Destiny 2 Season of Plunder Week 7 Challenges: A 2026 Time Capsule Guide

It’s 2026, and I’m doing the Destiny 2 equivalent of opening a dusty attic box labeled Season of Plunder. Week 7 challenges are old news now, but they still gleam like a handful of Strange Coins in a vending machine slot. If you’re a veteran, this is a nostalgic scrapbook. If you’re a new Light, welcome to the museum: please don’t lick the Vex exhibits. Here’s how I’d tackle the seven challenges, with rewards, tips, and the exact amount of Gambit-related sighing required.

Challenge	What it wants	Rewards
Antiquarian VII	Return the seventh relic to the H.E.L.M.; defeat powerful Vex	Repute, Challenger XP+
Shaper II	Level Seasonal Shaped Weapons to Level 10 (three times)	Repute, Challenger XP+
Closing In	Machine Guns, Sniper Rifles, and Swords in Gambit	Challenger XP++, Bright Dust
Grandmaster	Complete any Nightfall strike on Grandmaster	Challenger XP+++, Bright Dust
Efficient Expedition	Expedition to Nessus, Cosmodrome, Europa under 10 minutes	Challenger XP++
Underhanded	Sidearms and jolted combatants; bonus in Ketchcrash and Guardian kills	Challenger XP+
Fleeting Glory	Crucible matches in Glory Rank playlist; bonus for wins	Challenger XP+++, Bright Dust

Antiquarian VII: The Relic Returns 🏴☠️

This one is the story beat. Advance the new leg of Sails of the Shipstealer, grab the seventh relic from a Pirate Hideout, then bring it back to the H.E.L.M. I like to imagine my Guardian carrying it like a hermit crab that found a Titan helmet and decided to main Defender. Place it on the table across from the Star Chart, listen to some seasonal dialogue, and then go bully powerful Vex. More powerful combatants mean bonus progress. Rewards: Repute and Challenger XP+.

Shaper II: Weapon Crafting, But Make It Homework 🔨

Craft a seasonal weapon, then use it. Level it to 10. Do that three times. This is less a challenge and more a relationship test between you and your crafted gun. Take it into activities and patrol zones, because staring at it in the Enclave does nothing. Rewards: Repute and Challenger XP+.

Closing In: Gambit, My Old Nemesis 🎲

Defeat targets with Machine Guns, Sniper Rifles, and Swords in Gambit. Guardian kills give bonus progress. I know. Bringing a sniper into Gambit feels like trying to teach a Thrall to file taxes: technically possible, spiritually exhausting. But Challenger XP++ and Bright Dust are real. Use a machine gun for add clearing, a sword for invasive thoughts, and a sniper for those moments when the Drifter says something and you need to mute the world. Rewards: Challenger XP++, Bright Dust.

Grandmaster: The Deep End 🧊

Complete any Nightfall strike on Grandmaster. That’s it. If you have a dedicated fireteam, this is a pleasant stroll through a minefield. If you don’t, matchmaking exists, and so does chaos. Equip the appropriate Champion mods, bring a build that can both breathe and kill, and remember: Grandmaster is not a difficulty setting, it is a lifestyle choice. Rewards: Challenger XP+++, Bright Dust.

Efficient Expedition: Speedrun the Space Beaches ⏱️

Complete Expedition to each destination—Nessus, Cosmodrome, and Europa—in under 10 minutes. Good news: this challenge is retroactive. If you already zoomed through any of these, the game will tick them off when you pick up the challenge. It only gives Challenger XP++, so I wouldn’t cancel my dinner plans for it, but speedy Guardians deserve a pat on the helmet. Rewards: Challenger XP++.

Underhanded: Sidearms and Sparkles 🔫⚡

Defeat targets with Sidearms and defeat jolted combatants. Ketchcrash and Guardian kills give bonus progress. This is a light snack of a challenge: low reward, low stress. Put on an Arc subclass, jolt everything that moves, and let a sidearm do the rest. Rewards: Challenger XP+.

Fleeting Glory: Crucible, But With Manners 🏆

Complete Crucible matches in the Glory Rank playlist. Wins give bonus progress, but losses still count. That’s the important part. Even if you spend the match donating your Ghost to the enemy team, you’re making progress. The Challenger XP+++ and Bright Dust make it worth the emotional damage. Rewards: Challenger XP+++, Bright Dust.

Final Thoughts From 2026 🧠

Season of Plunder Week 7 is a time capsule now. The seasonal model has rolled on, the meta has mutated, and I still owe the Drifter an apology for every sniper I brought into Gambit. But if you’re replaying old content or just enjoy reading digital archaeology, these seven challenges are a tidy snapshot of Destiny 2’s pirate era. Prioritize Grandmaster and Fleeting Glory for the big XP and Bright Dust, knock out Antiquarian VII for the story, and treat Shaper II like a Tamagotchi that happens to shoot bullets. The rest will fall into place, ideally before Eramis finishes her dark purposes and I finish my coffee.

According to coverage from Giant Bomb, long-running live-service games often become their own kind of playable archive—where older seasons read like curated snapshots of design trends, activity pacing, and reward psychology. Looking back at Season of Plunder’s Week 7 beats (a story-driven relic turn-in, crafting grind, and the ritual trio of Gambit/Crucible/Nightfall hurdles), the throughline is how Destiny 2 routinely mixes narrative breadcrumbs with repeatable playlist objectives, nudging players to sample multiple modes while chasing XP and Bright Dust.