50 Things D2 Pros Do That YOU Don't (PvP)

This video covers 50 essential Destiny 2 PvP Tips-these are the keys to success in the Crucible. I tried to go through these as efficiently as possible while still maintaining some important details so that you can take your Crucible game to the next level in any playlist whether it be 6v6, Trials of Osiris, Iron Banner, or Competitive. I spent a really long time organizing this video to cram in as much valuable information as possible, so I hope you find it helpful!
If you're serious about improving in PvP, you can get one-on-one coaching with me through Patreon: / shadowdestiny
If you enjoy the video or learn something new, leaving a like rating really helps me out!
Here are some OTHER VIDEOS you might enjoy:
How to Improve your Hand Cannon Shot: • How to Improve Your Ha...
The 40/60 Rule in Destiny 2 PvP: • The 40/60 Rule in Dest...
How to find YOUR Controller Sensitivity: • BEST Controller Sensit...
12 BEST PvP Weapons RANKED! • Top 12 BEST PvP Weapon...
My Headset (Affiliate link): massdrop.7eer....
Really important things:
Join the Community DISCORD - / discord
Support my content and get rewards with PATREON - / shadowdestiny
TWITTER - / ltzshadow
INSTAGRAM - / ltzshadow
TWITCH - / shadowdestiny
#Destiny2 #Destiny2PvP

[@ShadowDestiny]

Comment your BEST tip down below. Next up, watch my video about the 1 fundamental rule of PvP: The 40/60 rule: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZW6o4emZZWMpNE

[@earlg925]

Thanks for the excellent content! Question - Wasn't sure how to interpet your honorable mentions in the video you linked here as a controller player - I understand them not making the list due to the reasons you mentioned, BUT would you put crimson be above stuff like darkest before + messenger if you're on the sticks?

[@nicholasjuliano2839]

@@earlg925 for me it depends on the map and play style of your opponents but mid-close range definitely

[@Klaw808]

What’s your gamer tag?? Can’t find you on trials report lol

[@nicholasjuliano2839]

@@Klaw808 me?

[@Klaw808]

@@nicholasjuliano2839 no, i was asking about shadow’s. I can’t find him on trials report

[@Josh-wg7kq]

Watching good players play the game is low key a big part of my improvement. Watching guys like shadow and Benny have definitely helped me weed out some of my weaker points of play like how to use a shotgun effectively. I like seeing those who go over their perks and masterwork cause you can get a better idea of what certain guns really need to be effective. Also, it’s just a game, don’t let a few bad experiences get you down and continue to try to improve. Even if you lose, you win if you learn.

[@ShadowDestiny]

Thanks for this!

[@restlessundead9366]

I just wish I didn’t have to do it for quest this shit gets annoying

[@r2Kd0ugernaut]

i disagree, watching controller andy's get headshot from 10m away from the opponents head and then trying to emulate that on M&K is not helpful.

[@onAquest22]

the flawed match making doesn’t help along with the overly bombastic space magic being better than other overly bombastic space magic, the removal of freelance and the middle finger to the solo player. you win a few games after being set with decently coordinated teams, you yourself don’t contribute nearly as much to your victories (because you aren’t as skilled) but the game is convinced you did so then the fun and learning abruptly ends when you’re pitted against the pvp no life’s who are just looking for easy wins and kd farms bare in mind who are wildly beyond your skill, even better… seemingly every game they’re all put on the same team. then after losing more than a handful of games in a row due to the flawed matchmaking’s incompetence you’re put back in to lobbies you belong in of which you’re able to learn with challenge that accommodates to your gradually climbing skill as opposed to being thrown in the bottomless shark infested waters just for getting lucky with teams for the cycle to then repeat… that’s essentially the destiny 2 pvp experience for the average/regular player which happens to be the large populous OF pvp, so fun right? all this to say there’s a fine line between learning from better players and getting mowed over by them with nothing in your favour resulting in having learned nothing (defeating the whole point of playing pvp depending on your reasons for playing) and no fun in the process. that’s why destiny pvp peaked before destiny 2 had even launched and i stand by that

[@cal6464]

For me: avoid blind bloodlust. Sometimes, it's better to let someone get away with 1 hp while also surviving yourself, instead of chasing around a corner into a 1v3 or a shotgun. Rotate, reposition, retake the fight from an advantage of some form; don't be baited. Great content Shadow!

[@mauveavenger7341]

But that’s no fun

[@vollied4865]

This exactly this, I struggle not to hunt down a toxic person who bags just to make an example of them but half the time I get them but die to their team cuz I pushed in too far ugg

[@omrizubary]

I popped Arc staff with a kill but ended up with low health so I hid behind a rock and picked my targets and I survived cuz I choose not to be bloodlust.

