Telesto is one of those weapons that defines a Guardian if they can use it well. It’s one of the few that made the move from Destiny 1 over to Destiny 2, but it’s suffered along the way. Once it had range, but now that’s gone. Even so it can be a brutal weapon option for the Crucible, but what about the stats?
Telesto has a charge time of 780, Impact 85, Range 32, Stability 81, Magazine 4, Reload Speed 82, and Handling 52. The hidden stats are a Zoom of 15, Inventory Size 55, Aim Assistance 46, and Recoil Direction 66.
These stats aren’t outstanding but they are pretty damn good. This is all without a Perk affecting them as well, meaning they’re only going to be enhanced when you take those into account. From personal use I can vouch for the steadiness of this weapon, which only helps with obliterating you enemies in the Crucible. For PVE it’s also really great when used against those bullet sponge bosses who take forever to destroy. But let’s see what the Perks add to it.
The Exotic Perk, Unplanned Reprieve, makes fusion projectiles detonate with a delayed blast of Void energy. This turns Telesto into the Needler from Halo, and it’s glorious. Watching your projectiles build up on an enemy and then explode in a purple mess is both hilarious and satisfying.
The rest of the Perks are; Projection Fuse, which increases Range, Harbinger’s Pulse, which immediately reloads your Energy and Kinetic weapons on multi kills, and Polymer Grip, which increases Handling Speed.
The Perks optimise the best things about Telesto, making it even more of a savage weapon to murder your enemies with. But does that make it the best Exotic Fusion Rifle?
Merciless is the only competitor for the title of best Exotic Fusion Rifle. The thing is, Merciless isn’t very good. Compared to Telesto its Stats are all of the place, falling super low on the Handling and Stability front, which is of course what makes Telesto such a great weapon to use. However, the Exotic Perk on Merciless, Conserve Momentum, makes the weapon charge faster with each non-lethal hit. That faster charge rate does make a difference in a firefight, especially in the Crucible when every shot can be your last and make a big difference.
To conclude, I believe that yes Telesto is the best Exotic Fusion Rifle in Destiny 2. Merciless doesn’t beat it and it really does set itself out from the other Fusion Rifles with it’s Exotic Perk. If you reckon I’m wrong then please do let me know in the comments. I’d be interested to see what beats Telesto.
Image Source: MMOFashion
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