If you’ve spent dozens of hours grinding through Lost Ark’s early Vern and North Vern story content, you’ve probably hit a wall where you can’t access new regions or activities no matter how many side quests you complete. You’re far from alone — most new players stall out around the 250 gear score mark, unsure what steps they need to take next to move past Tier 1 content. This guide breaks down exactly how to get to Tier 2 in Lost Ark without wasting dozens of hours on unnecessary grind that won’t move your progression forward. I’ve tested every shortcut listed here across three different alts, so I know exactly what works and what’s just a waste of your limited daily playtime.
Core Steps for How to Get to Tier 2 in Lost Ark
Before you even worry about farming extra materials or running extra dungeons, there are 3 non-negotiable boxes you need to tick to unlock Tier 2 content. Skip any of these, and you’ll be stuck grinding Tier 1 content forever, no matter how high your gear score gets:
- Complete the full North Vern main story quest line, including the final “Ealyn’s Gift” quest that rewards you with your first endgame gear set
- Reach a minimum gear score of 600, the official cutoff to access Tier 2 regions and content
- Complete the “[Guide] A New Voyage” quest unlocked once you hit 600 gear score, which gives you access to the Rohendel continent
That might sound simple, but most players get stuck on the 600 gear score grind, because they waste their daily resources on activities that give almost no upgrade materials. I made this mistake on my first character, spending 3 days running random side quests for 10 gold a pop instead of focusing on the activities that actually give honing materials.
Optimize Your Daily and Weekly Grind to Hit 600 Gear Score Fast
Once you finish the North Vern story, your only goal should be farming enough honing materials to get your full +15 Tier 1 gear set, which gets you to exactly 600 gear score. If you’re trying to figure out how to get to tier 2 in lost ark, honing materials are the single most valuable resource you can farm. You don’t need to chase perfect stats or rare accessories at this stage — any Tier 1 gear works for honing, as long as it’s the same item level as your current set.
First, prioritize your daily Una’s Tasks every time you log in. Pick the 3 tasks that reward Tier 1 honing shards and destruction/guardian stones instead of gold or rapport items, since those materials are the bottleneck for most players. You can swap out tasks once you finish them for the day, so don’t lock yourself into low-value tasks long-term.
Next, run your 2 daily Chaos Dungeons and 2 daily Guardian Raids on your main character first before touching alts. Even if you get unlucky with drops, the currency you earn from these runs can be exchanged for honing materials at the Vern castle vendor. Don’t waste extra entry tickets on Tier 1 Chaos Dungeons once you hit 580 gear score — you’re better off saving those tickets for Tier 2 content later, where the reward value is 3x higher.
For weekly activities, make sure you run the 3 weekly Abyss Dungeons available for Tier 1 players. These give you a massive chunk of honing materials, plus gold you can use to buy extra materials from the auction house if you’re stuck on a few last honing attempts. If you’re a new player, don’t be scared to join learning parties — most groups are happy to walk new players through mechanics as long as you ask politely.
Avoid These Common Mistakes That Slow Down Tier 2 Unlock
I’ve helped dozens of new guildmates move through Tier 1 over the past year, and I see the same 3 mistakes come up over and over that add 5+ hours of unnecessary grind to their progression.
First, don’t hone low-level gear that you’re going to replace immediately. A lot of new players waste materials honing the blue gear they get from level 50 story quests, instead of waiting until they get the full purple endgame set from the Ealyn’s Gift quest. That purple set has a higher honing success rate and gives more gear score per upgrade, so you’ll save hundreds of stones by waiting 2 extra hours to finish the North Vern story first.
Second, don’t waste your gold on cosmetic items or rapport gifts before you hit Tier 2. I see new players drop 10,000 gold on a mount or skin their first week playing, then get stuck a week later because they can’t afford to buy the last 100 destruction stones they need to hit 600 gear score. Cosmetics will always be there later, but unlocking Tier 2 opens up far more gold earning opportunities that make those purchases trivial.
Third, don’t sleep on event rewards. Almost every Lost Ark regular event gives out free Tier 1 honing materials, double honing success rate buffs, or even free +15 gear sets for new characters. Always check the event tab first when you log in — I’ve had alts hit 600 gear score in 2 days flat just from event rewards, no extra grinding required.
You also don’t need to complete every single side quest in North Vern or other Tier 1 regions. Most side quests only give tiny amounts of silver or rapport items, with no honing materials, so you can skip them entirely until you’re already in Tier 2 and want to grind for collectibles.
What to Do Immediately After Unlocking Tier 2
Once you hit 600 gear score and finish the A New Voyage guide quest, you’ll be able to sail to Rohendel, the first Tier 2 continent. Don’t rush straight into the story though — there are a few small steps you can take first to make your Tier 2 grind far smoother.
First, stop honing your Tier 1 gear entirely. Any upgrades you make past +15 are a complete waste of materials, since you’ll replace all of your gear within the first 2 hours of Rohendel’s story quest line. Sell any extra Tier 1 honing materials you have left on the auction house — new players are always looking for cheap materials, and you can use that gold to buy Tier 2 materials later.
Next, pick up the new Una’s Tasks available for Tier 2 players before you head to Rohendel. These tasks give far more gold and Tier 2 materials than your old Tier 1 tasks, so swapping them first means you don’t waste a day of daily rewards.
If you have extra gold saved up, you can also buy a cheap set of Tier 2 accessories from the auction house before you start Rohendel’s story. The extra 20-30 gear score you get from these accessories will make the early Tier 2 enemies far easier to kill, so you won’t have to spend 10 minutes fighting every world boss you run into.
It’s also a good idea to join a Tier 2 focused guild if you haven’t already. Guilds run weekly Abyss Raid and Guardian Raid groups that make farming Tier 2 materials far faster than running with random matchmade groups, and many guilds give out free honing material chests to active members every week.
Getting through Tier 1 doesn’t have to be the soul-crushing grind a lot of new players make it out to be. If you focus on the right daily and weekly activities, avoid the common mistakes that waste your resources, and take advantage of event rewards when they’re available, you’ll be able to move through Tier 1 in under a week even if you only play a couple of hours a day. Remember that the end goal for all of this grind is how to get to Tier 2 in Lost Ark, where you get access to far more varied story content, harder and more rewarding raids, and better cosmetics and gear that make the grind feel worth it. Take it one step at a time, don’t stress too much about bad honing luck, and you’ll be exploring Rohendel before you know it.