[@yaboimeelo9785]

I did this ended up not dying but only getting 5 kills 😂 so basically afk

[@faaustad]

@@mauveavenger7341 Dying to a shotgun 6 times in a row ain't no fun, either, believe me xD

[@0fficerJimLahey]

My warm up routine is throwing my first two games of comp then playing Red Dead lol

[@ShadowDestiny]

lol

[@RayGun2324]

What do you play on? And are you talking about RDR2? I can relate to this so much

[@DiegoMassili]

Hahahaha

[@c4ch3money]

I didn't even realize this was my go-to as well until I saw your comment... Like half the times I sit down to play Destiny it turns into stalking down a perfect pelt instead

[@manuvmanu9632]

🤣🤣

[@Whispapedia]

The 40/60 rule has been helping a lot in Trials. Definitely going to think about some of these tips this week to keep improving!

[@sean_zombi]

I'm somewhere in the upper tier of console players based on DTR and whatnot, and 40/60 rule is burned into my mind when I go into fights after hearing about it here. I thought I was already good at the game, but just actively remembering 40/60 has helped me take it to the next level and I'm so happy.

[@ShadowDestiny]

Thanks!! context: If anyone is wondering what the 40/60 rule is, watch my video on it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZW6o4emZZWMpNE

[@cykeok3525]

Yeah, that 40/60 thing is super helpful. Against average players, it helps you avoid damage (and being killed entirely). Even against good players, they usually have an answer to it, but it helps you by causing them to expend their abilities anyway.. if you're going to die, at least make them spend an ability to kill you, instead of them only spending some unlimited primary ammo. Plus, if you're expecting it, you can often bait out an ability and still survive. Sometimes if you're lucky, it'll cause the opponents to have to reposition and hopefully overextend in an attempt to get a better angle on you. Having a goal to (almost always) keep one of your shoulders hidden during gunfights makes you automatically more survivable, that video really helped.

[@issamoody5825]

I adopted the 40/60 rule playing Apex

[@jeremyjohnson9585]

@@cykeok3525 those are good tips. Thanks

[@truemagics1305]

Something that has helped me personally and that I’ve since passed along to friends is to HAVE CONFIDENCE and a GROWTH MINDSET in PvP. Most players go in very nervous or already thinking “I suck at PvP so why bother?” If you go in with a fixed mindset, meaning you are stuck thinking you suck, you will most likely (definitely) suck. But if you tell yourself, “I can do this. I got this. I can win.” etc. you will see yourself quickly improving. After all, MOOD AFFECTS EVERYTHING.

[@swiggityswo9558]

Well shit I feel that way about life but I cant change my mood so easily

[@sukunaspimp]

Play a battle Royale beat way to get over nervousness in fps nothing makes you more nervous then 0 respawns

[@Dark-dz8co]

my school taught me that with math lol

[@someguy1365]

@@sukunaspimp Adding onto this, play elim if BRs aren't your thing and you want to work on Destiny-specific gamesense/skills. The best way to learn is under life-threatening pressure lmao.

[@mysticm1736]

Thanks that’s me when I go and then I m just like nah I’ll play something else.

[@yroman11]

Important tip: Recognizing when to change your loadout. It's extremely important to recognize when your current loadout is ineffective. Let's say you're trying to snipe I'm a close quarters map and you just keep getting shotgun aped. Changing your loadout to something that matches the opponent's play style can totally save you in this situation. I always have multiple loadouts for this exact reason and I can't tell you how many matches I've managed to come back from due to changing my loadout.

[@Poplawski96]

This should be pinned up too 👌

[@dream8870]

yea anomaly is shotgun heaven lol

[@omrizubary]

But wouldn't take long changing mods too?

[@badsenseofdirection]

@@omrizubary if you’re quick with good loading times it’s only 15 or so more seconds and it’s well worth it

[@possiblypigeon]

I'm a long time destiny player, even played tournaments at a time, and the one tip that helped me was abusing the radar. In my opinion, the radar is a tool you can be abusing to make your opponents play worse and make bad decisions. Some examples of this: 1. Moving slightly closer to an opponent to move radar "zones" (entering the center/pie slices of the radar). This can make them think you're pushing them, or just much closer than you were originally 2. Getting a teammate to "flash" themselves on a radar in a different direction to distract my opponent, even for a split second, so i can make the play to follow up it. Side note, something interrupting the radar (flashbangs, gemini jester) can really assist you in a lot of situations, especially in modes like trails where it's very important. Good luck out there :)

[@andrewwilliams3207]

This is why Lorentz is so clutch. That enhanced radar is sooo good.

