Best weapons for the Ghosts of the Deep dungeon in Destiny 2

Destiny 2’s Ghosts of the Deep dungeon is one of the tougher dungeons you can find in the game today, up there with the difficulty laid down by similarly chaotic gauntlets like Duality. More than most, the weapons that you bring down with you into the depths of Titan’s Arcology will define how successful—and how efficient—you will be in clearing the three main encounters with the Lucent Hive.

What is the optimal loadout for Destiny 2’s Ghosts of the Deep dungeon?

First encounter – the Hive ritual

Three Guardians in Destiny 2 running through a forest toward a tall, domed section of Titan's Arcology building. — Ghosts of the Deep’s opening won’t require too much initial prep. Image via Bungie

In Ghosts of the Deep’s first encounter, loadouts can be a lot more flexible than they are during the later fights that involve boss damage phases to contend with. Here, the focus of an optimal loadout is on speed and lethality. Regardless of whether you’re in a fireteam or solo, that means running your best ad clear build with whatever Special and Heavy weapons you’re most comfortable with.

Best weapons to disrupt the Hive ritual, as a fireteam or solo

The Forbearance grenade launcher from Destiny 2 in the weapon inspect screen. — Wave Frame grenade launchers remain king. Screengrab via Bungie

Primary
- Quicksilver Storm, CALUS Mini-Tool (with Incandescent), IKELOS SMG (with Voltshot)
Special
- Forbearance, Dead Messenger, Salvager’s Salvo
Heavy
- Gjallarhorn, Corrective Measure (with One For All)

We recommend players both running with a group and lone wolfing it should work with the old reliables here. Special grenade launchers, specifically Wave Frame grenade launchers such as Forbearance and Deafening Whisper, work great in this area due to their flatness. Depending on whether or not you’re already using your Exotic slot, you can even bring Dead Messenger along if you don’t have a good roll of a Legendary Wave Frame grenade launcher.

In your Heavy slot, it’s best to run either a rocket launcher or a heavy machine gun from our experience. Both weapon types are adept at clearing out the large groups of Hive that spawn in at each encampment and make quick work of the Hive Guardians and Ogres too when they start to get involved. Some of our fastest Hive ritual disruptions have come via Gjallarhorn paired with a double Special loadout, but alternatives like The Hothead or a machine gun with One For All work just as great.

We haven’t mentioned much about Primary weapons here, and that will be a running theme in this guide. As of Season of the Deep, Primary weapons have fallen to the wayside in many respects due to the prevalence of ability-focused builds encouraging players to use two Special weapons instead. If you are going to bring a Primary weapon into this encounter, Exotics such as Quicksilver Storm or a god-rolled CALUS Mini-Tool with Incandescent are your best bet.

Second encounter – Ecthar, the Shield of Savathun

Ecthar, a Hive Lightbearer Knight, fires at a Guardian during the second encounter of the Ghosts of the Deep dungeon. — Ecthar is a dangerous opponent to go up against. Image via Bungie

The second encounter against Ecthar is a chaotic, close-range affair with some of the highest enemy density in Destiny 2 today. That means your loadout needs to be built around close-quarters combat as well, but the exact nature of the guns that you bring will depend on your subclass and what the rest of your fireteam has equipped.

Best weapons to defeat Ecthar, as a fireteam

The Arbalest linear fusion rifle from Destiny 2 as seen in the weapon inspect screen. — Arbalest has proven itself to be a lifesaver in this dungeon. Screengrab via Bungie

Primary
- CALUS Mini-Tool (with Incandescent), IKELOS SMG (with Voltshot)
Special
- Arbalest, Wastelander M5 (with Trench Barrel), Deliverance (with Chill Clip), Acasia’s Dejection
Heavy
- Legend of Acrius, The Lament, Falling Guillotine, Tractor Cannon

A fireteam of Guardians has the benefit of building differently to complement each other and better optimize a damage phase against Ecthar. In both this and the final encounter against Simmumah, one player should have Arbalest equipped to be able to break the boss’ shield in a single shot at the start of the damage phase. This will drastically save both time and ammo at a moment when you want to have the longest damage phase possible.

For the other players, the Exotic you choose to bring varies depending on the setup. If you are using a Well of Radiance during damage—something we highly recommend—you can choose to use either swords or certain shotguns against Ecthar. For swords, you either want to be using The Lament or a well-rolled Falling Guillotine with Relentless Strikes and Whirlwind Blade. Alternatively, the Exotic shotguns in question are Legend of Acrius (if you have the catalyst) and Fourth Horseman.

Double Special loadouts will once again serve you well during the buildup phase where large groups of minor enemies need to be dispatched quickly. Running shotguns, fusion rifles, and trace rifles together is a safe bet since you’ll rarely have the breathing room to make use of more explosive alternatives that are just as likely to blow you up as the enemies standing directly on top of you. A Wastelander M5 or IKELOS SG with Trench Barrel is a great pairing to melee builds such as the Liar’s Handshake Arc Hunter that dominate this encounter.

