Exotics add a great deal of variety and spice toDestiny 2. Many of these iconic weapons define not only the series, but are integral parts of builds. Some Exotics are even notorious forhow badly they break the game. Yet for every incredible Exotic that is all the rage,like Conditional Finality, there are many weapons that have either been left behind in the dust of power creep or are so bad that nobody would ever consider using them.
In the past, Bungie has taken a look at under performing Exotics and retuned them so that they would actually be useful. Here are some weapons that deserve a buff so that they can become relevant again.
Left In The Dust By Power Creep
AsDestiny 2progressed, more weapons fromDestiny 1found their way into the game. Bad Juju was one of those, and it was added during Season of Opulence back during 2019. After unlocking enough tributes in the Tribute Hall, players unlocked a quest for this weapon. While Bad Juju was especially effective when used by Voidwalker Warlocks equipped with Obsidian Mind back duringDestiny 1, it did not live up to its legacy inDestiny 2.
To make matters worse, Bad Juju has been rendered mostly obsolete by Siphon mods that allow players to create dozens of Orbs of Power in the blink of an eye. The Super energy gained from Bad Juju just can’t compete with that. Other than providing some sort ofanti-Champion perk, it would take a lot of work to make Bad Juju relevant in the current meta.
6Cerberus+1
A Unique Effect, But Not Worth An Exotic Slot
Not every Exotic weapon has a powerful effect. Sometimes they just do something a little different from other weapons, and that is the case for Cerberus+1. Other than looking like it has no business being a functional weapon, the “Exotic” factor of Cerberus+1 is that it fires from all four barrels. While the catalyst does provide additional functionality, it still feels like an absolute waste of the Exotic weapon slot when there are significantly better options for any build.
Speaking of builds, Cerberus+1 doesn’t add anything to any build at all. The only reason to use this weapon is if a player doesn’t have anything better or if they like how it looks. If the catalyst added a unique function that allowed it to do a different damage type or stun multiple types of Champions, then Cerberus+1 would definitely see the light of day more often. But in reality, this weapon is just amassing dust in the Vault.
5D.A.R.C.I.
Absolute Waste of the Exotic Slot
Year One ofDestiny 2was a dark time. It was an era of dual primaries, painfully slow cooldowns on all abilities, slow team-shooting gameplay in the Crucible, and any gun that was remotely worth using that wasn’t a primary all got shoved into the Heavy slot. In this era of Bungie wanting to play weapon design extremely safe, they created a bunch of Exotics that were mediocre at best and an absolute waste of an Exotic slot at worst.
D.A.R.C.I. is a great example of this. Despite having interesting lore, D.A.R.C.I. was a random drop Exoticsniper riflethat sat in the Heavy slot. Prior to Bungie adding the Jolt keyword to the weapon in a later patch, all D.A.R.C.I. did was show players the health of a target when they were aimed at. That was it. To make D.A.R.C.I. even remotely worth using, it would need extensive rework.
One potential addition that would make this weapon better is if it provided a substantial increase to precision damage for both the wielder and their fireteam when the wielder has damaged a target. While D.A.R.C.I. does provide a damage boost for the wielder already, it would be worth an Exotic slot if it applied the same bonus to the rest of the fireteam as well.
4Salvation’s Grip
Once a Useful Tool for Getting Out of Bonds
Since it was firstadded duringBeyond Light, Salvation’s Grip has certainly had some interesting history. Its ability to create Stasis crystals on walls resulted in it being used to get out of bounds and explore maps. In some cases, players found ways to use it to cheese raid encounters. Eventually, these were all fixed, and Salvation’s Grip has rarely been seen since then.
As with any Heavy Exotic, there has to be a good reason for it to use the Exotic slot. While the Stasis crystals can provide a small bit of cover, players can get the same thing from any Legendary weapon that has Tombstone without wasting an Exotic slot. One potential change that could make this weapon better is if enemies frozen and then destroyed by Salvation’s Grip sent out a shockwave that froze other enemies or acted like a Cold Snap grenade and moved toward other targets and slow/freeze them. Alternatively, having Salvation’s Grip apply Frost Armor to nearby allies when enemies are frozen would be a good option as well.
3Worldline Zero
Doesn’t Hold a Candle to Newer Legendary Swords
Added during Warmind, Worldine Zero was the first Exotic Sword inDestiny 2. While it was never particularly powerful, even during Year One ofDestiny 2, it was still a unique and fun weapon. Time and power creep have not been kind to this cool-looking sword, though.
Nowadays, any Legendary Swordwith Eager Edgecan do what Worldline Zero does and does it significantly better. On top of that, Worldine Zero is outclassed by nearly every other Exotic Sword in the game. It can’t compete with Lament due to the sheer damage output and the fact that Lament can shred Barrier Champions. If Worldline Zero were to be updated so that it was strong against Overload Champions and also potentially triggered chain lightning to nearby targets, then this weapon would see some actual use.
2Ruinous Effigy
Completely Worthless After the Nerfs
From the beginning, Ruinous Effigy stood out among its Exotic Trace Rifle peers. It was the second Exotic Trace Rifle that did Void damage, but its actual Exotic perk was what made it so unique. Enemies killed by this weapon turn into little Void spheres that other players can pick up and use. In addition to being able to do a slam dunk with the sphere, players can also create a shield to suppress enemies and protect allies. This weapon was also required to destroy Savathun’s Eyes around the system.
When Beyond Light launched, Ruinous Effigy got severely nerfed to the point that it is almost never used. After all the changes thatDestiny 2has gone through these past few years, it may be time to revert the nerfs since Ruinous Effigy wouldn’t be out of place if it were brought back to its original state where it would be especially useful when Void Surge is active in an activity.
1Edge of Intent
Why Use An Exotic Slot For a Glaive?
Glaives were a big deal when they were added into the Witch Queen. At the start of the expansion, there was only the two Legendary Glaives and then an Exotic Glaive for each class. The problem with the Exotic Glaives is that they took far too much work to get something that was mediocre at best. Of the three Exotic Glives, Edge of Intent is easily the worst.
While a healing turret could be helpful, it isn’t the kind of thing that would make the difference between success or another wipe in endgame content. There are always better options when it comes to using Exotic weapons. While Glaives can be useful in many situations, players are better off using a Legendary Glaive so that they can have an Exotic in their primary or heavy slot.
If players do want to use an Exotic Glaive,Winterbite is a much better option. Even if it was changed so that shooting teammates made them Radiant or granted several stacks of Cure, Edge of Intent is a weapon that is in need of a rework.
