Destiny 2: The Best Sniper Rifles in the Game
Published: May 10, 2020
The best sniper rifles in Destiny 2? Lets take a look. With over 40 different sniper rifles to choose from in Destiny 2, knowing which snipers are best for you is an important decision.
Destiny 2’s Season of the Worthy is almost complete and the threats of the Darkness are as intense as ever. Bungie themselves have stated that a new war is coming and the Guardians of the Last City will need all of the best weapons possible to fight off this new threat.
One of the best classes of weapons is the Sniper Rifle class and these weapons are essential in both Player vs Enemy (PvE) and Player vs Player (PvP) content. Read on to learn which sniper rifles are the best in the game.
Best Sniper Rifles 101
In Destiny 2, the sniper rifles are some of the most reliable weapons with some of the highest damage in the game.
The best Sniper rifles fill a niche role in dealing high damage with precision aiming. These weapons are extremely effective for taking down boss health bars in PvE content and can take out players in PvP in a single head-shot. Knowing which sniper to use in which situation is key to getting the most efficient use out of the Sniper Rifle class of weapons.
As with all weapons, there are many different sniper rifles and while they all work basically the same, their minor differences can make a big change in your gameplay experience. Between different perks, mods, and stats, all sniper rifles have unique traits to eliminate the enemies of the Traveler. Knowing which traits will work best for you and the content you want to complete is essential to reaching the top-tier power levels.
What to Look for in The Best Sniper Rifles
Sniper rifles are a completely unique class in Destiny 2 and therefore have some unique traits to look out for when finding the right sniper rifle to use. There are many factors to look into when finding the best sniper rifle to use for your play style: Stats, Mods and Perks. Here we will go through what are the best things to look for in the Sniper Rifle class in each of these categories.
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The Best Sniper Rifles Stats
Stats are the core elements of any piece of gear in Destiny 2. They have the most impact on the fundamentals of that piece of gear and when it comes to weapons, how that weapon works overall. With sniper rifles, there are a few stats that are more important than others.
The first stat we will be looking at is the Impact stat. Arguably the most important stat when it comes to sniper rifles in Destiny 2, Impact is the baseline damage that your sniper rifle will deal to any given enemy. Having high impact is essential for taking down high-health enemies and bosses from pinnacle content such as raids.
The next stat we will be looking at is Handling. This stat is what determines your weapon’s speed when targeting enemies, as well as the weapon’s scoping speed and aiming speed while scoped. This stat is incredibly important for the Sniper Rifle class as using snipers requires precision, and nailing head-shots is the highest priority when it comes to sniping.
The final stat we will be taking a deeper look at is Stability. Stability is what determines the recoil intensity and pattern of your weapon; getting used to a sniper’s recoil is one of the most fundamental aspects of using your sniper rifle to its full potential. Having a high Stability stat reduces the recoil of your sniper, allowing you to get head-shots on target more often, dishing out the highest possible damage.
A stat that deserves a brief look at is Reload Speed, which determines how fast you reload your sniper rifle. While this stat is important, it shouldn’t take a higher priority over the other stats mentioned, as you should be far enough away from your enemies to not be in too much danger while reloading.
Mods
Destiny 2 Mods are different equipable items that can alter the effects that your weapons have. These can be earned from Bashee-44 in the Tower, or unique Seasonal Mods can be earned by upgrading your seasonal artifact. These Mods can have major or minor effects on your sniper rifle of choice, depending on which ones you use and when you use them.
There are two different categories of mods in Destiny 2: Base and Seasonal. Base Mods are Mods that will always be in the game, and you can equip these Mods on almost any weapon type. Base mods are more basic in nature and can include anything from boosting your weapons targeting to upgrading your damage against bosses.
Destiny 2 Seasonal Mods are Mods that have a much more impactful effect on your weapon, but they change every season. These Mods can usually only be equipped on a specific weapon type. These can include anything from staggering Champion enemies to gaining extra destination materials.
Unfortunately, The Season of the Worthy’s artifact does not offer any unique Seasonal Mods for sniper rifles, so the best ones to equip are the Base Mods. What makes Mods so useful is that they can be swapped out based on the type of activity you are doing, making them very versatile in all content.
Some of the best Mods for PvE content are Boss Spec and Counter Balance Stock. Boss Spec allows you to deal between 5-8% more damage per shot against a boss or vehicle and Counter Balance Stock reduces the recoil deviation for your sniper, allowing you to recenter your aim quicker.
Some of the best Mods for PvP content are Targeting Adjuster and Icarus Grip. Targeting Adjuster is great for taking out the high mobility Guardians, as it adds a noticeable increase to your aim assist stat and Icarus Grip increases your weapon stability while in the air, allowing you to jump and snipe your opponents in one go.
Perks
Perks are intrinsic elements of a weapon that change how the weapon works in very slight ways. Perks are acquired when you earn your weapon and are permanent once you receive that weapon. You can acquire different perks for the same weapon by earning that weapon again.
Getting the best perks for any given weapon is called a “God Roll” by the community: you can learn more about what God Rolls are in our article on the best Sidearms in Destiny 2.
Some of the best Perks for sniper rifles are Snapshot Sights and Outlaw. Snapshot Sights boosts your aiming down sights speed, whereas Outlaw is great for sniping as it greatly increases your reload speed after head-shot kills. Focusing on head-shots is essential for sniping, and these mods will make targeting the heads of your enemies much easier and will reward you for doing so.
