It hasn’t even been one day since the arrival ofDestiny 2’s latest hotfix, and already a new bug has emerged where an Exotic Primary weapon’s splash damage is applied infinitely if paired with specific perks that can roll on Legendary weapons. Whilethis bugged Exotic isn’t demolishingDestiny 2bosses, its effect can be quite devastating if paired with specific loadouts and in the hands of crafty players that can potentially break the game’s endgame balance.
Bungie’s history with bugs and glitches inDestiny 2has been pretty storied, with an infamous Exotic Fusion Rifle causing most of the issues for the developers. The number of unintended interactions and malfunctioning gear has risen sharply sinceLightfall’s launch, possibly due to new mechanics interacting oddly with the overhauled older systems. Theexpansive Exotic arsenal ofDestiny 2has been affecteddisproportionately by bugs, with several weapons almost breaking the game with excessive damage output. The developers have been actively tracking and patching these issues, yet players are stumbling upon new problems almost daily.
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Cheese Forever, a YouTuber famous for showcasing glitches and exploits inDestiny 2, has posted a video where they cause Osteo Striga’s poisonous damage-over-time effect to linger nearly infinitely. The video showcases Cheese Forever shooting Kalli with the Osteo Striga, causing a burst of poison damage to erupt from the boss. Shortly after the poison wave, the player sticks the enemy with the Strand Warlock’s Arcane Needle Melee ability before switching to a Legendary weapon with the Vorpal Weapon perk. This combination allows the poison damage to tick infinitely, thanks to Vorpal Weapon somehow causing the SMG’s Exotic perk to malfunction.
Cheese Forever clarifies the Arcane Needle’s Unraveling effects also work indefinitely and quickly replenish Grenade energy via the Thread of Generation fragment. Other Strand subclasses can use the Grapple-Powered Melee combo to replicate this glitch, as shown in the video. Cheese Forever notes that players can even switch subclasses while maintaining the damage glitch, as long as they don’t take off either Osteo Striga or switch to a weapon without the Vorpal Weapon perk. The glitch does not work with theinfamousDestiny 2Exotic Necrotic Grips, much to the disappointment of many Warlocks.
This isn’t the first time that the Vorpal Weapon perk has caused such a problem, and this manner of repeat performance might cause it to be nerfed. For Osteo Striga, the discovery of this glitch is quite untimely, as theupcoming mid-season balance pass forDestiny 2’s Primary weaponsdidn’t include any changes for the Exotic SMG. While the damage tick is low for endgame encounters, the nature of the bug can cause the SMG to be hit with a harsh nerf.
Destiny 2is currently available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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