Crota’s End Hard Mode Arrives Next Week in Destiny

Next week’s going to be another busy one in Destiny, with Bungie confirming that Hard Mode for Crota’s End is ready and will begin on Wednesday, January 21 at around 10am PT/1pm ET. This will be preceded by update 1.1.0.4 on Tuesday, January 20, with patch notes coming once it goes live.

Here’s everything you need to know about Hard Mode for Crota’s End:

When?

• Wednesday, January 21st – 10am Pacific (or soon after if we need more time to load the starting pistol)

Where?

• To the Moon! – Access the Raid by selecting the activity in your Director, and choosing the harder difficulty. With the release of Hard Mode, Level 33 is the new bar to clear. Configure those upgrades and get mean.

How?

• I can’t give you a playbook for how to end Crota this time. You don’t need my help, anyway. If you’ve experienced Hard Mode in Vault of Glass, you have some clues for how we can scale up a Raid. Prepare to take better care of your teammates. You’ll have fewer options for healing yourself, and each other. The enemies you’re about to face are stronger and more prone to temper tantrums. Be brave!

Loot?

• Loot! Aside from the usual thrill of battling aliens with your favorite weapons and your most trusted allies, Hard Mode beckons with treasures all its own. We reserved some coveted rewards for the best raiders among you. Killing Crota will give you all a fighting chance to earn them. Check out the hardware:

Weapons & Ship

• Primary Weapons of every variety can be plundered from the Hellmouth. With the application of some loving care and Radiant Materials, each has the potential to reach Maximum Attack of 331:

Shaders

• Finally, there’s also a Hard Mode Exclusive color palette for your gear. It’s called Glowhoo. The first of you to earn it gets to show it off.

As well, “Don’t forget that Hard Mode is also the only place to obtain “Crux of Crota,” the final piece needed to upgrade the Eidolon Ally (the gun formerly known as Husk of the Pit) to its full, Necrochasmic glory.”

Elsewhere in their Weekly Update, Bungie talked about how they see Raids:

Of all the ways you can kick ass and become legend in Destiny, we believe the Raid can be one of the most intense, challenging, and satisfying. We hope you feel the same. For us, Raids aren’t just puzzles to be solved in short order, but an opportunity to summit Destiny’s pinnacle PvE content, plant a flag with friends, and claim some prestigious rewards.

Will you be attempting Hard Mode next week? Have you seen where Xur is this week?

[Source: Bungie]