I'm going to start this post with a personal account of my experience with Trials in year one, and then with why I have changed my view on Trials completely(concerning possible fixes related to making trials more accessible). WARNING: THIS IS LONG My Trials, overcoming, and the glory of sharing victory with friends: During house of wolves I was personally disappointed that there was no raid. POE wore thin very quick, and the Skolas encounter was more frustrating than fun. It was at this time but I lost most of my PVE clan mates. Along came Trials of Osiris, and I was immediately intrigued by the idea of a true endgame PVP. Upon stepping into Trials for the first time, I was blown away at the competition, and learned quickly... That I wasn't ready. Up to this point I had been mainly a PVE player who dabbled with 6v6 modes, almost always avoiding 3v3. I remember telling a friend who had attempted some runs, "I'm going to do it man, I'm going to get better so that I can go flawless". Cue the montage: I trained 3 hours a day, watched tip videos, and regularly sought advice from better players on how to improve. Play sessions were not just run around and shoot, they were sessions where I tested and mastered various techniques, and plays. Embracing the Meta: I gave up all motions of vilifying the "meta" and embraced it(at the time it was Thorn). Before Trials, I despised Thorn but I realized very quickly that almost every match featured either Thorn, The Last Word, Felwinter's Lie, or Epridete's Spear, and yes I used the final-round exploit in many matches. I found that in 6v6 games the Hunter was my go to, but a Titan with an Armamentarium build was my best for Trials. I took note of all positions in every map available, and built a vocabulary System that I would use to communicate more efficiently with my teammates. The recruitment process was challenging, as I had to dig into a whole new pool of players outside of my normal, fun-loving-raid-friends. No matter how nice on the surface, this new breed of player was calculating, Judgmental, and impatient... It was essential that I performed at my best, or be left behind. I also had to master the Zen part of not getting frustrated no matter how stiff the competition. Finding the right team: After many failed attempts, and full-blown disappointment, I finally found a few players who had a good mix of desired, gun and communication skill. Both players were from the UK. They had a serious, yet tempered disposition, and the chemistry between us was workable. We were well rounded. We had one player who was good at mid range combat, a damn good sniper, and myself, who was a specialist in pushing the pick(sniped player), with double lightning grenades, followed by a barrage of shotgun fury... We practiced In skirmish and in Trials, honing our skills and communication... At some point we became a well oiled machine. Each person in the group was not only willing to take criticism, but would often times admit failure. We listened to each other, took up the slack, help each other when one of us was down, and would compensate for each other's weaknesses. Before we knew it... We were ready for the big game. The Lighthouse: Our first run to the lighthouse was intense to say the least. It was filled with high drama, amazing comebacks, winning against a team of cheaters, and I even picked up a few friends on the way. We beat 2 teams who were on their 8th win, and in the final match we beat a team who was on there eighth match, no boons. Several of the teams sent me friend requests, and I later ran with them. When we won, and it was real that we were going to the Lighthouse, we all screamed like sports fans seeing their favorite football team win the Super Bowl, but it was us, WE had won! All the work, and time that we put into it meant something to us. Not the big chest, or the exclusive social space, or any of that, it was rising from the disappointment of defeat, and the ultimate joy of victory... None of us were carried, and multiple games featured each fireteam member in the top slot, and subsequent matches where we all rode the bottom... Following in Osiris's footsteps: I went to the lighthouse by myself, because I wanted to explore without holding anyone up... Even at this point I was a PVE player at heart and I knew that there was more to the LightHouse than the loot chest(SPOILER ALERT). I spent a few hours crawling through every nook and cranny, until I found a secret area that had a lamp, bed, and what seem to be notes and items strewn about... Something told me that this was Osiris's hiding place before he eventually disappeared into the Vex network on Mercury. I made my way to the Loot chest and got exactly what I was looking for, The Messenger Adept. This became my weapon of choice in every trials run in the future. It was the weapon for me personally, that gave me the opportunity to break the meta- at the time. Again, I want to stress that this whole process, the work moving into the eventual victory, meant a great deal to me and I wanted to share it with my real life friends, and furthermore the entire Destiny community, Taking a friend to Mercury: I had a friend who was an excellent shooter player going back to when we were in high school. He was always the best at every shooter, but he was somewhat hotheaded... When I told him that I had made it, he became very interested, but our first attempts were rough because he was traditionally a self interested solo PVP player. In short, he had difficulty acclimating to the team-based style that trials required. I refused to give up on him. We went through a separate recruiting process because my regular team could not deal with his attitude. Eventually we found a very patient, talented player who could fill the role of sniper. After a few attempts, and refinement of communication, I was able to help him get to the lighthouse. I was probably more excited to have shared that victory with one of my best friends, than my initial first trials run to the lighthouse. We both got the Summoner adept, and immediately brought it into standard crucible. At the time auto rifles were almost completely unused and it was so awesome that we were running around kicking ass with weapons that bucked the meta-at the time. Again, I want to stress that this victory had meaning, it was a momentous occasion, two real life friends going to the Lightouse together... Grabbing cool gear and having a good time. BUNGIE'S change to Trials and its impact: I have written many posts criticizing Bungie's change to card based Matchmaking and its effect on this end game PVP mode, so I will spare everyone. I can say however, that I have done everything mentioned in my long post at the end of year two, going into year three to reach the lighthouse, and I have been completely unsuccessful. Trials has changed, and it is obvious that Bungie favors the extreme elite, paid professionals, and streamers over everyday players like myself, much less a new breed of player. As a community, there has been a significant portion of us who have presented options to open Trials up to a wider number of players, but they have been ignored. And there are many, who meet any suggestion outside of the current state of trials, with ridicule and distain. I read a post today that exacerbated everything that I feel is wrong with Trials today. "if I change was made to place flawless players into a flawless bracket, I would simply quit out of an 8 and 0 card, re-join, and continue to block players from going flawless". With all the paid carries, professional streamers, and hard core players who make it a point to block others from having the awesome experience of going flawless, The entire act of going flawless has lost any meaning that it had. These players don't give a shit about the achievement, they're simply re-joining to continue their domination of lower-level players, or worse, purposely doing it to manipulate the system in a way that provides them supplemental income. My premise: I'm providing no specifics on how to change the system, and I'm not trying to change any one's mind about the sanctity of competition... I making a simple point. Trials of Osiris has lost its meaning, and there is no hope, because nothing Bungie will ever do, can change the current trials communities voracious inclination to shit on itself. If you make a flawless bracket, they've got several accounts. If you lock them out, they'll do account recoveries. Only time will tell how long this toxic environment can exist in its current state. The legend of Kaliuga paints a picture of a snake eating its own tail, up until the point that it consumes itself, this is my vision for the future of Trials. I have lost hope that any change will matter.