Heavy weapons are powerhouses that every Destiny 2 player should be taking advantage of to make their play session much easier on themselves.
In this guide, we will go over some of the best Heavy weapons from each weapon archetype to help you find one that suits your Loadout.
Recommended Read: Do Dungeons Have Checkpoints in Destiny 2?
The best Heavy weapon in Destiny 2 is Gjallarhorn, followed by Apex Predator and Doomed Petitioner.
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Best Heavy Weapons in Destiny 2
Heavy weapons make up some of the most powerful weapons in Destiny 2 and are often the go-to for the best ad-clearing and DPS. If you are looking for the best of the best, this list covers them all.
Whether you are an end-game PvE player looking for the highest DPS weapon possible or a new player looking for an easily obtainable weapon that will get them through much of the early game, this list is for you.
Our first choice may come as no surprise to the average player.
Gjallarhorn
The one Rocket Launcher to rule them all.
Rocket Launchers have been the meta of Heavy DPS weapons for a while now. This is partly due to the effectiveness of Gjallarhorn.
It comes with the Intrinsic Perk Wolfpack Round, causing rockets to split off into tracking cluster missiles upon impact, dealing additional damage on top of the initial rocket explosion.
This is a very potent Perk that drastically increases the damage output of this weapon, making it a very decent choice for solo use as well.
But you most likely won’t be the one topping the damage chart of your Fireteam using this weapon, as you shouldn’t be. What makes Gjallarhorn so good is the inclusion of the Pack Hunter Perk.
This Perk grants you increased Handling and reload speed when standing near your Fireteam members.
Additionally, firing this weapon will grant the Wolfpack Rounds Perk to any nearby Fireteam members who are currently wielding a non-Exotic Rocket Launcher.
Much like the Divinity Exotic Trace Rifle, Gjallarhorn plays an important support role for your Fireteam.
Granting Wolfpack Rounds to all of your Fireteam members effectively increases their DPS by about 50%, making Rocket Launchers a must-use weapon for many Boss encounters for the most optimal damage.
The Catalyst for Gjallarhorn will grant it the More Wolves Perk, increasing its magazine size by one and causing Wolfpack Round final blows to spawn additional, smaller missiles that seek out nearby enemies.
While the extra ad-clearing potential is great, the two-round magazine is huge for this weapon’s overall DPS.
You can get Gjallarhorn from the And Out Fly the Wolves Exotic Quest. This Quest is part of the Bungie 30th Anniversary Pack.
Apex Predator
The Legendary Rocket Launcher of choice.
Apex Predator is a Legendary Adaptive Frame Solar Rocket Launcher. Ever since its Season 21 refresh, Apex Predator has found its way to the top of the DPS charts as far as Rocket Launchers are concerned.
It is carried by its extensive Perk pool, giving players the choice of many different rolls depending on the type of activity they are facing. This type of adaptability isn’t found on a lot of weapons, especially Heavy weapons.
For many, the god roll of choice is going to be Reconstruction with Bait and Switch, a very devastating combo for dealing as much damage as possible within the Bait and Switch window.
Reconstruction is simply a better Auto-Loading Holster as it can overflow the magazine, allowing you to fire off multiple rounds before swapping off and waiting for a free reload.
Along with these two top-tier Perks, Apex Predator can roll with Demolitionist, Vorpal Weapon, Bipod, and Explosive Light, giving you plenty of chances at receiving a good roll regardless of the Perk combination. Luckily, this weapon is craftable as well.
Apex Predator drops from the Last Wish Raid. Wait until Last Wish is the Featured Raid to begin farming for enough red-boarder variants to unlock the crafting pattern for Apex Predator.
Thunderlord
Simply the best Machine Gun there is.
Thunderlord is an Exotic Arc Machine Gun that excels at just about everything. It is an excellent ad-clearing weapon, as Machine Guns should be, and can be a very decent DPS option when needed.
It comes with the Intrinsic Perk Reign Havoc, causing final blows to create lightning strikes that deal area-of-effect damage to any enemies near your target. This lightning damage is also strong against Overload Champions and is able to stun them.
The Perk Lightning Rounds make Thunderlord more accurate the longer you hold down the trigger. Continuously damaging the same target will also create lightning strikes similar to Reign Havoc.
Finally, Feeding Frenzy just makes it much easier to keep this weapon reloaded. All of this makes for quite the beast of a weapon, with insane ad-clearing potential thanks to the constant lightning strikes.
You may notice that Thunderlord doesn’t do an insane amount of damage to Major enemies and Bosses at first. That is where its Catalyst comes in.
The Thunderlord Catalyst adds the Return Stroke Perk to the weapon, partially reloading the weapon every time a lightning strike is created. This Perk will trigger whether you earn a final blow or deal sustained damage to an enemy.
The Catalyst effectively eliminates the need to ever reload Thunderlord, giving you all the time in the world to keep mowing down Minor enemies or empty your entire ammo reserve into a Boss enemy.
Thunderlord can be obtained from any Exotic Engram. See our guide on How to Farm Exotics to unlock Thunderlord soon.
Cataphract GL3
A unicorn of a weapon.
Cataphract GL3 is a Legendary Adaptive Frame Strand Grenade Launcher. Out of any GRenade Launcher in the game, it has one of the most stacked Perk pools.
