How to beat Ecthar in Destiny 2 Ghosts of the Deep dungeon

Season of the Deep is the first of the Lightfall-era seasonal releases in Destiny 2 to come packaged with a brand-new dungeon. Ghosts of the Deep, set in the depths of Titan’s methane ocean, brings with it the return of the Lucent Hive and an ancient foe on the cusp of resurrection that Guardians must uncover the truth about. It’s one of the more complex dungeons in Destiny 2, with some challenging health gates and combat encounters to contend with.

Ecthar, the Shield of Savathun, is the boss that awaits you in the second core encounter of the dungeon. Taking him down will require not only a hefty amount of damage but a rock-solid understanding of the two floors that make up the encounter’s arena space. However, it’s a lucrative task, as the encounter can drop some of the best loot from Ghosts of the Deep such as the SMG, Rocket Launcher and the class item. It’s farmable, too, so a fireteam can run it as many times as they desire once they’ve mastered its mechanics.

Whether it’s your first time stepping into the arena, or you’re looking to get a better grasp on the flow of battle for your future LFG runs, here’s our guide on how to take down Ecthar in Ghosts of the Deep’s second encounter.

How to beat Ecthar in the Ghosts of the Deep dungeon

Loadout recommendations

There are two key elements to having a smooth experience taking down Ecthar in the dungeon. The first is at least one Well of Radiance Warlock in your fireteam, and the second is at least one player using Arbalest. Arbalest may not be the most convenient Special weapon for ad clear or boss damage, but the bosses in Ghosts of the Deep have shields that need to be broken to begin the damage phase. These shields have a lot of health, but Arbalest can cut through it in just one or two shots.

The Well of Radiance is not just a convenient Super to have as it often is, but also integral to the common strategies for Ecthar. The Lightbearer Knight likes to get up close and personal, so damage is often done with swords or certain Exotic shotguns. We have found a lot of success with classic picks like Falling Guillotine, alongside a choice of Special weapon focused on ad clear, but it’s worth experimenting with what feels most comfortable for you in a very hectic and close-quarters damage phase.

Beginning the second encounter

At the start of the second encounter, it’s worth taking stock of a few key landmarks in the arena. There are a number of holes in the floor, each providing an exit down into an underwater maze below. There are also three statues tucked away in alcoves on the raised section—the same design featured in the first encounter, where players will be dunking Vestige of Light buffs once again.

When the encounter begins, Ecthar will rise from the depths, and three groups of enemies will spawn at the back of the room. Among these three groups will be three Blistered Knights. These Hive Knights have large health bars, and all must be defeated to progress. Once all three are dead, a large Hive Ogre, called Keeper of the Deep, will spawn. Killing this enemy will send Ecthar back down into the underwater section below and spawn an activatable Deepsight node back down at the front of the arena.

Activating the Hive runes

When this Deepsight node is activated, three different runes will become active on the plates suspended against the two side walls. These three symbols will need to be memorized, as to activate them, players have to go down into the depths of the bottom floor and find the symbol down in the underwater maze to activate them.

All of the Hive symbols, not just the three shown above will be on the walls down there, and interacting with a non-matching symbol will kill the player immediately, so be careful only to activate the right ones. Keep moving to avoid being attacked by Ecthar, who is also trapped in the depths. Once all three matching Hive symbols have been interacted with, text will appear on the left side of your screen that states “the runes successfully align with a crackle.”

If you are looking for a map of the layout, community member u/pryanie has created some excellent graphics that show where each Hive rune is located in the underwater section. The graphic also includes the air bubbles’ location and the air lift that will take you back into the main arena.

Summoning Ecthar with Vestiges of Light

Activating each of the three correct Hive symbols will spawn a Lightbearer Wizard in the room up above. As only one player needs to go down into the water below to find the matching runes, the two players above can likely start taking these Wizards down as they spawn in, even before the other fireteam member has returned to the surface. Killing the Wizard’s Ghost will award the player responsible with a Vestige of Light buff. This Vestige of Light needs to be taken and dunked into one of the three Hive Thrall statues mentioned earlier.

Once all three Vestiges of Light have been dunked into a respective statue, Ecthar will return from the depths. To break his shield, you will need to kill a Wellkeeper Knight that spawns at the front of the room where the rally flag was. Killing this Knight drops a green aura on the floor that, when stood in, grants you a buff called Piercing Light. This buff makes Ecthar’s shield vulnerable to damage, allowing you to break it and do damage to his true health bar. As recommended above, Arbalest is the best weapon for shield-breaking, so make sure to have one on your team for this step.

The damage phase

Ecthar is a very mobile boss during the damage phase. At the beginning of it, he will activate Sentinel Shield and come at your fireteam aggressively. This is why close-range boss damage options, as well as a Well of Radiance, will convert into a much higher success rate with this boss.

Once the damage phase is complete, the loop repeats once more. Perform the same steps each time until Ecthar breathes his last breath. Make sure that, after you have killed him, you remember to finish his Ghost as well, as allowing him to resurrect can softlock you out of the encounter and force you to restart the whole thing. After his Ghost has been crushed, you have completed the second encounter of the Ghosts of the Deep dungeon in Destiny 2.