Everything you need to know about Wrathborn Hunts and Cryptolith Lure in Destiny 2

Destiny 2 cryptolith lure mutations
(Image credit: Bungie)

Need a hand with the Destiny 2 Hunt for the Wrathborn quest? A week has passed since Beyond Light launched and now it's Season of the Hunt’s time to shine. The name of the game here is to track and kill Wrathborn enemies, aka Wrathborn hunts. 

But how do you start this quest? What’s the best way to set up Destiny 2 Cryptolith Lure? What are the rewards? There’s a lot to unpack, so before you don your hunting gear, check out this guide to Wrathborn Hunts and the Cryptolith Lure. 

Unlocking the Destiny 2 lure

Before you can unlock the Lure, you must finish the first missions of the Shadowkeep and Forsaken campaigns, as you’ll need access to the Forgotten Shore, the Dreaming City, and the Moon. 

If you’ve unlocked these areas, you will need to boot up the Director and head to the Moon. While viewing the map of the moon, you will see a mission titled ‘Trail of the Hunted’. You’ll need to finish this mission and listen to the dialogue that follows. After a short while you’ll gain access to the Crow and the Cryptolith Lure, as well as its associated quest.

How to charge the Destiny 2 Cryptolith Lure

Once you’ve received the Cryptolith Lure, you'll be tasked with charging it. The Cryptolith Lure can hold up to three charges at any given time and can be charged through Strikes, Crucible, and Gambit. Progress is variable based on the amount of kills you net during these activities, but if you load into a strike and complete Lost Sectors while inside, you’ll see significant progress towards charging the Cryptolith Lure.  

 How Lure Mods work 

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Lure mods work in a similar way to how the Menagerie’s Chalice used to work, with the added bonus of being more upfront with their rewards. When you’ve charged your Cryptolith Lure, you can slot a total of three mods into it. 

The first Lure Mod, the Prey Mod slot, dictates the type of reward you receive for completing the Wrathborn hunt. It includes targeted armour (Arms, Legs, Chest, Helmet, or Class Item) alongside weapons, Recon Data, and Destiny 2 Lure Mutations. These initial mods are random and you’re only able to select from four different initial mods at any given time. 

The next Mod, the Weak Mutation Slot, influences the type of rewards you receive from the Destiny 2 Wrathborn Hunts. For armour, the mod can significantly boost specific stats, you can opt to receive higher than average stats overall. Armor Trophies can only be applied a maximum of five times a week. When it comes to weapons, the mod is more interesting. You can influence which masterwork you’d like on the weapon and what perks you can exclude from the perk pool.

The final slot, the Strong Mutation Slot, works similarly to the Weak Mutation Slot, but focuses on different armour stats to manipulate. You can also gain extra Recon Data with Trophy Mod: Reputation in this slot, integral to levelling up Crow.

Regardless of which mods you slot in the Cryptolith Lure, the first two rewards every week will drop as Powerful Engrams. 

There are a variety of ways to obtain Lure Mods throughout the Season of the Hunt. You can buy the from Crow for 8,000 or 10,000 glimmer, you can opt to earn them as a reward from Nightmare Hunts, and you can also earn them through activities; including Strikes, Crucible, and Gambit.

 How to upgrade the Cryptolith Lure 

The Cryptolith Lure also has a series of upgrades that reside at the top of its user interface. These mods are intrinsically linked to your reputation rank with Crow. There are unlocks for ranks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10. These rewards can increase the total number of Powerful Engrams rewarded on a weekly basis, increase Recon Data from Wrathborn Hunts, and can even upgrade Crow’s weekly Powerful Engram Bounty into a Pinnacle Engram Bounty. This makes them worth investing in as early as possible. 

(Image credit: Bungie)

What are a Wrathborn Hunts in Destiny 2?

Wrathborn Hunts are specific events in Destiny 2. Charged Cryptolith Lures can be placed in various areas throughout the galaxy (including Tangled Shore and Dreaming City) to summon specific Wrathborn Targets. When you summon these formidable opponents, they’ll be surrounded by smaller mobs. When killed, these smaller opponents drop pools of miasma. This miasma allows you to deal extra damage to the Wrathborn enemy until they flee. 

When the Wrathborn target flees, you’ll need to track them by following the puddles of green blood they leave behind. At the end of the trail will be a mission flag, which you can activate to start a Hunt activity. During this phase, you will repeat the process for the wounded Wrathborn target before a far bigger and more deadly enemy intervenes. To kill this enemy, you need to find the named enemy in the immediate vicinity and spawn another miasma pool. When standing in this pool, you can shoot the new enemy and remove its shield. Once you’ve vanquished this worthy opponent, you’ll be rewarded with the items you chose as prizes in your Cryptolith Lure. 

 Level up the Crow

When you first speak to the Crow, you’ll notice he acts similarly to your standard vendor. He has rank-up packages, bounties, and sells a lot of items with ‘Trophy’ in the title. To level up the Crow’s vendor rank, you will need to provide him with Recon Data. Recon Data is awarded from all Wrathborn hunts, while 30 Recon Data can be obtained via the Season Pass. You can also opt to specifically receive additional Recon Data over loot. It takes 20 Recon Data to level Crow up, so this means you start with 1.5 ranks’ worth of Recon Data when you initially unlock the Cryptolith Lure.