Destiny's spring update makes Prison of Elders cool again
What's old is new again.
Destiny's Prison of Elders mode -- introduced in 2015's House of Wolves add-on then forgotten with the release of The Taken King -- is making a comeback. A refreshed "PoE" arrives with the game's big (and FREE) spring update on Apr. 12.
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There's more coming, too. A new Strike introduces Malok, a villainous presence that's been referred to in the lore but never seen. He's the Strike's boss, and also the new Taken commander.
The old Winter's Run Strike is also making a comeback, refreshed so that the game's current high-level players can face a challenge. Many of the "Year One" Destiny Strikes were never updated with The Taken King's release, so this is like welcoming back an old friend.
Also new is an increase to the game's maximum "Light Level," which is how power in Destiny is measured after a player's character reaches level 30. The Taken King Light Level max of 320 is being increased to 335.
There are also some new missions and quests added to the game with the April update, but make no mistake: Prison of Elders is the star. From what Bungie's revealed, this will be the key focus for players that want to reach the new Light cap.
The first piece is a new "level 41" Prison of Elders, recommended for players at or above Light 260. It works the same as the old version, for the most part: four of the five rounds pit you against three waves of enemies, with random modifiers tweaking the experience.
Make no mistake: Prison of Elders is the star.
If you're familiar with Nightfall modifiers (or the original Prison), you know what to expect here. Modifiers are a mixed bag. Some are beneficial, such as Small Arms (boosts your primary weapon damage). Others make the experience tougher; Lightswitch, for example, boosts the damage of enemy melee attacks.
The fifth and final round is a boss fight. You get modifiers there, too, but you don't take on a bunch of waves. Just kill the boss. Do that, and you get to visit the Prison of Elders treasure room, where sweet loot awaits.
Best of all (for returning players): keys are no longer required. If you get to the treasure room, you don't need a key to open the chest.
The Light 260 Prison drops weapons, armor and other gear that can boost your Light as high as 320. Reaching Light 335 requires the next-level Prison, called Challenge of the Elders.
Challenge is a three-round event in which each round is a boss fight. There's no treasure room at the end of it; your goal instead is to earn points.
Each week, you'll be able to pick up a scorecard from Variks, a vendor in the game's "Reef" social space. The card lists two score targets: a personal high score and a cumulative team score. Hit the high score during a week and you'll get a Light 320+ weapon. Hit the cumulative score target and you'll get a 320+ armor.
Also on the card are two modifiers like the ones you'd encounter in standard Prison, as well as one "score bonus" modifier. During a week with a precision kill bonus, for example, precision kills will earn you more points in Challenge of the Elders than other types of kills.
There are eight bosses in the newly revised Prison of Elders and 16 variations on the Challenge of Elders weekly event. In all, you're looking at roughly four months worth of fresh material before repeats start to surface.
There's more news coming on the April update, as well. Livestreams on Mar. 30 and Apr. 6 will serve up more details on the revised gear game and additions to Destiny's sandbox mode, so stay tuned for more soon.
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Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
