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The upcoming Desert Perpetual raid inDestiny 2’sEdge of Fate expansion is going to push your Guardian to their limits. For the first 48 hours, this raid will experience Contest difficulty scaling, featuring far more aggressive enemies and a major Power deficiency. Completing the campaign on Legendary will get your Power Level up to the requirement, but that’s not all you’ll need.
Clearing this raid on higher difficulties will require some strong builds and good team coordination. We can’t help with the latter, but we can certainly give you some starter builds to work with. Today, we’ll be covering nine builds that will help you clear the Desert Perpetual raid, three for each class.
Role
Add Clear & Mechanics
This build is focused on eliminating adds as quickly as possible without exposing yourself to danger. We are usingThreaded Spikeas our melee to tag as many enemies with Sever as possible, reducing their damage by 40%. you may then useAscensionto shock nearby targets with Jolt. This will trigger Gambler’s Dodge and reset Threaded Spike, allowing you to throw another one for more damage. As long as you hit a single target, Threaded Spike will track enemies on its own.
Add clear is trivial with this build due to its high Threaded Spike uptime, but we can also leverage Prismatic’s high survivability to complete raid mechanics. We useRelativismwithCyrtarachneto gain Woven Mail, a 45% damage resistance (DR) buff, whenever we use ourGrapplegrenade. We can recharge it within ten seconds with a 70 Grenade stat andInmost Lightin Relativism’s first perk column. Getting a kill withanyability will procStylish Executioner, making you invisible for a few seconds if you need to drop aggro.
Stylish Executionerprovides a 300% melee damage bonus to your next melee attack. This buffsThreaded Spike’sfirst hit. Aim at a tanky orange bar for an easy kill.
Amplified, a buff you gain from Ascension, will give you another 15% DR and a higher chance of avoiding enemy projectiles. And thanks to Facet of Protection, you’ll gain x1 Restoration whenever you pick up an Orb of Power—a common occurrence thanks to x3 Heavy Handed mods on your gloves and two Powerful Attraction mods on your class item.
Ascension now procs armor mods, so you simply need to trigger your helicopter spin in the air to vacuum all nearby orbs. Throw on some surge mods on your legs, and this build should hold its own in DPS rotations as well, albeit not as well as a dedicatedCelestial Nighthawkloadout.
Class Item Hotswapping
Swapping to another roll ofRelativismwillnottrigger any penalties from Notswap, which makes pre-DPS loadout hotswapping a viable option if Notswap is present during Contest.
If possible, make a second loadout withWeapons + Super armor, a Relativism cloak withFoetracerandStar-Eater, and your Heavy weapon of choice. Make sure your weapons and subclass configuration are the same between both loadouts.
Boss DPS
In terms of boss DPS, your best options as a Hunter are eitherBlade BarrageorGolden Gun - Marksman. Since Blade Barrage is tied to Gunslinger, arguably the weakest subclass on Hunter, we’ll be opting for Golden Gun on Prismatic instead. We’re usingCelestial Nighthawkto make Golden Gun a single, high-damage shot. you may scale this damage even further with Facet of Courage and the new Super stat. At 200 Super, your Golden Gun will deal 45% more damage, slightly more than x2Star-Eater Scalesstacks.
To stay alive during the encounter itself, we’ll be usingStylish Executionerto go invisible whenever we eliminate a debuffed foe. We can proc this withGunpowder Gambleor any weapons with elemental perks like Chill Clip or Incandescent. Facet of Protection gives you a source of Restoration upon spawning Orbs of Power, which you may accomplish through Firepower mods on your gloves.
To make gearing easier, runFont of Wisdom mods on your helmet and surge mods on your boots.Two font mods will grant +40 Super, so you only need to hit 160 to max your Golden Gun damage. Invest the rest into the Weapons stat.
For actual DPS, your best bet is to runStill Huntwith Hezen Vengeance. Celestial Nighthawk will cause Still Hunt’s Golden Gun shot to be a single, high-damage round that deals absurd damage. Fire a Golden Gun round, dump your magazine, swap to Hezen Vengeance, fire a few rockets, swap back to Still Hunt, and repeat. If you’re using Bait and Switch, you’ll need to fire the weapon in your Kinetic slot during your DPS rotation as well to keep it active. It’s a high APM playstyle but deals top-tier DPS.
Add Clear & Boss DPS
If you dislike loadout swapping and want a jack-of-all-trades build, this is for you. This build uses theWhirling MaelstromAspect on Threadrunner to create enemy-tracking beyblades whenever you detonate a Tangle, dealing excellent damage to fodder enemies while Unraveling tougher foes. You can useGrappleon your roaming Tangles to freely move across the map and perform easy Grapple melees.
For Exotics, you may either useCyrtarachne’s Facadeor the new Moiria chest. Cyrtarachne is what we suggest for this build, as the free access to Woven Mail greatly improves your survivability and allows you to spawn Tangles withanyweapon kill throughThread of Transmutation. Double-tap Grapple to gain Woven Mail without fully expending a grenade charge, kill an enemy, and then detonate the Tangle they create to make a maelstrom.
Since the build doesn’t require high stat investment to work, we can go all-in onGunner armorto max our Weapons stat.Thread of Ascentallows you to auto-reload your weapons mid-DPS by Grapple canceling, making this a strong bossing build as well if your team has aWell of Radiancehandy. If playing solo, giveBuried Bloodlinea try to restore your HP after every kill.
