Destiny 2 Lore - The Aphelion! The mysterious hunters of The Awoken's Techeuns!

Destiny 2's Lore and Story tells us of mysterious predators that have hunted the system. They're called the Aphelion, and they have a particular taste for the Awoken's Techeuns!
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[@Forcer69]

I always forget how many factions are in the lore that we haven’t met/fought yet. The Concordant, Shadows of Yor, hostile Frames, rogue guardians etc. Would honestly love to see more of these factions, even if it’s a one off case

[@ismael2901]

The light eating monster the drifter saw and also nezrac

[@zr_snake]

So true

[@DUKEzors]

@@ismael2901 Drifter was just talking about seeing Calus naked from behind.

[@GoogleAccount-jn5qb]

The Shadows are a bait organization made by Shin Malphur.

[@psyck]

We’ve been fighting the same 4-5 enemy groups (if you separate the Hive and Taken) since D1. At least it’s more diverse than Halo? 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@H9092-2]

Something I will note is that the "Pan-pan, pan-pan" and "All stations" call is naval terminology for "Something screwy is going on, everyone get your heads up". It doesn't imply immediate danger, but it implies the definitely possibility for everything going wrong. All the dials on your plane suddenly doing a flip before settling back to normal is a "Pan-pan" call. Mayday is "Oh dear god we're all doomed" and "we need help right bloody now". Just bit of lore.

[@3ndlessL00p]

Thank you, I had no idea what pan-pan was all about lol

[@H9092-2]

@@3ndlessL00p Because I did a bad job of describing it, here's the official description. "The radiotelephony message PAN-PAN is the international standard urgency signal that someone aboard a boat, ship, aircraft, or other vehicle uses to declare that they have a situation that is urgent, but for the time being, does not pose an immediate danger to anyone's life or to the vessel itself. " And because I didn't define "all stations", it's a radio @everyone.

[@henram36]

@@H9092-2 I kinda viewed it as "head on a swivel" like be alert because something's up. Sorta like that?

[@H9092-2]

@@henram36 Pretty much. All Stations is @everyone and panpan is "hey, something fucky is going on, can I get eyes on it?"

[@1TrashConnoisseur]

these kinds of lore books make me really want more horror-esque missions like Presage.

[@tripleclaw3]

Given the Reveal Trailer for Witch Queen, it seems like they might be adding horror elements to the campaign

[@saladmancer4802]

That lore book reminded me a lot of what happened on the Glycon for some reason

[@rawcontent5166]

That would be kind of cool if they started adding in more horror elements to pretty much all aspects of the game. Especially with considering what's to come, and I'm not just talking about Witch Queen either.

[@emberkryska9265]

Zero Hour’s labirynth?

[@KyberNexus42]

Same, I really don’t like horror but Bungie did it right

[@mediocregamer2484]

Videos like these remind me how big of a world Bungie has crafted, even outside the concept of Light and Dark. It gives me hope for the "...and beyond" part of Destiny 2

[@JJMomoida]

The world that they've built is incredibly vast. What is a real shame is that they struggle to put it all in the game. I'm not referring to whether or not lore exists in or out of the game, but rather that it exists in the form that it does *within* the game. What I mean is that, a lot of the lore is presented simply in text form, and it makes one wonder what the game would be like if we actually got to see and experience most of it in-game.

[@JBinFL]

@@JJMomoida That'd be great. But. We're, what? Seven years in so far? Covering all the lore in game form would span decades. There's a fair percentage of the current players who wouldn't live to see the end of that.

[@JJMomoida]

@@JBinFL I'm not saying they ought to cover all the lore in game form. That is even less feasible. I just feel like going forward, it should be integrated more into the narrative and world as opposed to text logs. Essentially, I would like to avoid a situation in which a character gets A LOT of characterization in, say, a lore book or something, and they're eventually introduced into the game proper only for people who don't read the lore to go "who's that?"

[@fishnutz5196]

Beyond light and dark has some very interesting things such as this, the IX and the whole Vex situation. Honestly im hyped as hell for the coming war with the Entity, Xivu, Black Fleet and Worm Gods but damn im even more hyped to learn more about the IX and Vex haha

[@commongivemeanicknam]

@@fishnutz5196 what makes you think we'll be fighting the worm gods?

[@spartica7720]

First is shimmered, then it crawled, then it screamed. The Aphelion is definitely just a giant taken screeb.

[@lucasfronza3079]

The universe's apex predator has, unsurprisingly, evolved to crab.

[@bannanakablaby8679]

anything almighty is a crab

[@ian9622]

im picturing it looking like that as well

[@ProffessorWaffle]

@@bannanakablaby8679 Just like crabpeople

[@localdestiny2addict406]

The Chrysura melo loretab confirms that when Eris was talking about “artifacts of darkness awakening across the system” and telling shaxx to remove the skull from above his spot she was right

[@Bacontaco-hn2eb]

I’ve been waiting for a video on the Aphelion for a while. They seem so interesting and terrifying that I really hope we get to see something as deadly as them in game. A new paracasual enemy would be so cool

[@alexandervos9428]

After the light and darkness saga ends, maybe we will get more into this ancient enemie.

[@ten_of_diamonds7575]

Aphelion is a point in a planets orbit when it is farthest from the sun, since bungie adores metaphor in their naming conventions, I'm going to assume the Aphelion are related to the darkness, they're "Farthest from the light of the sun. Also, I'm getting similar vibes to the creatures from that one lore tab from the dark age about monsters in the dark.

