Look, we've all been there. You're staring at your quest log, and there it is—another step in the seasonal loop that feels like it might take forever. If you’re trying to complete the Binding Destiny 2 questline, specifically during the Season of the Haunted (which is where this phrase originates), you probably realized pretty quickly that the game doesn't always hold your hand. It’s a grind. A literal, nightmare-slaying grind.
Destiny 2 is famous for these multi-layered quest chains. You think you're done after one public event, but nope, Eris Morn has more trauma for you to process. To get through "Bound in Sorrow" and the "Binding" loop, you need a mix of patience and a very specific currency called Bound Presence. If you don't have that, you're basically spinning your wheels in the Castellum for nothing.
What Actually Happens When You Try to Complete the Binding Destiny 2 Step?
The core of this quest is the Nightmare Containment public event. It’s chaotic. Cabal are jumping everywhere, fire is on the floor, and you're trying to figure out why your progress bar isn't moving. The "Binding" part refers to the very end of the Tier 3 boss fight.
After you take down the final Nightmare, a Harvester appears. This is your moment. If you have 500 Vestiges of Dread, you can "Bind" them at the Harvester to get rewards. Doing this successfully is what progresses the seasonal story.
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Wait. Did you forget to farm the Vestiges?
That's the biggest bottleneck. You can't bind what you don't have. You get Vestiges from basically anything—patrols, chests, killing combatants—but if you show up to the Containment event empty-handed, you can't complete the binding. It’s a classic Destiny 2 "check your inventory" moment that trips up even veteran Guardians.
The Nightmare Containment Loop
The event has three tiers.
- Tier 1: Kill stuff, deposit cores.
- Tier 2: Kill bigger stuff, deposit more cores.
- Tier 3: The actual boss.
Honestly, the first two tiers are just filler. The real meat is the Tier 3 boss. Each week, the boss rotates. One week it might be a giant Psion, the next it’s a massive Ogre. The mechanics stay mostly the same: drop the shields, burn the boss, and then run to the Harvester.
Once the boss dies, you’ll see the prompt to "Bind Vestiges." Do it. This gives you a Bound Presence. Note that Bound Presence isn't a guaranteed drop every single time after your first weekly clear, but it’s essential for the "Sever" missions.
Why Your Quest Might Be Stuck
If you are trying to complete the Binding Destiny 2 requirements and the quest tracker isn't updating, check two things. First, make sure you actually spent the 500 Vestiges. If you just walked away after the boss died, it doesn't count. Second, check if your quest log is full. It sounds stupid, but it happens.
Sometimes the game glitches. Shocker, right? If the prompt doesn't appear, try reloading the Leviathan instance. The Derelict Leviathan is a "bubble" instances, meaning players are constantly phasing in and out. Sometimes the script for the Harvester just... breaks.
Moving Into the Sever Missions
Binding the Vestiges is only half the battle. Once you have that Bound Presence, Eris wants you to go into a Sever mission. These are the story-heavy, creepy missions where you help characters like Crow or Zavala face their literal demons.
These missions are where the "Bound in Sorrow" quest actually moves forward. You go in, listen to some dialogue, fight a boss, and then—this is the important part—you spend that Bound Presence at the end. If you finish a Sever mission but don't interact with the chest/terminal at the end to "bind," you've wasted twenty minutes of your life.
It’s a repetitive cycle.
Bind in Containment.
Go to Sever.
Bind in Sever.
Talk to Eris.
Wait for the weekly reset.
A Quick Reality Check on the Grind
Is it fun? Sometimes. The first three times you do it, the story beats are incredible. Destiny 2’s writing during this era was top-tier. But by week seven? You’re probably just muting the game and listening to a podcast while you thundercrash into a group of Scorn.
Common Misconceptions About Binding
A lot of people think they need to do the Tier 3 Containment perfectly to get the binding prompt. You don't. You just need to finish it. Even if you join an instance where the boss is at 10% health, as long as you have the Vestiges in your inventory, you can bind at the end.
Another weird one: people think "Binding" is the same as "Focusing." It’s not. Focusing happens at the Crown of Sorrow in the HELM. Binding happens on the Leviathan. Don't mix them up or you'll spend your Umbral Engrams on stuff you don't need yet.
Mastering the Currency Flow
To complete the Binding Destiny 2 tasks efficiently, you have to be smart about your Vestiges of Dread.
- Equip the seasonal armor. Each piece increases the amount of Vestiges you earn.
- Put a chest-finder mod on your Ghost. Opening chests on the Leviathan gives you a decent chunk of currency.
- Don't ignore the patrols. They take thirty seconds and keep your Vestige count high.
If you’re capped at 2,500 Vestiges, stop farming and go do a Containment. Anything you earn past the cap is just evaporated into the digital ether.
Dealing With the Seasonal "Time-Gating"
Let's talk about the elephant in the room. You can't just power through the whole "Bound in Sorrow" quest in one afternoon if you're playing it during the active season. It’s time-gated. If the quest tells you to "Wait for Eris to contact you," it means come back next Tuesday.
If you're playing this as legacy content (after the season has ended), the time-gate is usually lifted, but the grind remains. You still have to do the loops. You still have to kill the Nightmares.
Actionable Steps to Finish the Questline
Stop wandering around the Leviathan aimlessly. If you want to get this over with, follow this specific flow.
First, check your inventory. If you have less than 500 Vestiges of Dread, don't even start the Containment event. Run around the Royal Pools or the Pleasure Gardens first. Kill a few yellow-bar enemies, open three or four chests, and grab a patrol. You’ll hit 500 in about five minutes.
Second, jump into the Containment playlist from the Director. Don't just fly to the Leviathan landing zone; use the specific node. This usually puts you with other people actually trying to finish the event, rather than just exploring.
Third, once the Tier 3 boss drops, ignore the loot chest for a split second. Look for the red scythe symbol. That’s the Harvester. Walk up to it and hold the interact button. You'll see "Vestiges Bound" pop up on the left side of your screen.
Fourth, head straight to the HELM. Check the Crown of Sorrow. If the quest says "Sever," launch the mission immediately. Do not pass go. Do not collect 200 glimmer. Just get it done.
Fifth, ensure you are using the right weapons for the current meta. While the quest is old, the enemies aren't pushovers if you're under-leveled. Use something with Incandescent to clear the swarms of Thrall that spawn during the binding phase.
Finally, talk to Eris. She’s usually hanging out at the portal in the HELM. Once the dialogue finishes and you claim your reward, the quest step is officially complete. If it’s a weekly step, you’re done until reset. If you’re catching up, the next step should pop up immediately.
The biggest hurdle to complete the Binding Destiny 2 steps is honestly just staying focused. The Leviathan is designed to distract you with secret chests and random "Loyalist" events. Ignore them. Stick to the loop: Farm, Bind, Sever, Repeat. That is the only way to reach the end of the story and claim your seasonal title or gear.