Best weapons to defeat Ecthar, solo

The Lament Exotic sword from Destiny 2, displayed in the weapon inspect screen. — The Lament will be a safe option for many Guardians to take. Screengrab via Bungie

Ecthar is the first real hurdle in any solo run of Ghosts of the Deep. The build you bring is far more important than the weapons, but what’s crucial about the weapons you choose is that they ensure your survival when things start to get hectic toward the start of the damage phase. Our weapon loadout thoughts here are broken down based on subclass, which is something to take into consideration when planning out your own run as well.

Hunters are one of the strongest classes during the buildup phase where ad clear is the focus, but lack survivability in the damage phase. When running the Liar’s Handshake Arc build, you should pair it with two Special weapons that complement the style. This could be anything from two shotguns to a fusion rifle and a trace rifle, but what you take in should come equipped with perks like Trench Barrel or Reservoir Burst to maximize the value of each shot spent. Guns like the Wastelander M5, Until Its Return and PLUG ONE.1 are some good starting points.

In the damage phase, Hunters don’t have access to sources of healing that Warlocks and Titans do in their subclass. Because of this, The Lament is the only easy-to-recommend option here, as each successive hit will provide you with a burst of healing that should keep you sustained against the oncoming damage.

Titans have it a bit easier. The Synthoceps build with Solar Throwing Hammers and a Tractor Cannon has been a go-to for Titans for over a year now, and that isn’t about to change with Ecthar. The heavy reliance on your abilities to do the heavy lifting also means you can be a little more lax with your Special and Primary weapon slots, but you’ll still find that fusion rifles like Deliverance or trace rifles like Acasia’s Dejection will be great here.

Warlocks have similar recommendations to the Titans, with Sunbracers, Well of Radiance, and Phoenix Dive offering up all the survivability you need to be safe during the damage phase. Running a weapon like Legend of Acrius for the damage phase, if you have the catalyst, will be the way to go. If not, you’ll most likely want to rely on The Lament as well. Then, take anything with Incandescent in your other slots, such as Acasia’s Dejection or CALUS Mini-Tool, to enjoy some perfect synergy with your Solar subclass in the remainder of the encounter.

Third encounter – Simmumah ur-Nokru

The final boss of the Ghosts of the Deep dungeon, a Hive wizard, summoning glowing white moths. — Simmumah is a tough nut for any fireteam to crack. Image via Bungie

Ghosts of the Deep’s third encounter is one of the most challenging dungeon fights you can find in Destiny 2. Even as a fireteam, it’s pivotal that you bring the right weapons with you for the damage phase since Simmumah has a hefty health bar that will take you a long time to chunk down if you aren’t on top of things. This is especially the case for solo players, who will more than likely find themselves in this encounter for an hour or more.

Best weapons to defeat Simmumah, as a fireteam or solo

The Cataclysimic linear fusion rifle from Destiny 2, as displayed in the weapon inspect screen. — Linear fusion rifles are incredibly effective against Simmumah. Screengrab via Bungie

Primary
- Riskrunner, Quicksilver Storm, CALUS Mini-Tool (with Incandescent), IKELOS SMG (with Voltshot)
Special
- Arbalest, Witherhoard, Acasia’s Dejection, PLUG ONE.1, Pardon Our Dust
Heavy
- Cataclysmic, Taipan-4fr, Reed’s Regret, The Hothead, Gjallarhorn, Leviathan’s Breath

The damage phase against Simmumah is a ranged one, which means it’s finally time to break out the linear fusion rifles if you feel confident enough in your aim. Cataclysmic is the most popular choice here due to the existence of perks like Bait and Switch or Focused Fury, but alternatives like Reed’s Regret work just as great if you have a better roll of it. Whether you’re solo or in a fireteam, having Arbalest for the boss’ shield is even more crucial here than it is during the fight against Ecthar since Simmumah’s large health bar means every second of damage matters.

Players who are less confident in their aim can fall back on rocket launchers such as The Hothead, as long as it has tracking. Simmumah will move around from time to time during the damage phase, and it’s not worth the risk of wasting a rocket just because he shimmied to the side slightly after you fired a freehand one. Fireteams can also equip one player with Gjallarhorn to enhance everyone’s rocket damage against him.

There’s nothing particularly new here in the department of Special and Primary weapons that you should bring, but there are a few potential standouts that you might want to experiment with. There’s a lot of Arc damage in this encounter, which means that Riskrunner can make a case for itself as a useful Exotic Primary weapon to wield during the buildup between damage phases. Ranged grenade launchers like Witherhoard and Pardon our Dust too make an appearance in the recommendations now that combat is relegated to medium to long range. But players should still switch back to Arbalest before the damage phase begins.

Leviathan’s Breath has been a fascinating Exotic to see emerge as a DPS contender in this encounter, but players should be aware that they need the catalyst equipped if they want to use it over more traditional Heavy options like rocket launchers and linear fusion rifles. If you do have the catalyst, though, Leviathan’s Breath is well worth trying out for both full fireteams and solo players alike.