Destiny 2: How to Upgrade Monument of Triumph Catalysts Fast

Monument of Triumph finished the Exotic catalyst grind in Destiny 2 once and for all: Bungie added 25 brand-new catalysts to Exotics that never had one and layered 9 extra perks onto existing stat-only catalysts, so every Exotic weapon now has an upgrade path. The trap is treating that as one giant checklist. The fast way is to split catalysts by where they come from — ritual activity drops, Exotic Orders, and raid or dungeon exclusives — then start with the weapons you already run in weekly PvE and endgame DPS, because those upgrades pay off the moment you finish them.

The short version

• Use Exotic Orders. In the Seasonal Hub, grind Legendary Orders — each completed one has a chance to convert into an Exotic Order, and turning that in gives a guaranteed (random) Exotic catalyst. It is the most reliable source for any catalyst not locked to a raid or dungeon.
• Check the source before you farm. Open Collections → Patterns and Catalysts → Exotic Catalysts and hover any catalyst; it tells you exactly where it drops (Vanguard/Crucible/Gambit Ops, or a specific raid/dungeon).
• Prioritize what you already use. Finish catalysts for your daily-driver Exotics first, ammo/utility upgrades second, boss-DPS Exotics third.
• Raid and dungeon catalysts are hard gates. Wish-Ender comes from the Shattered Throne dungeon; Euphony drops from the final boss of Salvation’s Edge. Only start these when you actually plan to run that activity.

What Monument of Triumph changed for Exotic catalysts

Monument of Triumph is Destiny 2’s final major content update before maintenance mode, and Bungie used it to close every remaining gap in the Exotic sandbox. Twenty-five Exotics that never had a catalyst got one, and nine existing catalysts gained an extra perk. If you had older Exotics gathering dust in the vault because they never got an upgrade, that excuse is gone — and a handful of weapons you wrote off as weak are worth a second look now.

The availability rules matter more than any raw list of names:

• Catalysts for Exotics that come from random drops, quests, or the Exotic Archive are in the general loot pool — you can farm them from ritual activities (Vanguard, Crucible, and Gambit Ops) or pull them from Exotic Orders.
• Raid-exclusive and dungeon-exclusive Exotics keep their catalyst chases tied to those activities. Wish-Ender’s catalyst only drops in the Shattered Throne dungeon; Euphony’s only drops from the final boss of the Salvation’s Edge raid.
• Because every Exotic now has an upgrade path, the smart move is a short priority plan, not a release-order sprint through the whole catalog.

The patch is generous in coverage but not in time. Start 20-plus catalysts at once and you end up with a vault full of half-finished upgrades and nothing actually online in your loadouts.

If you want the complete drop-source breakdown for each weapon, see our companion guide on how to get every Monument of Triumph catalyst.

Exotic Orders: the fastest reliable source

Random ritual drops are slow — the per-activity chance is low enough that you can play for hours and never see the catalyst you want. Exotic Orders fix that. Here is the loop:

• Open the Director and go to the Seasonal Hub (bottom right). You’ll see your active orders on the left.
• Complete regular orders to fill the meter, which eventually awards a Legendary Order. Each completed Legendary Order has a chance to convert into an Exotic Order.
• Turn in the Exotic Order and you get an Exotic catalyst — the specific catalyst is random, but the payout itself is the most consistent catalyst source in the game right now.
• Don’t like an order’s objective? Reroll it for glimmer. Swap PvP objectives you won’t do for PvE ones you will.

Exotic Orders pull from the general loot pool — so named catalysts like The Last Word, Parasite, Truth, The Lament, Microcosm, Winterbite, Bastion, The Chaperone, Devil’s Ruin, and Khvostov 7G-02 are all on the table. They will not hand you raid- or dungeon-locked catalysts; those stay in their activities.

The best priority order for new catalysts

The best first catalysts aren’t the strongest on paper — they’re the ones that improve a weapon already in your normal loop, so every strike, Crucible match, dungeon run, or raid clear does double duty.

• First: Catalysts for Exotics you already use every week. If a weapon is in your standard PvE loadout, finish that catalyst first even if another looks flashier. An upgrade you actively use beats a stronger upgrade that sits unfinished.
• Second: Catalysts that improve ammo economy, handling, reload feel, or utility. Euphony’s new catalyst, Enlightened Action, improves reload speed and handling on damage — the kind of quality-of-life gain that helps every encounter, not just boss phases.
• Third: Boss-DPS Exotics that matter for raids, dungeons, and harder PvE. If your group runs endgame content regularly, these move up fast. If you mostly play solo playlists, keep them below your daily drivers.
• Fourth: Raid- and dungeon-exclusive chases for weapons you don’t currently use. These sound prestigious but carry the most obvious access gate.
• Last: Collection clean-up catalysts for novelty Exotics or PvP weapons you rarely touch. Save these until your active arsenal is already covered.