Add Clear
Even with recent nerfs,Consecrationon Prismatic Titan is unquestionably one of the strongest builds in the game. Pairing this Aspect withFrenzied Bladeallows you to chain three back-to-back Consecration slams for some absurd damage. But thanks to the power ofStoicismand Transcendence, we can disregard ability energy entirely and slam to our heart’s content.
You’ll want a class item withInmost LightandSynthoceps. Using your grenade andThrusterclass ability will greatly speed up your Consecration cooldown.Glacier Grenadewill give you a ton of Darkness energy for Transcendence. Consecration and a Light-element weapon will charge your Light meter, allowing you to Transcend in seconds.
Glacial QuakeandBladefuryrefresh all melee charges when the Super ends. If Transcendence expires, use your Super to build up Transcendence energy.
Juggling your Super and Transcendence is required for this build to work properly. But once you get comfortable with the gameplay loop, you become virtually impossible to kill.Knockoutand Frost Armor through Facet of Purpose will keep you alive through most encounters, even on Contest difficulty. It can also function as a boss DPS loadout if the boss is weak to Glaives.
Boss DPS; can be reconfigured for add clear
Bolt Charge might not benefit from artifact perks this season, but that doesn’t mean Storm’s Keep isn’t worth using in today’s sandbox. Rally Barricade, when used with the Storm’s Keep Aspect, effectively turns your fireteam’s weapons intoThunderlord. These lightning strikes can help prop up your team’s DPS with virtually no effort.
If you’re specced solely for damage, you’ll wantCuirass of the Falling Starto drastically increase yourThundercrashdamage. However, if you’re focused more on slaying adds or decide to use machine guns as a DPS strategy,Actium War Rigis a good option this season. It counts as a featured Exotic and received some major buffs, improving ammo generation and damage output for auto rifles and machine guns. This includes Choir of One.
Is it enough to make Thunderlord a good option for Contest? Probably not, but it’s worth considering nonetheless.
Tank & Melee DPS
Strongholdis the closest we’ll get to a proper tank build in Destiny 2. Blocking with your sword will draw all enemy aggro and max your sword’s guard stat. If you kill enemies shortly after blocking, you’ll gain x2 Restoration for a moderate duration. you’re able to pair this withInto the Frayto give yourself Woven Mail with ease, greatly increasing your survivability. And since you’re using a sword to block and damage targets,Banner of Waris an obvious pairing here for the bonus melee damage.
As for swords, you may’t go wrong withAbyssal Edgefrom Episode: Heresy.Flash Counterallows you to damage targets by blocking, which technically counts as hitting an enemy to buildRedirectionstacks. Block a few hits, then attack the target with a sword that deals 100% more damage. If you don’t own this sword, anything with Flash Counter is fantastic.
Give this loadout a try if you need to taunt enemies or fight a boss at melee range. And if your team needs more damage, you can always swap to Striker and trigger Bolt Charge by blocking while near a barricade.
Add Clear & DPS Support
Lightning Surgecontinues to be a solid option for Prismatic Warlocks. It’s effectively the Warlock’s version ofConsecrationTitan, albeit with far less AoE damage. You useArcane Needleto gain three melee charges, allowing you to chain back-to-back Lightning Surges. you’re able to then bump your ability uptime withSpirit Of Inmost LightonSolipsismas well as Transcendence.
Since you’re on Prismatic, you can run Song of Flame to support your team with constant Radiant uptime and damage resistance during a boss fight. Ensure another Warlock is usingWell of Radiance, and your team will be able to tank just about anything Contest difficulty throws your way.
Support
If playing as a healer is more your style, you’ll want to run Dawnblade with theSpeaker’s Sighthelmet. This will convert yourHealing Grenadeinto a stationary turret that will fire healing projectiles at targets. WithEmber of Benevolenceand 100 Grenade, you’ll be able to regenerate your grenade in seconds, ensuring your team stays alive with constant x2 Restoration throughTouch of Flame. And when that’s down,Ember of Singeingwill let you get a Healing Rift back in seconds.
Playing this build is incredibly simple. You simply need to throw down a Healing Grenade to heal your team, and occasionally cast your Healing Rift for additional health and a Hellion buddy to scorch targets. CastWell of Radianceto buff your team’s DPS during a boss encounter, and you’ll be the ultimate support player. Consider running a healing Auto Rifle like No Hesitation if you need even more healing for Contest.
Sunbracersis still a fantastic Exotic for aggressive players looking to give Dawnblade a more explosive playstyle. While you have Solar Grenade equipped, landing a melee kill will effectively give you three free grenades.Touch of Flamewill buff yourSolar Grenadeto fire magma blobs, allowing you to demolish yellow bars and even some miniboss targets with ease.
Staying alive with this build can prove tricky. You’ll need to useHeat Risesto gain the titular buff by consuming your grenade. This will allowPhoenix Diveto grant x2 Restoration, which you’re able to extend through Solar kills viaEmber of Empyrean. To kickstart the build, runIncinerator SnapwithEmber of Ashesto force an Ignition by snapping near a target. Land a melee kill, throw three grenades, repeat.
