The Division 2, Hardcore Leveling 1 - 40, Game Experiences

The Division 2 Hardcore​

Experiences during normal leveling 1 - 40
Important levels have larger heading
The info in these posts work for non hardcore agents too.

Leveling up a Hardcore agent is great for Stretch Goals grind!​

Milestone Caches (gear sets to improve leveling)​

Levels: 8, 15, 25, 35. Each cache has Chest, Backpack, Holster, Gun.

8 Blue AR Fenris Damage Build
15 Purple AR Fenris Damage Build
25 High End Uzina Survival Regen
35 Rigger Skill Build + Exotic Capacitor AR

Priority Objectives Unlock At Level 30​

Priority Objectives allow you select activities for specific rewards, great way to get exotics and resources..

Levels 1-5​

Do the intro, get to White House.

Travel to The Theater

First few green guns on mobs during walk to Theater

Grand Washington Hotel mission completed

Went to quartermaster to unlock striker drone

Pick up all shd caches when they appear for perks

Shd caches show only after going to safe house and using computer

Unlock perks, priority get XP ones first



Level 6

Most XP perks are now unlocked at quartermaster in DC using shd cache points.



Level 7

First blue drop, sniper gun

Level 8​

First Blue milestone gear set cache

All but one weapon mod perks unlocked

Viewpoint Museum mission next



Level 10

Viewpoint Museum mission done, two levels gained

Classified National Bond mission auto unlocks, search for entrance needed

Crafting Bench and Clans unlocked 8-10

Liberated Downtown East and Federal triangle

Side quests done both areas



Level 11

Was fast 9-11 warp speed

East Mall mission American History Museum lvl 9 rated is next

15th NW street goes N/S borders level 25 Judiciary Square DANGER

Level 13​

Finished American History Museum mission at level 13, 2 levels gained plus new skill.

Fast travel to The Theater safe area

Recruit dark zone lady Senait Ezera

New side missions available

Using Crusader Shield and Striker Drone skills

Side mission enemies scale to level, unlock weapon mod blueprints



Level 14

Almost died securing control point after Agent Brooks shd mission

Level 15​

Purple milestone cache Fenris set

This set is real good for in cover shooting, braced and composure talents really shine

Air and Space Museum mission, new skill



Level 16

Thinking of doing dark zone for landmarks

Died there last time at level 14-15

Right when starting landmark patrol came hit from side

Like being over leveled for missions/zones

Been doing constant projects to donate gear and resources

The Theater is fully upgraded 4 upgrade, dz east recon done

Walked into dz and saw all elite patrol nope

Gear is crap, guns weak no good drops



Level 17

Doing some open world in Downtown east

Nice blue honey badger ar in chest, should help

AR HB made huge change vs enhanced aug a3p horrible gun

Turret after a territory control attacked under ground mobs high level

Problem descent isn’t shown yet, maybe just walk there

Space Admin HQ, watch purple rocket launcher guys, 2 towards end

Playing in Southwest zone, liberated



Level 19

Loot goblin no hope hotel cp in front, level 17 blue gear

Seen him about 4 times while leveling so far

9h30m played on this character

Armor core and regen low level are extremely good

Pick up all loot, bought Emelines Guard smg from dc vendor

Good while leveling with a heal on kill especially hardcore

Finished Jefferson Trade Center mission

Level 20​

New skill unlock, chose chemical heal not using

Skills a turret, s drone, reviver, chem heal, seeker cluster

Went to crafting bench made blue all mods

Will try descent mode, shows on map now unlocked

If you die in descent it doesn’t count because simulator

Never done on hardcore wondering the xp gains

Descent, famas ar and demo firefly, preservation decent start

The demolisher firefly can take out most enemies right at start

3 waves medium, 1 hard, died on arena to boss doh

No good xp from that failed run in descent

Famas ar had so much recoil missed many shots

Doing missions downtown west, The Campus

Bank Headquarters, final boss tons of armor took a bit, snipers

DZ East did a landmark at normal, gave a level



Level 21

DCD Mission completed

Outcast enemies extremely dangerous exploding sprinting guys

Sprinter killed a previous shd hardcore agent of mine



Level 22

Constitution Hall zone liberated

G 36 C AR packs better punch vs honey badger same level 22



Level 23

West Potomac Park zone

Lincoln Memorial mission done, great grind mission

Elite heavy gunner came out mid mission very dangerous



Level 24

Lots of Sokolov Concern SMG gear dropping here

Doing main missions only give good xp first time in story mode

Lincoln Memorial XP 170k story vs 19k 2nd time on normal

Doing level 21-24 is grindy

Unlocked tinkering station, maybe could have done sooner?

