Fuel your quest for the most coveted loot in Destiny 2: Heresy by mastering the Essence of Desire-a vital resource that powers the mysterious Tome of Want and unlocks rare chests scattered across the Dreadnaught. Whether you’re diving into the perilous Nether or making offerings at Eris Morn’s altar, this guide reveals the fastest ways to gather Essence of Desire and turn your grind into guaranteed rewards, helping you face The Taken King with unmatched gear.
In this Destiny 2 guide, we’ll walk you through what Essence of Desire does, how you can find more, and where you can get Metastasized Essentia.
What to use Essence of Desire for in Destiny 2
Essence of Desire in Destiny 2: Heresy serves two main purposes. Primarily, it acts as the fuel for the Tome of Want, a key item that allows players to focus and customize their loot drops, including targeting specific seasonal weapons, armor, or resources. Activating rituals in the Tome requires Essence of Desire, with costs varying depending on the chosen rewards. Additionally, Essence of Desire is used to unlock special locked chests found within the Nether activity on the Dreadnaught, each requiring two Essence of Desire to open and providing guaranteed weapons, Sigil Shards, and other valuable items. This currency is essential for maximizing rewards and progression in the Heresy episode.
Essence of Desire has two major functions in Heresy: fuel and keys.
First up, Essence of Desire is the fuel for your Tome of Want in Destiny 2: Heresy. The Tome of Want will allow you to focus your loot drops. It can be focused to a category, like new Heresy weapons, or it can be focused more specifically, like on the episodic Watchful Eye machine gun. When you put the scriptures into the Tome of Want in order to select your desired loot piece, you’ll finish by putting Essence of Desire in at the end to activate it. If you don’t have enough Essence of Desire – and the cost differs based on the spell you’re evoking – you won’t be able to activate your Tome of Want at all.
Second, you can spend Essence of Desire on bonus chests found inside the Dreadnaught. These chests are thinner than the normal chests inside the ship, and are modeled after the King’s Fall raid chests, if you’re familiar. When you encounter them, they’ll ask you to offer two Essence of Desire in order to open them. Doing so will net you a guaranteed Heresy weapon, some Sigil Shards, and a more general currency, like Enhancement Cores.
How to get Essence of Desire in Destiny 2
Essence of Desire in Destiny 2 can be obtained primarily through activities in the Heresy episode, especially within the Nether on the Dreadnaught. Players collect Fleeting Metastasized Essentia during these encounters, which become Metastasized Essentia upon successful completion. The most efficient way to convert these into Essence of Desire is by offering 10 Metastasized Essentia at the Taken Altar located inside Eris Morn’s apartment. This exchange grants 10 Essence of Desire along with other rewards, making it the fastest method to farm this currency. Additionally, Essence of Desire can be earned by completing playlist activities with the Tome of Want active and by opening treasure chests on the Dreadnaught that require Essence of Desire to unlock.
Essence of Desire is a general drop in Heresy, and you can get it from a few different places, including finishing playlist activities with your Tome of Want active, and completing activities inside the Dreadnaught. However, those passive methods pale in comparison to something the game never teaches you about: the altar in Eris’ apartment.
Just to the left, along the wall inside Eris’ apartment, you’ll see a strange rock pillar with a Taken orb floating in the middle of it. When you walk up to it, it’ll ask you to offer Metastasized Essentia – if you have some – or tell you that you don’t have enough Metastasized Essentia, and that you require 10. If you offer up Metastasized Essentia to the pillar, it’ll consume the currency and you’ll get two reprised weapons from Season of Arrivals, some materials, and a whopping 10 Essence of Desire.
The pillar sacrifice is by far the best and fastest method for getting Essence of Desire, but you’ll need to collect a lot of Metastasized Essentia to make it work – more on that below.
Where to find Metastasized Essentia in Destiny 2
Metastasized Essentia in Destiny 2 can be found exclusively on the Dreadnaught, specifically within the activity called The Nether. It appears as large, white, spiny spheres that emit a faint glow and are scattered mainly along the walls, edges, and tucked away in corners or holes throughout the Dreadnaught, particularly on Oryx’s flagship. Players will have better success locating Metastasized Essentia by searching the fringes of each zone rather than the main sections near bosses or eversion points. Using Ghost mods like Combo and Wombo Detector can help by marking Essentia locations on your HUD within a certain range, and aiming down sights with a sniper rifle or similar weapon can extend your detection distance. Metastasized Essentia is also rewarded for increasing your Shaping Slab reputation and is essential for exchanging at the Taken Altar in Eris’ apartment to obtain Essence of Desire.
Metastasized Essentia is the location currency for the Dreadnaught, Oryx’s massive flagship which has returned to the game as part of Heresy. It’s where you’ll spend most of your time this episode, and complete runs of The Nether, the roguelite mode that takes place in the familiar location (and puts a focus on healing).
Like any other planetary resource, you’ll want to go to your Ghost and put on the Wombo Detector mod, which will allow you to see any resources and chests within 50 meters of your character. Just jump into the Dreadnaught with the mod on, follow the grey diamonds, and you’ll get plenty of chests and resources.
However, you’ll notice that when you first pick up these resources they’ll be called Fleeting Metastasized Essentia, and are a slightly different color. If you leave the activity with any Fleeting Metastasized Essentia in your inventory, it’ll disappear and you won’t be able to use it at the pillar. To remove the “Fleeting” from your Metastasized Essentia, you just need to complete the run of The Nether that you’re doing. This is a mechanic to keep you from jumping into the Dreadnaught to grab two or three easily accessible Metastasized Essentia, backing out, heading back in, and doing that for hours on repeat. If you want your materials, you’ll have to finish out the run to get them.
What secret locations in Dreadnaught yield the most Essence of Desire
The Dreadnaught’s secret locations that yield the most Essence of Desire are primarily found in the Hall of Souls in Oryx’s Court, where Essence can spawn consistently atop a pillar. Additionally, special Desire chests scattered throughout the Dreadnaught, including those in the Trenchway and near the Nether zones, require Essence of Desire to unlock and reward players with valuable gear and resources. Another key spot is the altar in Eris Morn’s apartment, where players can sacrifice Metastasized Essentia to quickly gain large amounts of Essence of Desire, making it the fastest acquisition method despite requiring significant prior resources. These locations, combined with exploring hidden areas like the Hall Breach and Fountains in the Nether, offer the best opportunities to gather Essence of Desire efficiently.
Which hidden spots in the Hall of Souls give the most Essence of Desire
In the Hall of Souls on the Dreadnaught, the hidden spots that yield the most Essence of Desire are centered around several secret chests and encounters. Notably, the Toland Orb chest is a key secret that requires following a floating orb through the Hall to reach a hidden chest, which often contains valuable Essence of Desire. Additionally, there are multiple secret chests tucked away in hard-to-reach corners and platforms throughout the Hall, including one near the statues in Oryx’s Court and others accessible via intricate jumping puzzles. These locations tend to spawn Essence of Desire or related rewards frequently, making them prime targets for farming this resource efficiently.
