Destiny sherpas are helping players up Rise of Iron's mountain

One of the most valued type of Destiny player is the sherpa. As their name suggests, these people play the game to act as guides for others, just as many of Nepal's real-life sherpa group act as guides in the Himalayas.

Destiny sherpas are the players you want to be matchmade with, those who post on Looking For Group (LFG) sites simply to aid others in completing an objective - be it a raid or other mission - even if no-one else has done it before.

Good sherpas require patience and the ability to clearly explain Destiny's more oblique systems - and then re-explain them when things usually take a couple of tries.

Sherpas have been in high demand the past few weeks, especially, as last year's Taken King Moments of Triumph activities drew to a close. Some Destiny players helped others for hours on end simply to complete tasks and objectives before time ran out.

Now, all Destiny players have a chance to be mountain sherpas in the game, thanks to Rise of Iron's new snow-capped social space. In a knowing nod to its in-game sherpas, the expansion's new social space includes a steep rock face that is possible to climb.

The path isn't obvious, but after one questline sends you scurrying up its foothills, players find themselves coaxed into investigating just how far upwards you can get - and what you might find at the top.

Without spoiling the path (although I'll leave a snap below, just because of the lovely Bungie skybox) it was a difficult climb, not helped by Destiny's own jumping mechanics which often send you bungeeing away from the rock surface if you clip it at the wrong angle.

Perhaps even better than the view, however, was the sight of others helping each other up the path - as if they were the actual sherpas that Destiny players are named for. Head to the Iron Temple hub now and look up - you'll see players inching up the slope in twos and threes. They might fall once or twice here or there, but they will pick themselves up, and keep on going.

Destiny leaves many of its objectives hidden and its strategies obscure enough that players must work together and puzzle them out. It has fostered a ravenous, eagle-eyed community ready to devour and decipher any hint of a secret but also, generally, very willing to help others unlock the game's mysteries too.

Bungie is the creator of all of this, obviously, but also the gatekeeper of its secrets. It's a position that only encourages Destiny's players to band together, to find the safe path through the developer's obstacles. Rise of Iron's mountain climb is the perfect metaphor for all of this, then; simply a fun diversion from the game's main grind, and a cool little secret at its end.

If you have Rise of Iron, head to the Iron Temple tonight. Learn the path, and pass it on.