The Desert Perpetual raid in Destiny 2 brings back a mechanic that was last seen during the Leviathan raids, where you could select the encounters in any order you wanted.
This non-linear method of encounters is a rather interesting bit because it lets you decide the fights that you want to take on first.
It’s a unique concept, and may have worked in favor of this raid had any encounter been an easy one. But these are the Vex bosses of yore, and Bungie has made them lore accurate, so rest assured, The Desert Perpetual will beat you to pulp by the time you get to the final encounter.
How to Choose Encounters in The Desert Perpetual in Destiny 2
When you first load into the Desert Perpetual, you will find yourself in a huge open area with a large purple tower in the middle. Here’s where you need to go.
Yes, there are a lot of Vex enemies here. You can choose to avoid them or ignore them, but this choice won’t really make much of a difference.
When you finally reach the purple tower, you’ll notice that there’s a small lift there. Stand on that lift and you’ll reach the top of the tower.

Here, you should see four different plates, but the fourth remains locked. This is the plate pertaining to the boss encounter, and will only unlock once you’ve completed the other three.
Whenever you interact with one of the three remaining plates, the orbs on the plate align and point in a specific direction. That’s the direction in which you need to move.
The three plates come with three different dialogue options which are as follows:
- “All are entangled” – The Clear Sight Encounter (Hydra boss)
- “Interference patterns swell” – The Inverse Function Encounter (Hobgoblin boss)
- “Axion is axoim” – The Living Rhythm Encounter (Wyvern boss)
Whenever you complete an entcounter, you’ll need to make your way back to this central zone to select your next one. After you’ve completed all three, you get to go finish up business with the boss in this raid.