[@v3xxong823]

I’ve played for years and I can’t even pull 5 kills in comp so I gave up and I just dance around the map giving free kills

[@Heli]

instructions unclear, capped 10 flags in one match, lost, and made a tweet about the top fragger not playing objective LOVE the quality of videos man, so damn underrated.

[@ShadowDestiny]

LMAO, thank youuu

[@demonjoe]

Haven't even watched the video yet and I KNOW it's gonna be a banger

[@ShadowDestiny]

BRO

[@MonogramW]

One of the best tips I've ever gotten was to figure out which FOV worked best for me. Seems simple enough, but it drastically improved my performance in game

[@ShadowDestiny]

Awesome :) You watch my FOV vid?

[@ziolan8970]

The best advice I got from any of shadows videos is on how to use cover. Just using a little cover in gunfights can give you 1 or 2 bursts needed to survive and possibly even take on more than one opponent

[@spleenya]

for question number 19 (I'm dying before I can react) look into decreasing your input lag. Most tvs have between 20 and 55 milliseconds of input lag which might not sound like much but any amount of input lag can greatly decrease your ability to aim.

[@ShadowDestiny]

very true! I actually made a video about that earlier this month haha :)

[@cheddar4203]

FACTS my 0.01 sec monitor low key carries me😭 plus with my track racing reaction irl helps a lot any other tv I start getting folded

[@ShadowDestiny]

What is a useful tip you'd give to a fellow Crucible player? Put it in a comment-let's create the ultimate collection of game-changing PvP tips for the community!

[@Kingsley-qk6hz]

aim for head

[@nathant.2685]

dont go alone

[@KaeptnBolle]

Take your shotgun and shouldercharge into your enemies. Just like everyone else does.

[@FENRIR_RAGNEROK]

Use your bloody super.

[@rennocs_ghost7292]

Fire your gun

[@shadowranger125]

My one tip would be don't be afraid to run to teammates if you're getting rushed. Getting one kill isn't worth your life if you have the opportunity to escape. It's far better to run, regroup with your team, then push back as one. Fantastic video, Shadow. This series has made me a much better player. I've gotten so much done that I had started to think I would never be able to. Keep 'em coming!

[@nulla9601]

12:03 I like to use ctrl for swapping weapons, you can just press it with the bottom of your pinky without letting go of the shift button (pressing swaps between kinetic and elemental, holding it switches to heavy). If you have a mouse with buttons on the side, I highly recommend using your melee and class ability on there, it is really easy to press it when you get surprised by someone

[@justme2296]

Yooooo heavy ctrl user 🫡🫡🫡

[@metaempiricist]

The real question: how do I avoid matching with players from the opposite side of the world and lose to lag?

[@ShadowDestiny]

Man that's a tough one lol.

[@anarchist_3350]

i actually have a few vids on my own gameplay that show the progress i've made from willy nilly Gambit matches to 10+ kill streaks in 6v6. The biggest tips i've gotten from these kinds of vids was learning what resilience does and what weapons can clap you with so many shots. understanding that allowed me to gauge how long to stay in a fight and when to disengage. that was the second major tip that exponentially increased my KD. Knowing when to disengage. After that, I was told to pick TWO things to work on during my gameplay and to just focus on those two things. So i'd just pop into control and I'd say "okay, today you're going to work on hitting your shots, (hand cannon practice) and engaging and immediately disengaging". Doing this allowed me to start surviving longer till my offensive intuitions and reflexes incorporated this caution into my gameplay. And lastly, and i too cannot stress this enough, WATCH YOUR OWN GAMEPLAY. In the moment of battle you're missing a lot of things that will tell you what you did wrong, where you should've been, what you could've done, and how to approach that situation next time. I cannot tell you how much that helped. And i mean really critique yourself. Be real, be honest, admit when you were outclassed by either the weapon or the opponent. Shadow Destiny mentioned one word many times that i cannot give him enough credit for, and thats the word "NUANCE". Because there IS a lot of nuance. In almost every aspect of the game. Learning to identify and incorporate these nuances will take you miles in the direction you want to go. I've been playing mainly pvp for almost a month and a half now and like i said earlier, i can definitely pull off some amazing plays. At the end of the day, have fun and dont worry about your ''KD''. I personally have some clan members who immediately abandon matches if they think their KD is gonna take a hit. I can't and won't respect it. If everyone did that nobody would ever be able to complete a match of crucible lol. Douche baggey as hell. Don't be that guy. Awesome content Shadow, got yourself a new subscriber. 👍😎

[@aaronv251]

Definitely a comprehensive guide. Perfect amount of coverage on each topic.

