It's time to rise, Guardians. Destiny 2 has arrived, bringing with it a new adventure chock-full of exciting activities, powerful weapons, and new places to explore. Of course, hardcore Destiny fans have already prepared for the sequel and are surely appreciating the streamlining and improvements Destiny 2 makes over its predecessor.

But what if this is your first foray into the world of Destiny? You'll fare better with some tips and tricks. Let us share some important advice for your early hours with the game so you'll have a leg up on your enemies.

1. Play With Friends

While you can play much of Destiny 2 alone, you'll have a much better time playing with a few buddies. Having allies along for the main missions will result in a more enjoyable experience as you get to follow the story and lore of the game firsthand together.

But there are also technical benefits to being a social player. The game's three classes -- Titan, Hunter, and Warlock -- all have different strengths and weaknesses. If you plan out who's going to use which character among your friends, you can remove weak points in your Fireteam. Plus, the game blocks respawning in many areas of the story missions. Without a teammate to revive you, you don't have much room for error.

Finally, you should join a clan. Not only will this help you find other Destiny 2 players if you don't know any personally, but you're rewarded for participating in a clan. Simply completing basic tasks in the game each week will contribute to a clan XP meter. When it fills, you'll receive more loot.

2. Prioritize Completing the Story

After a few introductory missions, Destiny 2 throws a few options at you. You can explore the planets and find secret caves, complete optional Adventures, or compete against other players in the Crucible. As soon as you can, though, you should work through the story missions.

This is because advancing in the story unlocks many additional activities for you to enjoy. About two-thirds of the way through the campaign missions, you gain access to Patrol missions when exploring, challenges, and other ways to earn more loot. And once you finish the story, even more new options open up for you.

There aren't many story missions and the main campaign is relatively short, so you don't have to worry about missing the fun parts. Plus, you need to reach level 20 (the maximum) to earn most rewards. Completing the story is an easy and fun way to hit this point.

Destiny 2 really opens up once you get to the endgame, so don't worry about running out of activities to do!

3. Don't Be Afraid to Swap Out Gear Regularly

In the early hours of Destiny 2, you'll pick up new weapons and armor constantly. This can become a little overwhelming -- as soon as you get used to an Auto Rifle, you pick up a Hand Cannon that's better! But you should use this time to try out the various weapon types and find out which ones you like best.

It's best to find out you don't like Fusion Rifles or prefer a fast reload time for your Scout Rifles when you're using low-level weapons. Once you get to the endgame, you'll be more picky with what weapons you use because they have special perks and don't drop as often. Finding your preferences early on will help you craft an awesome build later.

In addition, feel free to dismantle gear that's no longer useful. This gives you some Glimmer (currency) and frees up space for new items. Common (white) and Uncommon (green) gear don't have special perks, so don't feel obligated to hoard these old pieces of gear that you never use.

However, you should hold onto Legendary (purple) and Exotic (gold) gear even if you outgrow them. Later on, you can "infuse" other gear into these. This lets you take a weak piece of armor or a weapon and infuse the other item into it, raising its Light level (basically its armor or damage value). Then you have the special perk and cool looks of the Exotic gear with the Light level of the item you picked up later.

If you're not certain about some item, go to the Farm and put it away in your Vault for safekeeping. You can revisit it later and decide what to do once you're more powerful.

4. Exploring the Planets Is Worthwhile

If you're not a high enough level to start the next story mission or want some new loot, a bit of treasure hunting will prove incredibly fruitful. Open your map on any planet and you'll see all kinds of marks. These show treasure boxes as well as Lost Sectors -- caves with powerful enemies who drop great loot. Exploring these may even help you unlock additional subclasses for your character.

Public Events that pop up regularly are a great option for gaining experience. You'll notice these on the map too, and they tell you when they begin. Other Guardians will hopefully join in the event, and you'll receive some loot for completing it. Keep an eye out for optional objectives during these events to activate a Heroic Event. These are more difficult but result in better rewards.

Nearly everything you do on a planet provides you with tokens for that region. Giving these tokens to the area's vendor will raise your reputation with them and reward you with loot.

5. Loot, Engrams, and More Loot

Since Destiny 2 is much more streamlined than the original game there aren't as many little tricks that everyone should know in an article like this. So if there's one tip that we'd leave you with for PvE, it's that loot is everything in Destiny 2.

