Normally this is where I start out by talking about Team HBO. With Destiny's clan support, however, I have the pleasure of identifying with a subset of Destiny.Bungie.Org: the Phantom Pikes.

Formed in the weeks before Destiny launched, the Phantom Pikes are an elite team of DBO's finest. And with what we accomplished inside the Vault of Glass this week, I am proud to identify as one of them.

While we were not concerned with being world's first, we always had our sights set on Destiny's Raid. As our clan members completed Destiny's missions and Strikes and began gathering their Light, we selected a date to take on the Vault of Glass: this past Thursday and Friday. With a date set, we pushed to get our entire Raid team the last bit of Light they needed to become Raid worthy.

We managed to get ready a little ahead of schedule, and so around 1:30AM on Sunday, September 28th, as our assault on the Crucible's citizens came to a close and we prepared to disband for the evening, I suggested that perhaps we should visit the Vault of Glass.

Knock on the door.

Kick the tires.

The goal was not to complete it, but simply venture inside a little. We were going in blind, deliberately--having avoided all Raid spoilers. 6:00AM found us in the Gorgon's Lair, with me reluctantly forcing myself to set down the controller. But that is not the story I am here to tell. The story I have for you is when we returned to finish what we started. The story of the Phantom Pikes shattering the Vault of Glass.

10:00PM, Thursday, October 2nd.

The scheduled time had come. We gathered in orbit. Thanks to our previous foray--the 4 and a half hour tire-kicking that the weekly reset had negated, we knew what to do. As soon as our boots hit the ground, we ran to fill the positions we had established in our previous breach.

We had a spire to raise.

As the first Praetorian materialized, it was met with coordinated fire. We were prepared.

We were also, perhaps, a little overconfident, as we aggressively broke formation and the Vex regained control of a Sync Plate.

But we fought back. Our Spire would rise.

And as the battle continue, our ambitions became material.

6 minutes in: The Spire had formed. The Vault was once again opening.

Once again, we entered. But this time, we would not leave until our mission was accomplished.

Of course, who doesn't have a moment to stop for some sweet loot?

We sped onward, towards the Templar's domain.

Through our previous trial and error, we had learned the Templar's secrets. Its Fanatics fell before our prepared formation.

At 11 minutes, the first Conflux had been defended, and by 18 minutes, the Orcales were summoned.

10 minutes later, the last of them fell. The Relic awaited us.

It was time to summon the Templar. Through our previous defeats, we had learned its ways. We had the battle planned out before it even began. But the Vault of Glass isn't just about plans; execution is required, and at 33 minutes, we experienced our first wipe of the night. The Relic had fallen.

But the Templar would not block our way. We took a moment to gather ourselves.

And we went back to war

48 minutes in, the Templar was defeated. To see the battle in it's entirety, check out this video:

We moved on to the Gorgon's Labyrinth. A devious place that had confounded us on our first venture, we now knew it's secrets.

That isn't to say we executed it flawlessly. Sorry guys!

After looting the chests, we moved on to the abyss beyond at 61 minutes. We were now in uncharted territory; we had not ventured this deep before. We did not know what to expect. We did know, however, that it was hilarious watching CrazedOne1988 get stuck in a death loop thanks to a poor revive point on a ledge.

Some of our party had a little difficulty crossing the chasm, so I decided to explore this foggy expanse.

I guess I'm still a Halo trickster at heart!

77 minutes in, we ventured foward. We had no idea what a Glass Throne was, much less how to awaken it, but the time had come.

The Templar challenged us in unexpected ways, but nothing prepared us for the devious challenge that awaited us in the final chamber of the Vault of Glass. We had gone in blind and what awaited us was a painful lesson in the ways of the Vex. In the past, present, and future, though our bullets found their target, we were defeated.

As we wiped, again and again, we tried to piece together a plan. While the group was pushing through a single portal, I was emphasizing the value of a simultaneous assault on both portals at once, leaving just two Guardians behind to defend the Sync Plates. It was a risky plan, but would address our repeated demise at the hands of the Oracles. Our cohesion was faultering.

2 hours after we began, we were forever lost in the dark corners of time. Our real life schedule required us to stop. We knew this would be a two-day process. As we stepped away, we began trying to piece together what we had learned. The Vex portals. The Relics. The Oracles.

We needed a plan.

10:00PM, Friday, October 3rd.

Once again, we gathered in orbit. This time, we arrived directly on the doorstep of the darkness zone that had haulted us the previous evening. As the doors open, we went to work

While still in orbit, we had laid out our plan. We would assault the right portal first, move to center, before assaulting the left. Everyone had a role. We knew who would acquire the first Relic and who they would hand it off to. We were prepared.

Our planning had been a success. Only 20 minutes into our second day, we faced Atheon. But the battle had just begun. We wiped many times before we successfully defeated Atheon, an hour and 45 minutes into our second day in the Vault of Glass.

The final moments were intense.

As Time's Vengeance wore down, 2 members of Away Team were killed. With Atheon nearly defeated, we knew it was do or die. If he teleported us again, we would wipe. Everyone focused their fire on him. We had no choice.

As far as I can tell, it was Wilshire2's Warlock that dealt the final blow to Atheon.

We had conquered the Vault of Glass.

We returned to the Tower to celebrate.

And relax. The Vault of Glass is a challenge unlike anything Bungie has delivered before. In hindsight, it is absolutely ridiculous what they expect people to do--and an incredible feeling to do it. Until the next Raid, Bungie.

It was a scenario that loved on teamwork. Away Team needed to destroy the Oracles and return the Relic. Home Team needed to open the door for Away Team to return. Every player was valuable. A single death could wipe the entire team. It was an awesome experience.