[@Entomologist123]

Some of the things Ive learned over the years, are as follows: having a single shotcaller in an intense game can completely change the outcome of a match especially when losing: 2 when your screen or view seems level, if your peaking the same level ground your crosshair will be at head hight, 3 sometimes playing super aggressive with a team, can cause enough chaos to throw off even the best of opponents: Learn grenade hotspots, find a place everyone always goes, throw it there, if you have enough distance between yourself and the person chasing you, once fully recovered flip around and re-engage rather than letting them mow you down

[@souldanny.]

Knowing when to pull back, sliding by covers, and not being afraid to use two primaries skyrocketed my performance. I don't play Trials (because I'm not nearly confident enough in my abilities yet), but I'm very often on the top of my team in Ironbanner.

[@Blaze78x]

Thanks for this upload, these videos really help out Shadow, I actually matched against you in pvp the other day it was crazy!

[@ShadowDestiny]

thanks so much! And GG in Crucible :)

[@antitank_99]

This really helped me survive way longer and gives you an exact time to run away. If you miss the first shot and your opponent doesn't or if you hit a body shot and they hit a headshot leave the fight Immediately and wait for your heath before restarting the fight. It pairs well with the 60/40 rule too.

[@MrDanielLander]

These tips are awsome ! I love the fact that u made a short video of just 21 mins with 50 tips ! Great content !💪🏼👍🏼 good work

[@ShadowDestiny]

much love

[@tonyfox45]

I can say that the 40/60 rule you mention (and detail in the other vid) has taken me from a sub 1.0 to an average 1.4-1.5 player within a week or so. Cover is so important and with everyone knowing the maps like the back of their hands (since Bungie hasn't updated the maps in years), knowing the lanes, knowing your effective range and teaming shots from cover are critical to having any sort of success.

[@hal0justcal865]

Been waiting for this vid, can't wait to show some of my friends

[@ShadowDestiny]

Thanks so much for sharing!! Real MVP

[@rjohnson2813]

The NUMBER 1 tip that matters most: Build a very good gaming rig and move to an area/ISP where the destiny 2 pvp netcode will treat you better. No matter how good you are if you are playing even half a second behind someone they will win. Spent about four months working away from home and brought my KD up over 3 as a solo. Now back home and having tried three different ISPs from two different residences the KD has leveled to a meager 1.1. Which is still alot better than when I was playing on onboard graphics. The truth is you can't really know how good some one is until they sit down at a proper LAN based tournament. This is true of any networked game. Having said all that; I feel like everyone pretty much follows these tips and they are a good idea. I see the pvp clips on youtube VS what the looks like for me makes it seem like two totally different games. I'll probably keep playing though.. even with repeatedly dropping dead seemingly for no reason to have someone pop out a couple seconds later and shoot at me. The tips can't hurt though. EDIT: BTW something help is to pick peak times for your region/country and time zone. You will find much less wonky games with less overly stupid lag.

[@prod.milkywayzz5649]

Man thank you so much this honestly had helped me so much, I took what I learned from this and in just two days I went from getting (please don't make fun of me) getting like 1-2 kills every crucible game, but now I'm getting almost 10-15 every match and hitting basically 150% more of my shots and my strafe has improved so much as well and I'm using the 60/40 rule a lot more and optimizing my Dodge ability to get to cover tysm

[@ShadowDestiny]

Wow, insane progress! Awesome job dude

[@car0ndelet]

Definitely hit some mellow PVE before starting up Crucible. Especially if you’re not on the constant D1/D2 grind. Helps to warm up that muscle memory and you can focus on the type of shots you want to make and which weapons feel best to you. Yeah, meta is meta, yada yada, but using a weapon you’re super comfortable with makes the experience better overall IMO

[@amatoxic1452]

One thing I learned from a video I watched a while ago and really works: focus on what you want to get better at, for example I realized I need to be better at slide shooting (with HC not shotty) and teabag shooting, so even if I wasn't doing these things well & often led to my death because I wasn't good at it, I was making it a habit so that I would naturally be more slippery without forcing myself to think about it.

[@felipepinzon-trower5269]

my main problem in pvp is if I am in a tough situation I often panic rather than evading or chunking the gunfights. for me it is hard to maintain control of a hectic situation

[@Glov3R89]

Man I felt personally attacked with the "don't be this guy" with the sprinting haha. Awesome video, just by slowing down I feel I've done better, in Aus I feel the matchmaking be crazy at the moment everyone has 3+kd but taking tips from this made me go from about to do strictly pve to getting better at pvp. Love it!

[@DesertRatPainting]

I watched the 60/40 rule vid about a week ago. Before that I was getting sub 1.0 kd, since then I've jumped up to 3-6.0 in survival. Two nights ago my fireteam went on a 9 win streak in eliminations where a week or two ago we were getting bodied regularly.

