Iron Banner Guide How to complete the Forging Iron quest in Destiny 2 Season of the Haunted

Iron Banner is back in Season of the Haunted, and Lord Saladin has been busy as there are plenty of changes. We’ve got a new introduction quest, loot focusing, removed power levels plus Rift is back in the rotation. Today I am going to run through how to complete the Forging Iron introduction quest, plus have a look at some of the changes coming to Iron Banner this season.

Before we run through the Iron Banner rework, let’s check out the Forging Iron quest, and see what you have to do to get the most out of Iron Banner in Season of the Haunted. Go to the Tower, and have a chat with Lord Saladin. Remember, if you’ve played before, Lord Saladin has moved from his old spot to front-and-centre in the Tower when you land at the Courtyard.

How to complete the Forging Iron quest

Step 1 – Complete a match in Iron Banner

This step is nice and simple, open up the Director, go to the Crucible tab and then select Iron Banner and complete a match.

Step 2 – Complete a daily challenge

For the first four days of each Iron Banner week, Guardians will unlock a new daily challenge. These challenges unlock each day whether you complete them or not, so if you log in on Friday, you can do them all in succession if you want to. Grab a daily challenge and then jump back into Iron Banner to complete.

Step 3 – Earn Iron Banner Rank points

Play some Iron Banner matches to earn rank points, and winning matches will get you faster progress. If you have any Iron Banner gear from previous seasons, it’s worth wearing it, or using Iron Banner weapons as this is going to get you points faster.

Step 4 – Collect an Iron Banner engram from Lord Saladin

Earn Iron Engrams while ranking up and unlock cosmetic rewards and materials for your time playing. Once you have an Iron engram, focus it on some Iron Banner loot. The next step is all about wearing some Iron Banner armour, so if you haven’t got any, focus the engram into some armour to wear.

Step 5 – Complete Iron Banner matches while wearing Iron Banner armour

Complete Iron Banner matches while wearing at least one piece of Iron Banner armour. Each additional piece grants extra progress. Put on your Iron Banner gear, complete matches, and then you have one last step for the introduction quest.

Step 6 – Speak to Lord Saladin at the Tower

That’s it, you’ve finished the intro quest, and this only has to be done once per account (thank you Bungie). We all have to do the introduction quest, even if you have played Iron Banner before, so the best thing to do is get through it as quick as possible, and then you don’t have to worry about it again. For new players, this is going to be useful to explain what Iron Banner is all about, so think of the New Lights.

As well as the quest, we’ve also got a lot of changes coming to Iron Banner this season.

Event Feel

Iron Banner is getting a facelift. Plus Lord Saladin is going to be changing positions. When you load into the Tower when Iron Banner is on, Lord Saladin will be standing front and centre (where Eva Levante normally stands for seasonal events). Previously Lord Saladin would stand on the roof, above Banshee-44, now he’s going to be the first NPC you see when you land in the Tower. Also, the Tower is going to be decorated for Iron Banner. It’s going to feel much more like a Seasonal event, plus it’s not going to overlap with any other events, meaning Iron Banner will be the focus for the week. Iron Banner is also going to be less frequent than before, with only two Iron Banner events scheduled this season.

Power level removed

The power level has been removed from Iron Banner. Previously power level mattered, but this can be quite confusing for new players, given the experience is very different to the regular crucible. Bungie wants the mode to be more open to more players, and removing the power level is the first step to this. Power level is still going to be active in Trials of Osiris, which is going to be the main endgame PVP mode.

Earning Rewards

Iron Banner tokens have been removed and replaced by a similar ranking system likened to Saint-14 and Shaxx. Earn Iron Engrams while ranking up and unlock cosmetic rewards and materials for your time playing. But it’s not just the reward track that’s changing, Saladin is also getting a full focusing implementation, as well. Players will be able to convert Iron Engrams into any current Iron Banner weapons or armour set that have been earned previously, for a cost with in-game materials.

Iron Banner Reputation

Here is how the revamped Iron Banner reputation will work:

• Play matches with each match earning more towards Iron Banner’s reputation.
• Win matches to earn a small bonus based on your current Iron Banner rank.
• Wear Iron Banner armour (or just as ornaments on your own non-Iron Banner gear) and equip Iron Banner weapons to max out your gear multiplier at 200%.
• Five total pieces must be equipped, though please remember this includes Iron Banner armour and Iron Banner ornaments.
• Complete the daily Iron Banner challenges to tack on 100% to your challenge multiplier for the rest of the week.
• Use an Iron Banner emblem for an additional 10% emblem multiplier.

Iron Lord Title

There’s a new Iron Banner Title available in the Triumphs tab. If you have played Iron Banner before, then you’ll likely have some progress on this one already. Bungie said about the new title “To set expectations for this new Seal and title, Iron Lord hopefuls can expect to spend around 15 to 20 hours to unlock this flair. Some of the more hardcore players could unlock this in one week if focused, but we expect most players to need a second week – maybe even a second Season. Intrepid Iron Lords will be able to gild the title in Season 18.”

Rift is back

Iron Banner used to be all about Control, but now they are bringing in rotating playlists. We’re starting Season of the Haunted with Rift. Here are the rules of Rift if you are not familiar with it.

Rift is an objective-based Crucible mode that plays more like a game of soccer or rugby (but with pew-pew weapons and no passing) than it does Clash. Teams of Guardians will attempt to take the Spark from the middle of the map into the base of the enemy team and dunk it into the enemy Rift. One dunk equals one point, the first to make it to five points or to have the upper hand by the 10-minute mark wins.

• A Spark appears in the centre of the map a few seconds after a match starts or a point is scored and can be picked up by interacting with it for a couple of seconds. The Spark itself is a buff that allows full weapon and ability usage aside from Super.
• For the first five seconds after picking up the Spark, or for a few seconds after taking damage, both teams receive a waypoint for the Spark holder. After that, the waypoint only remains for the Spark holder’s own team—marking the Spark holder for your teammates is important!
• If you die while carrying the Spark, it drops to the ground where you died (or nearby if the spot is not navigable).
• If you hold onto the Spark too long, it detonates.
• Team resurrections are enabled in Rift, so make sure and help your teammates in the middle of a push, or if you are playing defence.
• There are no points for kills, just for Spark dunks, so playing the objective is key.
• When Rift is in Iron Banner, the Hunt is on when your team has the Spark. When the music intensifies, it’s time to score!
• There are several ways to extend matches past the time limit:

Continuation: At end of regulation time, If the current Spark holder could change the outcome of the match—either the game is tied, or if the current Spark holder is down one point—the match continues until the current Spark holder drops the Spark or scores.

Sudden Death Multispark: If there is a tie after time is up, the game enters 90-second overtime where three sparks spawn in midfield. Who will be the first to score? Chaos reigns.

After the sudden-death timer is up, Sparks stop dropping on death, and any Sparks on the ground are removed. As soon as the last Spark is eliminated without a score, the match ends in a tie.

Let me know what you think of Iron Banner in Season of the Haunted. What do you think of the changes and are you going to play more Iron Banner because of them?

That’s it for this Iron Banner Guide and How to complete the Forging Iron quest in Destiny 2 Season of the Haunted. For more Destiny 2 content like this check out This Week In Video Games on YouTube and subscribe today.