Destination

Vanguard Ops Playlist

Join a fireteam of three and face the most feared minions of the Darkness.

Vanguard Ops (formerly the Strike Playlist or Vanguard Strikes) is the three-player matchmade PvE playlist run by the Vanguard and Zavala.

Overview

Fireteams of three queue for Strikes: linear missions ending in a boss fight. Nightfall is the harder weekly/daily variant. Completions drop Legendary gear and Exotics, and engrams can be focused through Zavala at the Tower.

Launch

Select Vanguard Ops from the Director (after The Witch Queen; before The Edge of Fate) and matchmake, or launch a specific strike or Battleground directly. A recommended Power level of 1350 was listed at the time of the rename.

Modes

Strikes and Nightfall.
Battlegrounds: Behemoth and Oracle (both Nessus), Hailstone (Europa) and Cleansing (Cosmodrome); the direct-launch versions match standard strike length and difficulty. Foothold (from Season of the Chosen) is listed in some sources and not others.
PsiOps Battlegrounds (from Season of the Risen) and Heist Battlegrounds (from Season of the Seraph).

History

Early Destiny 2: the Vanguard Strikes playlist, with Nightfalls on top.
Beyond Light: normal Nightfall strikes were replaced by Nightfall: The Ordeal.
The Witch Queen (22 February 2022): the playlist was renamed Vanguard Ops and merged with the Battlegrounds from Season of the Chosen (Behemoth, Oracle, Hailstone, Foothold). Quests, triumphs and bounties were updated to the new name.
Lightfall: PsiOps and Heist Battlegrounds were added.
The Edge of Fate: The Portal replaced the Director. Fireteam Ops is described as a rebranded Vanguard Ops covering strikes, battlegrounds and older seasonal activities, while Strikes and Nightfalls remain as activities.