Ghost

The Ghost construct.

"In its dying breath, the Traveler created the Ghosts...To seek out those who can wield its Light as a weapon. Guardians, to protect us, and do what the Traveler itself no longer can."

— The Speaker

A Ghost is a piece of equipment issued to each Guardian.^[1] The Ghost serves as the player's companion and aide throughout their journey.

Overview

Appearing as a small, floating drone,^[2] Ghosts were created by the Traveler "with its dying breath", and have spent their time since the Collapse searching for their guardians. While Ghosts can revive their Guardian from death, Ghosts themselves are irreplaceable. The Ghost serves as a scout, librarian and mechanic, waking ancient machinery and cracking ancient codes.^[3] They seem to possess some degree of artificial intelligence, being able to converse with their masters in a very human manner.

Ghosts can support Guardians by performing certain actions such as illuminating darkened areas, repairing technology from the Golden Age, informing Guardians of incoming hostile threats,^[2] and providing communications.^[4]

Gameplay

Ghosts inform players of new objectives, and serve as a marker beacon/respawn point when a player's character dies during cooperative play.^[2] Ghosts notify players when a Guardian has left the area or revived. A Ghost can revive a player by holding the X button on the Xbox 360/Xbox 1, or the square button on the Playstation 3/4. This can only be done in close proximity to a fallen player.

On occasion, Ghosts can scan certain objects and provide additional context to the Guardian. For example, scanning a dead Cabal on Phobos will have Ghost describe what legion it's from.

Ghost Shells

For more information, see Ghost Shells.

Ghost shells change the appearance of Ghosts. The Taken King adds defensive boosts and additional effects to ghost shells. Rare shells have a single perk, while legendary shells have several to choose from. Shells can be purchased from The Speaker, the Vanguards, or Lord Shaxx.^[5] As of Rise of Iron, Ghost shells marked with New Monarchy, Dead Orbit, or Future War Cult colors and symbols can be bought from faction representives.

Known Ghosts

Quotes

"This is some great data here. I wonder if Ikora gives hugs to Ghosts. Heheh... anyways, nice work."^[6]
"Don't do that."—says this after the Guardian jokingly copies what the Exo Stranger had said in an encounter that just happened.
"Every Ghost is born knowing that we have to find our Guardian. We don't know what they look like. Not on the outside, anyway. On the inside, I'd always known who you were. And that together, we could be something more. When you think think about everything we've seen, everything we've done, I feel like... I made the right choice. [...] Thanks - you know - for being my Guardian."—at the end of We Found a Gun Quest
"You know it's starting to concern me how seldom you talk. We've been through a lot together, the neural symbiosis is pretty far progressed, but you'd be surprised how little I understand what you're thinking."^[7]

Trivia

Ghosts were sometimes called "Dinklebots" by players, as a nod to Peter Dinklage,^[8] who provided their voice in the game. As of The Taken King, Nolan North replaced Dinklage as Ghost's voice actor and redubbed lines from the original Destiny game.^[9] Players have started to call this new Ghost "Nolandroid", though Nolan North himself prefers "Nolanbot".^[10]
It was indicated pre-release that players need certain equipment before having access to a Ghost.^[11] This is currently not the case, as the Ghost is present with the player from the start of the game in current builds (having revived them).^[12]
Holding out a Ghost in some sections of the Moon opens doors. However, they are pitch black inside.
Ghosts may be deactivated and revived.^[13]
The Ghost's saying "We always visit such cheerful places" is a possible reference to Cortana's line in Halo 2 on the level Delta Halo, saying: "We always visit such nice places".
Dead Ghosts can be found in the game world which, upon revival, unlock new Grimoire cards.
According to an advertisement for Destiny, Ghosts existed during the Golden Age.^[14] This is likely an error as all other sources have stated that Ghosts were created by the Traveler after the Golden Age.
The Ghost was depicted as taking part in the Ice Bucket Challenge in a short video by Bungie, which donated to the campaign.^[15]
Ghosts can apparently choose or be given specific names. The Guardian Fenchurch Everis refers to his Ghost as "Neville".^[16]
Ghosts can be referred to as male and female, as Saint-14 referred to his Ghost as a female, and the player's Ghost has a male voice.

Gallery

Concept art of the Ghost.
More concept art of the Ghost.
Ghost character sheet.
In-game view of the Ghost Frontier Shell available from the Destiny Ghost Edition and the Destiny Limited Edition.
Extracted view of the Frontier Ghost Shell.
Sneak peek of one of the new Ghost Shells set to appear in The Taken King.
The Ghost replica that is included with the Destiny Ghost Edition.
Concept art of a Warlock with a Ghost.
A Ghost with a Warlock.
Guardians being led by a Ghost.
A ghost lighting up an area.
Player reviving a defeated Guardian, whose last position is marked by their Ghost.
A Ghost being deployed.
A Ghost floating in a Guardian's hand.
A Ghost scanning a Fallen device.