Destiny: Rise of Iron is a major expansion for Bungie's first-person shooter, Destiny. The expansion was released on September 20, 2016, as the fourth and last expansion of Destiny. It revolves around the Fallen enemy race, as they have breached the Wall that surrounds Earth's last safe city and are utilizing the SIVA virus, a Golden Age nanotechnology characterized by self-replication and self-assembly. Lord Saladin, the last known remaining Iron Lord, guides players to become a new generation of Iron Lords and wipe out SIVA. Rise of Iron adds content across the game, including a new campaign, new missions, new Player versus Environment (PvE) locations, new Player versus Player (PvP) maps, a new PvP game mode, player gear, weaponry, a new social space, and a new raid.
Unlike the base game and the previous three expansions, which were all available on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One, Rise of Iron is only available for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Upon the expansion's release, retailers issued Destiny: The Collection, which includes Destiny (base game), Rise of Iron, and the previous three expansions, The Dark Below, House of Wolves, and The Taken King.
Gameplay
PvE features a new zone on Earth called the Plaguelands, marking the first time that there are two playable Patrol zones on one planet. There are two Patrol nodes on Earth, one for the original Cosmodrome and one for the Plaguelands. Areas of the original Cosmodrome Patrol zone have been updated to reflect the theme of the expansion, such as weather changes, and players being able to see where the Fallen have breached the Wall (the original versions of these areas are still accessible). There is also a new social space (the Iron Temple on Felwinter Peak), a new "strike," and a new raid called "Wrath of the Machine"; the normal raid unlocked on September 23, the heroic version unlocked on October 18. Two previous strikes have been updated and feature SIVA. A new limited-use flaming battle axe, called the Iron Battle Axe, is featured in certain missions and events. The Solar-based Scorch Cannon, introduced in House of Wolves returns, along with the addition of Arc and Void variants, the Shock Cannon and Null Cannon. The highest obtainable Light level was increased to 400 upon release of the hard raid. Similar to the Sparrow Racing League event in December 2015, the expansion features a "Rise of Iron Record Book" that allows players to track their progress through the expansion's content. A new public event called "Archon's Forge" was also added; it is similar to The Taken Kings Court of Oryx event and can be accessed in the Plaguelands.
Artifacts, which were introduced in The Taken King expansion, received an overhaul. Previously, artifacts had an additional stat feature, were class specific, and contributed to players' light level. Rise of Iron introduced eight new artifacts that can be shared across the three character classes, and each feature game-changing abilities related to an Iron Lord, for which each new artifact is named. Players can obtain these new artifacts from new character Tyra Karn; she has missions that are dedicated to the memory of the Iron Lords. Upon completing the task, players gain the Iron Lords' Legacy, which is used to acquire one of three available artifacts per week. Of the game-changing abilities, for example, one artifact eliminates the super, but gives two grenades, two melees, and an increase to all stats. The artifacts can be combined with exotic weapons and armor, as well as subclasses, to create new build options.