[@bubblebenderr9493]

I personally warm up with shotgun-handcanon in control, after a couple games I swap to my main sniper-smg, do a game or two, then go into elimination. This warmup helps me get into the groove of PvP and my reaction time from being to close to everyone

[@Zzucc]

Pro Tip: stop running straight through the middle into 3 people in trials leaving your teammates wondering if you even have a thought process at all. *Ffs jerry we lost at round 7 you're 0-8 and your overall damage was 187. How tf did you get to a 5 win card?* ^ Jerry is just a place holder for that one blueberry you get in solo que 😆

[@davidbruno9041]

I've watched this video 3 times in the past year. It's helped tremendously and I get something new each time. My biggest takeaways, surviving is way better than risking the death over and over for the kill. I don't rush anymore and take a patient pace. My second tied with the above is committing to whatever action I decided to do. Just commit to the lane, the one enemy I'm shooting, and specifically my loadout that I feel good with. I know my weaknesses so I play with what I'm good at at the moment.

[@MrMaKPan]

running away from engagement is not a bad option, lead opponent to ur comfortable position on the map.

[@MysteryMastery69]

Smashed the like button and my aim improved instantly. I was missing almost every shot until I hit this like button, suddenly I'm able to actually get kills. Best tip in this video!

[@ionkaiser6394]

New sub. You are very clear when you speak and it's easy to understand you.

[@ShadowDestiny]

Hey man, glad to hear it! Appreciate the sub 😅

[@DeadBoyVonn]

I Started Off In PvP With A 0.54 KDA (I’m Not A PvP Player) But Now That I Been Doing PvP More (Every Couple Hours), I Start Mimicking What My Opponents Be Doing && I Boosted My KDA Drastically. I Went From 0.54 To 0.92 In Just A Week. I Feel Like I’m Getting Better, But I Still Need A Lot Of Things I Have To Polish Up On. Like When To Pop Super, When To Switch To Secondary, Etc. Watching This Video Gave Me A Lot Of Tips To Practice && Work On. Stay Blessed Bro. Awesome Vid BTW 💯🤘🏾

[@astralserpent2020]

I just started playing pvp this week when iron banner rolled around, and this stuff really helps, thanks a bunch

[@akutosai9187]

14:10 thanks for the tips and st5uff but that shot was the pinacle of this video omfg

[@Iamstarlord92]

I realise this is an old video now, but this and the 40/60 rule videos have done more for my game than almost any other. I got my 10th We Ran for the guilded triumph today, appreciate all of your content good sir 🙏🙏🙏

[@ShadowDestiny]

Glad it helped!

[@Iamstarlord92]

@@ShadowDestiny thank you dude!

[@faithdefender5186]

The 40 60 rule was a major help for me. I went from struggling to get a 1.0 and a dozen kills in 6v6 to 2.0 and 20 plus kills on average.

[@subb3rnaut]

Learned much here and in your other videos! Taking cover, move back instead of engaging, 40/60 etc. great job and very helpful!!

[@TheValussy]

if you play alot of pve just remember to turn up dialogue volume before going into story missions ect (its just nicer with audio in pve)

[@DuafromD2]

I know shadow went over this at 3:23, but coming from almost a hardcore sniper main, YES! Look at your opponent when trying to hit a shot in your field of view. Especially when sliding in and out of cover.

[@DuafromD2]

We all know I am a GL main though :)

[@vitamindevil-g3250]

The 40-60 rule, and all the sniper tip vids helped immensely. The two combined allowed my sniping, lfr, bow, fusion, and aggressive frame scout plays become relavent. Now working on HC. Thank you shadow, not only for your content, but stomping on me in Crucible. Like in this vid, those cracked players help you out even in a losing battle by allowing you to recognize how they move, and how you should move, different angles you didn't know about, etc. My lifetime kd,/kda doesn't reflect how I play now :)

[@vitamindevil-g3250]

In addition about trials; the best way to think of it is a chess game, not a shootout. Positioning, and tactics trying to draw out the opponent to make the first mistake by being disciplined/patient if needed be to get the first strike. Also, don't take your supers to orbit where it's useless please. If I get it in round 3, I'm using it asap since it's about the W, not your efficiency (kd) in there. The KD will follow with how efficient you fight

[@Sizzins]

Thanks so much for the pointers, learned a lot and happy to say I’ve subscribed. Recently getting back into destiny and trying to get like you my guy!

