The Best Weapons for Gambit in Destiny 2 (2024)

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Human Made

I've been playing video games pretty much nonstop ever since I got my first 360. I love arena shooters, MMOs, and MOBAs, but I'll pretty much try any kind of game.

Reviewed by Benjamin Barr

Gambit is a controversial game mode in Destiny 2. Some people love it, but many others can’t stand it. There’s really no one single reason for why Gambit is so divisive, but for the people who love it, it’s one of the most action-packed activities in the game. Regardless if you love or hate it, you’ll want to use the best weapons to give yourself an edge in Gambit.

Thankfully, choosing a loadout for Gambit is fairly simple. Since it’s not the hardest activity, you don’t have to try and get the absolute perfect loadout like you might for something like a Grandmaster Strike or Raid. Still, we’ll go over the best weapons to use in Gambit in Destiny 2.

The 10 Best Weapons for Gambit in Destiny 2, Ranked From Useful to Devastating

Let’s jump into the rankings.

10/10

Retrofit Escapade

Retrofit Escapade has been a trending weapon recently. This is largely thanks to the bugged interaction between 900 RPM heavy machine guns and Volatile Rounds. Even without abusing that, however, Retrofit is still amongst the best weapons in the game. Its base damage is incredibly high, and even once the Volatile Rounds bug is fixed, we expect it to still be doing great DPS. If you’re using this weapon, we recommend having some way to proc Volatile Rounds. Even not considering the bug, it’s still the best way to do high damage with this weapon.

9/10

Falling Guillotine (or another sword)

We haven’t seen swords at the top of the meta in a while, but Guillotine is still very powerful. It’s arguably the best legendary sword overall, and since Gambit heavily features enemies that tend to stand around in place, it’s easy to see how swords are still good in Gambit. Falling Guillotine might not be as popular as it once was, but it can still carry a Gambit match for you. This is especially true if you have one with Whirlwind Blade and Relentless Strikes.

You could run The Lament if you want in Gambit as well, but losing the Exotic slot for a sword right now feels weak.

8/10

Ager’s Scepter

Ager’s Scepter is a beast of a weapon that doesn’t see enough usage. Upon killing an enemy with it, it’ll freeze all nearby enemies with Stasis. In terms of ad-clear Exotics, Ager’s Scepter could easily be considered the best, especially with the catalyst. This allows you to essentially spend your super energy to more easily freeze enemies, which can be very helpful on bosses or against powerful enemies when there isn’t a low-health one nearby to freeze it. Ager’s Scepter is more than worthy of the Exotic slot, and it’s also extremely satisfying to use.

7/10

Eyes of Tomorrow

Eyes is the first full PVP choice on this list, and it’s also one of the best (at PVP specifically). This Exotic is not very good in any activity other than Gambit, but it shines unbelievably bright here. With Eyes of Tomorrow, you can go through the Invasion Portal and immediately kill pretty much anyone you see. Since it fires tracking missiles that target multiple players at once, you can easily rack up team wipes using it. Just keep in mind that it will make all members of the enemy team despise you. But it’ll be worth it when they drain 30 motes trying to recover.

6/10

Palmyra-B / Bump in the Night / The Hothead

We included three choices for this entry, because it’s really more about having a legendary rocket launcher, regardless of which one you pick. This is especially the case if you have a Gjallarhorn on your team. Legendary rockets have been great this season, and in Gambit, they’re at their peak. Since heavy ammo is so accessible in Gambit now, there’s no reason not to pick a legendary rocket launcher. It allows you to keep the Exotic slot open for something else while also providing high DPS.

Also remember that two of the mentioned rocket launchers are craftable. Gambit is a pretty decent place to grind out weapon XP, so take advantage of that while you play!

5/10

Dead Man’s Tale

Dead Man’s Tale is known for being a great PVP weapon, and since it’s a primary weapon you’ll be able to get even more use out of it. Don’t forget that DMT also does pretty respectable damage against bosses, especially with one of its PVE perks, like Vorpal Weapon or Fourth Time’s the Charm. Vorpal also has the bonus of helping with Guardians in their super, which might come in handy when invading or defending against an invade.

4/10

Xenophage

Speaking of weapons that are great for invading, Xenophage is perhaps even better. Xenophage is a unique heavy machine gun that can easily one-tap enemy Guardians, making it amongst the strongest weapons for Gambit. It used to be much stronger, to the point where it was frequently used in PVE, but now it’s more a “Gambit weapon.” It’s an invader’s best friend, right up there along with Eyes of Tomorrow.

However, where Eyes is exclusively an invading weapon, Xeno can actually be used for boss DPS as well. It’s damage isn’t what it used to be for PVE purposes, but it’s still respectable and is balanced out by how strong it is in the PVP aspect.

3/10

Heritage (or another slug shotgun)

Slug shotguns are fantastic for taking out yellow bar enemies, including blockers. A good slug shotgun goes a long way in Gambit, because they can be used at range while maintaining most of their damage. Heritage is the best one right now, since it has the best perks and can be crafted, but there are some other options as well.

Really, any slug shotgun with decent PVE perks works here. Just make sure and bring something else with range, because the slugs don’t do much for PVP.

2/10

IKELOS_SMG_v1.0.3

The new IKELOS_SMG_v1.0.3 is on this list because it is simply one of the best primary weapons in Destiny 2, especially for Gambit. Since it’s craftable and has a nice new perk pool, it’s always good to have one of these.

In Gambit, your Exotic weapon is probably the most important for your loadout. Having a weapon this good in the legendary slot is essential to winning the game, since it leaves the Exotic slot open and provides good primary damage.

You can have all the great Exotics you want, but if you don’t have a good primary weapon, you’re not going to do very well. Of course, Exotic primaries will often outperform the IKELOS SMG, but that’s to be expected. For a legendary primary ammo weapon, though, this is perhaps the best.

1/10

Gjallarhorn

Gjallarhorn is the best weapon in Gambit right now, because it does fantastic damage in both PVE and PVP and because it improves allies’ legendary rocket launchers. Wolfpack Rounds have a major impact on the game since they provide so much extra damage, and in a game mode based heavily around doing major DPS for a long period of time, Gjallarhorn is at its best.

Make sure to get the catalyst from the Grasp of Avarice dungeon as well, because it’s one of the strongest catalysts available.

Join the High Ground!

Thanks for reading this article on the best weapons for Gambit in Destiny 2! Whether you love or hate this game mode, we hope this guide will help you figure out how to win matches. Enjoy grinding those seasonal challenges! Don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter for more guides like this one.

Happy gaming!

The Best Weapons for Gambit in Destiny 2 (2024)