The Traveler is a central component of the story of the Destiny franchise, introduced in the original Destiny game.
While there are more questions than answers surrounding the Traveler, we will review what we know to help you better understand the Traveler.
Recommended Read: Destiny 2 – Duality Dungeon Guide
The Traveler in Destiny 2 is a large, moon-like being that provides Guardians with their Light powers.
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What Is the Traveler in Destiny 2?
The Traveler is a paracausal being, meaning it does not conform to our traditional understanding of physics. It is weightless, able to float in place and move about the solar system as it pleases.
The Traveler is the source of Light, the power that Guardians use to fight against their enemies, and the creator of Ghosts, the little guys that follow around Guardians and revive them.
The origins of the Traveler are largely unknown. The first known sighting of the Traveler was billions of years ago when The Witness’ species discovered it dormant, buried underground on their planet.
When discovered, the Traveler awoke and gave to The Witness’ people paracausual powers and began terraforming their planet.
This brought about a Golden Age for the species that lasted millions of years, during which they gave the Traveler the name “The Gardener“.
Eventually, this species found the “other half” of the Traveler, known as The Veil. When they attempted to bring the Veil and the Traveler together, the Traveler fled far into space.
After this event, the Traveler visited multiple planets, terraforming them and ushering in a Golden Age for its chosen species of that planet before leaving to do the same for yet another planet.
The Traveler’s departure often meant the fall of whatever species it was “gardening” at the time.
A good example is the Fallen, also known as the Eliksni. The Traveler visited the Fallen home world of Riis and furthered the civilization there.
Like many of the planets the Traveler visited, Riss was eventually found by the Black Fleet, led by the Witness in pursuit of the Traveler. The Traveler fled once again and left the Fallen to fend for themselves against the Darkness.
This event was known as “The Whirlwind”. What Fallen remained after the fight with the Black Fleet now seeks revenge in the form of reclaiming the Traveler for themselves.
This cycle would continue for a few more species until humanity spotted the Traveler visiting the planets of the Sol System. It began by terraforming Jupiter, then Mercury, then Venus.
The humans predicted that it would visit Mars next, so they intercepted the Traveler. This was the first time humanity had actually come into contact with the Traveler, seeing that it had brought the first rains to Mars shortly after arriving.
After finishing its work with Mars, the Traveler moved to Earth and began the Golden Age. Humanity grew at a rapid pace and was flung into their Space Age.
When the Black Fleet eventually visited Earth, the Traveler did not run. Instead, it fought back the Darkness and saved humanity in an event known as The Collapse.
Before going dormant for many years, the Travler created the Ghosts to revive fallen human warriors so that they could protect the Travler during its slumber. These warriors are known as Guardians.
Today, the Black Fleet is back and has captured the Traveler. What they plan to do with it will be the sole focus of the Final Shape Expansion.
Now you are caught up with the story of the Traveler!
Do you have any other questions about the Traveler? If so, feel free to leave a comment!
