Published , by Sam Chandler
Published , by Sam Chandler
chunking boss health bars in PVE. As Void, Aggressive Frame, 55 RPM shotty, this thing can benefit from a few choice perks, specifically One-Two Punch or Trench Barrel.
A Sudden Death is a reward from the second encounter, the hexahedron, in the Prophecy dungeon. This fight is also referred to as the Cube. Make sure you check out our featured dungeon schedule so you know when you can farm this fight and get your own god roll. We’ve got a Prophecy loot table as well, so you can see what other weapons are available.
When it comes to a Shotgun for the Crucible, few others can be as monstrous as A Sudden Death. This thing benefits from a new Origin perk that makes it lethal whether the magazine is full or almost empty.
| A Sudden Death god roll - PVP | |
|---|---|
| Barrel | Corkscrew Rifling (Stability +5, Range +5, Handling +5) |
| Magazine | Accurized Rounds (Range +10) |
| Perk 1 | Slideshot (Sliding partially reloads this weapon’s magazine and temporarily boosts range and stability) |
| Perk 2 | Opening Shot (Improve accuracy and range on the opening shot of attack) |
| Origin Trait | Crossing Over (This weapon has increased range and handling for the top half of the magazine, while rounds from the bottom half of the magazine deal increase damage) |
| Masterwork | Range (+10 when fully masterworked) |
| Mod | Sprint Grip (Temporarily increases the weapon’s ready speed and aim down sights speed after sprinting) |
While Smallbore is often a top pick for a barrel, Corkscrew Rifling offers only 2 less points in Stability and Range but adds Handling, which can make a huge difference in Crucible. The faster you get the weapon out and firing, or up to your face, the better chance you have of winning the duel. Accurized Rounds remains a king, with its 10 point boost to Range.
Slideshot remains one of those perks that are aggravating to play against. Not only will it reload the shotty, it will also boost its Range and Stability. Throw on Opening Shot, and that first round (or your next shot after a few seconds of no shooting) will be deadly accurate. This is especially true with Crossing Over.
Now, some might like to go for Barrel Constrictor, and that is a fine perk, but it’s a win-later perk. You need to secure a kill, which will help you net the next kill, provided you get it in a few seconds.
Load up with a Range Masterwork for all the obvious reasons and slap on Sprint Grip. You’re going to be sprinting in order to slide anyway, so boost that Handling further!
There are a couple of other Shotguns that do a similar thing to A Sudden Death, but the advantage of this one is that you can go two routes: boosting pellet damage or boosting melee damage.
| A Sudden Death god roll - PVE | |
|---|---|
| Barrel | Corkscrew Rifling (Stability +5, Range +5, Handling +5) |
| Magazine | Tactical Mag (Magazine +1, Reload Speed +10, Stability +5) |
| Perk 1 | Envious Assassin (Defeating targets with other weapons before drawing this one transfers ammo to the magazine from reserves. This effect can overflow the magazine based on the number of targets defeated) |
| Perk 2 | One-Two Punch (Hitting an enemy with every pellet in a shot increases melee damage for a short duration) |
| Origin Trait | Crossing Over (This weapon has increased range and handling for the top half of the magazine, while rounds from the bottom half of the magazine deal increase damage) |
| Masterwork | Handling(+10 when fully masterworked) |
| Mod | Boss Spec |
As with the PVP god roll, Corkscrew Rifling is just a lovely all-rounder. Enjoy the three-stat boost. Tactical Mag is the difference here, as you’ll increase the base magazine size, and improve the reload speed and stability, which is helpful if you burn through your ammo and boss damage is still happening.
Next up, Envious Assassin is superb, as you’ll be overflowing the magazine as you lead into boss DPS phases. For Arc Hunters, One-Two Punch is the winner. Land all your pellets and your Combination Blow melee will do just a ludicrous amount of damage.
Now, if you’re not an Arc Hunter and you’d prefer to just boost pellet damage, drop One-Two Punch for Trench Barrel. Note that proccing Envious Assassin may mean you’ll be blowing through more ammo before you can activate the damage increase portion of Crossing Over. For this reason, you may prefer something else – maybe Repulsor Brace for the overshield.
Round this off with a Handling Masterwork. This will make it easier to aim at bosses when hot-swapping and if you need Range, you should be using another Shotgun like Nessa’s Obligation, Heritage, or Gunnora’s Axe. After all, A Sudden Death is a close range weapon and the others are slugs!
A Sudden Death is a great Shotgun, especially if you can secure a god roll. A PVP roll will rapidly shred through foes while a PVE drop can either work into a melee build or one that sees a boost in weapon damage. Swing by our Destiny 2 Strategy Guide for a ton of other weapon recommendations.