Level 25​

Milestone gear cache, uzina survival focused, max rolled

Chest piece has Unbreakable talent too

PDR AR came with cache has preservation, really nice build

Jumped down into Tidal Basin entrance, total dark blocked off



Level 26

In Foggy Bottom zone

Foggy liberated

Did some underground DC map mission its cool



Level 27

Turned in a couple more of many projects for campus

Had a Ruthless exotic rifle in cache, using as secondary

Ruthless too much recoil, why I never use

Potomac Event Center mission done

Level 28​

Logged in US East ton of packet loss nope, change that server asap

Side mission to help Jeff

Federal Emergency Bunker mission done

Reactivate SHD Network, this unlocks strongholds btw.

Exploding outcasts and fire everywhere so dangerous

Shooting and staying away from anything explosive



Level 29

So levels 25-29 went by much quicker

I have wanted to just do DZ landmarks but didnt

Have to complete everything on hardcore to open missions

Maybe after level 35 ill do dz landmarks

Reason is to setup a stronger safer build

No matter how many times I played game, still find new things

First, time I have in 5+ years seen Halloween theme in DC

Its really well done and spooky

Liberated West End zone



Level 30

Zone boss sniper was tough, my gear downgraded a bit

Crap server restart in few minutes after hitting 30

Down for 5 hours argh

Well it wasn’t too long, they added Halloween events and patch

Back out doing priority missions for exotics and high end

In all purple lvl 30 gear, Police M4 AR still good

Doing random side missions all over



Level 31

Judiciary Square zone stuff, last one on dc map

Open world drops are all purple

Proficiency caches on level up nice high end stuff.



Level 32

Bounty Wolf Pack, easier since my gear is improved

Liberated Judiciary Square

At this point game kind of makes you figure things out

Looks like time to do some strongholds in an order

District Union, Roosevelt Island, then Capitol Building unlocks

After those then we work on final one Tidal Basin

Then we can go to NYC Warlords which is super fast leveling

Wonder what level I’ll be after the 4 DC strongholds?

DUA chest has trauma backpack has adrenaline rush, nice.



Level 33

Did Roosevelt Island

Crash Site control point



Level 34

Doing Capital Building now

Got 1 chest piece high end loot in supply room of cp, now, a first

Capital Building done, at end ‘Advancing Invasion’ 60 seconds alert

Got 4 high end gear pieces in stronghold

Cutscene at end of timer, pretty kick ass

This will have Black Tusk invade many locations and reset map

Now do all strongholds again but with invaded changes

We can also do lots of freshly reset open world

Then Tidal Basin will be the final 4th stronghold with a mission

I still have not selected a specialization due to a bug

The 35 milestone cache will bug due to specialization if chosen

Was about to do MLK control point, shot dood and nothing

Started running 4 blocks away asap and fast traveled back to DC

Took awhile but I was safe, message popped up showing I killed guy

Major lag, sheesh would have been real pissed, def watch network stats

Re logged back in, looked at map my guys are attacking cp, fast travel

Right in the main room battle, I didn’t even call them in, anyway easy win.

Level 35​

Got the 35 milestone cache skill set, rigger set and capacitor exotic

Now to pick and activate specialization after 35 milestone equipped

Plus gets rid of ‘Talk to the Quartermaster’ notice in DC

Picking gunner spec for ammo, foam grenade, and armor on kill.

