Exotic Ciphers are one of the rarest items in Destiny 2, and with good reason. If you are having a hard time finding Exotic Ciphers or are curious as to how they work, you are in luck!
We will be going over how to get Exotic Ciphers as well as what to do with them once you have them. Let’s get started!
Recommended Read: How to Unlock Subclasses in Destiny 2
In Destiny 2, Exotic Ciphers can be acquired by completing the Xeonolgy Quest from Xur every week. You will get one Exotic Cipher from Tier 55 on the Season Pass. You will get one Exotic Cipher from the Armor Archivist triumph.
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How to Get Exotic Cipher in Destiny 2
There are three methods for obtaining Exotic Ciphers in Destiny 2, with only one of the three being repeatable every week.
Xenology Quest
The Xenology Quest is a weekly quest that you can get from Xur whenever he visits. It will reward you with one Exotic Cipher.
To complete the Xenology Quest, you will need to complete 21 playlist activities. This includes Vanguard Strikes, Crucible matches, and Gambit matches.
You will earn extra progress for beating challenging activities and even more progress for doing so with your clan members.
Once you complete your 21 activities, you can return to Xur and claim your Exotic Cipher. Don’t worry about hurrying. The quest won’t disappear when Xur leaves for the week.
You can complete Xenology whenever you like and have it ready for Xur’s next visit.
That being said, this is a weekly quest, meaning you can claim one every time Xur appears. If you have an already completed Xenology Quest in your inventory, you won’t be able to pick up another from Xur that week.
Season Pass
While the Season Pass doesn’t exactly have a ton of value in it to those who have played the game for very long, many will still complete it just for the Free Tier rewards.
At Tier 55 of the Free Season Pass, you will get an Exotic Cipher. This has been true for many seasons now, so you can expect to get at least one Exotic Cipher per season using this method.
Though not a fast or reliable way to get Exotic Ciphers, this gives free-to-player players something to look forward to with every new season.
Armor Archivist
There is one last method you can use to get an Exotic Cipher. That is by playing the game.
The Armor Archivist triumph can be completed by unlocking 300 different pieces of armor. Doing so will reward you with an Exotic Cipher.
While this may sound like a lot, it really isn’t.
You get random Blues and Legendary gear for just about everything nowadays, so you should get this triumph completed in no time if you haven’t already.
How to Use Exotic Cipher
Exotic Ciphers are used to get Exotic weapons and armor pieces that were previously obtained through old Expansions or seasonal content.
With their missions no longer available, there had to be some way to let new players get these Exotics, so Bungie created the Exotic Cipher. While not the best solution, it is better than nothing.
Monument to Lost Lights
Players can exchange Exotic Ciphers for their choice of Exotic gear at the Monument to Lost Lights in the tower, right next to their vaults.
Along with the Cipher, you will need about 100,000 – 150,000 Glimmer, 200 Legendary Shards, and an Ascendant Shard to trade in for your new Exotic gear.
If you want an Exotic Weapon that was previously only rewarded as a random Raid drop, you will need an additional 240 Spoils of Conquest on top of everything else.
This is by no means cheap, however, being able to purchase an Exotic that was once tied down to pure luck is a great timesaver that we’re sure many Guardians appreciate.
Exotic Engram Focusing
If you happen to have an Exotic Engram in your inventory, you can use your Exotic Cipher to Focus it, allowing you to manipulate the Exotic gear pool that your Engram will pull from when you decrypt it.
Head on over to Master Rahool to get started. You can then choose between all of the available Expansions, only allowing your Engram to drop gear from that specific Expansion.
This will cost you your Exotic Cipher, 30,000 Glimmer, and an Ascendant Shard.
This is a great method for getting Exotic armor from a specific Expansion that you may have missed.
Precision Decryption
If you already have all of the Exotic armor pieces that you want, then you have the option to trade your Exotic Ciphers for a chance at high-stat-rolled Exotic armor.
Visit Master Rahool once again and head to the Precision Decryption tab of his Focused Decoding menu.
Here, you can select one Exotic that you have already found and trade your Exotic Engram for it. This will also consume 1 Exotic Cipher, as well as 60,000 Glimmer and 3 Ascendant Shards.
While expensive, this is one of the best methods for getting a good stat roll on your favorite Exotic armor piece.
Xur’s Exotic Engram
If you are feeling lucky, you can always purchase an Exotic from Xur using your Exotic Ciphers. Note that, sadly, this will not appear as an Exotic Engram in your inventory. It will instead drop as Exotic gear as soon as you purchase it.
Not the best use of your Exotic Ciphers, but definitely a fun one.
That’s all there is to Exotic Ciphers in Destiny 2.
Did you find this guide helpful? Do you have an idea of how you will be using your Exotic Ciphers now? Let me know in the comments!