[@chriszalitach2462]

Good observation. I'd be surprised if Bungie started adding lore about these creatures and then never followed up with the actual addition of these creatures in-game. Could see them being teased in post witchqueen seasons up to Lightfall as a new enemy type.

[@gabrielpineirogarcia2078]

I could see them coming from Pluto or some far away planetoid

[@fishnutz5196]

@@chriszalitach2462 i dont get new enemy type vibes from them. I could be wrong but im getting more big boss vibes like Ahamkara/Riven etc. Maybe we see one as a raid boss at some stage

[@chriszalitach2462]

@@fishnutz5196 Fair enough. The lore tab does say that one Aphelion took down an Awoken ship on its own, so you might be right

[@Frodo_swagginsX]

@@gabrielpineirogarcia2078 you know Russia is bigger than pluto right? 😂

[@akurami6577]

the Aphelion might be an amazing Raid Boss. 6 Guardians that each has slain gods beyond the power of most beings, Oryx, Crota, and so on, barely managing to defeat One of the Aphelion. Just one.

[@LeElister64]

As much as I hate saying that, I would also add a mechanic that prevents us from melting it once the challenge mode is removed. One of the most powerful being in the universe, killed in 5 minutes by 6 loot hungry dudes wielding [META WEAPON] would be a bit ridiculous.

[@danlange4198]

Perhaps that's what's in the pyramid within Witch Queen

[@dogsoldier123]

@@LeElister64 I bet you if that does indeed happen cheese forever will find a way to melt it

[@ErkanZH]

@@LeElister64 "one fucking guardian" Zavala

[@oinkytheink1228]

@@LeElister64 Can be a 2 part raid boss where it retreats to assistance of others giving it like a phase 2 or 3 to be a challenge

[@Scott_the_Celt]

Shuro Chi: ... no matter what gods you've killed... you will not survive it. Our Guardian: BET...

[@33Isaiah96]

A worthy test subject for our newly recovered gally

[@kaungsi5613]

That thing best be a raid boss and not some shitty story quest let down like Quria Blade Transform was.

[@elitegamer9310]

@@kaungsi5613 It could be a new enemy race.

[@dogsoldier123]

@@kaungsi5613 I don't understand why ppl think that Quira was going to be some Oryx level threat when it was always just a tough hydra with the ability to take.

[@DTK625]

I don't truth Shuro Chi's words when she says "no matter what gods you've killed". How many has the Awoken killed?

[@equinoxruinouseffigy7856]

Imagine hearing ghost say in the witch queen “huh. There’s a distress message repeating on all awoken channels. Something about a….. sky shock event?” And seeing a burning awoken ship fall out of hyper speed halo 3 style with a blinding glow in the cockpit.

[@Ragnok21]

oh my god I would love that. it would be horrifying, but I would love it.

[@tsunertoo9149]

Funny thing is, this thing even induces fear in the same way as the flood. What an excellent way to give an enemy to truly be afraid of.

[@andrewryan1946]

The Star-Eater Scales lore tab seem to be related to the Aphelion, given all the info provided about their behaviour and appearance. The Scales themselves even seem to shimmer with a faint starlight pattern

[@sebastianturner2458]

It's not a clear connection, but I can see it. The Scales lore tab is definitely strange, and I suspect it will make more sense some time in the future when we have more information.

[@BatteredWalrus]

What does the Lore entry say, I don't have that exotic yet myself

[@andrewryan1946]

@@BatteredWalrus Pro tip: You can actually go into your Collections, inspect Exotics you don’t have, and still read the Lore tab for them

[@jesseritchie9282]

@@andrewryan1946 Yes

[@Wormy_fren]

​@@BatteredWalrus depressing story of an Eliksni dying alone.

[@MrPhante]

Byf: Only a fool would underestimate the Aphelion. Me: Can't wait to turn them into the dopest gun oh man

[@ronanoftheborealvalley4353]

No matter how many gods you have killed you have no chance run

[@Shmoa7160]

@@ronanoftheborealvalley4353 I refuse

[@peabrain6872]

you got me lookin like 🗿 with that one chief

[@peabrain6872]

hahaha we’ll turn you into a gun! hahahah get it? its funny right?

[@bfrdemontime]

@@peabrain6872 why are you mad

[@DTK625]

The Aphelion sound more like animals then an actual new faction. That would make them cooler

[@connerlajoie3142]

so here's a thought... let's say the aphelion are the creatures found on a distant world. Could we potentially see them appear after The Final Shape? Maybe a new species we have to challenge as we branch out of Sol and into the rest of the universe

[@pasta1549]

That would be so cool

[@robertjoseph6765]

My guess actually would be Lightfall. It fits the theme. Remember they drain the light just by being in the presence of guardians.

