Destiny 2 brought new weapon archetypes for players to experiment with. Submachine Guns, Grenade Launchers, and Linear Fusion Rifles were all new additions to keep the sandbox interesting. Linear's existed indirectly in the original Destiny with Queenbreaker and Sleeper Simulant, but they never existed as a proper archetype.
These weapons act as Sniper Rifles with a delay before firing, making them well-suited for holding down lanes in PvP or fighting tougher enemies in PvE content. While weaker than many Heavy weapons, they fill a unique niche that most Heavies can't. Here are the best Linear Fusion Rifles in Destiny 2.
Updated December 26th, 2022, by Charles Burgar: The Lightfall expansion has nerfed most Linear Fusion Rifles and reworked some Exotic picks. To help you find the perfect Heavy weapon for endgame PvE activities, we've updated this list with new entries and rewrote nearly all previous entries to account for Lightfall's current PvE sandbox.
10 The Queenbreaker
How to obtain: Exotic Engrams found through Xur or world drops.
Queenbreaker received a small rework in Lightfall that changes how the Exotic's linear shots behave. Each shot from this weapon will inflict Arc's Blind keyword and chain between targets, similar (but not the same) as Jolt. A single shot can clear a handful of targets and blind anything that remains, making Queenbraker a surprisingly good option for harder content where your DPS is covered through abilities. For actual boss DPS or PvP viability, look elsewhere.
Recommended Traits
- Column One: Marksman Sights
- Column Two: Quickdraw
9 Fire And Forget
How to obtain: No longer obtainable.
This weapon is currently unobtainable. Reed's Regret is a Stasis alternative to Fire and Forget that's currently obtainable.
If you like three-round burst LFRs, Fire and Forget is a great Heavy weapon. This Aggressive Frame LFR fires Stasis bolts in three-round bursts, inflicting some serious damage if you can land consistent headshots. So long as you can manage the gun's recoil per shot, Fire and Forget can pump out some respectable damage.
Field Prep and Focused Fury is the chase roll here. Field Prep increases ammo reserves—somewhat making up for the lack of Triple Tap/Fourth Time's the Charm—and Focused Fury triggers upon landing two bursts instead of half the magazine. In other words, Focused Fury is active for nearly the entire magazine. It won't beat the current meta LFRs for raw DPS, but those looking for a good Stasis Linear Fusion Rifle won't be disappointed.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Field Prep
- Column Two: Focused Fury, Frenzy
8 Briar's Contempt
How to obtain: Root of Nightmares raid.
Briar's Contempt is the first Aggressive Frame Solar LFR in Destiny 2, obtainable from the Root of Nightmares raid. Solar LFRs have tough competition for the Heavy slot, notably Cataclysmic and Sleeper Simulant. At first glance, Briar's Contempt seems like a major downgrade to Cataclysmic.
That changes when you start accounting for perks. Rewind Rounds can be paired with either High-Impact Reserves or Focused Fury for some absurd damage potential. Since this weapon hits targets multiple times, it should proc Rewind Rounds consistently in any DPS phase, making reloads a rare occurrence even during long damage phases. It might not be as easy to use as Sleeper or deal the absurd total damage of Cataclysmic, yet the gun's DPS perks make it an excellent choice for slaying Champions, Tormentors, and most dungeon bosses.
Recommended Traits
- Column One: Rewind Rounds
- Column Two: Focused Fury, High-Impact Reserves
7 Sleeper Simulant
How to obtain: Purchased from the Exotic Kiosk in the Tower. Costs 1 Exotic Cipher, 125,000 Glimmer, 200 Legendary Shards, and 1 Ascendant Shard.
Sleeper Simulant became a fantastic Heavy weapon thanks to the nerfs to all other LFRs in Lightfall. This weapon fires massive, ricocheting lasers that deal excellent body shot damage. Players that struggle to land consistent headshots against bosses won't be punished as severely while using Sleeper. It hits hard, is easy to use, has a large pool of reserve ammo, and can be used to clear a hallway of adds in a pinch. Not many Linear Fusion Rifles can say the same.
6 Lorentz Driver
How to obtain: Purchased from the Exotic Kiosk in the Tower. Costs 1 Exotic Cipher, 100,000 Glimmer, 150 Glacial Starwort, and 1 Ascendant Shard.
Do you love Arbalest but wish it was better at add-clear? Look no further than Lorentz Driver, Season 15's Exotic Season Pass weapon. This weapon is similar to Arbalest, residing in the Energy slot and utilizing Special ammo to snipe targets. Unlike Arbalest, Lorentz Driver has two absurdly strong perks.
