Grenade Launchers are very fun and very powerful weapons in Destiny 2.
If you are in love with Grenade Launchers but aren’t quite sure which ones are worth using, continue reading on!
Recommended Read: Best Kinetic Weapons in Destiny 2
The best Grenade Launcher in Destiny 2 is Forbearance in the Special slot and Cataphract GL3 for the Heavy slot.
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Best Grenade Launcher in Destiny 2
Grenade Launchers are very versatile weapons in Destiny 2. They are great at dealing a ton of burst damage and are often held back by their need to constantly reload.
The best Grenade Launchers emphasize damage and offer some way to forgo reloading to continually abuse their large damage.
So, what are the best Grenade Launchers to use?
Forbearance
The best Special ammo Grenade Launcher as of today is still Forbearance. This weapon does just about everything right. It is an ad-killing machine and is often the go-to Special weapon for many players in end-game content.
Forbearance is a Wave Frame Grenade Launcher, meaning it will shoot a wave of energy forward upon impacting the ground. This is the best Grenade Launcher Frame for ad clearing specifically.
What makes this weapon better than many other Wave Frame Grenade Launchers is its Perks.
This Grenade Launcher can roll with Chain Reaction, causing enemies to explode and deal area of effect damage to nearby enemies with every kill. This is a very powerful Perk on a Wave Frame, as it means a single shot will not only kill every enemy in a straight line but also every enemy next to them.
While it only takes one shot to clear a group of enemies, Ambitious Assassin will give you another shot with every reload so you can work your way around the entire encounter clearing out enemies efficiently.
You’ll find this weapon in the Vow of the Disciple Raid. It is craftable with Enhanced Perks and is a must-have for any Destiny 2 player.
Cataphract GL3
One of the newest weapons added to the Trials of Osiris loot pool, Cataphract GL3 is now the best in slot Power weapon Grenade Launcher in terms of DPS and PvP potency.
You may have noticed that every good DPS weapon now uses Bait and Switch for increased damage during Boss encounters. This is no exception for this Grenade Launcher.
It is one of the few Grenade Launchers that can roll this Perk. You will have access to Enviuous Assassin as well to overflow your magazine and unload all of your ammo with a single activation of Bait and Switch.
This combination of Perks makes for a lot of burst damage, allowing you more time in your rotation for other methods of DPS, such as Izinagi’s Burden.
For PvP, this has become a favorite for many players. The Perk Impulse Amplifier greatly increases your projectile speed, making it very hard to miss with your shots.
Chain Reaction can net you some nice multi-kills with a single shot if your enemies are grouped up. As Grenade Launchers are one of the most ammo-efficient Power weapons in PvP, this is definitely one of the best choices right now.
This Grenade Launcher is only available through Trials of Osiris Engrams and rewards. You can focus this weapon at Saint-14 if you have already unlocked one.
We highly recommend attempting to go Flawless when this weapon is on rotation for an Adept version, as the Adept Big Ones Mod can greatly increase your damage output in PvE.
Witherhoard
Witherhoard is a great all-arounder Special Grenade Launcher.
This Exotic Grenade Launcher has the unique Perk Primeval’s Torment, which blights the area of impact with every shot, dealing damage over time to any enemy that steps into the blight.
Direct hits with this weapon will blight the target and deal increased damage over time to them.
Any blighted enemy that dies will create a blight as well, quickly chaining kill after kill with a single shot. For ad-clearing, Witherhoard is the budget Forbearance. It is in DPS that this weapon outperforms Forbearance, however.
What makes this weapon great is the fact that it is a good option for both ad-clearing and DPS.
Since your shots deal damage over time for about seven seconds, you will have plenty of time to rotate between your other weapons for efficient damage output. This is also a great way to constantly keep Bait and Switch activated on your Power weapons.
The Catalyst will give this weapon increased Handling, making it faster to swap to during damage rotations. It will also give you an Auto-Loading Holster, so you will have your shot ready immediately once your blight runs out.
You can purchase the Witherhoard from the Exotic Kioske in the Tower. It won’t be cheap, but it will definitely be worth it.
Ex Diris
Another unique Arc Exotic Grenade Launcher, this Hive Boomer weapon is good in some areas but lacking in many.
The Intrinsic Perk Corrupted Nucleosynthesis allows this weapon to engage when dealing damage or sustaining damage, causing it to gain an increased rate of fire.
This is nice, but it is not the reason you want to use this weapon. The second Perk is what makes this weapon special.
The Loyal Moths Perk causes final blows with this weapon to create a loyal moth that seeks out enemies. When it detonates, it deals a massive amount of damage and blinds any enemies nearby.
This blind is very important, as it can be a great way to deal with Champions or give you a break from the ads.