[@supremeballen6407]

@@robertjoseph6765 lightfall indicates that the darkness is attacking so i wouldnt expect to see them then. But who knows they might be from the darkness

[@placeholder7213]

Branch out of sol ha good joke Bungie would have most likely vaulted the entire game before that ever happens

[@EnderSwagger]

The one thing about the Aphelion that I think people brush over is what one of the Awoken who was on the Amestris says during the attack. “It’s the Core! It’s the Core! This is the Stalking Core!” The Stalking Core is only mentioned one other time in the Lore, and it’s in the Imponent I entry in Marasenna. The narrator mentions a “Core that Stalked” when talking about how early Awoken scientists were able to create power sources without petrochemicals, and how some of their attempts ended in horrific disasters. “May they in particular forgive the lurid stories of the molten lead reactor, and the twelve who were impaled to the ceiling by their control rods, and the Core That Stalked.” The way it’s capitalised makes it sound to me as though it’s a common thing that the people of the Distributary knew about, like it were a folk tale or common horror story, rooted in history. The Awoken who mentions it on the Amestris was likely a Distributary Awoken if they remember it, and it means that there must be some kind of connection between the Aphelion and the Distributary. Whatever they saw on the Amestris was similar to the stories told in legend about scientists who died to something so terrible that it’s indescribable. I think the connection between the Awoken and the Aphelion goes deeper than them just living in similar places, I think the Aphelion my have been a biproduct of the Distributary’s creation, or may have followed the Awoken who left it/were created when they did so. Nothing like them is mentioned during the Golden Age, they aren’t mentioned in Marasenna, and only the Awoken know about them, so they must only be in the same places as the Awoken, and have likely only existed for as long as they’ve been here. I’m DEFINITELY reading too much into this, but I think there’s something much bigger going on with them than people realise. If the Stalking Core was an attempt at creating some kind of fission core, then the Aphelion could be some kind of living biproduct, or maybe the core itself was brought to life somehow. ‘Stalking/stalked’ is such a specific word, it implies predation, and implies that whatever doing it is *alive.* If the Aphelion kill through intense radiation, then they could be a form of living nuclear reaction, accidentally brought to life by the Awoken’s experiments in the Distributary.

[@beliyal]

This is an interesting connection. And there's more. One of the distress calls during the Amestris incident mentions that "everything is blue." This is possibly referring to a phenomenon known as Cherenkov radiation ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherenkov_radiation ). It further implies that the Aphelion may be a byproduct of or perhaps attracted to early Awoken experiments with nuclear and radiation-based technology in the Distributary. I think the Aphelion are also the same creatures that Drifter encountered, though perhaps as they occur naturally in the wild. Perhaps those were somehow able to breach into the Distributary, attracted by prey they seem to enjoy the most: paracausal Awoken beings. It wouldn't surprise me if a creature such as that was able to move through the two worlds, seeing as they're described as the greatest predators.

[@Lynch2507]

while they do sound cool, the comments acting like they're gonna be the next big bads are a bit... over reactionary. Like, ok, not every single dangerous thing in the lore is hinting at the TRUE nature of the darkness or a REAL enemy thats been behind everything all along. Sometimes shit is just to flesh out the dangers in the universe. Like, if we ever get a story of exploring the universe outside the solar system, Aphelions might just be the equivalent of like, the Tyranids from 40k, just big mindless killing machines. Not like, the true antagonists that planned everything

[@gabrielpineirogarcia2078]

Doubt they are "mindless" but i concurr with u

[@Lynch2507]

@@gabrielpineirogarcia2078 they're described the exact same way as Tyranids usually are. hell, even down to the audio log from a doomed vessel. a force of nature antagonist would be a nice change of pace for Destiny i think

[@Autipsy]

I think they will be the darkness equivalent of the ahamkara

[@jambothejoyful2966]

@@Autipsy would make sense because, if I remember correctly, the ahamkara would follow the traveler around before the collapse

[@tsunertoo9149]

You say not the big bad then compare them to tyranids who are surmised to have eaten the entirety of several galaxies and even the void fears to a point that even undead machines rushed back home to get the big guns just to fight off the first few shock waves of them.

[@barefootcoolboy_3264]

*Byf playing with a bow in the background gameplay* Me: Byf will mention Sjur Eido at least once in this video. *Byf does exactly that*

[@beninmalgaard9836]

"No matter what gods you have killed... you will not survive it." Me: Clearly you don't entirely comprehend who I am.

[@nslynchwl]

Also me- has a .49KDA in PvE.

[@nettaatzili1936]

12:40 Ouch.

[@beninmalgaard9836]

@@nettaatzili1936 🤣🤣 Gotta admit, that's pretty funny.

[@elseggs6504]

You cant kill the Ogres in the Pit of Herecy. Just felt like pointing that out

[@beninmalgaard9836]

@@elseggs6504... Shanks.... You're right...

[@khora3845]

The Aphelion might also be the creatures that were described to be present during the Collapse as detailed by Heriette Meyrin in the Black Armory Papers since they seem to have come with the darkness

[@Nchill74]

Maybe that's what we'll fight in the raid that comes with the witch queen. I also think it's part, if not is the darkness itself. It would explain why they didn't show up on the ships camera feed. Much like when Asher attacked the pyramid on io, the rounds fired were held, and shrouded in darkness. I'm really hoping we see more if them, and the veil

[@fishnutz5196]

@@Nchill74 WQ raid would make sense since its on the Ziggurat and says "fight an ancient evil" oh man im hyped

[@Nchill74]

@@fishnutz5196 same here! I want a little tease from Bungie but I don't at the same time lol. I'm hoping as this season progresses, more lore entries will hint about it

[@grumm2649]

Could the aphelion potentially be the entities mentioned in the black armory papers?

[@eclipsedigi]

only mentioned in forsaken dlc and opulence sadly

[@thewatcher886]

My mind took a similar path, but the Aphelion leave radiation where they tread. I don't remember radiation being mentioned in the papers.

[@nOT_sURE08]

"You will not survive it." The Titan urge to accept that challenge.

