Destiny 2: Heavy Metal – Guide and Honest Thoughts

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Who doesn’t love the idea of Brigs and Tanks fighting it out on a battlefield? 

Bungie’s latest PvP event for Destiny is called Heavy Metal, where you can jump into Cruisers or Tanks and engage in a lively fight with your team against another machine. The goal is to determine which team emerges victorious. It may seem casual, but it’s been one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had while playing Destiny recently.

Instead of just enjoying the excitement of playing as a tank or brigade, what additional benefits come from Heavy Metal gameplay? How can you avoid consistently losing games? And when it comes to choosing between a Brig and a Tank, which one is superior (spoiler: it’s the Brig)?

Here’s my take as a fan: Dive headfirst into the world of Heavy Metal with me! This unique playstyle is full of surprises, it’s weird and wonderful all at once, but trust me, it’s an absolute blast to play. And if that’s not enough to get you hooked, there are some fantastic rewards waiting for you. So buckle up and let’s explore this metal-clad universe together!

What is Heavy Metal?

Overview

In Destiny 2, Heavy Metal isn’t your typical Player vs Player (PvP) event. Instead, you’ll take on the role of either a Brig or a Tank, working with your teammates to outmaneuver and overpower the opposition in Supremacy mode. The objective here is to eliminate them and gather their Crests.

Both Brigs and Tanks have the same attacks and movement strategies:

  • Primary Attack: This is your primary attack, which is just a projectile that fires in a straight line.
  • Secondary Attack: This attack locks onto an enemy and fires projectiles, but is a ‘special ammo’ attack and so isn’t always online.
  • Dash: Your dash will let you glide forward and dodge attacks and projectiles that are locked onto you.

Each team’s top performer, or ‘captain’, will exhibit a radiant orange aura. Collecting their golden emblem following their defeat awards an extra point to your side.

Essentially, here’s what we’re doing: You join forces with two other players in identical vehicles, ready for a direct confrontation against the opposing team. Regrettably, you don’t get to choose whether you become a Tank or a Brig – I suspect this is because there’s an overwhelming preference for one over the other right now.

For the upcoming seven days, Heavy Metal will be airing. Hurry up to tune in and claim the prizes if you’d like to join the fun!

Rewards

Event Pass

In Heavy Metal, there are several perks up for grabs when you accumulate points. One of them is an Event Pass that spans across 15 ranks, each advancement offering the following prizes:

  1. Enhancement Core
  2. Heavy Metal Engram
  3. Reroll Chip
  4. Enhancement Prism
  5. ‘Explosive Disassembly’ Emblem
  6. Heavy Metal Engram
  7. Two Enhancement Cores
  8. Reroll Chip
  9. Nine Strange Coins
  10. Ascendant Shard
  11. Two Enhancement Prisms
  12. Nine Strange Coins
  13. Reroll Chip
  14. Heavy Metal Engram
  15. Gryphon Exotic Combat Sparrow

Gryphon Exotic Combat Sparrow

The Gryphon is a pioneering Exotic Combat model, specifically designed as a Sparrow. It’s a unique 140 Speed vehicle, boasting an integrated weapon system that comes with both primary and secondary fire modes. This dual-fire feature allows you to adopt the damage attributes of your currently equipped super.

It remains unclear if the Gryphon will manage to challenge Skimmers’ current supremacy, but it’s a thrilling prize from an entertaining game mode that you might want to take advantage of before it’s gone. Additionally, there’s some potential for raids with this vehicle, though please remember not to attempt this in real life.

WORLDS FIRST SPARROW TEMPLAR 1 PHASE. Full video soon

— belly (@bel_of_radiance) May 9, 2025

Rewards Shop

The rewards shop has a few goodies for sale for Event Tokens:

  • Glimmer: 3 Event Tokens
  • Enhancement Core: 5 Event Tokens
  • Enhancement Prism: 50 Event Tokens
  • Heavy Metal Engram: 70 Event Tokens
  • Ascendant Shard/Ascendant Alloy/Exotic Cipher: 200 Event Tokens

Heavy Metal Engrams

Heavy Metal engrams can be earned via the Event Pass or by participating in the game mode itself. These engrams hold one out of four possible weapons.

