The dust has settled after the release of Lightfall, the latest expansion of Destiny 2. With some time passed, we now have the chance to dive into the revamped mod system and compile what we believe to be the most exceptional Meta builds. But what makes a build truly remarkable? It all depends on your objectives. If you’re a PvE enthusiast, you may prefer builds that excel in burst damage and survivability. On the other hand, PvP players might prioritize faster recovery and agile movement options, focusing on quick hits rather than heavy blows. So, let’s get down to business and explore the top PvE and PvP builds for Arc Hunters in Destiny 2.
Best Arc Hunter PvE Build: Zues’ Chosen
Your Arc builds will never be the same with this phenomenal Arc Hunter build. It performs brilliantly across all levels of content, effortlessly clearing waves of enemies and dealing massive amounts of AoE damage. We recommend equipping Shinobu’s Vow as your Exotic Gauntlets. These gauntlets not only grant you an additional grenade, grenade energy, but also offer the delight of melee and dodge spam. Let’s take a closer look.
Required Gear
- Exotic Armor: Shinobu’s Vow (Gauntlets)
Shinobu’s Vow is an often underrated Exotic that packs a punch. It enhances the power of your Skip grenades, granting you an extra grenade to throw and replenishing grenade energy when your Skip grenades dispatch foes. It’s a solid choice that won’t disappoint.
Class Setup
- Super: Gathering Storm
- Grenade: Skip Grenades
- Class Ability: Gambler’s Dodge
- Melee: Combination Blow
- Jump: Triple Jump
Our base-level abilities selection is straightforward. When combined, these abilities synergize well with Aspects and Fragments, resulting in impressive ability uptime. Arc subclass offers an exhilarating playstyle, and with this build, you’ll be running and gunning with gusto.
Aspects
- Lethal Current: After dodging, your next melee attack gains increased lunge range, jolts the target, and creates a damaging aftershock.
- Flow State: Defeating a jolted target amplifies your abilities. While amplified, your dodge recharges faster, your resilience while dodging increases, and your reload speed greatly improves.
Fragments
- Spark of Shock: Arc grenades jolt enemies.
- Spark of Ions: Defeating a jolted target creates an Ionic Trace.
- Spark of Amplitude: Rapidly defeating targets generates an Orb of Power.
- Spark of Resistance: Increases resistance to incoming damage when surrounded by enemies.
Armor Mods
Aside from Stat Mods, focus on maximizing ability uptime to fully embrace the grenade, melee, and class ability spam that this build thrives on.
- Head Mods: Recommended mods include Ashes to Assets, Arc Siphon, and Heavy Ammo Finder for more orbs, increased super energy, and heavy ammo respectively.
- Arm Mods: Consider equipping Grenade Kickstart and Bolstering Detonation for enhanced grenade energy and class ability energy.
- Chest Mods: Emergency Reinforcement is highly recommended, but feel free to choose additional damage reduction mods as per your preference. Emergency Reinforcement is exceptionally potent and a must-have for high-end content.
- Leg Mods: Arc Weapon Surge, Recuperation, and Orbs of Restoration are fantastic options. These mods provide additional Arc weapon damage, health regeneration, and accelerated ability recharge.
- Cloak Mods: Time Dilation, Bomber, and Outreach are great choices for extended Armor Charge duration, reduced cooldowns on grenades and melee charges, and increased ability energy.
Weapons
- Kinetic Slot: Choose your preferred weapon, but personally, I reserve this slot for Witherhoard or Arbalest depending on the type of Champions encountered. Ideally, use an energy slot weapon that complements Arc damage.
- Energy Slot: Anything Arc-related would fit seamlessly into this build. I suggest the Ikelos SMG with Voltshot for its synergy with the build. If you don’t have it, Nation of Beasts, Insidious, or any other Arc weapon will do just fine. Embrace the power of Voltshot.
- Heavy Slot: Feel free to experiment with any Arc heavy weapon. Personally, I can’t part with my Adept Hothead, but if you haven’t obtained any other exotic yet, Thunderlord is an absolute powerhouse.
Stat Distribution
For optimal survivability, focus on maxing out Resilience and Recovery. Aim for a minimum of 60 Mobility for faster Dodge recharge, but higher values are preferable. The remaining stats are entirely up to you, but consider leaning towards Discipline for improved ability cooldowns.
Conclusion
Running an Arc subclass is always a joy, regardless of the content level. With increased speed, impressive ability uptime, and stunning visual effects, Arc Hunters have something for everyone to love. This build is especially potent for tackling Legend or Master Lost Sectors or embarking on your next Raid adventure!
Best Arc Hunter PvP Build: Shocking Speed
Welcome to your PvP build, Arc Hunters! This build may seem familiar if you’ve already explored the Arc Hunter PvE build above, as they share striking similarities. However, we’ll make minor adjustments by switching the Exotic, one Aspect, and our grenade. But fear not, everything should feel comfortable if you’ve previously tested out the other build. Let’s dive in.
