Is Arbalest The Best Exotic Fusion Rifle?

With Arbalest being the very lates Exotic Fusion Rifle in Destiny 2 we thought we’d answer that burning question, is it the best Exotic Fusion Rifle in the game? Arbalest is a Linear Fusion Rifle, meaning the only direct competition is Queenbreaker, and Sleeper Simulant, however there are other normal Exotic Fusion Rifles to consider; Merciless, Telesto, Jotunn, and One Thousand Voices.

Stats

The stats on Arbalest are as follows.

• Charge Time – 533
• Impact – 41
• Range – 60
• Stability – 60
• Magazine Size – 5
• Reload Speed – 35
• Handling – 28

The hidden stats on Arbalest are as follows.

• Zoom – 25
• Inventory Size – 34
• Aim Assistance – 61
• Recoil Direction – 87

For the most part these stats stand up to the competition. Against Queenbreaker they are slightly down, and against Sleeper Simulant they’re pretty much the same. Compared to the rest of the Exotic Fusion Rifles in the game however, they’re either slightly up for most categories, or on par.

Perks

• Exotic Perk: Compounding Force – This weapon fires slugs that cause massive damage to enemy elemental shields.
• Extended Barrel – Provides a weighty barrel extension, increasing Range, decreasing Handling Speed, and moderately controlling Recoil.
• Projection Fuse – This optimises the distances the weapon fires across, increasing Range.
• Disruption Break – This makes enemies more vulnerable to kinetic damage for a time once their shield has been broken with this weapon.
• Composite Stock – A versatile dual-purpose stock, increasing Stability and Handling Speed slightly.

Most perks simply build a weapon’s stats up, so it’s the Exotic perks we need to compare here. Arbalest is basically more lethal in PVE because it takes elemental shields down faster. To me this means it’s more effective in Gambit, Strikes, Raids, and all PVE activities, but in PVP it’s no better than any other Fusion Rifle.

Queenbreaker is definitely a PVP-focussed Fusion Rifle, so I think we can rule out Arbalest being the best Fusion Rifle outright because of that. Sleeper Simulant is pretty much the same, and even outside of that it’s lethal to all life in general, more-so than either Queenbreaker or Arbalest I would say.

Jotunn fires a blob of fire that tracks enemies, a perk that’s useful in PVP and PVE activities, making it better than Arbalest in my opinion. I’d say the same for Telesto with it’s needler-like projectiles that explode on an enemy after they’ve been hit with a load of Void energy.

One Thousand Voices has a perk that effectively changes it to a Trace Rifle. I wouldn’t say that this makes it better than Arbalest or any other Fusion Rifle. I’m not even sure this qualifies as a proper Exotic perk.

Finally we have Merciless, which charges faster and faster until you get a kill. This perk is on par with Arbalest’s in my opinion. Both provide a small benefit, but not one that you could say is worth using over a Legendary Weapon.

Conclusion

I think it’s safe to say that Arbalest is not the best Exotic Fusion Rifle in Destiny 2, not even close. It’s a good weapon with an interesting perk, one that’s perfect for those who spend a lot of time in PVE activities.

What Arbalest is superior in against all other Exotic Fusion Rifles is its rarity. This weapon is available until the 7th of May and then it’s gone. It might return next year, if The Revelry returns, but there’s a good chance Bungie will archive the event and never bring it back. Even if the event returns, Bungie are more likely to bring a new Exotic weapon to the table over Arbalest, keeping it’s status as a rare collector’s item intact.

The bottom line against the next rarest Exotic Fusion Rifles, One Thousand Voices and Jotunn, is that they’re available at any time.

Let us know what you think of this in the comments.