Destiny 2 Update 8.5.0.2 Makes Grinding Exotic Ciphers and Class Items a Little Easier

This week in Destiny confirmed Destiny 2 Update 8.5.0.2, set to release on Aug. 20, will add Exotic Ciphers, and Exotic class items to Xur’s inventory.

With the update the current Wildcard offer will be moved to Xur’s Strange Offers, and either an Exotic Cipher, or Exotic class item will take its place.

Exotic Ciphers will be sold for 79 Strange Coins, with a limit of one per week. During Exotic Class Item weeks it will be sold for 41 Strange Coins, same as every other exotic in Xur’s inventory, and will feature random rolls. Bungie also confirmed the class item will only appear on characters that unlocked it through Dual Destiny.

The change addresses a couple of common concerns with Destiny 2. One of the biggest is the lack of sources to obtain Exotic Ciphers, a currency that is used to unlock Exotics from previous seasons/missing content, that recently gained the ability to Artifice (add three stat points) maxed Exotic armor.

While the community was hoping Xur would sell predetermined rolls, Strange Coins are a positive step forward. Since Strange Coins are rewarded from ritual activities, such as Crucible, or Gambit, it allows players a path to casually grind them.

Best of all, Strange Coin drops are doubled when the playlist is featured. As a result, the best time to grind is during double Nightfall weeks, provided the Nightfall is easy. Since those give a base of approximately 10, players can average an Exotic class item every other successful attempt.

Bungie also confirmed players can obtain an adept version of Aisha’s Care from Trials of Osiris this weekend.

LATEST TRIALS WEAPON BACK NEXT WEEK

Those of you waiting for the latest additions to Trials of Osiris to return as Adept rewards, be warned. The Adept version of Aisha’s Care will be back tomorrow as the reward for those who go Flawless during the weekend.

Maybe it’s a good time to test the improved Passage of Persistence with friends now that losses won’t remove wins if you go into the fight with a fireteam of three. There are plenty of amazing perk combinations for Aisha’s Care, too, from the laser beam wannabe with Zen Moment and Kill Clip to the dueling machine with Keep Away and Headseeker. Also, the map is Dissonance, so it’s also a great opportunity to hone your skills in this newer map.

And speaking of newer maps, Cirrus Plaza will be the map for the week after (starting August 23). We’ve heard your feedback about these smaller maps being available in 3v3 modes, so we hope you enjoy having them in Trials Shayura’s Wrath (Adept) will be awaiting you in the Lighthouse.