[GameSpot] - Destiny 2: Lightfall - Turn Your Warlock Into An Unraveling Wizard With This Strand Build

[343iBot]

Strand has become one of the most interesting subclasses in Destiny 2: Lightfall, thanks not only to its wild mobility options, but also its potential to deliver some of the most devastating offense in all of Destiny 2. For Warlocks, Strand has become a new system with which to summon a small army of Threadlings that can be let loose on the battlefield, but another build shows just how effective this subclass is at immobilizing and destroying anything that gets in your way. For a more general idea of how to use the subclass, you can check out our Strand breakdown.

This particular build is focused on two specific effects with Strand combined with two key Exotics, and if you've got the right gear in your inventory, it'll absolutely annihilate anything in front of you and it pairs extremely well with team-based builds. Here's how you can turn your Warlock into a master of unraveling enemies.

The key strategy behind this build is to apply Suspend and Unravel debuffs to enemies. Suspend will keep your enemies locked in place when you generate a web of psychic energy to hold them, while Unravel creates projectiles as you do damage to your target, creating projectiles that seek out targets and damage them further.

Arcane Needle is the key ingredient here, and with several charges available, you can use this melee attack to focus on a major enemy while destroying all of their allies around them. This is combined with the Aspect Mindspun Invocation, which allows you to absorb your grenade energy and activate Weaver's Trance for 25 seconds. With this buff active, final blows will create a suspending detonation around your vanquished target.

With this initial setup, you'll be able to constantly damage enemies, suspend them in the air, and pass the effects on to anyone around them. You'll need four specific fragments--detailed below--to get your class, grenade, and melee abilities to quickly regenerate, but the real magic of this setup comes from the Exotics that you can pair it with. For your armor, you'll want to equip the Necrotic Grips gauntlets. This Exotic adds increasing damage over time to a target that has been damaged with a melee attack, spreads a corrupting effect to nearby targets after the initial victim has been defeated, and restores melee energy.

Next, you'll want to equip a Weapon of Sorrow to maximize the potential of this Exotic armor. Thorn is a good option for fans of hand cannons, but the submachine gun Osteo Striga is a far superior option. This SMG spreads a poison effect and has projectiles with moderate tracking, and when paired with Necrotic Grip, enemies killed by a poison burst will create a chain reaction of toxic explosions. If you don't have Osteo Striga, Quicksilver Storm after its Exotic catalyst is unlocked is another good option as it'll be able to fire Strand energy rounds. If you don't have that either, Monte Carlo is a solid alternative as it can feed into your melee ability for this build. To cap off the setup, equip a Void-energy weapon in your secondary or heavy slot.

For the seasonal artifact mods, we're going to be taking advantage of the Ascendant Scepter's Strand-favoring mods. Untangler, Volatile Flow, Allied Unraveling, Counterweave, and Threaded Blast will give your Strand abilities even more impact. For your armor mods, the recommended items below all offer additional support to your ability to regenerate ability energy, activate the Armor Charge buff, and turn your Kinetic weapon into a high-damage tool of destruction. Remember, Armor Charge drains over time, so keep an eye on the counter and pick up orbs of power whenever possible to take advantage of the buffs in this build.

With all of these elements in place, the end result is a Warlock who can lock foes into place, easily clear an entire room of cannon fodder, and spread poison around enemy forces with ease. With the right fireteam backing you up, you're able to unleash an absurd amount of space magic at anything that crosses your path, giving you the flexibility to focus on bigger threats while keeping the field clear of disposable enemies. To apply it to your own Warlock, you can use this DIM link for the complete loadout.

For more Destiny 2 guides you can check out how to get the Exotic glaive Winterbite, how to complete the mystery triumph in Neomuna, and how to activate secret Nezarec dialogue.

Warlock String Theory Strand Build Loadout

Strand Aspects

• Weaver's Call
• Mindspun Invocation

Strand Fragments

• Thread of Continuity - Suspend, Unravel, and Sever effects applied to targets have increased duration
• Thread of Mind - Defeating suspended targets grants class ability energy
• Thread of Fury - Damaging targets with a Tangle grants melee energy
• Thread of Generation - Dealing damage generates grenade energy

Exotic Armor

• Necrotic Grips

Exotic Weapon

• Osteo Striga, Monte Carlo, or Quicksilver Storm with its unlocked catalyst

Grenade

• Shackle grenade (Hold LB to absorb your grenade energy and activate Weaver's Trance)

Seasonal Artifact mods

• Untangler - Destroying a Tangle with a Strand weapon suspends targets damaged by the explosion
• Volatile Flow - Void weapons get a Volatile Rounds buff after an Orb of Power is picked up
• Allied Unraveling - Rapid final blows with a Strand weapon grant your weapon Unraveling Rounds, with a longer duration near allies
• Counterweave - Gain energy for your least-charged Strand ability when you or your fireteam stuns or defeats a Champion
• Threaded Blast - Destroying a Tangle with a Strand weapon creates a bigger and more damaging explosion

The mods below will still leave you with space to slot in stat-boosting mods, allowing you to increase your Resilience, Intelligence, and other stats. While ensuring that you have 100 Resilience is always a good idea, there is space here to experiment with the other armor mods available to boost the efficacy of this build even further.

Helmet mods

• Powerful Friends
• Void and Strand Dual Siphon
• Kinetic Siphon

Gauntlet mods

• Focusing Strike
• Impact Induction
• Font of Vigor

Chest mods

• Charged Up
• Void Reserves or Font of Endurance

Leg armor mods

• Kinetic Weapon Surge x 2
• Stacks on Stacks

Bond mods

• Time Dilation x 2
• Outreach

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