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Destiny 2 contains hundreds of weapons for Guardians to chase, ranging from Sidearms to Trace Rifles. A select few of those weapons have a prestigious Adept variant that comes with higher stats, access to Adept mods, and unique shaders. If you're someone who cares about min-maxing their character, you'll want to get your hands on these Adept weapons.
Adept weapons are some of Destiny 2's most sought-after items. And as you'd expect, they're quite difficult to obtain. In this guide, we'll cover what Adept weapons are, how to obtain them and their unique Adept mods, and we'll answer some common questions newcomers have about Adept gear in general.
What Are Adept Weapons?
Adept weapons are stronger variants of pre-existing weapons, obtained by completing Destiny 2's hardest content. All Adept weapons grant the following:
- Additional stats points when Masterworked (+2 in all non-Masterworked stats).
- Multiple perk options in the final column(s).
- An Adept mod socket, allowing you to use Adept or standard weapon mods.
- A unique shader.
Adept weapons are marginally stronger than their non-Adept counterparts. A god roll of a non-Adept weapon will typically outshine a decent Adept roll, so keep that in mind. However, for players that care about min-maxing, Adept weapons offer more stat bumps than any other weapon in Destiny 2 (excluding crafted weapons).
As of writing, only weapons have Adept variants. Adept armor does not exist.
How To Get Adept Weapons
Adept weapons drop from Master-tier raids, Grandmaster Nightfalls, and the Lighthouse—a hub area accessible by going flawless in the Trials of Osiris. Bungie has stated that they might be adding Master-tier dungeons in the future that contain Adept gear (source). For whatever reason, Grasp of Avarice does not give Adept gear despite having a Master variant.
Every Adept weapon, along with their drop source, can be found below. Remember that these activities are all quite difficult and considered endgame content.
Grandmaster Nightfalls only drop two of the six weapons listed. Weapon drops rotate weekly. Lower-tier Nightfalls do not drop Adept weapons (even Adept difficulty).
|
Activity |
Adept Weapons |
|---|---|
|
Vault of Glass (Master) |
|
|
Vow of the Disciple (Master) |
|
|
Grandmaster Nightfalls |
|
|
Trials of Osiris (Flawless Card) |
|
*This weapon does not drop. It must be claimed through a Triumph. Additional copies can be purchased at the end of a Master VoG clear.
Master Raids
Destiny 2's latest raids—Vow of the Disciple and Vault of Glass—feature Master difficulty variants that drop Adept versions of raid weapons. The Adept weapon that drops rotates each week, determined by that week's active encounter challenge. Vow of the Disciple's weekly rotation is unknown as of writing. Vault of Glass rotates the following weapons with each challenge:
|
Challenge |
Encounter |
Adept Weapon |
|---|---|---|
|
Wait For It... |
Confluxes |
Vision of Confluence |
|
The Only Oracle For You |
Oracles |
Praedyth's Revenge |
|
Out Of Its Way |
Templar |
Fatebringer |
|
Strangers In Time |
Gatekeepers |
Hezen Vengeance |
|
Ensemble's Refrain |
Atheon |
Corrective Measure |
Found Verdict's Adept variant is tied to a Triumph, unlocked after completing all five VoG weekly challenges. Vow of the Disciple's Adept weapon will become available once its Master variant releases later this season.
Grandmaster Nightfalls
A successful clear of a Grandmaster Nightfall has a chance of dropping one of two Adept weapons. The weapons that can drop from a GM rotate weekly. You can find which weapons are currently dropping on third-party websites like light.gg. Higher-tier completions have a higher chance of dropping an Adept weapon. You can only receive Adept Nightfall weapons from Grandmaster difficulty.
Trials Of Osiris (Flawless Card)
Winning seven games of Trials of Osiris without a single loss—excluding the Trial of Mercy, which allows for one loss—allows your fireteam to enter the Lighthouse. This hub area houses a chest that grants an Adept weapon and a Trials Memento for your crafted weapons. Subsequent wins on a flawless card have a slight chance of dropping an Adept weapon. The Adept weapon that drops changes each week.
How To Get Adept Mods
All Adept weapon sources also have a chance of unlocking an Adept mod. Adept mods grant stronger benefits to their non-Adept mod counterparts or entirely new effects. For example, Adept Icarus Grip grants +5 range atop the in-air accuracy bump the mod already grants. However, players who solely want a range increase could use Adept Range to gain a +10 range bump.
Just about every activity can drop any Adept mod. There are only two expectations to this rule:
- Adept Icarus Grip only drops from the Lighthouse chest in Trials of Osiris.
- Adept Big Ones Spec only drops from PvE activities like GM Nightfalls and Master raids.
For a more thorough breakdown of the Adept mod system and what each mod does, check out our Adept mod guide.
The Best Adept Weapons
Here are our recommendations for the best Adept weapons you should be chasing. These weapons make better use of what Adept mods and stat bumps have to offer than their contemporaries.
|
Weapon |
Source |
Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
|
Fatebringer |
Vault of Glass (Templar) |
Has a great curated roll; stat bumps make it a top-tier PvP Hand Cannon |
|
Found Verdict |
Vault of Glass (Triumph) |
Allows you to spec heavily into handling |
|
Palindrome |
Grandmaster Nightfalls |
Gives Palindrome the most range out of any Legendary 140 Hand Cannon |
|
Eye of Sol |
Trials of Osiris |
Noticeable stat increase over its non-Adept variant |
|
Shayura's Wrath |
Trials of Osiris |
Allows it to reach 100 range |
Adept Weapon FAQ
Can Adept Weapons Be Crafted?
No. Only non-Adept weapons can be crafted. With that said, crafted weapons that reach level 20 get the same stat bump as Masterworked Adept weapons. This means crafted weapons can access enhanced traits, while Adept weapons get to use Adept mods. You'll have to decide which is more valuable to your loadout.
Do All Weapons Have An Adept Variant?
No. Only weapons from Nightfalls, Vault of Glass, Vow of the Disciple, and Trials of Osiris have Adept variants.
Do Adept Weapons Deal More Damage Than Non-Adept Weapons?
No. The only Adept-exclusive mod that alters damage, Adept Big Ones Spec, deals the same damage as Major and Boss Spec. Adept Impact only affects Swords and is objectively worse than an enemy spec mod.
What's The Best Adept Weapon Farm?
Raids are a great source of Adept weapons. Once you've obtained a raid Adept weapon from a challenge, you can purchase multiple copies of that weapon from the end-of-raid chest. Adept weapons cost slightly more Spoils of Conquest than non-Adept gear.
Can You Get Adept Armor?
Adept armor does not exist currently. The closest thing to Adept armor is the Artifice set from Master Grasp of Avarice, each piece dropping with a fifth mod slot for Artifact mods.
Can I Apply Adept Shaders Onto Non-Adept Weapons?
No. The shader is tied to the weapon and cannot be acquired through dismantling.