Summary
There are many changes that came to the game with the recent Episode Heresy, andDestiny 2’s future looks a little brighter now than it did when Revenant was released. Not only did Heresy buffDestiny 2’s Arc subclasses, but also a bunch of Arc Exotics, and on top of that, multiple Arc-related mods were added to the Episode’s Artifact. These all make the gameplay loop for Arc much smoother and more efficient than before, possibly ever, and they show just how strong some mechanics can be. Namely, Bolt Charge has been getting a lot of attention, and one of the game’s classes currently uses it to break away from its typical identity.
Arc buffs also made their way into the meta for the newly releasedSundered Doctrine Dungeonand its accompanying World First race. This culminated last night with the victory of a fireteam comprised of players Biggz, Mariomonkey, and luigistyle, though many Guardians are still clearing the Dungeon. A big part of the endgame inDestiny 2, at least when it comes to PvE, is having great builds for boss encounters, which typically require a more ranged playstyle. As such, Titans often fall short due to many of their Exotics and abilities being focused on melee damage, but Heresy turns that concept on its head.
Destiny 2’s Titans Finally Have a Top-Tier Ranged Build in Episode Heresy
Destiny 2’s Titansare so melee-focused that this posed a big issue for the class when The Final Shape launched, with only a handful of Titans getting to The Witness encounter in the accompanying Raid, and even fewer actually completing it with this class. Some boss encounters are naturally designed with ranged abilities and weapons in mind, and even the more melee-oriented encounters can often still be completed with ranged builds. As such, the Titan has always found itself in a strange spot, but that is changing with Heresy.
Players can use the newStorm’s Keep Arc Aspect, which grants stacks of Bolt Charge whenever the Barricade ability is used. On reaching the maximum of 10 Bolt Charge stacks, any ability damage will cause Bolt Charge to proc and consume all stacks, dealing a massive amount of damage to the target and in a small area of effect surrounding it. This gives Titan builds inDestiny 2what they have always needed - a great kit to remain at range and deal enough damage to compete with Hunters and Warlocks.
Why The New Storm’s Keep Arc Build in Destiny 2 is OP
This doesn’t mean that ranged builds have never been a thing for Titans, but they are not always the best for single-target damage or they have been nerfed, like the original Touch of Thunder build that became meta when Arc 3.0 came out. Bolt Charge is a great buff to Arc, and Storm’s Keep makes it incredibly strong because it also gives nearby players stacks of Bolt Charge, rather than the Titan alone. As such, one can hypothetically have a full team of Titans constantly dealing Bolt Charge damage and chaining lighting bolts onto enemies, which could prove to be a strong contender forDestiny 2’s Raid bosses.
Even alone, a Titan with Storm’s Keep and possibly other tools, like Heart of Inmost Light as the Exotic armor and even guns like The Queenbreaker, Wardcliff Coil, or Thunderlord for the Exotic weapon slot, will decimate foes and still have high DPS. Spamming Bolt Charge is easy enough with Storm’s Keep, and it finally allows the class to move past its typical melee builds. On top of that, Bolt Charge works in all kinds ofDestiny 2activities, excelling in group play. This Aspect is a game-changer, and more Titans should keep it in their saved loadouts.
