Destiny 2 Legendary Shards Guide: How To Farm and Spend

Image: Bungie Entertainment

Human Made

Kody is our expert Destiny 2 and shooter genre writer. He lives in Oregon.

Everything in Destiny 2 requires a stockpile of resources to keep your Guardian equipped with the best and most powerful gear. While Glimmer may be the base currency, there are plenty of other minor Vendor resources to deal with, possibly the most crucial in-game currency is Destiny 2 Legendary Shards.

So what exactly are Legendary Shards? What do you use them for? And what’s the best way to farm some easy Legendary Shards? Read on for our full guide on this core end-game currency.

What Are Legendary Shards Used for in Destiny 2?

According to the Grimoire lore within Destiny 2, Legendary Shards are “remnants of powerful items used to improve gear or trade for other items.” For our purposes, these Shards are the go-to currency for purchasing and upgrading gear. As of right now, you can use Legendary Shards to do the following:

Purchase Exotic Engrams and weapons from Xur.
Purchase Engrams from Master Rahool.
Purchase Faction weapons, armor, consumables, and other resources from different Vendors.
Infuse two weapons or pieces of armor to achieve a higher power level.
Upgrade Legendary weapons and armor into Masterworked gear.

The cost for all of these uses varies anywhere from 5–25 Legendary Shards at a time. To fully Masterwork a weapon, for example, it will require multiple rounds of upgrades with Legendary Shards. In short, you’ll want a lot of these around to make sure you never have to worry about upgrading or purchasing from Vendors.

How To Farm Legendary Shards in Destiny 2

The good news is that there doesn’t appear to be any Legendary Shards cap, meaning you can hold as many Shards as you can carry. That only leaves the question, how do you get Legendary Shards in Destiny 2?

Well, like most things, there’s not one simple way to grind out Legendary Shards. Thankfully, there are a number of proven methods that range from using other currencies to just playing the game. Here are the best ways to earn Legendary Shards in Destiny 2.

1. Dismantle Weapons and Gear

First, let’s discuss how to get Legendary Shards in a hurry.

If you have any outdated weapons or gear in your Vault, start dismantling them. You’ve likely accrued tons of items that you’ll simply never use, and at least for now, you can put them to good use. With Armor Synthesis now being available, you can easily start getting rid of unnecessary Legendary Armor to rack up those Shards.

If you end up dismantling something by accident, keep in mind that you can retrieve it through the Collections page.

2. Gunsmith Materials

Banshee-44 — *Image: Bungie Entertainment via HGG* / *Kody Wirth*

As you play, you’ll likely get plenty of low-level armor and weapons that you don’t end up hanging onto. However, you can actually make this gear useful by turning them into Gunsmith Materials, which nets you a small number of Shards every time. Stacking up enough of this resource will also allow you to turn it into Banshee-44 in exchange for rank-up packages.

These packages will often include a random shader, an Armor Mod, and a weapon. If none of the weapons you get strike your fancy, dismantle them for more Gunsmith Materials and Shards and continue the process. Overall, this is the best way to get Legendary Shards in Destiny 2 since it’s likely something you’re already doing regularly.

3. Legendary Shard Dismantle Bonus

Every Season provides a new opportunity to earn gear, Exotic Engrams, and buffs through the Season Pass. This includes regular drops of Legendary Shards, with packs of 25 being available every 5–10 ranks. Aside from that, you can also unlock the Legendary Shard Dismantle Bonus at Rank 20.

This buff provides you with an additional Legendary Shard every time you dismantle a Legendary or Exotic. As mentioned before, you’ll likely be doing this a lot as you play and/or clear out your vault, making this a nice bonus to strive for. Just make sure you hit Rank 20 before doing any massive purges to make sure you get the most out of your dismantles.

4. Purchase Shards From Spider

You used to be able to purchase Legendary Shards from a number of Vendors, but nowadays, it’s just Spider. This Fallen Vendor on the Taken Shore offers a range of useful materials, including a mix of planetary resources and end-game upgrade materials. The only caveat is that the available materials are constantly rotating in and out, meaning you can’t always bet on Legendary Shards being available.

When they are, just make sure you have plenty of Glimmer stocked up, because it will cost you 5,000 for a single Shard. This really isn’t the most cost-effective method for farming Shards, but if you’re in a pinch and just need one or two, it’s worth using.

5. Vendor Reputation

While the remaining vendors don’t have a streamlined Legendary Shard acquisition process, you can still earn them by increasing your reputation. Now, this goes beyond just Vanguard, Crucible, and Gambit. You can actually continue to upgrade your reputation with every planetary vendor as well to get the same effect.

Basically, just keep completing bounties for all of your vendors. Spider and Variks still have plenty of unique bounties to chase, making them your go-to choice outside of the core three. For the two Earth-based vendors and Fail-Safe on Nessus, don’t worry about grinding out quest after quest. Just pick them up each day and you’ll likely complete most of the quests as you play.

Once you have enough rank-up material, return to each vendor and start increasing your reputation. Like the Gunsmith, this will net you a few Shards and is likely the easiest way to do so.

6. Run Strikes or Crucible Matches

D2 Strikes — *Image: Bungie Entertainment via HGG* / *Kody Wirth*

Much like farming Exotics in Destiny 2, there isn’t really a short and sweet method for racking up hundreds of Shards. Every option on this list will require you to consistently play the game in order to rack up materials, gain additional weapons and armor, and even level up the Season Pass. Luckily, they all work nicely together, meaning that you’ll automatically be running through each method simultaneously.

However, if you’re wanting to run through specific game modes that are made to be quick, start with Strikes and Crucible matches. These will be your best options for bite-sized chunks of content that hand out large amounts of gear, let you complete Bounties, and increase your Vendor reputation.

Become a High Grounder

In many ways, Destiny 2 Legendary Shards are the lifeblood of end-game content, and there are plenty of simple ways to earn them. If someone on your Fireteam has been struggling to keep enough Shards in their inventory, be sure to share this guide with them on your favorite social platforms. For the latest on Destiny 2, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter to stay in the know.

Happy gaming!