of the best raids to hit Destiny. A few weeks later I jumped in an LFG group and sensing my noobishness, they told me that I need to grab the Relic and run straight into the Templar to take its shield down. It was an embarrassing moment, but at the end of the raid I managed to bag a Y1 Gjallahorn, much to their envious eyes. Now hundreds of raids later, and across two platforms, my clan and myself are now sherpaing new raiders. Let me be honest, Destiny’s raids are some of the best events this game offers. You get some of the best-looking gear, weapons, ships, and sparrows from these events… and of course bragging rights. There is nothing like strolling through the Tower with a Vex Mythoclast strapped to your back. I was one of the first to have one. Yet, despite all of this, many Guardians feel locked out of the raids, as if they are some inaccessible plateau. There are several reasons for this, no friends, no clan, no experience. There is hope though. So, listen up, here a few wonderful tips to help you be a better first time raider and a better raider period. 1. Be Prepared… You prepare by: A. Know what you’re getting into. Unless you are doing a newly released raid, there is absolutely no reason to NOT know the basics of each encounter. If you are playing Destiny, then you have access to the internet (even if it’s McDonald’s Wifi). You have access to the internet, you have access to Youtube. Several streamers including, Planet Destiny, My Name is Byf, Teftyteft Games, and Houndish (just to name a few) all have strat guides for the raids. Watch them. It will help. B. Have a load out that works. What I mean by this, in each raid you are going to need weapons that do two things, add control and boss DPS. So, showing up at the Warpriest with a blue hand cannon, a Telesto, and a Smolderer is probably not going to cut it. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve attempted to sherpa kinderguardians through a raid who didn’t have one or the other, and the encounter didn’t go as planned. How do you get good weapons? When playing solo, whether Crucible or Vanguard Strikes, always use 3 of Coins (you get exotic armor and or weapons). Always have a Crucible/Vanguard rep booster in play. Pick up any respective Crucible Quartermaster bounties and Lord Shaxx weekly bounties. Pick up weekly vanguard bounties. If you can get a few people together, do the weekly Nightfalls. In Y3 you have multiple ways to get good gear, but you have to play. C. Plan your day around your Raid. We all know life events happen, but if you want to realistically complete a raid, make sure you have time to do it. There is nothing more miserable than to just start a raid and thirty minutes in, somebody must leave for lunch. Always plan to commit at least 3 hours of your day for the raid. D. Have the mindset that you are part of a team, not a person to be carried. This is very important. Raids are about teamwork, not carries. Every person in the raid is critical, so pay attention, learn, and grow as a player. And this takes us to my 2nd point… 2. The Raid Team A. A successful raid rises or falls based solely on teamwork. To be a team you need to be organized, have good communication skills, patience, and perseverance. I’m sure we’ve all that those LFG teams where nothing seems to work right. I guarantee you, it’s because they lack one or more of these things above. Yes, skill also plays a part, but if a raid team is organized properly, they’ll always put the less experienced raiders in locations less harmful. Example: Not putting Joe Shmo New Raider on the right side of Vosik’s chamber grabbing front Siva bomb. B. Learn to Flex This is probably the hardest, but ultimately most rewarding aspect to achieve. Flexing is the ability to play several roles. Such as being able to run Relic, being able to sword bear, jump platforms (knowing what counter clockwise is, is always a plus), Rodeoing, Scorch Cannons… ect ect. Why is this important? Many things can happen during a raid and if you are dependent on one or two people being able to perform these tasks, then you are almost guaranteed to fail. Example: Sisters in King’s Fall (drops mic). C. Develop the Raid Team The best raid teams are made up of friends and companions. Reason being, they know each other. They know each other’s strengths and weaknesses and such. Depending on randoms in LFG will almost always be a less than savory experience versus being with those you like. I’m not saying LFG doesn’t have its purpose, but it should be for a temporary need, not a permanent. How do you fix this? 1. Make friends. Yes, it is THAT simple. 2. Join a Clan. Once you have a working team, try to plan raids around their schedules, so that everybody can participate. My raid team is made up of members from around the US and the world and we still find times that are great for everyone. The longer you play with these people the better you’ll get as a team and the more consistently you will be able to complete raids. I’m sure there are more things I can add, but these are my thoughts to help new raiders as well as some vets. Thanks! Now get a raiding! EDIT: Some have pointed out that you shouldn't need to plan a 3 hour window in order to complete a raid. Generally speaking, it shouldn't take 3 hours to complete any of the raids (even King's Fall), but let's be realistic, for most newer raiders this won't be the case. A 3 hour window is a very liberal estimation that should give people ample time to get their team together and complete a raid. The whole point is you shouldn't plan or jump into a raid, if you know in advance you don't have time to complete it. You wouldn't go see a 2 to 3 hour movie (many action movies are pushing that 3 hour window now a days) if you didn't have to time to watch the whole thing, nor go to a football game, if you couldn't stay for the entire sporting event. It IS acceptable though to retire from the raiding event if its going far beyond the call of duty. Such as a raid taking longer than 3 hours to complete. Keep in mind, the above advice that I'm giving is geared more towards newer raiders with newer raiding teams, not to folk who have 400+ raid completions running with mostly pro raiders as well. Obviously you're going to complete most raids within an hour or less.