Had 3 starting points, picked 5% armor on kill it cost 3 points

Skill setup remains crusader shield and damage skill

Shield is Tier 5 nice and strong

5x XP event is a few weeks away and why I am doing this

Think my last agent was 200ish SHD before hugger killed it, nope only 43

DUA invaded has Chunga plus two emp things about 3rd area

Do not like playing skiller on hardcore



Level 36

On the way to Roosevelt Island did some open world for xp

Plus gunner points to add more perks

Scariest control point, Taxi Graveyard, Outcast exploding huggers

They are all over that one non stop, very dangerous for hardcore

The design of that cp, can hide easy going up and down stuff

Roosevelt Island Invaded complete, went pretty smooth

Shield is a beast, but had emp multiple times 3-4 during

Note below is during Halloween event

Earlier I tried getting the mini warhounds but only loot goblin

Now at level 36 the mini warhounds are out at the spawns

Tip strikers drones easily kill them like nothing

Reason is awesome gear at current level, worth a farm

Farm for chill out mask and emperors guard knees

Yeap got a Chill Out mask good armor roll and regen

Armor at 473.2k not bad for skiller

Now got the knees, max rolled for level 1.0% regen mega good

End of farm for now, will be back when SHD watch after 40

Now this build is solid

Capitol Building Invaded done

Next is Gatehouse Facility quest you must do before Tidal Basin

Mission is secure antivirals, real short

Gear getting low level 35-36

Tidal Basin completed



Level 38

ISAC “you are needed at the base of operations”

NYC time, need those extra skills

This will be super fast to finish last two levels there

The intro mission with Kelso and Fai might level me up

Was at level 38 about 60% almost to 39

Well put me at 90%

Cant pickup shade caches until you have the project, yeap

Headed over to Two Brides and talked with guy at cp



Level 39

Two Bridges liberation started

2 hostage rescues and a control point

Level 40​

Back to DC to get my SHD watch and grab some gear from stash

Most gear is still the 35 milestone cache and was feeling slow

Integration activated, unknown user error, admin override, activated

SHD 43 wow thought was higher., dang hugger that killed old agent

When you hit level 40 your SHD level activates and resets level to 1

It looks confusing if you see me at 43, but just look for watch aka SHD.

—-

So leveling is complete to base level 40.. Soon I will be creating another hardcore and level it just a bit just in case. I did some priority objective for exotics and got a few, one was a Momento backpack.

Tips​

Progress through the game on a non hardcore agent first, with all the explosives that can be tossed or knowing that some enemy types will wait for you to move next to something explosive its highly advised. Its very simple to die in this game, do not enter the dark zone until level 25+ at the very least, there is a great milestone gear set at that level all for survival and does pretty good.

On your softcore agent trying running a full glass canon build, chest piece can have a talent called glass canon or perfect version. This lets you put out some crazy damage but take even more damage from enemies, this is good training for future hardcore agents on surviving encounters with tactical positioning and backing off when out matched,

Shoot explosive canisters and any other exploding items shown in red before starting fights or avoid the area. These can be used to hurt enemies, but if they go unnoticed can easily blow all your armor/shield off and one shot could kill you.

THIS WAS FIXED, CONFIRMED IT ON MY ALT. Do not activate a specialization when they unlock at level 30, wait until after level 35 when you have the level 35 milestone cache gear set equipped and want to use it. This is due to a bug that will not let you open the milestone cache if you activated a specialization already previously. I am not sure if it has been fixed but didn't want to risk it. The 35 milestone skill build is very strong up to level 40 and worth it.

Recommend only having one gear loadout on you, this is in case you die. When you die you lose everything the character is wearing or is in personal inventory but not the stash. The stash is safe.

While collecting gear store new setups for next character, always be preparing for your backup.

Recommend leveling up another alt hardcore character so it’s ready in case you die. You'll get quicker each time at leveling.

Focus on main missions on story (highest xp), liberating areas, and shd cache missions.

Do not do side missions, these scale to your level unlike other missions making them harder.

Info​

Hardcore stash is separate from normal characters

Crafting bench can be shared to soft/hardcore for most things once its fully upgraded to high end

Library is shared for both hard/soft characters

Expertise on skills carries over to both hardcore and softcore characters

Granted gear like Lexington may show in both stashes

Once you are level 40 resources can be shared to both hard/soft characters

There are no boosts for hardcore, you must do all missions and the story for new each character.

Expect to spend 15-20 in game hours played to reach level 40

This hardcore agent shown here is SHD level 132 with 2 days 13 hours played fyi

Level 25 Milestone Cache​

This milestone cache is the best Hardcore one and a great template for future survival based builds. Add a Emilines Guard SMG as secondary weapon and you are very regen heavy. Photo is my alt Hardcore agent aka backup, a 5x XP event is coming so I wanted two HC agents in case my main dies from grinding activities.