A simple rule: if the catalyst will affect your next ten activities, start it now. If it only matters in a hypothetical future build, park it.

Fastest workflow to unlock and finish catalysts

The fastest route is a loop, not a straight line: sort by source, unlock in batches, then finish objectives while you keep chasing the next batch.

1. Sort every target weapon by source first

Make three buckets:

• Ritual / Exotic Order catalysts: anything that lists Vanguard Ops, Crucible, or Gambit as its source. Grind these as a group — and lean on Exotic Orders, since one Order payout can hand you a catalyst that pure ritual RNG might withhold for hours.
• Exotic mission catalysts: some Exotics (like the Cull’s Shadow mission weapon) drop their catalysts from their own mission rather than the world pool. Run the mission directly.
• Raid and dungeon catalysts: only start these once you know your fireteam plans. Don’t prep for an endgame catalyst you won’t actually run this week.

This first sort prevents the most common waste: grinding playlists for hours chasing a catalyst that never had a playlist source.

2. Read the objective before you pick the farm

As soon as a catalyst drops, inspect the weapon and read the objective text. Some catalysts want kills, others want completions or specific conditions — and the right farm depends on that difference.

• If the catalyst wants kills, fold it into enemy-dense PvE instead of grinding a low-kill playlist just because that’s where it dropped.
• If the catalyst is tied to a raid or dungeon Exotic, plan the full chain in one window: acquire access, clear the activity, then keep the weapon in focus until the catalyst is finished.

Stop treating “unlocking” and “upgrading” as separate grinds. With this much catalyst volume, you need overlap wherever the game allows it.

3. Pair one easy-to-feed weapon with one heavy investment

Don’t stack too many heavy-dependent catalysts at once. Heavy ammo throttles your pace, and juggling several boss-focused Exotics together usually means none of them progress cleanly. Pair one easy-to-feed weapon with one higher-investment weapon so every run stays productive.

4. Recheck older Exotics before you ignore them

Nine existing catalysts gained an extra perk, so weapons that felt weak or niche before this patch may deserve another look. You don’t need to rebuild your loadout around every change — just test the updated weapon in the content you already play. If it improves your real rotation, move it up; if it still feels niche, leave it for later.

The endgame gates that decide your real progress speed

The biggest divider isn’t your power level or platform — it’s whether the catalyst sits behind content you can run on demand.

• Ritual catalysts are your default progress engine because you can queue them repeatedly.
• Exotic Order catalysts are the best targeted path because the Order payout removes the randomness from the source playlist.
• Raid and dungeon catalysts are hard gates. Wish-Ender’s One for All catalyst only drops in the Shattered Throne dungeon; Euphony’s only drops from the final boss of Salvation’s Edge. Without a group, an LFG plan, or the time block, these are not quick projects no matter how strong the weapon is.

That’s why raid and dungeon catalysts should almost never be your first focus unless that content is already on your weekly schedule. The update widened coverage; it did not erase activity identity for endgame Exotics.

Common mistakes that slow catalyst progress

• Ignoring Exotic Orders and relying on raw ritual drop RNG instead.
• Starting too many catalysts at once and finishing none of them.
• Farming playlists for a catalyst that’s actually locked to a raid or dungeon — always check the source in Collections first.
• Chasing prestige weapons before upgrading the Exotics already carrying your weekly content.
• Assuming every catalyst objective wants the same kind of farm.
• Skipping older Exotics even though nine catalysts gained a new perk.

The fix is ruthless focus. Pick three to five target weapons, not the entire catalog, and keep at least one low-friction target in the set so every session ends with visible progress.

What to do first if you’re returning for Monument of Triumph

If you’re jumping back in specifically for this update, open your most-used Exotics and check their catalyst status. Build a short list: one all-purpose PvE weapon, one special or heavy weapon you bring to bosses, and one weapon whose catalyst is clearly available through ritual activities or Exotic Orders. That gives you a clean first week without forcing raid or dungeon scheduling immediately. Then start grinding Legendary Orders in the Seasonal Hub to bank Exotic Order payouts while you play.

Practical takeaway

Monument of Triumph makes Destiny 2’s Exotic collection feel complete, but the smart play is selective, not exhaustive. Lean on Exotic Orders for the world-pool catalysts, start with the Exotics you already use, save raid and dungeon chases like Wish-Ender and Euphony for the weeks you actually run those activities, and always read the objective before choosing the farm. Treat it as a source-management problem instead of a giant scavenger hunt and you’ll get the catalysts that matter online far faster.