The Huckleberry Catalyst should be on players’ radars in Destiny 2. The Huckleberry itself is a solid SMG that is fantastic in PVE or Gambit modes given its abilities. Players can quickly chain-kill hordes of enemies.
That being said its main power lies in having the Huckleberry Catalyst installed and upgraded on the weapon. Without the Catalyst, the Huckleberry is very lackluster and not very appealing. Here’s how players can get a hold of the Huckleberry Catalyst and what it does for the weapon.
Updated on February 19, 2022, by Anastasia Maillot: For SMG lovers, the Huckleberry is a dream come true weapon. It retains its position quite strongly on the PVE side of Destiny 2 and continues to see very limited, if not nonexistent use in PVP. This is because the Huckleberry is designed for very specific PVE purposes, which will be detailed below. Moreover, going into the Season of the Risen, how will the artifact mods affect this exotic weapon and its catalyst? Here's how the Witch Queen will change (or not) the Huckleberry, and whether its catalyst is still worth grinding for.
What It Does
The Huckleberry Catalyst comes with a single perk:
- Bull Rider – Obtaining a kill with this weapon will reload the entire magazine instantly.
This is what gives the Huckleberry its power. That 37 magazine size would normally be quite limiting, but the Catalyst perk causes the player to essentially have an infinite magazine. The weapon will automatically reload whenever a kill occurs, ensuring a steady stream of bullets.
Granted a kill must be made which is why this weapon is used in PVE and not PVP. But with this Catalyst and well-timed kills, players can mow down hordes of enemies in one continuous stream of metal.
How To Get It
Obtaining the Huckleberry Catalyst can be a bit annoying. The only way to do it is to get it as a drop in playlist activities: strikes, crucible rounds, or gambit matches. The drop rate is unknown but based on player feedback it is rather rare and will take some time.
It can drop in the first few sessions or require weeks of farming before it’ll pop. Players should settle in for multiple grinding sessions. It’s strongly recommended to pursue something in tandem while grinding for this Catalyst.
Upgrading
Once the player obtains the Huckleberry Catalyst it’s strongly recommended that it’s upgraded as soon as possible. To do this players will need to get 500 kills while using The Huckleberry. This may sound rough, and admittedly it’ll take a while, but this weapon is designed to kill crowds of enemies very quickly.
The ideal way to do this is to grind PVE with low-level enemies. Simply get a group of enemies clustered together and mow them down in mass. It’ll take quite a bit of ammo, but players can very quickly farm kills.
An ideal location to do this is the Altar of Sorrow on the Moon, where the same activity can be done over and over again, with plenty of enemies spawning for players to score kills.
Tips
There’s no real way to increase the Huckleberry Catalyst drop rate. Players simply need to grind through matches until it falls. Fighting at a higher level helps, but it’s also worth dropping down in difficulty if they can be done very quickly. Otherwise, players should do whatever is most entertaining and keep their fingers crossed it drops in the meantime.
Another thing to keep in mind is that kills for the upgrade are retroactive as well. The player can use The Huckleberry while grinding for the Huckleberry Catalyst and those kills will count. In the best-case scenario, the Catalyst drops early and the player needs to grind kills. Worst case scenario it takes forever to drop, but the player has already racked up enough kills to upgrade it very quickly.
Are The Huckleberry And Its Catalyst Worth It?
The Huckleberry isn't an incredibly popular weapon, even in PVE. Due to the seasonal artifact which favored Fusion Rifles in Season 15, it didn't see much if any use in endgame PVE content. That being said, Season 16 is a new era for Destiny 2, and it might yet be worth it to grind for the catalyst.
Given how powerful the catalyst makes the Huckleberry and gives it an infinite clip, it's a must-have for anyone who prefers to use this weapon. It's fantastic for clearing ads. Moreover, Bungie has teased that SMGs will actually have an Anti-Barrier champion mod in the artifact in Season 16, so the Huckleberry may yet find some use in some tougher PVE content as well.
Destiny 2: The Witch Queen will release on February 22, 2022, and is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.