A new batch of Raid Challenges has just begun in Destiny 2. The newest Raid, Root of Nightmares, has been updated with the first of four Raid Challenges which task Guardians with beating the Raid’s various encounters in strange ways. Should you be successful, you’ll earn yourself some additional loot, boosted odds of getting the new Conditional Finality Exotic Shotgun and even an Adept Raid Weapon if you complete it on Master Mode.
The first of these Raid Challenges is titled Illuminated Torment. This challenge is for the very first encounter, Cataclysm, and revolves around the horrifying Tormentors. You’ll need to be both quick at running and quick at killing to complete this challenge.
Here’s how to beat the Illuminated Torment Raid Challenge in Destiny 2’s Root of Nightmares Raid.
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How Do Raid Challenges Work?
In case you’re new to the game or don’t know how Raid Challenges work, here’s a quick rundown to inform you of everything you need to know.
Once Raid Challenges go live, one encounter per week (beginning with the first encounter) will have an optional challenge added to it. These Raid Challenges often impose some form of restriction or tricky requirement that must be fulfilled to be completed, awarding additional loot and rewards if your fireteam is capable of doing so.
Each Raid has a number of Raid Challenges equal to the number of major encounters for that Raid. For Root Nightmares, there are 4 Raid Challenges which correspond to the major encounters of the Raid: Cataclysm, Scission, Macrocosm and Nezarec. The Raid Challenges are on a weekly rotation starting with encounter one and rolling over to the next encounter at the start of each weekly reset.
The main reason to complete Raid Challenges is the additional loot. In Normal Mode, these offer an additional pinnacle reward or an additional chance at a God Roll. In Master Mode, the reward is a bit sweeter with the chance to acquire an Adept weapon.
Now that we’re all caught up on how the Raid Challenges work, how do you beat the Illuminated Torment Raid Challenge in Destiny 2?
Raid Challenges
Root of Nightmares Raid Challenge: Illuminated Torment
The Illuminated Torment Raid Challenge takes place in the very first encounter in Root of Nightmares, Cataclysm. This encounter introduces players to the Field of Light mechanic, all the while asking them to fend off waves of adds and Tormentors to halt Nezarec’s overwhelming hatred.
In order to complete Illuminated Torment, you play the encounter as normal, for the most part. There is, of course, one pretty big catch: you cannot kill a Tormentor unless you have the Field of Light buff.
In the Cataclysm encounter, Tormentors spawn after you kill a pair of shielded Psions, and you’ll be awarded an additional 30 seconds to the timer upon slaying it. Usually, this would be left up to the add clear people to deal with while the runner (or runners) deal with the Field of Light effect. Not so for the Raid Challenge, though, as the Tormentor must be slain by someone with the Field of Light buff.
This a quick refresher on how Field of Light works for any who are unaware. There will be a big Light orb that looks like the Traveller surrounded by a bubble of light: upon shooting this orb, any players within the bubble will get the Field of Light buff for 20 seconds. Runners will use this buff to trigger the nodes required to progress the encounter. Now, however, it’s not just the runners who need to use Field of Light.
Stalking Tormentors
How to Complete Illuminated Torment
At the start of the encounter, split up your team as normal. One (or two depending on your confidence) runners will be spearheading the mechanical side of the encounter, while the other fireteam members will be on add-clearing duty. There are some important distinctions between this and the normal mode, though, so be ready.
Begin the encounter the way you normally do, with the runner triggering the Field of Light and the add clear people going off to slay Cabal. Play the encounter as usual until you kill both of the Psions and spawn the Tormentor. At this point, everyone should group up on the runner before they trigger the next Field of Light buff.
Once enough people are there, shoot the orb and give everyone the Field of Light buff. This gives the add clear team 20 seconds to dispatch their Tormentor, which should allow the runner enough time to complete the first sequence.
Field of Light
From this point on, you simply repeat this strategy on each of the sections: start the encounter and spawn the Tormentors, then grab Field of Light and kill it as soon as possible. You’ll have to be quick on the draw with this one, so stay focused and make sure you have that buff before killing it.
Another thing to keep in mind is that you can spawn a Tormentor right before finishing a sequence, giving you a bit of a head start on the next round. If this happens, have everyone group on the starting Field of Light node before the runner begins. This will give everyone Field of Light right before the round starts, letting you kill the Tormentor right away.
The most important thing to remember is to grab that buff before killing a Tormentor. This is the most crucial part and you need to stay on top of this mechanic to come out on top. Manage it, though, and the extra loot will be yours.
The Start of the Nightmare
Illuminated Torment Step-by-Step
If you want a straightforward step-by-step guide:
- Begin the encounter as normal.
- Once you’ve killed the pair of Psions and spawned the Tormentor, all players group up onto the Field of Light buff.
- The runner will then shoot the orb, granting everyone Field of Light.
- The runner then continues the sequence and the other players focus on killing the Tormentor.
- Repeat this loop for each of the four sequences until you complete the encounter.
Cataclysm Encounter
Additional Loot
So, what will you get for all this additional trouble? If you manage to complete Illuminated Torment on Normal Mode, you’ll be given an additional chest filled with extra loot from the first encounter. This will be an additional Pinnacle reward, as well, for any Guardians still chasing max Light Level.
From the Cataclysm encounter, you can obtain:
- Nessa’s Obligation Void Shotgun
- Koraxis’s Distress Strand Heavy Grenade Launcher
- Briar’s Contempt Solar Linear Fusion Rifle
- Legendary Helmet (Helm of Agony, Mask of Trepidation or Mask of Detestation)
- Legendary Arms (Gauntlets of Agony, Grips of Trepidation or Wraps of Detestation)
- Legendary Chest (Plate of Agony, Vest of Trepidation or Robes of Detestation)
Complete the Challenge on Master Mode, though, and you’ll earn yourself a guaranteed Adept version of one of the Raid weapons. Adept weapons are special versions of weapons that provide stat bonuses to all weapon stats upon Masterworking and can slot special Adept mods. The Root of Nightmares Raid weapons will also be the first to access the new Enhance feature, where players can take an Adept weapon and begin levelling it like a crafted one. This feature isn’t available yet but when it does, the RoN Adept weapons will be the first to utilise it.
Adept Weapons
That was how to complete the Illuminated Torment Root of Nightmares Raid Challenge in Destiny 2. The next challenge is called Crossfire and will be undertaken from the Scission encounter.
