Machine Guns are one of Destiny 2's most fun weapon archetypes to use. These Heavy weapons deal great damage against Major enemies while clearing hordes of enemies just as easily. While they were missing during the first year of Destiny 2, they made their triumphant return in Year 2.
Since Thunderlord returned in Festival of the Lost in Year 2, Machine Guns have become a fan favorite among the Destiny 2 community. Those who value ammo usage and fun factor should look into using this archetype of weapon. Here are the ten best Machine Guns in Destiny 2.
Updated April 1, 2023, by Charles Burgar: Machine Guns received another major buff in Season of Defiance, turning them into fantastic add-clearing weapons and Champion slayers alike. We've updated this list to include this season's Circular Logic Machine Gun for Strand builds, and we've upped Retrofit Escapade's rank to reflect current Aritfact perks and the massive ammo reserve buff it received.
10 Circular Logic
How to obtain: Terminal Overload Reward (Rotates Daily)
Destiny 2's first Strand Machine Gun is a powerhouse with the right roll. This Machine Gun can get Feeding Frenzy and Hatchling in the same roll, allowing you to spawn Hatchlings from precision kills. Since Machine Guns have a copious amount of aim assist, it's quite easy landing precision kills to spawn them.
If you're looking for more of a DPS/add-clearing hybrid weapon, Circular Logic can fill that niche quite well. Envious Assassin and Target Lock is a great combination for fighting majors, Champions, and bosses found in Nightfalls. It won't top the DPS charts in raids or dungeons, but this weapon is incredibly versatile and worth farming for, especially for Strand builds that spec heavily into Threadlings.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Envious Assassin, Feeding Frenzy
- Column Two: Hatchling, Target Lock
9 Fixed Odds
How to obtain: Duality dungeon, or crafted at The Enclave
Fixed Odds is a High-Impact Frame Machine Gun, reprised years after it was sunset. This weapon seems lackluster on paper, but this weapon can roll with one of the best add-clearing perks in Destiny 2: Killing Tally.
Killing Tally makes a return on Fixed Odds, and while it isn't as good as 21% Delirium, Fixed Odds is still a powerhouse with this perk. Three kills grant a 30% damage buff, something that compounds the 40% damage buff Machine Guns got this season. Paired with Field Prep, this weapon is an add-clearing machine that can chunk through majors just as easily. And if you're a Titan main, throw on Actium War Rig to give this gun a bottomless magazine.
Besides Killing Wind, Incandescent is a great second column perk as well, giving this weapon a slightly weaker version of Dragonfly that procs on all kills. For PvP, Under Pressure and Rangefinder will serve you well, giving you a Machine Gun that's incredibly accurate and can hit headshots with ease. It won't top Commemoration, although it's far from a bad choice inside the Crucible.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Field Prep, Under Pressure (PvP)
- Column Two: Killing Tally, Incandescent, Rangefinder (PvP)
8 Qullim's Terminus
How to obtain: King's Fall raid.
Qullim's Terminus is a Stasis Machine Gun with a massive magazine and some fantastic perks. Runneth Over, the weapon's origin trait, immediately sets it apart from other Machine Guns, giving this weapon Clown Cartridge that scales off nearby teammates.
As for perks, Unrelenting with Firefly or Headstone is a great combination if you want an add-clearing machine that keeps you alive. If you want to take Qullim's into the Crucible, Dynamic Sway Reduction and Eye of the Storm make it incredibly easy to land headshots from a distance. It can also roll with Slickdraw if you can't stand the weapon's slow handling speed. Overall, Qullim's Terminus is a great Machine Gun that will serve you well in PvE and PvP.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Unrelenting, Dynamic Sway Reduction (PvP)
- Column Two: Firefly/Headstone, Eye of the Storm (PvP), Wellspring
7 Grand Overture
How to obtain: Purchased from the Exotic Kiosk in the Tower. Costs 1 Exotic Cipher, 100,000 Glimmer, 200 Legendary Shards, and 1 Ascendant Shard.
You might be surprised to see this on the list. Grand Overture has seen a plethora of buffs throughout Year 5 and has slowly become a devastating burst DPS weapon for all PvE content. This Machine Gun loads high-damage rockets with every shot you land, stacking up to 20 times. When you need something to die 20 times over, hold the reload key to unleash the rocket salvo. It's a strange Machine Gun/Wardcliff Coil hybrid that just didn't fit either niche at release.
But now? Grand Overture is absurdly powerful at shredding Champions, minibosses, and even pumping out some good DPS numbers against bosses with short vulnerability periods. Buff yourself with Font of Might and a damage buff, then rip and tear through any enemy that's on your screen. It's a clunky weapon that isn't particularly great at add clear or PvP, but as far as burst DPS weapons go, Grand Overture is up there with the likes of Parasite and The Fourth Horseman.
6 Corrective Measure
How to obtain: Vault of Glass raid (Conflux, Templar, and Atheon encounters).
Corrective Measure is the closest replacement to 21% Delirium that we'll get in Destiny 2. This is currently one of two Machine Guns that can roll with Subsistence, allowing this weapon to automatically reload itself after a kill.
You can couple Subsistence with One for All, Firefly, Adrenaline Junkie, or Thresh. Firefly makes for a unique damage combination on this weapon, allowing you to deal Void damage with each bullet and Solar damage after landing a precision final blow. Corrective Measure is excellent for add-clear (especially with Volatile Rounds active), can take out multiple shield types in Match Game activities thanks to Firefly, and is a great workhorse weapon for grenade builds due to its ability to roll Demolitionist and Adrenaline Junkie simultaneously. If you love throwing grenades, get this gun. If you love using Machine Guns for add-clear, get this gun. If you love Machine Guns at all, get this gun. Corrective Measure will not disappoint.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Subsistence, Demolitionist
- Column Two: Firefly, One for All (PvE), Adrenaline Junkie (pair with Demolitionist)
5 Commemoration
How to obtain: Deep Stone Crypt raid (Taniks encounter).
