The biggest problem with Tier 5 weapons right now is simple: they will never feel as special as Adept weapons used to, and it’s because of how Bungie handled them from day one. During the entire Edge of Fate era, Tier 5s were easy to get. They dropped everywhere. People were crafting them, farming them, and filling their vaults without much effort. For months, Tier 5 was basically the standard, not a reward for overcoming difficult content, but just another slot in your inventory. Now Renegades releases and suddenly Bungie wants Tier 5 to be the new prestige, the thing you chase, the thing that’s meant to mirror what Adepts used to be. Except the magic is gone. You can’t let everyone get Tier 5s for half a year and then flip the switch later expecting them to suddenly feel rare and rewarding. That sense of exclusivity, the thrill of the drop, the recognition that you earned something difficult. Adepts had that. Tier 5 never will. When you saw someone with an Adept in the past, you knew they worked for it. You knew where it came from. It meant flawless runs, GMs, mastery. There was prestige attached. Tier 5 weapons now? They’re just common loot with better perks. No one looks at one and feels impressed. No one feels that dopamine hit they used to get pulling an Adept after a tough clear. You can try to make Tier 5 rarer after the fact, but the moment already passed. It’s hard to make something feel special after the community has already mass collected it like candy. If Bungie wants weapons to feel meaningful again, they need to bring back that sense of earn it, not wait for us to change the value later. Adepts felt rewarding because they were tied to accomplishment. Tier 5 feels like a system, not a trophy. And you can’t patch nostalgia or prestige back in.