[@ShadowDestiny]

Awesome bro thanks so much! Good luck out there guardian

[@Perks_101]

I've been doing this. Following the best team mate on my solo comp grind so hopefully we can tram shot etc makes it a lot better

[@bensmith8723]

i found that point #20 is the single biggest factor in winning or losing a round of trials. we had this one guy who really liked to push but would never call it and we'd always lose him then get pushed into a 3v2 and often lose. simply by him calling his push/flank we could go in with him and our round win rate went up almost instantly. communication is key

[@hekard7903]

Thank you so much for this! I'm not the greatest at PvP but it made me feel more confident due to your positivity 😀

[@Croissant_of_USA]

#34s response killed me but its actually true😭💀

[@DroneTheDruid]

So I'm not colorblind, but I struggled to see the radar in my peripherals because it's that darker red color; especially on maps with heavy red light like altar of flame for example, so you can turn on color blind settings to switch it to specific color blindness type that make the radar a bright yellow instead of that red. Helped me immensely with radar detection without actually looking at the radar. It will change the backgrounds of some items but the important stuff like purples and exotics still show as normal.

[@bxndit8463]

Personally I talk through while I’m playing, like I’m doing a live commentary and I’m explaining my actions. Don’t know why but it improves my decision making and helps explain unnecessary deaths when I normally would’ve tilted

[@omgftwttyl]

thanks for tip 38. really started thinking my controller would crutch me but keyboard is was too tough for me

[@driftyskids449]

The best thing you could do is play cover, not over extend, stay with your teammates and have a good close and long range loadout that you are comfortable with and already be scoped in when you’re going around corners and take it slow

[@justinzabroccoli]

So I just watched this yesterday and the part about 3v1 and treating it as just a series of 1v1s was great advice. I actually pulled off a team wipe in Survival last night by following your advice. Great video! Thank you for the help.

[@ShadowDestiny]

love to hear it!!

[@CalebBemount]

Recently got the machine gun reward from Shaxx and watched this video and now with both a good gun and your great advice I feel like I’m ready to take on the crucible again after my batch of losses last time I tried.

[@GeeBeeOhThree]

I love Twilight Gap because my favorite build is designed for area control. It works terrifyingly well in close-quarters maps like it

[@maskoblackfyre]

Tips I got when I was learning PVP way back in D1: 1. Learn the maps by learning how the players flow through them and where the spawns are. All maps have "hot spots" where teams meet up and fight. Best way to do that is to play Rumble. You will spawn everywhere and you'll learn really quickly where people are going once they spawn to fight. That way you will learn where to expect opponents in matches. 2. Get comfortable dueling. When you spawn do not run to where you last died and do not zip around the map like a headless chicken. Spawn and guard the general area where you spawned. People will come to you and it's better to get comfortable expecting them and beating them in a 1v1. When you spawn in be aware where you cover is and where your exits are. Also, do not run or jump if at all possible, in this stage. Get good at just being a good duelist with your feet on the ground, before you try to run and jump everywhere. Don't look for the action, let the action come to you. It will give you confidence in yourself to then start "looking for trouble". 3. When in a team game mode, pick a teammate and follow them everywhere. Be their protector. If they die, pick another teammate. Move with them and shoot together, even if they're unaware of you. You will learn so much by following people and that will teach you one of the most important lessons in Destiny PVP: How to be a good passive teammate. Most people solo queue but even then you can be a good teammate by knowing where your team is, what they're doing and where they're going. No coms, no coordination, yet still working together. Most top players are very good at this, so learn this skill. 4. Do now worry about KD or win ratio. Try to make smart plays and good decisions. PVP is unpredictable and sometimes you'll die with nothing you could have done. Don't stress about it. Just try to have matches where you did positive things: Capped zones, dunked sparks, won your 1v1s, used your super effectively, healed your team with a properly placed rift, etc etc. Even if you end up with a 0.6 KDA. 5. Play matches where your goal is to stay alive as much as possible. Run away if you're not happy with a situation or you missed your first shot. Just run away and let your health recover. You don't have to run all the way to the other side of the map, just far enough to basically restart your engagement or pick a new one. Get good at doing this and you'll see wonders happen in your actual PVP matches. 6. Pick a primary weapon and only use that weapon in matches all day. Even if it sounds crazy, like a sidearm in a big map. Make it work, get as much value out of it as possible. Force yourself to use that weapon (type) for a while to really learn the benefits and downsides of it. Once you're familiar enough or feel like you need a change, pick another one. But play at least 10 matched with each, because if it's not clicking right away you might just feel tilted and pick something else. These steps, these "lessons", are about training, not slaying and top fragging. It's about getting the basics down first. These are not "game night", these are practice sessions. Treat them that way. Some of these tips seems conflicting with one another, but you don't do them all at the same time. You practice each one at a time. That's what I did. Sometimes when I'm rusty and haven't played PVP in a while I repeat some of them just to warm up and get back into the groove of things. The main goals are to learn the spawns and flows on maps, to get better at dueling and staying alive and to be a better teammate even in solo queue where nobody is talking to you.

