The progression system of Destiny 2 received some major changes with the launch of Edge of Fate. The expansion's release reset everyone's Light level back to zero, and if you want to upgrade your gear to the highest possible level, you're going to need a resource called Unstable Cores.
Unstable Cores are more or less the second coming of Legendary Shards. Both are obtained and used the same way, though the former comes with a few extra caveats. If you're itching to upgrade your favorite weapons in Destiny 2, here's how you can get the Unstable Cores needed for them.
Destiny 2: Desert Perpetual Loot Table
Players can check in here to see all Desert Perpetual Raid loot in Destiny 2, and which encounters to get them in.
Where to Get Unstable Cores in Destiny 2
Players can get Unstable Cores through a variety of ways. The first (and arguably the most reliable) is to dismantle Powerful Gear. As of Edge of Fate, Powerful Gear refers to any piece of equipment that has a Light level of at least 201. You'll naturally get equipment that meets this requirement as you continue your Light level grind, and such items can be obtained from any activity in Destiny 2.
The next source of Unstable Cores is the Seasonal Hub. As you complete daily and weekly challenges, you'll unlock rewards. Unstable Cores can be found in specific reward tiers in the Seasonal Hub, and you'll get to unlock more after Destiny 2's weekly reset hits the servers.
Lastly, you can find Unstable Cores in the Season Pass. Both free and paid versions of the pass contain Unstable Cores as rewards, though the latter does contain more.
How to Farm Unstable Cores
The best way to farm Unstable Cores is to grind Portal activities that have bonus drops. Just make sure that the Light level of the drops is over 200. The higher the Light level of the item, the more Unstable Cores it will give when dismantled.
Short missions like Devil's Lair in Fireteam Ops or Salt Mines in Solo Ops are great for farming loot, but they might not always have bonus drops. If you don't mind spending more time farming, you may want to try Pinnacle Ops instead, as they tend to reward higher-level gear in larger quantities by default.
You can increase the item level of rewards by customizing the difficulty of your chosen mission.
How to Use Unstable Cores in Destiny 2
Unstable Cores are used the same way as Enhancement Cores in Destiny 2 — they are used as materials for infusing equipment. If you're trying to upgrade a low-level piece of gear to a higher-level one that's at least 201 Light, then you'll need to use Unstable Cores as well.
Unfortunately, Unstable Cores expire at the end of the season, and thanks to the power cap, any piece of gear you have that's over 200 Light level will reset back to 200 by the start of the next season. Because of this, we recommend not going too hard on Unstable Core farming unless you really want to play high-level content.
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WHERE TO PLAY
- Cross Save
- yes
- Expansions
- Destiny 2: Forsaken, Destiny 2: Shadowkeep, Destiny 2: Beyond Light, Destiny 2: The Witch Queen, Destiny 2: Lightfall
- Franchise
- Destiny
- Number of Players
- 1-6 (Co-Op)
- Steam Deck Compatibility
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- Genre(s)
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- Platform(s)
- PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC, Stadia
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- How Long To Beat
- 100+
- X|S Optimized
- YES
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