Marathon: How to Complete Equitable Distribution 1 – Fast Traxus Route on Perimeter

The Short Answer

Equitable Distribution 1 is a Traxus timed delivery on Perimeter. Get to the Hauler — the massive immobile industrial rig — take any ground-level entrance, find the main stairwell, and go to the second floor. The moment you properly step onto that floor, a marker points you at the server room; grab the self-erasing Data Drive from the highlighted console. The five-minute timer starts when you pick up the drive, not when you enter the Hauler, so clear the area and plan your line first. Then run it to the nearest DCON and transfer the drive into its inventory — touching the terminal is not enough. Die with the drive and the run is over; there is effectively one per raid.

Perimeter in Season 2 (Verified July 2026)

Marathon is on Season 2: Nightfall, live since 2 June 2026, running to 22 September 2026, 17:00 UTC. Current build is Update 1.1.5 (21 July 2026), which also opened the limited-time Vault Breaker PvE mode in Cryo Archive through 4 August.

What that means for this contract:

• Perimeter is confirmed live. Bungie’s Season 2 post names it as one of four maps in the new daily-rotating Duos Queue, alongside Dire Marsh, Night Marsh and Outpost. The Hauler and the DCON network are unchanged.
• Duos changes the threat model. On a Duos day the lobby is smaller but every contact is a pair, and the Hauler is exactly where they go. Plan for two-man pushes on the stairwell rather than solo campers.
• Everything wiped on 1 June. Runner level, faction levels and upgrades, contracts, Credits and Vault contents all reset; only the first Priority Contract per faction carried over. If you cleared this chain in Season 1, you are running it again.

Honest caveat: Bungie reworked progression for Nightfall without publishing a contract-by-contract changelog, so we cannot independently verify the exact current name and numbering of this Traxus chain in Update 1.1.5. Perimeter’s geography — the part that actually costs you runs — has not changed.

Before You Drop

This contract is routing and time management, not gunplay. Prep accordingly:

• Take a Sponsored kit. You are here for the contract, not a loot tour, and death should not cost you a personal stash.
• Pick a high-mobility shell. Stamina and speed matter more than damage here. Holstering your primary meaningfully boosts sprint speed once the timer is live. Our Runner shell tier list covers the mobility picks.
• Minimal meds, minimal ammo. One or two heals and enough rounds to break off a fight. Lighter is faster.
• Track the contract. Confirm it is active and tracked in your contracts menu, or the second-floor server-room marker will not appear where you expect it.

Step 1: Find the Hauler

“Hauler” is both a named location and a literal object: a huge stationary rig with cranes, pipework and walkways that stands out sharply against Perimeter’s more open terrain. Watch the top of your HUD for the location name to appear as you close in.

Assume contact. The Hauler is loot-dense and objective-relevant, so at least one other squad is heading there for the same reason. My rule: no looting between drop and Hauler. Every crate you open on the way is time you will not have later.

Step 2: Get to the Second Floor

• Any ground-level entrance works. There are multiple doors and ramps. Take the first safe one rather than circling for the “right” door.
• Slow down inside and listen. The interior funnels people through chokepoints; audio is your best early warning.
• Find the main stairwell. It is a proper industrial stair set, not a hidden ladder, and it is usually close to your entry point.
• Clear the bottom, then sprint up. AI patrols and players hold this stairwell. Once it is clear, do not creep — move.

Step 3: The Server Room and the Data Drive

The game gives you almost nothing until you touch the second floor, then it hands you the answer:

• The marker pops on arrival. If it does not, you are on a mid-landing or the contract is not tracked.
• Follow it along the catwalks. Narrow walkways and short corridors. Natural ambush territory once people learn Traxus runners pass through.
• The server room is obvious: banks of racks, cables, panels.
• Hold interact on the highlighted console until the drive appears in your inventory.

Critical: the five-minute timer does not start until the drive is in your hands. Use that. Clear the room, check your exit, pick your DCON, then grab it.

Step 4: Beat the Timer to a DCON

• Take the nearest DCON, not your favourite one. Five minutes is shorter than it feels under fire.
• Commit to a straight line. Side rooms, “just one crate,” and opportunistic fights are what kill this contract.
• Holster and run. Sprint speed beats readiness here; swap to your weapon only if you are forced to fight.
• Break sightlines. Runners farm the ground between the Hauler and nearby DCONs. Adding a few seconds of cover beats getting cracked in the open.
• Do not start fights. If two squads are already trading, skirt them or slip past afterwards.
• Heal in cover only. One patch, then keep moving. Full health matters less than arriving.

If you have never used one, our DCON locations guide maps where they sit on each zone — worth reading before you run this, because pre-knowing your delivery point is most of the contract.

Step 5: Deliver It Properly

Touching the terminal does not complete anything. The flow:

1. Secure the area. You are rooted while using the terminal — check corners and upper angles first.
2. Interact to open the DCON transfer screen.
3. Move the Data Drive into the DCON’s inventory and confirm.
4. Wait for the objective to tick in your HUD or contract log before you move.

Once it registers, the contract is banked regardless of what happens next. Extract when convenient.

Mistakes That Failed My Runs

• Looting the Hauler after grabbing the drive. The Hauler is dead to you the moment the timer starts.
• Fully committing to a fight mid-timer. A single mid-range trade eats a third of your window.
• Sprinting to a loot cache that was not a DCON. Confirm the icon before you commit.
• Running untracked and losing the second-floor marker.
• Dying with the drive. There is effectively one per raid. Play the carry like a courier, not a fighter.

Squad Variations

• Pre-scout the DCON. Hit your intended delivery point before the Hauler to learn the terrain and ambush spots while nothing is at stake.
• Split roles in Duos. One player takes point and clears the path; the carrier stays a step behind and plays passive. On Duos-Queue days for Perimeter, this is the difference between a clean bank and a coin flip.
• Use noise off-route. A grenade away from your line can pull curious players off it. Risky, effective in sweaty lobbies.

What Comes After

Traxus escalates from here toward the tougher assignments in the chain — our full Equitable Distribution contract guide covers the later steps. Think of this one as the movement test: if you can beeline the Hauler, find the server room without getting lost, and route to a DCON under pressure, the rest of Traxus is mostly the same skills at longer distance. The Marathon hub has our wider patch, map and contract coverage.

FAQ

When exactly does the five-minute timer start?

When you pick up the Data Drive from the server-room console — not when you enter the Hauler and not when you reach the second floor. Clear and plan before you grab it.

What happens if I die carrying the drive?

The run is finished for that contract. There is effectively one drive per raid, so it is not a quest item you can casually recover.

Is Perimeter still in Season 2?

Yes. Bungie lists Perimeter among the four maps in the daily-rotating Duos Queue for Season 2, and nothing in Update 1.1.5 retires it.

Do I need to extract to complete the contract?

No. Once the DCON transfer registers and the objective ticks, it is banked. Extracting after that is about keeping your gear, not the contract.