[@ShawndaPrawn]

Maybe an Aphelion will intefere in Savathun's exorcism? If they prey on Techeuns, the coven we rescued would surely be too tempting a target to ignore. Seeing as how the Techeuns are paracausal, perhaps they may be Darkness related? Maybe Savathun might even summon one as soon as her worm is removed?

[@monosito59]

Man ever since I read the lore about the Aphelion, I've been so damn fascinated by it. It gives off serious Xenomorph vibes in terms of mystery and horrifying lethality. I cant wait to test the sharpness of our claws against one.

[@daGama1915]

I wish I could go back to the day I could play destiny everyday, or at least once per week

[@tree-turtle9944]

An important thing that isnt often brought up when talking about the Aphelion is the name. In astronomy, it refers to the point on a body's orbital trajectory where it is the furthest from the sun. These beings are the furthest thing from the light. Food for thought~

[@robertjoseph6765]

I’d like to float a theory that the Aphelion and The Darkness are analogous to Aliens and the Engineers. Aphelion sound like the perfectly engineered weapon to snuff out the light by how they were described by The Drifter. Listening to all the accounts of encountering them sound like how encountering an Alien would sound in that world. Just a thought.

[@issacgg4191]

I've always been really interested in the Aphelion and I've had similar view points when it comes to the drifter connection. The only thing that confuses me is that, correct me if I'm wrong, the creatures drifter and co. ran into were just wandering around rarely coming close to them. And while we saw those creatures nullifying paracausal activity and that would line up with our knowledge of the Aphelion. I don't really see the Aphelion simply wandering around. If they are supposed to be an apex pretador of sorts it seems not intune with their nature. Either way cool to see you make a video on probably my favorite topic in destiny lore, besides The Nine.

[@christianhillman1577]

I completely agree. Drifter and his crew were dying left and right from the cold, and while their light was snuffed out by the creatures, the creatures themselves didn't really ever attack. The behavior is not at all consistent with what little we know about the Aphelions. Besides, according to the Chronicon, that world that Drifter visited was in fact Athaneum World X, which contained information on the Aphelions- but it doesn't say that it contained the Aphelions themselves.

[@BlackLionRampant]

Correct. The only thing linking the Aphelion with Drifter's creatures is that they were both mentioned in the Chronicon---and that said entry describes them distinctly from each other.

[@josharcher7073]

I think the Aphelion would make awesome antagonists for the next saga of Destiny after "The Final Shape". They don't seem to be aligned with the light or the darkness so perhaps they represent some kind of other power in the galaxy.

[@Skooby59]

“Only a fool…” Hunter hears: forbidden loot!!!

[@imacrab1624]

I feel like there is a connection between the star eater scales and the aphelion cuz they describe them as shimmering and hunt paracausal energy and when u "consume" an extra orb of power the star eaters glow blue, meanwhile their lore talk about some kind of hallucinations or trance so I think they're made from an aphelion

[@gabrielpineirogarcia2078]

Oh god its true. I did not Connect It with the blue. So star eater scales and activates eating orbs of power Means they eat suns -> light. Or perhaps since now its 'power' means Darkness as well (they eat paracausal energies). They bait their Prey by attacking them psychically. In the sense of Techeuns, they are slaughtered mentally because of how they are conditioned (they are basically extensions of maras Will) that Eliksni merely got a headache, because the Aphelion was not interested. Imagine how terrifying It would be to be spared by some horror you are not even aware of because you are "not enough to sate them"

[@frankmigliore9240]

The Aphelion seem like they will be a post Light vs Darkness threat that we don’t see until Destiny 3. No room for them in the story now but things will massively change soon.

[@Lynch2507]

Destiny 3, that game thats not happening lmao

[@frankmigliore9240]

@@Lynch2507 I mean I wouldn’t care much, I’m happy with this current story ending the way it seems like it will. But they’ve repeatedly used the term “Light and Darkness saga”. They’ll eventually need a new game for whatever comes next, after we have left the Sol System and the Pyramids/Traveler are destroyed, so yeah

[@Cocaine_Clown]

For sure post light, aphelion is the point of orbit which is furthest from the sun.

[@bonk8668]

@@frankmigliore9240 but with no light or darkness there is no destiny

[@frankmigliore9240]

@@bonk8668 that’s what I said lol

[@daGama1915]

Sjur Eido didn't survive the encounter with the aphelion. It was the aphelion that survived the encounter with Sjur Eido

[@johngancarcik5682]

It saw her and noped its self right outta there

[@candymangames_psn1306]

I like the weird mini stories in the Awoken's past! Beautiful!

[@12345abxdefghijk]

Perhaps the aphelion was/were a species that had their own “golden age” but not with the light, but darkness.

[@infractal5033]

The Darkness, The Veil, The Boiling Shadow, The Aphelion, even the Darkness' "mist" we've seen since at least Shadowkeep. I'd love to see if any of these are the same entities, and what sick guns we can get Eris to turn them into.

[@johngancarcik5682]

Move over tex mechanica, make way omolon, hakkee and surros there's a new weaponsmith Eris

[@obi-wancanoli8236]

I'm betting that the creatures on that ice planet are the Aphelion, or at least that the "beyond the system" idea is correct. Also, about those darkness creatures, ice cages? Sound familiar, maybe a little like the Crucible post-Beyond Light?

