Arc was the final Light-based subclass to go under the knife, bringing Stasis’ Aspects and Fragments to the three subclasses that don’t use Darkness. The overhaul gave plenty of utility to a formerly defunct class that had little use outside of two damaging Supers (and that’s before we go into the former state of Arc Hunter).
The new Aspects and Fragments debuted alongside Season of Plunder, bringing in some much-needed firepower for the thunder-based subclasses. Like other iterations of the 3.0-ification of some subclasses, parts of classes’ kits were democratized to the rest—including Warlocks’ Ionic Traces and grenades from all three classes—to make a more dynamic experience. Though Arc 3.0 is still nascent and subject to balancing changes, fans are already picking their loadouts and making their builds.
Here are our best builds for each class based on the first iteration of Arc 3.0, before the rest of the Fragments become available.
Best Arc 3.0 Builds for Titans in Destiny 2
The Thundercrash: Cuirass of the Falling Star
Thundercrash has been the strongest suit of Arc Titans since the release of Cuirass of the Falling Star. Though the Super wasn’t directly buffed with the release of Arc 3.0, the Arc overhaul made the class all-around more useful and gave Thundercrash Titans more reason to bring the thunder to a fight. The core of this build revolves around Cuirass of the Falling Star and getting your Super, so Font of Wisdom + Elemental Well mods are essential. Throw in Elemental Ordnance and Bountiful Wells, then Ashes to Assets for extra Super energy on grenade kills. Touch of Thunder rounds out this build—since you’ll be using grenades for Ashes to Assets anyway, might as well get more bang for your buck. Throw in some Bomber mods too and use a Rally Barricade for the shorter cooldown.
- Aspects: Touch of Thunder is needed, but the choice between the other two is up to personal preference.
- Grenade: Any, though Titans get an extra
- Super: Thundercrash
- Fragments: Recharge, Shock, Resistance, Ions (when unlocked)
- Recommended mods: Font of Wisdom, Elemental Ordnance, Ashes to Assets (Solar, Helmet).
In Your Face: Melee Exotic + Juggernaut
Titans and punching often go fist in fist, and Arc 3.0 offers plenty of tools for Titans and Hunters to get up close and personal. There are a few Exotics that can buff Titans’ melee attacks—An Insurmountable Skullfort, Wormgod Caress, Synthoceps, Heart of Inmost Light, Peregrine Greaves, and Mk. 44 Stand-Asides come to mind. They all offer their own benefits, so pick your poison: your loop and build will be similar regardless of what you choose to do.
For the subclass-specific elements, you should run a combination of Juggernaut and Knockout due to their synergy. As far as equipment goes, Melee Wellmaker, Bountiful Wells, and Well of Ions work well together, though you can also add Elemental Charge and Heavy-Handed for more ability regen. Radiant Light is also a good choice to bolster up your Strength. This build is relatively vague, but Titans have a plethora of melee-enhancing Exotics to choose from, each with its own effects. Heart of Inmost Light and Skullfort are amazing for constant uptime, but Synthoceps and Wormgod Caress can help bring in the big damage numbers.
As far as the gameplay goes, use the melee attacks to become Amplified, then take advantage of the shield you’ll receive when sprinting from Juggernaut, which will be even more powerful due to Amplify.
- Aspects: Juggernaut, Knockout
- Grenade: Blinding Grenades
- Melee: Either (we run Seismic Strike for the mobility, but Thunderclap also shows potential)
- Fragments: Resistance, Feedback (when unlocked), Recharge.
- Recommended mods: Melee Wellmaker, Bountiful Wells (Solar), Well of Ions (Arc), Elemental Charge, Heavy-Handed (Arc) if in need of more ability regen.
Best Arc 3.0 Builds for Warlocks in Destiny 2
Unlimited Power: Crown of Tempests + Stormtrance
Bungie said Arc 3.0 Warlocks should feel like Emperor Palpatine, and this build delivers just that experience. Crown of Tempests is a solid Arc-based Exotics that grants you vastly improved ability regen and improved Stormtrance duration after a kill with an Arc ability or Jolt effect. It’s no Contraverse Hold or Nezarec’s Sin, but it’s a good option for Arc. Use your grenades to clear enemies and save your melee for when you have a good opening for a Lightning Surge or when you need a quick Conduction Tines. Throw in the Elemental Well mods of your choosing (we run Elemental Ordnance, Bountiful Wells, Elemental Charge, and Firepower) as well as Bomber in your class item. Aim for high Discipline if you want to focus on grenades, and high Recovery and Resilience can’t hurt.
- Aspects: Electrostatic Mind, Lightning Surge
- Super: Stormtrance
- Grenade: Storm Grenade
- Melee: Either
- Fragments: Resistance, Magnitude, Shock, Recharge. Swap Recharge for Ions once unlocked.