[@quinnandrews4457]

I would highly reccomend binding your jump to left trigger, and your crouch to right stick. This allows a higher potential for simultaneous movement and accuracy because you only move your fingers for grenade, but can jump/dodge/aim all at the same timw

[@joelwilcox1728]

For me, my goal while playing pvp is to have a positive k.d. I have a secret little competition with my teammates, and my opponents. I strive to have the best k.d in the lobby. (Doesn't always happen) I focus on playing smart, and I try not to care if I win or lose. (unless it's trials), I'm just there to sharpen my skills and to have fun.

[@lesleesoto1052]

I didn't think to move my body and not my aim. Wow. Gonna try that. Something that has helped me as a warlock is having 100 resilience and high recovery. Intellect is rad and all, but being able to have more time and take more damage when I can't react fast enough or evaluate a situation has really saved me. Warlocks are slower to begin with, so even when I'm on my A game and my fingers aren't getting all tangled up and having seizures, it still takes a while to maneuver myself out of a situation. But High Res + Karnstein to get melee health back (I often get into slap fights), has helped me with health regen and not dying.

[@spicychickenize]

The best thing that has helped me improve... IS this channel. Thank you

[@TargetingComputer]

For loadout I ran a Lorentz Driver & a sidearm Pardon our dust & handcannon Are these good? And should I change?

[@brucenoble520]

Great video look forward to watch many many more, again and again.

[@joshuaperes7115]

I like spending some time running around in EDZ before i jump into crucible. i do it to get my adrenaline going

[@PrankulVerma]

17:25 he flew off xD

[@DracoJax07]

Today I learnt....50 things that will definitely help me in PVP, thanks Shadow.

[@sadlittlewizard7188]

Complimenting your weapons of choice with your abilities. Weapons come first as they are (well should be, they aren't always) the dominate force in a crucible match. Whether that is pairing the ability to a weapon, or using the ability to cover for a weapons weakness. If you aren't using abilities in tandem with your weapons you are sorely missing out. My personal favorite for awhile not is cryogrenades, osmiumancy gloves, and fighting lion. Getting a kill without ever having seen your opponant face to face is both powerful and incredibly satisfying.

[@johnalves2148]

The advice that helped me improve the most was to be aware of the types of weapons that are meta, and what specific weapons are being the most used. You can learn and improve with those same weapons, but you should always prioritize weapons you are comfortable using

[@math8615]

Dude I saw your vid yesterday and I went from max 4 kills per game to 19, you're a life saver-

[@xen0781]

40/60 Rule for sure the best thing that has came out of this channel for me, got me my first flawless, we ran, and improved my kd substantially. Thanks Shadow 👍

[@Emrakool]

I think one tip that has helped me the most other than the 40/60 rule is a movement related one. That being, when you move, ask yourself why. Why am I leaving this location, is there a better position of advantage that I am going towards. Do I need to change angle for the enemy's new spawn. Are my team across the map from me and any second there will be 4 enemy's near by. This is super important, as a lot of the time you hear to have good movement and change locations, but you end up just running around the map and never stopping even when you have a great vantage point.

[@mu_hub]

Best way to improve, know when to disengage, it'll be earlier than u think most of the time, and sometimes it's better to disengage or run before even 1 shot is fired.

[@matrixblast]

Shadow your vids are always so helpful to me, I used your tips from an older video and I played a lot better, I showed you to my friends to help them too

[@CaramelColored]

I bounce between 1.89 and 2.0 kda almost weekly so I think it’s safe to say I’m a reliable 1.8kda dude. My warm up “routine” is EDZ landing zone lost sector using whatever special I plan on using that day then off to use the same weapons in a NF then into Rumble then Comp then Trials. Usually does pretty good as a warm up since my 1st or 2nd card is a solo queue flawless.

[@Doughnutlord08]

This video helped so much I managed to correct a lot of the mistakes I was making is PvP

[@ShadowDestiny]

glad to hear!

[@modex6963]

The tip that helped me: always think ahead. When you are in one gunfight be thinking about what you need to do immediately after.

[@fifthcylinder]

Shadow, always with the fire. Thanks

[@batyeeter8767]

Personally what I have learned through out my D2 pvp experience is that if you want to improve with a seartan archetype of weapon even if you start losing every gun fight you gotta commit to using it so you can become better at it. That is how I learned to snipe.

[@MasonJF19]

Taking a break for me was advice I needed to hear. I get way to disappointed in myself that I repetitively go back into pvp or trials just so I can prove to myself I'll get better .. Wherein actually fact, I needed a break since I was frustrated and everything and couldn't fully concentrate on the match 😖

[@Notic.]