[@ArchivalMind]

Fun fact: it's interesting you bring up the SKYSHOCK thing because I don't think many notice. The Aphelion is the third entity to have a SKYSHOCK event announced when they arrive. The second entity was the Taken when they arrived on Io after the Cabal mined the Light from the moon. The first entity... The Pyramids and their God when they arrived during the Collapse. Aphelion is also a reference to a point in a celestial body's orbit where it's the furthest from its star. Call this speculation but its name may very well mean "furthest from light or Light". Further reinforced by Shuro Chi likening them to the Taken. The creatures on the ice world are not the Aphelion according to Calus's scribes. I agree that everything there is suspect, but it's a note nonetheless. Regardless I believe both are related to the Dark. I mean, black goo creatures who were only stopped by a freezing ability accessed only after Drifter's Ghost was modified to use abilities "beyond the Light" and a creature likened to the Taken through at least two factors? There are a lot of things Dark, O Creator Mine...

[@DUKEzors]

"There's a Triumph for it, but MORE IMPORTANTLY..." Easy there, Satan.

[@GudHunterYT96]

We need all of byfs lore videos on audio books So I can listen to them all

[@Laeshen]

So after Vow of the Disciple, I think it's prudent to point out that the Aphelion is referred to in singular (it) and it plagued the Awoken. Another tale is told by Mithrax, of Skira the Watcher, which plagued the Eliksni. Rhulk, the First Disciple, plagued the Worm Gods and Hive and a number of other beings, supposedly. (He also killed his own people) The next likeliest Disciples, are Calus/Xivu Arath who could be said to have plagued the Cabal. The Black Heart (???) could be said to have plagued the Sol Divisive Vex. And Savathûn, who at one point was almost made a Disciple, was enamored with Humanity, and if not actively trying to undermine the Witness, would likely have plagued Humanity, especially after all we know that she was here in the Sol system since the Traveler came. This leads me to the assumption that both the Aphelion and Skira are Disciples

[@freakboy220]

You know I feel like that whole line about Aphelion being more fearsome than the gods we've slain is Awoken arrogance more than anything else. After all how would the Awoken know,what gods have the Awoken slain?

[@theiciestmanalive5690]

I agree

[@oinkytheink1228]

They may have seen greater power than oryx or Riven who knows what they have been through during the dark age and golden age

[@pasta1549]

I mean, Sjur Eido hunted ahamkara like they were white tails during deer season. Granted, that may be just one cracked awoken lady but still, you never know with the Awoken.

[@fishnutz5196]

@@pasta1549 very true but do you think she would survive an encounter with Oryx? I dont know. I do think alot of people forget Oryx is still by far the strongest we have faced its just it happened so long ago. I honestly dont even think Savathun could match him (until she gets the light that is)

[@corbingarrison7167]

It intrigues me that they appear either in deep space or within the mind/ascendant plane?? It reminds me of a monster in the old Star Wars cannon about creatures whom were were ghosts stuck within hyperspace and lived by sucking the life out of crew ships albeit the descriptions are different with one appearing as a woman with a large gaping mouth full of teeth to an entity that flashes and glows as it stalks you while emitting a viscous scream

[@Aj-py8en]

What about the Star-Eater Scales hunter exotics? The lore tab seems to describe an Eliskni's encounter with an Aphelion outside the sol system. During the encounter he isn't attacked, but there is a bright blue shimmer outside his Skiff and he experiences hallucinations of his brother. I bring it up because if the Scales on Star-Eaters are the scales of an Aphelion then it links the Aphelion to the Drifter Planet, and by extension the Drifter Planet to Athenaeum World X The exotics perk allows the wearer to "eat" orbs of light to empower their super. The creatures on the Drifter Planet drained the light of the Crew and they died to the cold unable to be resurrected. There's also the possibility of the Drifter Planet creatures being only related to the Aphelion, like worms and ahamkara both evolving to use the Anthem Anathema, maybe these creatures both used some evolutionary mechanism to devour light. The Chronicon does say they discovered the "secrets of the aphelion" not the Aphelion themselves. Athenaeum World X and the Drifter Planet have so much potential lore surrounding them. The secrets of the Aphelion, light suppressing or devouring fauna, monoliths that froze the creatures (pyramid constructs and stasis). Not to mention it's probably the furthest out from the sol system that guardians have ever been.

[@tailcheysa]

One other lore that ties in here is from “Imponent I” where the awoken mention “the core that stalked” and describes a bunch of techeun type people being killed in the context of developing nuclear power. the aphelion also seems to leave radiation in its wake. Did the aphelion come first and the awoken made this story to warn people away from it, or did the early awoken create it originally in the distributary?

[@MayanScientist]

The Star Eater Scales lore (postulated to possibly be about an/the Aphelion) includes something being wrong with the ship's core/engine. Perhaps the Aphelion manifest in nuclear cores? Or are called/attracted by them.

[@alexanderchristie9623]

A year later, I find the idea of the Aphelion as either a seasonal story of the next "villain" of the next "saga" to be very captivating

[@Retrophoenix-]

I've always had a theory that the aphelion, the creatures drifters crew discovered and what we call the darkness are one and the same With the sound file that came out a while ago called "The sounds of darkness" this seems to be the type of sounds or screams that these creatures make very alien like and almost gross sounding if that makes sense My best guess as to what kind of texturing these creatures might have would be similar to the form of the black gardens dark heart a formless kind of substance When drifter and his crew discovered these creatures and was attacked by them it was described as them simply moving over one of the members and them just dying without a noise or anything and them not being able to be revived by their ghost we don't know how big these creatures are but they definitely seem to have some kind of shapeshift ability that could allow them to get into pretty much any area should an opening be present this would allow them to also sweep through an area and kill anything it touched if it could change form or size to suit the situation There's a pyramid ship in savathuns throne world so who knows maybe an aphelion or multiple are lurking inside or maybe even something that could possibly control them or explain what they are

[@matteoares4841]

Actually, this may hold a little water. The term "aphelion" in astronomy is used to denote the point during it's orbit at which a celestial body like a planet is the farthest from it's star. That would make it the point furthest from the "light" and closest to the "dark", poetically speaking. The name could be used here to denote creatures furthest from the Light and closest to the Dark.