- Recommended mods: Elemental Ordnance, Bountiful Wells (Solar), Elemental Charge, Firepower (Solar)
It’s dangerous to go alone: Getaway Artist + Arc Soul
The dark hallways of Shadowkeep are less frightening if you have an Arc buddy with you, and this build lets you do just that. Getaway Artist allows you to sacrifice your grenade for a Sentient Arc Soul, which lasts 20 seconds and Amplifies you for 15 seconds. Kills from your Arc Soul will generate Ionic Traces for extra ability energy, and if your Arc buddy is going away, you can always cast down your Rift to renew its 20-second timer. The Arc Soul’s duration won’t deplete if you’re standing on a Rift, and its kills will generate more than enough ability energy to refill your grenade and Rift. Throw in your Elemental Well mods of choice and you’re all set.
- Aspects: Electrostatic Mind, Arc Soul
- Grenade: Either
- Melee: Either
- Fragments: Resistance, Magnitude, Shock, Volts. Swap Recharge for Ions once unlocked. Discharge also works if you’re using an Arc weapon.
Ol’ Reliable: Chaos Reach + Geomags
MIddle tree Warlocks likely wanted to either wear Geomags all the time or avoid it like the plague when Arc 3.0 was released, though the Light subclass overhaul didn’t really change the Super that much. Chaos Reach still suffers when compared to other Arc Supers like Thundercrash and Gathering Storm, especially if the Hunter is using Star-Eater Scales, but it’s still better for boss damage than Stormtrance.
For this build, you’ll lean heavily into grenades and Elemental Wells. You’ll also make use of the Arc Soul for the Ionic Trace generation, and you’ll jolt enemies with your grenades to make for more Ionic Traces with Electrostatic Mind. The goal is to have plenty of ability generation.
- Aspects: Electrostatic Mind, Arc Soul
- Grenade: Either
- Melee: Either
- Fragments: Shock, Resistance, Magnitude, Volts (swap for Ions when unlocked)
- Recommended mods: Font of Wisdom, Ashes to Assets (Helmet, Solar), Bomber (Class Item, Solar), Elemental Ordnance, Bountiful Wells.
Best Arc 3.0 Builds for Hunters in Destiny 2
Bring the damage: Star-Eater Scales + Gathering Storm
Gathering Storm, the new Hunter Super, is the star of the show for Hunter Arc 3.0 builds. And if you want to lean hard into it, then Star-Eater Scales is the way to go. The leg armor Exotic will buff your Super each time you get an Orb of Power, so make sure to have the proper Siphon mods on your helmet. Bring Font of Wisdom and Hands-On (Helmet) as well for the extra Super recharge.
There isn’t much of a secret to this build and it’s fairly flexible. Star-Eaters does not factor strongly into a playstyle since its main use is buffing Supers, so these recommendations are general suggestions for Fragments.
- Aspects: Any (but the combo of Flow State and Lethal Current is too hard to pass up on)
- Super: Gathering Storm
- Grenade: Either
- Melee: Either
- Fragments: Amplitude (unlocks after World First King’s Fall completion), Discharge, Resistance, Feedback (not yet unlocked)
- Recommended mods: Font of Wisdom, Hands-On (Helmet), corresponding Siphon mod (Helmet), Powerful Friends (Arc).
If you wanna lean hard into the Orbs of Power mechanic, however, Spark of Amplitude will create Orbs of Power in Multikills while you’re Amplified. And if you’re already running an Arc weapon for Harmonic Siphon, Spark of Discharge will give you extra ability energy from Ionic Traces. Sprinkle in Taking Charge if you want to dip into Charged with Light and Powerful Friends if you want +20 Mobility.
One-inch Punch: Liar’s Handshake + Lethal Current
Liar’s Handshake was a relatively niche and almost universally fun build before Arc 3.0, but the new subclass offers tools to lean into the melee element of the subclass. With Liar’s Handshake, casting your Arc melee ability or being hit by a melee attack lets you throw in a punch that will heal you, which makes it suitable for the “lightning monk” role Hunters seem to have in Arc 3.0.
Lethal Current introduces a useful jolt-blind loop that will make it harder for enemies to hit you, and with the series of melee-affecting Fragments in Arc 3.0, you can get some damage resistance just by standing near enemies. The two Hunter Aspects make a solid combo: your melees will jolt your targets while killing a Jolted target will make you Amplified. Throw in Melee Wellmaker and Well of Ions, and you can also run Well of Striking or lean into Charged With Light territory by using Elemental Charge. Bring a One-Two Punch shotgun if you want more mayhem. Flow State also gives you extreme damage reduction on a well-timed dodge, which can function as an emergency button in a pinch.
- Aspects: Flow State, Lethal Current
- Super: Gathering Storm
- Grenade: Either
- Melee: Combination Blow
- Fragments: Resistance, Focus, Frequency, and Recharge. You can use Shock for an extra source of Jolt.
- Recommended mods: Melee Wellmaker, Well of Ions (Arc), Well of Striking (Arc), Utility Kickstart (Stasis, Class Item) or Perpetuation (Void, Class Item). Powerful Friends’ extra 20 Mobility is also not a bad choice.