Commemoration got a perk refresh in Season of the Seraph, allowing it to roll with some elemental-themed perks. Fans of overshields can now use Repulsor Brace on Commemoration, and those looking for a good add clear Heavy can rock Dragonfly and Rampage simultaneously. You can even get Subsistence and Killing Tally if you want a modern version of 21% Delirium.
PvP fans arguably have fewer options than before, losing out on Dynamic Sway Reduction and Eye of the Storm. But if you're a PvE player looking for a solid add-clearing machine, Commemoration won't disappoint. If you're looking for a boss DPS weapon, Retrofit Escapade will likely serve you better.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Dragonfly, Subsistence, Adaptive Munitions
- Column Two: Rampage, Killing Tally, Unrelenting
4 Avalanche
How to obtain: The Dawning event.
Avalanche is back in this year's Dawning event, complete with a new suite of perks. This year's Avalanche is the best variant yet, featuring some S-tier perks that make it perfect for clearing out adds, damaging bosses, and everything in between. And if you're a PvP player looking for a good Machine Gun, Avalanche has a whopping 90 base aim assist, the highest out of all MGs in the game.
For perks, you're looking for Ambitious Assassin and Target Lock. The former loads Avalanche with a massive magazine if you land a few multikills beforehand, allowing Target Lock to ramp up your damage as you lay into a boss. Target Lock ramps up to a massive 40% damage buff, something you can easily maintain with Ambitious Assassin's overflowing magazine. It's a viable boss DPS option that might become relevant if Lightfall nerfs Linear Fusion Rifles. Oh, and if you prefer using Machine Guns for add clear, Avalanche can get Incandescent. Needless to say, get this gun before the Dawning ends.
There's also another interesting perk on this gun: Cadence Point. Kills or rapid headshots with another weapon will greatly buff Avalanche's fire rate for the next five seconds, acting similarity to Desperado without needing a kill. You can actually maintain 100% uptime on this perk if you swap between two Cadence Point weapons. It's not a meta DPS contender currently, but it might be if we get more weapons with this perk. If you get a roll with Cadence Point, we recommend keeping it. You never know what the future may hold.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Ambitious Assassin, Auto-Loading Holster, Subsistence
- Column Two: Target Lock, Incandescent, Cadence Point (for future seasons)
3 Xenophage
How to obtain: An Exotic quest found on the Moon.
Xenophage got unnerfed in Season of the Haunted. It didn't gain any of the damage buffs the other Machine Guns received, but Xenophage doesn't need it. This weapon is nothing short of a powerhouse in PvE, one-shotting most majors and dealing respectable damage to bosses.
The real power of Xenophage comes from its ease of use. This gun can't land headshots, meaning optimal DPS just requires you to land your shots. That's an easy task considering that Xenophage fires explosive rounds that deal massive damage. These explosive rounds allow you to use mods like Wrath of Rasputin to spawn Warmind Cells with ease, giving this weapon a means of clearing adds. Xenophage is once again a great pick for all PvE content and not a bad Heavy weapon inside the Crucible, although it loses out to Gjallarhorn and Wardcliff Coil.
2 Thunderlord
How to obtain: Exotic Engrams and occasionally sold by Xur.
Ever since auto-reloading was removed in Shadowkeep, Thunderlord became a forgotten Exotic in the eyes of many. That is until recently. With the massive buffs to Machine Guns in Year 5 and Season of the Plunder adding a Catalyst to Thunderlord, this Machine Gun is finally worth using.
Thunderlord is a 450 RPM Machine Gun that ramps up its fire rate as you hold the trigger, creating a bolt of lightning every few shots. Killing targets will create lightning strikes as well, making this weapon a devastating add-clearing option for endgame content. More importantly, its Catalyst allows Thunderlord to reload a portion of its magazine upon creating a lightning strike, allowing you to fire up to 153 shots without reloading. Thunderlord's sustained DPS is better than most Machine Guns, it clears hordes with ease, and it can stun Overload Champions. Simply put, Thunderlord is the ultimate jack of all trades for your Heavy slot.
1 Retrofit Escapade
How to obtain: Occasionally sold by Xur.
Machine Guns are now a viable DPS option. Well, Retrofit Escapade is. This is one of few Machine Guns that can get the Target Lock perk, increasing your damage the longer you hit the same target. It grants a 17% damage buff for hitting the same target for a couple of seconds, ramping up to 40% with continuous fire.
That alone isn't enough to make MGs a meta DPS option, but Retrofit Escapade has two other advantages:
- It deals Void damage, allowing it to benefit from Volatile Rounds.
- It can get Fourth Time's the Charm.
Fourth Time's the Charm on a Rapid-Fire Frame is absurdly powerful with a damage perk. If you can buff your magazine capacity through Extended Mag, you can fire nearly 200 bullets before needing to reload. Hunters should be especially interested since Gyrfalcon's Hauberk now gives Nightstalkers easy access to Volatile Rounds during DPS phases. You merge all of these elements together, you get a Machine Gun that can match the DPS of most Linear Fusion Rifles. If you want a great Heavy weapon that can do a little of everything, Retrofit Escapade won't dissapoint.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Fourth Time's the Charm
- Column Two: Target Lock