The Bungie 30th Anniversary event in Destiny 2 brought with it a lot of flashy additions. From the Dares of Eternity game mode to new weapons, there’s been a lot of content for players to get into. Alongside the free additions that came with the 30th Anniversary event is the Bungie 30th Anniversary Pack. This premium pack added a dungeon, but its defining feature is its reprisal of the exotic rocket launcher Gjallarhorn in Destiny 2.

For most Destiny veterans Gjallarhorn was a must-have in the first game. Its unique Wolfpack Rounds and high-damage output made it one of Destiny’s most coveted pieces of gear, especially for endgame PvE content. Since it was left behind in the launch of Destiny 2, fans have been asking for it to return, but its checkered past made this difficult. Because it was so good, Gjallarhorn eventually became a necessity. Now that it has returned, worries about Gjallarhorn as a double-edged sword seem to have been dissuaded.

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Gjallarhorn's Past

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The exotic rocket launcher Gjallarhorn originally became a problem because of its exclusivity. Without a guaranteed way to obtain it, whether or not a Guardian had the gun was a matter of luck. Rolling Gjallarhorn could be a painful test in patience and many players spent hours hoping for it to drop. This coupled with its effectiveness in boss encounters for raids and Nightfall strikes meant that Guardians either had it and their lives became a lot easier, or they didn’t and they missed out on opportunities.

Adding Gjallarhorn as part of the Bungie 30th Anniversary Pack was a way to fix this problem and bring the weapon back to life. Players who buy the DLC can get Gjallarhorn through a quest, but the rocket launcher now being behind a paywall felt like another imbalance. If Destiny 2 were to make Gjallarhorn OP, it could have become a near-requirement again, and then players who didn’t buy the Bungie 30th Anniversary Pack would be in a similar situation as those who couldn’t get the weapon to drop in the first game.

Luckily, despite how players get Gjallarhorn in Destiny 2, the defined strength of the weapon doesn’t come from its use as an individual Guardian’s exotic, rather its effect on the whole team. While the reprised Gjallarhorn keeps all the perks of the original in one way or another, it also has some added effects that help it level the playing field. These perks also make Gjallarhorn a great team choice and boosts the usefulness of other rocket launchers in Destiny 2, even in a season where fusion rifles and linear fusion rifles define the endgame PvE meta. This balance has helped make Gjallarhorn feel better than ever and shows how well past weapons can be reworked into the current sandbox of Destiny 2.

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Gjallarhorn in Destiny 2

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In Destiny 2 Gjallarhorn remains true to its roots but extends its helping hand by tacking its Wolfpack Rounds perk onto other non-exotic rocket launchers. This means rather than three Guardians all firing Gjallarhorn at Captain Avorakkk the Covetous in the Grasp of Avarice dungeon, players would be better off only having one Gally and two Adept Hot Heads or a set of Hezen Vengeance rocket launchers. This is in stark contrast to the first Destiny where stacking Gjallarhorn on fireteams of three, or six for raids, was optimal. This was especially true in the first year against bosses like Crota and Atheon who had surpluses of health to chip down.

This step away from Gjallarhorn’s past is probably the best possible route, and is the perfect way for the weapon to have been brought back. Now it is still able to excel but also frees up the heavy weapon slot of teammates from exotic weapons so that other pieces of gear like the new Forerunner exotic sidearm can be used. This creates a balance not only for players who did not splurge on the Bungie 30th Anniversary Pack, but also for weapons that might be more useful thanks to it.

Building off of this is also the change in Gjallarhorn’s ammo economy. Rather than being able to hold two rockets in each magazine right away, this is a feature that players have to work toward. While every exotic weapon in Destiny 2 should eventually have its own catalyst, these can sometimes feel inconsequential. For Gjallarhorn, its catalyst helps to bring back its former glory and make it an even more effective weapon. By upping the ammo in each magazine, Gjallarhorn’s catalyst increases the rate at which it can deal damage while also making it shine like it when Guardians first stepped into a war with the Cabal on Mars.

The approach that has been used here is also a great way to show how each of the missing exotic weapons from the first Destiny game can be reprised for Destiny 2. The care and attention to detail demonstrates that while it will take some tweaks, weapons like Icebreaker and Invective can indeed return. Many of the beloved weapons from the first Destiny are sorely missed, and Gjallarhorn’s perks and combos are the perfect model to handle the introduction of future reprised weapons.

There are still some quality-of-life changes that could improve Destiny 2 as a whole, but as the game slowly evolves more of the franchise's classic weapons should also be incorporated. This will ultimately take time, but that’s not a bad thing. The 30th Anniversary event has shown players that the time necessary to create engaging content is well worth it, and while hopefully this won’t mean waiting another four years for Dragon’s Breath to make its Destiny 2 debut, it may be a while before fans see the rest of Destiny’s exotic rocket launchers return.

Destiny 2 is now available on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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