Sidearms are one of the more underappreciated weapon types in Destiny 2. They are close-range but are capable of dealing one of the highest primary ammo DPS in the game. With the launch of the Warlord’s Ruin Dungeon, Rocket-Assisted Frame Sidearms were introduced in the game. These became very popular in PvE thanks to having both Range and high damage. This weapon type, however, uses special ammo instead of Primary. This list will go over three of the best Sidearms in the game thanks to what they bring to the table and the perk combinations they have.
Aberrant Action
Aberrant Action is a Rocket-Assisted Frame Sidearm that has Solar affinity. This weapon was released in Episode: Echoes and comes with the Origin Trait called Radiolaria Transposer. This allows rapid final blows with the weapons to create a pool of fluid that damages the enemies inside. It has some amazing perk options that allow it to synergize well with the Solar subclass.
Aberrant Action comes with 14 perk options. In the left column, the perk options are Heal Clip, Ambitious Assassin, Threat Detector, Beacon Rounds, Field Prep, Pugilist, and Strategist. In the right column, the perk options available are Incandescent, Reverberation, Swashbuckler, Demolitionist, Golden Tricorn, Harmony, and Snapshot Sights. The ideal perk combination on this weapon will be:
- Barrel: Hard Launch
- Magazine: High-Velocity Rounds
- Masterwork: Reload Speed
- Left Perk: Pugilist, Heal Clip
- Right Perk: Incandescent
Final Warning – Destiny 2 Exotic
Final Warning is an Exotic Sidearm that was released with the launch of the Lightfall expansion. This Exotic is amazing and allows the weapon to deal insane primary ammo damage. This weapon comes with the Exotic Perk called Pick Your Poison. It allows the weapon to fire in two modes. Hip-firing the weapon allows it to shoot projectiles that track targets and deal increased body damage to them. Aiming down sights allows the projectiles to gain greatly increased projectile velocity and allows them to deal Precision damage. This increase in damage is only applied to those combatants that have been marked by the weapon.
This weapon also comes with the intrinsic trait called All at Once. It allows the weapon to be held down to charge up. Charging up the weapon allows it to release a burst of projectiles. The number of projectiles depends on how much Final Warning is charged. While the trigger is held, nearby enemies are also marked. Hitting a marked target with a fully charged burst also Unravels them, which is a Strand debuff. In Episode: Echoes Final Warning also received an Exotic Catalyst. This allows the weapon to deal bonus damage to marked combatants and also has a chance to refund ammo to the magazine.
Tinasha’s Mastery
Tinasha’s Mastery is one of the best PvE weapons in Destiny 2. Released in Episode: Revenant, it drops from Iron Banner and is a Rocket-Assisted Frame Sidearm. It is the first of its kind and has Stasis affinity. The main appeal of this weapon comes from its ability to roll with the perk Chill Clip. It allows it to slow enemies with just a single hit as well as freeze enemies with two hits. This makes it one of the most Stasis synergistic weapons as well as a great tool to counter Overload and Unstoppable champions.
This weapon comes with 14 perk options. In the left column, this weapon has access to Reverberation, Loose Change, Impulse Amplifier, Enlightened Action, Deconstruct, Offhand Strike, and Air Trigger. In the right column, the perks available are Surrounded, One for All, Frenzy, Desperate Measures, Chill Clip, Bait and Switch, and Adagio. The ideal perk combination on this weapon is:
- Barrel: Hard Launch
- Magazine: High-Velocity Rounds
- Masterwork: Reload Speed
- Left Perk: Loose Change
- Right Perk: Chill Clip
