The Root of Nightmares Raid is a new challenge for Guardians in Destiny 2’s Lightfall expansion. It’s a task unlike any other once Contest Mode is unlocked, and Fireteams train for it all year long. There is nothing else in endgame content that matches the excitement of a day-one lightfall raid in Destiny 2. Here is all we know: the start time to the Power cap data.
Hence, we can be sure that the main expansion will include a new Raid when Lightfall launches on February 28. As you might expect, Bungie is being cautious with specifics into the void, giving away the surprise. We’ve got a quick summary of all there is to know about the Root of Nightmares Lightfall Raid in Destiny 2 before it begins.
Date and time of Lightfall Raid In Destiny 2: Root of Nightmares’ release:
The 9 AM PST start time has been set for the Destiny 2 Root of Nightmares Raid on March 10, 2023. Bungie stated as much in a TWAB blog post a few weeks before launch.
This gives everyone 10 days to grind through brand-new Lightfall content, create the most powerful load-outs, and reach the suggested Power Level before joining. But as often, many will be rushing into the new Raid the time it goes live, so be careful to plan for potential server difficulties as we’ve seen in the past.
The exact moment the Lightfall Raid will begin in your time zone is shown below.
| TIMEZONE/REGION | LIGHTFALL RAID AND START TIME |
| Pacific Time (PT) | 9 AM / Fri, March 10 |
| Mexico (CST) | 11 AM / Fri, March 10 |
| Easter Time (ET) | 12 PM / Fri, March 10 |
| Canada (EST) | 12 PM / Fri, March 10 |
| Brazil (BRT) | 2 PM / Fri, March 10 |
| London (GMT) | 5 PM / Fri, March 10 |
| Berlin (CET) | 6 PM / Fri, March 10 |
| Moscow (MSK) | 8 PM / Fri, March 10 |
| India (IST) | 10:30 PM / Fri, March 10 |
| China (CST) | 1 AM / Sat, March 11 |
| Japan (JST) | 2 AM / Sat, March 11 |
| Melbourne (AEDT) | 4 AM / Sat, March 11 |
Raid Power Level for Root of Nightmares:
All encounters in the Root of Nightmares Raid have a 1,780 Power cap when Contest Mode is active. Only 20 power separates this from the hard cap, which is 30 power above the soft cap. As long as you have time to level up and obtain powerful gear, almost everyone should be able to fulfill the need in time for the raid.
During the first 48 hours, Contest Mode will be active as usual, leveling the playing field for all participants. This means that everyone will be on an equal footing for the first two days of the Raid, despite how much grinding you do or how high your Power Level is raised before you enter it.
Theme, setting, and monster-type speculation for the Destiny 2 Root of Nightmares Raid:
No specific information has been confirmed on the location of the Root of Nightmares Raid or the type of enemies we will be battling. If tradition holds, we’ll probably learn more via completing the story missions in Lightfall as it’s always a surprise until the most recent expansion goes live.
However, Bungie may have hinted at the Raid’s location just before the conclusion by releasing the most recent ViDoc for Lightfall. Six Guardians are shown at one of the Neomuna locations shown in the ViDoc getting ready for a battle.
Our theories also seem to be supported, at least in part, by the description of the activity that was disclosed. “A dark force haunts Neomuna’s people,” data mined intel reads.
Board the fully explorable Pyramid ship of the Witness with your fire team and face the approaching, ancient threat there. According to this description, the Root of Nightmares Raid might start on Neomuna before we enter a Pyramid spacecraft to solve the mystery at hand. It is yet unknown what kind of opponent will be the main focus.
While several hints lead to a conflict with the coming “big bad” Nezarec, a familiar villain we have only heard of for a long time but have never actually seen, nothing is yet verified. When Root of Nightmares approaches, we’ll make sure to keep you informed of all the most recent raid details right here.