[@watson498]

I thought the way those crew members died was that the creature passed close by and the guardians’ light was suppressed long enough for him to die of exposure and not be able to be revived

[@Rohanology27]

This also makes sense from the Amestris log calling it "the core" a amorphous being that can kill just by proximity. If this means my guardian is about to die to a gelatinous cube... well that was a nat-1

[@Autipsy]

If i remember correctly, Ahamkara technically utilized light in their paracausal bargains. Perhaps these aphelion are the darkness equivalent of the dragons?

[@kaitoudark1]

Hmm... I dunno... Not to knock Bungie, but there is an awful lot of parallel between Destiny and Halo once you go looking for it, so maybe there's something in their prior works that allude to what they might do with these?

[@josephmartin4087]

I remember way back from before the time Shadowkeep was even announced, there was a leak for an idea of Destiny 3. This obviously never came to pass but some of the ideas were kept around that were seen in the leak. Two of the ideas that were included in it were two new enemy factions, the Veil and the Aphelion. The Aphelion weren’t elaborated on much but were vaguely to the Darkness and were able to take our light based abilities away (i.e. resurrection and subclass abilities). And then the Veil were said to be minions of the Darkness (said to be almost lizard-like and matched a baseline description of a Darkness encounter in the Black Armory Papers) and even acted similarly to how they’ve been seen in the story (particularly Season of Arrivals and Beyond Light). The Aphelion, I think, are a potential enemy in another DLC or maybe a raid boss in the future (probably sometime in Lightfall if Bungie didn’t forget).

[@Ralos24]

Might the radioactive surface contamination have been the remains of the aphelion's victims? If they were digested so completely that only particles and energy were left-- and if they are somehow related to the creature that killed one of the Drifter's crewmates such that their Ghost couldn't revive them-- then the Aphelion might feed on souls or something.

[@Wraithofvolsunga]

Honestly, I think aphelion is an Awoken term for the Black Fleet. Aphelion (normally pronounced ap-helion) is a term for the farthest point from the sun in an elliptical orbit (opposite of perihelion), which is figuratively "that which is farthest from the light" in the context of Destiny. The Pyramid ships have similar effects as the lore books describe the aphelion, and there are several pyramids that have always been in the Sol system (such as those on Luna and Europa), but surely there are more that have stayed hidden and become ghost stories for the Awoken exploring the dark places of the system.

[@majoraswrath240]

Aphelion gonna catch these hands! New enemy!? SIGN ME UP!!!

[@watson498]

Went back and watched the video about the drifter’s travels, and I began to think that maybe one of those monoliths that he describes on that cold dark planet is at least part of what he hauls around tethered to his ship. He uses the darkness energy associated with it to somehow tap into the ascendant plane. Also in that video when the lore tab mentioned the dark creatures trapped in “ice” my mind immediately went to how Mara trapped Savathun in season of the lost in that ice-looking prison, that seems to suppress her abilities, much like the prisons or “cages” as the drifter called it suppress the darkness abilities of the creatures he found. Maybe that points to the possibility that Mara and the Awoken found these creatures and made a point to try and imprison them, knowing how powerful of an effect they have

[@whymem7147]

in season of the drifter it was shown that the thing drifter hauls on his ship is a pocket dimension from the nine of sorts, every time we go to their realm we enter it through his ship, and in one cutscene we can see him getting gifted with it (pre sure its the one where hes playing a game with a dredgen then summons a taken captain)

[@Dylan_T_]

Maybe this has some connection to what happened on the Glykon, what with the scorn "screaming with a thousand dead voices" or something like that and the ship not appearing to be physically damaged but abandoned.

[@johngancarcik5682]

Well not technically abandoned as the Glykon had cabal there and katabasis on a macabre display so there were remains lol and if it was highly contaminated I doubt the vanguard would have allowed repeated returns to the ship

[@RonKhan]

No, I believe that the Drifter found the Taken before anyone else. It would connect up with Gambit and the rock he is hauling behind his ship.

[@shyataroo]

That rock was given to him by the Nine.

[@punchline1729]

the next saga has to have Aphelions or something similar as one of the main enemy race

[@PeerlessLight]

"those creatures" that the drifter ran into... Were.. Were they incased in 'Ice'... Like Sava.. nevermind it's probably nothing... maybe its coinicidence that the Freeze tech is the similar to Mara Sov's power of stasis

[@daansw3r935]

Can you please cover the newly released lore and events on Nessus/Failsafe/Anomaly/Nokkris, and why the techeun refers to Nokkris as the name that shouldn't be said (like something from D1 lore and Oryx removing his name from history)

[@kamanira]

I feel like all these extremely interesting but obscure pieces of lore, factions and paracausal beasts/races like the Aphelion are things Bungie is setting up for after the Light and Dark saga.