Actually I know this is super late ( 3:28 ), but as a marine veteran, the same is applied in real life, you ADS with both eyes open focusing more on the target while keeping the the sight or chevron ( ^ ) on target to better land shots and be more aware off your surroundings. It's kind of a cross eyed skill, you focus on the target with your "weak" eye and on the sight with your "strong" eye. ( weak and strong behind referred to being right handed and left handed). Unfortunately if you are not infantry you don't get taught this as much as you should, but it is taught during annual range tests, I always found this interesting :)

[@Rivalmarcochu]

For 2:38 when you were reviving your teammate you can go to the window where your teammate died and still revive them without being killed or shot at it's a great tip and I stumbled upon it by accident

[@Linkman8912]

2:23 I like that map lol

[@Jonihazard]

I know i've improved ever since watching these vids. My awareness is improved, my use of cover is improved and i'm more often now the top player in the lobby. I use mainly bow and Hand cannon. I used to play with sniper and Hand cannon but thought i'd try bow...I've gotta say, best decision ever! I have so much fun with bow and it's so enjoyable getting those sweet kills with the bow. I have always played multiplayer games like CoD and BF etc. So there is nothing wrong with my aim. But, playing PVP in Destiny is something else compared to CoD etc. The movement, the gunplay and abilities. So i had my struggles but i have improved so much after watching your vids and other content creators vids :) So thank you for the great content!

[@isaacw8055]

My tip would be to watch the 60/40 rule video, because that really helped me, and a secondary tip would be ,literally just think about what your doing and actively try to better yourself. As opposed to just running around just doing whatever.

[@Zion-18]

51. Watch every Shadow video Thanks for your content, man. It's always helpful and has helped me go flawless 4x this season (had never done so before) and rock an IB efficiency well over 2.0 for the first time. For a long time you were the only PVP guy I followed (though I've now added Patty to my sub list).

[@TheKilljoy93]

If I'm getting on for the first time in the day I like to play a few rounds of gambit. The mix of pve and pvp helps with a gradual warmup

[@BrianHamil]

The 40/60 rule is critical. I've improved in PVE and PVP with that. The radar awareness is very important too.

[@TheMhannah100]

Life lessons by Shadow

[@bringmethepeace1927]

no way this is great, i saw you in the crucible and the tower, about to scan the video now and see if im getting demolished in the hive map (that was the most memorable defeat) and seeing your hood and the name shadow just clicked. alls im sayin is good stuff, that was surprising

[@bringmethepeace1927]

update; i didnt see myself

[@bringmethepeace1927]

also, for reference i thought the game at 5:30 was a specific run

[@randomplus2428]

I just watched this a while back and became so much better, I stopped playing d2 for a while and my skill dropped. Now I came back to see what Im not doing right and I just used some of these tips to get a 6.0 after losing almost every match for the pass week

[@okay_1204]

Some weapons are very underrated, I’ve been running wish-ender with a quickdraw igneous hammer (with double hand cannon dexterity) for a while now and it’s basically an insta kill once you land the bow shot. Not to mention the ability to pre-aim with the wall hacks

[@xandernelson1492]

It took me not even an hour to get used to hip-firing with DMT. Now it feels like I can't miss. Plus, it really helps that I'm just really good with scouts.

[@xandernelson1492]

Also, quick tip for apes. Don't just rush towards the enemy with a shotgun. It's much more effective when you have your primary out most of the time. Use whatever primary to soften up the enemy, then go in with the shotgun. Or, if you're a titan, ballistic slam.

[@xandernelson1492]

Just started using vex for a solar build. I got 126 crucible kills with it in 3 hours.

[@silverwol1392]

The 40/60 rule. Was extremely helpful.

[@keuna954]

I needed this thanks ❤

[@LogicalCentrist]

Man how do you only have I have 50k subscribers? I came across your channel by accident and Im blown away by the quality of your content. Keep it up!

[@ShadowDestiny]

thanks! I really try to focus on the quality to make every video as good as I can. Appreciate the kind words :)

[@alertArchitect]

The piece of advice that has helped me the most in PvP (so far) has been very simple. Everything is, on one level or another, going to feel like bullshit. Immortal spammers? Feel like bullshit if they get anywhere near you. Shotgunners? Feel like bullshit if you aren't ready for them. Jotunn? Bullshit 110% of the time. The key is, don't let that bullshit get to you. If it's all bullshit, you might as well take it in stride and roll with the punches. Also, my regular warm-up is to grab Banshee's daily bounties, go to either Cosmodrome or EDZ, load up on all of the non-random bounties from Shaw or Devrim, and just run around killing enemies until all of the bounties are done. Best way to warm up IMO because you're in a low-danger area, allowing you to focus on aim and movement, and since no aim trainer I've used has ever been able to properly emulate D2's feel it lets me get warmed up in the game itself, so there's less mental re-adjustment going into Crucible. Also helps you get used to D2's feel and settings if you're hopping on after playing another game for a while like I sometimes do.