Being able to stun Champions is an essential part of any end-game activity in Destiny 2. There are different methods needed to stun the different types of Champion enemies.
We will cover all of the best ways to stun Champions, as well as some methods that you may not have known about!
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To stun Champions in Destiny 2, you need to shoot them with a weapon that has Anti-Barrier, Anti-Overload, or Anti-Unstoppable rounds.
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How to Stun Champions in Destiny 2
Champions are especially hard-to-kill enemies that are scattered throughout the many end-game activities in Destiny 2.
They are meant to force your Fireteam to cooperate in build crafting in order to be able to take down any Champions that come your way.
Unlike normal enemies, Champions will take reduced damage and regenerate their health until they are stunned. Only then can you fully kill them without using up all of your Special and Heavy ammo.
Each Champion will require a different Perk, weapon, or Ability to stun them.
Stunning Unstoppable Champions
Unstoppable Champions will continuously chase you down and blast you with a powerful beam that will take you out in seconds. Stunning Unstoppable Champions on-sight is the only way to stay alive.
The easiest method to stun Unstoppable Champions, as well as any other Champion, is by using the Seasonal Artifact.
Every Season, there will be a new rotation of Anti-Champion Perks that apply a stunning effect to the chosen weapon type. For Season of the Witch, the Unstoppable Weapon Perk is tied to Scout Rifles and Fusion Rifles.
Using either of these weapons to damage an Unstoppable Champion will stun it, leaving it vulnerable and ready to be damaged.
Be sure to kill it while it is stunned. If it recovers from the stun, it will regain its resistances and become immune to stun for a short duration.
Since Fusion Rifles have the Unstoppable Perk this season, Riptide with the Chill Clip Perk is an excellent weapon to use. It can slow, freeze, and shatter many different Champions for an all-around great pick.
There are four Exotic weapons that can stun Unstoppable Champions. The best of the four weapons has got to be Malfeasance. Every shot sticks to the enemy.
Stacking enough shots will cause all of them to detonate and deal a massive amount of damage while stunning Unstoppable Champions.
Pair this with the Hunter’s Lucky Pants Exotic to completely ruin any Champions you see. Bastion fires a quick three-round spread of shots that will instantly stun any Unstoppable Champion.
The last weapon is Leviathan’s Breath. This is another great option as it is in the Power weapon slot and can deal a good amount of DPS to both Champions as well as Bosses when using the Catalyst.
A fully drawn shot will knock back any enemies and leave Unstoppable Champions stunned.
There are quite a few abilities that can stun Unstoppable Champions as well. Any Arc ability that Blinds can stop an Unstoppable Champion.
Solar subclasses can stun Unstoppable Champions by Igniting them with enough Scorch stacks. Stasis has the option of shattering Unstoppable Champions after freezing them.
Strand is one of the most versatile subclasses, able to Suspend Champions using either their Class Abilities or grenades to stun them.
Stunning Overload Champions
Overload Champions are very hard to pin down, as they are constantly teleporting all around the place.
If you think Unstoppable Champions are hard to run from, just wait until you are hiding behind cover and see an Overload Champion appear right in front of you.
To stun an Overload Champion, the current Season of the Witch weapons to use are Hand Cannons and Machine Guns. Shortly after aiming down your sights with a Hand Cannon, you will see the buff Overload Shot pop up.
Firing this shot at an Overload Champion will stun them and keep them from teleporting. Quickly finish them off to avoid having to do it all over again.
There are only three Exotic weapons that can stun Overload Champions. Thunderlord is probably the easiest weapon to use, as it only takes a few shots to stun Overload champions and not even half a magazine to finish them off.
This weapon is amazing regardless of its stun potential. Divinity has Anti-Overload built into it, along with a debuff to make killing Champions much easier on you and your Fireteam.
Lastly, Le Monarque, when quickly fully drawn and released, will fire a poison arrow that can stun Overload Champions on precision hits.
The poison plumes will also spread to nearby enemies, making it easier to focus on the Champion.
Outside of weapons, Overload Champions can be stunned by three different subclasses. Arc subclasses using any type of Jolt ability can Stun Overload Champions.
Stasis subclasses can slow and freeze Overload Champions to make them stop moving and stun them.
Finally, Void subclasses using Suppression effects, such as a Suppression Grenade, can stop the teleporting abilities of Overload Champions to stun them.
How to Stun Barrier Champions
Among the three Champion enemies, Barrier Champions are the most unique and, for many newer players, one of the toughest Champions to deal with.
Barrier Champions are especially difficult to take care of when you are not the one with Anti-Barrier weapons, requiring a lot of communication to efficiently take out.
Barrier Champions will deploy a barrier that blocks all damage when their health reaches about halfway down.
While their barrier is deployed, Barrier Champions will rapidly regain their health. Killing the barrier as soon as it pops up is crucial.
Breaking this barrier will stun the Champion and stop its healing. To break the barrier, you will need either a Bow or an Auto Rifle in Season of the Witch.
You will need to continuously damage the barrier until it breaks. Stopping halfway will give the Champion enough time to fully regenerate its health.
There are five Exotic Weapons with piercing damage that can also stun a Barrier Champion by breaking its barrier. Wish Ender can pierce through barriers when fully drawn.
Eriana’s Vow pierces through shields and has increased damage when aiming down sights. After using your block to rev the blade, The Lament gives all subsequent attacks shield-piercing capabilities.
Revision Zero passively fires shield-piercing rounds. The option to use fast-firing, four-round burst makes it easy to keep pressure on the Barrier Champion’s shield to stop it from regenerating any health.
Quickly swap to any stored Sniper Rounds to finish the Champion off.
Lastly, Arbalest does massive damage to shields and barriers, causing enemies to take additional Kinetic weapon damage after breaking their shields.
There are a few subclasses that can stun Barrier Champions. Solar subclasses can apply shield-piercing damage to their weapons after becoming Radiant.
Strand subclasses can stun through Unraveling. Void subclasses can use Volatile Rounds to stun Barrier Champions.
These are all of the best ways you can stun Barrier, Overload, and Unstoppable Champions in Destiny 2!
Are there any methods you think I’ve missed? Are there any other weapons that are good against Champion enemies that you would like to mention? Let me know in the comments!