Lagrangian Sight, Lorentz Driver's Exotic perk, gives you wallhacks periodically. If you kill the marked target, you get a telemetry stack. Should you grab three stacks of telemetry, your weapon deals 50% bonus damage for 30 seconds. This allows Lorentz to annihilate majors in PvE and one-tap Guardians to the body in PvP. And since the duration of this effect is so long, it's quite easy to keep this effect going once it's active.
If a one-tapping weapon with absurd aim assist still doesn't have you sold, precision kills will spawn a black hole, pulling targets towards the enemy you just killed. This gives it add-clearing potential as well and can seriously throw off opponents in the Crucible. Masterworking this weapon removes the precision requirement while you have three telemetry stacks, arguably making this one of Destiny 2's strongest Special weapons for PvP. It's a great PvE Special as well, but it doesn't quite beat Arbalest.
5 Stormchaser
How to obtain: Duality dungeon.
Stormchaser is one of the strongest Arc LFRs in Destiny 2 currently, and that's impressive considering it has some tough competition. While its recent charge rate nerf significantly hurt Stormchaser's overall DPS, it's still a beast of a Linear Fusion Rifle and can hang along the likes of Cataclysmic and Sleeper Simulant.
Unlike most Linear Fusion Rifles in Destiny 2, Stormchaser fires in three-round bursts, each shot releasing three energy shots. A single burst from this gun deals 42% more damage than Reed's Regret or any other Legendary LFR, but this comes at the cost of a noticeable delay between each shot. Pair these high-damage bursts with Firing Line, and you have yourself a damage monster. And if you can find a way to use weapon surge mods and Radiant on Stormchaser, this gun can stand alongside meta Heavy weapons for Master raids and GM Nightfalls.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Clown Cartridge, Rapid Hit
- Column Two: Firing Line (PvE), Frenzy, Vorpal Weapon
4 Reed's Regret
How to obtain: Trials of Osiris matches and Engram focusing.
Reed's Regret is back in Lightfall thanks to legacy focusing. It has the same perks as its refresh in The Witch Queen, including the excellent combination of Triple Tap and Firing Line. There's not much to say here. It deals excellent damage, can partially refill its magazine through the Veist Stringer origin trait, and benefits from Stasis surge mods on leg armor. It's not the best DPS Heavy in the game anymore, but if you're looking for a great Stasis Heavy weapon, it's difficult finding a better weapon than Reed's Regret.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Triple Tap
- Column Two: Firing Line
3 Arbalest
How to obtain: Exotic Engrams found through Xur or world drops.
Arbalest might not be the strongest Special weapon in PvP anymore, yet this weapon's usefulness in PvE cannot be overstated. This Linear Fusion Rifle resides in the Kinetic slot, making this one of two Special weapon LFRs in the game. It hits incredibly hard from a distance, bypasses shield resistances, and reloads after breaking a shield when its Catalyst is installed. It's great for countering Champions and damaging bosses. Just don't expect Arbalest to be a headshot magnet in the Crucible; that's what Lorentz Driver is for.
2 Taipan-4FR
How to obtain: Legendary Engrams; craftable after completing a short quest from The Enclave.
Destiny 2's first craftable Void LFR is nothing short of a beast. Upon completing a rather short quest from The Enclave's crafting station, you'll be able to create a Taipan with the exact roll you desire. That alone makes Taipan a top-tier LFR on this list, but this weapon's perk combinations make it competitive with current PvE giants.
Triple Tap and Firing Line can roll on this weapon, much like its Stasis cousin. Taipan also comes with Veist Stringer, giving you a chance to automatically reload the magazine from reserves when you hit someone. This gives Taipan the potential for absurdly high sustained DPS that rivals the likes of Reed's Regret and Cataclysmic. Best of all, it's craftable and tied to an easy quest. Everyone can make a god roll Taipan if they have a few hours to spare.
Recommended Traits
- Column One: Triple Tap, Field Prep
- Column Two: Firing Line, Frenzy
1 Cataclysmic
How to obtain: Vow of the Disciple raid.
The strongest Linear Fusion Rifle is Cataclysmic, a Solar LFR that's obtained from the Vow of the Disciple raid. Most of this weapon's power comes from its perks, notably the combination of Fourth Time's the Charm with Bait and Switch. This is currently the only LFR in Destiny 2 that can get Fourth Time's the Charm, allowing it to fire ten rounds before reloading with the right magazine perk.
Bait and Switch turns this weapon into a monster, granting a 35% damage buff for ten seconds upon landing a hit with all three of your weapons. For comparison, the next strongest damage buff found on LFRs is Firing Line, a 20% damage buff. Proc Bait and Switch, land your headshots, and you'll top the DPS charts in every endgame PvE activity in Destiny 2.
Recommended Traits:
- Column One: Fourth Time's the Charm
- Column Two: Bait and Switch, Focused Fury, High-Impact Reserves