[@anth3lion344]

Might be a bit of a stretch, but the description of these creatures makes me think back to a piece of lore from back in season of the worthy, a survivor recount from the collapse. As they sat, waiting in a bunker, they described a scraping coming from just outside the bunker, followed by a screeching. Might be early aphelion presence in the sol system, might not, just thought it was interesting.

[@kumbertjoehl-lee8898]

It's nice maybe they are already setting up new antagonists for after the dark/light saga :]

[@RevengedSevenfold]

Sooo, what are the possibilities that the Aphelion tie in with the lore of the Star-Eater Scales, and, even more mysteriously, with Skira? You know, the thing Misraaks causally mentioned a bit back. Something overpowering that hunts? Its a bit of a stretch, but its worth noting!

[@koizumiizumi5426]

8:00 Intersting that the Awoken use SKYSHOCK EVENT, as the warmind protocols also use such nomenclature as well: noted mainly in the Sleep Simlulant lore, Also wonder if the Aphelion could be one fo the creatures of darkness that were also mention in the Black Armory lore , you know, the ones that breached the armory and killed poples during/after the collapse, Could they be the same creature?

[@jeffro719]

I wonder if Savathun has an Aphelion in her Pyramid inside her Throne World in TWQ? Also wonder if the 9 missing Awoken from the Yang Leway are the Aphelion since apparently they aren't the Nine?

[@k1ngr3y]

Aphelion: the point in the orbit of a planet, asteroid, or comet at which it is furthest from the sun. Based off that I'd consider them to be creatures of pure darkness. It hunts the techeuns because they commune with both the light and dark. Maybe they don't hunt guardians because we commune with the light. That is until we started using darkness and now we commune with both the light and dark. TlDr; we're in danger!

[@Hardrive2677]

Byf I’d love some more dark age pre city age lore if you are looking for suggestions. I want to know more about what happened during those parts of the story that dont really have a clear timeline.

[@soggycheeto9195]

I wonder if the Aphelion is related to the infected seeker ship? When you go the the bright dust store it says in the description about it, it says “By the time you’ve seen it, it’s already too late” which to me seems like it could be or I’m just being dumb and assuming things.

[@TheHammertime51]

In your drifter video regarding the creatures on that freezing planet, it's read that the creatures are frozen in some kind of tech "if you can call it tech". Was this potentially Stasis?

[@STORMCASTCreeper]

The Aphelion were also mentioned in a grimoire card or two back around the era of Taken King or earlier. It has been so long, so I dont remember much, but i think it was one of the grayscale cards with a gold hue? Legends?

[@W00zl3]

FINALLY! I’m so glad you covered this! I’ve been curious about the aphelion for at least a year! :)

[@riptidal7213]

I’m here because people on Reddit think this is going to be the Lightfall raid boss, and I don’t know what these are so yeah, lore!

[@thealldayspecial]

Perhaps it could be associated due to some original gameplan to have Destiny done in multiple sequels, but it is kind of absurd how Season of The Drifter was an absolute feast for future lore happenings that we did see delivered upon("blade and the hourglass") or are still very much up in the air and worth finding out. And of course that was the season that had people checked out the most during Year 2.

[@HoneyDoll894]

I tried to look into it during season of the chosen, and although it might seem like a stretch, I found interesting similarities with the glykon. The weird fauna, the same one that's aboard the derelict, actually makes screaming/humming noises, as well as the pollen things. Also they do all emit a blue glow, just like is mentioned in the bamberga lorepage. Idk the connection might be a bit of a stretch, but considering what they were doing on glykon, with semiparacausal things having to do with psychic powers it might be possible.

[@greendragon4444]

Random thought: Cayde's message [it's on Enceladus] to Petra was to be told to Paladin Orin. What if that was code instead to tell Petra what was on Enceladus, and that thing is the Aphelion?

[@dumbsterdives]

Paladin Oran was a codename cayde would use to communicate with her in code. The message "Uldren found" on the prodigal set was sent by "Paladin Oran"

[@dumbsterdives]

So, maybe, but I feel like that was more just him indicating that the next part of the recording was code

[@andrewrukujzo5102]

Interestingly enough, I recently learned about the aphelion in my Spacecraft Dynamics class. The aphelion refers to the point in an orbit around the sun which is furthest from the sun. So if we take the sun as a symbol of the light, the aphelion is the furthest from the light, aka the dark.

[@tristanpoole1604]

It'll be interesting to see how the Aphelion relate to whatever monsters the Drifter found outside the solar system, the Harbingers, & the monsters described from the collapse. There isn't too much similarity between them apart from what we don't know about, but it'll be cool to figure out how they're related someday, if at all.

[@Mad-Slick]

Byf, in order for the Aphelion to have triggered a Skyshock alert, wouldn't that suggest that the Aphelion is quite large? Seems strange that something small could be detected as a threat from so far away.

[@crypted7310]

Maybe the Creatures that the Drifter found were Pawns of the Aphelions. Some kind of mindless creatures made out of the darkness just to obey when needed.

[@salamanda550]

They're Radioactive, Invisible, Scream, and seemingly cause hallucinations.... Sounds like the Anomalies from Stalker....

[@johngancarcik5682]

*readies a bolt*

[@M4nuG]

Are the Aphelion maybe related with the creature who tells Helga from the Black Armory lore ?

[@skybladebloodheart4247]

i believe that these things never breached the ship, i believe that that radiation is the key to how they carried out this task, i believe that they killed these people with something that causes hillucinations, radioactive toxic or otherwise, perhaps they killed each other but i believe it was this radiation and or similar/ related means that ultimately both caused these strange and unverifiable hallucinations and deaths.

