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Unique vendors are at the core of any piece ofDestiny 2seasonal content, and in Episode: Heresy, you’ll be leveling reputation with the Shaping Slab. A Taken artifact hidden away in Eris Morn’s flat, it’s the primary source of progression during the Episode, and knowing how to increase your reputation is key to getting the most out of the season.
Increasing your Shaping Slab reputation follows the same pattern as previous Episodic content. The best way to progress is to engage with the new activities, but you’re not entirely bound to them this time around.
How To Level Shaping Slab Reputation
There arethree waystoincreaseyourShaping Slab reputation, a value calledTaken Mastery.Twoareuniqueto the Episode’s core activity,The Nether. Thelastis thematically linked butaccessible anywherein the game.
Theearly Shaping Slab reputationlevels will cost less than later ones. Thefirst fewwill only takea few hundred Taken Mastery pointsto unlock.Futureones will take1,000 or more.
Openingtherandomly spawnedlootchestsdoesnotreward any Taken Mastery.
Boss Encounter Progression
Completing aboss challengein The Nether is themost consistentway ofincreasingyourShaping Slab reputation, and you’ll want todo so in a group.Soloruns give25 fewer Taken Masteryreputation points per opened chest, for whatever reason.
The specific point values are:
Ifyouand/or your teamleave the Nether for any reason, either because you wipe, disconnect, or some other issue,you’ll lose out on rewardsentirely.No reputation, noloot,nothing. Be sure youfinishall the smallerEversion encounters,defeat the boss-level enemy,andopen the chestat the end.
Metastasized Essentia Progression
Turning inMetastasized Essentiais a morepassiveway to earnShaping Slab reputation. You’ll mostly find the stuff aboard the Dreadnaught during The Nether activity, and you’ll find it everywhere. It’s also a reputation level-up reward at the Shaping Slab itself.
Essentiaare large,white, spiny spheresthat grow alongwalls, incorners, and amongrocky outcroppings. When youpick them upin theDreadnaught, they’remarked as “Fleeting,“and you need tocomplete a boss encountertoremove that descriptor. They’llalsoturn fromwhite rarity to green.
Once you have ten Essentia, you can return to Eris Morn’s flat and interact with the Taken Altar there.
Youcan’t turn in less than ten Essentiaand bank them for later. It’s eithera stack of ten or not at all. Youcanturn in multiple stacksof ten per visit, but you need tointeract with the altarforeach.
Forevery ten Metastasized Essentiayou turn in, you’ll get a solid200 Taken Masterypoints.
Taken Orb Progression
While theprevioustwo Shaping Slabprogression pathsareexclusive to the Netheractivity, finding andbreaking Taken orbs is activity-agnostic. That is, you can do itanywhere in the game.Don’t expecthugereturns, but it is a nice quality-of-life feature.
Every enemyin the game has achance to dropone or more glowingTaken orbs, which, when shot,splinter into three smaller orbs.Each orbawardsfive Taken Mastery pointsand one or two Sigil Stones for up to 15 points per Taken orb.
Wetestedthis system inmultiple game modes, includingStrikes, the RevenantOnslaughtplaylist, and in theopen world. We couldusually getabout45-75 Taken Masterypoints on a lucky run, thoughsometimes less.
In short, if you want toprogresstheShaping Slab efficiently,play The Nether,completeall threeboss encounters, andcollectas muchMetastasized Essentiaas possible. Whenever youseeone or moreTaken orbson the ground, take a second toshoot themandcollectthe smaller orbsthey drop.
MostrunsofThe Nethershould take about15-20 minutes, depending on your team composition and skill. That averages to about325-375 Taken Mastery per runor around1,000 per hour. Lastly, ensure youhave a Tome of Want ritual runningfor more rewards.