Top 5 Sniper Rifles for PvE
5: Beloved
This sniper rifle is great in PvP, but PvE content is where it truly shines. This legendary Destiny 2 sniper can roll with the perk Fourth Time’s The Charm, which returns two rounds to the magazine after landing multiple precision shots. This allows you to constantly put pressure on your enemies and deal out massive damage to bosses.
4. The Supremacy
This Legendary Destiny 2 sniper is excellent for PvE due to its great perk pool. This raid reward is capable of rolling with Snapshot Sights and Kill Clip, but its best perk is Rapid Fire Frame. This perk grants the weapon with a deeper magazine and an increased reload speed, allowing you to constantly fire upon bosses and keep additional enemies at bay from a sniper’s perch.
3. Sole Survivor
This Destiny 2 sniper rifle is known for absolutely decimating bosses. This sniper can roll with Appended Mag, a perk that can take this weapon’s magazine size to an astonishing 12 rounds per mag. It can also roll with the previously mentioned Fourth Time’s the Charm, which can keep generating ammo for landing precision hits.
2. Tranquility
This weapon in Destiny 2 is extremely similar to Sole Survivor, which makes it great already, but the main difference is that this weapon is Kinetic rather than Energy. This makes finding ammo for this weapon much easier than its energy counterpart, and all Kinetic weapons have a huge damage boost for precision shots. This makes it decimate boss’ health bars since many of them do not have shields to protect them from the many bullets that this weapon can deliver.
1. Izanagi’s Burden
This exotic sniper rifle is incredible for taking down all of your enemies, especially those foreboding raid bosses. This exotic weapon comes with the unique perk Honed Edge, which consumes your magazine of 4 shots in order to put on one bullet with 6x its normal damage. This weapon can be earned through a lengthy quest, but the reward is worth the grind.
Top 5 Sniper Rifles for PvP
5. Tatara Gaze
This Black Armory sniper rifle is one of the most underrated snipers in all of Destiny 2. With the Kill Clip perk, this weapon can one-shot enemy Guardians no matter where you land the shot, getting rid of the need for insane accuracy. On top of this, Tatara Gaze can eliminate enemy Guardians with overshields or while in their Supers with a quick head-shot.
4. Twilight Oath
This legendary Destiny 2 sniper rifle is great for PvP for its incredibly high rate of fire. With a Rate of Fire stat of 140 rounds per minute, this weapon can be fired incredibly quickly. This allows you to take out an enemy with two quick body-shots, or allows you to even miss one of your shots in order to land the perfect head-shot for an instant kill.
3. Alone as A God
This Leviathan-themed sniper rifle is absolutely incredible for PvP. It has one of the highest aim-assist stats out of all the sniper rifles in Destiny 2 and has an incredibly quick ADS time. This is great for taking out enemy Guardians incredibly quickly, or eliminating those extremely high-mobility Hunters.
2. Apostate
The Apostate Sniper Rifle was released alongside the Shadowkeep Expansion and it quickly became one of the most sought-after weapons in Destiny 2. This weapon is great for PvP due to its 140rpm and it can roll with the perks Snapshot Sights and Moving Target. This combination of stats and perks allows you to devastate your quick-moving opponents from across the map with ease.
1. Revoker
This Pinnacle weapon is earned from completing the “In Your Sights” quest from Lord Shaxx. It is incredible for PvP because of its unique perk titled Reversal of Fortune. This perk returns a missed shot to your magazine, making it one of the most forgiving snipers in the entire game, allowing you to destroy your enemy’s heads from any distance.
Using Your Sniper Knowledge
Now that you know the best snipers in Destiny 2 and how to use them, you are ready to take on your enemies on all fronts from great distances. While some of these snipers can be incredibly difficult to obtain, you can check out our available services to help you in your grinding endeavors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some of the most common questions we’ve encountered regarding selecting the best sniper rifles in Destiny 2.
Snipers fill a unique role in the Destiny 2 meta as a long-range option for Guardians to pick off their foes from a safe distance. With this in mind, it is best to find a solid defensive position with good sight-lines: areas with long hallways and high ground will be great for boosting your effectiveness with the Sniper Rifle class.
Keep in mind that the sniper rifles in Destiny 2 require precise aiming in order to be effective. This means that snipers are for the type of Guardians that can keep their aim steady in all situations, especially when under fire. If you find landing head-shots to be difficult, the Sniper Rifle class may not be for you.
The Sniper Rifle class in Destiny 2 is viable in both PvE and PvP for their high damage and accuracy. In the PvE content, snipers are great for taking down high-health bosses and quickly eliminating normal enemies from a safe distance. In the Crucible, the sniper rifle's ability to take down other players instantly with a well-aimed head-shot makes the class perfect for holding objectives and stopping sprinting players in their tracks.
Now that you have an understanding of the fundamentals of sniper rifles and what makes them viable, it's time to determine which Sniper Rifles are the ones to chase in order to make the most out of your long-range attacks. As the desired effects of sniper rifles are different based on the different types of content in the game, we will separate our list into two Top 5 categories: our Top 5 for PvE content and our Top 5 PvP content.
