Destiny 2: How to defeat Riven legit

With Riven being featured in the last week of The Pantheon, there’s never been a better time to learn how to defeat that big old wish dragon properly. The truth is, Riven isn’t actually all that hard when attempted normally. And with everyone participating in one way or another, the encounter can even prove to be a bit of fun.

Riven is one of the final encounters in the Last Wish Raid and one of the pivotal characters in Season 23, Season of the Wish. While Last Wish is still heralded among the best Raids Destiny 2 offers, Guardians seem allergic to learning the fight, as various “cheese” methods have persisted over the actual mechanics. While it’s easy enough to have two Stasis Titans smash Riven to smithereens in a few seconds, it’s much more rewarding to have mastery over the encounter. And who knows, this knowledge might even help in The Pantheon.

Setup and descent

Soon after the encounter starts, Guardians must split up to handle mechanics in two separate rooms. Knowing where you’re going and what you’re doing ahead of time can make all the difference. While it’s not required to prepare by assigning players roles and splitting them into teams, it can help keep the run more coordinated. The Fireteam will ideally want two teams of three, with one pre-assigned runner, one reader, and one player to clear enemies. Players will also want to have a sniper or similar precision weapon available. For boss damage, many strategies can work, but keep in mind to avoid anything that might accidentally pop one of Riven’s eyes early.

Once the composition is decided, the Fireteam can rally and start the encounter by having a player stand on each of the six plates around the room. After the last plate is stepped on, the floor will drop out from below players, and they’ll begin a safe, slow fall to a chamber below housing Riven. The lower chamber has two doors by either end of the walkway. This is where the group splits, with each team heading into a different door.

Riven hide-and-seek

After a short jog, the next part of the encounter will begin when each team has made it to their rooms. In these rooms, Riven will first appear to one of the two teams and move to attack. Emerging from the wall, Riven will either open its mouth to do breath attacks or ready its tentacles to slam Guardians. If it’s a breath attack, Guardians should take cover and shoot Riven’s open mouth in between breaths. For the tentacles, someone will need to get close to bait one, and then the team can all shoot it after it slams down. After either of these mechanics is complete, two of Riven’s ten eyes will sparkle. These should be assigned callouts (typically L1-L5 and R1-R5) so they can be communicated ASAP.

If Riven didn’t initially appear on your side, you’ll have another mechanic to complete. This is where the team roles come into play. Before long, an enemy called Eye of Riven will spawn into the room and drop a Taken Orb when defeated. The runner should grab the Orb and look toward the entrance to see a symbol repeated along a wall. The reader should position themselves behind the glass wall at the front of the room, as they’ll see symbols all over the room when looking through the glass. After the runner communicates their symbol, the reader must help guide them to where that symbol appears in the room. Once there, the runner can use their grenade to cleanse the symbol.

If both sides are in sync, each should finish around the same time, and then team roles will swap. Riven will appear in the room she wasn’t in initially, and the other team can begin their reading puzzle. When Riven appears to the second group, she’ll immediately go for a new attack, opening her mouth to reveal a Taken Blight. The team must focus the Blight and then shoot the eyes called out by the previous team. Once this process is complete, the lifts in the front of the room will activate, and players can head to the next room. From there, this process repeats again, with players having called out six of Riven’s ten eyes by the time they head up the lifts again.

Regroup and damage

After taking the lifts for the second time, players will emerge in the large chamber where the Rally banner was, and the whole Fireteam will be able to meet up. Riven will periodically poke her face out to attack the team with either her tentacles or a breath attack, followed by more eye shine. The boss will do this three times, giving three new callouts for eyes, before opening her mouth to reveal another Taken Blight. Once this Blight is destroyed, Riven’s eyes will be available, and all six new callouts must be destroyed quickly. 

If successful, players can run back to their plates and drop down again. This time, Guardians will be able to target the bulging growths on Riven’s body, dealing massive damage to the boss. If this is enough to push the boss, the fight will move on. Otherwise, players will go through the above steps again. Once pushed, players will be teleported into the Ascendant Plane and must navigate upwards towards a portal out. When Guardians make it out, Riven will make one last push, opening her mouth and revealing another Taken Blight. The Fireteam can unload everything they’ve got, stunning Riven and making her collapse. 

It may look like the battle is won, but there’s actually one more step to defeat Riven: charge into the dragon’s mouth. Guardians can then head into Riven’s mouth and to her heart, finishing off the boss with one final DPS burst. From there, Riven will be defeated, but Guardians still have one final step before the Last Wish Raid is complete. All that’s left is the relay race known as the Queenswalk.