Lastly, this weapon has a unique Nucleosynthesis Magazine that continuously draws ammo from reserves, meaning you will never have to reload this weapon.
It also causes your shots to explode upon impact, making it a lot easier to kill enemies with splash damage.
You’ll quickly realize that this weapon is lacking in DPS. Even with an auto-reloading feature, this weapon just isn’t a good choice for Boss damage.
This weapon is fine for ad-clear. Having a semi-auto Grenade Launcher that blinds and deals massive AoE damage is great, especially when dealing with champions. It is a fun weapon to use as well.
This weapon shines when paired with the Hunter’s Mothkeeper’s Wraps Exotic arms. This allows for a hidden interaction that causes your Grenade Launcher kills to create two loyal moths instead of one.
These additional loyal moths act the same as the loyal moths from your grenades, seeking out allies and granting them overshields. You will find a lot of good utility and survivability with this pair.
The Catalyst for Ex Diris makes final blows grant you Amplified. Enraging while Amplified is faster. Being able to become Amplified without being on an Arc subclass is very interesting. When used with an Arc subclass, this weapon plays into your Arc 3.0 builds very nicely.
You can get Ex Diris from the Season of the Witch Season Pass.
Wilderflight
A Void Grenade Launcher with two barrels.
Wilderflight is the only Double Fire Frame Grenade Launcher currently, firing two separate grenades with every pull of the trigger. This leads to it being one of the best Legendary Grenade Launchers for DPS.
Increase your damage even further with either Frenzy or Vorpal Weapon, each giving a 15% increase.
You will also have the choice between either Auto-Loading Holster or Demolitionist to help you cheat reloading and continue dealing consistent damage. Be sure to get one with Spike Grenades to maximize damage.
This is a great weapon for any damage rotation. Outside of raw damage, you still have some great general-use PvE rolls you can use. Disruption Break is great for dealing with shielded enemies and Unrelenting for healing.
This weapon drops from the Spire of the Watcher Dungeon. Be sure to farm for one when this Dungeon is on the Featured rotation.
Explosive Personality
Another Wave Frame Grenade Launcher.
Explosive Personality is a Solar weapon, so you have some synergy options with Solar 3.0 builds. This was one of the first good Wave Frame grenade launchers and is still a decent pick if you don’t have any other options.
While it doesn’t have insane Perks like Chain Reaction, it can still compete with Auto-Loading Holster and Disruption Break, giving you consistent wave clear and additional damage to larger shielded enemies.
If survivability is what you need, then you have Turnabout for overshields as well.
You’ll notice that these Perks are pretty decent for PvP as well. Any Wave Frame with Auto-Loading Holster is a great choice, as you will always have a shot ready when you need it.
If you played in recent Seasons, you should have this weapon pattern unlocked for crafting.
Harsh Language
Yet another Wave Frame Grenade Launcher, this time in Void.
Harsh Language is the Void version of Explosive Personality. It isn’t amazing alone. It is best used when paired with Void 3.0 builds to take advantage of its specific Perk options.
For example, you have Repulsor Brace to grant you overshields when killing Void-debuffed enemies or Destabilizing Rounds to apply Void debuffs, along with Envious Assassin to load multiple shots for use later on.
This weapon is now a world drop. Your best chances of obtaining one are through Banshee-44 or Xur if you don’t already have one lying around.
Fighting Lion
The last Exotic Granade Launcher on the list.
Fighting Lion is special in that it does not use Special ammo. Unlike every other Grenade Launcher, Fighting Lion is the only one to use Primary ammo. This means you have unlimited ammo with this weapon.
Fighting Lion is not a PvE weapon. It can be fun to use. You won’t be taking out waves of enemies or dealing DPS with it.
This weapon is best used in PvP and is still one of the best Grenade Launchers for PvP due to how special it is.
The intrinsic Perk Delayed Gratification shoots grenades that bounce off of any surface and only detonate when you let go of the trigger.
This means you can bank shots off of walls, around corners, or behind Titan Barricades to deal a lot of damage to enemies, allowing you to keep enemies off of revives or Heavy ammo spawns.
The Perk Thin the Herd causes direct hits to deal increased damage to shields, allowing you to one-shot Guardians in PvP with a little precision. Rapid kills against grenade-damaged enemies will instantly reload the weapon.
While you won’t be winning many 1v1 fights with this weapon, you will be a great asset to your team when team shooting, as you can keep enemies low without ever endangering yourself by peaking in the open.
The Catalyst causes your Kinetic and Power weapons to gain increased Handling shortly after firing Fighting Lion.
This weapon is a world drop Exotic. You will need to find one in an Exotic Engram or wait for Xur to sell it.
These are the best Grenade Launchers in Destiny 2!
How many entries in the list do you already have? Are there any Grenade Launchers you are still trying to get? Let me know in the comments!
