Destiny 2 Iron Banner schedule for Season of the Wish in March 2024
The Iron Banner contest returns to Destiny 2, drawing competitive players back each month to fight for rewards, and while we're in the Season of the Wish, all eyes are on next week's Into The Light update.
Whether you're a dedicated PvP player or staunchly stick to the PvE side of the game, we all feel the pull of Iron Banner each month for those sweet new weapons and armour. To get you prepared, here is everything you need to know about Iron Banner in December 2023.
When does the next Iron Banner start?
The next Iron Banner starts on April 2, 2024.
There is typically one Iron Banner event scheduled each month - or three during each season. Each round of Iron Banner in a given season will have a different game mode from the others.
Each week of Iron Banner lasts from Tuesday to Tuesday, kicking off at the weekly reset. If you log in during the week prior, you'll get a notification letting you know that Iron Banner will be returning - so you don't need to worry as much about missing out, particularly if you play regularly.
Daily challenges explained
Click to enlargeIron Banner challenges were previously changed last season to spread out the rewards, and are now split into two series of challenges.
Each series works similarly to how challenges have previously worked in the mode, with a new challenge rolled out each day for the first four days of the event. This has often been a source of confusion among players, but rest assured that the challenges are still there.
The two series of challenges are broken up as follows:
- First series: Tasks players with completing matches with no restrictions, using any subclass, to receive Iron Banner rank bonus multipliers
- Second series: Works more like the original IB challenges and has players using specific seasonal subclasses to earn Pinnacle rewards
New Iron Banner weapons
Click to enlargeThere is one brand-new weapon coming to Iron Banner this time around - the Tusk of the Boar.
This Primary slot Grenade Launcher has the Strand damage type with a wave frame.
How many game modes are there?
Click to enlargeThere are four rotating game modes in Iron Banner: Control, Eruption, Fortress, and Tribute. Tribute is a new addition to the game in Season of the Wish, and can only be found in the Iron Banner during this season. Additionally, only one of these modes will be active during a particular week of Iron Banner.
Control
Control is the basic Crucible mode you know and love: Capture control points and defeat opponents. Your score goes up for every enemy killed; one point if your team holds one control point, two if your team has two, and three if you control all of the points.
How Control differs in Iron Banner is that, once one team controls all three points, the Hunt begins. This locks all control points for a short period of time, during which the Hunters can get extra points for defeating the Hunted.
Tribute
This new mode has players collecting crests that are dropped by defeated enemies. The goal is to collect these crests and deposit them in tribute stations, which will increase your team's score.
To activate the Hunt in this mode, you need to deposit a large amount of crests at one time, which will then increase the value of your deposited crests for a time.
Eruption
Eruption is a relatively new mode. Basically, it's Clash (Team Deathmatch), but with a twist. Getting kills builds up energy, and when you obtain two kills, you will become Surged. Five kills, however, will see you become Primed - the Hunt mechanic of Eruption.
When a player is Primed, they have a fifteen-second timer in which to get another kill, or they will explode. Kills while Surged are worth two points. Kills while Primed, or killing the Primed opponent, are worth three points.
Fortress
Fortress is another mode in which you capture objectives, but no points are awarded for defeating opponents. You gain two points every time interval for each zone you control.
Twice during each match, a Cabal drop pod will appear. Capturing that will begin the Hunt, which grants a large number of points over a shorter period of time.
Iron Banner rewards explained
Click to enlargeOnto the main reason we do anything in Destiny 2's Iron Banner: the rewards. This is where some of the biggest changes have happened in Iron Banner over the last while, as Saladin has been brought into step with the other vendors in the game.
It's still quite simple: you can play matches of Iron Banner to your heart's content and earn items from random drops (or by levelling up your Iron Banner rank). However, you can now also focus Iron Banner engrams, which is done by speaking to Lord Saladin in the Tower and choosing the Focus Engram option.
This will allow you to turn engrams into specific items - even items from older versions of Iron Banner. If there is a specific weapon with a specific roll that you really want, this is the best way to do it.
That is everything you need to know about Destiny 2 Iron Banner and its schedule. For more on the game, head to our Destiny 2 homepage for useful guides like our best exotic weapons or our guide to getting the new Witcher emblem.
