There are nine different subclasses to choose from inDestiny 2, and most of the play significantly different from each other.
Hunters really have some variety when it comes to how each subclass accomplished what it does. For this list, let’s take a look at the Arcstrider subclass, and how to get the most out of it in Crucible.
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10ARC STAFF
No matter which path you choose to go down in the Arcstrider class, you’ll still be using the same super: Arc Staff. The Arc Staff gives you a staff with which you can use to attack your fellow Guardians, generally one-shotting anyone with a hit. Getting the most out of the super requires closing the gap on enemies pretty quickly, or else getting the drop on them with a nice flank.
9GRENADES
The three grenades available with the Arcstrider subclass are the Skip Grenade, the Flux Grenade, and the Arcbolt Grenade. Each of these performs very differently in Crucible, so let’s get into the strengths and weaknesses of each:
The Skip Grenade is generally the one that most people avoid using in Crucible. It can be a little bit inconsistent and usually requires aiming down to skip it along to a Guardian instead of either aiming at or just above like most other grenades, which can be a little counterintuitive for some people.
The Flux Grenade is a pretty good choice, especially for Guardians that are good at aiming projectiles. These stick to Guardians instead of bouncing off of whatever they hit, making it unavoidable damage if it’s a good throw.
The Arcbolt Grenade is a good choice if you get into a lot of engagements with a lot of enemies at the same time. It chains lightning across multiple enemies, so even if some enemies weren’t in the blast radius, as long as they’re close enough to another enemy, they’ll still take damage.
8DODGING
There are two dodges available to the Hunter class, and they’re the same for each subclass: Marksman’s Dodge, and Gambler’s Dodge.
When activated, the Marksman’s Dodge reloads you weapon, making it a great choice when using weapons that would otherwise take a while to reload.
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When activated, the Gambler’s Dodge recharges your melee ability, but only when near at enemy at the time of dodging.
7DOUBLE/TRIPLE JUMP
The Hunter Class has access to three different mobility abilities: High Jump, Strafe Jump, and Triple Jump.
High Jump enables the Double Jump to get a little bit higher. If you aren’t worried about maneuverability, this is a good movement ability.
The Strafe Jump doesn’t allow you to jump as high as with High Jump, but it does give you quite a bit more in-air control.
Triple Jump gives two smaller jumps to use as opposed to one extra jump. This is pretty good for staying versatile in the air.
6MELEE
The Arcstrider melee ability is a bit more of the default kind of melee ability, as opposed to the abilities for the other two Hunter Subclasses. There are basically three flavors the ability can come in, depending on which skill tree you choose; it can disorient enemies, making it easier to get that follow-up finisher off before the enemy can return in kind. It can trigger health regeneration and increase melee damage. Lastly, it can be connected to sliding, allowing you to have a powerful melee attack immediately after closing the gap on an enemy with a slick slide.
5WAY OF THE WARRIOR
The Way Of The Warrior has the abilities: Combination Blow, Combat Flow, Lethal Current, and Deadly Reach. Combination Blow can be super beneficial in Crucible, especially if your opponent doesn’t hit you immediately after you hit them. The health regen can bring you back up to full health from whatever you were at (helped along by your Recovery stat), and can keep you in the fray longer.
Combat Flow goes hand in hand making good use of your melee, as melee kills recharge your dodge ability. Your dodge ability can then recharge your melee ability, and so on.
Lethal Current can be nice for some area denial, creating lightning aftershocks after an Arc Staff hit right after you dodge.
Deadly Reach increases your melee range after dodging, which can go a long way towards closing the melee-gap on your enemy with frightening speed. Much of Way Of The Warrior revolves around making constant and smart use of your dodge ability.
4WAY OF THE CURRENT
The Way Of The Current has the abilities: Whirlwind Guard, Tempest Strike, Ebb and Flow, and Lightning Weave. Whirlwind Guard allows you to block incoming projectiles, and blocking projectiles increases Arc Staff damage for a short time. This doesn’t really benefit you much in Crucible.
Tempest Strike is the melee ability for Way Of The Current, allowing you to have an uppercut attack while sliding. This can be very nice if you put a high value on mobility.
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Ebb and Flow electrifies enemies when they’re hit by an Arc ability. Meleeing those enemies then disorients them and recharges all of your abilities. This also doesn’t have a ton of use in Crucible, as there aren’t going to be many times that you hit somebody with a grenade and then melee them.
Lightning Weave increases weapon reload speed when you melee somebody. This can be pretty useful in Crucible if you’re using melee as a finisher after you’ve already unloaded a bit of your weapon on the enemy.
3WAY OF THE WIND
The Way Of The Wind has the abilities: Disorienting Blow, Focused Breathing, Lightning Reflexes, and Combat Meditation. Disorienting Blow will disorient the enemy you melee and nearby enemies. This isn’t going to be too great for Crucible as it doesn’t really make that big of an impact on visibility.
Focused Breathing recharges your dodge ability while you sprint, but it also increases your maximum sprint speed. It’s not a super noticeable bump, but if you’re already stacking the mobility stat, it can be helpful.
Lightning Reflexes makes you harder to kill while dodging. This is basically a flat buff to dodging, so it’s helpful in just about any situation.
Combat Meditation allows your melee and grenades recharge faster when you’re critically wounded. This probably isn’t going to be that helpful in Crucible, because you don’t typivally spend long periods of time critically wounded becoming, y’know, dead.
2LIAR’S HANDSHAKE
One exotic armor piece that can be very helpful for Arcstriders is the Liar’s Handshake. Because a lot of the powerful Crucible abilities for the Arcstrider revolve around melee abilities, the Liar’s Handshake is a great fit. Getting hit with an enemy’s melee, or meleeing an enemy yourself, enables your next melee ability to do an incredible amount of damage, and heal a portion of your health. This can be great for outnumbered, close-range engagements.
1BUILT FOR CLOSE-RANGE
As mentioned before, the Arcstrider is all about those melee abilities in Crucible. The Way Of The Warrior is likely the best fit for a lot of Arcstrider’s in Crucible, as it has a few different abilities that are going to make a noticeable difference, especially when you’re making a conscious effort to make use of them.
For tips on the Gunslinger subclass in Crucible,click here. For tips on the Nightstalker subclass in Crucible,click here.
