Iron Banner is back this week, and we have a load of new loot including weapons and armour. Today I am going to cover the complete guide for Iron Banner including how to get started, how to earn Iron Banner loot, how to find the Iron Banner Challenges, plus check out the god roll weapons you should be chasing this season, plus a look at the Iron Banner title.
Before we get into it today let me know in the comments what you think about Iron Banner this season, plus what do you think of the weapons and armour?
Without further delay, let’s dive into things.
How to get started
Lord Saladin is back in the Tower, which means it’s Iron Banner week. You can find Lord Saladin front and centre in the Tower when you land in the Courtyard. Iron Banner is free for all players, and if you haven’t played Iron Banner before then there is a quick introduction quest to get through, but you only have to do this once per account. When Iron Banner is on, you can access it via the cruicble section in the Director, and Iron Banner replaces the Control Node for the entire week, plus Trials of Osiris is canceled when Iron Banner is around.
To get the most out of Iron Banner play Iron Banner matches to get XP, this XP will level you at with Lord Saladin, get Iron Banner engrams through leveling up or as random drops at the end of matches, then either decrypt your engrams as per normal, or trade-in your Iron Banner engrams with Lord Saladin. Iron Banner is objective focused PVP, with a rotating game mode each season. Play matches level up, and Iron Banner-themed weapons, armor, plus the Iron Lord Title.
When does Iron Banner happen?
Iron Banner is happening more in Season of Defiance compared to last season. This time, Iron Banner is coming around 3 times rather than 2, with the first instalment of Iron Banner kicking off on 21st March 2023. Iron Banner will then run in upcoming weeks, including Week 6 (Eruption), and Week 9 (Fortress).
Iron Banner Game Modes
In Witch Queen, Iron Banner did some experiments with game modes including Rift, Eruption and Fortress. This season we’re going to have rotating game modes throughout the season including regular Control, Eruption and Fortress. Rift has been removed from the rotation of Iron Banner game modes, and that’s been relegated to a regular rotating playlist mode, which is probably a good move.
Iron Banner Challenges
Challenges are available for Iron Banner and you can find these by hovering over the Iron Banner node in the Director. For example, this week it’s complete Iron Banner matches with a void or stasis subclass. Complete Iron Banner challenges and you’ll earn powerful upgrades to help you level up. Completing iron Banner Challenges also give you XP boosts. On the first day of Iron Banner you’ll only see one challenge, then more challenges get released each day at reset time, each challenge offers you a pinnacle reward that will help you level up. You can see which XP boosters are active when you select the Iron Banner game mode, it’s on the left hand side.
How to earn Iron Banner loot
Iron Banner has a range of loot on offer including weapons, armor and the Iron Lord Title. Lord Saladin is our Iron Banner vendor, and you can find him in the Tower near the courtyard landing zone. By playing Iron Banner you can rank up with Lord Saladin, and each time you rank up you’ll earn Iron Banner Engrams and powerful upgrades. Play Iron banner to earn XP, and get as many Iron Banner engrams as possible. Iron Banner engrams can be decrypted at Master Rahool in the Tower for Iron Banner loot, or you can focus your Iron Banner Engrams with Lord Saladin himself, but be aware this can be a costly business regarding legendary shards.
Weapons God Roll Guide
Here’s the best rolls to look out for related to Iron Banner weapons this season.
Jorum’s Claw (Pulse Rifle)
Jorum’s Claw is a Legendary Energy Pulse Rifle with an Adaptive Frame meaning it has a well-rounded grip, reliable and sturdy. Looking at the stats we have Impact 29, Range 49, Stability 50, Handling 44, Reload Speed 43, Airborne Effectiveness 10, Rounds Per Minute 390, and Magazine 38. For PVE Outlaw and Incandescent would be good. For PVP Moving Target and Headskeer would be good.
Bite of the Fox (Sniper Rifle)
Bite of the Fox is an aggressive frame sniper rifle which means it has high damage and high recoil. It’s got 90 for impact, 73 for range, 28 stability, 32 handling and 32 reload speed. It’s 72 rounds per minute sniper with 3 in the magazine. For PVP Snapshot Sights and Moving Target would be good and for PVE Rampage and Rapid Hit is something to look out for.
You can also get Dark Decider (Auto Rifle), Gunnora’s Axe (Shotgun), Roar of the Bear (Rockets), The Wizened Rebuke (Fusion), Allied Demand (Sidearm), and The Hero’s Burden (SMG). The Wizened Rebuke is definitely one to look out for, that’s a very good fusion, and the Allied Demand is likely to get some good use in Crucible this season with the way things are for Sidearms in this meta.
Armor Guide
This season we continue with the very popular set of Iron Banner armor from The Taken King Era of Destiny 2. This season we have options, as we can focus legacy armor sets through legacy focusing.
Iron Banner Legacy Focusing
New for this season is the ability to focus legacy gear, that includes weapons and armor.
Weapons for Legacy Focusing:
- Archon’s Thunder
- Riiswalker
- Occluded Finality
- Forge’s Pledge
- Peacebond
- Frontier’s Cry
From these weapons I would say Riiswalker is a good one to look out for, as well as the Piecebond Sidearm.
Iron Banner Armor Sets Available for Legacy Focusing:
- Iron Forerunner
- Iron Will
- Iron Truage
- Iron Fellowship
- Iron Remembrance
You can access the Iron Banner Legacy Focusing options by chatting with Lord Saladin in the Tower, and checking out the Legacy Focusing menu.
Iron Lord Title
Finally we have the Iron Lord Title, which you can find on the second page of the titles and seals. This is going to be a grind, including resetting your Iron Banner rank twice with Lord Saladin, however, it’s one of the best titles to get in the game, and allows you to show off your dedication to Iron Banner.
Let me know in the comments what you think of Iron Banner.
That’s it for this Iron Banner Guide in Destiny 2. For more Destiny 2 content like this check out more on This Week In Video Games youtube channel and subscribe today.