[@Praktically]

A potential clue as to the nature of these beings is in their name and what it means. "Aphelion: The point in the orbit of a celestial body at which it is futhest from its star."

[@vV_Viggo]

If the Aphelion truly rest in that Lost Sector, then it would be hiding somewhere in plain sight. Now that I think about it, why is there a random pile of Glimmer that cannot be collected at the end of the lost sector? Also, the Drifter’s interest in the Aphelion is what leads me to believe there’s a connection to the Nine and to SIVA (through that scrap ship found from the Zero Hour puzzle that has Twin Snakes logo). In addition, with the other factions out of the way and the Vanguard distracted, it’s a prime time for Lysander to make a move again, unless he hasn’t already set his plans in motion….. All this stuff with the Aphelion is recent history as well, sometime in between Rise of Iron and D2 Vanilla and/or during the Red War. ]]]Orin would do anything for her love; she would even give up her Ghost.[[[

[@yhelloh]

I love that someone remembers Lysander.

[@_technomo]

Eramis is still frozen, reaching out to the pyramid..

[@MrMalawk]

Frankly I think we need more alien enemies in this game and I hope these Apehlion make into the game soon!

[@eliasraine8726]

So some people have been speculating about a new Darkness subclass that we might be getting sometime in the future. Since it looks like we aren't getting one with Witch Queen, I'm thinking we might get a Radioactive kind of subclass and that the story around it will have to do with the Aphelion. Maybe during either Lightfall (although that seems like it might be more of a Guardian vs. Guardian civil war) or during the Final Shape

[@GiancarloPaniccia]

I've given this some thought since the beginning of the season and my hypothesis is that the Aphelion is a lifeform endemic to the ascendant realms, and the spaces in between.

[@tonyred5166]

At this point I want to see a darkness race so bad I wouldn’t even care if it’s just a single lost sector boss as a teaser. Just give me SOMETHING!!!!! :)

[@muliph3633]

even better have it as a open world lost sector which is a super GM difficulty of Hollowed lair and the Corrupted combined as Aphelion as the end boss. That all as a teaser would be awesome.

[@Dark_Seraph6996]

The Skyshock alerts are related to The Darkness not to things coming from outside the Sol system. Suro Chi mentions that the Techeuns have weaknesses to The Aphelion and Taken in the same sentence meaning thet they are weak to the Dark . If the Aphelion is one of the strongest predators in the universe and is more powerful than the ¨gods¨ we have slayed then is pretty obvious that it is of The Darkness or is closely related to IT because IT only values Power and Might above all things. Aphelion in astronomy is the point in the orbit of a planet, comet, or other body that is most distant from the Sun. It is still a mystery sure, because we haven't seen it but the signs are there that it is related to The Dark, I'm surprised you didn't mention IT.

[@brandondennis5166]

I was literally searing the grimore for mentions of this this yesterday.

[@ghostnest3042]

I don't think it's the creatures Drifter met at that ice planet. They were creatures of Darkness, their sole presence nullifying the Light and preventing resurrection. Also they were many of them, packs even, some of them were also locked in ice seemingly on purpose by some antidiluvian race eons ago. Aphelion on the other hand are constantly described as glowing, shimmering. The attack on that station you described caused was prefaced by that Paladin seeing a "glowing creature" , and during the massacre everything looked blue. The Aphelion also seem to actively seek out ways to kill as many as possible while causing them the most suffering, as evidenced by consistent descriptions of horrific screaming during the attack. The shadow creatures on the other hand were rather sparing in their hostility, and seemed to possess only basic, but sinister intelligence. I actually hope that we will fight a specimen somewhere in the future, as that that would make for an excellent challenge and one more horryfing eldritch abomination to add to our trophy list.

[@ghostnest3042]

@Urazz could be, but my point stands

[@callyg7696]

I think these little sub plots are set to for after the 10 year plan expansions

[@samkoch1038]

I’ll say it again: Sjur Eido is Destiny’s real Mary Sue

[@qtip1570]

Can’t wait for more loot

[@monadoboy9639]

Maybe it relates to that wheird tentacle creature in Hirak's throne world whatever it is I am interested and I hope we get to see one in the future

[@RoseAltro]

I'm to hazard a guess and say the Aphelion are demons of some kind.

[@hiddenalignment6425]

Seeing these kinds of creatures in the Destiny universe makes it feel much more alive. I’d like to see more of them, whether they’re in a boss fight like Riven or in a destination like the worm on Titan, the pterodactyls on Venus and the alien frogs on Nessus.

[@moonknightdragon1218]

The darkness and now this oh no

[@lewisClarkInspire]

The mutilated creature in the drifters ship is one of the creatures 😍 ❤

[@ZacNovakPlaysGames]

What if the Witness is an Aphelion..?..all that power, shimmering, a shifting visage that both crawls, floats and sifts through reality..feeding on paracausal power by influencing others, building fears with a false shape as a false god, a shifting form that can depict any it wants to deceive..it’s true form is the The Final Shape..the Aphelion is the entity that’s both impossibly close by and unfathomably far away at the same time the entropy of the universe, the idea of the end..as we are the opposite. An ever lasting life after death. The eternal rebirth of life, we are born, die, get revived and go about it again..the Aphelion wants to end that..but what if, what happens if we joined forces and become something more than both of each halves, a true whole..a True form of existence…late night rambles..

[@sugxraddict.2034]

here before 70 likes team where you at? Also ty Byf!