By Anastasia Maillot
Updated
The Gjallarhorn Exotic rocket launcher is one of the best heavy weapons in Destiny 2, and its catalyst is a must-have.
.jpg "Destiny 2: How To Get The Gjallarhorn Catalyst (& What It Does) (1)")
When it comes to weapons that have defined the Destiny franchise over the years, the Gjallarhorn comes to mind first and foremost. The Exotic rocket launcher was so iconic and powerful in the first Destiny game that most players could have hardly endgame content without the trusted Gjally.
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It was no surprise, then, that Gjallarhorn made its comeback in Destiny 2. Players can now get their hands on this famous rocket launcher, as well as its catalyst that remarkably improves it. Better yet, the Gjallarhorn has become more viable following the end of the Particle Deconstruction era, so it's definitely worth upgrading. Here's how to get Gjallarhorn's catalyst and what it does in Destiny 2.
Updated on April 7, 2023, by PaulAn'drey Pierre-Louis:When Bungie announced a Gjallerhorn nerf going in Season 19 many players were understandably disappointed, but the rationale for it did make sense. In Bungie's words, it was both "the highest DPS Rocket Launcher and a great support weapon for Legendary Rocket Launchers" so the nerf was to reign it in a bit. Two seasons later Gjallerhorn remains a powerhouse and a worthwhile addition to any guardian's arsenal, especially in the Season 20 meta which is coincidentally rocket launcher centric.
How To Get The Gjallarhorn Exotic Rocket Launcher In Season 20
The famous rocket launchers originally introduced in the first Destiny game made a ceremonious comeback in November 2021, when Bungie released its 30th Anniversary update for Destiny 2, along with a ton of other returning nostalgia weapons. As a result, Gjally is only available for players who have purchased the update on their respective platform.
For players who already have the 30th Anniversary DLC, they can navigate over to this dedicated guide on how exactly they can get the Gjallarhorn and what kind of activities they'll need to do to complete the entire questline. Since it's a "new" Exotic for Destiny 2, the rocket launcher has its own quest rather than being something that can be purchased from the Monument to Lost Lights. So, some degree of grinding is necessary.
How To Get The Catalyst
- Complete the Grasp of Avarice dungeon after receiving the Gjallarhorn, and defeat special enemies.
After players have the Gjally, they'll need to head back into the Grasp of Avarice dungeon found either in Eternity or in the Cosmodrome. This time, they'll need to be on the lookout for three different types of special yellow-bar enemies that spawn throughout the dungeon.
- The first is on a ledge behind the Shrieker in the first cave area that players drop into after opening the loot cave.
- The second is in the large room prior to entering a ventilation duct to head to the first ogre boss.
- The third one is by the waterfall area in the Fallen shield encounter.
The goal is to damage these enemies until they drop a fake engram. Players need to pick it up to apply the Burden of Riches debuff and then run to a nearby chest that can only be opened while this debuff timer is active. For each of these yellow bars, here's where their respective chest is located:
- First enemy: The chest is located back across the crystal bridge where players came from, on top of a metallic walkway.
- Second enemy: The chest is located directly on the right on a platform in the large waterlogged room just before the boss fight against the ogre.
- Third enemy: The chest is on top of a building on the center island in the Fallen shield encounter. Players will need to be fast to get to it from where the enemy spawns, as it's the hardest to reach.
- Defeat targets to upgrade the catalyst.
After finishing the quest, players will just need to defeat targets to upgrade the catalyst for the Gjallarhorn. The amount is 400 enemies, which, given the Gjallarhorn's ability to kill a bunch of enemies at once, shouldn't be too difficult of a task.
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Players can easily do this while playing a game mode like Dares of Eternity and only use the Gjallarhorn, as Starhorse's favor is an easy buff to earn during Dares and grants infinite heavy ammo charge during the second encounter.
What The Catalyst Does
- More Wolves: Magazine size is increased by 1 rocket. When a target dies to Wolfpack Rounds final blows, it spawns a stronger and faster missile at the target's location.
When players first get their hands on Gjallarhorn, they will only have one rocket in the chamber before they need to reload. The More Wolves perk buffs this to two, allowing players to shoot double rockets before being forced to reload their weapons, which is a huge difference for rocket launchers.
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The More Wolves perk also plays nicely into the Wolfpack Rounds perk, which not only splits the shooter's missiles into small cluster missiles but also gives anyone with even a Legendary rocket launcher Wolfpack Rounds if they're in the shooter's vicinity.
Is The Gjallarhorn And Its Catalyst Worth It?
Despite the 25% nerf the Gjallarhorn received in season 19, the weapon is still an absolute must-have due to its versatility and ease of use. As it stands, it is not the best rocket launcher in a lot of areas, especially in DPS, but it is a must-have for any fireteam as rocket launchers are the go-to heavy weapon for DPS phases in season 20. This is because of the Wolfpack Rounds perk, which will further buff the effects of Legendary rocket launchers like a well-rolled Hothead, granting them cluster missiles.
The strategy is to have one person on Gjally duty, and others using rockets with high-damage perks like Explosive Light. Because of this, having at least one Gjallarhorn in the fireteam if players favor rockets is a must.
That being said, Gjally is gated behind a paid DLC and isn't available to just every player in the game. It's up to each player to decide whether they care about the weapon enough to pay for it or not. Luckily, season 20 has been flexible in terms of damage, and there are plenty of other ways to kill bosses that don't involve rocket launchers.
Destiny 2: Lightfall was released on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
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