Destiny 2’s Xur made his weekly return to the Tower on August 23, peddling new wares that Prismatic users need to take full advantage of.
Exotic class items, previously only obtainable from Pale Heart activities and The Final Shape’s Dual Destiny mission, can now be purchased without limit from the Agent of the Nine and cost 41 Strange Coins each.
The currency is capped at 99 in Guardians’ inventory, meaning you can purchase two at a time (with change leftover) before needing to earn more for subsequent rolls, which aren’t fixed. Strange Coins are awarded from most content, but the amount awarded varies. Some of these, such as Gambit and Crucible, offer worse returns on investment than others.
While Xur now offers the most efficient means of Exotic class item farming, these are the best activities to grind, broken down by base quantity and the maximum possible, requiring three stacks of Xur’s Favor.
Best Strange Coin sources
| Activity | Strange Coins (Base) | Strange Coins (Xur’s Favor x3) |
|---|---|---|
| Vanguard Ops (Strikes) | 4 | 7 |
| Onslaught (10 waves) | 2 | 2 |
| Onslaught – Normal (10 waves) | 2 | 2 |
| Onslaught – Normal (20 waves) | 3 | 3 |
| Onslaught – Normal (30 waves) | 4 | 7 |
| Onslaught – Normal (40 waves) | 5 | 8 |
| Onslaught – Normal (50 waves) | 6 | 9 |
| Onslaught – Normal (full clear) | 20 | 29 |
| Nightfall – Advanced | 5 | 8 |
| Nightfall – Expert | 8 | 11 |
| Nightfall – Master | 9 | 12 |
| Nightfall – Grandmaster | 10 | 13 |
| Gambit (win) | 3 | 6 |
| Gambit (loss) | 2 | 2 |
| Crucible (win) | 3 | 6 |
| Crucible (loss) | 2 | 2 |
At first glance, a full 50-wave run of Onslaught stands out as the go-to option to grind, but that’s not necessarily always the case.
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Vanguard Ops and, by extension, manually choosing a fast Strike such as Inverted Spire, Warden of Nothing, or Devil’s Lair from the Destination menu is a great alternative. Each completion with three stacks of Xur’s Favor will grant seven Strange Coins. These are quicker, easier, and require less time investment than Onslaught.
Likewise, Nightfalls on weekly resets where the featured Strike is any of the above, have the potential to be faster. Efficiency will depend on your loadout, however, so it’s worth checking out our guides for the best PvE weapons and builds.
It’s also worth noting that you’re not required to get the Platinum reward from a Nightfall for the full Strange Coin payout, so it’s possible to skip Champions if you’re not hunting for Adept weapons at the same time.
Bungie plans to introduce Exotic class item attunement in a future Destiny 2 update. But, for now, this is the best means of getting your hands on a desired roll.