Published , by Sam Chandler
Published , by Sam Chandler
Weapon crafting is a brand new system introduced to Destiny 2 with The Witch Queen. This system has various mechanics to learn, resources to collect, and strategies to employ. Whether you’re just starting out your weapon crafting journey or approaching the end-game Enhanced Perk acquisition, we’ve got everything you need to know about the Relic and the process of Shaping and Reshaping your gear.
There is a lot to know when it comes to crafting weapons in Destiny 2. Not only is this a system you must unlock, but it is one you must explore and practice to be able to fully harness its power. Don’t expect to understand it all straight away, as this is an end-game system that will give you more to chase once you’ve done things like complete the Witch Queen campaign or cleared the Vow of the Disciple raid.
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In order to unlock weapon crafting, you must unlock the Relic, which is the tool you will use to craft weapons. The Relic is housed in the Enclave on Mars, which is accessible via the Savathun’s Throne World node on the director.
To actually unlock the Relic, you must progress through the Witch Queen campaign until you find The Fragment. At this point, you can return to the Enclave and pick up a quest from Ikora called The Relic. This will take you through the process of crafting the Enigma glaive, the first weapon you can craft in the game.
When this questline is completed, you’ll be able to use the Relic to Shape and Reshape weapons. This system requires Resonant Materials and weapon patterns – both of these are gained from the Attunement process of Deepsight Resonance weapons.
With the Relic unlocked, some weapons will now start dropping with a red border around them. These are Deepsight Resonance weapons. By using a Deepsight Resonance weapon, you will attune it. The attunement progress bar can be seen by inspecting a weapon or mousing over it in your inventory.
To attune a weapon, you must use it to get kills or complete activities while it is equipped. By completing an attunement, you will be able to extract from the weapon Resonant Materials (listed below under Crafting Materials). You may also be awarded progress towards unlocking a weapon’s pattern.
Many of the weapons in Destiny 2 can drop with Deepsight Resonance. It’s a good idea to always use these weapons so you can attune it, get the materials, and then dismantle it for more resources.
To craft a weapon, you must first unlock the appropriate weapon pattern. While most of the guns in Destiny 2 can drop as a Deepsight Resonance weapon, only some of them will have a weapon pattern. You can see which ones have weapon patterns to unlock by going to the Triumphs page and looking at the Patterns & Catalyst section.
This page will show you all of the weapons that can be crafted at the Relic. It will also show you how many Deepsight Resonance weapons must be attuned in order to unlock the weapon pattern.
Whenever you get a Deepsight Resonance weapon, mouse over it to see whether attuning it will grant progress towards its weapon pattern. Some weapons require you to attune several Deepsight Resonance versions before the pattern is unlocked. For example, you must find and attune three Explosive Personality Grenade Launchers before its weapon pattern is unlocked.
There are several types of Elements and Alloys you can earn for weapon crafting. Elements are awarded for Attuning a Deepsight Resonance weapon while Alloys are either from dismantling gear, purchasing from vendors, or earned through end-game content.
Once a weapon is fully attuned, you can select which type of element you want to extract from it. Every element you extract will also reward Neutral Element. Check the following table for a list of all possible Elements and Alloys and how to acquire them.
| Material type | How to acquire |
|---|---|
| Neutral Element | Rewarded whenever you claim an element from a weapon you've attuned. |
| Ardoit Element | Acquired by attuning a Deepsight Resonance weapon |
| Energetic Element | Acquired by attuning a Deepsight Resonance weapon |
| Mutable Element | Acquired by attuning a Deepsight Resonance weapon |
| Ruinous Element | Acquired by attuning a Deepsight Resonance weapon |
| Drowned Element | Acquired by attuning a Deepsight Resonance Vow of the Disciple raid weapon with a new raid perk. |
| Drowned Alloy | Dismantle Vow of the Disciple raid weapons |
| Resonant Alloy | Dismantle Legendary weapons |
| Ascendant Alloy | An end-game material that is earned by hitting Rank 16 at the Gunsmith, purchased from Rahool once a week, and earned from the Weekly Campaign mission and the Master Wellspring |
Note that as of Season 17, several crafting materials will be removed from Destiny 2, making the crafting process more straightforward.
With all that information, you can now begin the process of Shaping and Reshaping weapons, which is Destiny 2’s language for weapon crafting. To do this, head to the Enclave on Mars, which is accessible via Savathun’s Throne World. Once there, go down to the Relic and interact with it.
From this new menu you will be able to choose to either Shape a new weapon or Reshape a weapon you’ve already crafted.
When you choose to Shape a weapon, you will create a weapon from scratch based on a weapon pattern you’ve unlocked. Things like the Enigma and Osteo Striga are available for Shaping almost immediately.
The Shaping process will take you through the weapon, one perk and trait at a time. You will need to select the type of frame and then things like the barrel, magazine, and the perks. New perks are unlocked by using your crafted weapon and leveling it up (more on that below).
Reshaping a weapon allows you to take a weapon you’ve already created and change some of the perks. This is great if you’ve leveled up a weapon and want to apply new perks, like some Enhanced ones. The process is much the same as Shaping a weapon: pick the perks you want to change and confirm it. You can revert the changes during this process if you change your mind.
To unlock better perks, you will need to level up weapons you’ve crafted. This is done by using the weapon in combat and completing activities. Certain perks will be tied to specific weapon levels. Check the Shape/Reshape process to see what weapon levels unlock which perks. For example, an Enhanced perk may require you to get your weapon to Level 16.
Weapon crafting in Destiny 2 is a fantastic new addition that enhances the late game systems. By Shaping and Reshaping weapons, players will be able to create their ideal builds and pursue their specific god roll. Take some time to familiarize yourself with weapon crafting, as it’s worth the time and effort. Be sure to also check out our Destiny 2 Guide for a wealth of other information and explanations for the many systems at play.