The god roll that many PvE players are after is Evnious Assassin with Bait and Switch. This Perk combination is the dream roll for just about any DPS weapon and is perfect for a Grenade Launcher as you can empty your entire magazine before within the Bait and Switch window.
Along with these Perks, Cataphract GL3 can drop with Auto-Loading Holster, Demolitionist, and Explosive Light. All great backup Perks in case you can’t find the ideal god-roll.
PvP players have also taken to using Cataphract GL3 as their Heavy weapon of choice, as it can roll with Impulse Amplifier for massively increased projectile velocity and Chain Chain Reaction, causing final blows to deal additional area-of-effect damage.
This is a strong combo of Perks that can net you multiple kills with a single shot. Inside of the Crucible, where every Heavy ammo shot counts, a weapon like this is ideal.
The only downside to the Cataphract GL3 is that it can only be obtained from Trials of Osiris. You will have to wait until it is the weekly Flawless weapon before getting a Flawless Passage to the Lighthouse to obtain one.
Once you do have the weapon unlocked, you can farm additional rolls from Trials of Osiris Engrams. There is also the option of trading multiple Engrams in to focus a Cataphract GL3.
Doomed Petitioner
The new best Linear Fusion Rifle.
Doomed Petitioner is a Legendary Aggressive Frame Void Linear Fusion Rifle that has all of the makings to be the perfect weapon. It was recently added to the game with the release of the Season of the Wish.
Linear Fusion Rifles have been some of the best DPS weapons inside of PvE for a while, with Cataclysmic and Taipan-4FR both holding their own.
Doomed Petitioner finally gives us everything we need from a Linear Fusion Rifle.
It rolls with the top-tier Perk Reconstruction to overflow the magazine and reload the weapon when not in use. Rather than Bait and Switch, Doomed Petitioner rolls with Precision Instrument as its damage-enhancing Perk.
This Perk grants a stacking increase to precision damage the longer you sustain damage on a target. With maximum stacks, you are receiving a 25% damage increase that will remain in place until you miss a shot.
It is important to remember that this is an Aggressive Frame weapon, meaning it fires in a three-burst round.
Every shot inside of this burst will add a stack of Precision Instrument, allowing you to gain all six stacks in only two shots from Doomed Petitioner.
For Boss encounters that take place from afar where precision is key, Doomed Petitioner should be your Heavy weapon of choice. It is also a great option for solo content such as Legendary Lost Sectors.
Doomed Petitioner drops from any Season if the Wish activity or Engram. It is craftable, so be sure to unlock the crafting pattern while it is still easy to obtain.
The Lament
The best general-use Sword in the game.
The Lament is an Exotic Solar Sword that has been a top-tier weapon inside of PvE ever since its release with the Beyond Light Expansion. It does everything you want a Sword to do and more.
It comes with the Intrinsic Perk Banshee’s Wail. Blocking with The Lament will rev the blade, increasing damage and damage resistance while gaining stacks with every following attack that further increases your damage.
Using your Heavy attack will consume all Banshee’s Wail stacks to enhance your Heavy attack for a massive hit. One of the most optimal combos uses three Light attacks after blocking to get maximum stacks before using your Heavy attack to shred Bosses in close-quarters encounters.
The Revved Consumption Perk also grants you health every time you deal damage with The Lament. This makes it a great choice for both DPS and ad-clearing, as you can run into groups of enemies without fear, knowing you will regain health rapidly.
The Lament does a lot of damage and earns points for being a versatile weapon. While a god-roll Bequest Sword will technically deal more DPS than The Lament, the ease of use and survivability that The Lament offers can’t be overlooked.
The Lament is obtained from the Lost Lament Exotic Quest. You will need to own the Beyond Light Expansion to unlock it.
Crux Termination IV
A new Rocket Launcher with a very unique set of skills.
Crux Termination IV is a Legendary Agressive Frame Arc Rocket Launcher introduced in Season of the Wish. It was quickly picked up by the community after seeing the Perks that it can roll.
First off, Crux Termination IV has a plethora of amazing Perks to choose from, with Reconstruction, Clown Cartridge, and Envious Assassin all in the same column, along with Explosive Light, Bipod, and Demolitionist in the other column.
What sets Crux Termination IV apart from other Rocket Launchers with similar Perks is the fact that it is one of the only Rocket Launchers that can roll with Slideshot, a Perk that reloads your weapon whenever you slide.
Cheating reloads is the one thing that a player wants for their Rocket Launcher and Slideshot has a 0.3-second cooldown, allowing you to continuously fire off your rocket, slide, fire, and repeat until the magazine is empty.
There are many cases where Slideshot beats out the traditional magazine-enhancing Perks to give you a higher overall DPS, especially when solo.
When in the context of a Fireteam, it can be difficult to use when you have six Guardians standing inside of a Well of Radiance sliding in front of each other, potentially causing accidents.
For Dungeons, low man Raids, and Solo Legendary Lost Sectors, Crux Termination IV is a great pick that you should definitely consider. Even without Slideshot, this weapon only has six Perks per column, making it incredibly easy to find a god-roll.
Crux Termination IV is a world drop weapon that can be obtained from any Legendary Engram or rank-up reward.
These are the best Heavy weapons in Destiny 2. You should have plenty of great options in this list for any type of activity you choose to run.
What has been your favorite Heavy weapon recently in Destiny 2? Do you have any suggestions for additions to the list? Let me know in the comments!
