If there is one item in Destiny 2 that has caused the most headaches for developer Bungie it is the Telesto exotic fusion rifle. Every so often it seems that Telesto is breaking something in the game, and as is once again the case, the exotic needs to be disabled this weekend.
This time around Telesto has been disabled in Crucible and Gambit because of a game-breaking exploit. With a new seasonal mod and the use of Telesto, players were able to create an inordinate amount of Orbs of Power, which allowed fireteams to build Super energy really fast.
Telesto and Thermoclastic Blooming Mod Exploit
Since Telesto has been disabled in PvP and Gambit, there is no concern about players exploiting this glitch and therefore it’s well worth explaining in detail. The most important thing to know is that the Telesto bolts that can attach to the environment or players are read as “enemies” in Destiny 2. Unlike most fusion rifles, when players fire Telesto those bolts stick on the ground and then explode when an enemy is near.
With that in mind, players could then take the Thermoclastic Blooming seasonal mod and create a ton of Orbs of Power. Normally, the mod will drop an Orb of Power whenever a player defeats an enemy with a solar or stasis melee. In Crucible, where charged melee kills are few and far between, the odds of making a lot of Orbs of Power are relatively low. In Gambit and PvE, there are higher odds, but still, there is some coordination required to build up Super quickly.
Telesto, however, skips the whole process and allows the player to attach a bunch of bolts to the ground, use a ranged solar melee like (the Warlock’s) to hit them, and then watch as a burst of Orbs of Power appear. Even a Super kill can’t generate as many Orbs of Power as this exploit.
Why the Telesto Exploit Was Ruining Trials of Osiris
With Trials of Osiris launching its first weekend of Season of the Lost, the potential damage that this exploit could cause was compounded. It’s possible that players knew about this glitch going into the weekend, but it didn't start to become prolific until players realized the damage it could do. Being able to build a full Super every round in Trials of Osiris is a huge advantage, not just because Supers are easier to get kills with but because there are some strong builds that require Orbs of Power to get going.
To Bungie’s credit, the developer reacted very fast and disabled Telesto in both Crucible and Gambit. The last thing that the Destiny 2 studio would have wanted is for its first Trials of Osiris weekend of a new season to be marred by exploits, even though there are some other ones out there. This is also the first weekend for Trials of Osiris under a new rewards system that is focused less on getting wins and more on rounds.
The goal is to keep players invested in the mode for longer, rather than having them jump out as soon as they get a loss. Players seem to want to unlock the Trials rewards, but they would rather not interact with the mode. It's why jumping off the map became such a popular strategy for farming the Igneous Hammer hand cannon.
Trials of Osiris has also added an option to matchmake a fireteam but that hasn’t been very well received thus far. Unlike Iron Banner, where there is a Freelance option that eliminates pre-made fireteams, Trials of Osiris matchmaking can still put a team of three random players against a full fireteam using communication to coordinate.
Still, Bungie is trying something new with Trials of Osiris to make it more appealing to non-PvP fans and this glitch was standing in the way of that. And the good news is that Telesto was not disabled for PvE because it is quite strong when paired with the Particle Deconstruction mod.
Destiny 2 is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.