Destiny 2 Trials of the Nine Map and Mode for October 13-October 16

Trials of the Nine is Destiny 2’s competitive endgame activity. Trials runs during the weekend, starting Friday and ending at the weekly reset on Tuesday morning.

This week, Trials of the Nine is Countdown on Midtown.

Trials of the Nine is a 4v4 activity but is not matchmade, so you will need to bring in your own four-person fireteam. Each weekend, the map and mode for Trials will rotate to present new challenges for players, but will remain the same single map and mode for the duration of the weekend so that teams can work out strategies and learn the call outs. Other teams will be doing the same, so prepare for some tough fights.

To access Trials of the Nine, players must complete the Destiny 2 campaign, finish Shaxx’s Call to Arms milestone at least one time, and be a power level of 260 or greater.

Players must complete the Destiny 2 campaign, the Call to Arms Milestone at least once, and have 260 Power for access to Trials of the Nine.

Loadouts are locked for Destiny 2 Trials of the Nine, so make sure you enter the activity with the weapons and subclass that you intend to use. You won’t be able to change them mid-match. Level advantages are disabled, so don’t worry if you don’t have the best endgame gear. Just go in with weapons you feel comfortable with. This makes Trials more about individual player skill than powerful gear.

Trials can be started by gathering a fireteam of four and clicking on the Trials node, inside Crucible in the Director. A card is completed at either seven wins or three losses, whichever comes first. You can reset your card at any time, so if you are going for flawless, you don’t have to throw two more matches after losing the first.

Trials highlights each players loadout pre-game so that teams can go in fully knowing what they are up against. It’s a much more professional, eSports-level style of competitive mode that should help to put the two teams on a more even footing, because as GI Joe says, “Knowledge is the power to complete at least half of the battle!” Or something like that.

Trials of the Nine wins reward tokens for the vendor in the Spire, a new social space that awaits those who win at least one match in Trials. Turning in tokens rewards Trials gear. There are additional vendors with rewards for getting three wins, five wins, seven wins, and going flawless.