Required Gear
- Exotic Armor: Wormhusk Crown (Helmet)
While Wormhusk Crown may not possess its previous overwhelming power, it remains a crucial asset for escaping trouble or gaining an advantage in a gunfight. Play around with its capabilities, but we recommend Wormhusk for those hunters seeking a free health regeneration.
Class Setup
- Super: Gathering Storm
- Grenade: Pulse Grenades
- Class Ability: Gambler’s Dodge
- Melee: Combination Blow
- Jump: Triple Jump
Pulse grenades help control lanes effectively, but the true star of this build is Tempest Strike, our new Aspect. We’ll aim to conserve our melee charges for this devastating uppercut attack.
Aspects
- Lethal Current: After dodging, your next melee attack gains increased lunge range, jolts the target, and creates a damaging aftershock.
- Tempest Strike: While sliding, activate your charged melee ability to unleash a devastating uppercut attack that travels along the ground, damaging and jolting targets.
Fragments
- Spark of Shock: Arc grenades jolt enemies.
- Spark of Ions: Defeating a jolted target creates an Ionic Trace.
- Spark of Amplitude: Rapidly defeating targets generates an Orb of Power.
- Spark of Resistance: Increases resistance to incoming damage when surrounded by enemies.
Armor Mods
Focus on enhancing weapon steadiness and handling, in addition to the bonus weapon stats and ability recovery provided by the following mods:
- Head Mods: Consider equipping Kinetic OR Energy Targeting mods (and a siphon mod for added fun!).
- Arm Mods: Opt for your preferred choice of Reloaders.
- Chest Mods: Choose Unflinching mods that suit your playstyle.
- Leg Mods: Innervation and Invigoration x2 for grenade and melee regeneration.
- Cloak Mods: Distribution, Bomber, and Outreach for increased ability energy.
Weapons
- Kinetic Slot: Opt for a ranged weapon like No Time To Explain, Dead Man’s Tale, or any other ranged Primary of your choice. Pulse Rifles continue to dominate in PvP, and Dead Man’s Tale is particularly enjoyable to wield. You can also switch to a Hand Cannon if you find yourself engaging in close encounters, which is the intention of this build.
- Energy Slot: Shotguns are your best friend here. Personally, I adore my Mindbender’s Ambition, especially when paired with Auto-Loading Holster. This combination comes in handy when you’re sprinting and switching to a close-quarters combat weapon in a pinch.
- Heavy Slot: The choice is entirely yours. Rockets are a reliable option in PvP due to their wide blast radius, making it difficult to miss opponents. However, Heavy Machine Guns have also earned a special place in my heart recently!
Stat Distribution
Focus on high Resilience, Mobility, and Recovery for both survivability and faster class ability recharge. Strength should also be prioritized for faster Tempest Strike uptime.
Conclusion
While this PvP build is enjoyable, there are undoubtedly more entertaining builds for Hunters in Void or Strand subclasses available right now. Give this build a shot in Trials or Iron Banner to see how it fares.
These are the ultimate Arc Hunter builds for PvE and PvP in Destiny 2. Don’t forget to save them in your new Loadout slots before you move on to your next adventure!
For more Destiny 2 news, check out our dedicated section or explore our Guides & Tutorials provided below:
- WEEKLY UPDATES: Destiny 2 Weekly Reset List | Lost Sector Rotation | Raid & Dungeon Rotation | Grandmaster Nightfall Rotation | Weekly Challenges List | Xur Location | Trials of Osiris Map & Rewards | Iron Banner Schedule
- FUTURE UPDATES: When Does The Next Destiny 2 Season Start | Everything We Know About ‘Destiny 2 The Final Shape’ | All Destiny 3 Speculation
- EMBLEM & SHADERS: Free Destiny 2 Emblem Codes | How To Get Photo Finish Shader | How To Get Bergusian Night Shader
- BEST HUNTER BUILDS: Hunter Arc Build | Hunter Solar Build | Hunter Stasis Build | Hunter Strand Build | Hunter Void Build
- BEST TITAN BUILDS: Titan Arc Build | Titan Solar Build | Titan Stasis Build | Titan Strand Build | Titan Void Build
- BEST WARLOCK BUILDS: Warlock Arc Build | Warlock Solar Build | Warlock Stasis Build | Warlock Strand Build | Warlock Void Build
- Exotics, Catalyst & God Rolls: Alter of Reflection Catalyst Quest | Austringer God Roll | Calus Midi Tool God Roll | Dead Man’s Tale God Roll | Fixed Odds God Roll | Hawkmoon God Roll | How To Get Come To Pass | How To Get Dawn Chorus | How To Get Omnioculus | How To Get Star-Eater Scales | Mechabre God Roll | Osteo Striga Catalyst | Riptide God Roll | Queens and Worms Quest
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