Loot comes from Engrams, colored drops that you'll find all over the place. Aside from randomly dropping, you'll earn them from nearly activity you take on. Play in the Crucible and you might get an Engram. Trade in some Tokens from completing Patrol missions and you'll get an Engram. Complete daily Challenges and you'll earn one too.

Whenever you get an Engram, what's inside is determined by gear you've collected -- not the gear you're currently wearing. Thus, there's no use in hoarding Legendary or Exotic Engrams so you can wait until you're more powerful. Decrypt them as soon as you're able and enjoy the new gear inside. As you raise your Power level, new drops will have slightly higher Power levels so you can continue to get stronger.

One special type of engram is a Bright Engram. These hold solely cosmetic rewards like new emotes, weapon shaders, and the like. Destiny 2 isn't immune to the widespread use of microtransactions in games and thus you can purchase Bright Engrams with real money. But once you're at level 20, you also earn one every time you fill your experience bar.

In essence, once you complete the story, Destiny 2 is all about taking part in a ton of fun activities so you can earn better loot.

Tips for Victory in The Crucible

You'll likely spend a lot of your early time with the game in the PvE modes, completing the story and exploring. But there's another side to Destiny 2 -- the PvP Crucible. Here, Guardians compete against other Guardians to hone their skills.

While the mechanics inside the Crucible are identical to those outside, there are some special considerations you should keep in mind when battling other players.

6. The Game Disables Level Advantages in the Crucible

This means that a level 5 player who has a 75-Attack Hand Cannon doesn't have a disadvantage against a level 20 player using a 200-Attack Hand Cannon. Special perks and abilities do count, though, so it's in your interest to use your best gear.

But sometimes the best PvE weapons don't perform as well in the Crucible. Don't be afraid to use a weapon you're more comfortable with even if its Attack value is lower.

7. Enemies Using Super Abilities Are Weak to Energy Weapons

If you see someone glow and pull out their Super, switch to your Energy weapon to take their health down more quickly. Hopefully, they'll get overly confident and become an easy target.

8. Be Strategic -- Sticking With Your Team Is Smart

Destiny 2's Crucible only features four players on each team as opposed to the original's six. This means that grouping up is more important than ever and going solo often results in your death. The time to kill in Destiny 2 is pretty long, so once you start shooting, your opponents will have a moment to retaliate. Make sure to prevent them from turning against you by having a buddy finish them off.

The team count change, combined with limiting ammo for the most powerful weapons and making Supers charge less quickly, results in a slower, more team-focused experience rather than an arcade style. Don't just run around trying to get kills -- Call of Duty this is not. Play strategically and use a microphone if you can.

9. Use Your Super Wisely

You'll only receive your Super ability once or twice in an average Crucible match. That means you must make the most of it when you do get it. Make sure to use it when you can do the most damage -- like if you sneak up behind a group of enemies.

Don't rush head-on into gunfire to use it, because you could die before you even reach your foes. And don't panic and use it when you're almost dead -- if you die, you'll have to wait for it to charge up again. Using your Super doesn't make you invincible, but used wisely it can be a game-changer.

10. Control Mode Strategy

One of the five Crucible modes, Control, has you fighting over three flags. You should know two important details about this mode that aren't immediately obvious.

First, having more than one player on a flag doesn't capture it faster. Thus, one Guardian should take the flag while other cover him and keep enemies from defending their flag.

Second, you score by getting kills, not simply by owning the flags. Having the majority of flags means that your team scores two points for every kill instead of one. And a Power Play, when you hold all three flags, provides a huge three points for every kill.

Knowing these small but vital details could bring your team victory in Control.

Go Defend Your Light, Guardian

It's a testament to how well Bungie has tweaked the world of Destiny 2 that many of our beginner tips for the first game no longer apply. The rock-solid shooting, loot grinding, and beautiful environments are all back. But a far better narrative, tons of new activities, and less convoluted mechanics make Destiny 2 a huge improvement and a great place for new players to start.

And this is just the beginning. In the coming weeks and months, Destiny 2 will grow to include new events, plus expansions with new missions, weapons, and areas. It's an exciting time to be a Guardian, and we hope these tips help you hit the ground running and have an absolute blast.

If you need more Destiny in your life, check out the best websites to learn more about the game and complete your experience.

Destiny 2 players, what tips would you give to new Guardians? Do you have any questions about the game we can help with? Share your thoughts about the game so far with others in the comments!