Why this milestone gear set is good? Uzina 3 piece set bonus has Total Armor +5%, Armor on Kill 10%, Hazard Protection +30%. Then Unbreakable Talent on Chest (restores 95% armor when all is depleted 60s cooldown), Unstoppable Force damage Talent on Backpack 5 stacks of +5% weapon damage on kill for 15 seconds, PDR AR good damage.

Skills: Striker Drone and Crusader Shield.

Today while playing my alt solo at level 29 doing some control points and about to do Capitol Building when another two hardcore agents joined around my level. We ran all the strongholds after turning into invaded then finished to Tidal Basin. Was a rare group especially for so long, was level 34 at the end of that, I typically have my game set to open so others can join if they use matchmaking.

During the run we had one agent go down in the Invaded Capitol Building front lawn, he had reviver hive but that was only close call.

ALT HARDCORE AGENT DEAD

Later I went to NYC to do some stuff solo, entered Pathway Park mission at level 38, this is just my backup alt. Entered room where Kajika is first encountered and two flame throwers hit me on each side, the flames are so deadly and boom dead. Character had no Unbreakable or Reviver Hive. My bigger mistake was that I didn't use the modifier that blinds everyone in large area like usual. A very sloppy play on my part. Walked in too fast and didn't utilize my setup properly.

So another HC agent to be leveled as a backup, I was running the milestone 35 cache skiller setup with some armor on kill gear, next time will try to have at least unbreakable, 23 hours played, in about 5 sessions over the past week. One great thing is it wasnt a total waste since I got 23 levels in the stretch goals and was able to get some good stuff put into stash plus resources.

STREAMLINED SOLO LEVELING V1.0

This focuses on just leveling and getting XP in DC all the way to level 40.
This also assumes you have a softcore character already fully leveled up with SHD levels.

1. Main Story Missions all the way to Strongholds, these are the priority. This is it.
2. You will need to recruit some people from settlements, important simple thing to do.
3. Just use gear that drops or from control points, use milestone gear up to the 25 cache.
4. Save side missions until level 30+
5. You can do a few SHD missions to get a handful of SHD points for perks like xp/utilities
6. Try matchmaking to see of you can get into a group with all safe houses unlocked to speed up travel.
7. Control points and public executions are ok to do on the way but don't go out of your way.
8. Complete all the strongholds to unlock Tidal Basin, can be mid 20s for this to happen,
9. Level 30 is where things can become much easier and you can really power up.
10. Also get rid of all old gear, the armor values are very low.
11. At level 30 pick specialization, buy the share resources/blueprints from Inaya in DC.
12. Once you get high end gear you can tinker and replace to new talents like unbreakable/bloodsucker/killer etc..
13. Also tinker much higher attributes on gear with no talents, I slap a 170k armor core on low level gear for mega armor,
14. Again after level 30 you should have a custom build at least chest/backpack/gun talents.
15. Once you have Tidal Basin unlocked you can work your way to it or do side missions all the way to level 40.
16. When Invaded your entire DC map gets reset and XP is higher for open world activities, but not as good as missions.
17. You can complete all the stuff in DC like Liberations once you have SHD watch.
18. AVOID LOOTING ALL AROUND THE WORLD, just get to your missions. You can loot later when SHD and it matters more,

With this approach I was able to shave around 4-6 hours off my usual 22-24 character played hours. If you can get with other players to run through stuff with you always do it, speeds things up a bit, Played with plenty of people who died and had a fully leveled up new character the next day due to grouping, Matchmaking is tougher to find people to group with on hardcore, friend people even I do it and very antisocial.

I notice the ‘hunter stalker’ watching me more when I am flying through content, shot at him many times very tough to kill him on those roofs when your UI starts going static mode, Never killed him or seen anyone do it, supposedly a one shot build might do it.

I found on my newest Hardcore backup character that these 3 talents worked very well together, especially relevant after level 30+. I typically never use bloodsucker, but it works great with killer,

Chest: Unbreakable
Backpack: Bloodsucker
Main Gun: Killer

The killer gun talent can even make a very weak gun or under leveled one stay pretty strong for 5+ levels. Had a AR level 31 stay strong as heck at character level 36.