  • The Palindrome (Nightfall)
  • Lotus-Eater (Nightfall)
  • Boondoggle Mk.55 (World Drop)
  • Cruoris FR4 (World Drop)

Heavy Metal Title

Achieving the Heavy Metal title is quite accessible; all you need to do is conquer these listed tasks:

  • Vehicle Compactor: Defeat 150 opponents in Heavy Metal.
  • Kill Streak: Get a kill streak of 2 or more 20 times.
  • The Undefeated: Win 10 games.
  • I Get What I Want: Finish the Event Pass in the Event Home section, all the way to Level 15.

If you want to gild the title, there are 4 more challenges:

  • Usurper: Kill the leader of the enemy team 20 times.
  • Atop the Throne: Become a leader 10 times.
  • Valuable Legacy: Collect leaders’ coins.
  • Salvo Sender: Defeat 25 targets with the secondary fire.

Heavy Metal’s Event Home

Destiny’s User Interface (UI) has been updated with a fresh addition called the Event Home, courtesy of Heavy Metal. This new feature offers a glimpse into the upcoming Portal system for The Year of Prophecy, consolidating all event-related information onto a single, user-friendly page.

Here on this page, you will discover all your daily and weekly tasks, along with updates on your Event Pass advancement and the rewards marketplace. You’ll also find an area dedicated to displaying the event title for easy monitoring as you approach earning your badge.

Challenges

As an enthusiast, I find myself in the heart of the Event Hub, where a collection of daily and weekly tasks await me. Completing these missions is essential for my event pass advancement, and with each passing moment, a fresh batch of challenges appears on the countdown timer’s end.

With a Reroll Chip at your disposal, you have the option to re-roll a completed challenge, or even roll again beforehand for a potentially improved outcome, enabling you to take on additional challenges.

Honest Thoughts

Destiny’s Heavy Metal genre certainly warrants recognition for its distinctiveness within the game! However, it’s important to acknowledge that it has its share of issues and requires some polishing. There are numerous bugs and imperfections that need addressing.

When operating Tanks, their movement can be quite buggy, leading to frequent instances where you get stuck on surfaces, terrain, or the environment itself. However, I must admit that this does lend a certain quirky appeal to the gameplay mode, and it certainly makes the experience more amusing.

As a fellow enthusiast, if you’re torn between Tanks and Brigades, let me share my perspective. I personally lean towards Brigs, finding them easier to manage. Though Tanks might excel in combat from an objective standpoint, the Brig offers a more enjoyable gaming experience for me. However, your preferences might differ, so it’s essential to make a decision that suits you best.

While I’m not dwelling excessively on it, my primary concern is whether I find this enjoyable. The quirky aspects can be polished in subsequent iterations of the event. It’s refreshing to see Bungie stepping out of their comfort zone and offering something fresh instead of repetitive content. In essence, I appreciate what they’re doing here.

Tips and Advice

Collaboration is crucial in Heavy Metal; working together as a team is essential for success in battles. The strategy known as doubleshotting ensures victory by having your team’s support during fights. If you were to separate yourself from the group, you would be left to face three opponents at once, making escape and survival almost impossible in a short amount of time.

Another crucial piece of advice is to become comfortable with taking aim. It may require considerable practice to anticipate the correct angle for a successful shot, and I initially struggled with this in my early matches. At times, your shots may miss the mark entirely, landing on the ground or overshooting your targets, and sometimes even hitting your teammates unintentionally. So, take the time to get accustomed to it.

If you’d rather not focus on winning, feel free to simply have a good time. The game is more about entertainment than intense competition, and it offers some fun rewards as a bonus. Don’t worry if there are flaws or errors in the gameplay, because this isn’t the same as playing Trials of Osiris where high-stakes competition is expected. Instead, let loose and have some fun with the lighthearted game mode that Bungie has provided for our amusement.

If you’re aiming to secure the title or Sparrow, it’s high time you start making your moves. The event is wrapping up in just a week, so time is really running out – I didn’t expect it to finish so soon as I thought it would go on until Rite of the Nine concludes.

Closing Time

The “Heavy Metal” game mode offers a humorous and engaging experience with some appealing incentives, without being overly taxing or complicated. If you’re looking for a change from your regular Destiny routine, I strongly suggest giving it a try, especially for the enjoyable aspects it brings to the table.

There’s plenty happening in Destiny at the moment as we approach the thrilling Year of Prophecy. Dive in and remember to check out our guides for all the essential information you’ll need as we move into the next chapter of Destiny 2.

Thank you for your time, and see you in the arena (I’ll be a brig, probably).

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2025-05-10 06:32