Published , by Sam Chandler
Published , by Sam Chandler
Witherhoard is a new Exotic Grenade Launcher that was introduced to Destiny 2 in Season of Arrivals. This Kinetic slot weapon has been making some waves at the start of the season, with reports indicating that it deals considerable amounts of damage. Those looking to capitalize on this unique Grenade Launcher (GL) would do well to pick it up and work through its Exotic catalyst.
The Witherhoard Exotic Grenade Launcher is a Kinetic slot weapon that utilizes Special ammo. This makes it the only Exotic Kinetic slot Grenade Launcher currently available in Destiny 2. In fact, the only other single-shot GL is Fighting Lion, which sits in the Special slot and uses Primary ammo.
When Season of Arrivals first launched, Witherhoard was annihilating raid bosses. The reason for this isn’t exactly known, though it could be due to how the damage from the gun works. Essentially, enemies take damage-over-time (DoT), which is not technically a source of Guardian damage. This means the DoT is likely benefiting from multiple buffs at once (Radiance, Tether, etc) when Guardian damage is limited to one of these at a time.
During Season of Arrivals, the Witherhoard Grenade Launcher can be acquired from the Season Pass at Rank 1 for Season Pass holders and at rank 35 for those with the free path. When Season of Arrivals ends, Witherhoard will likely be available from Master Rahool in exchange for an Exotic Cipher.
Witherhoard’s perks set it up as quite a powerful Grenade Launcher. It has a vertical recoil pattern, making it easy to control, and its explosives are more powerful with a larger blast radius. However, the real selling point of this Exotic is its two Traits: Break the Bank and Primeval’s Torment.
As you can see, the two of these perks working together have the potential to create an infinite loop of blights. Every time an enemy dies from a blight, they drop a blight. This can quickly wipe out a group of smaller adds.
Witherhoard’s primary appeal is its damage-over-time potential. Enemies hit by this will take a few ticks of damage until the effect ends. At the time of writing, it appears as if the ticks of damage benefit from buffs like Well of Radiance and Tether, allowing the DoT to do vast amounts of damages to all kinds of bosses.
Witherhoard also has an Exotic catalyst. This can be picked up from Banshee-44 from the Tower after acquiring Witherhoard. The entire quest is called The Bank Job and it requires a lot of Grenade Launcher kills and Crucible kills. Check out our complete Exotic catalysts guide for every available catalyst in Destiny 2.
The lore tab in Witherhoard paints a picture of Drifter speaking with a Titan called Joxer. The conversation revolves around the Pyramids, the idea that they once came close to wiping out humanity, and Drifter’s peculiar Dark Motes. You can read the lore tab below.
Witherhoard is a unique Exotic Grenade Launcher that should definitely be in your weapon rotation. At the moment, it’s inordinately powerful, so expect some slight rebalancing to take place in the not too distance future. Check out the Shacknews Destiny 2 guide for more Exotic weapon breakdowns and collection guides.