How to defeat Echtar the Shield of Savathûn in Destiny 2
How to defeat Echtar, the Shield of Savathûn, fight in Ghosts of the Deep.
The first boss fight of Ghosts of the Deep in Destiny 2 is against Echtar, the Shield of Savathûn.
This is one of the challenging parts of this Destiny 2 dungeon, so be patient and prepared for a slugfest.
Remember to visit our Ghosts of the Deep walkthrough to learn everything you need to know about this Destiny 2 dungeon.
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How to reach Echtar Shield of Savathûn in Destiny 2
The path to the next encounter is a deep descent into the oceans of Titan. It's a bit of a slow motion platforming puzzle, and you will need to grab air bubbles along the way to prevent the pressure from crushing your Guardian. In general, focus on a path downward as much as possible. If everyone approaches the same bubble the lifesaving effect can be shared, or they will respawn over time.
Most of the drop will be in cylindrical rooms. Occasional the path down will be blocked. The first time this happens look for the broken grate on the wall. Pass through, and look for an opening to the right to proceed.
The next few times this happens look to the perimeter for a light, and jump out of the exterior of the building. Land on the ledge on your way down, go into the middle of the room, and continue downward.
Eventually you'll reach a hive ship, and rising currents will pop you out by a fountian where the next encounter takes place.
How to defeat Echtar the Shield of Savathûn in Destiny 2
This fight is against Echtar, the Shield of Savathûn in Destiny 2. This fight comes with a limitless supply of adds, a multi-tiered arena, and an aggressive boss. Preparation should include selecting weapons capable of controlling large groups, like Riskrunner or Osteo Striga, and boss DPS. It’s best to avoid explosives, as Echtar likes to get up close and personal, and you risk blowing yourself up.
This boss fight arena is roughly divided into two areas. The upper chamber is where the fighting occurs, and there are holes in the floor that lead into the liquid-methane filled depths. Killing the acolytes near the fountain starts the encounter. You advance when you kill Echtar, and there is no enrage mechanic forcing you to complete your objective within a certain timeframe.
There are three primary phases to this encounter:
- Eliminate the Blistered Knights and the Keeper of the Deep Ogre
- Kill Lightbearers and deposit Vestiges of Light
- Boss damage
As soon as the acolytes are taken out, swarms of Hive will begin to spawn. Everyone should work together to keep them under control, and avoid the boss as much as possible. As you fight through them you will be looking for three special knights called Blistered Knights. Killing them causes a Keeper of the Deep Ogre to appear. Take out the ogre, and a Deepsight Orb will appear near the fountain, signaling the start of the next phase.
As soon as one member of the fireteam picks up the orb everyone will be granted Deepsight. Look high up on the walls near the ceiling and locate three illuminated hive symbols. Make note of which they are.
Now you will divide into two groups. One group (likely a pair) will stay above and kill adds, while the other takes on the role of 'Diver', and goes down into the depths.
There are eight different runes that can be interacted with, each corresponding to a different symbol. Touching the correct symbols spawns a Lighbearer up above. Touching the wrong one kills the person who activated it instantly. The Diver will need to send up the Lightbearers (ideally one at a time so as not to overwhelm the team above) while avoiding Echtar, who has followed them down below. Pressure will continue to build and eventually kill the Diver, make sure to use the air bubbles or float back to the surface under the fountain to relieve this and stay alive. Once all three symbols have been touched, the Diver should return to the surface by using the up current at the centre of this space, and help the add-clearers.
The add-clear team will need to take out the Lightbearers as they spawn, taking care to use a finisher to destroy the ghost it leaves behind. Whoever crushes the ghost will be granted the Vestiges of Light, which can then be deposited at one of the three statues that circle the upper portion of the surface. Once all three statues have been imbued with Vestiges of Light, the boss damage phase can begin.
A Wellkeeper knight will spawn near the fountain. Kill it, and a pool of green goo will be left at its feet. Anyone standing in the goo will now do damage to Echtar’s shield. Keep firing on him until his shield is down, and he will be vulnerable to direct harm whether it comes from someone in the pool or not. Again, Echtar tends to like to get up close and personal, so a Well of Radiance is a big help to keep everyone alive. Pour as much damage into Echtar as you can until his shield regenerates, and the entire process starts again.
Next up is our guide for defeating Šimmumah ur-Nokru, the final boss of the Ghosts of the Deep dungeon.